Impact of plant practices on operational performance : a statistical analysis of data from a Canadian manufacturing survey.

Much of current research on how manufacturing contributes to plant success relies upon in-depth case studies and the "intuitive guidance" of experienced individuals. Only a few empirical studies have examined the relationship between manufacturing practices and plant manufacturing capabili...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Huang, Yun Bo.
Other Authors: Viswanathan, S.
Format: Theses and Dissertations
Language:English
Published: 2008
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/10356/7338
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Institution: Nanyang Technological University
Language: English
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Summary:Much of current research on how manufacturing contributes to plant success relies upon in-depth case studies and the "intuitive guidance" of experienced individuals. Only a few empirical studies have examined the relationship between manufacturing practices and plant manufacturing capabilities. The results of analysis imply that best plants adopt a set of best practices to achieve plant success. The results also indicate that while usage of many practices can significantly distinguish MS groups from LS groups, there is a difference as to how every practice factor and individual practices contribute to plant performance improvement on the five dimensions. It was found that the quality-related practices are the most important ones for improving quality performance, manufacturing technologies are the most effective practices for improving cost & productivity performance. JIT practices are most effective to reduce inventory, and increase delivery reliability. Employee involvement, training and teamwork practices are very helpful for improving performance along employee relationship dimension.