Annals of the Society for Industrial Studies, Japan
Online ISSN : 1884-1015
Print ISSN : 0918-7162
ISSN-L : 0918-7162
Volume 2017, Issue 32
Displaying 1-16 of 16 articles from this issue
Articles
  • Yoshihiko Akashi
    2017Volume 2017Issue 32 Pages 1-12
    Published: 2017
    Released on J-STAGE: April 01, 2018
    JOURNAL FREE ACCESS

    We estimated that the ratio of the sales of the creative industries to those of the whole Japanese industries is 2.0 % in 2014 and the ratio of the number of employees of them is 4.2 % in 2012. The creative industries as a whole don’t show the expansion, but some industries have grown recently in Japan.

    The improved outlook and feel may inspire favorable impression of the products and may promote the willingness-to-pay of consumers. The aesthetic improvement of the products may depend on the criterion which is ranked objectively in terms of the quality of products, and this is the case of the vertical product differentiation. Then, the aesthetic improvement can be regarded as an innovation, as Stoneman (2010) proposed. On the contrary, the increase of the kind of products or the products variants may promote willingness-to-pay of consumers, but it depends on the subjective values of each consumer, and is not ranked objectively in terms of quality of products. Then, the product variation is not an innovation, but the horizontal product differentiation. About the spiritual, social, historical, and symbolic values as the components of the cultural values (Throsby, 2001), we can see that messages such like symbol, expression, identity, etc. are impressive characteristics of them. However, the criterion of these values is subjective and is independent of the ranking in terms of quality of products. Stoneman suggested that the increase or change of the kind of products and the aesthetic improvement of the products both can be regarded as a soft innovation, but we don’t think so. We understand that it needs to observe the quality ranking order of new products to be an innovation in the creative industries.

    There are a lot of issues. There is a large gap between conceptual consideration and the available statistics to implement the empirical study. Also, we must make clear the relationship between the cultural industries and the creative industries, as well as the terminology of the basic word ‘creative’.

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  • As Seen in the Activities of Creative Network Center Osaka Mebic Ogimachi
    Satoshi Dono
    2017Volume 2017Issue 32 Pages 13-23
    Published: 2017
    Released on J-STAGE: April 01, 2018
    JOURNAL FREE ACCESS

    This paper is an on-site report from the Osaka Creative Industry Promotion initiative, in which the author has been engaged for 14 years at Creative Network Center Osaka Mebic Ogimachi.

    Osaka’s creative industry is faced with the following four challenges:

    (1) A strong underlying perception that “there are no creative jobs in Osaka”

    (2) Scant recognition of Osaka’s creative potential

    (3) Weakening of genuine interpersonal communication due to digitalization

    (4) A mismatch between the increasingly complex market and the way the creative industry is segmented

    On this basis, I believe we must aim to create a business environment that generates truly innovative relationships with the potential for completely original and unexpected insights and actions, by (1) emphasizing relationships between people and people, more than the functional matching of needs and seeds, and (2) creating a community where open, person-to-person communication is possible.

    At Mebic Ogimachi, we are engaged in an ongoing process in which coordination duties are delegated to currently active creative professionals, who work with Mebic Ogimachi staff to discover new creators, meet them, and encourage participation in the community, while publicizing these creators’ activities via various channels including the Internet.

    As a result, networks among creators, and among creators and enterprises, are expanded, and new collaboration occurs through commercial transactions and project creation. As of the end of 2015, we have verified 2,369 case examples of such collaboration, and there is a trend toward expansion in terms of both creative field and geographic region.

    This Creative Community functions as an intergenerational “ecosystem,” contributing to the autonomy and growth of participating creators by creating possibilities for new collaborations, delivering stimulation, creating a climate of mutual self-betterment, broadening horizons, and fostering greater originality. As such it serves as crucial infrastructure for the creative industry in Osaka, and moving forward, there is a need for increased public- and private-sector support to contribute to its further maturation.

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  • Cool Osaka
    Hitoshi Tajima
    2017Volume 2017Issue 32 Pages 25-36
    Published: 2017
    Released on J-STAGE: April 01, 2018
    JOURNAL FREE ACCESS

    With the age of information industries started at the end of the 20th century, came the era where various issues relating to complicated challenges can be solved by combining information and business. People’s sensitivity to their lifestyles has active influence on creation of new fashions, which brings about a variety of changes to the fashion industries. One of such changes in recent years is the spread of so-called Creative Fashion, which attaches a high value to selfexpression. In Creative Fashion, customers combine items of various fashion houses to express themselves.

