Definitions
Offshoring
Off shoring is one of the defining phenomena of 21st century manufacturing. It attracts signifi cant attention in academic, business, and social circles in both developed and developing economies. Despite the relevance of this phenomenon, there is limited research exploring to what extent off shoring eff ort is explained by manufacturing strategy. In this study I investigate whether off shoring effort can be predicted by manufacturing competitive factors such as cost, flexibility, and delivery, particularly when controlling for structural covariates from internalization theory. Data from an international manufacturing survey enable the analysis. Results suggest that competing based on cost and flexibility, but not on delivery, explains the effort to relocate sourcing and design activities to a foreign country.
Source: International Journal of Production Economics, Volume 150, April 2014, Pages 163-173
www.sciencedirect.com
Backshoring
Comparing offshoring and backshoring: The role of manufacturing site location factors and their impact on post-relocation performance
Highlights
- Testing the major site location factors: cost, market, and development competence.
- Data from 133 offshoring and 99 backshoring projects.
- All three site location factors have performance implications for both directions.
- Significant differences between site location factors.
- Significant differences between relocation direction: offshoring and backshoring.
Source: www.sciencedirect.com
Reshoring
Prior to reshoring: A duration analysis of foreign manufacturing ventures – ScienceDirect
Abstract
This paper throws light on the determinants of the duration of manufacturing offshore experiences by US and European firms prior to reshoring. By applying survival analysis to a dataset of 249 offshoring experiences terminated with a relocation to the home country/region, we estimate the effects of different groups of survival determinants. Results highlight that contextual factors such as the industry, the home country, the host country, and the size of the firm significantly affect the duration of offshoring experiences. The likelihood of termination is in fact higher for the electronics and automotive industries, for small firms, for firms headquartered in Europe, and for offshoring to Asia. The analysis of the motivations for reshoring shows that quality issues experienced offshore emerge as the key factor giving rise to shorter offshore stays. Based on these empirical findings, a set of testable propositions is developed. In particular, we conjecture that the likelihood of termination of offshore manufacturing and the return to the home country may be accelerated by technology-based industries, small firm sizes, shrinking cost differentials and the psychic distance between home and host country, the organizational archetypes, and quality related motivations.
Source
International Journal of Production Economics, Volume 169, November 2015, Pages 141-155
doi.org
www.sciencedirect.com
The reshoring of business services: Reaction to failure or persistent strategy?
– ScienceDirect, Journal of World Business Volume 52, Issue 3, April 2017, Pages 417-430,
www.sciencedirect.com