Indian Auto-Component Supply Chain at the Crossroads

We trace the evolution of the auto component supply chain in India (following the opening of the Indian economy in 1990) using a combination of data on firm and sectoral performance, customer satisfaction surveys and interviews with experts. During the last decade, the industry has made remarkable progress on multiple fronts. This is particularly true with regard to quality - ten firms in this industry have won the coveted Deming award during the last six years. We first observe that, surprisingly, the financial performance of the Deming firms show no clear-cut differences from the rest of the industry. We then analyze the productivity growth at the firm level across two five-year intervals using a total factor productivity model. Our results suggest that productivity has improved much more in the second period, which is the interval in which most of the firms won the Deming award. We then analyze the impact on profitability and suggest that new firms were able to grow faster in the g...

• Type: Journal
• Year: 2007
• Where: INTERFACES
• Authors: Karthik Balakrishnan, Sridhar Seshadri, Anshul Sheopuri, Ananth Iyer
• Keywords: Auto Component Supply, Customer Satisfaction Surveys, INTERFACES 2007, Supply Chain