    The fashion industries in the world, including Asian area that is achieving a remarkable economic growth, is expected to have still more creative and diversified development. In Japan,“Osaka” is attracting attention as a city having sufficient urban functions to satisfy various conditions and requirements as well as to support consumption.

    First, this paper categorizes present fashion houses into three groups, points out their polarized price policies, and provides specific examples regarding transformation of fashions which are transmitted and created from the consumers’ side. Next, in order to develop objective understanding of the fashion industries, the present situations of the fashion industries are examined based on statistics on apparel markets in the world and in Japan. Then, the paper introduces a term “Cool Osaka” for Osaka City that receives an increasing number of foreign tourists, and lists the features of Osaka as a potential consuming region of Creative Fashion. The paper further explains that desired human resources are becoming diverse since the circumstances surrounding the fashion industries are in the middle of drastic changes. Finally, the paper describes the growth of Creative Fashion in the relationship between Osaka and the world.

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  • Application and Practice of Next Generation Information Technology
    Koichi Hosoi
    2017Volume 2017Issue 32 Pages 37-49
    Published: 2017
    Released on J-STAGE: April 01, 2018
    JOURNAL FREE ACCESS

    The Art Research Center (ARC) of Ritsumeikan University was founded in 1998 with the aim of researching, analyzing, recording, sorting, preserving the tangible and intangible Japanese culture, mainly art, entertainment, technology, and skills, from the historical and social point of view. From the beginning as a research institute in the university at historical Kyoto, we are promoting collaborative project type researches and gathering the wisdom of researchers in different fields. It is very rare case on the humanities research organizations in Japan.

    On the project utilizing the 3D virtual space, the new sensory characteristic brought by the physicality called avatar and the space property of the Metaverse are important key factors. The virtual space, like a Second Life developed by Linden Lab, is not only alternative analog information system, but also be a device that may use across digital archiving and digital exhibition. It will become an important architecture to preserve the past enormous Japanese design sensibility.

    And on the other hand, another project utilizing the Augmented Reality, even though it is difficult to improve its branding image overnight, but even for general consumers, the value of traditional craft that is finely divided into the manufacturing process will be able to make clear and intuitive by utilizing this technology.

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  • Focus on the Capabilities Evaluation and Future Developments of Local Chinese Second Tier Automotive Parts Suppliers
    Yasuo Tsuchiya, Jun Akabane, Ryuichiro Inoue, Zhuang Yang
    2017Volume 2017Issue 32 Pages 51-67
    Published: 2017
    Released on J-STAGE: April 01, 2018
    JOURNAL FREE ACCESS

    This study is a comparative analysis of local automotive parts suppliers of China, Thailand and Japan, and an assessment of differences in their development pathways and capability building. Trailblazing studies on capability assessments of automotive parts suppliers were undertaken by Dr. Banri Asanuma (Asanuma, 1989, 1997). Characteristically, his research pays attention to suppliers’ product design capability, and the formularization of the development of suppliers through progress from works based on supplied drawings to those based on approved drawings.

    As for the evaluation framework, we decided to introduce two new evaluation axes. The first is process design capability, which seeks cost reduction and quality improvement. The second is domain design capability, which diversifies the businesses of parts suppliers. In our study, we evaluate local second tier parts suppliers with three axes composed of Asanuma’s evaluation axis (product design capability), as well as additional two axes of process design capability and domain design capability.

    We discuss the following in this paper. First, we outline preceding studies followed by our thesis. Second, we propose the analytical framework adopted in this study, and discuss the usefulness of the three evaluation axes covering product design capability, process design capability, and domain design capability for correctly assessing Asian local second tier parts suppliers. Third, we present the methodology of our study and the study results. Forth, the results of our evaluation with the above-mentioned three evaluation axes on parts suppliers in China, in comparison with Thailand and Japan are detailed respectively on a map and table. Finally, we give our evaluation results of Chinese Automotive Parts suppliers including a consideration of the background to commonalities and differences identified in the nationalities of suppliers. Also the study and references to outstanding issues are summarized.

