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Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to formulate the manufacturing strategy in a developing country with particular reference to Nigeria in sub-Saharan African country. Design/methodology/approach - Using survey methodology and the partial least squares - structural equation modeling technique, The authors find that in addition to the four basic environmental factors - business cost, labor availability, competitive hostility and environmental dynamism, both government policies and the adopted manufacturing practices have significant effects on the manufacturing strategic priorities. Findings - Among other findings, the environmental factors of government policies and the type of manufacturing practices adopted have significant effects on manufacturing strategy. Research limitations/implications - Further studies should explicitly look into the effect of the adopted manufacturing strategy on company performance. Possibly, a case study research might be considered to establish this relationship. Practical implications - As manufacturing firms continue to experience greater competition, especially from China, and given the technological advancement in manufacturing, the business environment facing Nigerian manufacturing companies is likely to become more dynamic, complex, diverse and even hostile. Under such a turbulent climate, the configuration and effective deployment of manufacturing strategies is imperative to achieving superior business performance. Social implications - A more effective strategy will make companies more competitive in the market place, thus creating employment in a sector that has witnessed declining growth in employment. Originality/value - The linkage between environmental factors and manufacturing strategy has been studied widely. However, this study reveals the role of government policies and manufacturing practices in formulating manufacturing strategy in a developing country context.

The purpose of this study is to examine the interrelationships between manufacturing strategy process (manufacturing strategy formulation and manufacturing strategy implementation), manufacturing-marketing integration and plant performance. For this study, a survey was conducted on 221 manufacturers from the machinery, automotive and electronics in South Korea. Subsequently, the related hypotheses were tested using structural equation modeling. According to the results, positive relationships were observed between the manufacturing strategy process, manufacturing-marketing integration and plant performance. Specifically, manufacturing strategy formulation positively influenced both manufacturing strategy implementation and manufacturing-marketing integration. Further, not only manufacturing strategy implementation, but manufacturing-marketing integration also has a direct positive influence on plant performance. Although manufacturing strategy formulation does not directly affect plant performance, its influence on plant performance is transmitted through two paths intermediated by both manufacturing strategy implementation and manufacturing-marketing integration, respectively. In contrast to quite a number of studies focused on the manufacturing strategy content, there only exists a relatively small number of studies related to the manufacturing strategy process. Therefore, this study is one of the few broad empirical studies that investigated the interrelationships between manufacturing strategy formulation, manufacturing strategy implementation, manufacturing-marketing cooperation and plant performance using structural equation modeling. Furthermore, it also verified that the manufacturing strategy process can be a source of plant performance improvement.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between product customization and servitization strategies, specifically the relationship between product customization strategy intensity and degree of servitization (offering of basic and/or advanced services) and the moderating role of product customization strategy alignment on that relationship. Design/methodology/approach The authors develop and test hypotheses through partial least squares path modeling to analyze data from the Sixth International Manufacturing Strategy Survey, involving 931 manufacturers in 22 countries. Findings The results indicate that customization strategy intensity is positively associated with the offering of basic and advanced services; these relationships are not moderated by customization strategy alignment. Practical implications Manufacturers pursuing product customization strategies may be especially well positioned to servitize, even those with misalignment in strategic choices. Paradoxically, while manufacturers of standard products might look at servitization as an attractive strategy to differentiate their value proposition, they appear to be less servitized than manufacturers pursuing product customization. Originality/value This is one of the first studies to examine how manufacturing strategy choices (intensity and alignment) influence the adoption of servitization strategies. The study introduces manufacturing strategy as a contingency factor that influences the adoption of servitization, answering calls for the study of servitization contingencies.

Identifying manufacturers' competitive priorities has long been considered a key element in manufacturing strategy research. However, relatively little effort has been devoted to measurement of these constructs in published research. In this study we develop scales for commonly accepted competitive priorities, cost importance, quality importance, delivery‐time importance, and flexibility importance. We assess how well the scales capture the constructs that they represent using data collected from 114 manufacturing plants in the United States. The findings suggest that the instrument developed can provide reliable data and that the constructs measured are valid. In addition, comparisons between pairs of informants representing the same business indicate that the perceptual measures of competitive priorities are as reliable as point estimates of routine, seemingly objective information.

Purpose Modern manufacturing systems require tools and techniques that take cognizance of the social (concerning people and relations) as well as the technical environment. The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between the social and technical aspects of lean manufacturing practices and their effects on business performance outcomes. Design/methodology/approach The hypothesized relationships for this study are tested with data collected from 148 Indian manufacturing firms by using SPSS and AMOS statistical software. Findings The analysis of the study was conducted using structural equation modeling (SEM) technique, which indicated that both “soft” and “hard” lean practices are positively related to business performance parameters. The findings also demonstrated that “hard” lean practices fully mediate the relationship between “soft” lean practices and business performance parameters. Research limitations/implications There are some limitations of this study. Although a cross-sectional survey has been applied, the research does not permit us to account for the lag between implementation and performance. It also brings the opinion of a limited number of Indian experts about lean manufacturing systems; hence, the sample size could be increased and the nationality of the respondent could be expanded for future research. Practical implications The paper would be of interest to Lean practitioners, and the results of this study can be used in organizations to put a focus on social-cultural changes while applying lean technical tools when it comes to practices as well as importance. Originality/value This paper extends theoretical contribution in production and operations management literature, highlighting how social and technical practices have to interact to enable a successful lean manufacturing implementation.

