Abstract
This article provides an account of the Hoechst Group's research and development activities in Japan as well as the overall R&D setting in which they are conducted. Foreign-affiliated chemical companies in Japan cannot limit themselves to the mere sale of their products but as a result of the nature of the relation between users and suppliers are forced to manufacture as well as conduct R&D in Japan itself. Several reasons are given; first, some of the most advanced components of carious chemical products are produced in Japan; second, suppliers and users interact according to a cyclical pattern consisting in the provision of the product to the users for their evaluation and suggestions, to which follows production according to the new requirements and the subsequent renewed handing out of the improved product to the users. This interaction pattern permits a smooth adaptation of the product to the demand of the consumers and their speedy acceptance of it once placed in the market. Third, Japanese consumers are very demanding in their quality requirements. Fourth, foreign-affiliated chemical companies require speedy communication between the headquarters in the country concerned and the technological development division in Japan. The Hoechst Group conducts R&D in Western Europe, the United States and Japan to make the best use of R&D resources available in these regions and to position itself close to the market. Hoechst Japan undertook pharmaceutical research in the 1960's, applied R&D on electronics materials, fine chemicals and agricultural chemicals in the 1980's, and research on the technology of advanced materials in 1990.
