Supply chain efficiency framework of manufacturer’s Malaysia towards trade competitiveness based on PLS model / Siti Norhadibah Azman

The aim of this study is to assessed factors that influence supply chain efficiency as one of SCM strategy in Malaysia manufacturing industries towards trade competitiveness due to ASEAN liberalization. Lack of study relation towards supply chain efficiency practices as solid competitive advantages development in manufacturing has been a shortcoming of this thesis addresses. As a result, a model of supply chain efficiency was proposed and established using the existing theory on Resources-Advantage Theory (R-A Theory). Furthermore, the mediating effects of this supply chain efficiency investigated competitiveness in the ASEAN liberalization perspective. Constructs models were developed from the professional view of manufacturers to understand deeper on how the factors of supply chain efficiency can determine the trade competitiveness. This study found four factors that influence the supply chain efficiency which consist of cost performance, collaboration in network, quality infrastructure, and logistics performance. Using quantitative method, only cost performance, logistics performance, and collaboration in the network showed evidence at a significant level and mediation of supply chain efficiency towards competitiveness in the trade liberalization was justified. Those factors were the main elements that can influence competitive advantage as the effort of strategizing the supply chain efficiency development in trade competitiveness. From the sample, it showed that factors like infrastructure and logistics performance were not significant enough to support the SCE relation to trade competitiveness. The significance of this study is that it may help the manufacturer to identify factors that support the strategy for competitiveness in trade, including how to upsurge the infrastructure and become an efficient supply chain integration network.