Kvalitetsledning av försörjningskedjor : Undersökningar av prestanda hos tillverkande organisatione

This thesis addresses the issue of quality performance in supply chains in the manufacturers’context. Research shows that the management and performance of supply chains play a major rolein gaining competitive advantage, especially in times of decreasing international trade barriers andquickly evolving information technology. Some researchers claim that it is the supply chain itselfthat competes on a market and not merely the organisations with their specific strategies andgoals. Supply chain performance has been widely discussed in the research literature in recentyears. However, this research points out that supply chain quality management (SCQM) and itsimpact on firm performance (both inter-organisational and intra-organisational) have not beensufficiently understood. Further studies are needed to identify the direct and indirect impact ofSCQM practices on firm performance at multiple levels.A problem that many organisations face is the lack of resources and knowledge on how to managesupply chain quality performance (i.e., which performance to measure, how to controlperformance, and how to improve performance). Studies show that often even large companiesmeasure effectiveness using key performance indicators (KPI) and that these indicators often donot depict key characteristics critical to organisational performance or customer behaviour.Therefore, such indicators might be inadequate for fully capturing the performance of supplychains. As quality management standards evolve, managers need to adapt to changingrequirements. To fulfil the new version of ISO 9001, organisations are required to determinecriteria and apply methods to ensure effective operation and control of their processes (both intraorganisationaland inter-organisational performance). This includes monitoring and measuringperformance indicators. The quality performance of a supply chain is dependent on its ability toimprove and thereby enable organisations to stay competitive over time. Good measurements ofsupply chain quality performance must reflect this ability. To do so, organisations need to knowwhich measures and metrics to use and how to analyse performance of their supply chains.From the seven studies presented in this thesis we are able to draw a number of more generalconclusions that bear on the main research question: What improves quality performance of supplychains that include manufacturing? At the process level, it has been found that manufacturersshould focus on the quality and delivery performance of each process within the organisation. Atthe internal, integrated supply chain level, a manufacturing organisation should focus on quality(conformance), delivery performance (on-time delivery), and cost cutting in the internal supplychain. Collaboration using cross-functional teams seems most appropriate when working withproduct development. The use of a process-oriented mapping tool was found to facilitatedescription of information flows and physical material flows and also to identify disturbances thatcould be improved and rationalized to generate a better flow in the total supply chain. At both theupstream and downstream sides of the supply chain, one-sided measures that depict performanceover organisational boundaries were found to be the most common. At the downstream side of asupply chain, suppliers could be chosen based on cost, conformance, speed, and flexibility. At theupstream side, procedures that handle changing requirements and information about delays orincorrectness of materials were found to influence flow. The results from these seven studies arethe basis for the development of a supply chain quality improvement model. In the literature,supply chain performance is often discussed on a strategic level with measures for quality,flexibility and delivery. Managers also need metrics that can be followed up on at a detailed level(e.g., capacity load, breakdown rates, claims, cost of poor quality, and lead-times). To bridge thisgap, a Key Performance Indicators Matrix of supply chain quality performance indicators formanufacturers is proposed

