Tatami Manufacturing Techniques in Taiwan

Transcription

1 Tatami Manufacturing Techniques in Taiwan Focus on interviews with craftsmen Tsai-Yun Lo*, Shin-Fu Chen** * Tatung University, tylo@ttu.edu.tw ** Graduate School of Tatung University, autumn06891@hotmail.com Abstract: Much of Japanese-style architecture, artifacts, and culture gradually came to influence life in the early period of Taiwan. With plenty of innovations, tatami usage and manufacturing techniques spread rapidly throughout Taiwan. Meanwhile, many tatami craftsmen were being trained to manufacture, but still lacked formal study of manufacturing techniques. For these reasons, I chose face-to-face interviews and field investigation as my main research methods, to build the system of manufacturing techniques and of training of tatami craftsmen. Research results show: 1. The family business model: Family businesses are a major way in which techniques are inherited. 2. New materials import: For old tatami materials, straw mats or malaccensis mats were used, but some new kinds of materials like foam board and paper mats are now imported from Japan. 3. Hand-made and mechanically-assisted manufacturing: There are some craftsmen who import semiautomatic machines to assist them in producing tatamis. 4. Support system: When they have large quantity orders, tatami craftsmen will help each other. 5. Website marketing model: More and more tatami stores have their own websites, which customers can use to buy their products online. Key words: Tatami, Craftsmen, Manufacturing techniques, Taiwan 1. Introduction The Tatami industry in Taiwan developed during the Japanese Colonial Period mainly because of the Japanese military stationed here, as well as a number of Japanese officials, teachers, and doctors who moved to and resided in Taiwan during the era of Japanese rule. Much of Japanese culture, including artifacts and beliefs were introduced to Taiwan while the demand for 'dwelling' space increased substantially. Many tatami factories were established, one after the other, following the expanded development of various infrastructures, which laid a solid foundation upon which tatami techniques could be transferred to Taiwan. After Japanese troops withdrew from Taiwan, Taiwanese tatami craftsmen replaced the Japanese craftsmen and it was time for the tatami industry to enter its most prosperous period. Following the alteration and renovation of a substantial number of 'Japanese dormitories' in the 1950s, an increasing number of tatami factories arose and the demand for craftsmen grow correspondingly. During this period, many people worked at tatami factories as apprentices immediately after graduating from elementary or junior high school. Upon completion of their apprenticeships, they were then either employed by other factories or opened their own workshops to hire other craftsmen for business. Nonetheless, by the mid-1980s, as Taiwan's economy boomed, salaries and living standards rose, and mattresses became more popular, causing the demand for tatamis to fall, thereby leading to the gradual decline of the tatami industry. 1

2 There is a considerable lack of tatami-related research among academic research papers in Taiwan, while discussion of the manufacturing techniques is rare. Only sporadic local media have reported on it, and there is a lack of nationwide reports of the general circumstances in Taiwan. In view of the gradual disappearance of the tatami industry from history, while most craftsmen fail to find inheritors for their businesses, the retention and passing down of such information becomes increasingly difficult as time passes. This study thus applies field investigation and interviews with craftsmen as its main research methods, to analyze the manufacturing techniques of the traditional Taiwanese tatami industry, and to establish relevant historical materials. 2. Taiwan Tatami Industry Analysis 2.1 Background of Taiwan Tatami Industry The time line of the Taiwan tatami industry is divided into four historical stages, namely the 'Introductory Stage', the 'Craftsmen Development Stage,' 'the Marking Boom Stage,' and the 'Turbulent Recession Stage' [3]. From 1895 to 1925 was the Introductory Stage. The development of the Taiwan tatami industry began during the era of Japanese rule, though the Taiwanese people did not have much access to tatamis during that period as most users were Japanese. As the number of Japanese immigrants to Taiwan increased, the demand for tatamis surged within a short period of time, a great number of Japanese craftsmen then moved to Taiwan to produce tatamis. There were even factories built in Taiwan just to sew tatamis, with the majority of craftsmen employed being Japanese, with Taiwanese people making up the labor force. According to the 15 th ~22 nd Statistics Book published by the Taiwan Governor-General's Office [4], in 1914 alone, Japanese craftsmen accounted for 82% of the total, while the number of tatami craftsmen in Taiwan reached over 17,000 between 1895 and 1914; The first-generation Taiwanese craftsmen started studying the craft in the factory during this period. After the 1920s, due to a change in Japanese colonial policies, Taiwanese found it easier to actually access and use tatamis in daily life. Policy guidelines started with 'education.' For example, tatamis were installed in school dormitories and many aspects of Japanese culture were taught, such as flower arrangement and the tea ceremony. After the gradual promotion of tatami culture, the Kominka Movement was implemented in 1936, in which the Japan Governor-General encouraged changes, such as adoption of Japanese names, and living in houses with tatamis, as Japanese themselves did. Taiwanese people who did this were then granted the status of 'Mandarin Family', which entitled them to receive more material rationing than the average Taiwanese family. Despite the educational approach adopted by Japan to bring the Taiwanese and Japanese closer, the actual number of Taiwanese people using tatamis still accounted for only a minority. During the 'Craftsmen Development Stage' of the tatami industry between 1926 and 1945, Taiwanese craftsmen started independent businesses and accessed the Taiwan tatami market directly. The craftsmen often worked with masters who passed skills down to them, or they were employed by different employers to repair and manufacture tatamis, while few craftsmen started their own workshops. It was only after Taiwan s Retrocession that Taiwan entered the tatami industry's 'Market Boom Stage' and Taiwanese craftsmen become the main producers of tatamis as a large number of Japanese people withdrew from Taiwan. Due to the large number of 'Japanese dormitories' (communities) left by Japanese residents of Taiwan, the demand for tatami repair and maintenance increased. Moreover, factors such as the promotion of the Kominka Movement in Taiwan encouraged the average people to easily accept the use of tatamis as beds, contributing to the flourishing establishment of Taiwan tatami factories. For this reason, the demand for tatami craftsmen in the early 2

