No abstract

Access to this document was granted through an Emerald subscription provided by University of Calgary For Authors:If you would like to write for this, or any other Emerald publication, then please use our Emerald for Authors service. Information about how to choose which publication to write for and submission guidelines are available for all. Please visit www.emeraldinsight.com/authors for more information. About Emerald www.emeraldinsight.comWith over forty years' experience, Emerald Group Publishing is a leading independent publisher of global research with impact in business, society, public policy and education. In total, Emerald publishes over 275 journals and more than 130 book series, as well as an extensive range of online products and services. Emerald is both COUNTER 3 and TRANSFER compliant. The organization is a partner of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and also works with Portico and the LOCKSS initiative for digital archive preservation.Abstract Recently, total quality management (TQM) has attracted increasing interest throughout Chinese manufacturing industries and its programs have been widely implemented. Currently, there are few studies conducted about TQM implementation by small manufacturing firms in China, even though small firms are still dominant in many areas of manufacturing industries in China. This study analyzes survey results of Chinese small manufacturing firms to investigate the present status of TQM and its perception and development among them.

Quality has been identified as a key competitive weapon in the global market. Chinese firms are making considerable effort in implementing quality management in order to gain global competitiveness. The purpose of this study is to compare and contrast manufacturing strategies and business practices between TQM and traditional (or non-TQM) firms in the Chinese manufacturing industry. This study explores the differences that may exist between TQM and traditional non-TQM firms in manufacturing strategies and business practices by analyzing survey results of 243 Chinese manufacturing firms. Differences between TQM and traditional non-TQM firms are investigated in several respects.

After four consecutive years′ trade surplus, Korea′s climbing foreign trade deficit in 1990 is a clear signal that the nation should attempt to improve the performance of its manufacturing industry. However, there has not been much study on how manufacturing management is conducted in Korea and how it might be improved. Too much emphasis has been placed on macro policy variables such as tax, exchange rates and interest rates, which have only short‐term effects on competitiveness. The task for Korean manufacturing industry is to meet the challenges before it and be in a position to compete with other countries by providing high‐quality products at the right price. The most affordable and practical alternative is to make innovations in the current manufacturing process in order to enhance productivity and competitiveness. Studies the adoption and application of Japanese manufacturing management techniques under Korean conditions. Also provides a number of cases of their implementation in Korea and outlines considerations and recommendations necessary for their successful implementation based on the study findings.

MRP is a priority‐planning technique, not an execution tool. Waste can be avoided through the use of JIT as an execution tool, where only those materials which are actually needed on the factory floor are “pulled”, when they are needed. Describes a hybrid manufacturing system which incorporates the traditional MRP system and the Japanese JIT system in a single framework. The rationale is not whether MRP or JIT is better; it is how they complement each other in a hybrid system. Specifically, this framework attempts to integrate both MRP and JIT production. The integrated hybrid system can provide better production planning, scheduling and control. It employs the logic of MRP and JIT, but it eliminates some of the inherent problems and drawbacks in both systems.