Madhani, P. (2017) ‘Supply chain strategy selection: a multi-criteria decision-making approach’, The IUP Journal of Supply Chain Management, 14(2), pp. 38-56.
The paper constitutes a reliable source of information on various types of strategies implemented by companies when designing their supply chains. The authors compare lean and agile supply chain management strategies and determine the main features of each one. Additionally, the article delivers an insight into the advantages and disadvantages of both strategies, as well as provides a model for utilizing them together. The most notable part of the paper is the description of Toyota’s supply chain system. Essentially, the paper provides an account of Toyota’s utilization of the lean supply chain management principles. Moreover, the paper explains the goals of the Toyota production system (TPS), which enables the company to reduce the rate of error and eliminate waste. The paper also offers an example of Toyota’s Scion brand, where the company utilizes both lean and agile techniques to enhance the customer experience. Basically, the paper contains a substantial amount of information on Toyota and its approach to managing its supply chain. As a result, the article can be considered relevant for the current research since it expands the understanding of the company’s supply chain.
Potter, A., & Wilhelm, M. (2020) ‘Exploring supplier–supplier innovations within the Toyota supply network: A supply network perspective’, Innovation in Supply Networks, 66(7), pp. 797–819. doi: 10.1002/joom.1124
It is another peer-reviewed article on the topic of Toyota’s supply chain management and, namely, its approach to its supply network. Although the key focus of the article is on the supplier–supplier innovations, it still contains sufficient information on Toyota’s supply chain practices. For instance, the article has a substantial part allocated to the description of Toyota’s approach to the management of facilities and their strategic role in the success of the company including in supplier–supplier innovations. The paper shows that despite the common trend for outsourcing manufacturing facilities or relocating them overseas to areas with cheap labor costs, Toyota continues to keep the majority of its facilities in Japan. Moreover, Toyota prefers to work with Japanese suppliers even if they are second-tier ones in order to engage in close exchanges of information and personnel with them. The article demonstrates that by choosing to keep their locations in Japan, Toyota actually ensures integration of its research capabilities with manufacturing. The article presents an important source of evidence on Toyota’s supply chain management, including in terms of its facilities location, which is vital for the current research.
Sundarakani, B., Pereira, V., & Ishizaka, A. (2020) ‘Robust facility location decisions for resilient sustainable supply chain performance in the face of disruptions’, International Journal of Logistics Management, 32(2), pp. 357–385. doi: 10.1108/ijlm-12-2019-0333.
The paper provides an account of the main principles of facility decisions made by companies when designing their supply chains. The article primarily focuses on the methods used for building robust supply chains which are resilient and capable of withstanding disruptions. At the same time, the theoretical part of the paper contains knowledge on the basic rules and techniques utilized in the facility location decision. For example, the article discusses the variety of factors explored by firms when conducting an analysis of the potential areas for building new facilities. The article presents factors such as production capacity, procurement, routing, and inventory as vital for location decisions, especially during the process of relocation. The article highlights the fact that location decisions always involve certain trade-offs such as transportation, production, and emission costs, as well as fluctuations in demand. The paper offers an extensive overview of the main problems related to locations decisions in the area of supply chain management. As a result, the article can be viewed as a source of information which is relevant for the current study.