Strategic local manufacturing supplier development roadmap as a decision support tool

Thesis (MScEng)--Stellenbosch University, 2017.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The support of local businesses is vital in ensuring the growth of a country‟s economy. The South African government, in particular, has created various support mechanisms and policies to assist the growth of local businesses. The manufacturing industry posses many opportunities for local manufacturing suppliers to exploit although many of them struggle to capitalise on these opportunities as they may lack certain skills or infrastructure. Due to the complex nature of local supplier development organisations in South Africa find it very difficult to understand/asses the maturity level of a local manufacturing supplier (LMS), relative to their required technology/capability, in order to fulfil the organisation‟s procurement or commercialisation strategy. Developing a LMS requires a strategic and effective approach to ensure all key areas for development are addressed. Organisations further battle to identify the most appropriate LMS to develop and utilise all existing support mechanisms or funding structures effectively, in order to do so. A strategic local manufacturing development roadmap is proposed in this thesis to be utilised as a decision support tool in selecting the most appropriate supplier for development based on the end user‟s requirements. In order to understand the key elements, stakeholders, funding mechanisms available and the reason to develop local suppliers a thorough literature study was conducted to establish a theoretical foundation. Thereafter the theoretical framework was applied to several case studies in order to extract further key elements, sequence of development phases, types of development projects and the role each stakeholder plays along the development of local suppliers. Only then could a conceptual framework be developed. Thereafter the conceptual framework was further developed and validated using three significant case studies. Each case study proposed further improvements/inclusions into the framework to establish a holistic roadmap for developing a LMS, as a decision support tool. The roadmap illustrates four phases of the required development of a LMS. Each phase has certain key elements that a developing local supplier will need to achieve/ensure before it could move onto the next stage. A mathematical model is created to represent the framework such that calculations can be made on the percentage to which a local manufacturing supplier conforms to certain requirements. These requirements are customisable according to an organisations needs. This is necessary as it will quantify where the supplier lies along the road map of development and will be able to track the progress of development for each supplier once the development program has been initiated. The outputs of the model can assist the end user to make informed decisions of the current maturity level of various LMS relative to its required capability/technology and determine the most appropriate LMS to develop. The framework further establishes a clear prioritised action plan to develop a LMS through various support structures and funding mechanisms, relative to its maturity phase.AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die ondersteuning van plaaslike besighede is noodsaaklik om die groei van 'n land se ekonomie te verseker. Die Suid-Afrikaanse regering het in die besonder verskeie ondersteuningsmeganismes en -beleid geskep om die groei van plaaslike besighede te help. Die vervaardigingsbedryf beskik oor talle geleenthede vir plaaslike vervaardigingsverskaffers om te ontgin, hoewel baie van hulle sukkel om hierdie geleenthede te kapitaliseer, aangesien hulle dalk sekere vaardighede of infrastruktuur ontbreek. Weens die komplekse aard van plaaslike verskaffersontwikkelingsorganisasies in Suid-Afrika vind dit baie moeilik om die volwassenheidsvlak van 'n plaaslike vervaardigingsverskaffer (PVV) te verstaan / evalueer, relatief tot hul vereiste tegnologie / vermoë om die organisasie se verkryging of kommersialisering te behartig strategie. Die ontwikkeling van 'n PVV vereis 'n strategiese en effektiewe benadering om te verseker dat alle sleutelgebiede vir ontwikkeling aangespreek word. Organisasies streef verder om die mees geskikte PVV te identifiseer om alle bestaande ondersteuningsmeganismes of befondsingsstrukture effektief te ontwikkel en te gebruik om dit te doen. 'N Strategiese plaaslike vervaardigingsontwikkelingsraamwerk word voorgestel in hierdie proefskrif om as 'n hulpmiddel vir besluitneming gebruik te word om die mees geskikte verskaffer vir ontwikkeling te kies gebaseer op die eindgebruiker se vereistes. Ten einde die sleutelelemente te verstaan, belanghebbendes, befondsingsmeganismes beskikbaar en die rede om plaaslike verskaffers te ontwikkel, is 'n deeglike literatuurstudie uitgevoer om 'n teoretiese grondslag te vestig. Daarna is die teoretiese raamwerk toegepas op verskeie gevallestudies om verdere sleutelelemente, volgorde van ontwikkelingsfases, tipes ontwikkelingsprojekte en die rol van elke belanghebbende by die ontwikkeling van plaaslike verskaffers te onttrek. Eers dan kan 'n konseptuele raamwerk ontwikkel word. Daarna is die konseptuele raamwerk verder ontwikkel en gevalideer deur gebruik te maak van drie belangrike gevallestudies. Elke gevallestudie het verdere verbeteringe / insluite in die raamwerk voorgestel om 'n holistiese padkaart te vestig vir die ontwikkeling van 'n PVV, as 'n besluitnemingshulpmiddel. Die draaiboek illustreer vier fases van die vereiste ontwikkeling van 'n PVV. Elke fase het sekere sleutelelemente wat 'n ontwikkelende plaaslike verskaffer moet bereik / verseker voordat dit in die volgende fase kan beweeg. 'N Wiskundige model word geskep om die raamwerk te verteenwoordig sodat berekenings gemaak kan word op die persentasie waaraan 'n plaaslike vervaardigingsverskaffer aan sekere vereistes voldoen. Hierdie vereistes is aanpasbaar volgens 'n organisasie se behoeftes. Dit is nodig aangesien dit sal bepaal waar die verskaffer langs die padkaart van ontwikkeling lê en die ontwikkelingsverloop vir elke verskaffer kan naspeur sodra die ontwikkelingsprogram ingestel is. Die uitsette van die model kan die eindgebruiker help om ingeligte besluite te neem oor die huidige volwassenheidsvlak van verskeie LMS relatief tot sy vereiste vermoë / tegnologie en bepaal die geskikste PVV om te ontwikkel. Die raamwerk vestig verder 'n duidelike prioriteitsaksieplan om 'n PVV te ontwikkel deur middel van verskeie ondersteuningsstrukture en befondsingsmeganismes, relatief tot die volwassenheidsfase