Utilization of knowledge management by medical device manufacturers in Japan

The technologies for therapeutic medical devices made in Japan are not highly competitive. Some Japanese companies have achieved breakthroughs in this field. In this study, by using the case of one medical device manufacturer (Terumo), we discuss how the change in the organization affects the creation of knowledge useful for a breakthrough. We focused on the Terumo business unit (TBU), which Terumo introduced in 1995 as its business system and analyzed the changes in its patent strategy in comparison with one of its competitors. As a result, an increasing trend in the patentability of the patent applications filed by Terumo after 1995 was observed. An interview regarding the TBU was also conducted. The results suggest that the introduction of the TBU might have intimately affected the ¿creation of knowledge¿.