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Managing beyond the factory walls: Effects of four types of strategic integration on manufacturing plant performance
Author(s) -
Swink Morgan,
Narasimhan Ram,
Wang Cynthia
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
journal of operations management
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.649
H-Index - 191
eISSN - 1873-1317
pISSN - 0272-6963
DOI - 10.1016/j.jom.2006.02.006
Subject(s) - factory (object oriented programming) , process management , business , computer integrated manufacturing , variety (cybernetics) , strategic management , competitive advantage , resource (disambiguation) , manufacturing , supply chain , integrated computer aided manufacturing , industrial organization , manufacturing engineering , advanced manufacturing , computer science , marketing , engineering , computer network , artificial intelligence , programming language
Abstract In this paper we focus on the integration of strategic objectives and process knowledge that a manufacturing factory collects from its external interfaces. Using data from a variety of manufacturing industries, this study examines four different types of strategic integration at the manufacturing plant level. We use a path analytic approach to simultaneously assess the contributions of the various types of integration to manufacturing‐based competitive capabilities and business level performance. In addition, we examine the intervening roles that manufacturing‐based competitive capabilities play in mediating the relationships between strategic integration and business performance. We find that each type of integration activity has unique benefits and detriments. These findings extend prior studies of manufacturing and supply chain integration by broadening the theory relating to strategic integration. The results also provide implications for manufacturing managers who seek to design integration policies and associated resource deployments.