PurposeThe role of industry 4.0 (I4.0) technologies for organizations to achieve a competitive advantage and mitigate disruptive emergency situations are well exhibited in literature. However, more light needs to be thrown into implementing I4.0 technologies to digitally transform organizations. This paper introduces a novel framework for formulating manufacturing strategy 4.0 (MS 4.0) that guides organizations to implement I4.0 successfully.Design/methodology/approachThe experts working in I4.0 and technology management domains were interviewed to determine the definition, role and process for formulating MS 4.0. Text mining using VOSViewer© is performed on the experts' opinions to determine the key terms from the opinions through keyword analysis. The identified key terms are mapped together using the existing traditional manufacturing strategy formulation framework to develop the MS 4.0 framework. Finally, the proposed MS 4.0 framework is validated through a triangulation approach.FindingsThis study captured the role, definition and process to formulate MS 4.0 and proposed a framework to help practitioners implement I4.0 at manufacturing organizations to achieve competitiveness during normal and emergency situations.Research limitations/implicationsThe proposed MS 4.0 framework can assist industry practitioners in formulating the strategy for implementing the I4.0 technology/gies to digitally transform their manufacturing firm to retain the maximum manufacturing output and become market competent in normal and emergency situations.Originality/valueThis study is the first of its kind in the body of knowledge to formulate a digital transformation strategy, i.e. MS 4.0, to implement I4.0 technologies through a manufacturing strategic lens.

Players in the automotive industry have been adopting different strategies to remain competitive, including product and process innovation, Lean Manufacturing, and, more recently, Green Manufacturing. In this paper, we seek to explore the integration of Lean and Green manufacturing activities from the perspective of Operations Management and Operations Strategy. We carried out case studies at four Original Equipment Manufacturers and two first-tier suppliers in the automotive industry, examining their operations strategies, their Lean practices and their Green practices to discuss whether Lean and Green practices were integrated and aligned with companies' operations priorities. We found that companies have adopted different Operations Strategies considering operations competitive priorities, decision areas subjected to changes, and Lean and Green practices implemented. Cases analysed show different levels of Lean and Green Manufacturing adoption and different levels of integration of Lean practices and Green practices. The study indicates that the implementation of an operations strategy, with the addition of the Environment to the set of competitive priorities and involving the implementation of Lean and Green practices – or the implementation of Green practices in production systems that have already adopted Lean practices –, is a complex management task.

Purpose – Strategic consensus between operators and managers is an important means to accomplish a successful manufacturing strategy (MS) process. Previous studies largely left out individual operators from this concept. Therefore, the purpose of this paper was to empirically examine the level of strategic consensus on the MS within the operations function, that is, the operators’ and managers’ perceptions of MS. Design/methodology/approach – Interviews were conducted with both operators and managers at three small and medium-sized enterprises in Sweden. The MS dimensions were selected based on previous research; the data was analysed by using thematic coding. Findings – The study shows that the levels of strategic consensus on the MS vary among companies. Even when strategic consensus exists between operators and managers, their underlying reasons often differ. Furthermore, the levels of strategic consensus vary among MS dimensions. The companies’ usage of information-sharing channels, along with their size and position in the supply chain, can be important for the level of strategic consensus. Originality/value – This paper contributes to the body of knowledge in three ways. First, it expands the scope of the MS dimensions under study, thus offering a stronger, resource-based perspective on MS and strategic consensus than what earlier studies showed. Second, it goes beyond the management level by including both managers and operators as the unit of analysis. Third, compared to previous research, it focuses on a new context and is based on indepth case studies.

PurposeScarcity of resources, ecological imbalance, global warming, rising energy prices and the ever-changing need for variety have attracted the government and manufacturers for sustainable development of the industries. The integrated sustainable-green-lean-six sigma-agile manufacturing system (ISGLSAMS) provides a solid platform for meeting both the customers’ variety needs and business sustainability requirements. Many organizations opted for ISGLSAMS, but still due to various barriers organizations are not able to fully implement ISGLSAMS. The purpose of this paper is to identify the barriers to the ISGLSAMS, so that a more sustainable industrial manufacturing system and industrial symbiosis can be developed.Design/methodology/approachA literature review, from the Web of Science and Google Scholar database, has been carried out to identify the various barriers to the implementation of ISGLSAMS in the entire value chain. A total of 168 research papers have been reviewed for identifying the ISGLSAMS barriers.FindingsThis paper elaborates the concept of the ISGLSAMS, its attributes and various barriers and contributes to a better understanding and successful implementation of ISGLSAMS to meet business’ sustainability and market performance goals in the entire value chain. The paper also projects the future research framework and directions for the ISGLSAMS, integrated sustainable-green-lean-six sigma-agile (ISGLSA) product and ISGLSA supply and value chain.Practical implicationsThe study contributes to a better understanding of ISGLSAMS’ barriers. The government, stakeholders and policymakers may plan the policy, road map and strategies to overcome the ISGLSAMS’ barriers. In-depth knowledge of subclauses of ISGLSAMS’ barriers will help the practitioners to overcome the ISGLSAMS’ barriers strategically. By overcoming the ISGLSAMS barriers, a more sustainable 7 Rs based market focused manufacturing system can be designed. This will also increase the opportunities to enhance the industrial ecology, industrial symbiosis and better recovery of the product, process and supply chain residual value. This will reduce the waste to the ecosystem.Originality/valueThis work has been carried out in search of a more sustainable manufacturing system, i.e. ISGLSAMS (which is 7 Rs based, i.e. 6 Rs of sustainability with 7th R, reconfiguration) to meet the customer variety needs along with sustainability in the ever-changing customer market. This study adds value to the practitioners to identify and prioritize the ISGLSAMS’ industry-specific barriers and design the solution for the more sustainable development of (1) industries, (2) the industrial symbiosis system and (3) the ISGLSA product, process, system and supply value chain with minimum resource consumption and environmental impact. The research also contributes to the (a) ISGLSAMS (b) ISGLSA supply chain (c) reconfigurable, sustainable and modular products and (d) redesign, recovery and refurbishing of the product to increase the product life cycle.