SUBARU OF INDIANA AUTOMOTIVE, INCORPORATED
Subaru of Indiana Automotive, Incorporated
Subaru of Indiana Automotive, Inc (SIA) is a division of Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd (FHI), a company that dates its origins to the turn of the century. Subaru, FHI’s automotive division, has always done things differently, when most other car companies used the basic vertically configured engine and rear wheel drive, Subaru was first to mass produce cars with the horizontal engine and front wheel drive followed by all-wheel drive and now Subaru of Indiana Automotive, Inc is even reinventing the way vehicles are manufactured and recycled.
FHI has a long history dating back to 1917 when Chikuhei Nakajima founded The Aircraft Research Laboratory, then it was reorganized in 1932 and was renamed the Nakajima Aircraft Company, Ltd (NAC) a major producer of aircraft for Japan in the years leading up to and during World War II (Subaru of America, n.d.). After Japan's defeat and occupation, aircraft production was forbidden by the Supreme Commander of Allied Powers, as a result, many of the aeronautical engineers started to work in the automobile industry (Odagiri, 1996, p. 216). NAC again reorganized and became Fuji Sangyo Company, Ltd (FCS), and began producing the Fuji Rabbit Motor Scooter. In 1950, due to the Corporate Credit Rearrangement Act, FCS was required to separate into 12 smaller corporations. On July 15, 1953, five of those corporations: a coachbuilder, an engine manufacturer, a chassis builder, a trading company, and a scooter manufacturer, merged to form what is known today as Fuji Heavy Industries. (Subaru of America, n.d.) In 1954, FHI began production of automobiles. The president of the company Kenji Kita searched for a Japa...
... middle of paper ...
... Executive Officers."富士重工業株式会社. Fuji Heavy Indistries,( n.d.) Web. 01 July 2011.
Odagiri, Hiroyuki (1996). Technology and Industrial Development in Japan. Clarendon Press, Oxford. pp. 216. ISBN 0-19-828802-6.
Subaru Media Center - Subaru Media Website. (n.d.). Subaru Media Center - Subaru Media Website. Retrieved July 01, 2011, from http://media.subaru.com/index.php?s=45
Subaru of America, Inc. Corporate Time Line. (n.d.).Subaru Drive Magazine. Retrieved June 27, 2011, from http://drive2.subaru.com/onlinex
Woodyard, C. (2008, February 18). It's waste not, want not at super green Subaru plant - USATODAY.com. News, Travel, Weather, Entertainment, Sports, Technology, U.S. & World - USATODAY.com. Retrieved July 02, 2011, from http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/environment/2008-02-18-green- factories_N.htm
Until recently, the Ford Motor Company has been one of the most dynastic of American enterprises, a factor which has both benefited the company and has brought it to the brink of disaster. Today Ford is the second largest manufacturer of automobiles and trucks in the world, and it’s operations are well diversified, both operationally and geographically. The company operates the worlds second largest finance company in the world, and is a major producer of tractors, glass and steel. It is most prominent in the US, but also has plants in Canada, Britain and Germany, and facilities in over 100 countries.
Furthermore, IBM did not stop producing punch cards for the Nazi murder machine until the war finally ended in 1945. Ford never stopped either; however, Ford was also arguably the most instrumental factor in the Allied war effort. “By the end of the war, Ford had built 86,865 complete aircraft, plus 57,851 airplane engines, thousands of engine superchargers and generators, and 4,291 military gliders,” (Grudens). This was just in the United States; Ford’s plants in Great Britain and Canada joined the production efforts, as well. His company also produced jeeps, armored cars, tanks, and robot
The Ford Motor Company (FMC) was founded in Detroit in 1903 and began shortly thereafter exporting cars to European branches. Cross-border assembly started in Canada in 1904 and was later implemented in the European markets. The first European plant was established in 1911 in England, and this was followed with other lower volume assembly plants across the European continent. All the plants and branches assembled and sold the Model T, using American methods and practices. This proved to be a success in the beginning, but in the long run, “(…) this proved a costly and unsuccessful strategy in Europe’s diverse markets” (Bonin et al., p. 15). By the late 1920s most of its European subsidiaries were struggling and Ford had to change his approach to the European market.
Ford began international operations early on as a company. In 1925, they opened a manufacturing plant in Japan. This plant was closed in 1940 due to increased political tensions between the United States and Japan due to World War II. Ford has also been in Europe since the 1960s. Ford has international manufacturing operations set up in several countries, including the United States, Canada, Mexico, China, the United Kingdom, Germany, Turkey, Brazil, Argentina, Australia, and South Africa. In addition to these, Ford also has a cooperative agreement with the Russian automaker GAZ.
The people's car – generically, Volkswagen in German – is almost as old as the automobile, and the type was familiar in Germany long before the advent of the Volkswagen. Usually these 'popular'; cars were minimal cars, though size and simplicity did not necessarily bring them within the reach of the ordinary man in the street.
