Purpose -The paper seeks to test the relationships among product design and supply chain design, with specific reference to the product-supply chain model by Fisher. Design/methodology/approach -An extensive empirical survey with data from 128 companies; the approach is basically theory testing, in that it investigates an existing framework, and discusses extensions. Findings -Significant relationships are found between product types and supply chain types, as well as concerning the impact of alignment on performance.Research limitations/implications -Instead of treating the supply chain characteristics associated with different supply chain types as either/or choices, some companies select properties from both supply chain types in order to gain additional benefits. This creates a supply chain frontier of physical efficiency and market responsiveness; a concept that deserves further attention by researchers. A limitation is that it would be interesting to perform a longitudinal study. Practical implications -Different product types call for different types of supply chains. Alignment between the type of product and the type of supply chain is important, and significant for delivery speed, delivery dependability, and cost performance. Originality/value -This research empirically tests a model that has received considerable attention in the research literature as well as acting as guidelines in practice, but that has not been tested explicitly before.

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The design of manufacturing planning and control (MPC) systems is a strategic decision for manufacturing operations. In this paper we analyze the interrelationships between the choice of MPC approaches at different hierarchical levels with market requirements and operational performance. These relationships are explored through an extensive survey comprising responses from 128 manufacturing firms. The results show that the choice of MPC approaches, primarily at the sales and operations planning and master scheduling levels, has a significant mediating role in improving performance. The alignment between market requirements and the choice of MPC approaches is significant and has a significant impact on performance. In a dynamic environment, the choice of MPC approaches is shown to have a positive mediating effect on operational performance.

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