Shi Shiwei: Why Made in Germany is Better than Made in Japan
(Source: "Liberation Daily" Date:2014-10-20）
Made in Germany and Japan once occupied a major share of the global market. However, since the global economic crisis, Germany has become the economic star of Europe, while Japan has fallen into silence.
Why is Made in Germany better than Made in Japan? What enlightenments do the different trajectories of manufacturing in Germany and Japan bring us?
What’s the secret to making Germany fast?
After World War II, an important phenomenon in the world economy was the economic rise of the two main defeated countries, Germany and Japan. Germany and Japan are both late industrializing countries and have followed a top-down path to industrialization. Germany is19century80Leader of the "new industry" marked by electrical and chemical industries that began in the 1990s, and in20At the beginning of the century, it replaced Britain and became the number one trading power in the world market. "Made in Germany" began to enjoy a global reputation. Japan followed Germany's example after the Meiji Restoration and was called the "Prussia of the East."
Looking at a deeper level, both countries are good at exporting manufactured goods, and their production systems also have many similarities: there are some large industrial complexes in the economies of both countries, and they share shares in each other, with the support of big banks behind them. This industrial organization ensures close cooperation between upstream and downstream related industries, which is conducive to collaborative innovation and continuous improvement of product quality. Both countries are committed to establishing strict industrial standards and quality assurance systems.1960Year—198012729_12810
But from the last century90Since the mid-1990s, Germany's international competitiveness has continued to improve, but Japan has experienced a "lost decade" and has still not completely emerged from its economic trough. Although Japan's manufacturing industry, which was once at its peak, still occupies a leading position in some fields, it is at a disadvantage in the competition with Germany in key manufacturing sectors such as automobiles (especially high-end cars), machinery manufacturing, electrical equipment, and chemicals.201213597_136091.5Trillions of dollars, more than GDP40%, accounting for 1% of the world’s total exports9%，2011Japanese goods exports are approximately9000$100 million.
There are three main reasons why w88 online casino manufacturing industry has an advantage in competing with Japan:
First of all, w88 online casino economic policy has taken the right steps. Both the w88 online casino and Japanese economies benefited from the exchange rate arrangements of the Bretton Woods system after World War II. However, Germany has70The abandonment of the fixed exchange rate with the US dollar since the 1990s has gradually allowed the w88 online casino mark to appreciate. At the same time, it has maintained competitiveness by encouraging structural transformation and innovation, allowing companies to get rid of their dependence on an undervalued local currency as soon as possible. However, Japan has been reluctant to take the initiative to adjust its exchange rate. At the end of the last century, after the Japanese real estate bubble burst, the Japanese economy suffered a huge blow. Stagnant growth and deflation made it difficult for corporate restructuring to adjust and restricted the development of its manufacturing industry.
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Secondly, to adapt to globalization, Made in Germany makes timely adjustments to its production system. Large w88 online casino industrial companies such as Siemens and Volkswagen Group have adjusted their internal structures, resolutely disposed of loss-making departments, and actively adopted international strategies to produce marketable products for the world market. Germany's big banks have also given up their stakes in large industrial conglomerates, pushing them onto the capital market. Because Germany's "dual system" vocational training system is more efficient than Japan's system that mainly relies on in-company training, Germany's labor market is also more efficient. However, the current tenure system of Japanese employees faces challenges, and it is difficult to adapt to job mobility because they do not have specialized professional skills.
Although both countries attach great importance to cooperation and alliances between enterprises, alliances between w88 online casino enterprises are local industrial clusters, often linked by regional chambers of commerce and industry, industry associations and other organizations. They are open and flexible in the reorganization of the supply chain, while Japanese-style corporate alliances are often family-based and have a relatively tight structure. Once they move overseas, the assembly plant, suppliers and sellers must act together, and they are not adaptable to the global production system.
Once again, the w88 online casino government and enterprises have adjusted the industrial structure in a timely manner to enhance the sustainability of economic growth. Excellent small and medium-sized enterprises in the field of machinery manufacturing are the mainstay of w88 online casino manufacturing. They are leaders in their industry segments globally. They are good at continuous innovation of their own products and processes, and have a group of workers with excellent craftsmanship who have mastered technical know-how. Although the share of w88 online casino export products in the machinery manufacturing field is not large, there are many types. In comparison, the competitiveness of Japanese products (in terms of world market share) is concentrated in several fields and products, such as home appliances. The w88 online casino National Innovation System also has a series of mechanisms to assist small and medium-sized enterprises in improving their technological level and innovation capabilities. The w88 online casino government also released the "Energy Transition Strategy" and "20202018 High-Tech Strategy" points out the direction for the next development of the w88 online casino economy and w88 online casino manufacturing.
