The Competitive Advantage of Shimadzu in the Japanese X-ray Device Industry before World War II

Abstract

Although the German multinational enterprise Siemens dominated the global market of X-ray devices during the first half of the twentieth century, it was unable to maintain its advantage against Shimadzu in Japan, despite the technological superiority of its products. This article analyses hence the sources of Shimadzu's competitiveness.

Shimadzu is a family-firm founded in Kyoto in 1875 and specialized in the production of scientific instruments, medical devices, and various parts. It engaged actively in the development of radiological equipment, making the first X-ray image in Japan (1896), and developing a first X-ray device for medical purpose in 1908. Then, during the 1920s, Shimadzu established as the largest producer of X-ray devices in Japan. This success relied on three major points: the internalization of technological capabilities (recruitment of university graduate engineers, subcontracting of R&D activities); the co-development of equipment and devices with medical doctors (joint R&D); and an original communication policy towards the medical world (participation to academic activities, organization of conferences, opening of a training center for X-ray technicians).

Finally, this article demonstrates that Shimadzu was able to adapt foreign technology to the specificities of the Japanese medical market. Unlike Western countries, the Japanese hospital system consists in a large number of small private hospitals clustered in urban areas. Competition between them was a driving force for the diffusion of X-ray devices, but their limited budget, due to their small size, made it necessary to develop devices that were lighter, simpler, and cheaper than equipment manufactured by Siemens. Shimadzu understood this need and marketed X-ray devices suitable for the Japanese domestic market. However, it was difficult to export them to Western Europe and the US.