3 Taiwan Retrocession period was quite considerable. Master Jin-Shan Huang remembered: Many people graduating from elementary or junior high school immediately went to learn the making of tatamis in the factory because of the career prospects that provided. One or two out each class of 10 students would go and learn to make tatamis. [Jin-Shan Huang, personal communication], implying the booming of the tatami industry at the time. However, in the 1980s when Taiwan s economy developed and per capita GDP rose rapidly, affecting the standard of living, an increasing number of people were able to purchase mattresses, leading the tatami industry's entering its 'Turbulent Recession Stage.' The Report on the Industry, Commerce and Service Census of Taiwan conducted by the government's Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics, Executive Yuan of Taiwan [1] shows that the tatami industry category has been integrated with the painting industry category since 1986, and this project was even canceled by 1996, illustrating the drastic shrinking of this industry. 2.2 Background of Tatami Craftsmen The study applies face-to-face interviews with five craftsmen, whose basic information is provided below in Table 1. Table 1. Basic Information of tatami Craftsmen Interviewed Date of Interview Name Age Residenc e Instructing Master Period of Crafts Study Age of Crafts Study Business 2011/02/17 Jian-Ting Xiao 48 Taipei Father, Master Jingyi Xiao Forgotten Helping family business since childhood Full Time, in the factory founded by his father 2011/03/25 Po-Yong Gao 73 Taipei Factory Craftsmen 40 months 16 years old Full time, employed by Hui Fa Tatami Store 2011/04/ /07/ /07/19 Jin-Shan Huang Hong- Wen Li Xi-Nan Lai 6? Taipei Father 33 Taichung 63 Tainan Father, Master Yeng- Zhe Li Factory Craftsmen About 12 months Uncertain About 8 months Helping family business since childhood Helping family business during childhood and officially studied craft at 31 years old 16 years old Source: Summarized and prepared by the Study based on interview drafts with the craftsmen Full time, Employed by Yi-Xin Tatami Store Full time, at the Sanli Tatami Store, founded by the grandfather Part-time, own business, Shan Qie Dong Tatami According to interview content, most of the craftsmen are second-generation craftsmen, such as master Jian- Ting Xiao, Jin-Shan Huang and Hong-Wen Li, whose teachers were mostly fathers or uncles. In contrast, Master Poo-Yong Gao and Xi-Nan Lai were apprentices who learned from their masters in tatami factories. The heritage for Taiwan tatami skills is mostly internal to the family, with few instructors teaching outsiders. Those who studiy can open their own businesses or continue to be employed by others after completing their studies. Master Hong- Wen Li mentioned that: the skills are usually passed on to family members while the family members are less likely to hold back the skills, which makes learning faster [Hong-Wen Li, personal communication]. The craftsmen did not receive specific training during their apprenticeship periods, but learned as they worked with the master; therefore the incubation time varies from person to person. Due to the fact that tatami shape must conform 3

