It is interesting to see how the large automobile manufacturers differ in their opinions about working with suppliers and standardization of parts. Consider the following.
WORKING WITH SUPPLIERS
Tadaaki Jagawa, a Toyota executive vice president,said the number one Japanese automaker "received an invitation" from Ford to join the Ford Internet-based marketplace, tentatively called AutoXchange, where automakers and their suppliers hope to do business more efficiently and cut costs. Ford and GM are in a race to build the largest online marketplace to achieve greater economies of scale, and both are trying to woo other automakers. The two companies have argued that creating marketplace in which hundreds of billions of dollars in goods and services are traded would give their suppliers access to more business globally allowing suppliers and manufacturers to slash costs.