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The market for third party logistics (TPL) service has expanded hugely over the past few years as its total revenue has reached $333 billion globally. It is expected that the industry will grow substantially, and became increasingly complex. As the industry matures, a number of authors have recognised that logistics service quality is becoming a vital tool for delivering superior logistics service performance and thus creating customer satisfaction. Concurrently, considerable evidence has been accumulated that shows relationship quality is useful in the marketing channel context in driving customer loyalty. However, empirical research investigating the effects of the relationships among logistics service quality, customer satisfaction, relationship quality and customer loyalty has received relatively little attention in the literature. This study attempts to fill this void by investigating customers' satisfaction with TPL providers' services across industrial sectors in the UK and the relationship quality they have with them. It empirically tests the validity of Mentzer et al's (2001) Logistics Service Quality PQ) scale for measuring logistics service quality and the LSQ process model that underpins it. A disaggregated model of relationship quality is also used to assess its impact on customer loyalty. Structural equation modelling analysis of the data collected by mail survey of 183 logistics-related managers confirms that LSQ measures are generalisable across industrial sectors in the UK. The results show that technical quality dimensions of logistics service do not drive customers' satisfaction, but serve as the order qualifiers while the functional quality dimensions act as order winning criteria that differentiates TPL providers' service excellence for customer satisfaction. It also supports existing theoretical studies that suggest that relationship quality produces loyal customers. The research contributes to both marketing and logistics discipline in that it empirically demonstrates the positive link between logistics service quality and customer satisfaction as well as customer satisfaction, relationship quality and customer loyalty.

In recent years, a significant volume of industrial and academic research has been directed towards understanding the evolution and development of ERP systems and their associated applications. However, the associated technological and social changes are significant, and although many corporations have successfully implemented ERP, there have also been many reported cases of failed implementation. This has led several researchers to examine in detail the causes of these failures, in an effort to identify critical success factors associated with successful implementation. This dissertation reports on an action research study that arose from an initiative designed to improve the likelihood of success when implementing a particular UKdeveloped ERP system in China, namely `System 21' from JBA International. The project in which this research is embedded was a joint venture between JBA and a leading US beverage company, Pepsi Cola. The dissertation initially focuses on the analysis of underlying reasons for pilot project failures in this joint venture. This draws upon qualitative data from managers, consultants and other stakeholders involved in the ERP implementation at three geographically dispersed sites. The research then turns to an examination of ERP implementation methodology in the context of joint venture collaboration and associated issues such as change management and business process (re)engineering. This is grounded in a literature review of several approaches adopted by the major ERP solution providers. The literature review phase is followed by the design and distribution of a detailed questionnaire aimed at identifying, and subsequently addressing, the concerns of various customer stakeholders in a number of Hong Kong based businesses spanning a range of industrial sectors. Its aim was to secure the necessary improvements in methodology required to underpin the successful implementation in future Pepsi Joint Venture projects in China. Ultimately, this led to a set of recommendations in the form of a strategic framework for implementing ERP systems in China. In summary, a key deliverable arising from the research was the production of a business model for the achievement of success when implementing joint venture ERP systems in China. A second related deliverable is the improvement of the generic implementation methodology currently available to customers of `System 21'. This has been achieved by developing a framework evolved from an adaptive approach to the implementation of ERP systems. To a great extent, the findings and recommendations are also applicable to other multinational companies who are operating in China and keen on implementing ERP systems within this particular setting, with its associated cultural and other restrictions.

The introduction of Concurrent Engineering highlights the need for a link between the early stages of product design and assembly planning. This thesis presents aggregate assembly process planning as a novel methodology to provide this link. The theory behind the research is to bring all aspects of product development together to consider assembly planning at the conceptual stage of design. Decisions taken during the early design stage not only have the greatest influence on production times and costs, but also should ensure that a design is easy to manufacture and assemble. An automated computer-based system has been developed to implement the methodology. The system generates aggregate assembly process plans which give details of feasible sequences, assembly process times and costs, resource requirements, and factory loadings. The Aggregate Assembly Modelling and Planning (AAMP) system employs object-oriented modelling techniques to represent designs, process planning knowledge, and assembly resources. The minimum information requirements have been identified, and a product model encompassing this data has been developed. An innovative factor of this thesis is to employ Assembly Feature Connections (AFCs) within the product model to represent assembly connectivity. Detailed generic assembly process models, functioning with limited design data, are used to calculate assembly criteria. The introduction of a detailed resource model to represent assembly facilities enables the system to calculate accurate assembly times, dependent on which resources are used within a factory, or even which factory is employed. A new algorithm uses the structure of the product model, process constraints and assembly rules to efficiently generate accurate assembly sequences. Another new algorithm loads the assembly operations onto workstations, ensuring that the capability and capacity are available. The aggregate assembly process planning functionality has been tested using products from industry, and has yielded accurate results that prove to be both technically feasible and realistic. Industrial response has been extremely favourable. Specific comments on the usefulness and simplicity of such a comprehensive system gives encouragement to the concept that aggregate assembly process planning provides the required link between the early stages of product design and assembly planning.

