In my (not-at-all-expert) opinion, this was Specialized's most important innovation. In the 80's Specialized employed some of the best frame builders in the U.S. They were certainly more than capable of producing frames that would have been among the best in the world, but they wouldn't have been able to produce those frames in large volume. The genius of Specialized was to send their experts to Japanese factories to develop a process for scaling production of these frames. Only the few who were involved really know how much the craftsmen at these Japanese factories had to be taught, but the oral history of the company says that the Specialized people from the U.S. spent months there overseeing production.

I have a couple of Specialized frames from the early 80's and I think they're fantastic. The fact that I don't know the name of the guy who brazed them together doesn't worry me at all.

The whole thing always makes me think of the scene in Back to the Future II where Doc and Marty are recovering the DeLorean from the mine shaft.

Doc: "No wonder this circuit failed, it says 'made in Japan.'"
Marty: "What do you mean, Doc? All the best stuff is made in Japan."