4 Figure 1: Tatami mat for Zen meditation (Photo by Tainan Shan Qie Dong Tatami) Figure 2: New selvage-free Tatami (Photo by Taichung Sanli Tatami Store) Figure: 3 Creative Tatami cultural products (Photo by Tainan Shan Qie Dong Tatami) Figure 4: Straw matting for baby cart (Photo by Tainan Shan Qie Dong Tatami) to room layout, many cutting and modification skills can only be accessed when the stores receive projects. Therefore, it is difficult to assess the total study time required. As for the techniques used, Master Po-Yong Gao, Hong-Wen Li and Xi-Nan Lai use semiautomatic auxiliary machines for tatami production, while Master Jian-Ting Xiao has operated large machines in the factory since his apprenticeship period. On the other hand, Master Jin-Shan Huang preserved the traditional hand-sown production.technique. Moreover, one specific phenomenon discovered from the interviews, was that craftsmen tend to help out their tatami peers when necessary. Master Po-Yong Gao from Hui Fa Tatami Store mentioned that one tatami store from Shilin asked him for temporary support in store due to large orders. Such a model, using inter-support rather than pricing competition, is rare among other industries,. Moreover, tatami craftsmen do not have set working times as do average employees elsewhere, as their work time is determined by production speed and size of orders. Therefore, they do not have days off at the weekends. Salary is determined by number of cases. According to Master Po-Yong Gao and Xi-Nan Lai, the average wage for one sheet of tatami falls between NT200 and NT250, while the current number of tatamis produced daily (based on 6 hours) is approximately 8 ~ 12 sheets. Facing with the shrinking Taiwan tatami industry, some craftsmen still sew their tatamis with needle and thread. To maintain normal operations, they have started to focus on providing different styles of tatami, such as the tatami mat for Zen meditation (Figure 1) and the tatami pillow. In addition to following the techniques inherited from the old master, Mr. Yeng-Zhe Li, father of Master Hong-Wen Li from Taichung, used his spare time to develop a new technique, an improvement on the tatami technique of Japan s Okinawa area to develop the 'Selvage-free Tatami' (Figure 2). Master Xi-Nan Lai from Tainan even took the street artist certification test, and received occasional invitation from the government's Cultural Affairs Bureau to perform tatami weaving crafts. Master Lai even utilized the leftovers from tatami production during his spare time to develop new products, such as sweeping remnants from straw matting (Figure 3) or the straw matting used for baby carts (Figure 4). Nonetheless, most craftsmen view the future heritage of their techniques with sadness. Master Jin-Yin Chen mentioned that, I taught my son to make tatamis but he did not think it offered any career prospects, and in fact, 4

5 there are less people buying tatamis now [Jin-Shan Huang, personal communication]. In view of such a trend, some craftsmen remain optimistic, as Master Xi-Nan Lai from Tainan suggested: I have an idea. I could not make much money from making tatamis, but I would like to take a fund and find some young people from the Shan Qie Dong area, who will study my techniques and run a tatami business as a feature of local culture [Xi- Nan Lai, personal communication]. On the other hand, Master Hong-Wen Li from Taichung is only 33 years old, and he resigned from the position he held as engineer in a large company due his feelings that his lifestyle was one of tremendous stress yet poor quality of life. He returned to his hometown to make tatamis with his father and he is now ready to take over the family business. 3. Tatami Manufacturing Techniques Figure 5: Tatami Structure Composition 3.1 Basic Constitution of the Tatami The structure of the tatami, as shown in Figure 5, is generally divided into the stacking surface (straw surface), stacking bed and selvage (lace). The bottom plastic material is PVC, which is added to the straw bottom because degraded straw tends fall off due to humidity if the original tatami straw bottom is exposed, causing an environmental mess. The common tatami size is 3 by 6 (approximately 90cm by 180cm), using two sheets to form one level ground, a basic unit conversion used in Taiwan. In Japan, the traditional tatami size is 2.9 by 5 (approximately 87cm by 172cm), known as a stack. Therefore, the Japanese room size is usually calculated stack number. Figure 6: Detailed paper-roll matting fiber (photo by Taipei He-Ting Tatami) 3.2 Materials used in the Tatami The materials used for traditional tatami surfaces include Triangular Rush, Mat Rush and Common Rush. The early tatamis used the local triangular rush of Taiwan for the surface. Due to the wider mat of the triangular rush, it requires splitting into finer mats and undergoing a drying process before weaving into the tatami. The texture is coarser. Later, the mat rush or the common rush eventually came to replace the original triangular rush. The new tatami surface the paper-rolled tatami introduced from Japan -- is 'paper grass' woven from the grass-green paper covering cotton core (Figure 6). It's surface is more wear-resistant than that of the previous tatami, which was constituted by natural ingredients, and it is less susceptible to damp. Although the life cycle of tatami has increased, but higher costs prevent substantial use by the Taiwan tatami industry and most of them still use the mat rush or common rush for the stack surface. The materials used for traditional tatami beds are dried straw, placed in alternate vertical and horizontal layers, in which each layer is tightened by stepping. Every 2~3 layers, the tatami is stitched with linen rope to fix it in place. When 6 or 7 layers have been placed, the master checks whether there is sufficient quantity of straw at the base, and whether its thickness is consistent. Dense weaving is used to fix and complete the straw bottom [2]. Traditional tatami beds are more susceptible to falling straws causing a mess and are likely to be be affected by 5