The first automobile produced for the masses in the US was the three-horsepower, curved-dash Oldsmobile; 425 of them were sold in 1901 and 5,000 in 1904--this model is still prized by collectors. The firm prospered, and it was noted by others, and, from 1904 to 1908, 241 automobile-manufacturing firms went into business in the United States. One of these was the Ford Motor Company which was organized in June 1903, and sold its first car on the following July 23. The company produced 1,700 cars during its first ...
The first automobile production for the masses in the US was the three horsepower, curved-dash Oldsmobile which four hundred and twenty five of them were sold in 1901 and five thousand in 1904. This Oldsmobile is still a very popular car to most collectors today. From 1904 to 1908, two hundred and one automobile manufacturing firms went into business in the United States. One of the firms was the Ford Motor company which was organized in June 1903, and sold its first car on the following July ...
BMW soon realized that many threats impacted its market share in U.S. The Japanese auto manufacturers started building plants in the U.S. to deal with the increased U.S. demand at a lower cost than importing their cars. BMW's U.S. export situation was made even worse by the appreciation of German mark and additionally the higher German labor costs. As a result, the decision was made in 1991 to bui...
(Potential $loss if reduce price = 94962.yr but losing market would be a bigger problem.)
Currently, the major competitors within the industry are Ford, DaimlerChrylser, General Motors (GM), Honda, Toyota, and Volkswagen. A few United States (US) manufacturers produce 23% of the world’s vehicles while Japan is responsible for 21%. The tendency for the industry is to be a global producer of automobiles; parts can be made throughout the world and assembled in many different places. The trend of consolidation has continued throughout today. Presently, this is evident in the recent acquisition of Chrysler by Daimler-Benz in late 1998, thus forming DaimlerChrylser. These consolidations have proved beneficial to consumers since companies have been able to reduce costs and pass those savings on to the customers. Some of the other major examples of consolidation are Nissan selling off a controlling 37% interest to Renault; General Motor’s 49% ownership of Isuzu; and Ford’s 33% majority of Mazda. Other efforts to become more competitive have translated into the European Union dropping trade barriers and European carmakers employing cost reducing efforts. American manufacturers have seen 2-3% growth over the last few years. Some current trends are the explosion in popularity of the Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV) and big luxury vehicles.
This case depicts about the success stories of the collaboration in the automobile industry by the Japanese and US firm though they were obviously competitors. One significant success story emerging from the alliance involves Ford probe and Mazda MX-6. There were swapping of resources and capabilities between the two firms. Mazda designers design the basic platform, engine and drive train for the cars. Mazda then design the outside of the MX-6 and Ford does same for the probe. Finally both cars are assembled at a factory owned by the two firms. Ford escort was another successful offspring of the alliance where again the Mazda engineers designed the car and Ford made it. But the alliance was not without spots. Mazda Navaho one of the offspring of the alliance which was basically build upon the on of the Ford popular product Ford explorer and build by the Ford makers. Ford made an opposite step by denying to provide the Japanese partners Navaho production to continue production of its own product line. The partner Mazda in addition fell into financial distress and Ford got the effective management control of Mazda and took some bold steps which eventually went against the collaboration.
Ford Motor Company has been and till the date is known as the king of innovations in the automobile industry. Their research & development department and innovation of interchangeable parts in moving assembly lines resulted in extraordinary global extension for them. They are an old heritage who ruled and still doing impressive jobs in the global automobile market. Some prestigious motor brands are also owned by Ford.
Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda), was establish on September 24, 1948, develops, produces and manufactures a variety of motor products, ranging from light general-purpose engines and scooters to specialty sports cars (Honda, 2014). They started with a bike equipped with machine tools in 1948, and since then Honda has performed a variety of innovative products that give meaning to each individual's mobility and life in a community.
The HRM strategy in Japanese companies is supported by the six pillars of Japanese employment practice lifetime employment, company welfare, quality consciousness, enterprise unions, consensus management and seniority-based reward systems. Toyota is at the heart of global manufacturing, a company that has grown over 70 years to become the world's third largest vehicle manufacturer. (Toyota worldwide 2006) Toyota is the seventh largest company in the world and the third largest manufacturer of automobiles, with production facilities in 26 nations around the world employing more than a quarter of a million people. The decision to manufacture in Europe was based on a corporate policy of building vehicles where the customers are and The United Kingdom was chosen for many reasons including its history of vehicle manufacture, the large domestic automobile market, its components supply base and its excellent links with the rest of Europe.
Since then, Motor Companies have made numerous types of vehicles to fit your driving style the best including SUVs, trucks, compact cars, luxurious cars, and sedans etc. Even countries across the globe have have joined the competition such as Toyota, Nissan, and other european c...