Purpose -The paper seeks to test the relationships among product design and supply chain design, with specific reference to the product-supply chain model by Fisher. Design/methodology/approach -An extensive empirical survey with data from 128 companies; the approach is basically theory testing, in that it investigates an existing framework, and discusses extensions. Findings -Significant relationships are found between product types and supply chain types, as well as concerning the impact of alignment on performance.Research limitations/implications -Instead of treating the supply chain characteristics associated with different supply chain types as either/or choices, some companies select properties from both supply chain types in order to gain additional benefits. This creates a supply chain frontier of physical efficiency and market responsiveness; a concept that deserves further attention by researchers. A limitation is that it would be interesting to perform a longitudinal study. Practical implications -Different product types call for different types of supply chains. Alignment between the type of product and the type of supply chain is important, and significant for delivery speed, delivery dependability, and cost performance. Originality/value -This research empirically tests a model that has received considerable attention in the research literature as well as acting as guidelines in practice, but that has not been tested explicitly before.

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The design of manufacturing planning and control (MPC) systems is a strategic decision for manufacturing operations. In this paper we analyze the interrelationships between the choice of MPC approaches at different hierarchical levels with market requirements and operational performance. These relationships are explored through an extensive survey comprising responses from 128 manufacturing firms. The results show that the choice of MPC approaches, primarily at the sales and operations planning and master scheduling levels, has a significant mediating role in improving performance. The alignment between market requirements and the choice of MPC approaches is significant and has a significant impact on performance. In a dynamic environment, the choice of MPC approaches is shown to have a positive mediating effect on operational performance.

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The design of manufacturing planning and control systems is a strategic decision for manufacturing fmns. In this paper we analyze the interrelationships among the choices of planning and control approaches at different hierarchical levels, including sales and operations planning (chase; level), master scheduling (make-to-order; assemble-to-order; make-to-stock), material planning (time-phased; rate-based), and production activity control (MRP-type; JIT-type). We test the relationships with product characteristics and perfonnance. These relationships are explored through a survey of 128 manufacturing plants.The results show that choice of approaches at the two higher planning and control levels, i.e. sales and operations planning and master scheduling, are strongly interrelated. The choices at the two lower hierarchical levels, i.e. material planning and production activity control, are also strongly interrelated. However, the link between any of the two upper and any of the two lower levels is much weaker. The most significant drivers of the choice of planning and control approach are: (i) product volume and delivery lead time for sales and operations planning, (ii) product variants and delivery lead time for master scheduling, and (iii) production lead time for production activity control, while material planning is not significantly related with any product characteristic. Significant effects on performance are found for sales and operations planning on volume flexibility, master scheduling on product mix flexibility, and material planning and production activity control approaches on delivery speed. This research supports the notion that sales and operations planning is concerned with volume planning and that master scheduling is concerned with mix planning.

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