Improving Material Utilisation in E2E Upstream Supply Chain Operations: A Multiple Case Study

Abstract

The increasing cost of manufacturing and the constant need for organisations to remain competitive and profitable is garnering unprecedented attention of supply chain practitioners and academia. Several approaches are being employed in minimising raw material losses within supply chain networks. The study of effective utilisation of raw materials are therefore of great importance to manufacturing organisations seeking to increase the efficiency of their operations while reducing material related losses. By improving the utilisation of raw material, huge cost savings is achievable within the supply chain operations that are focused on the radical reduction of raw material wastes during its transportation and transformation processes. This study makes uses a multiple case approach to investigate MU in the upstream supply chain operations, and utilises a mixed research method to explore the process approaches utilised by the case organisations in minimising MU losses and improving their manufacturing system.