After 50 years since TQM began to be popularised in the management literature, companies still struggle to implement and sustain these programmes of continuous improvement despite the central importance of TQM to maintaining business competitiveness. Much of what has been written under the banner of TQM has been drawn directly from studies of large businesses and there remains a void as to how small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) can engage such systems (in the absence of a large number of business managers and an established hierarchy of command). SMEs have therefore been left behind in the academic debate and few studies have truly attempted to investigate the models of TQM application at SME businesses. Malaysia is an economy that is dependent upon SME businesses and the improved performance of these organisations to meet the challenges of the economy in the transition to a modern manufacturing state. Following an extensive literature review and interviews with academic experts in the field of TQM, the objectives of this study were designed to close this gap in knowledge and to identify the enablers of successful TQM implementation and how the models, engaged by Malaysian SME businesses. The survey questionnaire distributed to Malaysian and Welsh SMEs to gain a general understanding of TQM implementation and to identify the enablers from the perspective of senior business managers. The main section of this study concentrated upon eight purposively selected and in-depth case studies of Malaysian SMEs (3 award winners and 5 non-award winners) to determine differences in performance and the differences in features engaged at high and lower performing businesses. The findings of this study show a series of enablers that correlate with higher performance and underpin a model of TQM that was later developed by the researcher. The analysis of the research clearly indicates three levels of TQM application starting with Quality Control (QC), then a broader application of management involvement with Quality Assurance processes (QA) and finally a system-wide application of Total Quality Management (TQM) which involves a high degree of strategic integration of TQM principles. The integration between functional areas in the factory, formalisation of activities and clear strategy were present at the TQM businesses and resulted in effective and efficient systems of customer service, operational excellence and human resource integration. The conclusions of the study suggest there is a logic and structure to high performance businesses and the application of TQM and this finding has important implications for the future study of TQM application by SME businesses and how best to promote these concepts for the economic prosperity of Malaysia. With almost 100:1 better performance advantage enjoyed by the award-winning companies over their closest rivals the importance of promoting TQM on a national scale cannot be under-estimated and could bring about a renewed interest in the relationship between TQM implementation, SMEs improvement and national competitiveness for SMEs and for their larger customer businesses in Malaysia and abroad.

This research is focused on manufacturing performance measurement systems in general and, particularly, Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) and Process Capability Analysis (PCA). Two improved approaches, namely: Overall Equipment Effectiveness Plus (OEE+) and Overall Resource Effectiveness (ORE), are proposed, developed and evaluated. Also, the relationship between the overall effectiveness of a machine or process and its capability is investigated. ' OEE provides, according to many authors and practitioners, an effective and appropriate quantitative measure of the overall performance of a machine or process. OEE is defined based on the time-based elements of Availability (~), Performance (P) and the unit-based element of Quality (Q). However, this research demonstrates that, while these three elements are important, other factors also have a significant contribution to process performance. For example, the efficient use of raw materials as well as the environment (e.g. production system, logistics, labour, etc.) in which the equipment or process ?perates can also be important. By definition, OEE is unable to evaluate and Identify improvement opportunities in these areas. Consequently, OEE+ and ORE are defined in order to provide a more complete and improved measure ?f overall effectiveness. Also, an investigation of the process capability Impact on overall effectiveness is carried out through this research. The technical characteristics or properties of OEE, OEE+ and ORE are analysed an~ ,compared for a range of product characteristics and manufacturing poliCies using a defined set of experiments run on a discrete-event simulation model of an automated bottling line. The relationship between overall e~ectiveness and process capability is also investigated using the bottling simulation model and the experimental design technique Taguchi method in the form of orthogonal arrays. The research concludes that OEE is an inappropriate measure of ~e~or~ance for some manufacturing processes. The weaknesses and limitations of OEE are defined and demonstrated. ORE is demonstrated to be a more complete and improved evaluation of overall effectiveness when compared with OEE or OEE+. Furthermore, ORE provides managers with a ~roader perspective of their processes and, consequently, enables them to ake better decisions about how to run and improve their processes more ~ffectivelY and effiCiently. Finally, the research illustrates the relationship e~een overall effectiveness and process capability and suggests the eXlste~?e of a "breaking point" beyond which improvements in process capability have little impact on the overall effectiveness of a process.

