Applying Service Concepts in Manufacturing

Abstract

The research reported examines the role of service in manufacturing. Focuses on the degree to which Chase′s “Service Factory” concept is applicable in the UK. Also examines the role of service in four manufacturing companies. It was found that the roles reported by Chase in the USA are also used by a number of UK companies, and it is concluded that the service‐factory concept is robust and is not necessarily embedded in some of the cultural norms of the USA, as are some TQM practices. The case data indicated that the source of customer service may be in customers being served by various parts of the organization, that customer service is complex and that service levels are a function of both manufacturing and distribution. This would seem to point to the distribution view of customer service, the field‐service view and/or the service‐factory view being too narrow in terms of the company as a whole.