The Effects of R&D and Innovation Capabilities on the Thai Automotive Industry Part’s Competitive Advantage: A SEM Approach

Abstract

A structural equation model was used to verify both the direct and indirect influences on research and development and innovation capabilities that affect Thai automotive parts enterprises competitive advantage. Thailand’s automotive sector is a major driver of the economy with a multi-thousand network of both domestic and international companies contributing a significant amount to both domestic and Asian economic growth. After peaking in 2013 and reaching the Top 10 automotive nations, there has been a slide backwards. Competition is fierce and the pace of change ever quickening. Therefore, the researchers sought to determine how the automotive parts sector needed to improve in capability, skills and infrastructure to maintain a sustainable competitive advantage. From the structural equation model analysis of 220 regional automotive parts sector managers and use of AMOS software, it was determined that research and development combined with innovation plays key roles in the industry’s profitability and survivability. Additionally, there must be support across a wide sector of the economy, including universities, government agencies and institutions. Once championed as the ‘Detroit of Asia’, Thailand’s recognized success as a global automotive hub is a classic case of a well-executed industrial plan but that lead can potentially slip away without embracing new technologies and innovative thinking.

Analyzing the drivers of sustainable value creation, partnership strategies, and their impact on business competitive advantages of small & medium enterprises: a PLS-model

“…SVC is proven to be the most crucial variable, with β=0.522. These findings support previous research by [47], which stated that industrial competitiveness requires a company to create manufacturing value. In addition, the PS also provides a significant effect on competitive advantages, with β=0.313.…”

R&D investment and the arrangement of innovation capabilities in Brazilian manufacturing firms

“…Traditionally, innovation studies at the firm level follow two perspectives: innovation as the result of R&D investments and as the consequence of different innovation capabilities. However, although there is important research in each of these perspectives, studies that explicitly link them are scarce (see for example, Reichert et al, 2016;Rasiah et al, 2016;Chamsuk et al, 2017). The present paper goes exactly in the direction of better understanding the relation between R&D investment and innovation capabilities.…”

Innovative development in business operation of the Thai auto parts industry

“…However, the collaboration of the automotive industry depends on cooperation to develop towards innovation and win mutual benefits, which stimulates the development of parts manufacturers throughout the supply chain [2]. In line with a study by [3,4] found that the ability of organizations to research and develop the capabilities of technology to create innovation has influenced the competitive advantage of Auto parts industry.…”