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Japanese-Owned Car Suppliers in North America: A Review of the Literature and Prosposal for Research

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The Japanese Business and Economic System

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Abstract

Since the late 1970s, 1400 Japanese-owned manufacturing plants have been set up in the United States. In 1994, 322 of these plants supplied the car industry in some way.1 These firms (the automotive ones in particular) have inspired a great deal of research. Their experience is variously cited as proof that Japanese-inspired ‘lean production’ methods can be successfully transplanted to the United States with virtually no adaptation (Kenney and Florida (1994)), as proof that Japanese dualist methods can be transplanted (Howes, 1993a) and as evidence that moving the Japanese production system abroad is slow, difficult and requires much hybridization (Liker et al., 1999).

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Authors
  1. Susan Helper
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Commerce and Business Administration and Faculty of Applied Science, Konwakai, Japan

    Masao Nakamura (Professor, Research Chair and Director) (Professor, Research Chair and Director)

  2. Centre for Japanese Research, Institute of Asian Research, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

    Masao Nakamura (Professor, Research Chair and Director) (Professor, Research Chair and Director)

Copyright information

© 2001 Susan Helper

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Helper, S. (2001). Japanese-Owned Car Suppliers in North America: A Review of the Literature and Prosposal for Research. In: Nakamura, M. (eds) The Japanese Business and Economic System. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230512283_6

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