July 18th, 2009

Wes Mathews

Lockheed Martin

Cranes and Wishes:

On the bullet train back from Hiroshima to Nagoya, our guide, Kayo Suzuki brought along paper and taught us the art of Japanese origamy. Kayo taught some of us to make a Japanese crane and a ballon. As we created the origamy Kayo answered questions on origin and orgimy culture. We also learned that the Japanese believe if you make 1000 cranes your wish will come true. Only 994 to go and no synthesis project tomorrow!

July 18th, 2009

Wes Mathews

Lockheed Martin

Bullet Train:

We are currently riding the bullet train to Hiroshima for a day of touring at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial and Park. I am looking forward to seeing this and getting a slight break from very intense AMBA activities. The Japanese countryside headed from Nagoya to Hiroshima is beautiful with many small compact towns dotted along the way. Enjoying the mountain views and greenery of the forest. The Japanese make use of every square inch of available land. Wait, what do I hear, it is our instructor reminding us of our synthesis assignments are due tomorrow and we need to use the train ride to plan our efforts with our teammates. Duty calls...

July 17th, 2009

Wes Mathews

Lockheed Martin

Nagoya Castle:

I visited the Nagoya Castle which housed many Shoguns. Most of the castle still remains but some of the surrounding buildings were destroyed by US bombings during World War II. The castle has 2 dolphin emblems on the roof that became traditional for a time. The buildings are of Japanese architecture and do not look anything like the traditional European castles.

July 17th, 2008

Eve Storm

V.P. of Operations, Start PAC

Rotocraft Enterprises

July 17th, 2009

Mark Fellows

USAF Aerospace Engineer

Nagoya University:

Today we visited Nagoya University to learn how they grow engineers and teach business management to support Japan’s industrial excellence. We visited the Department of Aerospace Engineering. There we heard from four professors, including Dr. Koji Ikado from their Headquarters for Industry, Academia and Government Cooperation section. Dr. Ikado talked to us about the history of the university and its achievements within Japan and the world.

He also told us about their collaboration with U.S. universities and their association with the North Carolina Research Triangle Park. Nagoya University is a top-ranked Japanese university providing manufacturing industry giants Toyota, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and many others with top-notch graduates. The university has about 16,000 students in their undergraduate and graduate programs and approximately 5,000 in their engineering school. We learned that 80% of the engineering school’s graduating seniors go directly into a master’s degree program, usually right there at Nagoya U.

Since I am an aerospace engineer and both my children are at the University of Cincinnati studying aerospace engineering, I was quite interested to hear from Dr. Akihiro Sasoh, an AE professor. He spoke about the great pride they have in producing good engineers for Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Kawasaki Heavy Industries and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. He also spoke to us about how they have had a lot of success lately expanding on the research relationship they enjoy with these organizations.

July 17th, 2009

David Foskey

Industrial Production Manager
Warner Robins Air Logistics Center
 

Scooting around Japan

We experienced our first rainy weather this morning as we visited Nagoya University today. It was very interesting that Japan doesn't have dorms to house students due to space (and the proximity of many, many students). I got to meet one of the few (if not only) students from the U.S. while walking back to our bus. He was from Michigan and had taken some Japanese classes and wanted to study abroad. He was not fluent in the language, but was able to cope. He's definitely got more courage than me.

On the way back to our Hotel I saw the aftermath of a wreck between a scooter and a car. Obviously it doesn't take a Master's degree from UT to guess who won. Fortunately the scooter victim was able to limp to the ambulance with assistance. It amazes me how many scooters, small motorcycles, and bikes are utilized in Japan. It is the preferred way to get around. You are allowed to ride on sidewalks with your bicycle and park practically anywhere. The bicyclists even have mounts for umbrellas and were riding in the rain this morning. They can park anywhere. When it comes to transportation, the Japanese are all about convenience and function. They don't care about big fancy motorcycles, cars, or trucks. They want gas mileage and something they can park anywhere. They actually have to purchase a parking contract before they are allowed to buy an automobile. It was refreshing to see a Ford F-150 truck last night. That was only the 2nd American-made vehicle that I've seen over here. Amazingly, I have not seen any Toyota Tundra or Tacoma truck, either. I will continue to look though.

