Haglund, P; Rudberg, M and Sezer, A A (2022) Organizing logistics to achieve strategic fit in building contractors: A configurations approach. Construction Management and Economics, 40(9), pp. 711-726. ISSN 01446193
Abstract
Previous research indicates that the success of logistics solutions in building projects depends on how they are organized in accordance with the logistics context, which is determined by building contractors' competitive priorities, product characteristics, and production process choices. Taking a configurations approach, the purpose of this paper is to describe the fit between the logistics context and the organizing of logistics at a strategic level. A conceptual research framework is derived from literature postulating an influence of the logistics context on the organizing of logistics. The framework is applied to four cases by the means of strategic profiling, which provides a snapshot of the fit in the cases' logistics configurations. The findings indicate that the type of production process influences the degree to which logistics decisions should be made centrally and that the degree of standardization and pre-engineering influence the degree to which logistics processes should be formalized. The main contributions are the identification of logistics configuration variables and the description of the fit between building contractors' logistics context and the organizing of logistics. For managerial practice, a logistics configuration profiling template was developed that can be used as a tool in the logistic strategy process.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | case study; construction logistics; logistics strategy; strategic fit |
| Index terms: | production process, standardization, construction logistics, configuration, building contractor, case study, strategy, strategic fit |
| Subjects: | construction logistics, manufacturing engineering, data collection methods, practitioner, performance measurement, systems engineering, management |
| Topics: | Supply Chain Management, Quality Management, Business Strategy, Research Practice, Roles and Professions, Engineering Principles |
| Descriptive scope: | 3 PCE |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here