scholarly journals Evaluating the Factors that are Affecting the Implementation of Industry 4.0 Technologies in Manufacturing MSMEs, the Case of Peru

Processes ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 161 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chung-Jen Huang ◽  
Elisa Talla Chicoma ◽  
Yi-Hsien Huang

The micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) sector plays a very crucial role in the economic and social development of Peru. Unfortunately, the tough access to the use of technologies is one of the weaknesses of this type of enterprises, which implies a low technological intensity production, according to the new technological trends. This study analyzes the factors that are affecting the implementation of Industry 4.0 technologies in Peruvian micro, small, and medium enterprises. According to the findings from the semi-structured interviews, it has identified four factors that respond to the main question of this research—lack of advanced technology, lack of financial investment, poor management vision, and lack of skilled workers. Data from 49 enterprises from the manufacturing sector were used for the assessment. The surveys conducted on business managers were evaluated using a multi-criterion decision-making method by the analytic hierarchy process. The findings of the study generate some recommendations that could be beneficial for the sectors involved with micro, small, and medium enterprises in Peru.

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Geetha Subramanian ◽  
Bhushan T. Patil ◽  
Bhaskar B. Gardas

Purpose Cloud technology is extremely critical for the continuing progress of Industry 4.0 and it helps in pooling centralized information for the business. Further, it offers a platform for collaboration for improving the performance of the industry. This paper aims to investigate the factors affecting the implementation of cloud technology for boosting Industry 4.0 adoption in micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) of the manufacturing sector. Design/methodology/approach A total of 14 enablers were considered for the case study which were obtained from the literature survey and shortlisted by the experts of the domain (academia and industries). The interpretive structural modelling (ISM) approach has been used as a methodology for exploring the relationships between the enablers. Matrices impact croises multiplication applique and classment (MICMAC) analysis has been carried out for the validation of the developed structural model. MICMAC analysis helps to identify driving power and dependency potential of all considered enablers. Findings The results of the investigation indicate that three factors, namely, system integration, project management and competitive pressure, were significant. These factors drive all other considered factors in the implementation process. Research limitations/implications The opinions of the experts from the industry and academia were analyzed for the development of the hierarchical model and these inputs could be biased. This investigation intends to help the decision makers in the effective adoption of the cloud and Industry 4.0 technologies and for the formulation of the efficient implementation policies. Originality/value The present study aims to focus on cloud technology as well as Industry 4.0 in the context of manufacturing MSMEs and none of the previous investigations analyzed the enablers that influence the adoption of cloud technology for boosting Industry 4.0, especially using the ISM approach.


Author(s):  
Girish Kumar ◽  
Arjun Bakshi ◽  
Anurag Khandelwal ◽  
Anuj Panchal ◽  
Umang Soni

Production in small and medium enterprises (SMEs) makes a substantial contribution to the Gross Domestic Product directly and indirectly in developing economies including India. In the present time, applying Industry 4.0 to the SMEs will build a smart manufacturing system that will prove to be economically feasible as well as socially sustainable. The purpose of this study is to identify and prioritize major barriers of implementing Industry 4.0 in Indian SMEs. A questionnaire with 12 barriers which were identified based on the literature survey and expert discussion was made to be filled by industry experts of production, information technology, business and members of the top management in SMEs. Further, Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) methods like TOPSIS, VIKOR and PROMETHEE are used to find the rank for each barrier. The study reveals that the major implementation barriers of Industry4.0 in Indian SMEs are fear of unemployment, lack of IT training, poor IT infrastructure, etc. The ranking for each barrier will not only help to assess risks in manufacturing, supply chain or business initiative, but also to help the managers in devising risk mitigation plans. This study may be used by firms working under the manufacturing sector.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (16) ◽  
pp. 8978
Author(s):  
Jarmila Straková ◽  
Antonín Korauš ◽  
Jan Váchal ◽  
František Pollák ◽  
Filip Černák ◽  
...  

