Analysis of Key Factors for Supplier Selection in Taiwan’s Thin-Film Transistor Liquid-Crystal Displays Industry

With the advent of science and technology, smart devices have become ubiquitous; since the display unit is a vital component in many smart devices, the Thin-Film Transistor Liquid-Crystal Displays (TFT-LCD) industry has been one of the most rapidly growing industries. Taiwanese manufacturers play a critical role in this industry. This study investigates key factors for supplier selection in Taiwan’s TFT-LCD industry. TFT-LCD is a technology-intensive industry. However, few studies in the past considered the technological abilities dimension in supplier selection. Therefore, this study discusses the factors related to the technological abilities dimension in supplier selection. Most research considered supplier selection based on the traditional criteria such as cost and quality. This study discusses the importance of the resilience criteria such as agility and flexibility. A method combining DEMATEL (Decision Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory) and ANP (Analytic Network Process) is applied to analyze key factors for supplier selection in Taiwan’s TFT-LCD industry. The analytical results indicate that the technological abilities dimension and resilience criteria are at the forefront of the ranking in prominence. The influential weights of criteria and the causal diagram among all criteria derived from this study can offer guidance for suppliers on improving various factors to become desirable partners in the TFT-LCD industry supply chain.