July 17th, 2009

Bekcy Siers

GKN, Aerospace-Director of Continuous Improvement

Back to the Future – Business transformation in A&D and retail commerce:

As a current student having previously worked in the automotive industry and having spent time in Nagoya Japan in 1997, it is amazing to see the continued growth and expansion since that time. Toyota is still clearly the leader in lean manufacturing, however most impressive to me is the lean culture transformation taking place at Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. They have embraced the concept that "it is all about the people and THEIR ideas." They are clearly showing that lean can successfully be applied in aerospace. As far as time outside of our scheduled learning, as a motorcycle enthusiast there's no way one could visit Japan and not attempt to at least go to a moto store. To my surprise, many of the stores I had once visited in the past were today only store fronts with a very small footprint and only enough inventory to advertise their online merchandising. This is just one of the many observations that we've had with respect to how the internet and technology have changed the retail and merchandising climate in Japan. For one store that I visited that is thriving both online and in a retail hot spot: http://www.nagoya-nankai.co.jp

July 16th, 2009

Lou Ruscetta 

SAF/AQ Office,

United States Air Force

A night of Japanese Culture

A group of us went to see the Ancient Japanese tradition of Sumo Wrestling. We bought tickets to sit in box seats to watch the action. The experience was definitely once in a lifetime, and should not be overlooked by anyone traveling to the Land of The Rising Sun. Sitting in the box seats, eight rows from the action, we could hear the slap of the Sumo's palm on his leg. We watched for hours as these warriors battled. In the end, we left with an appreciation for the culture, the action, and seeing two 400+lb men throw each other other around--so I guess we learned a little bit about physics as well.

July 16th, 2009

Wes Matthews 

Lockheed Martin

Seeing Japan...one 5K at a time:

Toyko and Nagoya are very large and populated cities. The best way I have found to see them and get exercise is jogging. Most of the Japanese people walk to where they need to go so the sidewalks are large. Both cities also have a large park with running paths. It works out great -- as I can run without a pre-planned route and I can stop and take pictures of the sights.

July 16th, 2009

Chip Henderson

ATK, Composites Process Engineer

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries:

Our trip to visit Mitsubishi Aerospace began Wednesday in Nagoya when we visited the Oye Plant. This plant specialized in the production of parts for several customers including Boeing and Bombardier. The dedication shown by Mitsubishi to their Boeing customers was inspiring. The managers were very enthusiastic about the work which echoed down through the employees on the shop floor who gave us part of the tour. Every aspect of their operation showed great respect and pride. The use of lean manufacturing techniques such as Kanbans and visual workplace tools on such large scale programs was very impressive.

Thursday, we visited their Tobishima Plant. This plant specialized in their space program, very similar to Boeing's Delta II system, and the assembly of the manufactured parts from the Oye plant. This plant was equally as impressive as the first. The use of lean manufacturing and statistical measures and controls was evident throughout the facility. The same dedication to quality of work shown at the Oye plant was also visible here. The employees are very well trained technically and communicated very well in English.

The two factories were excellent examples of the work culture of Japan. Employee dedication to quality and managements dedication to the company mission are present in every operation performed.

July 16th, 2009

Lou Ruscetta

SAF/AQ Office, United States Air Force

MHI -- An A&D benchmark:

The team at Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) graciously let us tour their maintenance facilities and their assembly plants in Nagoya over the last two days. What we saw was very eye opening. The change that MHI has undergone in the last four years with respect to LEAN is very visible. The company's connection and commitment to their industry partners is one that should be emulated in the States. Through MHI's hard work and dedication, they have earned Boeing's trust to produce major sections of the 737, 747, 767, 777, and soon the 787. They also serve as a leading player in Japan's space program, building the stages for the rockets that take the satellites into space. MHI's implementation of 5S is very apparent through both plants we visited. The staff was very gracious to us as well, bending over backwards to allow us to see their operations and get insight into the unique way the Japanese do business.