The world’s economy has been significantly affected by the ongoing pandemic crisis. Its logical reflection is a deteriorating condition of national and regional economies and their vehicles—enterprises. Negative effects of the crisis have influenced both the manufacturing sector and the services sector, where some segments have been hit fatally. In the corporate sphere in general, including in the services sector, there has been a growing need to change the approach to corporate strategy. The strategy should be generated based on management of value-creating processes with the objective to maximize satisfaction of customers while minimizing costs. This is also the topic of this paper. A representative sample of small and medium enterprises from the services sector have been surveyed about their size, using mathematical statistics and models that have been proposed to maximize profit probability. The objective was to propose models that maximize probability of profit and, at the same time, minimize costs for each combination of value chain activities (input logistics, provision of services, output logistics, marketing and sale, servicing, and other accompanying activities, purchasing material management, science-technical development, human resources management and company infrastructure). The main outcome of this paper is the fact that we have been able to prove the functionality of the tested model, which has demonstrated the growing importance of value stream management in relation to the size of enterprises. Such a universal and structured model provides a practical tool for the definition of economic-financial, investment and personnel policies in enterprises.


2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 50
Author(s):  
David Iubel de Oliveira Pereira ◽  
Marcelo Gechele Cleto

The aim of present study was to analyze the internationalization behavior of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) regarding purchases using four questions: why, what, when and where. Structured interviews were conducted at SMEs located in the city of Curitiba and Metropolitan Region, Brazil, which dealt with the machinery and equipment sector. Regarding the reasons for internationalization (why), the main results showed agreement with motivators associated with cheaper products, advanced technology, higher quality and exclusivity, as well as an expectation of increasing organizational competitiveness. Internationalization items (what) sought out by SMEs were mostly items considered strategic. Regarding internationalization period (when), younger companies tended to start their internationalization process earlier. However, both the age of the company and the year of international entry did not directly explain or influence international expansion. Finally, place of internationalization (where) showed that a variety of countries have been involved with SMEs since their creation. However, the age of the company and the age of international entry could not directly explain or influence international geographic speed (entry into new countries).


Author(s):  
Mohammad Munir Ahmad ◽  
Osama Alaskari

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop an assessment methodology that can be used to evaluate performance of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the manufacturing sector. Design/methodology/approach – This area of the study focuses on the assessment of performance in manufacturing SMEs. The methodology contains qualitative and quantitative measures that can quantify the opportunities and benefits within SMEs, as well as identifying the performance gaps between the current performance of the company and world-class performance. This includes reviewing the literature relating to assessment methodology and collecting data by carrying out semi-structured interviews with staff at target SMEs. Findings – The results show that the proposed assessment methodology is effective in identifying hidden opportunities and benefits in the manufacturing SMEs sector, establishing world-class performance of the companies and comparing this with current performance in order to identify gaps in performance in manufacturing SMEs. Practical implications – This assessment can be used for monitoring and assessing SMEs performance. The developed methodology can be used by manufacturing SMEs as an assessment and benchmarking tool. It enables manufacturing SMEs to identify opportunities for improvement and determine the gaps in current performance; this will assist manufacturing SMEs in selecting an appropriate tool to improve their performance in order to achieve the company objectives. Originality/value – This paper presents a successful and effective assessment methodology for manufacturing SMEs. It measures current performance which will provide a useful indicator to identify waste. It attempts to improve company performance and suggests how such activities could be organised and managed more effectively. Consequently it leads to a high potential for cost and time saving and quality improvement.


2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (6) ◽  
pp. 255
Author(s):  
MinhTam Bui ◽  
Trinh Q. Long

This paper identifies whether there was a performance difference among micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) led by men and by women in Vietnam during the period 2005–2013 and aims to provide explanations for the differences, if any, in various performance indicators. The paper adopts a quantitative approach using a firm-level panel dataset in the manufacturing sector in 10 provinces/cities in Vietnam in five waves from 2005 to 2013. Fixed effect models are estimated to examine the influence of firm variables and demographic, human capital characteristics of owners/managers on firms’ value added, labor productivity and employment creation. We found that men led MSMEs did not outperform those led by women on average. Although the average value added was lower for female-led firms in the informal sector, the opposite was true in the formal sector where women tend to lead medium-size firms with higher value added and labor productivity. The performance disparity was more envisaged across levels of formality and less clear from a gender perspective. Moreover, while firms owned by businessmen seemed to create more jobs, firms owned by women had a higher share of female employees. No significant difference in business constraints faced by women and by men was found.