In the wake of the recurring financial crises, it is now evident that financial engineering and product development can play a crucial role in either improving the efficacy of the financial markets or bringing devastating consequences, as was the case in the 2008 financial crisis. Although Islamic financial institutions managed to escape the direct impact of the crisis, the role of product development in Islamic finance can be critical in determining the future of the rapidly growing industry. The general perception in the market is that current Islamic financial products are mere imitations of their conventional counterparts, and therefore, they have failed, so far, to bring the socio-economic impact expected from implementing the rules of Shari’ah in the financial industry. Hence, there is a real need to create a new generation of Islamic financial products that contributes positively to achieving maqasid al-Shari’ah or ‘the objective of Shari’ah’. This research, hence, aims at critically exploring the current practices of product development and financial engineering in Islamic financial institutions, and establishing the methodology and principles for engineering efficient and Shari’ah-based financial products. One of the main objectives of this research is to propose a refined product development process that can lead to the creation of a new generation of Islamic financial products that meet not only the form of Shari’ah contracts but also the substance of maqasid al-Shari’ah. This research uses both questionnaire survey technique, as a quantitative method, with a sample of 45 respondents, and semi-structured interviews, as a qualitative method, where 12 interviews were conducted with different stakeholders in the industry. The main findings of this research indicate that the majority of Islamic financial institutions are committed to create innovative products and adopt a strategy to develop new products, but fail to transform the strategy into operational plans. The results also demonstrate that the main source of ideas for new products is other Islamic financial institutions, which is in contrast to the general belief that conventional financial products are the main source. The analysis of the primary data also shows that the majority of institutions showed commitment to complete the Shari’ah-related stages of the product development process, but they demonstrated lack of discipline in implementing the remaining steps of the process. While compliance with Shari’ah seems to be one of the top priorities in product development, there is very little focus on achieving maqasid al-Shari’ah which might explain why many perceive Islamic financial products to be Shari’ah-compliant rather than Shari’ah-based. The inferential analysis against the independent variables returned a considerable number of differences in opinions among the respondents, the majority of which were related to the institutions’ age, location and nature of activities. Most of the differences in relation to age, were related to older institutions, while the US and Africa reported most of the differences related to location. On the other hand, takaful companies reported most of the differences related to the nature of activities.

Quality management (QM) is viewed as concepts, principles, or practices within which prescriptive views and empirical facts play roles in constructing and operating the industry to improve the performance. The growth of Building Maintenance (BM) as a proportion of the construction industry’s output has led to increasing awareness of the need to manage buildings effectively. In the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the cost of construction projects in Riyadh City 2014 is around SR 181 billion, and that figure does include the operation and maintenance projects that cost SR 10 billion in 2014. However, this segment of the industry faces several challenges in the Kingdom. This work draws on five Quality Management Concepts (QMCs) (Total Quality Management, Six Sigma, Lean Management, Lean Six Sigma, and ISO 9001) to underpin the research principles, methodology, and implementation. From this research, The primary aim of this research is to investigate the Quality Management System (QMS) required to improve Saudi public Building Maintenance (BM) practices through the implementation of the most suitable and effective Quality Management Concepts (QMCs). The nature of BM is examined in detail in the literature review, to ensure the subsequent collection of appropriate knowledge and information from the empirical interviews and focus group discussions. The first qualitative exercise relates to interviews conducted to collect information to examine the current BM processes in public departments, with a view to ascertaining underlying problems and assess awareness and implementation of QMCs. This was followed by a second qualitative technique, the focus group, intended to explore the most suitable and effective QMCs for implementation in BM departments. After that, the QMS was developed and then validated by focus group method a second time. In this study, thematic analysis is used for both qualitative methods. The most significant problems facing the public BM sector were identified and then categorised into three major groups: (1) top management problems, (2) human resource problems, and (3) technical problems. The main results of the study emphasise that ISO 9001 is the most suitable foundation for quality management of BM and it is found to be an effective baseline on which the BM process can be improved. It was established that there should be specific guidelines for QM in BM (quality management system) which have been developed in this research. The QMS is customised to provide the information required to improve current practices in BM industry. It was confirmed by the evaluation and validation that the developed quality management system can generate positive outcomes, lead to better management, clear responsibilities and improve communication.