EMERGING TRENDS( Only for hifsa shaukat , do not send any chat messages for this homework).

Case study

Development of lean supply chains: a case study of the Catalan pork sector

Catalina Perez and Rodolfo de Castro

University of Girona, Girona, Spain

David Simons Cardiff Business School, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK, and

Gerusa Gimenez University of Girona, Girona, Spain

Abstract Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyse the characteristics and the performance of the Catalan pork supply chain, with the objective to assess whether this operates according to the parameters of a lean chain. Moreover there is a tentative lean supply chain model contribution. Design/methodology/approach – To test lean approaches in the Catalan pork supply chain we have used case research methodology. The research strategy started with a conceptual model proposal as a tool to carry out the assessment. The research went on a multiple case studies in a large-scale sample of the population and developed a semi-structured interview as a basic instrument to apply it. Findings – The article shows the pork sector has actively adopted the productive techniques associated with lean management. The structure of the specific chain in the Catalan pork sector is suitable to implement lean supply chain strategies according to the presented model. Research limitations/implications – This paper should be of value to researchers in this area as it contributes in a tentative generic lean model for the pork sector. Further research to affirm the cultural support for lean collaboration is recommended as a precursor to the application of the five lean principles. Practical implications – It provides empirical evidence from a significant pork producing region indicating that the model proposed has applicability. These findings support industry wide business associations’ efforts to initiate actions which will reinforce these techniques and improve the competitiveness of the sector. Originality/value – A review of this literature ascertained that there were no existing published works centred on the study of the pork supply chain development in Spain and particularly nothing focussed on the applicability of the “lean” discipline in this area. This gap in research along with the importance of the pork sector at national and regional levels demonstrates the necessity and importance of the study.

Keywords Lean production, Food industry, Case studies

Paper type Research paper

Introduction

The pig sector is a 4.7 billion euro industry in Spain

accounting for 11.7 per cent of total agricultural and 33 per

cent of livestock revenue (MARM, 2008)). After Germany,

Spain is the second largest producer of pigs in the 25

European Union countries with an annual slaughter volume

of 40 million pigs. The domestic consumer is highly relevant

due to a cultural tradition of fresh meat consumption which is

reflected in the gastronomy of all the regions of Spain. None

more so than in Catalonia which is one of the six main

European production regions accounting for approximately

one third of Spanish production.

To retain and develop Catalonia’s pig production sector in

the context of future challenges and globalization, the

Association of Innovative Companies of the Catalan Pork

Sector has been created under the acronym INNOVACC

(Innovate Catalan Pork Meat). As with other livestock sectors,

the disassembly nature of pork leads to a complex set of

processes and products in the supply chain to the end

consumer (Simons and Zokaei, 2005). To respond correctly

to these market demands, many studies (Pérez et al., 2008)

advocate the supply chain as a more appropriate unit of

analysis than ad hoc optimisation of independent stages.

INNOVACC according to Vonderembse et al. (2006)

considers the key factors of successful holistic pork supply

chains to be the development of supporting innovative

technologies and production systems. In 2006, the FECIC

(Catalan Federation of Meat Industries) commissioned

researchers of GREPP (Product, Process and Production

Engineering Research Group) of the University of Girona

The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at

www.emeraldinsight.com/1359-8546.htm

Supply Chain Management: An International Journal

15/1 (2010) 55–68

q Emerald Group Publishing Limited [ISSN 1359-8546]

[DOI 10.1108/13598541011018120]

55

(UdG) to do an in-depth study of the characteristics and

dynamics of the supply chain of the Catalan pork sector.

Pork industry supply chain studies have been conducted in

several countries including the United Kingdom (Simons

et al., 2003), Canada (Klein et al., 1996) and Denmark

(Hobbs et al., 1998). One operations management discipline

“lean” has been extensively tested and implemented in the

pork sector (Taylor, 2006), but “lean” has been questioned as

contingent on supply circumstances (Cox et al. 2007a) with

the agile discipline proposed as more appropriate in certain

situations (Naylor et al., 1999). A review of this literature

ascertained that there were no existing published works

centred on the study of the pork supply chain development in

Spain and particularly nothing focussed on the applicability of

the “lean” discipline in this area. This gap in research along

with the importance of the pork sector at national and

regional levels demonstrates the necessity and relevance of the

study.

Consequently, this research analyses the characteristics and

the performance of the various supply chain agents which

make up the Catalan pork supply chain, with the objective

being to assess whether these operate according to the

parameters of a lean supply chain. First a lean supply chain

model is proposed as a tool to carry out this assessment.

Then, the performance of the Catalan pork supply chain is

assessed to ascertain whether it resembles that of a lean

supply chain. Comparison of this performance with the lean

model is used as a basis to develop a set of guidelines for

business units along the chain and indirectly involved

legislators. These guidelines are proposed as a strategy to

assure efficient management of the Catalan pork supply chain,

and consequently to increase its competency to meet future

challenges and global competition.

This paper is structured as follows: in the next section, a

review is made of general supply chain literature including the

context of the “lean” discipline and supply chain studies

which have a particular focus on the pork industry. The

following section reflects the importance of the Catalan pork

supply chain in Spanish livestock sectors. In the subsequent

sections the proposed lean supply chain model in the study

and the methodology followed in the research is presented.

Finally, the article presents the results and conclusions.

2. Literature review

2.1 Designing supply chains

Current thinking advocates that for companies to be

successful, they must build and be involved in highly

integrated supply chains that can quickly support new

market opportunities and be synchronized and streamlined

to maximize efficiency and effectiveness (Supply Chain

Council, 2008). In recent years the concept of supply chain

management (Lummus and Vokurka, 1999; Croom et al.,

2000; Tan, 2001) has continued to develop in the direction of

value chain management (Hines et al., 2004; Al-Mudimigh

et al., 2004; Womack and Jones, 2005), which recognizes the

importance of not only supplying or producing efficiently but

ensuring that it is done in the context of a true understanding

of demand. This requires that the entire chain, made up of all

its processes and activities from the raw material stage up to

final consumer use, must be properly understood and

administrated, with the objective of delivering a product of

value to the end user (Christopher and Gattorna, 2005).

Within the contingent disciplines, namely lean and agile

(Naylor et al., 1999), various strategies and methodologies for

designing effective supply chains have been reported

(Childerhouse et al., 2002; Vonderembse et al., 2006;

Mason-Jones et al., 2000; Goldsby et al., 2006; Wiskerke

and Roep, 2007).

The “Lean” discipline was codified by Womack et al.

(1990) based on the observation of a fundamentally different

supply and production system in the automobile sector which

had been the catalyst for Toyota achieving sectorial

competitive advantage. Initial transfer of this discipline

focussed on the production techniques identified but after

1990 there was a gradual extension to supply and distribution

processes; a trend often ignored by omission, error or design

by many detractors (Hines et al., 2004). This process of

“extension” was accelerated by the dissemination of

successful lean implementations in North America and

Europe by businesses in diverse sectors that had adapted

their production systems to include a new design based upon

“lean principles” (Womack and Jones, 1996). These

principles involved the identification of customer value, firm

organisation around customer value streams rather than

production functions, elimination of waste to allow

production to flow, synchronisation of production with the

pull of customer demand, and finally the philosophical culture

that there is always room for improvement in any process

through the pursuit of perfection (Womack and Jones, 1996).

Cox (2004) argues that in recent years this has led to a

tendency to think that a lean chain brings together the best

practices, but that in fact the wholesale extension of lean to

other sectors can be challenged as contingent. Cox et al.

(2007a) state that the lean approach can only succeed for

products which operate in chains characterized by regularity,

high volume and standardized demand (the automobile

industry, the chemical industry, the food retail industry, the

aerospace industry). In addition to this issue of how to

respond rapidly to changes in demand volume and variety

(Christopher and Towill, 2000; Cox, 2004), a further issue is

identified concerning high levels of buyer dominance over low

power suppliers (Cox, 2004). Other authors such as Fearne

and Fowler (2006) also point in this direction, stating that

companies require a supply chain model that deals with the

strategic and customer issues in addition to operating

constraints. To cater for these contingencies the “agile”

(Christopher, 2000; Van Hoek et al., 2001) and “hybrid”

(Vonderembse et al., 2006; Stratton and Warburton, 2003)

supply disciplines have been proposed as alternatives to

“lean”. Table I shows the main differences proposed between

lean, agile and hybrid supply chains.

