Responsiveness, the primary reason behind re-shoring manufacturing activities to the UK

Setbacks, interruptions and turnarounds in the internationalization process: a bibliometric and literature review of de-internationalization

The paper presents a comprehensive review of research on de-internationalization, encompassing the themes of export withdrawal, subsidiary divestment, and backshoring or reshoring. A bibliometric technique (co-word analysis) on keywords from articles and book chapters published from 1980 to 2020 was initially used to confirm the main strands related to de-internationalization. Then, the study employed a bibliometric coupling analysis to identify the recent trends within each theme. The literature was divided into three clusters, which, using different but related terms, addressed the same phenomenon of firms’ decrease in foreign commitment. The ramifications of research on de-internationalization were examined for each of the clusters, mapping the issues deserving of further investigation and making recommendations for future research. The study uses an unprecedented method for understanding the de-internationalization phenomenon more broadly, delimiting its conceptual boundaries and mapping the different manifestations within a single theoretical domain.

Challenges to competitive manufacturing in high-cost environments: checklist and insights from Swedish manufacturing firms

Research on competitive manufacturing (CM) in high-cost environments has earlier indicated that firms struggle to remain competitive and that manufacturing operations often have been offshored to low-cost environments. The purpose of this research is to explore and create a compounded view of challenges related to both internal and external environments of firms when operating in high-cost environments. This issue has been investigated through a qualitative case study involving five manufacturing firms in Sweden. This research has empirically derived the challenges associated with sustaining CM in high-cost environments and developed a prescriptive checklist. Seven main categories of challenges have been identified, ranging from a micro level related to product characteristics and employee involvement, to a macro level related to supply chain collaborations and industry systems. This research contributes to the existing literature on CM in high-cost locations by explaining and detailing what constitutes challenges in this kind of environment.

Back-shoring vs near-shoring: a comparative exploratory study in the footwear industry

After decades of off-shoring strategies, companies are often critically re-evaluating their earlier location decisions; in doing so, sometimes they implement the so-called relocation of second degree. Among them, back-shoring (i.e., relocation to the home country) and near-shoring (relocation to the home region) are two of the alternatives attracting growing interest from scholars. This paper aims to shed new light on the variables influencing the choice made between these two alternatives. As requested in the extant literature, a contingency approach is adopted, focusing attention on the footwear industry. Given the exploratory nature of the paper, evidence from 41 back-shoring and near-shoring strategies are analysed, comparing data from Spanish and Italian companies. Collected data are adapted to test hypotheses concerning three sets of variables: firms’ characteristics, motivations for the second degree relocation and its barriers. Collected data show that firm’s size directly influences the chosen alternative since larger companies prefer to near-shore instead of back-shore. When considering motivations, while the “made in” effect does not influence the firm’s choice, availability of skilled contractors and/or government aids induces companies to relocate to the home country instead of the home region. Finally, companies fearing encountering barriers, in terms of skilled contractors’ availability and/or (re-)development of internal manufacturing competences, will prefer the back-shoring rather than the near-shoring option. The study is focused on two countries (Spain and Italy) where the manufacturing sector (and the footwear industry within it) is still relevant to the local economy. Findings cannot be generalized to countries/industries where the local industry has been totally dismantled, without a previous in-depth analysis. The findings obtained offer managers useful insights on the elements that should be carefully evaluated when considering back- and near-shore alternatives. Additionally, valuable insights are provided for policy makers that plan to design industrial policies supporting back-reshoring policy initiatives. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first paper in the extant literature addressing variables influencing the choice between back- and near-shoring alternatives.

The thematic landscape of literature on supply chain management in India: a systematic literature review

Purpose

To assess the state of supply chain management (SCM) research in India and to understand the research trends and methodologies used. The present study also aims to create a taxonomy of the subject areas researched in India.

Design/methodology/approach

The present study employed the systematic literature review methodology. Literature from 395 peer journal papers in 67 leading journals over a 20-year period (2000–2020 Quarter-1) was comprehensively reviewed and assessed.

