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Impact of Manufacturing Flexibility on Supply Chain Performance in the Automotive Industry

  • Chapter
Supply Chain Structures

Part of the book series: International Series in Operations Research & Management Science ((ISOR,volume 42))

Abstract

The basis of competition in the automotive industry is changing. While product innovation and styling remain the most important areas of competition, an almost equally fierce battle is now developing in the areas of customization and order fulfillment (Stalk, Stephenson and King [35]). Currently, all models of vehicle distribution are fundamentally inventory-driven and do not promote customized ordering. However, several vehicle manufacturers — most notably Ford and General Motors — have recently launched initiatives to transform their companies from predominantly make-to-stock to predominantly make-to-order producers. This will enable vehicle manufacturers and their dealers not only to dramatically reduce their finished goods inventory but also respond to challenges and threats from third party Internet companies.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Enterprise Systems Lab, GM Research and Development Center, Warren, MI, 48090, USA

    Stephan Biller

  2. Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, 24061, USA

    Ebru K. Bish

  3. Mechanical and Industrial Engineering Department, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, 01003, USA

    Ana Muriel

Authors
  1. Stephan Biller
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  2. Ebru K. Bish
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  3. Ana Muriel
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of California, Irvine, USA

    Jing-Sheng Song

  2. Columbia University, USA

    David D. Yao

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© 2002 Springer Science+Business Media New York

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Biller, S., Bish, E.K., Muriel, A. (2002). Impact of Manufacturing Flexibility on Supply Chain Performance in the Automotive Industry. In: Song, JS., Yao, D.D. (eds) Supply Chain Structures. International Series in Operations Research & Management Science, vol 42. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4757-6635-6_4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4757-6635-6_4

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4419-4917-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4757-6635-6

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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