International Transferability of the Japanese Production System : Japanese-affiliated Auto Plants in the U.S.A., the U.K., and Taiwan

This paper aims to explain the international transferability of the Japanese production system based on field research. Japanese-affiliated auto plants succeed in applying the Japanese system in the U.S.A., the U.K., and Taiwan, in spite of having different managerial environments from Japan. At the same time, interesting results are gained through using our internationalization model for Japanese multinational enterprises. There is a gap between a real application pattern of the system and an expectable application pattern which is assumable from local managerial environments. Although both the U.S.A. and the U.K. have similar characteristic features in their managerial environments, differing when compared with Taiwan, the plants located in the two developed countries display a different application pattern from each other. It is normal that the American plants show a different pattern from the Taiwanese plants. Interestingly, the British plants show a similar application pattern with Taiwanese plants on important items

From the Diffusion of Lean Production to the Hybridization Perspective : Studies on the Transfer of the Japanese Production System to the U.S.

For more than two decades now, groups of American researchers have studied the Japanese production system, in response to economic events. The first event was an increase of imports from Japan. The second was the transfer of the Japanese system to the U.S. American researchers developed the term "lean production" based on their field research in automotive plants throughout the world. They went on field research to transplants of Japanese firms and emulators among indigenous firms. The theme of their study was the transferability of the Japanese system to the U.S. They reached the perspective of hybridization through field studies on transplants and emulators. This paper aims to trace the evolutionary process of studies on the Japanese production system and its transfer to the U.S. These studies defined specific features of the production system and raised productive issues regarding organizational transfers across borders

Japanese-Affiliated Auto Plants in the United Kingdom

The purpose of this paper is to explain transferability of the Japanese production system in the United Kingdom. I had a chance to visit two Japanese-affiliated auto plants in October of 1991. Two plants have different character each other: One enterprise, in the form of a sole entry, was built at a green field site. It produces passenger cars. The other is a joint venture with an American-affiliated local firm, producing mainly recreational vehicles in a restructured plant. However, they both apply the Japanese production system successfully. It seems that both managers and workers in the UK are flexible enough in taking on the Japanese system

The Japanese production system and its international transferability

The Japanese production system has an ethnic or national basis. There are considered to be three production components of the system-shop-floor-centred work organization, waste-free production control, and participative management in the context of cooperative labour relations. For each of these, it is possible to set up a 'Japanese-type'. The author is conducting research into the overseas operations of Japanese subsidiaries in automobile assembly. Japanese multinational enterprises presumably try to apply the system to their overseas operations to take advantage of its strengths; however, given that they have moved into a foreign country, presumably Japanese entreprises have to adapt to the management environment of the local area. This research investigates the following questions: (i) Does this 'application' result in a dilemma? (ii)what is actually being applied and what has not been possible to apply? (iii) How well is the balance between 'application' and 'adaptation' being achieved? according to surveys of Japanese manufacturing plands in North America, Asia and Europe, the application of the system is possible. Of course this does not mean that it can be applied 100%.the pattern of application varies according to the management strategy of the Japanese enterprise

Local oncolytic adenovirotherapy produces an abscopal effect via tumor-derived extracellular vesicles

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) play important roles in various intercellular communication processes. The abscopal effect is an interesting phenomenon in cancer treatment, in which immune activation is generally considered a main factor. We previously developed a telomerase-specific oncolytic adenovirus, Telomelysin (OBP-301), and occasionally observed therapeutic effects on distal tumors after local treatment in immunodeficient mice. In this study, we hypothesized that EVs may be involved in the abscopal effect of OBP-301. EVs isolated from the supernatant of HCT116 human colon carcinoma cells treated with OBP-301 were confirmed to contain OBP-301, and they showed cytotoxic activity (apoptosis and autophagy) similar to OBP-301. In bilateral subcutaneous HCT116 and CT26 tumor models, intratumoral administration of OBP-301 produced potent antitumor effects on tumors that were not directly treated with OBP-301, involving direct mediation by tumor-derived EVs containing OBP-301. This indicates that immune activation is not the main factor in this abscopal effect. Moreover, tumor-derived EVs exhibited high tumor tropism in orthotopic HCT116 rectal tumors, in which adenovirus E1A and adenovirus type 5 proteins were observed in metastatic liver tumors after localized rectal tumor treatment. In conclusion, local treatment with OBP-301 has the potential to produce abscopal effects via tumor-derived EVs

Immune Modulation by Telomerase-Specific Oncolytic Adenovirus Synergistically Enhances Antitumor Efficacy with Anti-PD1 Antibody

The clinical benefit of monotherapy involving immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) such as anti-programmed death-1 antibody (PD-1 Ab) is limited to small populations. We previously developed a telomerase-specific oncolytic adenovirus, Telomelysin (OBP-301), the safety of which was confirmed in a phase I clinical study. Here, we examined the potential of OBP-502, an OBP-301 variant, as an agent for inducing immunogenic cell death (ICD) and synergistically enhancing the efficacy of OBP-502 with PD-1 Ab using CT26 murine colon cancer and PAN02 murine pancreatic cancer cell lines. OBP-502 induced the release of ICD molecules such as adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and high-mobility group box protein 1 (HMGB1) from CT26 and PAN02 cells, leading to recruitment of CD8-positive lymphocytes and inhibition of Foxp3-positive lymphocyte infiltration into tumors. Combination therapy involving OBP-502 intratumoral administration and PD-1 Ab systemic administration significantly suppressed the growth of not only OBP-502-treated tumors but also tumors not treated with OBP-502 (so-called abscopal effect) in CT26 and PAN02 bilateral subcutaneous tumor models, in which active recruitment of CD8-positve lymphocytes was observed even in tumors not treated with OBP-502. This combined efficacy was similar to that observed in a CT26 rectal orthotopic tumor model involving liver metastases. In conclusion, telomerase-specific oncolytic adenoviruses are promising candidates for combined therapies with ICIs

Long-term activation of anti-tumor immunity in pancreatic cancer by a p53-expressing telomerase-specific oncolytic adenovirus

Background: Pancreatic cancer is an aggressive, immunologically “cold” tumor. Oncolytic virotherapy is a promising treatment to overcome this problem. We developed a telomerase-specific oncolytic adenovirus armed with p53 gene (OBP-702). Methods: We investigated the efficacy of OBP-702 for pancreatic cancer, focusing on its long-term effects via long-lived memory CD8 + T cells including tissue-resident memory T cells (TRMs) and effector memory T cells (TEMs) differentiated from effector memory precursor cells (TEMps). Results: First, in vitro, OBP-702 significantly induced adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which is important for memory T cell establishment. Next, in vivo, OBP-702 local treatment to murine pancreatic PAN02 tumors increased TEMps via ATP induction from tumors and IL-15Rα induction from macrophages, leading to TRM and TEM induction. Activation of these memory T cells by OBP-702 was also maintained in combination with gemcitabine+nab-paclitaxel (GN) in a PAN02 bilateral tumor model, and GN + OBP-702 showed significant anti-tumor effects and increased TRMs in OBP-702-uninjected tumors. Finally, in a neoadjuvant model, in which PAN02 cells were re-inoculated after resection of treated-PAN02 tumors, GN + OBP-702 provided long-term anti-tumor effects even after tumor resection. Conclusion: OBP-702 can be a long-term immunostimulant with sustained anti-tumor effects on immunologically cold pancreatic cancer