July 15th, 2009

Rebecca Siers

GKN, Aerospace-Director of Continuous Improvement

Toyota Visit:

There's a reason, (actually many more than just one), that Toyota overtook GM as the world's biggest auto maker and dominated J.D. Power honors last year. We ourselves were honored to have had the opportunity to journey to Toyota City and see the auto giant and home of lean manufacturing. Every minute of our visit ran like clockwork, very much like the brand new Toyota Prius sedans that we saw rolling off the final assembly line.
Many of my colleagues were able to make the connection between the classroom Total Operations Excellence that we had studied so far away in Knoxville – everything from 5S to Visual Management to Andon lights to strides in reducing Toyota's environmental footprint. Even the tour itself was well choreographed and streamlined.
The real icing on the cake however was ending the day with a team of Toyota executives. They answered our questions about the auto and aerospace industries and posed a few of their own to ensure we were wearing our "MBA hats" and not just enjoying the sites, sounds, and tastes of Japan. Ironically, and humbly, they even dropped a clue as to a possible new business opportunity…though they are experts at lean on the shop floor, their leaders acknowledge even Toyota could use a little improvement when it comes to building a lean office. A wonderful ending to a wonderful visit...

July 15th, 2009

Dr. "Srini" Srinivasan

Faculty, University of Tennessee

Visit to Toyota Automotive Corporation, Toyota City, Japan:

Toyota more than lived up to the expectations we had placed on it. The operations at the plant we visited were truly lean. In particular, I was really taken by the robots welding the automobile frames, as they lined up in a mixed-model sequence. Each robot knew exactly what spots to weld on each car, even though it had to work on different models.

Janice Reid, Recruiting and Admissions Liaison, performs a "quality check" on a new Lexus convertible at Toyota Automotive Headquarters.

July 14th, 2009

Dr. Mandyam "Srini" Srinivasan

Faculty, University of Tennessee

Company Tour and new city:

We just completed a couple of days of great site visits to Japan Airlines and the aerospace parts fabrication plant of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. Each site visit provided us with some unique and memorable experiences. At the Japan Airlines facility we saw a 747 aircraft undergoing an extensive C-check involving about 20,000 hours of work. We were impressed by the speed with which this aircraft was being repaired, at a burn rate of more than 1,175 hours per aircraft per day. At Mitsubishi we noticed that the organization has made great strides in lean, reducing flow days from 82 days in January 2006 down to 51 days in January 2009 at their parts fabrication and kitting operation. We were very impressed by the team spirit, enthusiasm, and dedication of the workforce, and the cordial supplier-customer relationship that exists between Boeing and Mitsubishi.

This evening we checked into the Marriott Associa Hotel in Nagoya, Japan. This will be our hotel for the remainder of the evening.

Students and faculty enjoy a traditional Japanese meal.

Students prepare to board the bullet train from Tokyo to Nagoya.  In Nagoya, the class will visit Toyota, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Nagoya University.  We will conclude the trip with a visit to Hiroshima Peace Memorial and Park.  

Today the class spent the entire day at Japan Air Lines. Company leaders guided tours and talked to the class about JAL supply chain management practices and maintenance quality and efficiency. We also discussed company plans for the future and transitioning their fleet to newer aircraft and the business implications of those changes.

July 13th, 2009

Tour of Tokyo:

We kicked off our site visits by meeting with leaders at the U.S. Embassy and U.S. Chamber of Commerce – Japan, today. Discussions covered the strategic and close relationship between the U.S. and Japan and how the embassy and chamber support U.S. companies working to do business in Japan. These laid a foundation for the industry visits we will be making the rest of the week.

Sites around Tokyo.

Exterior of the Japanese Diet (legislature). 

Chris Varner (student) of Air Force Research Lab at Eglin Air Force Base, FL, enjoys some traditional Japanese fare.

July 12th, 2009

Andy White

Director, The Aerospace & Defense MBA

Baseball game:

We took in a Japanese professional baseball game Sunday afternoon as part of our initiative to experience Japanese culture and social life. It was a blast! We saw the home team, Tokyo Yakult Swallows lose a close 2-1. The quality of play was superb but the experience was still quite different from a game at home in the US.

As an added bonus, one of Japan’s two princes attended the game with his family. They sat in a reserved box right behind home plate. They had a security detail and there was a throng of media taking pictures as they arrived at the start of the game. The Japanese people all watched closely as the royal family arrived and cheered them enthusiastically a couple times during the game. It was clear the Japanese people feel lots of pride and respect for the royal family.

