Content area
Full Text
INTRODUCTION
The future for the UK manufacturing industry is the prospect of another step change to the intensity of international competition in its domestic market. This is a consequence of the creation of the single European market. If UK manufacturing firms are to survive, they must be both quick and flexible in their response to the changing needs of their customers and the actions taken by their competitors(1). The removal of any protection afforded to UK manufacturing businesses, by the imposition of import tariffs and controls, has Further complicated their problem of creating or sustaining a competitive advantage. However, the elimination of one form of entry barrier to the UK market for manufactured products could be overcome by the creation of another, i.e. the competitive use of advanced technology. Innovation could be used to gain a competitive edge through either product design or manufacturing process design or through a combination of both these design activities.
An examination of manufacturing companies' use of innovation to gain competitive edge should provide a guide to its value as a competitive weapon. Recent studies of the strategic management of manufacturing, by Miller and Roth(2), De Meyer(3) and Sweeney(4) have shown that a large number of companies have adopted a competitive strategy which consists of innovating their products at a rate that is much quicker than the competition. Gomory and Schmitt(5) have observed that:
A firm able to quickly introduce new products will appear to have newer products with newer technologies. This gives the firm a reputiition for technic innovation and leadership, thus enhancing the company's image. It only takes a few new product introductions to build up a significant product lead, which of course enhances the firm's market share.
Is such a strategy appropriate only to a select group of firms within an industry? Riedel and Pawar(6) suggest that "if a firm needs to maintain its competitive edge by being first to market then the implication is to value the time benefit over the cost risk and choose simultaneous engineering". This recommendation correctly links simultaneous engineering as the means of reducing the design-to-manufacture lead time, which is ideal for a first to market competitive strategy. However, it is just as appropriate to a company adopting the fast follower product...