Technology transfer with requisitioned material from Germany: The impact of gPB reports h on Japanese postwar technological development

Yuki Nakajima ()
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Yuki Nakajima: Faculty of Business Administration, Toyo University

No 10-25, Discussion Papers in Economics and Business from Osaka University, Graduate School of Economics

Abstract: Toward the end of World War 2, British and U.S. governments created a joint program to investigate German technology and requisitioned numerous technical documentations, some of which were opened to public as technical reports. Japanese industries, refereeing them to as the gPB reports h, tried to obtain and utilize them for their postwar recovery until they started enthusiastic technology introduction by technology licensing in 1950 fs. This study describes the dissemination process of PB reports in Japan and evaluates their impact. A few engineers mainly in chemical industry who were belonged to companies, universities and national research institutes recognized the great value of PB reports, and then pressed Japanese government to introduce them with a State budged. Not only the individuals, but also the governmental organs established in the postwar democratization process of science and technology played important roles for policy making of package purchase of PB reports from U.S. government in 1952. In the case of dyestuff and caustic soda, some joint R&D groups were organized in academic circles and industrial associations to share the information from PB reports which contained classified factory data of IG Farben, Bayer and so on. Japanese companies utilized them to domesticate German chemical products and develop their original technologies. On the other hand, the case of electronics parts shows that small companies which could not afford to introduce technology from foreign companies by their own received benefit by the reports and got an opportunity for their development. As a result, a technology gap between Japan and advanced countries which had widened during the war were reduced till the end of 1950 fs.

Keywords: Japanese business history; technology transfer; PB reports; chemical industry (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: N45 N65 N75 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 16 pages
Date: 2010-10
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