Automation and the Organization of Production in the Japanese Automobile Industry: Nissan and Toyota in the 1950s

Abstract

Rather than appearing full-blown in the 1970s, flexible production techniques were developed gradually in the Japanese automobile industry. After World War II, drawing on indigenous expertise derived from the cotton textile and aircraft industries, pioneering automakers Nissan and Toyota adapted Western-style automation technology, particularly transfer machines, to local conditions. In addition to building flexibility into as many aspects of this inherently inflexible technology as possible, manufacturers also worked to adapt labor and supplier relations to the needs of the new technology within the constraints of the local environment.