Challenges to competitive manufacturing in high-cost environments: checklist and insights from Swedish manufacturing firms

Nina Edh Mirzaei (), Per Hilletofth () and Rudrajeet Pal ()
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Nina Edh Mirzaei: Jönköping University
Per Hilletofth: Jönköping University
Rudrajeet Pal: Swedish School of Textiles, University of Borås

Operations Management Research, 2021, vol. 14, issue 3, No 3, 272-292

Abstract: Abstract Research on competitive manufacturing (CM) in high-cost environments has earlier indicated that firms struggle to remain competitive and that manufacturing operations often have been offshored to low-cost environments. The purpose of this research is to explore and create a compounded view of challenges related to both internal and external environments of firms when operating in high-cost environments. This issue has been investigated through a qualitative case study involving five manufacturing firms in Sweden. This research has empirically derived the challenges associated with sustaining CM in high-cost environments and developed a prescriptive checklist. Seven main categories of challenges have been identified, ranging from a micro level related to product characteristics and employee involvement, to a macro level related to supply chain collaborations and industry systems. This research contributes to the existing literature on CM in high-cost locations by explaining and detailing what constitutes challenges in this kind of environment.

Keywords: Manufacturing location; Competitive manufacturing; Capabilities; Success factors; Challenges; Manufacturing industry (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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DOI: 10.1007/s12063-021-00193-0

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