Subcontracting, flexible specialization, and Britain's international competitiveness subcontracting and the economics of transactions costs how do external pressures on firms lead to more subcontracting? subcontracting in the United Kingdom and Japan - a preliminary account - subcontracting in the UK subcontracting in Japan the industries and firms - the choice of industries and firms the choice of industries, the company interviewing programme, introduction to the industries engineering, the motor industry, the electronics industry the engineering companies - the companies the subcontracting decision the British principals, the Japanese principals, supply chain management subcontractor selection, development and monitoring, contractual arrangements and the subcontracting relationship, sub-subcontracting the subcontractors' experience of subcontracting subcontractors' perceptions of their competitive advantage, subcontractor selection and monitoring, contractual relations, technology transfer and other help, dependence, dualism and opportunism? the motor industry companies - the companies the subcontracting decision the British principals, the Japanese principals, supply chain management subcontractor selection, development and monitoring, contractual arrangements and the subcontracting relationship, sub-subcontracting, the subcontractors' experience of subcontracting subcontractors' perceptions of their competitive advantage, subcontractor selection and monitoring, contractual relations, technology transfer and other help, dependence, dualism and opportunism?, the electronic companies - the companies the subcontracting decision the British principals, the Japanese principals, supply chain management subcontractor selection, development and monitoring, contractual arrangements and the subcontracting relationship, sub-subcontracting, the subcontractors' experience of subcontracting subcontractors' perceptions of their competitive advantage, subcontractor selection and monitoring, contractual relations, technology transfer and other help, dependence, dualism and opportunism?, the Japanese subcontracting relations - introduction Japanese subcontracting relationships in practice the basis of subcontract trading - a code of faith, ahum-no-kokyuu - breathing in harmony, or maintaining a cooperative attitude, joint development, Part contents.