Question

How do economic, cultural, and ecological factors explain the differences between the car manufacturing industries of China and Germany? ( 600 words)

Answer 1

The manufacturing industries of China and Germany have different approaches. While now the world is getting globalised and companies in every country are learning the best practices from each other, there still remains some difference and unique approaches to both.

Economic

China is a developing economy and the fastest going economy. The purchasing power of the people is increasing but still inequalities persists. The manufacturing sector there is very labour intensive and dependent on skilled labour is huge. The manufacturing is mostly for local as well as global consumers as china is the factory for the world. Low cost products are mostly produced in china but now even complex manufacturing has started due to economic progress. As China grows economically, there will be a huge domestic demand for products which means migrating from a labour intensive to process driven manufacturing. Germany is a more industrialised and developed economy which focuses on specialised manufacturing rather than mass manufacturing. Germany is a technological leader in manufacturing and has a process driven approach. Due to their higher per capita income, germans tend to buy more sophisticated goods than chinese.

Culture

Chinese culture is more hierarchical where power resides with few. People follow community rules even in proffessional workplace. German culture is more individualistic however professional discipline is maintained and people focus only on work during work hours whereas in China, professional and personal life can sometimes intermingle. Both German and chinese workers are disciplined and focus on productivity. The Chinese have a lax attitude towards safety and safety rules are not enforces strictly whereas this is not the case with the germans.

Ecological Environments

Many manufacturing units in China are small units with about 50-75 persons and these units do not focus on the ecological impacts of the operations. Chinese safety standards are also lax as well as their adherence to environmental norms. Germans have to conform to stricty EU as well as local laws. Hence, the ecological impact is very less. Companies in china are now focusing on reducing the impact of their operations on environment but these are only few large companies.