Design of a decision support system for overseas plant location in the EC

Manufacturers’ direct investment in the EC has grown dramatically over the last decade. This paper deals with the planning of a decision support system for overseas plant location by Japanese manufacturers and its applications in the EC. The decision-making process for plant location in the EC is carried out in two stages. One is the selection of countries, and the other is the selection of sites within the country. The authors identified the location factors in both selections and sorted them in hierarchical form. Two types of databases were constructed based on regional indices. The authors then modelled the selection process using the AHP and developed a decision support system which is able to reflect the preferences of decision makers. Finally, this system was applied to Japanese manufacturers located in the EC and the validity of this system was evaluated. The authors were convinced that this system could provide appropriate information to manufacturers who are going to set up plants in the EC.