This study hones in on the issue of longevity of relationships

to support the contention that lean could be applicable in the

Catalan pork sector. Cigolini et al. (2004) and Mason-Jones

et al. (2000) point out the need to link supply chain

management tools and techniques to types of supply chains

and product life cycles. Furthermore, a lean chain requires

long term collaborative relationships among the agents of the

chain for successful implementation (Lamming, 1996; Taylor,

2006). This requires that all the parties involved invest in the

relationship (time, personnel and financial resources) and

must accept all the potential opportunities, costs and risks

Development of lean supply chains

Catalina Perez, Rodolfo de Castro, David Simons and Gerusa Gimenez

Supply Chain Management: An International Journal

Volume 15 · Number 1 · 2010 · 55 – 68

56

arising from the bilateral dependence (Wiskerke and Roep,

2007).

2.2 Pork supply chains

There has been prominent research in three areas regarding

pork supply chains; one offering several different perspectives

on changing relationships between pork supply chain agents,

another more recently on how pork supply chains have been

subjected to extensive vertical integration initiatives, and the

third on how the power aspect of relationships interacts with

these vertical initiatives. In the first area; Klein et al. (1996)

examined the Canadian pig marketing system, Boger et al.

(2001) investigated Polish supply chain relationships, and

Hobbs et al. (1998) explored the reasons for the Danish pork

industry success through SWOT analysis. The common

message emanating from this work was the importance of a

whole chain vision of pig production to coordinate

productivity and quality improvement strategies. In the

second area steps to achieve this whole chain vision are

extensively reported in terms of collaborative benefits and

implementation challenges.

An international comparative study was carried out by the

Agri Chain Competence Foundation (1998) in Denmark,

Canada, the Netherlands and the United States, which

focused on vertical coordination in the pork industry. Also, in

recent years, a large amount of work has been done in the UK

by the Red Meat Industry Forum with varying levels of

success (Cox et al., 2007a; Taylor, 2005, 2006; Taylor and

Fearne, 2006; Simons and Taylor, 2007; Francis et al., 2008)

and by important retailers like Tesco or J. Sainsbury

(Lindgreen and Hingley, 2003; Hingley, 2005). Pérez et al.

(2008) presents the pork sector as a chain with nine stages,

from breeding to consumer use, in which several processes

and key factors need to be integrally managed as they have

direct or indirect effects on the quality of the final products

demanded by customers. In the third area, there have been a

number of food chain publications concerning the possession

and use of power in the chain (Hingley et al., 2008;

Hollingsworth, 2004; Cox et al., 2007b), which expresses the

view that buyer dominance prevails in the retail sector and is a

critical factor in food chain vertical integration (Cox, 2004).

The importance of vertical coordination initiatives within

the red meat supply chain has been highlighted in previous

research (Fearne, 1998; Katz and Boland, 2000; Palmer,

1996) as a condition to reduce risk and uncertainty and to

promote innovation and value creation. Sadler and Hines

(2002) examined strategic operations planning with a supply

chain focus. They presented a generic supply chain for meat

processing as well as several stages for supply chain planning.

Several studies in the UK red meat industry noted and

criticized the concentration of market power in the hands of

retailers (Simons and Zokaei, 2005; Taylor, 2006).

Lean thinking (Womack and Jones, 1996) has been applied

to agri-food supply chains and there are also research (Simons

and Zokaei, 2005; Zokaei and Simons, 2006) reports on the

introduction of lean concepts, tools and techniques mainly

into the UK red meat sector. Zokaei and Simons (2006)

applied the “food value chain analysis” (FVCA) methodology

to improve the supply chain based on the requirements of the

final consumer. Recently, empirical research done in different

red meat supply chains in the UK has led to the conclusion

that although there cannot be just one way of managing it –

the pork supply chain may be more conducive to a lean

approach than others (Cox et al., 2007a; Taylor, 2006). In the

pork industry, there has been parallel development with lean

connotations by Australian Pork Limited (APL). This

initiative has been working towards enhancing opportunities

for the sustainable growth of the national pork industry by

delivering integrated marketing, innovation and policy

services through the pork industry supply chain (Australian

Pork Limited, 2008). A strategic plan is being implemented

from 2005 to 2010.

Table I Main differences between lean, agile and hybrid supply chains

Lean supply chain Agile supply chain Hybrid supply chain

Purpose Focus on cost reduction and flexibility for

already available products. Employs a

continuous improvement process to focus on

the elimination of waste or non-value added

activities across the chain

Profit y responding to rapidly changing,

continually fragmenting global markets by

being dynamic and context-specific,

aggressively changing and growth oriented

The combination of the lean and agile

paradigms within a total supply chain strategy

by positioning the decoupling point so as to

best suit the need for responding to a volatile

demand downstream yet providing level

scheduling upstream from the marketplace

Typical

product

Commodities Fashion goods Mixed

Product

variety

Low High Use modular design in order to postpone

product differentiation for a long as possible

Product

life cycle

Long . 2 years Short (3 months-1 year) Assemble to order products, which stay in the

maturity phase of the life cycle for a long time

Demand

patterns

Demand accurately forecasted Demand unpredictable The average product demand can be forecasted.

Component level forecasting may involve larger

errors

Alliances Traditional Dynamic Strategic

Markets Stable. Serve only the current market segments Unstable. Acquire new competencies, develop

new product lines, and open up new markets

Respond to customer requirements with

innovative features in existing products

Source: Adapted from Vonderembse et al. (2006) and Mason-Jones et al. (2000)

Development of lean supply chains

Catalina Perez, Rodolfo de Castro, David Simons and Gerusa Gimenez

Supply Chain Management: An International Journal

Volume 15 · Number 1 · 2010 · 55 – 68

57

The present work focuses on lean supply chain

management, defined here as “the approach that focuses on

how companies can create sustainable competitive

advantages, both for themselves internally and for their

supply chain partners. The lean approach holds that

sustainable competitive advantage can be created for all

supply chain partners if supply chains are constructed to

focus, first, on what the customer values and, then, upon

creating lean (efficient and effective) manufacturing and

logistics processes that deliver what customers want just-in-

time through the supply chain” (Cox et al., 2007a p. 691).

3. Catalan pork supply chain

The Catalonia pork sector has a long history with a

production system that has been a point of reference within

the industry. At the end of the 19th century, with the

introduction of steam power, the production process started

to become industrialized. The pace of industrialisation and

rationalisation was limited until after the civil war due to a

protected market: a growing demand with little necessity for

investment. Post civil war industrialisation accelerated

reducing the number of small and medium sized companies.

The strong sociocultural roots of this sector in Catalonia has

involved the transmission of knowledge between companies,

the development of unique specialised provenance products

and the creation of a loyal customer base. As a result of this

accumulation of human and technological capital the Catalan

pork sector has enjoyed economic success through increased

Spanish domestic consumption and significant exports

volumes to that point that, at present, Catalonia accounts

for 38.41 per cent of the pork industry in Spain, with 41 per

cent of the Spanish total turnover (MARM, 2008). In

contrast to the rest of the Spanish pig sector which is quite

fragmented, Catalonia has the advantage of a relatively

concentrated cluster. Moreover the Catalan sector has

reputable branded meat processors, some vertical

integration with firms owning several process stages, and a

degree of inter-company collaboration instigated by meat

processors.

In relation to Table I there are several features of the

Catalan pork industry that lend support to lean being

appropriate. The sector is relatively concentrated with a small

number of producers, has dedicated firms controlling

different stages, and has quite stable demand. In the

Catalan pork supply chain, two basic frameworks exist.

Firstly, a farm owner driven system with independent

decisions on production. Secondly, a vertically integrated

system, where an “integrator” contracts with a number of

farmers. The integrator holistically schedules production,

retains ownership of the animals and provides services (e.g.

veterinary, hygiene), whilst the farmer provides the physical

structure (buildings) and labour. The second framework is

growing because the larger integrator enterprises have the

economic means to withstand medium term price fluctuations

in the sector (Generalitat de Catalunya, 2005). Vertical

integration has also spread among the feed companies based

on a raison d’etre of an assured market for their grain/feed

production capacity. Aldomà et al. (1983) reported that agri-

food sector integration in Catalonia was dominated by these

feed companies (90 per cent of animal production in the

second vertically integrated framework). In some of cases

ownership of livestock extends beyond the farm to their own

abattoirs allowing livestock to flow without delay to minimise

the expense of feeding stock that is ready for processing.

Integration extended to cutting rooms, processing rooms and

distribution networks for 70 per cent of these companies

(Aldomà et al. 1983).

