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Organisations and industries are often looking for technologies that can accomplish multiple tasks, providing economic benefits and an edge over their competitors. In this context, drones have the potential to change many industries by making operations more efficient, safer and more economic. Therefore, this study investigates the use of drones as the next step in smart/digital warehouse management to determine their socio-economic benefits.

The study identifies various enablers impacting drone applications to improve inventory management, intra-logistics, inspections and surveillance in smart warehouses through a literature review, a test of concordance and the fuzzy Delphi method. Further, the graph theory matrix approach (GTMA) method was applied to ranking the enablers of drone application in smart/digital warehouses. In the subsequent phase, researchers investigated the relation between the drone application's performance and the enablers of drone adoption using logistic regression analysis under the TOE framework.

This study identifies inventory man agement, intra-logistics, inspections and surveillance are three major applications of drones in the smart warehousing. Further, nine enablers are identified for the adoption of drone in warehouse management. The findings suggest that operational effectiveness, compatibility of drone integration and quality/value offered are the most impactful enablers of drone adoption in warehouses. The logistic regression findings are useful for warehouse managers who are planning to adopt drones in a warehouse for efficient operations.

This study identifies the enablers of drone adoption in the smart and digital warehouse through the literature review and fuzzy Delphi. Therefore, some enablers may be overlooked during the identification process. In addition to this, the analysis is based on the opinion of the expert which might be influenced by their field of expertise.

By considering technology-organisation-environment (TOE) framework warehousing companies identify the opportunities and challenges associated with using drones in a smart warehouse and develop strategies to integrate drones into their operations effectively.

This study proposes a TOE-based framework for the adoption of drones in warehouse management to improve the three prominent warehouse functions inventory management, intra-logistics, inspections and surveillance using the mixed-method.

Saudi Arabia's 2030 vision targets an increase of 34% in non-oil revenue participation in the GDP, thus the need for automation and digital transformation. The Company ER is a market leader producing high-quality dairy products in the Kingdom and is a pioneer in the production industry. The company has recently increased the capacity of its milk factory to meet its vision. An investment was made to automate the pallet handling procedures at the milk factory to provide increased production for daily consumption. The new automation transition in Company ER's milk factory provides a unique opportunity to utilize lean management tools to improve the current automated processes before commercialization.

OEE (overall equipment effectiveness) will monitor losses for different operational losses in the new automated system and indicate system improvements, with 85% as the target. Based on DMADV (design, measure, analyze, design and validate) methodology, this study analyzes the entire automated pallet handling system. It uses lean tools to identify areas for improvement, identify waste elements and propose solutions to achieve Company ER's OEE targets.

In this paper, the outcomes will be presented as documented solutions that address the losses encountered in the production system, showing a 12.8% increase in the system's OEE.

Owing the time and resource constraint, this study only involved automated pallet handling procedures in a milk production facility. Hence, the generalization of the result is slightly limited. More studies in several different processes and sectors are required.

This study provided a valuable tool for researchers for gaining deeper understanding regarding the lean manufacturing and its implementation. For practitioners, it is useful to evaluate the degree of lean manufacturing tools in their material handling systems.

This study is the first attempt to develop lean manufacturing constructs for evaluating the automated pallet handling procedures in a milk production facility.

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the satisfaction level of customers using third party logistics (3PL) services in the Indian capital region and its surrounding areas. The American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) model is used as a framework to identify the major drivers of satisfaction and areas requiring immediate attention for provision of better services.

Present study includes an exhaustive review of literature for the identification of enablers for this model. Through iterative and structured discussions, variables related to process, service information and user’s expectations are identified, which are subsequently grouped into four dimensions. A survey method is used to get the primary data for this research from 3PL service users’ organizations in the Delhi and adjoining capital region. ACSI is used to prioritize the most preferred driver of satisfaction.

Enablers related to process involving order processing, order picking, order fulfillment and final decision making stand out as the winners and also other critical areas have been identified.

There is a gap between the services obtained and services expected and information-related complications which lead to unsatisfied customers. The 3PL service providers need to focus on these areas for better business performance and healthy and long-lasting business relationships.

The paper is an attempt to implement a satisfaction model for the 3PL sector from user’s perspective.

The purpose of this paper is to understand and compare the level of patient’s expectations of healthcare services and their perceived performance. The paper also provides insights into the specific service factors and quality of hospital services which are required to meet the needs of Indian patients.

A total of 210 exit interviews were conducted using a structured questionnaire addressing the probable factors of quality related to healthcare services in a five-point Likert scale. The survey was conducted among the patients recently discharged and about to be discharged from private hospitals of Delhi and NC. A set of questionnaires is administered to collect responses on expected and perceived service qualities.

The paper reviews and discusses the importance of service quality for Indian patients using the SERVQUAL gap model as the measure of service quality. The results gave an overview of the perspectives of Indian patients on the quality of service in private hospitals. Patients indicated best satisfaction in some dimensions of services, namely, the tangible dimension of “hospitals provide ample parking spaces,” empathy dimension of “Doctors are never too busy to respond to my request”, assurance dimension of “I can depend on Doctor/Nurse,” and in the responsiveness dimension of “employees always communicate truly” on hospital matters.

