Day 4

Today we left the hotel at 9:00 to begin the start of a very full day. We got on a bus and traveled to the Japanese headquarters of Kuehne+Nagel, a German Third Party Logistics (3PL) company that has operations throughout the globe. The visit was conducted by Mr. Smalley, a MSU alum and the contract logistics manager. We had the opportunity to learn about the processes of a 3PL company and the specific strategy that Kuenhne+Nagel Japan uses to gain part of the market share when competing against much larger Japanese firms.

After the meeting and a lecture by Dr. Ross, it was time for lunch. In a strip mall, my small group found a place to eat Chinese. While I am sure that it is not the same as it might be in China, it sure did seem more authentic than “Chinese” food in America. I had a spicy dish of cold noodles and beef, which was quite delicious.

(Yum!)

After lunch, it was back on the bus for a trip to one of Kuenhe+Nagel’s customers, BMW Japan. Kuenhe+Nagel manages BMW Japan’s warehouse. The warehouse used several pieces of modern technology to manage inventory, including a conveyor belt to keep the line flow process running and RFID and labeling to track every part through their computers. BMW Japan prides itself on servicing the customer, and does this through providing the product in a timely manner.

After leaving the BMW plant, it was time to move to our final presentation of the day by Nichifutsu Boeki KK (NBKK), a French based importer that operates in Japan. NBKK offered a unique insight into how a company introduces a foreign product in the Japanese market. The success of this product is important to NBKK because they buy the product from its producer, making the risk entirely theirs. It sounded like it would be a fun and exciting industry to be involved with.

The plant insight that we received today opened my eyes to the challenges of doing business in Japan. Both Kuenhe+Nagel and NBKK face challenges that other units in their global firms do not have to worry themselves with. Japanese consumers have a reputation of being extremely picky when it comes to quality. When the packaging box on a good is damaged, they assumed that the good inside has been damaged as well. They seem to be more likely to file complaints than consumers in America. This forces firms to pay more attention to their products’ quality, and sometimes this translates into entire global operations adopting higher standards of quality to match the Japanese expectations. Japan also has strict laws on doing business within the country. In fact, many companies would rather do business in China for this reason. NBKK must worry about the differences between Japanese food laws and the laws set by the American FDA and the European Union governing body as well. The declining population base presents another issue, as the population pyramid is growing top heavy. The older Japanese population is too large for the smaller younger population to support. The younger generation is also experiencing an aversion to dirty, dangerous, and hard labor, making it difficult for firms like Kuenhe+Nagel to find the manual laborers that they need. Hearing about the challenges to doing business in Japan from those who experience them firsthand is an excellent way to learn.