Author Description

This text aims to present and discuss the innovative Volvo Uddevalla plant, comparing it to other plants - Japanese lean ones and others. The starting point for the book is Volvo's dramatic decision to close its Uddevalla and Kalmar plants, and the debate that followed this decision, both in Sweden and abroad. Both plants were pioneers of the possibilities to unite productivity and the good work, but, following the announcement of their closure, researchers and practitioners in the field of industrial organization from many countries asked why they closed, how they compared with other production concepts, and whether we now see an end of an alternative to Japanese lean production.