| IUJ Students Exploring How Toyota Uses IT as a Business Strategy |
Public Relations
Jun. 21, 2010 |
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Students of the IT Strategy & Policy Planning Class participated in a TOYOTA Motor Corporation industrial tour along with GSIM Professor Jay Rajasekara on 4th and 5th of June 2010. This particular field trip is one of the most sought after by students out of all IUJ’s management course curriculum. The objective of this field trip was to witness how TOYOTA’s Information Technology strategy and policy is assisting production systems and operations to realize TOYOTA’s world renowned business strategy – “The TOYOTA way”.
The two-day trip to Nagoya included formal visits to a TOYOTA industrial facility in Nagoya which covered TOYOTA city, TOYOTA Head Quarters, the TOYOTA KAIKAN museum and a detailed factory tour of the TOYOTA Takaoka plant which is responsible for assembling the latest models of Corolla, ist, Ractis, Vits and iQ. The second part of the trip included informal sightseeing and enjoying the city of Nagoya, including Nagoya Castle and Toyota Museum, which turned out to be a very interesting experience for most of the participants.
The group consisted of 52 participants including students from both of IUJ’s schools, International Management (IM) and International relations (IR). Associate Prof. Maung Aung Myoe of the IR school and Mr. Susumu Hosaka, manager of the Office of Academic Affairs (OAA) were special guests.
The tour started by the bus leaving IUJ at 5:00 AM in the morning on June 4th and arriving at the TOYOTA motor corporation industrial facility at Nagoya at 11:15AM. The journey was fun-filled with games and prizes for winners. The first experience was the TOYOTA Kaikan museum, which introduced the latest TOYOTA vehicle models, Safety & mobility research, Environment friendly products, TOYOTA motor sports, the TOYOTA production system (TPS) and TOYOTA’s contribution to society. It was amazing to see how TOYOTA sees the future with fuel cell cars which emit nothing but water, partner robots that will help individuals make their lives better and the i-unit which is a future concept of personalized transportation. Next in line was a comprehensive guided tour of TOYOTA city, in which the participants got the opportunity to observe TOYOTA’s headquarters, research facilities, manufacturing sites and supplier facilities. A TOYOTA staff member joined the tour for guidance and finally all arrived at the Takaoka plant for the factory tour.
The Takaoka plant is one of thirteen modern plants operated in Japan by TOYOTA. Everyone was briefed about the basic 4 steps of production: stamping, welding, painting and assembly. Inside the factory all observed the vehicle assembly and testing in progress. The two main underlying principles of TOYOTA production systems, Just in Time (JIT) and JIDOKA (Automation) were seen in action. Different automated digital Kanban (Signal) systems and Kaizen (Continual Process Improvement) systems were introduced to the participants. It was obvious for all how TOYOTA’s IT strategy was supporting its business strategy through observing the IT systems, Robotics and Applications busy in action. The factory tour ended after seeing the brand new cars that were produced being driven away for shipment. The formal educational tour ended at that point and the bus proceeded to the hotel so participants could check in.
Thereafter everyone had the opportunity to enjoy the city of Nagoya. The following day morning most of the participants took a bus tour to Nagoya castle. Everyone, busy either sightseeing, shopping or enjoying Nagoya on their own or as an organized group got together again at the hotel at 2:00 PM to start back to IUJ. Several talented students entertained the group with their musical skills. All reached IUJ at 9:30 PM safe and sound.
The trip was really a hit among the participants with an equal balance of new knowledge and enjoyment. It was a great opportunity for most second year students to get together as they will be graduating and leaving IUJ soon. In the thank-you note Prof. Jay Rajasekara mentioned the trip organizers who were Seiya Kato, Koremasa Higashikozono, Hiroyuki Hirai and Vanchig, Ganzorig of E-biz.
Reported by Jeevan Premasara (E-Biz Class of 2010)
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