Abdul Razak Ibrahim

An investigation of the status of the Malaysian construction industry

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to understand the production processes utilized by the Malaysian construction industry (MCI).Design/methodology/approach – The paper follows an earlier work published in this journal in which the authors analyze the global construction industry focusing on the evolution of lean production systems.Findings – The future of construction is exciting. International markets, innovations in technology, and techniques of construction project management, new relationships across disciplines are all avenues of development. To make the best use of their opportunities, the MCI must invest in research and development (R&D), undertake public education about the field and develop new methodologies to improve operational performance in construction.Originality/value – This paper provides a detailed analysis of the MCI, its impact on the economy, key success factors, struggles and problems that the industry currently faces. Analysis of key functional areas like operations management...

Supply chain management practices in the electronics industry in Malaysia

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the effects of different dimensions of supply chain management practices (SCMP) on supply chain performance (SCP) in the electronics industry in Malaysia.Design/methodology/approach – The study employed the quantitative method where convenience sampling and self‐administrated survey questionnaires were sent to 125 electronics firms in Malaysia. The research framework was tested using variance‐based structural equation model, the partial least squares (PLS) method.Findings – The empirical results of PLS indicate that six of the seven dimensions of SCMP have a significant positive effect on SCP. Furthermore, agreed vision and goals shows a greater influence than other dimensions of SCMP.Research limitations/implications – This study took a narrow focus solely on the electronics manufacturing industry with a relatively small sample size of respondents. Also the data were only collected from single respondents in an organization. However, being the first study...

Supply chain integration: an empirical study on manufacturing industry in Malaysia

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to attempt to identify the relationship between supply chain process integration and firm performance.Design/methodology/approach – The dimension classification and measurement instrument of the framework adapted from the previous research focus on firm performance impacts of digitally enabled supply chain integration (SCI) capabilities. The study employed the quantitative method where convenience sampling and self‐administered survey questionnaires were sent to 98 conference participants in Malaysia. The research framework was pre‐tested using multivariate analysis.Findings – The findings reveal that all three dimensions of supply chain process integration were statistically significant to firm performance. Furthermore, information flow integration shows a greater influence than physical and financial flow integration.Research limitations/implications – This study focused on the manufacturing sector with respondents who were participants of a conference.Practical im...

Analyzing the dynamics of the global construction industry: past, present and future

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyze the production processes utilized by the global construction industry.Design/methodology/approach – This paper discusses the history of the construction industry with a specific focus on the evolution of lean production systems (LPSs) that has a significant impact in reduction of waste in the light of operational performance. The paper proceeds through a comparison of the differences between construction and manufacturing processes.Findings – The construction industry consumes large amounts of natural resources along with wastage due to inefficient and improper utilization. Numerous factors contribute to this poor performance, but an efficient means of identification and reduction of waste has always been left aside. A fully integrated LPS is a way to eliminate much waste in the construction process.Originality/value – This paper has developed an instrument to measure degree of integration of LPS principles in the construction industry that can be used glo...

A Study on the Internet Security and its Implication for E-Commerce in Yemen

This study examines the use of the Internet for business purposes in Yemen, where main sectors of banking and private trade organizations are observed. Through interviews, a thorough study is performed concerning the Internet facilities available in Yemen, the literacy and use of Information Communication Technology ICT in organizations, the level of e-commerce adopted, the main hurdles in the adoption of e-commerce, and measures required to increase the adoption of e-commerce. The study finds that both organizations realize the importance of e-commerce for their business. The main causes in the delay of e-commerce adoption by some are the discrepancies in the infrastructure, high costing of the Internet facilities, bureaucratic hurdles in obtaining the facilities, and the non-availability of a secure environment. Beyond concerns about Internet security, their awareness of security hazards and protection measures is minimal. In light of the data collected, the study has come up with certain recommendations for the interested authorities to improve e-commerce in Yemen.

Supply Chain Management Practices and Firm Performance: An Empirical Study of the Electronics Industry in Malaysia

Supply chain management SCM is the integration and strategic alliance involving all the value-creating elements in the supply, manufacturing, and distribution processes from raw material extraction, the transformation process, and end user consumption. This paper explores the SCM activities carried out by electronic manufacturing organizations in Malaysia and determines the correlation between SCM practices and firm performance. A self-administrated questionnaire based survey technique was employed to ascertain the status of SCM adoption and the practices in SCM that are significant for Malaysian electronics manufacturers. The findings suggest that the adoption of SCM activities is reasonably moderate.

The Influence of Intellectual Capital on Knowledge Sharing: Small and Medium Enterprises’ Perspective

Intellectual capital of the organization would determine the success of the organization itself if it is well capitalized. Knowledge sharing is a platform for the organization to further enhance productivity. Furthermore, knowledge sharing is always linked to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) due to their advantage of being small. Convenience sampling was used for manufacturing and services industries of SMEs. Data was tested using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) to investigate the impact of intellectual capital on knowledge sharing. Measurement model and structural model were developed. Findings show that relational capital has a positive impact on knowledge sharing while human capital and structural capital has negative impact on knowledge sharing. All the intellectual capital dimensions contributed a significant impact on knowledge sharing. It is important for SMEs to invest and focus on knowledge sharing activity as it would create a platform for innovation, thus enhances the performance.