Weaknesses in the manufacturing strategy : a case study.

Using their manufacturing strategy, Company A has been unable to turn the tide on increasingly poor financial and operational performance in the past 10 years. Problem is that it is unknown what the weaknesses of the current manufacturing strategy are and that there is uncertainty about how the manufacturing strategy can be improved to address the weaknesses and experienced issues. The goal of this research is to identify the weaknesses and give recommendations for the new manufacturing strategy, to improve operational performance. Based on this, the main research question is: how can the weaknesses in the current manufacturing strategy be addressed in the new manufacturing strategy? The most critical decision areas were Planning and Control, Vertical Integration, and New Product Introduction. Based on interviews with managers and experts from almost all departments, weaknesses and issues have been identified for each of these decision areas. Then, based on applying literature, recommendations are given that address these weaknesses and issues.