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The purpose of this paper is to critically evaluate the state of the art of applications of organisational systematics and manufacturing cladistics in terms of strengths and weaknesses and introduce new generic cladistic and hierarchical classifications of discrete manufacturing systems. These classifications are the basis for a practical web-based expert system and diagnostic benchmarking tool.

There were two stages for the research methods, with eight re-iterative steps: one for theory building, using secondary and observational data, producing conceptual classifications; the second stage for theory testing and theory development, using quantitative data from 153 companies and 510 manufacturing systems, producing the final factual cladogram. Evolutionary relationships between 53 candidate manufacturing systems, using 13 characters with 84 states, are hypothesised and presented diagrammatically. The manufacturing systems are also organised in a hierarchical classification with 13 genera, 6 families and 3 orders under one class of discrete manufacturing.

This work addressed several weaknesses of current manufacturing cladistic classifications which include the lack of an explicit out-group comparison, limited conceptual cladogram development, limited use of characters and that previous classifications are specific to sectors. In order to correct these limitations, the paper first expands on previous work by producing a more generic manufacturing system classification. Second, it describes a novel web-based expert system for the practical application of the discrete manufacturing system.

The classifications form the basis for a practical web-based expert system and diagnostic benchmarking tool, but also have a novel use in an educational context as it simplifies and relationally organises extant manufacturing system knowledge.

The research employed a novel re-iterative methodology for both theory building, using observational data, producing the conceptual classification, and through theory testing developing the final factual cladogram that forms the basis for the practical web-based expert system and diagnostic tool.

This paper aims to address the advantage of considering an evolutionary classification scheme for commercial aerospace supply chains. It is an industry wide approach. By going beyond the performance of the single firm and considering the whole supply chain for a product a better understanding of present states and performances of the firms within the chain can be achieved.

The approach is presented as evolutionary steps by introduction of key supply chain characters. These steps are brought together by applying cladistics to classify the evolutionary relationships between supply chain forms.

Key character states define the change of supply chain forms in the evolutionary adaptation to market realities and to proactive responses to increased competition.

The potential benefits of this approach include a benchmark of best practice, a strategic tool for policy development, and the creation of future scenarios.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the evolution of commercial aerospace supply chains.

The approach is presented as evolutionary steps by introduction of key supply chain practices. These steps are brought together by applying cladistics, a classification approach from the biological sciences, to classify the evolutionary relationships between supply chain forms. This is presented in two stages.

Earlier research produced a “conceptual cladogram” from secondary data that describes the evolution of aerospace supply chains. This paper expands on this through empirical validation and develops a “factual cladogram”, revealing a newly emerging supply chain form. Key practices define the change of supply chain forms in the evolutionary adaptation to market realities and to proactive responses to increased competition.

The factual cladogram as such does not necessarily prescribe world‐class performance but may serve as a platform for discussing and monitoring the properties of the emergent supply chain in light of strategies for the future. As such it becomes a strategic bench‐marking tool for the change of practices, technologies and products.

In practical terms, the approach may be developed as a strategic tool for policy development, and a decision support tool through the creation and exploration of future supply chain form scenarios.

Theoretically, this paper elaborates on a framework for how and why evolution produces diversity of supply chain form.

Presents an evolutionary management technique (cladistics) which could enable organizations to formally and systematically understand the emergence of new manufacturing forms within their business environment. This fundamental, but important, insight could result in cladograms being used as a tool within a change framework, for achieving successful organizational design and change. Thus, regardless of the industrial sector, managers could use cladograms as an evolutionary analysis technique for determining “where they have been and where they are now”. This evolutionary analysis could be used to formulate coherent and appropriate action for managers who are responsible for organizational design and development.

This paper is an introduction to cladistics, a qualitative evolutionary classification technique, as a method for historiography. An example of classification is provided, and used to present briefly the cladistic methodology. The benefits and applications of cladistics to business research are discussed. The three main benefits of cladistics are to: provide a method for historiography; combine effectively tasks of analysis and synthesis; and be an ideal support for collective modeling.

The lack of contextual sensitivity of best practices thinking can be a deterrent to innovation in small and medium‐size enterprises if owners and managers feel that the specificity of their companies are not taken into account. Presents cladistics, an evolutionary classification technique, as a tool to be used to craft and validate manufacturing strategies. Cladistics provides a compromise between over‐prescriptive generic business solutions and cost inefficient, high‐risk idiosyncratic solutions. The contribution of cladistics as a qualitative methodology in operations strategy research is illustrated by an evolutionary classification of the hand tool industry and recommendations for innovation in this industry.

Introduces a framework for benchmarking organisations – “evolutionary benchmarking”. Discusses the concept and operation of the framework, along with its proposed advantages in aiding benchmarking. The benchmarking approach proposed utilises an evolutionary classification method called cladistics. Uses an example classification of automotive assembly plants to show how the proposed framework helps benchmarking in terms of: providing a framework for representing benchmarking information; enhancing the quality and validity of the information according to the classification rules of parsimony, congruence and homology; and providing a comparison that indicates how the practices should be adopted. This framework is considered to be useful to researchers who study benchmarking methodologies and those that categorise the findings of benchmarking studies.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the robustness of the emerging body of knowledge about collaborative supply chains in the context of Engineered-to-Order (ETO) manufacturing engineering project systems.

This paper uses an evolutionary classification technique to build an evolutionary history for an industry case study: the French ETO machine design industry.

The evolutionary history shows that collaborative forms of governance have been used in this industry after an era of failed transactional market-based governance. The industry, however, has abandoned collaborative forms of governance to return to its historical roots towards more vertical integration.

Findings are only relevant in the context of the investigated industry.

In certain industrial settings managers should consider the promise of collaboration and trust with cautious.

The data set supports Williamson’s (1993) rejection of trust as a mode of governance and calls for a more careful delineation of the conditions of recourse to trust in managerial situations.

Configurational theory can significantly enhance understanding of organisational strategy and diversity. Despite this, there have been limited efforts to examine the value and utility of configurational research as a method for realising manufacturing strategies. This paper introduces a strategic management framework based on configurational theory and an evolutionary classification method (cladistics). Focusing on agile manufacturing concepts, the framework provides a system for collecting and organising information on manufacturing routines and capabilities. This facilitates the processes of strategic analysis, strategic choice and strategic information.

Provides a fresh and novel approach to an established problem; the classification of manufacturing systems. Reviews existing manufacturing classifications and biological taxonomy. Proposes a consistent vocabulary and preliminary guidelines for the successful development of other classifications (FMS types, levels of technology, etc.). Aims to aid the construction of competent classifications that will advance the understanding of manufacturing system modelling and design. Supports proposals by novel comparisons drawn from the “science of diversity”, systematics, and the 200 years of experience that biological taxonomy has to offer.