6 Figure 7: Wood pulp splint (Photo by Taiwan He-Ting Tatami) Figure 8: Selvage covered by Kraft paper (Photo by Taipei He-Ting Tatami) Manufacturing by Semi-Automatic Auxiliary Machine Dimension Measurement Selecting Straw Bottom Cutting Straw Bottom Cutting Tatami Surface Stitching Completion Figure 9: Tatami Manufacturing Flowchart Hand-made Figure 10: Cutting the trimming the four corner of Tatami (photo by Taipei Hui Fa Tatami) damp conditions, and attract infestation. The base is now covered with a layer of plastic wrapping that can effectively overcome these problems. Now, the wooden pulp splint stacked by the wooden pulp and foaming board is introduced (Figure 7), which not only provides better moisture-resistance but also ensures a uniform thickness and quality of every tatami bottom. Taiwanese straw tatami beds are now no longer compressed and manufactured by craftsmen but purchased, the straw bottoms from factories in Yunlin and Jiayi, and the wooden pulp splints imported from Japan. There is not much new material used for selvage and the traditional materials include silk, cotton and linen, while new materials used include nylon. As for the pattern selection, this is mostly based on designer or customer preference. However, pattern selection is careful for traditional Japanese tatamis. In the book, Stories of Tatami [6], it was mentioned that selvage can be divided into Kaoli edge, Imperial edge, Matsui edge, and Glorious edge, of which Imperial edge holds the highest status, and is usually used by the nobility. However, there are no such distinctions in Taiwan and the craftsmen simply order from upstream suppliers without using specific classifications. The craftsmen usually cover with Kraft paper inside the selvage before stitching the selvage (Figure 8). 3.3 Manufacturing Process The making of tatamis is in general divided into five phases, including dimension measurement, straw bottom selection, straw button cutting, and tatami surface cutting, and stitching, as shown in the Manufacturing Flowchart in Figure 9. The 'dimension measurement' is a pre-processing operation. Due to the modern architectural differences between Taiwan and Japan, and the fact that both use tatami space for calculating spatial dimension, many corners or spatial designs can be left with sporadic spaces, and such factors could affect tatami manufacturing. Therefore, some tatami craftsmen would visit the site to measure dimensions before manufacturing, in order to facilitate tatami manufacturing later. Additionally, some consumers now purchase ready-made standard tatamis. The actual production starts with the selection of the straw bottom, selecting either traditional straw bottoms or new wooden 6