July 11th, 2009

Japanese worshipers burn incense outside a temple as a ritual of worship.

Worshipers purify themselves with water outside a Japanese temple.

Chris Varner enjoys a chocolate covered cricket during a bus ride through Tokyo.

July 11th, 2009

Mark Fellows

USAF Aerospace Engineer

Class experience:

We just finished the first session of our formal agenda. We heard from Lance Gatling, an expert on the A&D industry here in Japan. He made many interesting points that we are likely to observe during the week. He reminded us that Japan is a totally different business culture in many ways.

Japan is also the world's second largest commercial aerospace customer. Japan’s aerospace companies are very closely linked to the performance and future success of Boeing. Mr Gatling was a dynamic speaker for our class, covering topics from the Japanese culture and heritage to its political and socio-economic status. He linked it all to Japan's important position in the aerospace sector and global security issues. He gave me a whole new understanding of Japan's society and business relationships.

July 10th, 2009

Allen Pannel

Faculty, University of Tennessee

Japanese Rotary:

Andy and I attended a Rotary Club meeting today. It was an interesting and pleasurable experience. The Tokyo-West club is a large club (150 members) by Rotary standards. We were warmly welcomed and immediately introduced to people who speak English (I didn't have to pull out my Japanese cue card). The meeting began with calisthenics; quite relaxing. Then we (they :) ) sang the Rotary Song in Japanese

Andy and I were introduced to applause and I exchanged club flags with President Koori. Thank goodness protocol did not call for me to give my prepared speech. I gave on in Spanish in Argentina and everyone laughed, but I didn't tell any jokes. They (the Japanese club) have an interesting tradition where they gave gifts to members whose wives have birthdays in July (the gifts are for the wives).

The speaker was a famous Classical musician. He told the group that Asians are leading the way in classical music today and that 80% of students at Juilliard in NY are Asian. Just another field where we are falling behind.

Rotary is amazing, you can go 1/2 way around the world and feel at home and be an honored guest. I'm not sure but it seemed like they laughed in English, or maybe we laugh in Japanese. Lunch was excellent, but it cost $60. We complain in our club about paying $12.

I'm going to try and attend a meeting in Nagoya next Friday. Maybe it will be a smaller club and I can try out my speech.

July 10th, 2009

Chip Henderson

ATK, Composites Process Engineer

Fish Market Visit:

I got up very early on my first full day in-country so I could visit Tokyo's world-famous fish market, in the Tokyo Harbor. The fish market starts around 3:30 in the morning when the fishermen unload their boats on the deck. The catch is priced and auctioned off to the many vendors. From there the vendors take what they've purchased to their stands and sell it to the restaurants. Because seafood is such a big food item the fish market operates every day except Sunday. It was impressive to see such a great practical example of market economics and a robust supply chain in action.

July 9th, 2009

Wes Matthews

Lockheed Martin

Kenaw Waterfall:

A group of us that arrived early traveled by train to Niko mountain to see the Kenaw waterfall. The train ride was 1.5 hours through the Japanese countryside. We were able to view how the Japanese live in the country and the numerous rice fields. The waterfall was at the top of Mt Niko and was stunning to see. The height of Keno is about 100 meters.

July 9th, 2009

Student Orginized Visits:

In the days immediately preceding the formal start of our academic residence period, many of us arrive early to visit cultural and historical sites as we shake off jet lag. These are often tremendous learning opportunities – growing us as people and as business leaders and educators. Just a few of the sites visited and images captured follow here.

July 8th, 2009

Andy White

Director, The Aerospace & Defense MBA

Long Flight:

I've just completed a 13-hour, non-stop flight from Atlanta to Tokyo on a Delta Air Lines flight of a Boeing 777. It could not have been any easier. It is ironic that this trip to study global business and implications for aerospace and defense begins with a long flight across the Pacific Ocean. "The miricale of flight" and the Space Age have brought such incredible benifits to mankind. Sadly, we typically take all of that for granted. I look forward to our upcoming experience and a close look at global business and Japan's important role in aerospace and defense.