Perceived value and strategic importance of supply chain options: multi‐firm case study

Manufacturing management traditionally has focused on order‐fulfillment activities, ignoring the many tools available for efficient transfer of information, supplier partnering, and effective processes involved in getting a product to market and enhancing customer satisfaction activities via supply chain management. A discussion of integral and modular manufacturing enhanced with supply chain design elements was attempted via a case study of five northeastern Ohio manufacturing companies with global presence. The following paper highlighted the significant differences in supply chain design and management, firm structure and operations, the type of products manufactured and business level strategies it utilised in SCM activities.