In Spain the most common relationships are found between

adjacent agents in the supply chain (producers and abattoirs

or abattoirs and cutting lines). Nonetheless, there are

important firms which have integrated all (or almost all) the

different stages. In 2003 retail concentration in Spain was 41

per cent for the four major retailers compared with in excess

of 80 per cent in Holland, Finland and Norway. By 2007 this

had grown to 59.5 per cent in Spain according to a study

conducted by the TNS World Panel in 2008 of the four

leading distributors/retailers (Carrefour, Mercadona, Eroski

and Auchan). This supports the assertion that there is a clear

tendency in Spain towards greater levels of retail sector

concentration and power in exchange relationships with

manufacturers, and in some cases buyer dominance

(Fernandez Nogales and Gomez Suarez, 2005). For the

overall fresh meat category in Spain, the traditional retailer

(butchers or similar) has a share of 40 per cent and

supermarkets and hypermarkets have nearly 50 per cent.

However, for the processed meat category, traditional retailers

have just 28 per cent with supermarket self-service

dominating with a share of 63 per cent (Martı́n Cerdeño,

2007).

4. Conceptual framework

4.1 Potential barriers

Before discussing the proposed in-depth study of the lean

supply chain model, it is important to point out that some

authors warn of possible obstacles to the adoption of

strategies related to improving holistic chain efficiency

(Taylor, 2006; Cox et al., 2007a; Chandra and Kumar,

2000; Vitasek et al., 2005). However, given the characteristics

of the Catalan pork chain, it can be claimed that the marked

vertical integration of this sector in this region provides a

configuration that facilitates the implementation of a lean

supply chain model.

This paper identifies four barriers that need to be addressed

by the Catalan pork chain to achieve successful

implementation of lean supply chain policies:

The need to move away from the current “trading”

strategies based on fluctuating auction prices published by the

Lleida Guild as the reference for the Spanish market. It is a

traditional type of transaction and change is not foreseen in

the near future. However, according to Cox et al. (2007a), the

pig industry in particular has many of the demand and supply

characteristics that may be more conducive to a lean approach

than the other meat chains. The cyclical nature of market

prices is very pronounced and highly seasonal, and regulates

the supply and demand. Moreover, the pig production has the

following supply and demand characteristics: the frequency

and volume of the demand for pig meat at an individual

company level is generally regular and certain, based primarily

on intensive farming practices and continuous production

techniques; and contracts with weekly published figures

(Lleida Guild) used as a reference to set producer/processor

price for carcase weight and quality.

Development of lean supply chains

Catalina Perez, Rodolfo de Castro, David Simons and Gerusa Gimenez

Supply Chain Management: An International Journal

Volume 15 · Number 1 · 2010 · 55 – 68

58

The need to establish a value stream management team for

the Catalan pork supply system could be built around existing

associations that foster collaboration in certain aspects such as

public policymaker liaison and contribution to research into

the health benefits of pork. These associations include FECIC

and the one created by the AEI (Association of Innovative

Businesses). The results of this study were presented at a

conference, supported by FECIC, which concluded that there

were firm intentions and benefits to collaboration of the entire

chain (De Castro and Pérez, 2008). As a result, these

associations are currently working to assemble work teams to

analyse specific projects for the benefit of the entire chain.

Another difficulty to be overcome in the pork chain is the

need for senior management commitment and support. In the

sector’s larger companies there is a population of executives

with advanced business school qualifications with expertise

and understanding of supply chain management and

collaboration. By contrast, the stages in the chain operated

by SMEs (small and medium size enterprises) rarely have this

knowledge. However, communication and networking

between principals of large and small organisations is

supported by the historical context of many large companies

originating as family businesses.

Finally, the need to confront the existing adversarial,

power-based relationships and establish clear commercial

agreements and commitments at the outset of a value chain

development project are two other important barriers to cross.

These hurdles have brought into question the suitability of the

UK food sector to adopt these strategies (Cox, 2004). In

Catalonia, this paper asserts that the last agents of the chain,

supermarkets and distributors, have in fact established stable

supply policies with their suppliers through long term

contractual relationships that are not solely based on

commercial power. For example in one case, the Mercadona

supermarket chain has contracted with the Incarlopsa meat

processor a long term relationship (Langreo, 2008).

Having examined the potential barriers and their possible

solutions to introduction of lean to the Catalan pork sector,

there appears to be evidence supporting it as being potentially

viable. With these potentially fundamental barriers in place

and given the situation in Catalonia, the objective of this study

is to see how lean approaches need to be adapted to obtain

maximum benefit for the Catalan pork industry with an

emphasis on pro-active supplier development in a buyer

dominant chain.

4.2 Seven dimension model

Therefore, this paper now proposes a seven dimension model

based on literature from lean supply chain management and

the pork sector. The objective of this contribution is to test it

for the Catalan pork industry and to make tentative

conclusions on how it could be more widely applicable. The

model has been structured in seven dimensions, as indicated

in Table II. Each dimension has been categorised in terms of

the five lean principles; value, value stream, flow, pull and

perfection.

In another major pork producing region, there is evidence

of synergies in parallel research in a strategic plan built by

APL (Australian Pork Limited, 2008). This plan was

formulated in alliance with other institutions from the sector

and has four core principles. The first principle is relevant to

this paper namely that “the pork industry as a whole can be

significantly more profitable, but only if all parts of the supply

chain share in the rewards”. The APL 2005-2010 strategic

plan has six key strategic objectives: increasing fresh pork

demand, increasing carcass value, reducing supply chain

costs, introducing contracts and measurement systems,

ensuring industry capability and managing risks for

sustainability. For each strategy, APL’s operational

framework defines desired industry outcomes and monitors

these objectives via key performance indicators.

The following sections describe in more detail the seven

dimensions proposed in this paper, and reference is made to

the different attributes which characterise each dimension.

4.2.1 Demand management

One of the requirements for a supply chain to operate under a

lean approach is a tendency established between the different

agents of the chain towards a system which pulls rather than

pushes the products and services to where they are required

by the end user. This requirement is included in other lean

supply chain models such as those of Taylor (2006), Chandra

and Kumar (2000) or Vitasek et al. (2005). Thus, a lean

supply chain depends on the information obtained from

points of sale, and makes the information flow upwards in the

chain so that each agent converts this data into valuable

information to programme production (Vitasek et al., 2005).

In this way, the need for demand forecasts, which can amplify

order signals along the chain and bring about overproduction

is minimised. Linked to this would be the simplification of

information systems to make consumer demand visible

throughout the chain and to transmit pure demand signals

with no noise or amplification effects (Lee et al., 1997).

In order to assess the nature of the demand and the

situation of the different agents which make up the pork

chain, various aspects were analysed. The first of these was

the different methods which the companies of the chain use to

carry out the demand forecast. Likewise, with regard to the

transfer and reliability of the information, the opinion of the

different agents of their level of collaboration in terms of

forecasts and market analysis was studied.

4.2.2 Specification of value

The first lean principle is “specify value from the point of view

of the consumer” (Womack and Jones, 1996). An early step in

developing a lean value chain is the requirement to undertake

open-minded and in-depth market research conducted jointly

by supermarkets, processors and farmers. This would

consider all aspects of pork including the range of products,

both existing and new, product characteristics and demand

patterns. There is a need to develop a joint understanding of

the end-user requirements so that all players in the chain can

work towards providing customer value (Taylor, 2006).

Within this dimension, different aspects were analysed in

the companies which were visited. One of these aspects was

whether all of them had the same opinion with regard to the

most important value characteristic of the final product of the

chain, and if they established, alongside the other companies

of the chain, the characteristics of the product in accordance

with the expectations of the end user. Furthermore, analysis

was made to see whether companies worked together with

other companies of the chain on programmes of improvement

in areas of traceability, animal welfare and protection of the

environment.

Development of lean supply chains

Catalina Perez, Rodolfo de Castro, David Simons and Gerusa Gimenez

Supply Chain Management: An International Journal

Volume 15 · Number 1 · 2010 · 55 – 68

59

4.2.3 Process and product standardization

Process and product standardization help companies to

understand the whole chain and remove any obstacles that do

not add value. This standardization allows continuous flow in

a lean supply chain, reducing complexity and shifting work to

the most efficient point in the chain (Vitasek et al., 2005).

Standard products tend to have long life cycles. This ensures

well-defined processes, and consistent processes means cost

minimization can be pursued very effectively. This aspect is

also included in models such as that of Chandra and Kumar

(2000).

Several aspects were analysed to assess this dimension in the

group of companies on which the case studies are focused.

First, the companies were questioned with regard to the

variability of the end product. Moreover, the processes of the

companies and their level of standardization were analysed.

4.2.4 Value chain efficiency

The concept of value in a chain is closely linked to the

elimination of waste, which is one of the key policies of lean

supply chain management, just as it is with lean

manufacturing. A lean supply chain makes continuous

improvement efforts that focus on eliminating waste or non-

value steps along the chain (Vonderembse et al., 2006). Waste

is understood as any action which does not contribute value to

the product being elaborated. In the chain it refers to

redundant or unnecessary data that is collected, managed,

and stored for no tactical or strategic reason.