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  • Ryuichiro Inoue
    2017Volume 2017Issue 32 Pages 69-87
    Published: 2017
    Released on J-STAGE: April 01, 2018
    JOURNAL FREE ACCESS

    Taiwan’s Giant manufacturing company (GMC) appeared as a start-up company with original brand at the end of the 1980s, becoming the world's largest sports bicycle manufacturer in the early 21st century. It enhances its presence in the global race scene, including the world's highest bicycle race, Le Tour de France, competing with prestigious European and American bicycle companies. Contrary to the fact that Japanese bicycle companies and many manufacturers were inferior to product technology or comprehensive technology despite being superior in element technology, at the same term. GMC continues to supply highly competitive products worldwide although it does not have sufficiently advantage in element technology. This paper considers success factors in the growth strategy of GMC.

    Based on the two concepts of “product complexity” and “production of key parts inside or outside” in assembled products, the bicycle industry, which has low complexity and externally produced key parts, is compared with the automobile industry and PC industry, it is relatively easy to deploy to OEM and ODM. This point is similar to the PC industry with superiority in Taiwan.

    Furthermore, looking through the value cycle model, the factor which succeeded in deployment to OBM becomes clear. Firstly, GMC has targeted emerging customers (amateurs seeking high performance and high quality but asking for reasonable prices), which are different from the customer target which the conventional prestigious bicycle companies assumed. And GMC are suitable for them thorough pursuit of high quality and rational products, low cost mass production system. There is the essence of GMC innovation, there is the structure of competitive advantage. Strategic management by the two top managements who made this change possible, Liu and Luo have been the driving force to build a competitive advantage.

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  • A Paradigm of “Strategic Asset Seeking” FDI
    Zhijia Yuan
    2017Volume 2017Issue 32 Pages 89-101
    Published: 2017
    Released on J-STAGE: April 01, 2018
    JOURNAL FREE ACCESS

    Chinese foreign direct investment (FDI) toward U.S.A. increases rapidly since the beginning of the 21st century. The phenomenon of Chinese firms’ direct investment to U.S.A. submits various topics to us. Why does a developing country like China conduct such a quick and massive FDI toward a top developed country like U.S.A.? What kind of motives are based on for such FDI? Compared with their rivals in U.S. market, Chinese firms are considered to possess less competitive advantages that are fundamentally necessary for investors to survive abroad. Based on the critical points mentioned above, this paper tries to clarify the motives of Chinese FDI toward U.S.A. and forecast the future directionality by analyzing 16 Chinese firm cases that were surveyed by the author.

    The paper sets up a hypothesis as follows. The current action of Chinese FDI toward U.S.A. has an obvious motive of “strategic asset seeking” that differs greatly from the motive of FDI conducted by developed countries’ multinational enterprises. In the purpose of verifying the hypothesis, the paper analyzed two different assets, “strategic asset” and “natural asset”, obtained by sample Chinese firms that possess local subsidiaries in U.S.A. An interesting and shocking fact was found. Fewer sample Chinese firms demonstrated the motive as acquiring “natural asset”. In contrast, all the sample firms showed their clear motive of obtaining“ strategic asset” from local American firms.

    The fact finding in this paper strongly implies that the forthcoming Chinese firms’ outward FDI in a short or middle run will be implemented based on the following motive. The FDI toward developed markets shows strong “strategic asset seeking” tendency while the FDI toward developing markets has other motives as “natural assets seeking”, “new market seeking”, “ natural resource seeking”, etc., instead of “strategic asset seeking”.

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  • Tetsuya Kobayashi
    2017Volume 2017Issue 32 Pages 103-122
    Published: 2017
    Released on J-STAGE: April 01, 2018
    JOURNAL FREE ACCESS

    This paper analyzes ASEAN automotive parts import under the free trade structure. In 2015, ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) was established. AEC is expected to increase regional trade. However external trade of ASEAN is bigger than regional trade. The reason for such phenomenon is that Free Trade Agreement /Economic Partnership Agreement (FTA/EPA) is signed outside of ASEAN. The difference of tariff rate between AEC and FTA/EPA is not so large, especially the ASEAN-Japan tariff rate is preferential. If the tariff rate is similar between AECs tariff rate and ASEAN-Japan tariff rate, ASEAN automobile maker will choose Japanese products.

