The impact of lean approaches to support quality developments in Thailand: an investigation of a claim of universality of lean thinking

Abstract

Lean Thinking has been highlighted as one of the significant quality improvement approaches that focuses on the fulfilment of customer value and the elimination of waste. It has also been suggested as the major concept that can help an organisation to achieve the implementation of Total Quality Management (TQM) and receive the National Quality Awards (NQAs). Thus, Lean Thinking and TQM could be combined in order to solve problems continually and improve the whole of an organisation. This thesis, therefore, investigates how Lean Thinking was implemented alongside TQM in award winning organisations in Thailand.

The ultimate outcome of this study provides a conceptual academic model of Lean Thinking implementation, which demonstrates a high comprehensiveness of significant Lean elements prioritising of Lean tools, decision criteria and supporting factors. Construction of the model was preceded by a systematic literature review and a field study, where both online questionnaires and interviews were applied to gather relevant data from 22 award winning organisations in Thailand. The developed model was tested by academics and practitioners who are professionals in Lean Thinking and quality management and subsequently refined.

The key contributions of this research are to the theory of Lean Thinking and its applicability to various industrial settings as well as providing a model of Lean Thinking which has been developed and refined. The model was also validated for its theoretical soundness and potential for practical application from both the comparative analysis and the review by experts. Finally, a model for Lean Thinking implementation as a new theoretical construct is suggested for each industrial sector and incorporates a comparative view between the implementation in manufacturing and service sectors.

More information

Identifiers

Catalogue record

Export record