Findings

SCM research in India started around the year 2000. The quantum of research was low (single digit) until 2010. There has been steady growth over the last decade, and over 50% of the total papers up until now has been published in the last four years. The present study created a three-tiered taxonomy of the subject areas and classified the papers as per it. The first tier (level-1) has seven categories (SCM strategy, network design, SCM processes and integration, IT systems, skills, performance measurement and others). A perusal of the newly created taxonomy revealed that, except for a few areas under level-1 categories (such as SCM processes and SCM strategy), the other level-1 categories have not seen much research. Similarly, there is little or no research in a large number of level-2 categories (such as outsourcing strategy, channel strategy, demand management, demand fulfillment, customer relationship management, integrated supply chain planning, new product development, returns, supply chain orientation, performance monitoring, performance improvement, SCM adoption process, SCM implementation issues and quantified benefits of SCM). Methodologically, the rigor of SCM research in India needs improvement.

Originality/value

A comprehensive taxonomy of SCM subject areas researched in India at three cascading levels was created for the first time in the present study. The taxonomy will help provide researchers with a clear understanding of the structure of the subject areas and help in identifying areas where research has been carried out and the subject areas where gaps exist for future research to proceed. The present study also provides an overview of the methodological rigor of SCM research in India and points out some of the limitations that researchers should avoid in future studies.

Addressing mass-customization trade-offs in bottom of the pyramid markets

Purpose

Manufacturers find bottom of the pyramid (BOP) markets challenging to serve due to low margins and highly localized needs. As such, residents in BOP markets often go without products commonly available in developed countries. Going without medical equipment may negatively affect healthcare services. This study develops a supply chain design strategy that supports the production of medical equipment by preserving variety flexibility at low volumes that stands to create new market opportunities for manufacturers and improve healthcare for residents in BOP markets.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors introduce a mass-customization model called options-based planning (OBP) which offers a framework to both leverage the efficiencies of high volume production models and provide products that are customized to local market needs. An empirical simulation, grounded in data collected from a large international manufacturer of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) equipment, illustrates how an OBP production strategy will likely perform under BOP conditions and facilitate the delivery of healthcare equipment to BOP markets.

Findings

OBP provides a means for manufacturers to provide the customization necessary to serve fragmented BOP markets, while enabling higher production volume to make serving these markets more feasible. The empirical simulation reveals the relative benefits of OBP under conditions of forecast uncertainty, product complexity (number of design parameters) and different levels of responsiveness.

Social implications

Increased access to modern medical equipment should improve healthcare outcomes for consumers in BOP markets.

Originality/value

The MRI context in BOP markets serves to illustrate the value of the OBP model for manufacturers.

Competitive manufacturing for reshoring textile and clothing supply chains to high-cost environment

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to identify and prioritise the success factors and challenges related to competitive manufacturing (CM) capabilities in a high-cost environment, and identify their potential to support future reshoring in textile and clothing (T&C) supply chains, with judgements from the practitioners’ perspective.

Design/methodology/approach

A Delphi study method is adopted with industry practitioners from the region of Western Sweden. Following a literature review on reshoring to identify relevant factors related to CM capabilities, a multiple round Delphi is designed to rank the success factors and challenges, and to further evaluate the likelihood of the success factors to lead to future reshoring. Additional semi-structured interviews are conducted to provide deeper explanation.

Findings

Empirical insights are both conforming to, and deviant from, evidences from extant literature. Moderate agreement is seen among the practitioners on the success factors; time- and product/process-related ones being ranked the highest. Low consensus is reached for the challenges, however, those related to high costs and lack of local resources were key concerns. Some anomalies from previous conception emerge among the challenges regarding increased costs of production, inventory and product variety trade-offs, and low skillset presence.

Research limitations/implications

The paper contributes to reshoring research by identifying and prioritising value-driven success factors and cost-related challenges to CM in high-cost environments, for labour-intensive T&C industries. In connection, some interesting paradoxes originate when dealing with multiple success factors.

