Alceu Gomes Alves Filho

Pressupostos da gestão da cadeia de suprimentos: evidências de estudos sobre a indústria automobilística

The development of approaches for research on supply chains is fairly recent, since they only began to be studied systematically in the late 1980s. This paper begins with an overview of the main assumptions of the Supply Chain Management (SCM) approach. Based on a partial review of the empirical literature on the automotive industry, the paper then examines whether these assumptions can be confirmed in practice. Since the reviewed literature does not indicate that the aforementioned SCM assumptions have been concretized in the automotive industry, we propose that an initial methodological step be developed to help researchers identify the structural and relational characteristics of the supply chain in question. To contribute to the development of this initial methodological step, a brief summary is made of three schools of thought that may provide the basis for analyzing the structural and relational characteristics of the supply chain: Network Theory, Resource Dependence Theory and Transaction Cost Economics. This analysis of structural and relational characteristics helps evaluate the context in which SCM principles and techniques can be proposed and implemented and, thus evaluate the results that may be achieved through the implementation of SCM.O desenvolvimento de abordagens para estudo de cadeias de suprimentos e relativamente recente e vem sendo tratado em periodicos cientificos, de modo sistematico, apenas a partir do final dos anos 80. Neste artigo, sao apresentados, inicialmente, os principais pressupostos da abordagem que ficou conhecida como Gestao da Cadeia de Suprimentos (GCS). Em seguida, procura-se ilustrar, a partir de uma revisao parcial de trabalhos realizados sobre a industria automobilistica, em que medida tais pressupostos podem, ou nao, ser verificados. Constatando que apenas em alguns casos o conjunto de pressupostos tende a se tornar realidade, sugere-se que seja desenvolvida uma etapa metodologica inicial para a verificacao de tais pressupostos ou para a avaliacao das caracteristicas estruturais e relacionais da cadeia de suprimentos a ser estudada. Procurando contribuir para o desenvolvimento dessa primeira etapa metodologica, faz-se uma breve sintese de algumas correntes teoricas que podem oferecer subsidios para a analise das caracteristicas estruturais e relacionais principais da cadeia de suprimentos. Tal analise auxilia a avaliar o contexto em que principios e tecnicas da GCS poderao ser propostos e implementados e, tambem, pelo menos parcialmente, os resultados que poderao ser alcancados.

Measuring supply chain management practices

Summary Purpose – This paper aims to perform an empirical investigation about the constructs and indicators of the supply chain management practices framework. Design/methodology/approach – The measuring framework proposed is based on a survey that was carried out on 107 Brazilian companies. Statistical techniques were employed to verify, validate, and test the reliability of the constructs and their indicators. To validate this framework principal component analysis and structural equation modeling techniques were used. Findings – In general, previous studies suggest six constructs for measuring the supply chain management practices framework. However, in this study a framework was achieved with four constructs of supply chain management practices, namely, supply chain (SC) integration for production planning and control (PPC) support, information sharing about products and targeting strategies, strategic relationship with customer and supplier, and support customer order. This framework has adequate levels of validity and reliability. Research limitations/implications – The main limitation of this study was that only a small sample of companies in a single sector and country were surveyed, and therefore there needs to be further research considering the special conditions in other countries. Originality/value – This study investigated statistically set indicators to discuss the topic ‘‘supply chain management practices’’. The framework obtained has good quality of validity and reliability indicators. Thus, an alternative framework has been added to measure supply chain management practices, which is currently a popular topic in the supply chain mainstream literature. Both defined constructs and the validated indicators can be used in other studies on supply chain management.

Inter-relações entre Estratégia de Operações e Gestão da Cadeia de Suprimentos: estudos de caso no segmento de motores para automóveis

The worldwide automotive industry has undergone major changes in recent years. In Brazil, the establishment of new automakers, the consolidation and denationalization of autoparts, and the introduction of low displacement engines and bi-fuelled engines have important strategic implications for these companies and for their supply chains. Based on these implications, this paper attempts to shed light on the interrelationship between Operations Strategy (OSs) and Supply Chain Management (SCM), analyzing case studies conducted at two engine manufacturers in Brazil and at two of their suppliers. The findings of these case studies indicate strong interrelationships between competitive priorities and decisions involving structural and infrastructural issues, and between the structural and relational aspects of the productive chains to which these companies belong. The automakers studied here have similar OSs, but their priorities and actions take place within the contexts of different supply chain structures and, hence, are governed by distinct forms of relationships. Given the mutual influence of OS and SCM factors and the dependence on previous strategic choices, the decisions made in these two areas are even more complex and strategically relevant.

Alignment of operations strategy: exploring the marketing interface

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify factors that can help managers to overcome barriers to alignment of operations strategy at the interface with marketing.Design/methodology/approach – This objective required the application of a procedure based on strategic consensus and a deeper analysis, such that the delimitation of the study in a single case was mandatory. The strategic processes of interfacing involve managerial attributes that are subject to the influence of human aspects and, therefore, the research method used a qualitative approach. The protocol design included the following data sources: interviews, document reviews and researcher observations. The categorisation was made based on the theoretical references, the frequency of observations, common responses and information from documents.Findings – The balance between intra‐functional trade‐offs, joint research on the competitive context, reflections on the understanding of customer needs and operational performance, and understan...

