Survey of reverse logistics practices in manufacturing industries: an Indian context

2015 ◽  
Vol 22 (5) ◽  
pp. 874-899 ◽  
Author(s):  
V Ravi ◽  
Ravi Shankar
Keyword(s):  
Reverse Logistics ◽  
Manufacturing Industry ◽  
Numerical Data ◽  
Economic Benefits ◽  
Current Status ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
Sensitive Data ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Indian Context ◽  
Food And Beverage

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the current status of reverse logistics practices used on four sectors of Indian manufacturing industry, namely, auto, paper, food and beverage processing, and electronics. Design/methodology/approach – A nationwide questionnaire-based survey has been used to assess reverse logistics practices in Indian context. Findings – It was seen from the survey that Indian companies considered implementing reverse logistics programs in their organization as a strategic-level decision. Volume of products entering the return stream is a key driver of reverse logistics activities. One of the important observations of this research is that Indian companies have primarily adopted reverse logistics due to the economic benefits associated with them. Research limitations/implications – The results reported in this research are the bird’s eye view of reverse logistics practices in the Indian context only. The low level of questionnaire responses is also one of the limitations of this study. Numerical data related to companies could not be reported in this research as companies were reluctant in giving sensitive data. Practical implications – The present research would be useful for benchmarking professionals/managers for understanding strategic, tactical and operational-level issues of reverse logistics with respect to Indian context. Also, logistics managers can evolve suitable strategies for successful implementation of reverse logistics programs. Originality/value – The literature review indicates that only a few frameworks available give a holistic perspective of the current status of reverse logistics operations in an Indian context. This research is an attempt in this regard.

Estimating competitiveness of Greek food and beverage industry: a comparison between Greek flour milling industry and Greek food and beverage industry

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Christos Konstantinidis ◽  
Stamatis Aggelopoulos ◽  
Maria Tsiouni ◽  
Evanthia Rizopoulou
Keyword(s):  
Manufacturing Industry ◽  
Sustainable Growth ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Balance Sheets ◽  
Research Perspective ◽  
Flour Milling ◽  
Beverage Industry ◽  
Food And Beverage Industry ◽  
Food And Beverage ◽  
Greek Economy

PurposeThe objective of this study is to estimate the competitiveness for both the Greek food and beverage industry as a whole and the flour and milling industry, justifying the certain economic factors and the way which these factors affect on it.Design/methodology/approachThe Greek food and beverage firms which published their balance sheets for the studying period were studied. According to the existing literature two equations were created and estimated as a simultaneous equations system.FindingsSummarizing the results both for the whole food and beverage industry and the flour milling industry are observed significant similarities on how certain economics factors such as profitability, market share, sustainable growth, age and operating costs affect on competitiveness as measured in this work. This may happen due to the high degree of concentration but also in the special characteristics which present both the Greek food and beverage industry and the flour milling sector.Research limitations/implicationsThe fact that this work referred only in Greek firms can be a limitation of this research, in spite of that it can provide useful and safe conclusions for the Greek food manufacturing industry.Practical implicationsThe provision of proposals for increasing firm competitiveness to managers as well as to policymakers.Social implicationsThe importance of food and beverage industry for the Greek economy as well as that the flour milling industry holds an important position in the Greek food and beverage industry makes the study of the competitiveness for both of them to be important from both an academic and research perspective.Originality/valueThe Greek food and beverage industry is the strength of Greek manufacturing and at the same time an important lever for the development of the entire Greek economy. The high quality products it produces and the organized promotion of its products in international markets are elements that give it an advantage and stimulate its competitiveness. The flour milling industry is one of the sectors in which there is intense competition and whose presence in terms of sales, turnover, employment and gross value is particularly important, so a simultaneous study of these cases is very important.

scholarly journals A detailed survey of just-in-time implementation status within Libyan cement industry, and its implication for operations management

2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 1081
Author(s):  
Rajab Abduallah Hokoma ◽  
Hala Mansour Amaigl
Keyword(s):  
Value Chain ◽  
Operations Management ◽  
Manufacturing Industry ◽  
Survey Methodology ◽  
Cement Industry ◽  
Current Status ◽  
Just In Time ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
Key Factors ◽  
Implementation Status

This paper investigates in detail the current status of the implementation levels of JIT key-factors and their sub-elements within the cement industry within Libya, and its implication for management within the said industry. A survey methodology has been applied in this detailed investigation using an intensive questionnaire and one-to-one interviews of the correspondent organizations. Based on the analysis of the survey findings, the results show that the implementation status of the JIT key-factors and their sub-elements are found to be in the modest levels across all the surveyed organisations, thereby indicating to opportunities for eliminating waste and improving the value chain. This paper has also pointed to crucial areas where the senior management body within this industry need to take immediate actions in order to achieve an effective and successful implementation of JIT systems. The paper also makes a contribution by providing an insight into what extent the JIT key-factors and their sub-elements are understood and implemented within the key Libyan manufacturing industry.