In the supply chain context, the elimination of waste yields

a significant by-product: a reduction in costs for all members

of the supply chain (Vitasek et al., 2005). It is important to

emphasize the difference between focusing on the elimination

of waste and reducing the cost, although they are often

related. A focus on waste, and not cost, also makes

conversations with suppliers and customers less threatening.

If the goal is to reduce waste, most parties are more willing to

discuss their processes with one another. A lean supply

arrangement should provide a flow of goods, services and

technology from supplier to customer (with associated flows

of information and other communications in both directions)

without waste (Lamming, 1996). This slogan will define the

relationship between a manufacturer and its suppliers. With

the joint goal of reducing waste, supply chain partners can

work together to modify those policies, procedures and data-

collection practices that produce or encourage waste (Vitasek

et al., 2005). As considered by Taylor (2006), a lean approach

would be characterized by a dedicated value chain. However,

current pork chains tend to be fragmented at various levels,

although the degree of fragmentation varies from chain to

chain.

In order to assess this dimension, the concept of waste in

operations was questioned, and the different types and the

control of variability existing over them, as well as the concept

of waste in relation to the manipulation of information, were

evaluated.

4.2.5 Key process indicators

Another point which must be considered is the establishment

and use of the same performance criteria among agents of the

chain. The, underlying idea in this dimension is to

corroborate whether the indicators used by the companies

of the Catalan pork chain can be considered as indicators of

the whole chain.

An important driver for improvement would be the

establishment of “whole chain” key performance indicators

(Taylor, 2006). In attempting to control the supply chain

from their vantage points, customers have developed

techniques which are known collectively as “open-book

negotiation” (Lamming, 1996). The reasoning goes

something like this: the customer would like to help the

supplier to improve (supplier development), to become more

competitive. If the supplier is competitive, then both the

customer and supplier should benefit. The customer has

expertise and thus, if the supplier reveals all the cost data

related to the process that results in the product or service

that is being provided to the customer, it should be possible to

generate improvements, solve problems, etc. Best practice in

supply chain management might therefore be expected to

include a process of formalized open-book negotiation

(Lamming, 1996). Therefore, an early objective of any lean

improvement project is to establish a clear and limited set of

KPIs that provide a focus for performance improvement along

the chain (Taylor, 2006).

Table II Lean supply chain model dimensions

Lean principle Dimension Definition

Pull Demand management A supply chain operates under the lean approach when a tendency is established among the different agents

of the chain towards a system which pulls rather than pushes the products and services where they are

required by the end user

Value Specification of value There is a need to develop a joint understanding of the end-user requirements so that all players in the chain

can work towards providing customer value

Flow Process and product

standardization

Process and product standardization help companies to understand the whole chain and remove any

obstacles that do not add value. This enables continuous flow to occur in a lean supply chain

Flow Value chain efficiency Improvement of value chain efficiency through waste removal as a basic principle in lean management

Pull Key process indicators Development of supply chain KPIs based on the indicators of each chain agent. Maintaining the transparency

along the chain improves the chain performance

Value streams Alliances Establishment of closer suppliers, restructuring the chain and collaboration between chain members, formally

as alliances or informally as long term relationships

Perfection Cultural change Human capital is the most important asset in an enterprise that is starting the lean journey. It has to support

the cultural change from confrontation to collaboration, from individual performance to chain improvements

Development of lean supply chains

Catalina Perez, Rodolfo de Castro, David Simons and Gerusa Gimenez

Supply Chain Management: An International Journal

Volume 15 · Number 1 · 2010 · 55 – 68

60

The points to be analysed included questions about the

indicators implemented in the companies. On the basis of the

answers given by those interviewed, and taking into account

the position in the chain which they occupied, it is possible to

assess up to what point these indicators are considered

throughout the chain.

4.2.6 Alliances

According to Vonderembse et al. (2006), alliances are one of

the main characteristics of the lean supply chain. In other

research carried out in various countries and prominent in the

literature review, it is possible to speak of vertical integration,

although they are relationships on an operational level

specified in partnerships or joint ventures. According to

Vitasek et al. (2005) one attribute of the lean supply chain is

cross-enterprise collaboration. Through collaborative

practices and processes, supply chain partners must work to

maximize the value stream to the customer (Vitasek et al.,

2005).

On the other hand, these alliances could be implemented

using standards of the sector to obtain competitive advantage

over other supply chains (Vitasek et al., 2005). According to

Christopher and Towill (2002), the competition of the future

will not be between companies but between supply chains, so

the trend in the sector must be towards alliances and

partnerships between companies. Establishment of a

dedicated value stream with the commitment of supply

chain partners to work together over an indefinite period is a

necessary pre-requisite to significant supply chain

improvement as it establishes a basis from which other lean

improvement strategies could be adopted (Taylor, 2006).

To assess the level of collaboration among stages of the

chain, the relationship with suppliers was evaluated with

regard to the development of new products through joint

processes from several stages of the chain.

4.2.7 Cultural change

There is one recurring obstacle to successfully applying lean

supply chain concepts – the resistance from the people who

will be asked to embrace and implement the change to lean

supply chain concepts (Vitasek et al., 2005). Thus, cultural

change is one of the biggest challenges in getting lean

accepted into the organization. We assume there have been

some changes, and specifically a cultural change, in firms in

Spain due to the penetration of ISO 9001 implementations or

total quality management culture expansion in relation to

supply chain strategies (Casadesús and Castro, 2005).

According to Vitasek et al. (2005) the company’s view of its

people within the organization is also crucial to successful

cultural change. According to Lamming (1996) a common

feature of operating systems is the use of excuses and blaming

by its managers. However, excuses and blaming result in

increased process costs for the party using them, since the

problem that has given rise to their use is not resolved but

stored for future re-emergence. Therefore, the lean supply

chain framework requires an escape from this paradigm and

introduces new cultural views of collaboration and human

resources management, promoting total quality management

principles. Problems that occur are targets for solution, not

opportunities for the reinforcement of artificial impediments

in the supply chain flow. This particular view has been

reinforced by this cultural change.

To assess this dimension, an investigation was carried out

on the level of personnel involvement in the quality

management policy implemented in the company and on

the training plan of the company. The training of human

capital and the level of involvement in the improvement policy

of the company are often related.

5. Research method (methodology and sample)

To test lean approaches in the Catalan pork supply chain we

have used case research methodology. The research structure

is based on multiple case studies in a large-scale sample of the

population. Once the objective of the investigation was

established, the next steps, suggested by Robson (2002), were

the selection of the research strategy and the information

gathering method.

The research strategy proposed a conceptual model and

developed a semi-structured interview as a basic instrument

to apply it. The structure of the interview, before it was

employed, was validated by experts of the sector, and both

closed or structured and open questions were considered to

offer the opportunity to provide details in some areas.

The supply chain was analysed from the farm gate to the

consumer, and multiple participants were interviewed at each

stage of the supply chain. For sampling, a population was

defined, for which a stratified sample was selected. The study

considered the target population to be the companies of the

Catalan pork chain, that is, any company whose activity

involved the raising, fattening, killing, butchering, processing

and/or distribution/retail of pigs. A list of companies was

compiled based on the data base of the study “España

30.000” (Fomento de la Producción España, 2005), which

resulted in a population of 249 companies based on the data

being filtered according to economic activities. Then, very

small companies of less than 25 employees were filtered out

based on the argument that they had very little impact on the

total activity of the sector reducing the population considered

to 121 companies. The Catalan Federation of the Meat

Product Industry (FECIC) was the contact channel with the

managers of the companies, and during the selection of the

sample its advice was welcomed, owing to FECIC’s

knowledge of the characteristics and the types of companies

in the pork chain.

Considering that the target population of the study is finite,

with n ¼ 121 companies, and establishing the usual parameters in the preparation of a sample, with p ¼ q ¼ 50 per cent, a confidence level of 95 per cent and an estimated

error of 15 per cent, the size of the sample proved to be 34

companies.

Table III shows the stratum distribution of the population

and the sample. The slight variations between percentages of

the population and those of the sample are due to factors such

as the possibility of access to the specific company and its

representativeness, not only numerical, but also relative to its

importance and relevance within each stratum. For the

exploratory objective of this contribution, it is argued that the

sample size is appropriate where limitations are carefully

considered in the conclusions together with the potential for

future research to utilise a larger sample.

