抄録
This article presents the overseas R&D facilities of Kobe Steel, including their purposes, historical background, R&D themes and management. Kobe Steel has one research laboratory in the United Kingdom and two research laboratories and one development centre in the United States. They carry out R&D on electronic materials, high polymer composite materials, and diamond thin film. The main reasons that have pushed Kobe Steel to set up R&D facilities overseas are to develop new technologies through alliances with overseas R&S entities, to come up with new businesses through accrued access to leas uses, and to enhance the worldwide exposure and activity of its researchers, engineers and R&D managers. Numerous steps were gone through before setting up those facilities. The most crucial factor is to establish a relationship with neighbouring universities and research centres as well as to contribute to these institutions. With regard to the management of overseas R&D facilities, the most important issues to consider are the orientation of R&D themes along corporate or business strategy, the allocation of resources, and the accumulation of technological information given the high mobility of R&D staff. To discuss these matters, Kobe steel holds annual meetings of its Steering Committee made up of representatives from its laboratories in the UK, USA and Japan. Concerning transfers of technology across borders, Kobe Steel adheres to the different regulations governing the management of technological information in each country while pursuing its own policy on intellectual property matters. Further, Kobe Steel has specific programmes to allow researchers, R&D managers and legal staff to study abroad, and to receive researchers from abroad.