An investigation into manufacturing performance achievements accrued by Indian manufacturing organization through strategic 5S practices

2018 ◽  
Vol 67 (4) ◽  
pp. 754-787 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jugraj Singh Randhawa ◽  
Inderpreet Singh Ahuja
Keyword(s):  
Lean Manufacturing ◽  
Manufacturing Industry ◽  
Service Industry ◽  
Manufacturing Sector ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
Automotive Manufacturing ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Manufacturing Performance ◽  
Improvement Programs ◽  
Manufacturing Organization

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the quantitative and qualitative benefits accrued by an Indian automotive parts industry through strategic 5S implementation initiatives. Design/methodology/approach The study involves evaluation of steps involved in systematic implementation of 5S program methodology in an automotive manufacturing organization and investigation of achievements accrued by the industry through the successful implementation of 5S program. Findings The empirical results of the study have revealed that effective practice of 5S program brings considerable level of improvements in the quality, production, cost optimizations, employee’s morale values and work culture in the manufacturing industry. The industry accrued both tangible and non-tangible benefits through the holistic adoption of 5S principals. 5S principals have been envisioned to further support other quality improvement programs like lean manufacturing initiatives of the organizations. Research limitations/implications The limitation of the study is that this research has been carried out in only manufacturing industry while similar study will be conducted in the service industry also. Originality/value Global competition in the manufacturing sector has provided necessary impetus for manufacturing organizations for affecting continuous improvements in manufacturing performance for achieving sustainability and profitability in the competitive market. 5S implementation is the fundamental tool for the overall achievements in both quantitative and qualitative performance enhancements in the manufacturing as well as service organizations.

Productivity improvement using lean manufacturing in manufacturing industry of Northern India

2018 ◽  
Vol 67 (8) ◽  
pp. 1394-1415 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jagdeep Singh ◽  
Harwinder Singh ◽  
Gurpreet Singh
Keyword(s):  
Lean Manufacturing ◽  
Manufacturing Industry ◽  
Management Approach ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
Productivity Improvement ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Manufacturing Technique ◽  
Northern India ◽  
Lean Tools ◽  
Manufacturing Environments

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to uncover the significance of lean manufacturing technique in manufacturing environments. Design/methodology/approach Lean manufacturing is a management approach focused on incremental improvements in operations. Different lean strategies are being utilized by manufacturing industry to improve the performance of current manufacturing system processes. This study attempts to evaluate the performance of different lean manufacturing tools in the manufacturing industry of northern India. The importance level of different lean tools, important benefits achieved after successful implementation of lean manufacturing approach and benefits occurred after implementation of different lean tools have been identified. A questionnaire survey in the case company has been performed and the most important element of lean manufacturing has been implemented. Findings Results explicitly depict that just-in-time manufacturing is the most important element of lean manufacturing. Results indicate the net savings of rupees 242,208 annually after implementing lean manufacturing technique in a case company. Originality/value The paper demonstrates the practical application of lean technique showing how it can bring real breakthroughs in saving cost in the manufacturing industry.

How management control systems enable and constrain integrated thinking

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ruth Dimes ◽  
Charl de Villiers
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Control Systems ◽  
Economic Benefits ◽  
Management Control ◽  
Management Control Systems ◽  
Practical Implementation ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Perceived Trust

Purpose This paper aims to examine how management control systems (MCS) can enable and constrain the successful adoption of integrated thinking in an organisation. Design/methodology/approach The study adopts a case study approach, involving in-depth interviews and documentary evidence. Findings The case study organisation perceived trust to be critical to the successful adoption of integrated thinking, and informal social controls with strong endorsement from senior management frequently substituted for more formal technical controls in helping to develop a trust-based organisational culture. These cultural changes improved collaboration and brought economic benefits by encouraging outcome-based decision-making rather than capital-based decision-making, thereby enabling employees to identify and address poorly performing projects earlier. However, established performance measurement systems geared towards reporting and rewarding accounting profits created tension, constraining the potential benefits of integrated thinking by reinforcing business unit protectionism. Practical implications Integrated thinking can be seen as a form of management with the potential to improve organisational outcomes. An improved understanding of factors that might enable or constrain integrated thinking could facilitate its spread. Originality/value Despite several calls for research on the practical implementation of integrated thinking, this has not been studied extensively. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is one of the firsts to contribute to a better understanding of the role of MCS in the successful implementation of integrated thinking in an organisation. The study also contributes to the MCS literature.