With regard to the information gathering method, the

prime sources of the data were semi-structured interviews,

backed up by unstructured interviews, personal observation,

Development of lean supply chains

Catalina Perez, Rodolfo de Castro, David Simons and Gerusa Gimenez

Supply Chain Management: An International Journal

Volume 15 · Number 1 · 2010 · 55 – 68

61

informal conversations and attendance at meetings to achieve

triangulation (McCutcheon and Meredith, 1993). The

interviews were conducted by two researchers; one adopted

the lead interview role, while the other adopted a lead data

collection role. Empirical work was completed over a three-

month period. Then the observations and data were coded,

reducing this information into dimensions, following our

research model. In researching case-based data, it is

important to seek out the person who is best informed

about the data being sought. This person is often known as

the principal informant (Voss et al., 2002). In our research the

person interviewed was always the senior manager of the

company (see Table IV).

6. Findings

This section presents the results obtained after the field work

was carried out in the 34 companies in our case study sample.

Each of the companies was assessed according to the lean

supply chain model previously mentioned. The conclusions

reached for each dimension are presented here.

6.1 Demand management

In this dimension the characteristics of the demand in the

pork sector were analysed. Moreover, the different methods

the companies of the chain use to carry out demand forecasts,

as well as the transfer and reliability of information between

clients and suppliers, were studied. Also taken into

consideration was the opinion of the different agents

regarding their level of mutual collaboration on forecasts

and market analysis.

One of the first results deduced from the study is the

demand in the supply chain of the industry is regular and

highly predictable with low seasonality. Therefore, with regard

to the forecasts, it must be emphasized that the companies

mostly responded that they carried out supply forecasts based

on firm orders instead of historical information (79.4 per cent

firms uses firm orders and 73,5 uses historical orders), and

only 4 out of the 34 enterprises create plans based on past

records, and only a minority of companies make to stock in

the sector.

The supply chain had two distinct sections regarding

planning and scheduling; pre-abattoir it is a PUSH system,

and post-abattoir it is a PULL system. In the PUSH system

abattoirs receive planned inputs from the two types of system.

Integrators deliver planned but variable inputs because they

are based on integrator feed capacities, whilst independent

farmers delivery is unplanned and highly variable. The PULL

system begins with retail sales volumes which are transmitted

upstream to the packaging, butchery and cutting process steps

in the chain. These organisations recognise the importance of

the transfer of information between companies and the

potential for collaborative forecasting and planning to avoid

overproduction caused by demand variability and order

amplification.

As for the information provided by the clients to the

companies, this was done mostly on a daily or weekly basis,

and among the problems detected, always in isolated cases,

were primarily last minute changes in the orders received.

Regarding the information provided by the companies to their

suppliers, the majority of companies considered that they did

it frequently. Another aspect checked in each of the

companies analysed was the methods used to obtain

information from their clients about their wishes and

Table IV Semi-structured questions to evaluate model’s dimensions

Dimension Question

Demand management Which are the methods the companies of the chain use to carry out the demand forecast

Ways of transferring information and its reliability. Collaboration in terms of forecasts and market analysis by

different agents in the chain

Specification of value Which is the most important value characteristic of the final product of the chain

If they established, specifically, alongside the other companies of the chain, which are the characteristics of the

product in accordance with the expectations of the end user

To know if companies worked together with other companies of the chain on programmes of improvement in

areas of traceability, animal welfare and protection of the environment

Process and product standardization Regarding to the variability of the end product

Regarding to the level of standardization of processes of the companies

Value chain efficiency Regarding to the concept of waste in operations as well as the different types and the control of variability

existing over them

Regarding to the concept of waste in relation to the manipulation of information

Key process indicators Which are the indicators implemented in the companies

On the basis of the answers given which of these indicators are considered throughout the chain

Alliances The relationship with suppliers with regard to the elaboration of new products and joint strategies

Cultural change The level of personnel involvement in the quality management policy implemented in the company and on the

training plan of the company

Table III Stratum distribution of the population of companies and of the sample

Stratum Population Sample

n % n %

Producers 16 13.2 6 17.6

Abattoir 33 27.3 9 26.5

Processing 54 44.6 14 41.2

Distribution/retail 18 14.9 5 14.7

Total 121 100 34 100

Development of lean supply chains

Catalina Perez, Rodolfo de Castro, David Simons and Gerusa Gimenez

Supply Chain Management: An International Journal

Volume 15 · Number 1 · 2010 · 55 – 68

62

opinions, and to be able to incorporate this into the

information system of the supply chain. According to the

visits carried out, the method most frequently used is

attending sector fairs, where it is possible to make direct

contact with the client. Amongst interviewees, trade fair

attendance was approximately 50 per cent for producers and

abattoirs and 80 per cent for processors and distributors.

Distributors highlighted the importance of trade fair

information to support marketing department activity and

merchandising studies. Direct personal contact through sales

representatives is widely seen as vital to capturing explicit and

implicit customer needs. By contrast little use was made of

direct questionnaires to clients, or collaborative data

collection with other companies.

These results led to the conclusion that the Catalan pork

sector tends towards a “pull” system because planning is

based more on firm orders than on forecasts driven by

historical data. However, with regard to the questions

concerning information transmission, 60 per cent of

companies are involved in some form of collaborative

forecasting and planning but there is still a major

opportunity for the remaining companies to improve supply

chain information flows.

6.2 Specification of value

As previously indicated, one of the first aspects of this

dimension analysed was to determine what the value

characteristic is that companies consider to be most

important with regard to the end product of the chain. The

value characteristics assessed were: price, quality (colour,

taste, and texture), food safety, product availability, product

innovation and product presentation. The two characteristics

most mentioned were the quality of the end product and food

safety, the same results found in the study by Meuwissen and

Van Der Lans (2005). Price was only mentioned as the most

important aspect in a minority of the companies analysed,

basically those situated at the end of the chain (distribution

and sales). Product innovation was the least important value

characteristic considered by companies.

These results show that in the majority of cases the

requirements of the end consumer are considered to be

understood, which provides a rationale for collaborative

activity to deliver consumer value. The reality was that only

55 per cent of the companies stated that they jointly

developed product characteristics according to customer

expectations. However, in terms of breed selection, 71 per

cent of farmers recognised that customer attributes were a key

driver. Finally, 70 per cent of all firms collaborate in one or

more improvement programmes concerning product

traceability, animal welfare and environmental protection.

6.3 Process and product standardization

As has been pointed out previously, product and process

standardization is important to achieve a continuous flow and

to eliminate obstacles which do not add any value to the

chain. The results of the study reveal that the production

processes of the companies of the chain are mainly

continuous, similar to the most traditional manufacturing

processes, resulting in products classified as commodities. All

of these aspects are what characterize a typical lean supply

chain. In the majority of cases, the standardization level of

their operations was rated as high. Likewise, all of the

companies stated that they used document resources to

represent and analyse their processes. This was basically the

HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points)

methodology and flow diagrams.

Further, all companies recognised the importance of

variability control in delivering an effective end product and

had taken some steps to reduce it. The main causes were

categorised by respondents as originating in raw material,

machinery and process design. The greatest difficulty in

controlling end product variability was detected amongst

farmers due to the natural variability present in livestock. For

the machinery category, the main cause was attributed to

machinery faults. Interestingly, no comments were made

concerning the root cause of machinery downtime being

connected to productive or preventative maintenance policies.

With regard to the implementation of procedures directly

related to the pork sector, all the companies agreed that the

definition of standard processes or procedures helps to

improve the flow and the exchange of information among

companies in the chain. They all stated that they had standard

procedures implemented to guarantee good traceability

management. Moreover, all of the pig producing companies

and the abattoirs had standardized processes implemented to

guarantee good animal welfare management. The majority of

the companies had also implemented environmental

management standards. In relation to this question, the

companies were asked whether their clients insisted on their

having certified processes implemented according to

international regulations (ISO9001, ISO14001, . . .) before

establishing business relations. In 64 per cent of the cases the

answer was affirmative, and in the cases where the companies

gave a negative response, it was indicated that the tendency in

the near future would be to make this an essential

requirement.

6.4 Value chain efficiency

One of the blocks of questions dealt with in the interview was

the analysis of operations to observe the level of “conscious”

waste in the pork chain. Regarding the seven classic types of

lean waste (Ohno, 1988), questions were asked about

overproduction of the end product, the excess of raw

materials, waiting for products in line, long transport, lack

of product quality and defects. Waste due to defects in the

product was highest at producers, processors and abattoirs. In

these locations participants argued that this was influenced by

several factors which are difficult to control as they relate to

live organic matter. Previous studies in the pork sector have

shown this assumption concerning livestock variability to be

only partially correct with variability reduction through more

consistent processes significantly reducing pig mortality rates

(Simons and Taylor, 2007).

