* Starting from Need* Evolution of the Toyota Production System* Further Development* Genealogy of the Toyota Production System* The True Intention of the Ford System* Surviving the Low-Growth Period

Toyota production system : beyond large-scale production

House of Quality

– Despite the fact that agile manufacturing has been frequently promoted as a means of improving business competitiveness, little empirical evidence exists in the literature validating its positive link with business performance. The purpose of this research paper is to analyse agile manufacturing in Spain and study whether it is a critical factor for success in different industries., – A conceptual model is drawn up, based on the literature and a previous case study, to relate turbulence in the environment with agile manufacturing practices and business performance. The model is tested on a large sample of Spanish manufacturers using a survey methodology to obtain information and a structural equation model to analyse the data., – The results obtained show that, in turbulent environments, the integrated use of agile manufacturing practices promotes manufacturing competitive strength, leading to better operational, market and financial performance., – This study has two main limitations. First, it is difficult to determine the most suitable unit of analysis when studying agile manufacturing. Second, single respondent bias may be considered a limitation., – Managers should consider the integrated implementation of agile manufacturing practices in order to develop manufacturing strength and to outperform competitors in turbulent business environments., – This study adopts a systematic approach to the analysis of agile manufacturing, considering various agility practices or enablers in an integrated way and relating them not only to environmental characteristics but also to business performance. This approach is especially interesting because most of the literature on agile manufacturing deals with agility strategies or techniques in an isolated way. The study also tests the suitability of agile manufacturing in real organisations – for the first time in the Spanish context.

Agility drivers, enablers and outcomes: Empirical test of an integrated agile manufacturing model

This paper investigates the fundamental building blocks of supply chain agility, which are conceptualised as supply- and demand-side competence. While the former refers to production and supply management related activities, the latter refers to distribution and demand management related activities. The model further assesses the influence of supply chain agility on operational performance, as well as its mediating role in the relationship between supply- and demand-side competence and performance. Within this framework, process compliance, i.e. how well supply chain management processes are internally executed by the firm's employees, is viewed as an enabler (moderator) on the relationship between supply chain competencies and supply chain agility. Theoretical substantiation is provided by the resource-based view of the firm augmented with the dynamic capabilities perspective. The model is tested with data from 121 supply chain management professionals. Implications for both academic theory development and supply chain and production management practice are provided.

Antecedents and Enablers of Supply Chain Agility and its Effect on Performance

Digital Content Marketing's Role in Fostering Consumer Engagement, Trust, and Value: Framework, Fundamental Propositions, and Implications

This paper presents a framework for the implementation of agile manufacturing. The framework employs a bottom-up approach taking the company through three iterative implementation phases of robustness of operation, responsiveness to customers and proactive growth tactics. The framework incorporates a detailed assessment of the level of business environment turbulence and the impact of this turbulence on the enterprise. The results of this assessment are used to identify and customise an implantation plan as well as select the required tools and those measures of performance necessary to monitor the plans progress. This is carried while aligning any action to the company strategy.

Agile manufacturing framework and practice

It is increasingly more evident that mass customization (MC) has become a key strategy for those companies operating in markets where offering customers more choice is the only remaining differentiator. However, the impact on small and medium enterprises (SMEs) is not always clear as the resources required to implement such a strategy in an SME often falls beyond what is considered to be acceptable risk. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the issue of whether SMEs truly know how to effectively operate in an environment driven by customization. This paper introduces and demonstrates, through two case studies, how the principles of MC have been adopted by SMEs within the context of manufacturing agility and product flexibility. The paper explores the issues of product configuration, component similarity and the set of tools and measures of performance developed to steer the MC implementation process. The paper examines how the reuse of common components in product families can reduce internal variety. Coefficients that measure the similarity of products within a family are presented. These consider the factors of product structure, cost, volume and contribution. The "product-component matrix" is introduced to represent product families and calculate the similarity coefficients

How Small and Medium Enterprises Effectively Participate in the Mass Customization Game

Purpose – To examine the application of the principles of “agile manufacturing” to marketing strategy, planning and management, in the context of small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs).Design/methodology/approach – Uses the case‐study method to test the development and deployment of “agile marketing” by applying the marketing techniques normally practised only by larger companies, within the “hard” and “soft” constraints imposed by one small company's managerial attitudes, corporate resources and time horizons. The host company was a UK supplier of technological products to other manufacturers; it had no history of marketing. The focus of the study was on the third stage of the agility framework: how a proactive marketing approach can be used to generate new custom.Findings – “Agile marketing” innovations released latent capacity, and a strategic marketing plan was devised to win new custom. After follow‐up, four new customers had been recruited, and the potential for developing long‐term relations wit...

Agile marketing for the manufacturing‐based SME

Lean manufacturing is essential for any company to remain competitive in the global business market. Companies in Singapore’s shipbuilding industry encountering fierce competition from overseas shipyards that have lower operating costs have now started to explore lean manufacturing in an attempt to lower their costs and improve the level of manufacturing quality while continuing to deliver high value to customers. Despite the importance of lean manufacturing to the shipping industry, few organizations in Singapore have succeeded in lean implementation. Thus, this study tries to explain the barriers to lean manufacturing as well as provide clarity and guidance to the companies aiming to adopt this practice to strengthen the probability of their success in its

https://journal.oscm-forum.org/journal/journal/download/20200312133127_Paper_5_Vol._13_No_._2_2020__.pdf

Barriers Affecting Successful Lean Implementation in Singapore's Shipbuilding Industry: A Case Study

Driven by complex social, political, geographic and technological factors, the past decade has seen dramatic changes in the global market environments Manufacturing companies have been under pressure to meet conflicting goals of efficiency and consumer choice On one hand customers demand that orders are met faster and at lower cost On the other hand, they are demanding highly customized products with a wide variety of options This has led a growing number of economists and scholars to declare that the paradigm of mass production is no longer able to satisfy such demands As a result new paradigms of agility, responsiveness and mass customization have emerged Mass customization is the “application of technology and new management methods to provide product variety and customization through flexibility and quick responsiveness at prices comparable to mass-produced products” Mass customization, in itself introduces new demands on firms These include improved product development processes, flexible manufacturing planning and control systems, and closer supply chain management Whilst larger organizations by their nature can afford the risk of making mistakes, small to medium enterprises (SME’s) are typically more vulnerable, and hence need a structured low risk approach The second of these shifts is the more relevant to mass customization and often SME’s are not able to effectively balance the market needs on one hand and operational efficiencies on the other In this paper, a method for feature-based mass customization is proposed that translates the voice of the customer into viable integrated product functional requirements, design features, component selection and reuse, and product design modules that are able to provide a better balance between customer requirements and company capabilities at an early stage of product design The paper demonstrates, via a case study, how the principles of feature-based customization have been adopted by an SME within the context of agility The paper explores a method for prioritizing the VOC in terms of similarity of functional requirements/features within product families These consider the factors of design features, modular structures and product component in terms of cost and volume The ‘feature-component matrix’ is introduced to represent product families and calculate these similarity coefficients The goal is to present design and manufacturing engineers with insights into product similarity and feature-based customization The paper demonstrates, via a case study, how the principles of balancing customer requirements using feature-based customization and how it has been adopted by an SME within the context of manufacturing agility

Ivan C. Arokiam

Papers

Agile manufacturing framework and practice

How Small and Medium Enterprises Effectively Participate in the Mass Customization Game

Agile marketing for the manufacturing‐based SME

Barriers Affecting Successful Lean Implementation in Singapore's Shipbuilding Industry: A Case Study

Mass Customization: Balancing Customer Desires with Operational Reality