7 Figure 11: Cleaver for trimming Tatami (Photo by Taichung Sanli Tatami store) Figure 12: Stitching machine (Photo by Taichung Sanli Tatami Store) Figure 13: Bore (photo by Taipei Hui Fa Tatami) Figure 14: Using stitching machine to stitch Tatami (photo by Taipei Hui Fa Tatami) pulp splints to produce according to customer requirements. Shape is then determined according to the drawing (Figure 10), after selection of straw bottom type. Usually, imported straw bottoms would be slightly bigger than the common size of 3 by 6 used in Taiwan, to allow craftsmen to grab a corner, and cut into it at right angles. The master would use a large triangular rule and cut the mat at right angles with a cleaver, then grab the other three right triangles to form a large 3 by 6 rectangular shape. The cleaver blade used for cutting must be very sharp so that the edge of the straw bottom remains flat and without bifurcation. Hence, the craftsmen need to sharpen their cleavers regularly in order to maintain sharpness. The cleaver shown in Figure 11 is not a special cleaver used for a particular part but rather a cleaver worn to a smaller size after years of use. The next phase is 'Cutting Tatami Surface,' in which the tatami surface used would be imported in bundled straw mats slightly wider than 3 feet, which will be trimmed to fit tatami size. The next phase is the 'Stitching' phase, in which the head and tails (shorter sides) are folded downwards before stitching, which thus requires reservation of sufficient length. The stitching of the two wings (longer sides) will usually require a semi-automatic stitching machine (Figure 12). To ensure the straightness and direction of the stitching path on the tatami surface, the 'trajectory' feature of machines also used. There is a bore on this trajectory that goes through the tatami surface and fixes on the straw bottom, while sometimes craftsmen use the bore (Figure 13) to strengthen the tighten on certain positions, so as to avoid machines shifting during operations if the trajectory slides. A machinist stitching is shown in Figure 14. After stitching the tatami surface covering the head and tail, the excess tatami surface is cut off and trimmed, followed by stitching the selvage. There is usually a Kraft paper ribbon (Figure 15) added between the selvage and the Tatami surface, which is smoother than the past tatami corners, which were directly stitched with selvage. The Kraft paper ribbon is added to make the corners neater and more aesthetically pleasing, and this is later processed by stitching with special semi-automatic stitching machines for selvage through the trajectory. After stitching, the Kraft paper and the selvage are folded in reverse direction and 7

8 Figure 15: Kraft paper ribbon (photo by Tainan Shan Qie Dong Tatami) Figure 16: Fold the selvage and flatten (Photo by Taipei Hui Fa Tatami) Figure 17: Thimble and needle (photo by Taipei He-Ting Tatami) flattened (Figure 16). In traditional hand-made stitching, this flattening step can demonstrate the straightness of the folding line, and the manual precision of each craftsman's work can be revealed here. The above steps complete one wing while the other side can be applied with the same procedures. After stitching the selvage, the tatami is completed successfully. The biggest difference between new production processes and traditional manufacturing techniques is the introduction of semiautomatic machines. The master traditionally relied heavily on manual labor regardless of whether he was stitching the tatami surface or the selvage. Traditional manufacturing required the use of a palm-size, triangular 'thimble' (Figure 17), however long periods of use would still make the wrist and palm ache. For this reason, even the most skilled old masters could not use needles at equal intervals while keeping the back-and-forth motion of needle and thread on the same straight line, let alone apprentices who had not yet completed their studies. It was even discovered that the selvage of certain products do not form a straight line. The reason for this is -- quite apart from the degree of skill required -- it takes considerable strength on the craftsman s part to force the needle through the thick straw bottom, and when this is coupled with cumulative work fatigue, the result is degradation of tatami quality. Hence, most tatami workshops have introduced semiautomatic machines for auxiliary production, to enhance the daily production and maintain uniform standards of quality. 3.4 Production and Marketing Patterns In the traditional tatami marketing mode, customers would go to the store in person and inform the store of their requirements. Basically, the business was customized, and when necessary, the craftsmen would visit the customer s house in person to take dimensions, and follow up by determining each tatami's size. The arrangement of the tatamis could be slightly modified to suit the layout of the room. In the event of a beam or interior wall not being perpendicular, the craftsmen would cut and modify tatami sizes according to the room layout or the buyer's requirements, giving each tatami a fixed position. Upon the completion of manufacturing, the truck would deliver tatamis together with the craftsmen for on-site installation. In the early days, such as the 1950s in Taiwan, even hand-pulled rickshaws were used to deliver the goods. With the rise and diversification of the logistics industry, most stores now delegate distribution to the logistics industry and buyers can install tatamis themselves. Apart from the above-mentioned production and marketing patterns, there is another type of customer source. This is because people today value the interior design of their homes and from studies conducted on the room and style of 'Japanese-Style Rooms' among the Taiwanese apartment residences [5], the investigated samples showed 8