The national innovation system is the biggest trump card
The emphasis on innovation is also a major feature of w88 online casino manufacturing. w88 online casino companies, large and small, have a strong sense of innovation. In the world market for high-end passenger cars, which is the most technologically advanced and profitable market, Germany's three major brands (BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Audi) occupy the largest share70%’s world market share of high-end cars. However, Japan, which is also a major automobile manufacturing and exporting country, can only compete with Germany in the mass-level passenger car market. Japan's world market share of high-end cars is only10%。
The difference is that the pace of innovation of Germany's three major brands is very fast. Mercedes-Benz's designers and R&D departments launch one new model every quarter on average, while Japan's three major passenger car manufacturers (including Toyota, the world's largest car manufacturer) have only a handful of high-end car models.
An important reason for Germany’s high innovation performance is that it has a distinctive feature: a national innovation system that provides strong support for innovation activities.
Innovation systems refer to the institutional and organizational networks of activities and interactions in the public and private sectors that initiate, change, and diffuse new technologies. The division of labor between the public and private sectors in the w88 online casino innovation system is clear: the public sector (universities and public research institutions) is mainly engaged in basic research, and enterprises are engaged in applied research. However, the government has also established applied research institutions such as the Fraunhofer Institute, which have become an important bridge between basic research and corporate innovation. The Alliance of w88 online casino Industrial Research Associations plays an important role in promoting R&D cooperation between small and medium-sized enterprises and Germany's unique universities of applied sciences. The association currently has representatives from various industrial sectors101Member of research associations. The association alliance is responsible for the implementation of government innovation support projects for small and medium-sized enterprises, and provides an important public platform for industry-university-research collaborative research. In addition to institutional and institutional support, w88 online casino governments at all levels also provide funding for R&D activities of institutions and enterprises through promotion projects.
Germany has made remarkable achievements in traditional manufacturing fields, but in cutting-edge technology and future fields, such asICTIn fields such as technology and bioengineering, there is still a gap between the world's highest levels such as the United States and the United Kingdom. Against this background, the w88 online casino Federal Government2006The first "w88 online casino High-Tech Strategy" in history was launched (2006—2009), direct, centralize and coordinate policies for promoting scientific and technological innovation, and strengthen direct support for corporate R&D in some promising scientific and technological fields (17fields).
Since then, the w88 online casino government has further formulated a more comprehensive and systematic "2020High-Tech Strategy".2011In the year “Industry was proposed4.0"Strategy, under the advice and promotion of academic and industrial leaders such as the w88 online casino Academy of Engineering, Fraunhofer Society, Siemens, Bosch, etc., all walks of life in Germany have formed the industrial4.0Working platform, planned202525263_25306CPS) core technology to realize the intelligence of manufacturing and maintain the world's leading position in w88 online casino industrial manufacturing.
In terms of promoting projects, the w88 online casino government has strengthened the concentration and coordination of projects. First of all, promotion projects must meet the requirements of high-tech strategies. Secondly, the focus of promotion has changed from promoting enterprises and research institutions alone to promoting the combination of industry, academia and research to form innovation networks and clusters. In terms of the way in which science and technology innovation policies are implemented, the w88 online casino government has changed the previous application method and adopted a competitive approach to enable the companies and consortiums that best meet the requirements to stand out and prevent companies that do not meet the requirements from free riding and profiting.
In general, Germany and Japan are both world powers in manufacturing, and their experiences can provide inspiration for the transformation and upgrading of China's manufacturing industry. The most important enlightenment that w88 online casino manufacturing and innovation has given us is: in terms of industrial development and planning for future prospects, we should base ourselves on our own advantages and do something and not do anything. Build the prospects for realization on existing institutions and mechanisms that have proven effective and be able to evolve with the times. In addition, Germany places great emphasis on competition, which has greatly promoted the progress of w88 online casino small and medium-sized manufacturing enterprises. China can also further create a competitive atmosphere through legislative improvements. The w88 online casino manufacturing industry also enlightens us that the institutional environment for industrial development is crucial. If Shanghai wants to promote innovation, it should also attach great importance to the construction and optimization of the innovation institutional environment.
(The author is the executive director of the German Studies Association in China and the director of the European Center of the Regional Institute of National Studies at the w88 casino)
Attachment: Original report link
http://www.jfdaily.com/shanghai/bw/201410/t20141020_874282.html