Measuring supply chain performance measures : prioritizing performance measures

The literature of the management of supply chains has during the last two decades rapidly evolved. The reason for this is the global competition and the introduction of information technology. To reduce cost and increase profitability has always been interesting for organisations that compete on a market. Some researchers claim that it is the supply chain itself that competes on a market not only the organisations with their specific strategies and goals. All members, both upstream and downstream the supply chain are actors that affects (e.g. quality, delivery, cost) the output of the chain. Hill (2000) describes in a model how organisations could win advantage in competition. He claims that the supply chain strategy is part of the overall manufacturing strategy of an organisation, and therefore the performance of the manufacturing affects the performance of the supply chain. The need for measuring the right metric of performance within an organisation is vital due to the facts that it may affect the decision process. For example if the measure not gives the right or suitable facts about the process being measured it could lead to inappropriate decision followed by catastrophically actions. Supply chain performance measures are often in research and by practitioners referred to be quality, delivery, cost/price and flexibility. These measures are often expressed by purchasing managers when choosing suppliers. The metrics describing those measures could be: time to deliver a product, number of products delivered without mistakes, cost of a product etc. This licentiate thesis is focused to analyse the supply chain performance of manufacturing organisations i.e. the measures and its metrics used to describe the performance of the supply chain. The main research question put forward in this paper is: What types of supply chain performance measures should be prioritised to measure in different types of supply chains? The objective of this licentiate thesis is to present a framework that concludes which performance measure and its metrics should be prioritised to measure dependent on which type of product and type of supply chain the organisation operates in i.e. efficient, quick, agile, market responsive, lean or hyrbrid. The objective is also to use the life cycle approach (Dean, 1950;Hill, 1993) of a market, in particular, in the introduction, growth, maturity and decline phases and combine it with the different supply chain measures i.e. quality, delivery, cost/price and flexibility. The method used to develop the framework in this thesis is built on the principle of adding small pieces of theory to existing well known theories. The starting point is the famous model of the product life cycle (PLC) with its four phases. This model is then used as a base for adding both old and new theory i.e. which type of products and supply chain are connected to each phase in the product life cycle and which type of performance measures and its metrics are suitable for manufacturing organisations to measure and finally where in the supply chain they should measure each performance measures. The framework presented consist of three different descriptions of theories when combined together gives valuable directions of what performance measure a manufacturing organisation should prioritise to measure. This description of theory has different levels of support from theory. The three descriptions of theories are presented below: 1)Type of supply chain i.e. efficient, quick, market responsive, lean and hybrid 2)Type of supply chain performance measure i.e. quality, delivery, cost and flexibility3)Scope of measurement in the supply chain i.e. type 1, 2, 3 or 4. (functional, internal integrated supply chain, one sided integrated supply chain and total chain).Godkänd; 2007; 20071101 (ysko

Measuring

supply chain performance measures- prioritizing performance measure

Measuring supply chain performance: A framework for prioritizing measures

One could consider changing the expression “organisations compete on a market” to “supply chains compete on a market”. The reason for this is that most organisations are interested in reducing cost and increasing profitability. The need to evaluate the appropriate type of supply chain performance measure is therefore vital, as it can affect the decision-making process. The objective of this paper is to present a framework that identifies which performance measures and metrics should be prioritised in relation to the type of product manufactured and the type of supply chain using the product life cycle (PLC) approach. The framework presented consists of three descriptions of theories, which, when combined, provide valuable guidance for the prioritisation of performance measures. The three theories are: 1) type of supply chain, 2) type of supply chain performance measure; and 3) scope of measurement in the supply chain

Förbättring av produktinnovationsprocesser inom ramen för TQM

Forskning inom management och organisation indikerar att innovativa företag är dubbelt så lönsamma som andra företag (Tidd et. al., 1997). Innovationsverksamhet är riskabel och svår att organisera, men sedan 1980-talet har ett flertal modeller presenterats för att organisera innovationsverksamhet. Forskningen inom detta område benämns ibland Innovation management. TQM-konceptet är en managementfilosofi för att förbättra den operationella kvaliten i ett företag och som baseras på de anställdas deltagande, ständiga förbättringar och kundtillfredsställelse. I denna artikel kommer vi att försöka skapa grunden till en kombinerad modell för TQM och innovationsledning som drar nytta av de båda filosofiernas respektive styrkor. Vi kommer också att diskutera hur modellen kan användas och vidareutvecklas av små och medelstora företag i samarbete med högskolan

Mapping flows - An analysis of the information flows within the integrated supply chain

Information sharing is an important factor for cooperating within an integrated supply chain. This paper presents a methodology for mapping information flows in an integrated supply chain and a case study, using the mapping methodology, from two Swedish multinational organizations. Eight cases where used in a retro perspective way to map, describe and analyze the information flow, which supports the physical material flow, from receiving an order to the point of delivery. This paper also describes two types of information flows: Direct information and indirect information. The case study presented in this paper focus on the direct information. The present study indicates the importance of an integrated, updated and smoothly operating information system. The complexity and the performance of the information flow and the physical material flow within each case where also analyzed from three main perspectives: 1) the right information, 2) at the right time, 3) to the right place. Over 30 semi-structured interviews have been made to map and describe the information and physical material flow. Key personnel involved in the process from order to point of delivery where interviewed. One conclusion of the study is that three types of disturbances was domination the cases: 1) Procedures to handle changes in an order from a customer, 2) lack of information within the internal supply chain, and 3) Procedures to handle information about delays in internal production or wrong material delivered