Overcoming the home run mentality of American PCB manufacturers. (Asian Aspects).(printed circuit boards)(Brief Article)

Ichiro Suzuki, the Seattle Mariner's rookie baseball star, burst onto the scene last year, capturing several major league records. He recorded the league's highest hitting average for 2001, led in stolen bases, and was the American league's MVP. But his playing style is very different from slugger and home-run king Barry Bonds. This column is not simply about baseball. Bear with me while I make my point.

A comparison can be made between Ichiro's performance and the Japanese circuit board industry. Ichiro is not a home-run hitter. But he finds a way to make contact, often reaching base safely. He also has a talent for converting a ground ball into a base hit by hustling down the line and beating the throw. His quickness also allows him to stretch a single into a double. He gives pitchers fits with his constant threat to steal bases. Finally, on defense, his excellent fielding prevents many runs from scoring. Clearly, he was a big part of the Mariners' success in 2001, and he figures to be even better as he gains experience. Although American audiences still worship power hitters, Ichiro's many-faceted skills are changing the perception of what makes a great ball player: speed, defense, and above all, consistency.

After observing the American electronics industry for many years, I believe many companies, engineers and business people are still trying to hit a "home run" rather than follow Ichiro's principals of speed, defense, and consistency. They spend a lot of time and money on innovation and capacity, thereby trying to overpower their competitors. However, company management neglects "defensive" principles such as continuous yield improvements or recovering components from returned products. When the company is growing, the home-run mentality works. During our current tough economic times, unfortunately, many American managers have lacked creativity, and have resorted to laying off employees or selling the business.

On the other side of the Pacific, Japanese consumer electronics manufacturers, and circuit board manufacturers in particular, have used Ichiro's tactics very successfully. In these lean times, they don't spend money on costly research and development projects. But that doesn't mean they stop innovating. Instead, they try to pick up small ideas from their process engineers and their customers. These companies have also been training leaders who can manage entire projects or products. The Japanese try to achieve multiple "base hits" at first, adding more ideas, and combining traditional but stable technologies.

These small ideas can add up, producing exciting and attractive products for the ...