    Until now, the effect of regional trade in ASEAN is limited; however, some labor-intensive items trade is on a rise. Since the increase in the amount of automotive parts trade is interrelated to the development of automotive industry, the automobile industry development policy is the factor of the increase of automotive parts trade in ASEAN.

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  • Competitive Advantage Development of DJI-the World Top Drone Manufacturer
    Jin Chen
    2017Volume 2017Issue 32 Pages 123-136
    Published: 2017
    Released on J-STAGE: April 01, 2018
    JOURNAL FREE ACCESS

    This paper focuses on the growth pattern of the competitive advantage Dajiang Innovation Technology Inc. (DJI), a Chinese drone manufacturer currently enjoys, and how it has developed so as to lead the global commercial drone industry.

    In 2005, DJI was ranked third among “The World's Top 10 Most Innovative Companies” by Fast Company, an American consumer electronics magazine, after Google, a leading U.S. internet search engine provider, and Tesla, a leading U.S. electric vehicle manufacturer. DJI’s drone model “Inspire” was ranked second on the list of “Top 10 Tech Product Designs of 2014” by the American magazine TIME.

    Unlike the conventional growth pattern of all other Chinese companies, DJI developed the core components, such as the controller system, on its own, and captured 70% of the global commercial drone market in a short period. Moreover, the sales destination of DJI’s products is not developing countries, such as China and other Asian countries, but developed countries such as the U.S., Europe and Japan, where 70% or more of its sales are produced.

    This paper explores the key research question of what growth pattern DJI has followed to gain its competitive advantage and jump to the top position in the world commercial drone industry.

    Firstly, DJI has created value for customers through its originality and has invented a drone fitted with a camera for a niche market, thus achieving technological leadership as a first mover.. Secondly, DJI has quickly responded to changes in the markets of developed countries centered around the U.S. and established its own brand by letting consumers recognize the value of DJI’s technology and products.

    Thirdly, with its production base located in Shenzhen, a superb industrial clusters center, DJI has made efficient use of the industrial infrastructure of parts makers to establish its competitive advantage of low cost and leadership, and expand its market share successfully.

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  • Shinichi Kondo
    2017Volume 2017Issue 32 Pages 137-153
    Published: 2017
    Released on J-STAGE: April 01, 2018
    JOURNAL FREE ACCESS

    In China, the IOT market has already been established in the consumer sector, and many Chinese companies have already entered the consumer IOT market. In this paper, the primary data collected in the local interview survey was sorted out using the PEST analysis of the external environmental analysis tool in the marketing strategy. I will introduce the “alliance”, “policy response” and “technology outflow” among the points of entering the market of Japanese companies that emerged based on PEST analysis. Business in China’s IOT market will be a different business model from business in global market. And China’s IOT market is policy driven and needs to pay attention to government trends.

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  • Japanese Characteristics of Cluster Life Cycle Model
    Mamoru Kitajima
    2017Volume 2017Issue 32 Pages 155-168
    Published: 2017
    Released on J-STAGE: April 01, 2018
    JOURNAL FREE ACCESS

    The purpose of this paper is to examine that the formation of Japanese medical device clusters and the entry situation into medical device industry by Small Medium sized Enterprises in the light of cluster life cycle model. By progress of Japanese Super-aged society, Health-care industry becomes to be very important for Japanese future. Therefore many medical device clusters belonging to the Health-care industry has born in administrative divisions.

    This paper builds on questioner and interview survey data for SMEs, and investigation for three types of medical device clusters. We could find out the trend of entry situation into medical device industry by SMEs on the basis of questioner and interview survey data. Also, we carried out a comparative analysis the three type clusters on the basis of literature searching.

    In advancing consideration, we used Menzel & Fornahl’s cluster life cycle model to analyze the mechanism of Japanese medical device cluster life cycle model. However throughout the course of this paper, we could find that Japanese medical device cluster life cycle model is different from Menzel & Fornahl’s model.

    In conclusion, Japanese medical device clusters are formed in the way of renewing or transforming non-clustered firms to clustered firms while deep relationship of existing industry life cycle and the clustering are promoted and facilitated by Government-led management.

