2009 Volume 64 Issue 2 Pages 45-62
In this paper, the formative processes and dynamics of nationwide civil engineering contractors were analyzed. The findings obtained were as follows. 1) In the era of high-speed growth, under intense demands for civil engineering works in the private and public sectors, several second-tier or newly established contractors caught up with the major nationwide ones in terms of both sales volume and rank in public works sector. These rapidly growing companies were classified as follows: (1) Toda, Konoike, Fujita, and Takenaka Civil Eng. & Const., which or whose parent companies dominated the architecture sectors, achieved rapid growth through publicity in the architecture sector and receiving works accompanying architecture projects; (2) Tokyu, Mitsui, and Dainihon, established during or immediately after World War II, were members of nationwide business groups, or keiretsu. They monopolistically received projects from their group companies. Furthermore, their growing sales and numerous experiences gave them a competitive edge in their subsequent non-group projects; (3) Fudo, whose soil improvement technique became prominent in the coastal industrial areas, also achieved rapid growth. 2) After the collapse of this high-speed growth in 1973, the amount of private investment for plants and equipment experienced a rapid decline. Three leading nationwide civil engineering contractors, Kajima, Taisei, and Kumagai, were severely damaged by this decline, losing their superior standing in terms of sales volume. The rapid growth of the contractors mentioned above also slowed down; however, they maintained their sales volumes. As these results suggest, nationwide civil engineering contractors, which comprised about 30 companies with similar sales volumes, were formed during the late 1970s and sustained their status until recent years. 3) In the post-high economic growth era, the contractors that achieved rapid growth seem to have been obliged to offer considerable discounts to maintain their sale volumes and ranks the in public works sector. Therefore, their profitability dropped to extremely low levels. On the other hand, the large civil engineering enterprises that established their head offices in non-metropolitan areas had difficulty entering the metropolitan markets because of the architecture-centered market structure and vast differences in business customs. Nevertheless, they were able to maintain high profits in the post-high economic growth era due to the favor of the public institutes within their areas.
