Topics & Information
The History of Technological Developments of the Paper Industry in Japan
Part 7 : Summary and Discussion
2016 Volume 70 Issue 5 Pages 510-514
Details
2016 Volume 70 Issue 5 Pages 510-514
After the Meiji Restoration, printing (letter press) and packaging (carton and container) were introduced as a new life style, and paper for them, called“yoshi“, was imported. Then, the domestic paper industry was born to supply those kinds of paper. It, however, took thirty years for the industry to take off. Since then, the industry grew at the rate of6-10%a year, supported by the steady growth of GDP which was three percent a year, and replaced the imported products. I believe that the thirty years before the takeoff was the preparatory period for the technological development of the industry.
One fact contributing the takeoff was a group of engineers who graduated from Tokyo Higher Technical School (Tokyo Institute of Technology). They had chances of visiting abroad while young, and innovatively led mill constructions and operation thereafter.
Regarding building paper machines, Japan started by copying imported machines. Then, Japanese iron works imitated newest technologies in imported ones, and finally supplied half a number of paper machines installed in Japan. Auxiliary equipment were also made by domestic suppliers.
The most important characteristics of the Japanese paper industry is to have had interest in wood pulp in its early age (10 years later than America) and to have built integrated pulp and paper mills. They started using softwood in Fuji and Kiso areas, and moved to Hokkaido and then to Sakhalin, and built mills big enough to be competitive like Tomakomai mill of Oji Paper Co.
It is believed that the high levels of culture and technology in the Edo period, one of which was high literacy rate, helped the growth of the Meiji era. People and goods in the Edo period, however, could not move so freely as in Europe of the Industrial Revolution. The Meiji era released this restriction and the technology began to develop dynamically along with cultural evolution. The paper contributed to this development as a mean of helping free movement of information and materials.
