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relations with those suppliers, they taught them the TPS (JIT, KANBAN, TQM…), to
be able to produce high-quality automobiles at low costs. Later on they established the
Toyota Supplier Support Center in NUMMI for this purpose.
They solved the lean projects which transformed the following in the centre:
• Production works of the Toyota suppliers (the suppliers for NUMMI, but also
the suppliers for assembly factories of the company Toyota built later on).
• Production works of different companies from different industries for “lean
production line”.
Bringing the Japanese system of production to American culture
This process meant permanent gradual adaptation to American culture. The process
of employing education is tightly connected to this process.
Employee education (building trust)
Japanese management educated the American employees who had worked in
the factory which GM closed from the beginning. They employed all fired employees
from this former factory in 1984. Those employees had poor work habits which the
management of Toyota had to change to be able to implement the TPS. In 1987-1988
GM permanently decreased orders for car production. Management of Toyota did not
fire even one employee, they established kaizen teams to solve key tasks and step by step
they built trust in their employees. [8] In Japan the management of Toyota carried out
so-called “lifetime employment”. Actions of the UAV made such a concept harder in
the USA. Thus, the cultural differences played a part, which the company management
tried to overcome in a way to achieve bilateral satisfaction.
Car production using the TPS
Two models of Toyota (Toyota Corolla a Toyota Tacoma) and one model of GM
Chevrolet Prizm were produced in NUMMI from 1984. Production was managed by
the Japanese who applied the TPS. There were the lines for pressing main parts of a car
(door, bonnet, splashboards…), lines for welding of such parts, lines for painting the
cars and assembly lines in the factory. There were the manager processes which provided
working of the TPS performed there as well, such as kaizen, JIT (tact time planning,
pull system, quick changeover, integrated logistics, continuous flow, kanban), teamwork
(cross-trained, common goals), continuous improvement (waste reduction, 5S), visual
management, automatic line stop and solving defects directly at the source.
Adoption of the TPS by GM and implementation of that system
in other production companies
The process of learning and subsequent implementation of the TPS in production
and assembly operations of General Motors was continuous. GM made a copy of TPS
called the General Motors System in their companies. The managers of particular GM
factories took part in the trainings in NUMMI to understand the philosophy, principles
and attitudes of the Japanese.
Production in NUMMI was managed by Toyota which was successful from
the beginning. Marketing was managed by GM. Later on, Toyota took marketing of