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MIT IMVP Research Program (working papers and reports)writing

automotiveresearch-programlean-productionmit-imvp
1985-01-01 · 1 min read · Edit on Pyrite

The MIT International Motor Vehicle Program (IMVP) — the five-year, $5 million+ research program that produced machine-that-changed-the-world (1990). The IMVP was not a single publication but a research program that generated numerous working papers, research reports, and interim findings between its launch (circa 1985; see imvp-launch) and the publication of the book. This entry represents the research program as a whole.

What is known

  • The IMVP involved over 50 senior scientists and researchers
  • The program was funded at approximately $5 million (unverified: some sources cite this figure; exact funding amount should be verified)
  • james-p-womack was the program director; daniel-roos was a co-director or senior collaborator (unverified: exact titles and roles should be verified)
  • john-krafcik was a researcher in the program; his article triumph-of-lean-production-system (1988) was a product of the research
  • The IMVP was based at MIT and involved researchers from multiple countries
  • The program compared automotive assembly plants worldwide using a standardized survey instrument

    • Research needed

    The specific working papers and research reports produced by the IMVP are not documented in this KB. A fact-checker should:

  • Identify the specific IMVP working papers that preceded the book (titles, authors, dates)
  • Confirm the program's exact funding level and sources
  • Confirm Womack's and Roos's exact roles (director vs. co-director vs. other)
  • Determine the scope of the plant survey (how many plants, which countries, which years)
  • Check whether the IMVP continued after the book's 1990 publication and if so, what it produced

    • Relationship to other entries

    The IMVP is the institutional context for machine-that-changed-the-world, triumph-of-lean-production-system, and the mit-research-era era. The mit-imvp organization entry documents the institutional structure. The imvp-launch event entry documents the program's initiation.

    Note on scope

    This entry treats the IMVP as a writing entry because it produced textual research outputs. The program itself is documented as an organization under mit-imvp. The two entries are complementary rather than duplicative.

    Linked from

    MIT International Motor Vehicle Program MIT Research Era: The International Motor Vehicle Program The Machine That Changed the World: The Story of Lean Production—Toyota's Secret Weapon in the Global Car Wars That Is Now Revolutionizing World Industry

    Links to

    The Machine That Changed the World: The Story of Lean Production—Toyota's Secret Weapon in the Global Car Wars That Is Now Revolutionizing World Industry MIT IMVP Research Program Begins James P. Womack Daniel Roos John Krafcik Triumph of the Lean Production System MIT Research Era: The International Motor Vehicle Program MIT International Motor Vehicle Program