9 Figure 18: Tatami with special arrangement Taken from Hui Fa Tatami Website) Figure 19: Yi-Xin Tatami Website (Taken from Yi-Xin Tatami Website) that about 71.8 % of the 'original design' of multi-family residential is planned as a 'Japanese-style Room' while the increase in house level ground has been followed by an increase in the scale of Japanese-style room (the scale is 2.92 level ground in average, nearly the size of 6 sheets of Tatami), indicating that tatamis still hold some appeal among many multi-family residences in Taiwan and that some demand for them still exists. Therefore, interior design companies often cooperate with Tatami stores for customization of special tatamis when planning interior design, resulting in an increasing number of tatami arrangements (Figure 18) In addition, during interviews, we discovered a selling approach different from that of the past, in which tatami craftsmen have started to use the Internet to market their products (Figure 19). On a tatami website, the site will typically list many tatamirelated cultural items, maintenance methods and work testimonials, and also show past media report clips or news items. We discovered these websites or blogs are often founded by newgeneration craftsmen or their children. Despite the existence of these websites, online marketing is still passive, though setting up a website still adds considerable visibility to the store. Master Hong-Wen Li suggested that: Customers used to know we sell tatamis when they happened to pass the store or via word-of-mouth, or by seeing neighbors, relatives or friends who had installed tatamis. More young people know where to buy tatamis via the Internet or know about tatami maintenance methods, which considerably increases their purchase intention [1]. The Internet can be used to increase customer numbers and promote tatami use in younger target groups.. 4. Conclusions This study applied field investigation and face-to-face interviews with craftsmen to analyze the data collected, and reached the following five conclusions: 1. Technical heritage based on family business: The crafts and techniques of Taiwanese craftsmen are heritagebased, followed by studying with factory craftsmen during the apprenticeship period. In the beginning, most Taiwanese craftsmen studied in factories under Japanese craftsmen until the Japanese army withdrew from Taiwan, whereupon the tatami market emerged. These masters then hired craftsmen and opened their own workshops, employing 2~3 craftsmen. However, some craftsmen then introduced large automatic production machinery to cope with the increased demand. 2. Introduction of new materials: Traditional tatamis used materials such as Mat Rush or Common Rush as the straw base. A time passed, more durable wooden pulp splints were imported from Japan, in which two wooden pulp compressed splints were clamped onto a PU board to replace the traditional straw base. The 9

10 material is harder and less breathable. However, the advantage is that this material is unaffected by damp and infestation. The previous triangular rush stack surface then changed to mat rush or common rush, and now additionally, there is also the paper-roll mat. Features of this new product include not being susceptible to damp, enhanced wear-resistance and increased toughness, without color-fading. The life of the tatami product is thus extended, though this comes with the disadvantage of higher costs. 3. Co-existence of hand-made and machine auxiliary manufacturing: We discovered from the interviews that most craftsmen have adopted semi-automatic auxiliary machines for manufacturing, and some factories even own large automatic production machinery. Nonetheless, the manufacturing process still requires handmade finishing or manual processing of details, therefore there is still a demand for craftsmen who are able to incorporate experience and manual techniques to complete the tatami production process, despite the introduction of semi-automatic tools. Hence, we observe from the production flowchart that semi-automatic auxiliary machines and tools specialize in the processing of labor-intensive work and procedures requiring a high degree of precision. 4. Business model based on peer support system: The pricing competition model commonly seen in other industries has rarely been seen in the history of the tatami industry. Even in the tatami industry's boom era, factories employed craftsmen to support production, rather than engage in cut-throat competition if demand exceeded supply. 5. Modernization of marketing model: As the Internet develops and a new-generation of young craftsmen emerges, tatami stores are setting up websites for marketing and promotion, which not only adds exposure to the stores, but also succeeds in attracting younger customer target groups to use tatamis. However, this marketing mode is still passive and lacks an active marketing business model. 5. Acknowledgments This research project is funded by the National Science Council (NSC H ). The author would like to thank them for their support. 6. References and Citations [1] Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) (1993) Comprehensive analysis of the census results of Industry, Commerce, Service business in Taiwan, The census report of industry, Commerce and Service business in Taiwan, Vol.1, P [2] Lo Xiu-hua (2004) The old industry in Taiwan, Walkers Cultural Enterprise Ltd:Taipei. [3] Lo, Tsai-Yun (2010) Formation and historical development of Tatami industry in Taiwan-based on old lecture, The 5th International Symposium of Asian Design Culture Society, pp [4] Office of the Governor-General (1899~1927) Yearly Statistics Book, Book1~29, Japanese occupation statistics database, Taiwan [5] Rong-Song Zhu (2003) Research of Space and Style of the Japanese Room In Taiwan Apartment Habitations, National Yunlin University of Science and Technology, Taiwan [6] Sado Osamu (2006) The Story of Tatami, Rokusima:Japan. 10