Work ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 1-13
Author(s):  
Mouna Knani ◽  
Pierre-Sébastien Fournier ◽  
Caroline Biron

BACKGROUND: Presenteeism is generally viewed as a symptom of organizational or individual dysfunction and is rarely considered as a behavioral response to positive triggering factors. Our study examines this issue in small enterprises (SEs), which are an unexplored environment in terms of presenteeism. OBJECTIVE: Through in-depth analysis, this study aims to understand the positive and negative factors that impact presenteeism in the context of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), with a particular focus on SEs. METHODS: We adopt a qualitative methodological approach in which we conducted 17 semi-structured interviews with employees and owner-managers of SEs with between 20 and 49 employees. RESULTS: Our thematic analysis shows that presenteeism can be explained by factors related to pressure to attend work, by individuals’ constraints and commitment, by organizational and individual characteristics and by a congenial work environment. Presenteeism can also be a type of “therapy” which helps individuals to avoid focusing on being sick and enables them to stay active and avoid social isolation. CONCLUSIONS: Our study differs from earlier research by providing a more in-depth analysis of the positive and negative factors that trigger presenteeism. This article will help to expand the current theoretical knowledge about presenteeism and encourage a more holistic interpretation of the phenomenon.


2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 907-915
Author(s):  
Khaled Mohammed Alqahtani

In China, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) play a crucial role in economic development and social wealth in terms of GDP growth, employment creation and poverty alleviation. In the age of technology and information, innovation has been regarded as one of the most significant drivers for the growth and prosperity of SMEs. Therefore, it is necessary for SMEs to implement innovation strategy, which would help them to initiate new products, adopt new processes and increase their competitiveness. From this point of view, this study attempts to identify the innovation situation of Chinese SMEs with regard to innovation type as well as innovation strategy. The research data is collected through structured questionnaires and semi-structured interviews from SMEs of manufacturing industry in Shanghai, China. According to the data results, process innovation and marketing innovation are adopted more frequently than product innovation and organizational innovation by Chinese SMEs. This study also demonstrates most SMEs in China implement free-riding strategy; some of them adopt niche strategy; and few SMEs practice cluster strategy. Although innovation is increasingly important for Chinese SMEs, their implementation of innovation strategy is not highly effective and successful.


Author(s):  
Myriam Gagnon ◽  
Myriam Beaudry ◽  
Louise Lemyre ◽  
Alexandra Guay-Charette

There remains a knowledge gap regarding the factors that drive the development of business-nonprofit partnerships in the context of employer-supported volunteering—especially in small and medium enterprises. Furthermore, there is a need to consider how enterprises operate in their cultural contexts to better understand how they support volunteering trends in Canada. This study aimed to improve understanding of the multi-level factors that foster the development of business-nonprofit partnerships in the context of employer-supported volunteering. Fifteen semi-structured interviews were conducted with community and small business actors in a semi-rural setting in Francophone Québec. Results challenged the traditional view of volunteer support as a distinct activity, showing an integrated system of inter-dependence. Results suggest the relevance of conceptualizing small enterprises’ support of volunteering as part of an inclusive approach to community engagement. RÉSUMÉLes facteurs liés au développement de partenariats entre entreprises et OBNL dans le contexte du bénévolat appuyé par l’employeur sont méconnus – particulièrement au sein des petites et moyennes entreprises. Il est également pertinent de considérer le contexte culturel pour mieux comprendre les tendances canadiennes du bénévolat appuyé par l’employeur. Cette étude vise l’obtention d’une meilleure compréhension des facteurs multiniveaux associés au développement de partenariats entreprises-OBNL dans le contexte du soutien au bénévolat. Quinze entretiens semistructurés ont été effectués auprès d’acteurs du secteur communautaire et des petites entreprises dans un milieu semi-rural francophone-québécois. Les résultats repositionnent la notion d’activités distinctes et témoignent plutôt d’un système intégré d’interdépendances. Les résultats suggèrent de conceptualiser le soutien au bénévolat des petites entreprises au sein d’une approche inclusive d’engagement communautaire.


When SMEs are part of global value chain, the flows of information in cross-border buyer-supplier relationships which emerge from inward-outward internationalisation connections should be addressed. This study therefore investigates the learning processes of internationalising small and medium enterprises that engage in inward and outward internationalisation. Hence, this study adopts a qualitative case study approach based on ten cases of the internationalising SMEs in Malaysia. Semi-structured interviews with the Managing Directors of the selected SMEs were conducted over a two-year period. Additionally, participant observations were conducted by attending the meetings related to import-export activities and documentations were gathered for data triangulation Findings of this study highlights that the relationship with key foreign suppliers empowered case firms to connect inward to outward internationalisation through collaborative knowledge sharing. The distribution of knowledge through tacit-tacit and tacit-explicit knowledge sharing underpinned by formal planning was a prerequisite for inward-outward internationalisation connections to be established.


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