    From the above, this paper point out following three issues that should be noted. First, Japanese medical device clusters are influenced by resources of existing industrial districts. Second, the growth of Japanese medical device clusters are influenced by Government-led functions. Third, the functions should be change according to stage of medical device cluster life cycle.

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  • Basic Technology Industry Relying on Automotive Industry
    Atsushi Kondo
    2017Volume 2017Issue 32 Pages 169-182
    Published: 2017
    Released on J-STAGE: April 01, 2018
    JOURNAL FREE ACCESS

    The fastening method with screw is widely utilized for various types of assembling processes in engineering, architecture and other fields. The purpose of this paper is to clarify the source of competitiveness and competitive advantage in the basic technology industry, analyzing screw industries in Japan.

    There already exist a number of research achievements on industrial history and industrial dynamics in each industry. There are also numerous studies that have focused on competitive advantage and competitive structure of certain nations and regions.

    However, if we take a look at the industries which have been chosen as subjects of academic studies, they are polarized into either assembly industries such as automobiles, motorcycles, electric products and shipbuilding or material industries such as steel and chemicals. There have been relatively few articles which focus on industrial dynamics of intermediate goods. Therefore, I will focus on the industrial dynamics in the intermediate goods in Japan.

    This paper will review the intermediate industry based on the survey data of screwindustries, and then discuss whether the Japanese screw industry is progressing or declining. The examples of development and decline of some of the actual companies in Japan will also be examined in this paper. Through these case studies, I will verify the hypothesis that Japanese screw industries rely on automotive industry. In the conclusion part of this paper, I will clarify the factors that have determined the industry’s development and decline.

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  • Tsuyoshi Saruwatari
    2017Volume 2017Issue 32 Pages 183-195
    Published: 2017
    Released on J-STAGE: April 01, 2018
    JOURNAL FREE ACCESS

    The purpose of this study is to clarify how FTAs has affected the industrialization of Southeast Asian countries based on the case of the electronics industry which is a representative industry in this area.

    The results are summarized as follows;

    First, Southeast Asian countries have independently carried out export- oriented industrialization and international division of labor under “ASEAN’s strategy for collective FDI-dependent and exported-oriented industrialization.” Although ASEAN has been promoting regional economic cooperation since the latter half of the 1970s, initially most of the cooperation ended in failure. But, Liberalization of trade in goods through the BBC (Brand to Brand Complementation) scheme, AFTA, AICO (ASEAN Industrial Cooperation) scheme from the latter half of the 1980s contributed to export-oriented industrialization using foreign capital in Southeast Asian countries.

    Second, based on the case of the electronics industry, this paper confirmed the relationship between industrialization and trade liberalization of Southeast Asian countries since the 2000s. FTAs prompted Japanese manufacturers to reorganize their production systems in Southeast Asia. In other words, they no longer needed to build production bases in the region and instead started to export products from countries like Malaysia and Thailand to neighboring countries because of cut of tariffs under AFTA.

    Finally, when the production base of the final product is consolidated in a specific country in Southeast Asia, exports of parts have increased in other countries such as Vietnam and the Philippines.

    From the above results, Liberalization of goods trade under the FTA has brought intraregional division of labor within the ASEAN region, and it can be said that Final products and parts circulated in the region and encouraged industrialization in Southeast Asian countries.

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  • In the Cases of FAW with CNHTC
    Zhongqi Wang
    2017Volume 2017Issue 32 Pages 197-211
    Published: 2017
    Released on J-STAGE: April 01, 2018
    JOURNAL FREE ACCESS

    RE has been a common means for enterprises to build product development ability, But not all companies are using RE to achieve technical accumulation thereby forming product R&D Capability. To solve this problem, by comparing two the Chinesecompanies, China National Heavy Duty Truck andThe First Automotive works in terms of technology introduction and technology absorption, this paper has found that TheChina National Heavy Duty TruckandThe First Automotive Works have adopted different approaches since the beginning of technology introduction in the 1980s. To be more specific, the differences of RE content and sequence in the process of technology absorption has led to the different outcome of R&D between the two enterprises. Through the discussion in the paper, it is also found that corporate ability to select the best proper technology has a big impact on the technology absorption and the establishment of the R & D capacity.

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