Background: In the last few years, many of the risks of operating in a global supply chain or an offshore manufacturing strategy have become evident as they have been disrupted by accidents, pandemics, and conflicts. Multiple parties in global trade have also increased their talks about autonomy in strategic sectors or production of strategically important components. The theoretical problem of current literature is that there is a lack of research on the strategies of the manufacturing bases that are of strategical importance of nations. Purpose: The purpose of the study is to fill the theoretical gap by studying the factors behind the location decision which battery manufacturers consider when they decide to relocate production. Moreover, the study will explain the opportunities and implications that reallocating the production entails. Method: The approach of the study will be a comparative case based on qualitative data to explore and create an understanding and explanation to the research purpose. The design of the research has been based on and inspired by thematic analysis and the cases has been chosen through a purposeful sampling technique. The main form of data collection of this research will be secondary data. Conclusion: This study is increasing the understanding of reallocating battery manufacturing to Sweden. It adds to the existing literature in the field of IB and OSCM by the discovery of two new factors of opportunities behind locational decision. The first one was seeking municipalities with low permit process complexity in the due diligence process, and the second one was choosing a location that has possibilities for attaining more regional autonomy in material supply, as a strategic internal consideration.

The purpose of this study was to develop a typology of small apparel manufacturers (SAMs), firms classified between SIC 2310 to 2389 and less than 50 employees. The objectives were to (a) determine if distinct manufacturing strategies existed among SAMs, (b) develop a profile of these groups using environmental factors known to affect the apparel industry and small businesses (i.e., customer service, operations, barriers, assistance, customer size, customer location, competitor size, competitor location), (c) develop a profile of SAMs based on demographics (i.e., SIC, end-use for products, manufacturing process, type of firm, fashion position, employee size, manufacturing strategy, marketing strategy, annual gross revenue), and (d) determine the existence of a relationship between SAMs use of market strategies and manufacturing strategies. Data were collected from 146 SAMs, which represented 15 states with the highest number of SAMs. Factor analysis was used to identify manufacturing strategy factors (i.e., flexibility, environmental consciousness, product attributes, lot sizes), which were used to cluster respondents; and environmental factors (i.e., customer service, education/industry awareness, flexibility, timing, unit costs, production resources, technology/automation, consistency in sales, investment capital, import reductions). Four clusters of manufacturing strategies emerged and were profiled according to environmental factors and demographic variables (i.e., products, product classification, manufacturing processes, type of firm, type of fashion, manufacturing strategies, marketing strategies, firm's employee size, annual gross revenues). Significant differences occurred among the four manufacturing strategy groups and environmental factors. Significant differences occurred among the four manufacturing strategy groups and demographic variables. No relationship existed between manufacturing strategy groups and their marketing strategy. / Ph. D.

Lean strategy deployment (LSD) provides a means to create lasting value at reduced cost; yet most LSD efforts fail to attain sustainable improvements. The current study sought to gain an understanding of how leaders in oral healthcare manufacturing setting in the northeastern region of the United States can apply self-efficacy and leadership commitment during an LSD. Using Bandura’s theory of self-efficacy this qualitative phenomenological study examined the lived experiences and perceptions of 15 mid-to-senior level managers, concerning the use of self-efficacy and leadership commitment during a lean strategy deployment (LSD). The key findings resulted in 10 emergent themes. The top 3 highly regarded themes that emerged from this study were: (1) committing to a lean strategy deployment, (2) communicating lessons learned/changes, and (3) bringing the best out of employees. LSDs are not easy to implement. Many companies attempt to carry out lean activities and many of these same companies fail to have successful results. To be effective, leaders should focus on creating sound practices and give more attention to the human behaviors and leadership characteristics needed to support eliminating barriers and creating a lean culture.

The fourth industrial revolution, also known as Industry 4.0, is based on digital industrial technology developments. The purpose of Industry 4.0 is to transform industrial manufacturing through digitalization and new technologies. The introduction of Industry 4.0 has led companies to consider digitalization as essential for company strategies. For decades, companies have aspired to increase performance by using advanced production practices, such as different operation methods and advanced manufacturing technologies. The intention of introducing these practices is to advance companies towards high performance by implementing advanced techniques. One way of utilizing the potential of new technologies is by an adoption of the concept Industry 4.0. This research studies the impact of Industry 4.0 on companies current manufacturing strategies and operational performance. The study is carried out by conducting case studies on two companies with connections to the concept of Industry 4.0 and implementations of Industry 4.0 technologies such as big data, Internet of things, the Cloud concepts, simulations, and autonomous robots. Through theoretical and comparative analysis and discussion, the study found that an adoption to Industry 4.0 as a concept is a long and stepwise process. Successful Industry 4.0 adaption requires integration of Industry 4.0 with current manufacturing strategies. Implementation of certain Industry 4.0 technologies can have an impact on operational performance if these are integrated with advancements of manufacturing practices. The practices of manufacturing strategies are significantly associated with operational performance. In other cases, the impact of implementing new technologies linger, and is not directly noticeable. With this in consideration, the value of these new technologies should not be limited to operational measurements such as financial measures.