Factors influencing liquidity position of Indian manufacturing companies

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 243-260
Author(s):  
Amit Tripathy ◽  
Shigufta Hena Uzma
Keyword(s):  
Manufacturing Industry ◽  
Stock Exchange ◽  
Cash Holdings ◽  
Emerging Economy ◽  
Market Mechanism ◽  
Manufacturing Companies ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Factors Influencing ◽  
Indian Context ◽  
The Impact

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the increasing demand for corporate liquidity and examines the various factors influencing the cash position of firms in India. The financial policy to hold cash gained impetus after the financial crisis when the companies faced a severe cash crunch. However, the firms operating in emerging nations have an imperfect market mechanism with stringent regulatory norms. Thus, this paper attempts to examine the determinants of corporate cash holdings in an emerging country like India.Design/methodology/approachThe paper focuses on the impact of various factors (leverage, firm size, profitability, growth along with other variables), on the cash structure of all the manufacturing companies listed on the Bombay stock exchange. The study employs panel data methodologies over a sample of 323 firms over a period of eight years from 2010 to 2017.FindingsSignificant estimators affecting cash holdings of a firm are the size of a firm, debt levels, tangibility, sales growth and research and development expense. Overall, the study finds evidence on the existence of Pecking Order theory in explaining the determinants of cash holdings in the Indian market.Research limitations/implicationsThe study attempts to explore the critical determinants of cash in the Indian context which can be useful for managers and academicians to understand how the key theories of cash holdings operate in an emerging economy like India.Originality/valueIndia is an emerging economy and has recently gained global attention and has become a hotspot for foreign investments. Thus, this paper explores pieces of evidence on the critical factors affecting cash holdings in India. The study would provide an understanding of the existing cash policy in the Indian context and attempts to find the changes in the financing structure adopted by the manufacturing industry in the given period.

An empirical investigation and prioritization of barriers toward implementation of agile manufacturing in the manufacturing industry

2020 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 183-203
Author(s):  
Rahul Kumar ◽  
Kanwarpreet Singh ◽  
Sanjiv Kumar Jain
Keyword(s):  
Factor Analysis ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Manufacturing Industry ◽  
Agile Manufacturing ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
Vikor Method ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Empirical Survey ◽  
Technological Constraints ◽  
Operational Constraints

PurposeThe study aims at empirically investigating and prioritizing the critical barriers for the successful implementation of agile manufacturing in the medium- and large-scale Indian manufacturing industries.Design/methodology/approachA literature review of peer-reviewed journals and discussion with experts is used to identify 17 barriers to the implementation of agile manufacturing. An empirical survey is then conducted to collect data regarding the agile manufacturing barriers and is further analyzed using the factor analysis and vlsekriterijumska optimizacija i kompromisno resenje (VIKOR).FindingsBased on the survey of empirical data, the investigated critical barriers were reduced in five critical categories, as follows: Managerial constraints, technological constraints, human resource–related constraints, operational constraints and organizational culture-related constraints, which are further ranked in terms of their severity using VIKOR. This research advocates the development of a strategy for addressing the most critical barriers instead of focusing on all for the successful implementation of agile manufacturing.Originality/valueThis work contributes to agile manufacturing literature by the structured presentation of the barriers to implement agile manufacturing in the Indian manufacturing industry. It also extends the integrated factor analysis and VIKOR method to investigate and rank the barriers.

Technology jump in the industry: human–robot cooperation in production

2020 ◽  
Vol 47 (5) ◽  
pp. 757-775
Author(s):  
Zoltan Dobra ◽  
Krishna S. Dhir
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Manufacturing Industry ◽  
Current Status ◽  
Robot System ◽  
Content Type ◽  
New Directions ◽  
Academic Publications ◽  
Robot Cooperation ◽  
Human Robot Collaboration ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose Recent years have seen a technological change, Industry 4.0, in the manufacturing industry. Human–robot cooperation, a new application, is increasing and facilitating collaboration without fences, cages or any kind of separation. The purpose of the paper is to review mainstream academic publications to evaluate the current status of human–robot cooperation and identify potential areas of further research. Design/methodology/approach A systematic literature review is offered that searches, appraises, synthetizes and analyses relevant works. Findings The authors report the prevailing status of human–robot collaboration, human factors, complexity/ programming, safety, collision avoidance, instructing the robot system and other aspects of human–robot collaboration. Practical implications This paper identifies new directions and potential research in practice of human–robot collaboration, such as measuring the degree of collaboration, integrating human–robot cooperation into teamwork theories, effective functional relocation of the robot and product design for human robot collaboration. Originality/value This paper will be useful for three cohorts of readers, namely, the manufacturers who require a baseline for development and deployment of robots; users of robots-seeking manufacturing advantage and researchers looking for new directions for further exploration of human–machine collaboration.

