Strategic Manufacturing Network Performance Assessment Tool

The long-term configuration of the production network includes the allocation of products and processes. Numerous, sometimes conflicting objectives are pursued, such as market access, economies of scale and risk mitigation. However, in order to systematically configure the network, it is necessary to strategically analyse the strengths and weaknesses of the sites. This article presents a fuzzy inference-based approach for the holistic evaluation of the production networks. The tool was applied in two practical case studies. The results and implications are also presented.