Nisshin Shipping is celebrating a half-century in business with a 61-ship newbuilding investment that will more than double its fleet.

The ordering spree has turned Nisshin into Japan’s fastest-growing shipowner, and its 116 vessels will make it the country’s third-largest independent tonnage supplier behind Shoei Kisen and Nissen Shipping.

The growth has been orchestrated under the leadership of president and founder Y Fujii, now in his 80s, who has his own way of doing business.