scholarly journals Understanding circular economy awareness and practices in manufacturing firms

2019 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 563-584 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nikolaos Liakos ◽  
Vikas Kumar ◽  
Siwarit Pongsakornrungsilp ◽  
Jose Arturo Garza-Reyes ◽  
Bhumika Gupta ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Economic Benefits ◽  
Resource Scarcity ◽  
Manufacturing Firms ◽  
Academic Community ◽  
The State ◽  
Empirical Literature ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
Content Type

Purpose Circular economy (CE) has evolved as a result of the growing environmental awareness, environmental legislation and the need for social responsibility. However, awareness levels of CE are not as high as expected and practices are further behind than they should be, with a significant lack of research around the subject in the literature. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to examine the current state of awareness levels and the practices around CE in manufacturing firms. Moreover, the study aims to empirically validate one of the earlier proposed CE models. Design/methodology/approach The study adopts a quantitative survey questionnaire based approach. More than 500 people from various manufacturing organisations were contacted directly over a 40-day long sampling process through the FAME database, personal contacts and LinkedIn. The survey resulted in 103 completed responses. Given the exploratory nature of the study, the data were mainly analysed using descriptive statistics. To validate the CE model, a correlation analysis was also conducted. Findings The research findings show that with the growing emphasis on CE across the globe by governing bodies, firms are becoming more aware of CE practices. The analysis also shows some useful insights on the state of each of the pillars (economic benefits, environmental impact and resource scarcity) of CE. The findings also indicate that the environmental impact pillar of CE is at a more developed state than the other two pillars which are, mostly, in a research state. Research limitations/implications The study provides manufacturing firms with a thorough understanding of the state of CE practices and importance of its successful implementation. The findings of the study advocates consideration of all three pillars of CE by managers as a guide to plan for an efficient strategy around CE implementation. Moreover, our study adds to existing efforts by the academic community to raise the awareness towards CE practice among all relevant stakeholders. The findings of this study are based on the responses from a limited 103 survey responses from manufacturing firms. Originality/value This study adds to the very limited empirical literature on CE awareness and practices in manufacturing firms. This is also one of the first studies attempting to empirically validate an existing CE model.

Development of a structural model of environmentally conscious manufacturing drivers

2014 ◽  
Vol 25 (8) ◽  
pp. 1195-1208 ◽  
Author(s):  
Varinder Kumar Mittal ◽  
Kuldip Singh Sangwan
Keyword(s):  
Factor Analysis ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Manufacturing Industry ◽  
Structural Model ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
Special Focus ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
Environmentally Conscious ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Environmentally Conscious Manufacturing

Purpose – Manufacturing firms consume energy and natural resources in highly unsustainable manner and release huge amounts of green house gases leading to many economic, environmental and social problems; from local waste disposal to climate change. Consciousness about these issues has lead to a new manufacturing paradigm of environmentally conscious manufacturing (ECM). There exist many social, legislative, policy, economic, internal, and environmental factors which can motivate and/or force industry to adopt ECM. The purpose of this paper is to identify the drivers for ECM, developing a model of these drivers using statistical analysis and testing the model using structural equation modeling (SEM) technique. Design/methodology/approach – The basic steps of methodology are ECM driver development, survey instrument development, data collection, model proposition, and model validation. The main data analysis approaches are exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, and SEM to develop a model of drivers and validating the same based on the data collected from the manufacturing industry. Findings – The reliable, valid, and tested model has three types of drivers – internal, policy, and economic. It has been found through hypothesis testing that internal drivers for the implementation of ECM are positively related to policy and economic drivers; and policy drivers are positively related to economy drivers. This research is expected to help government and industry in developing policies and strategies for the successful implementation of ECM. Practical implications – The novelty of this study is that it provides the relationship among the drivers which can be leveraged by the managers to focus on the root drivers for smooth and effective implementation of ECM. Originality/value – This paper provides new theoretical insight into the factors motivating the industry to implement ECM systems in the industry with special focus on manufacturing sector of emerging economies.

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