The type of waste which is kept most under control, and

which hardly ever or only occasionally occurs, is the long

transport of the product, and the type which occurs most

frequently is the lack of product quality, mostly during the

initial phases of the chain. On the one hand, this fact gives an

idea of the high level of coordination with regard to the

handling of the product, with highly optimized trajectories.

On the other hand, among stages of the chain, a lack of rigour

was evident at the product quality control stage. A fact to be

considered is that all the companies stated they have stop

devices when there are conditions of no quality or low quality,

Development of lean supply chains

Catalina Perez, Rodolfo de Castro, David Simons and Gerusa Gimenez

Supply Chain Management: An International Journal

Volume 15 · Number 1 · 2010 · 55 – 68

63

so that a gap is noted between quality from the point of view

of the client and that of the supplier.

As to the waste related to the handling of information, more

than 70 per cent of the companies have centralized

information. This avoids the duplication of information and

re-handling, which means it eliminates waste directly.

6.5 Key process indicators

The results of the project highlight that all of the companies in

the industry use output indicators, and that the three most

common units are kg per day, cost per unit and customers

claims. In this way, it is more feasible to establish joint policies

among agents of the chain to improve the more commonly

used indicators. Another relevant fact is that 75 per cent of

the companies have introduced continuous improvement

systems. This fact corroborates the use of the indicators as

they are powerful tools in the setting up of continuous

improvement plans. However, there are generally significant

omissions in the processing sector of the chain from a lean

manufacturing perspective regarding indicators of quality,

cost and time. For example, equipment effectiveness is not

measured in respect of machinery faults. The imbalance

between quality and cost indicators was further supported by

the question concerning the most important indicator with

the overwhelming response (92 per cent) being the cost per

unit indicator.

One specific technical issue that came to the study’s

attention regarding measurement of supply performance was

the grading of carcases in abattoirs. The agreed negotiation

criteria (fat levels, composition) are not always objective

because human visual classification of carcases is still used

extensively and does not guarantee the objectivity of an

equipment calibrated measurement

6.6 Alliances

The vast majorities (91 per cent) of relationships were based

on a working agreement; of which 19 per cent were written

contracts and 72 per cent were verbal agreements. This

demonstrates a tendency towards vertical collaboration, with

high trust and low transaction costs which is congruent with

lean supply. These values are slightly overstated as 19 per cent

of companies are co-located or vertically integrated. However,

the general finding is that there is a high degree of

collaborative behaviour between many supply chain

participants.

When questioned about relationships with suppliers, the

response which stands out more than others speaks of the

joint development of new products (64 per cent), because in

sharing the information of production plans and stock levels

(32 per cent) and allowing a joint management of the chain

(28 per cent), they are corroborating that there is still a long

way to go in the integration of the different phases.

However, as has been previously mentioned, there is a high

level of partnership and 98 per cent of the meat industries are

associated with the FECIC, meaning that work in favour of

the chain can be done regarding cross-enterprise aspects.

6.7 Cultural change

The level of involvement in the process improvement policy

is, to our understanding from the study is low. To the question

of whether the workers are involved in process improvement,

the response is positive in three out of four cases, but the great

majority has no indicator to say what benefits are contributed

by implemented improvements. The method used to manage

the recognized improvements is manager notification, with

the result that many of them never go beyond this step.

However, to the question of whether the company has

introduced a continuous improvement system, 80 per cent of

the answers are affirmative, but when they were questioned on

the management of this continuous improvement, only 33 per

cent declared that they use improvement teams, which is

fundamental involvement of human capital more and

development of company wide lean improvement.

It certainly does not seem as if the management of human

resources promotes the participation in the improvement

process nor does it give the impression that it looks for a way

to promote this culture of change, which is proposed in the

application of the lean principles. However, one positive

aspect is that more than 60 per cent of the companies inform

all the personnel of the objectives of the company.

Another point that gives cause for optimism concerning

improvement of this aspect is the capacity of the training

policy carried out in the companies of this sector: a training

programme exists in all of the companies covering more than

90 per cent of the personnel at operational level and more

than 60 per cent at the intermediate level.

7. Practical implications

In studying the Catalan pork industry, this paper has

addressed an important sector in the Catalan economy. The

lean model and approach put forward in the study has

contributed concepts and tools that differ from traditional

supply chain paradigms prevalent in the pork sector. Further

there is a contribution to the growing international evidence

that integrated supply in the pork industry enhances supply

chain effectiveness. This section discusses the strengths and

weakness of the Catalan pork sector and for the weaknesses

introduces practical lean techniques for future research that

would be needed to move to the next stage of lean

implementation.

The overall sample size of 121 companies was designed to

give 95 per cent confidence for the defined population.

Within the supply chain strata, the manufacturing section of

abattoir and processing is much better represented than retail

and producers. In particular, producers are a potential

weakness as they are particularly affected by the assumption

that SMEs of less than 25 employees have a low impact on the

whole chain. As well as considering a larger sample, especially

for producers, further research could consider the population

unit of analysis. For the stratum considered, the network of

supply chain relationships could be used to define routes from

producer to point of sale. Some companies may only be

involved in one supply route, whereas others might be

involved in multiple channels. The objective in this instance

could be to design a sample to have 95 per cent confidence in

all supply routes to market for a specified share of the Catalan

pork sector.

Quantitative findings reveal that the majority of the

companies interviewed collaborate through contracts or

verbal agreement, which has great potential provided it were

fully supported by trust and integrity. The environment

described in section 4.1 provides further evidence that the

Catalan pork sector has the necessary attributes to overcome

Development of lean supply chains

Catalina Perez, Rodolfo de Castro, David Simons and Gerusa Gimenez

Supply Chain Management: An International Journal

Volume 15 · Number 1 · 2010 · 55 – 68

64

the four barriers identified: trading relationships, value stream

team formation, senior management commitment and

elimination of power-based adversarial behaviour. Given this

cultural environment that is supportive of collaboration and

change, the first lean principle of jointly identifying value is

applied on a relatively low scale – 55 per cent – which seems

to be a fundamental opportunity to promote strategic lean

improvement on a wider scale. Although one of the objectives

of the INNOVAC association is to boost innovation,

companies indicated that high levels of innovation in new

products is of low importance as a value characteristic.

Dissemination to companies of voice of the customer

techniques embraced by QFD (Quality Function

Deployment) would help support improvement in this area

(Akao, 2004).

From the results about sharing information concerning

production plans and stock levels (32 per cent), and allowing

joint management of the chain (28 per cent), it can be

concluded that there is still a some way to go to fully integrate

the different phases, except in cases where the company itself

has integrated all of them. In demand management,

procedures exist for forecasting demand at each stage of the

chain. However, vertical collaboration in the sector is not

always effective in facilitating the flow of information from the

echelons that provide greater access to the end customer to

those responsible for breed improvement. The decoupling

point at the abattoir between the PUSH and PULL parts of

the system results in a discontinuity. Collaboration in the

chain needs to be harnessed to translate consumer demand

product specifications and demand requirements that can be

met by all members of the chain. It requires the

transformation of traditional production-oriented supply

chains to chains with a market-oriented focus. Value Chain

Analysis (Jones and Womack, 2002) is a way forward to

understanding the structure of the demand management

problem and devising information flows to achieve a whole

chain PULL system.

There is great support for continuous improvement with 80

per cent of the firms responding positively. However, formal

continuous improvement systems (Imai, 1997) are present in

only 33 per cent of them, indicating a significant opportunity

for formal lean training and support. Larger companies

should aim to have an in-house continuous improvement

office with smaller enterprises having access to training

support. Employees’ involvement and empowerment is key in

such an endeavour with human resources seen as a potential

resource and a valuable source of ideas for change and

improvement. There are strong indications that the Catalan

pork supply system has the cultural capability for lean supply

but has yet to fully implement it.

Faults in machinery were the main reason for variability in

the end product and yet that precise indicator was least used

by companies. The results provide evidence that the least

controlled parameters can be converted into those that affect

end product variability most significantly. Companies in the

chain would benefit from implementation of lean measures

concerning OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness and TPM

(Total Productive Maintenance) (Rich, 1999).

8. Conclusions

Two generic conclusions can be drawn from the literature

review and the development of a lean supply chain model.

First, the article shows the pork sector has actively adopted

production techniques associated with lean management such

as demand management. The pork chain in Catalonia is

epitomised by varying scale and power at every stage. This

could lead to independent behaviour on the part of livestock

farmers, abattoirs and multiple retailers. However this is not

the universal case and there is significant evidence of supply

chain collaboration to achieve whole chain competitiveness

rather than the sub-optimisation of individual stages. These

findings support industry-wide business associations’ efforts

to initiate actions which will reinforce these techniques and

improve the competitiveness of the sector. Two key policy and

regulatory recommendations are needed to increase the

penetration and sustainability of lean in the Catalan pork

sector: avoidance of erratic fluctuations in raw material prices,

and support mechanisms to make business relations in the

sector as equitable and as stable as possible.