Practical implications

Valuable insights are generated for informed decision making related to CM and future choice of its location.

Originality/value

Along with the decisive knowledge of the reshoring success factors and challenges, the study offers an interesting T&C practitioners’ perspective.

Reshoring drivers and barriers in the Swedish manufacturing industry

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to explore reshoring drivers and barriers from a Swedish manufacturing perspective.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper is a case study, including four Swedish manufacturing companies, with focus on drivers and barriers from the context of the Swedish manufacturing industry. A literature review of previously established drivers and barriers is used to map out the empirical findings and thereby identify potential gaps between the current body of literature and drivers and barriers from a Swedish manufacturing context.

Findings

The findings of the study suggest that quality issues continue to be one of the strongest reshoring drivers. Except for product quality, quality is also connected to host country’s infrastructure, communication and service. The supply chain perspective is a source of several drivers and is identified as a perspective often overlooked in offshoring decisions. Barriers related to firm specifics were more elaborately discussed by the companies, especially concerning calculation of location decision and the need to invest in resources, which allows for a higher level of capacity at the home country facility.

Research limitations/implications

The study develops a structured table of reshoring drivers and barriers which can serve as a base for future research. Future research on the calculation of location decisions is deemed as a crucial step to further understand reshoring and aid companies in the decision-making process.

Practical implications

The drivers and barriers identified in the study can give practitioners insight into reshoring from the perspective of the Swedish manufacturing industry and thus aid in future manufacturing location decisions. The table of drivers and barriers can also be important to understand how Sweden can strengthen its competitive advantage and motivate more companies to reshore manufacturing.

Originality/value

This is one of only few papers from the Nordic countries and also one of few case studies examining reshoring in manufacturing companies.

What do we know about manufacturing reshoring?

Purpose

The aim of this paper is to analyze and classify research that has been conducted on manufacturing reshoring, i.e. the decision to bring back to the home country production activities earlier offshored, independently of the governance mode (insourcing vs outsourcing). Consequently, the paper also aims at providing avenues for future research and to highlight the distinct value of studying manufacturing reshoring either per se or in combination with other constructs of the international business tradition.

Design/methodology/approach

A set of 57 carefully selected articles on manufacturing reshoring published in international journals or books indexed on Scopus in the past 10 years was systematically analyzed based on the “5Ws and 1H” (who-what-where-when-why and how) set of questions.

Findings

The authors’ work shows a certain convergence among authors regarding what reshoring is and what its key features and motivations are. In contrast, other related aspects, such as the decision-making and implementation processes, are comparatively less understood.

Research limitations/implications

As manufacturing reshoring is a “recent” topic, for some of its aspects, only exploratory research is available to date, limiting the authors’ possibility to either characterize it in a more exhaustive way or highlight well-established patterns.

Practical implications

The paper demonstrates that studying reshoring will indeed contribute to expanding our understanding of internationalization processes and strategies in general and of production internationalization specifically. While past studies have argued that the learning derived from international experience would permit firms to overcome their unfamiliarity with new business environments, reshoring might show that this outcome is not necessarily certain. Rather, firms might not be able to overcome obstacles because of internationalization or they might realize that attempting to do so is not desirable, e.g. because of excessive risk or changes in the firm’s strategic priorities.

Social implications

From a societal point of view, the present research underlines that reshoring can be part of that re-industrialization policy that many Western countries include in their economic agenda – yet, its impact on employment should not be overestimated, as often relocation is only in regard to some product lines. At the same time, there might be an intimate relationship between reshoring and the various forms of technological innovations applied to manufacturing – which has become popularly labeled as “Industry 4.0”.

Originality/value

Literature reviews proposed until now usually paid almost exclusive attention to motivations driving this phenomenon. This paper offers a broader and more comprehensive examination of the extant knowledge of manufacturing reshoring and identifies the main unresolved issues and knowledge gaps, which future research should investigate.