Esforço tecnológico e desempenho inovador das empresas do setor médico-hospitalar localizadas em São Carlos, SP

This paper joins information on technological efforts and innovation performance of 12 medical equipment producers located in Sao Carlos, State of Sao Paulo. It was gathered through interviews with owners or managers in the firms, who are asked to answer a structured questionnaire. Our analysis of this information shows that those firms have been done considerable efforts directed toward both internal R&D - in higher proportion - and technology acquisition from external sources. The majority of the firms have not invested on technology acquisition from external sources more than one third of their investment on internal R&D. Considering innovation performance, R&D activities in those firms are mainly oriented to incremental product innovations.

Sobre as prioridades competitivas da produção: compatibilidades e seqüências de implementação

A literatura sobre as Prioridades Competitivas da Producao evoluiu significativamente nos ultimos anos, mas apresenta ainda alguns pontos nao consensuais, relacionados (1) a propria definicao de quais dimensoes devem ser consideradas e quais sao seus elementos constitutivos, (2) `a existencia de compatibilidades e/ou incompatibilidades entre elas e (3) a proposicao de uma determinada sequencia logica de prioridades a ser implementada pelas empresas. Discutimos neste trabalho essas questoes, ainda de forma preliminar, considerando alguns modelos teoricos e pesquisas de campo apresentados na literatura e, ainda, duas pesquisas empiricas realizadas recentemente em empresas do estado de Sao Paulo. Os relatos e os levantamentos empiricos evidenciam que mesmo que se possa conceber uma sequencia generica, a longo prazo, de Prioridades Competitivas, e mesmo que sepossam estabelecer niveis minimos de desempenho para essas prioridades, numa determinada situacao competitiva, a formulacao da Estrategia de Producao ira requerer sempre a escolha e definicao de qual ou quais devem ser as prioridades a curto e medio prazos, considerando-se sempre a Estrategia Competitiva da empresa e a analise dos pontos fortes e fracos da Producao.

Exploring variables of transaction costs in Brazilian automotive supply chains

– The purpose of this paper is to shed light on the “automaker‐supplier” relationships that exist in a supply chain of the Brazilian automotive sector, based on assumptions and variables of transaction cost economics (TCE)., – The paper explored case studies carried out at an automotive engine manufacturer and six of its suppliers, applying semistructured interviews., – The findings indicate that automakers seek to utilize a form of hybrid relationship with their suppliers, which sometimes resembles competition and at other times cooperation; asset specificity tends to be greater in the first‐tier of the supply chain; and asset specificity seems to be mediated by aspects such as the amount of production destined to the manufacturer, the objective of maximizing return on previous investments, and the configuration of higher value‐added supply operations., – The results corroborate that close, long‐lasting, and trustful relationships tend to reduce transaction costs and improve performance, but in some cases, “latent competition” may also lead to reduced costs; managers should not undervalue the self‐reinforcing effects of asset specificity in a context of shared investments; and business strategy should guide every decision made inside supply chains in order to align supply and operations priorities., – Considering the deep restructuring process that Brazilian automotive industry has experienced, this paper brings its contribution in using TCE tools to analyze relationships inside an engine‐producing supply chain, dealing with the links between TCE and supply chain management.

Aspectos estratégicos, estruturais e relacionais de três cadeias de suprimentos automotivas

Abstract The aim of this paper is to identify structural, relational and strategic differences among Brazilian engine assem-bling chains, as well as suggesting factors originating from or responsible for such differences. Thus, the structures of three chains are studied and compared, as well as the relationships that take place. A case study was carried out and it consists of eight suppliers positioned in the first and/or second tiers of their chains, as well as the three engine manufacturers. Although the engine manufacturers belong to chains with distinct structural configurations and adopt different relationship patterns, their decisions regarding supply chain management are strategically aligned. Thus, although some overlapping among the chains occurred, the automakers succeeded in effectively using them to improve competitiveness. The work also indicates some general trends that were observed, such as the increase in the outsourc-ing level, and the existence of few hierarchical levels, consisting of, in the second tier, suppliers of less technologically sophisticated products.

Automaker-supplier relationships and production organisation forms: case study of a Brazilian engine supply chain

In this paper, we discuss the similarities and differences in the production organisation forms (POFs) implemented at an engine assembly plant and at 10 of its suppliers, addressing the main conditioning factors that contribute to those types of organisations in the context of Brazils revitalised automotive industry that emerged after the restructuring of the 1990s. Many variables condition the adopted POFs, such as the type of supply chain configuration, the level of partnership among automakers and local suppliers, the degree of outsourcing, the importance assigned to the local technological capacity accumulated by the engine assembly plant or by the automakers Brazilian subsidiary, the technological capacity of local suppliers (national and multinational companies), and the influence of labour unions in the areas where suppliers are located, etc. Although each POF can be considered unique, companies adopt similar organisational structures according to their size, technological capacity and other factors. Multinationals and larger companies are autonomous in defining their organisational characteristics, while national and smaller companies are strongly influenced by the engine assembler.

Operations strategies of engine assembly plants in the Brazilian automotive industry

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify and analyze the operations strategies (OSs) adopted by six of the all seven automobile engine manufacturers in action in Brazil during the years of 2005 and 2006. Design/methodology/approach – Semi-structured interviews were held with at least one of the top managers at each engine manufacturing plant to collect information about the aforementioned strategies. The questions were aimed at identifying possible changes, over a four years period, in some of the operations-related competitive priorities and decision areas. Findings – This research revealed the strategies adopted by six of the all seven major automobile engine manufacturers installed in Brazil in 2005, enabling a discussion of relevant themes from both the theoretical and practical standpoints. Competitive priorities and decision areas form a very inter-related system and any significant change of OSs requires significant investments, effort and time. Research limitations/implications – Case st...