Second, from the contacts established between the research

team and the different companies selected in the case studies,

it is evident that the members of the Catalan pork supply

chain are aware of the importance of directing future

strategies towards process innovation and cooperation

among companies, with the aim of generating greater

innovation and greater capacity to face the challenges of

globalization. Within this framework, policy makers should

encourage inter-company cooperation to provide greater

collaborative scale and a common strategic view on issues

such as innovation and globalization. This should be done in

such a way that company independence is not unnecessarily

threatened. Government support for the recent creation of the

Association of Innovative Companies of the Catalan Pork

Sector, INNOVACC, is fundamental to achieve the goal of

stimulating cross-enterprise collaboration.

In summary, this paper tentatively contributes a generic

lean model for the pork sector whose applicability is

supported by empirical evidence from a significant pork

producing region. The paper provides strong indications that

the Catalan pork supply system has the cultural capability for

lean supply, although it has not yet been fully implemented. It

also makes a new contribution in the area of pork production

within Spain.

Further research to affirm that there is cultural support for

lean collaboration is recommended as a precursor to the

application of the five lean principles. For example, a tool

such as the Supply Chain Collaboration Index (Ryals and

Humphries, 2007) could be applied.

References

Agri Chain Competence Foundation (1998), Decanethus

Project. A Multi-country Study of Vertical Coordination in the

Hog/Pork Industry, Canada, United States, The Netherlands and Denmark.

Akao, Y. (2004), QFD: Quality Function Deployment –

Integrating Customer Requirements into Product Design,

Productivity Press, New York, NY. Al-Mudimigh, A.S., Zairi, M. and Ahmed, A.M.M. (2004),

“Extending the concept of supply chain: the effective

Development of lean supply chains

Catalina Perez, Rodolfo de Castro, David Simons and Gerusa Gimenez

Supply Chain Management: An International Journal

Volume 15 · Number 1 · 2010 · 55 – 68

65

management of value chains”, International Journal of

Production Economics, Vol. 87 No. 3, pp. 309-21. Aldomà, J., Villareal, J. and Viñas, U. (1983), La integració

de la ramaderia a Catalunya, Departament d’ Agricultura,

Ramaderia i Pesca de la Generalitat de Catalunya,

Barcelona.

Australian Pork Limited (2008), Annual Report 06/07,

Australian Pork Association of Pig Producers.

Boger, S., Hobbs, J.E. and Kerr, W.A. (2001), “Supply

chain relationships in the Polish pork sector”, Supply

Chain Management: An International Journal, Vol. 6 No. 2,

pp. 74-83.

Casadesús, M. and De Castro, R. (2005), “How improving

quality improves supply chain management: empirical

study”, The TQM Magazine, Vol. 17 No. 4, pp. 345-57. Cigolini, R., Cozzi, M. and Perona, M. (2004), “A new

framework for supply chain management: conceptual

model and empirical test”, International Journal of

Operations & Production Management, Vol. 24 No. 1,

pp. 7-41. Cox, A. (2004), “The art of the possible: relationship

management in power regimes and supply chains”, Supply

Chain Management: An International Journal, Vol. 9 No. 5,

pp. 346-56. Cox, A., Chicksand, D. and Palmer, M. (2007a), “Stairways

to heaven or treadmills to oblivion?: Creating sustainable

strategies in red meat supply, chains”, British Food

Journal, Vol. 109 No. 9, pp. 689-720. Cox, A., Chicksand, D. and Yang, T. (2007b), “The

proactive alignment of sourcing with marketing and

branding strategies: a food service case”, Supply Chain

Management: An International Journal, Vol. 12 No. 5,

pp. 321-33.

Croom, S., Romano, P. and Giannakis, M. (2000), “Supply

chain management: an analytical framework for critical

literature review”, European Journal of Purchasing &

Supply Management, Vol. 6 No. 1, pp. 67-74. Chandra, C. and Kumar, S. (2000), “Supply chain

management in theory and practice: a passing fad or a

fundamental change?”, Industrial Management & Data

Systems, Vol. 100 No. 3, pp. 100-13. Childerhouse, P., Aitken, J. and Towill, D.R. (2002),

“Analysis and design of focused demand chains”, Journal

of Operations Management, Vol. 20, pp. 675-89. Christopher, M. (2000), “The agile supply chain:

competing in volatile markets”, Industrial Marketing

Management, Vol. 29 No. 1, pp. 37-44. Christopher, M. and Gattorna, J. (2005), “Supply chain

cost management and value-based pricing”, Industrial

Marketing Management, Vol. 34 No. 2, pp. 7-19. Christopher, M. and Towill, D.R. (2000), “Supply chain

migration from lean and functional to agile and

customised”, Supply Chain Management: An International

Journal, Vol. 5 No. 4, pp. 206-13. Christopher, M. and Towill, D.R. (2002), “Developing

market specific supply chain strategies”, The International

Journal of Logistics Management;, Vol. 13 No. 1, pp. 1-14. De Castro, R. and Pérez, C. (2008), “Aplicación de

Polı́ticas Lean al sector porcino”, Jornada presentación

resultados Projecte UdG – FIC, Inter nal Report,

Universitat de Girona.

Fearne, A. (1998), “The evolution of partnerships in the

meat supply chain: insights of British beef industry”,

Supply Chain Management, Vol. 3 No. 4, pp. 214-31. Fearne, A. and Fowler, N. (2006), “Efficiency versus

effectiveness in construction supply chains: the dangers of

“lean” thinking in isolation”, Supply Chain Management,

Vol. 11 No. 4, pp. 283-7. Fernandez Nogales, A. and Gomez Suarez, M. (2005),

“Shelf space management of private labels: a case study in

Spanish retailing”, Journal of Retailing and Consumer

Services, Vol. 12, pp. 205-16. Fomento de la Producción España (2005), España 30.000:

información sobre empresas con facturación superior a un

millón de euros, Fomento de la Producción, SL, Barcelona. Francis, M., Simons, D. and Bourlakis, M. (2008), “Value

chain analysis in the UK beef foodservice sector”, Supply

Chain Management: An International Journal;, Vol. 13

No. 1, pp. 83-91. Generalitat de Catalunya (2005), Bases per a la definició d’un

sistema de pesatge i classificació de canals porcines, Una

proposta de futur per al sector porcı́ català, Barcelona.

Goldsby, T.J., Griffis, S.E. and Rota, A.S. (2006),

“Modeling lean, agile and leagile supply chain

strategies”, Journal of Business Logistics, Vol. 27 No. 1,

pp. 57-80. Hines, P., Holwe, M. and Rich, N. (2004), “Learning to

evolve: a review of contemporary lean thinking”,

Inter national Jour nal of Operations & Production

Management, Vol. 24 No. 10, pp. 994-1011. Hingley, M. (2005), “Power imbalanced relationships:

cases from UK fresh food supply”, International Journal

of Retail & Distribution Management, Vol. 33 No. 8,

pp. 551-69.

Hingley, M., Sodano, V. and Lindgreen, A. (2008),

“Differentiation strategies in vertical channels: a case

study from the market for fresh produce”, British Food

Journal, Vol. 110 No. 1, pp. 42-61. Hobbs, J.E., Kerr, W.A. and Klein, K.K. (1998), “Creating

international competitiveness through supply chain

management: Danish pork”, Supply Chain Management,

Vol. 3 No. 2, pp. 68-78.

Hollingsworth, A. (2004), “Increasing retail concentration:

evidence from the UK food retail sector”, British Food

Journal, Vol. 106 No. 8, pp. 629-38. Imai, M. (1997), Gemba Kaizen – A Commonsense, Low-cost

Approach to Management, McGraw Hill, New York, NY. Jones, D.T. and Womack, J. (2002), Seeing the Whole –

Mapping the Extended Value Stream, The Lean Enterprise

Institute, Cambridge, MA. Katz, J. and Boland, M. (2000), “A new value added

strategy for the US beef industry: the case of US

Premium Beef Ltd”, International Journal of Supply Chain

Management, Vol. 5 No. 2, pp. 99-110. Klein, K.K., Walburger, A.M., Faminow, M.D., Larue, B.,

Romain, R. and Foster, K. (1996), “An evaluation of

supply chain performance in the Canadian pork sector”,

Supply Chain Management, Vol. 1 No. 3, pp. 12-24. Lamming, R. (1996), “Squaring lean supply with supply

chain management”, International Journal of Operations

& Production Management, Vol. 16 No. 2, pp. 183-96. Langreo, A. (2008), “La Industria Cárnica en España

Distribución y Consumo”, Mercasa, Vol. 99, pp. 26-48.

