The Japanese Manufacturing Sector in the UK: A Performance Appraisal

Abstract

The development of the Japanese transplant manufacturing sector in the UK economy has been relatively rapid. In 1981, 17 Japanese manufacturing enterprises in the UK employed just 3,000 people. By 1994, this total was estimated to have grown to over 60,000. Japanese manufacturing transplants in 1992 accounted for over 7% of foreign manufacturing sales and employment in the UK. The Japanese TMS has grown in terms of employment and diversity. Initial investments were concentrated in the consumer electronics industry. However, by 1993 the net value of Japanese manufacturing assets in the UK was more evenly divided between electrical engineering (35%), transport equipment (33%), and mechanical engineering/other manufacturing (32%). The late eighties witnessed other changes in the composition of the Japanese TMS with greater diversification in entry mode (i.e. joint ventures and acquisitions as opposed to greenfield investments), and increasing numbers of ‘second wave’ component manufacturers entering the UK to support existing Japanese OEM operations.

Citation

Peel, M.J. and Munday, M. (1997), "The Japanese Manufacturing Sector in the UK: A Performance Appraisal", Management Research News, Vol. 20 No. 2/3, pp. 38-39. https://doi.org/10.1108/eb028535