The first limitation is in the scope of sample, that is research findings are limited to Delhi. The second limitation is that the research should have been done in two parts, that is by contacting the patient before they take the services and after the service encounter. Third limitation – for a better understanding, the analysis should have been performed on the gap between the patient’s perception and the perception of the medical service provider about the customer’s perception.

This research would be beneficial to healthcare organizations to do their best to achieve greater patient satisfaction. The findings of the paper that, for all dimensions, the patient’s perception is always higher than the expectation suggests that in the Indian healthcare segment, there is a need of dissemination of information regarding the most modern medical facilities.

This current research is concluded with the suitability of a model that can be used to find the levels of patient satisfaction for healthcare services. The present study is based on primary data and offers a systematic procedure that could form the cornerstone for providing further insights into the conceptual and empirical comprehension of patients perceived service quality and its constituents. The current emergency medicine patient’s service dilemmas are a complex interaction of patients and physician factors specifically targeting efficiency and patient satisfaction. The awareness of these issues particular to the emergency patient can help to maximize efficiency, minimize subsequent medico-legal risk and improve patient care if a tailored management plan is formulated.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the dimensions of Indian manufacturing firms’ competencies and to study the impact of these competencies on firm performance.

The authors have adopted a literature survey to identify variables and gaps in the research. Based on the construct and its item identified through the literature review the authors have developed a structured questionnaire which was pre-tested before being used for the final survey. The authors have collected data from 100 firms out of 275 targeted firms in two phases which represents a 36.36 per cent response rate. The data have been subjected to exploratory factor analysis (EFA) using varimax rotation, which reduced the data into seven parsimonious and orthogonal factors. The authors then carried out regression analysis using EFA output to test the relationship between six independent variables, representing competencies of the firm and performance.

Findings show that EFA has reduced the data into seven factors, out of which six represent firm competencies and one represents firm performance. The competencies which have been identified are supply-demand coordination and product pricing, logistics, marketing, procurement, manufacturing simplicity and product quality and preventive maintenance. The EFA output was further tested using multiple linear regression analysis which shows that out of six competencies, four are positively supporting, except procurement which is negatively supporting and logistics which is found to be statistically insignificant.

The conclusive model suggests that there is considerable impact from other deterministic variables which are not assumed in the present study, and some of the variance has been accounted for by stochastic variables and response error. However, utmost care has been taken to minimise response error by personal follow-up with each of these firms. The outcome of the quantitative analysis provides an insight into firm competencies and their impact on firm performance. It is very important for the managers who are interested in deriving superior performance from their firm and focusing on supply-demand coordination and product pricing, manufacturing simplicity, marketing and product quality and preventive maintenance practices.

This original study has been carried out by researchers in India on Indian manufacturing firms and adopted an EFA technique to identify dimensions which are unique in their contribution.

The purpose of this paper is to study the mediating effect of human resource (HR) between independent variables (i.e. leadership and quality culture (QC)) and successful total quality management (TQM) implementation for firm performance as dependent variable.

In this paper, the authors have used exploratory factor analysis output as input for mediation statistics. The mediating regression analysis has been performed using exploratory factor analysis based on four steps technique proposed by Baron and Keene in the year 1986 to test the theoretical model.

The mediation statistics output suggests that HR is a complete mediation between independent variables (i.e. leadership) and successful TQM implementation for firm performance and QC is having direct impact on firm performance without any mediation effect of HR.

Mediation regression has its own limitations. Satisfying four steps does not, however, conclusively establish that mediation has occurred and also there persists a measurement problem. The cross-ectional data is one of the present limitation of our present study. While this study was able to provide additional insight into leadership and QC of TQM and its relationship with firm performance, it also revealed areas that would benefit from further research.

This study provides an insight into leadership together with right QC mediates with HR practices to help successful TQM implementation for firm performance on the basis of survey conducted among Indian manufacturing sector is unique contribution.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the antecedents of Indian firms practicing green manufacturing practices and their impact on extended supply chain performance.

In this paper the authors have adopted systematic literature review (SLR) to derive research objectives and questions. In order to answer research questions the authors have proposed a theoretical framework and derived research hypotheses. The authors identified constructs and items through extant literatures and developed a structured questionnaire which was pretested before using for final survey. The data were collected in two phases and also performed wave analysis to check non-response bias to avoid any significant impact of non-response bias on statistical analysis. The data has been used to conduct exploratory factor analysis using varimax rotation which reduces variables into five parsimonious and orthogonal factors. The factor analysis output was further used as an input of regression analysis.

The factor analysis output has further validated the findings from literature review. The factor analysis output suggests that total quality management (TQM), supplier relationship management (SRM), R & D and technology and lean manufacturing practices are important determinants of Indian firms practicing green manufacturing practices which impact extended supply chain performance. The regression analysis output has further established that TQM and R & D and technology are strong determinants of extended supply chain performance. However, present study does not support SRM and lean manufacturing practices from respondent’s perspective. However, it further needs to be explored.

The present study is limited to medium-sized manufacturing firms. Second, the conclusive model explains only 31.9 percent of the total extended supply chain performance. The study provides an insight to managers that those companies which have implemented TQM and green technology have realized superior performance in comparison to those which have not successfully implemented.

The present study is toward understanding Indian green manufacturing practices.