Development of lean supply chains

Catalina Perez, Rodolfo de Castro, David Simons and Gerusa Gimenez

Supply Chain Management: An International Journal

Volume 15 · Number 1 · 2010 · 55 – 68

66

Lee, H.L., Padmanabhan, V. and Wang, S. (1997), “The

bullwhip effect in supply chain”, Sloan Management

Review, Vol. 38 No. 3, pp. 93-102. Lindgreen, A. and Hingley, M. (2003), “The impact of

food safety and animal welfare policies on supply chain

management: the case of the Tesco meat supply chain”,

British Food Journal, Vol. 105 No. 6, pp. 328-49. Lummus, R.R. and Vokurka, R.J. (1999), “Defining supply

chain management: a historical prespectiva and practical

guidelines”, Industrial Data & Management Systems, Vol. 1,

pp. 11-17. McCutcheon, D.M. and Meredith, J.R. (1993),

“Conducting case study research in operations

management”, Journal of Operations Management, Vol. 11

No. 3, pp. 239-44.

MARM (2008), Ministerio de Medio Ambiente y Medio

Rural y Marino, Secretaria General Técnica, Madrid,

available at: www.marm.es/ Martı́n Cerdeño, V.J. (2007), “Consumo de Carne y de

Productos cárnicos Distribución y Consumo”, Mercasa,

Vol. 94, pp. 5-28.

Mason-Jones, R., Naylor, B. and Towill, D.R. (2000),

“Lean, agile or leagile? Matching your supply chain to the

marketplace”, International Journal of Production Research,

Vol. 38, pp. 4061-70. Meuwissen, M. and Van Der Lans, I. (2005), “Trade-offs

between consumer concerns: an application for pork

supply chains”, Food Economics – Acta Agriculturae

Scandinavica, Section C, Vol. 2 No. 1, pp. 27-34. Naylor, J.B., Naim, M.N. and Berry, D. (1999), “Leagility:

integrating the lean and agile paradigms in the total

supply chain”, International Jour nal of Production

Economics, Vol. 62, pp. 107-14. Ohno, T. (1988), Toyota Production System: Beyond Large-

Scale Production, Productivity Press, New York, NY. Palmer, M. (1996), “Building effective alliances in the meat

supply chain: lessons from the UK”, Supply Chain

Management, Vol. 1 No. 3, pp. 9-11. Pérez, C., De Castro, R. and FontiFurnols, M. (2008), “Pork

sector: a supply chain perspective”, British Food Journal,

Vol. 111 No. 3, pp. 257-74.

Rich, N. (1999), Total Productive Maintenance, The Lean

Approach, Tudor Business Publishing, Bromborough. Robson, C. (2002), Real World Research: A Resource for Social

Scientists and Practitioner-researchers, Basil Blackwell,

Malden, MA.

Ryals, L.J. and Humphries, A.S. (2007), “Managing key

business-to-business relationships: what marketing can

learn from supply chain management”, Journal of Service

Research, Vol. 9 No. 4, pp. 312-26. Sadler, I. and Hines, P. (2002), “Strategic operations

planning process for manufacturers with a supply chain

focus: concepts and a meat processing application”, Supply

Chain Management: An International Journal, Vol. 7 No. 4,

pp. 225-41.

Simons, D. and Taylor, D. (2007), “Lean thinking in the UK

red meat industry: a systems and contingency approach”,

International Journal of Production Economics, Vol. 106 No. 1,

pp. 70-84.

Simons, D. and Zokaei, K. (2005), “Application of lean

paradigm in red meat processing”, British Food Journal,

Vol. 107 No. 4, pp. 192-211.

Simons, D., Francis, M., Bouklaris, M. and Fearne, A.

(2003), “Identifying the determinants of value in the UK

red meat industry: a value chain analysis approach”, Journal

on Chain and Network Science, Vol. 3 No. 2, pp. 109-21. Stratton, R. and Warburton, R.D.H. (2003), “The strategic

integration of agile and lean supply”, International Journal of

Production Economics, Vol. 85, pp. 183-98. Supply Chain Council (2008), “Supply-chain operations

reference-model”, available at: www.supply-chain.org

Tan, K.C. (2001), “A framework of supply chain

management literature”, European Journal of Purchasing

& Supply Management, Vol. 7, pp. 39-48. Taylor, D.H. (2005), “Value chain analysis: an approach to

supply chain improvement in agri-food chains”,

International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics

Management;, Vol. 35 No. 10, pp. 744-61. Taylor, D.H. (2006), “Strategic considerations in the

development of lean agri-food supply chains: a case study

of the UK pork sector”, Supply Chain Management:

An International Journal, Vol. 11 No. 3, pp. 271-80. Taylor, D.H. and Fearne, A. (2006), “Towards a framework

for improvement in the management of demand in

agri-food supply chains”, Supply Chain Management:

An International Journal, Vol. 11 No. 5, pp. 379-84. Van Hoek, R.I., Harrison, A. and Christopher, M. (2001),

“Measuring agile capabilities in the supply chain”,

Inter national Jour nal of Operations & Production

Management, Vol. 21 Nos 1/2, pp. 126-47. Vitasek, K., Manrodt, K.B. and Abbott, J. (2005), “What

makes a lean supply chain?”, Supply Chain Management

Review, No. 1. Vonderembse, M.A., Uppal, M., Huang, S.H. and

Dismukes, J.P. (2006), “Designing supply chains: towards

theory development”, International Journal of Production

Economics, Vol. 100, pp. 223-38. Voss, C., Tiskriktsis, N. and Frohlich, M. (2002), “Case

research in operations management”, International Journal

of Operations & Production Management, Vol. 22 No. 2,

pp. 195-219.

Womack, J. and Jones, D.T. (1996), Lean Thinking: Banish

Waste and Create Wealth for Your Corporation, Simon and

Schuster, New York, NY.

Womack, J.P. and Jones, D.T. (2005), “Lean consumption”,

Harvard Business Review, Vol. 83 No. 3, pp. 58-68. Womack, J., Jones, D.T. and Roos, D. (1990), The Machine

That Changed the World, Rawson Associates, New York, NY. Wiskerke, J. and Roep, D. (2007), “Constructing a

sustainable pork supply chain: a case of techno-

institutional innovation”, Journal of Environmental Policy

& Planning, Vol. 9 No. 1, pp. 53-74. Zokaei, K. and Simons, D. (2006), “Value chain analysis in

consumer focus improvement”, The International Journal of

Logistic Management, Vol. 17 No. 2, pp. 141-62.

Further reading

Fearne, A., Duffy, R. and Hornibrook, S. (2005), “Justice in

UK supermarket buyer-supplier relationships: an empirical

analysis”, International Journal of Retail & Distribution

Management, Vol. 33 No. 8, pp. 570-82.

Development of lean supply chains

Catalina Perez, Rodolfo de Castro, David Simons and Gerusa Gimenez

Supply Chain Management: An International Journal

Volume 15 · Number 1 · 2010 · 55 – 68

67

About the authors

Catalina Perez is a Researcher in the University of Girona.

Her work in progress is related to characterization of Pork

chain in Catalonia under a lean supply chain perspective. Her

main research field is focused on supply chain management

and inventory control. She is based at the Business

Organization, Management and Product Design

Department, University of Girona, Girona, Spain.

Rodolfo de Castro, PhD Engineer, is a Professor at the

University of Girona. His research is focused on lean thinking

in production and operations management and in supply

chain management. He has participated in some National

projects in Spain. He is based at the Business Organization,

Management and Product Design Department. University of

Girona, Girona, Spain. Rodolfo de Castro is the

corresponding author and can be contacted at: rudi.castro@

udg.es

David Simons is an Engineer and has completed an MSc in

Management Science and Operational Research at Warwick

University Business School; and spent six years in Operations

and Logistics consultancy. David has over ten years experience

of supply chain analysis and implementation in the automotive

and food sectors. He is based at the Food Process Innovation

Unit in Cardiff Business School.

Gerusa Gimenez, PhD Engineer, is a Professor at the

University of Girona. Her research is focused on industry

environmental impact related to operations management and

in supply chain management. She has participated in some

National projects in Spain. She is based at the Business

Organization, Management and Product Design Department,

University of Girona, Girona, Spain.

Development of lean supply chains

Catalina Perez, Rodolfo de Castro, David Simons and Gerusa Gimenez

Supply Chain Management: An International Journal

Volume 15 · Number 1 · 2010 · 55 – 68

68

To purchase reprints of this article please e-mail: [email protected]

Or visit our web site for further details: www.emeraldinsight.com/reprints

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.