Focusing customer demand through manufacturing supply chains by the use ofcustomer focused cells: An appraisal

A key driver for manufacturing change in the 1990s is that of customer choi ce, whereby customers are demanding new, more innovative products with grea ter variety. The attributes of quality, price and level of technology are s een as 'qualifiers', which allow the manufacturers entry into a market sect or. To maintain or increase market share, manufacturers seek product differ entiation through other attributes such as availability and variety. This p aper examines the role that customer demand, especially changes in demand, plays in influencing supply chain structures, in terms of flexibility, resp onsiveness and resource utilisation, as they become more customer focused. It considers the ability of JIT Manufacturing to match customer demand more closely than conventional manufacturing strategies and highlights some wea knesses in the JIT approach. By the use of three case studies, the paper th en explains how in certain circumstances, this can be improved by focusing on individual customers through customer focused cells. (C) 2000 Elsevier S cience B.V. All rights reserved.