Track: Lean Six Sigma

Abstract

The Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) sector plays a crucial role in the socio-economic development of any country, especially in today's globalized environment. SMEs act as potential sources of employment generation and economic growth. However, these enterprises often face threats from larger organizations, since they may directly or indirectly act as ancillary units to these larger players. In order to remain competitive in both domestic and global markets, SMEs need to recognize the value of their products and services from the customers' perspective. Additionally, they must eliminate non-value activities in their production processes and focus on improving profitability through various manufacturing strategies Among the numerous of manufacturing strategies available, the Lean Production System (LPS) has consistently been identified as the most effective method or strategy for enhancing operational efficiency. Although there have been numerous success stories of LPS implementation across various industries, many SMEs still struggle to embrace LPS in their operations in order to gain a competitive edge. Furthermore, there is a lack of suitable structural models or frameworks for implementing LPS specifically in SMEs. This study aims to develop a generalized contextual relationship structural model for implementing LPS in Indian SMEs. To address this issue, a three-phase research methodology is employed. In the first phase, all enablers/factors are identified through a comprehensive literature review and Pareto analysis (PA). Based on these identified factors, a contextual relationship structural model is constructed using the Total Interpretive Structural Modeling (TISM) approach in the second phase. Finally, the output of TISM is used to classify the factors based on their impact on other factors using the MICMAC methodology. This leads to the development of a House of Lean model (HOL). The proposed contextual relationship structural model, along with HOL, is expected to enhance the understanding of implementing LPS in SMEs for both academicians and practitioners