2025 Volume 39 Issue 2 Pages 40-54
This study examines mechanization, automation, and digitalization at the production floor level in Japan’s fabrication and assembly industry through a case study of Daikin Industries’ Rinkai Plant, and explores the factors driving these developments. Three key findings emerge.First, multi-product and variable-volume production demands the simultaneous achievement of productivity, quality, lead-time reduction, and production flexibility. The Rinkai Plant has established a flexible and efficient production system by integrating line modularization, small versatile equipment, partial automation, and adaptable human operations, based on the Toyota Production System (TPS) and its unique Production and Demand Synchronization (PDS) system.Second, human judgment, experience, and flexible personnel deployment remain crucial. Human-centered and flexible automation and digitalization enhance responsiveness to production fluctuations and continuous improvement, highlighting the critical role of human–machine collaboration.Third, driving factors include market diversification and rapid response to short lead times, advances in IoT and robotics, the decline of skilled workers, people-centered management philosophy and institutional culture, and flexible utilization of non-regular employees. These interrelated factors support a production system fundamentally based on human–machine collaboration.
