Performance evaluation of the supply chain system of a food product manufacturing system using a questionnaire-based approach

Abstract

Effective management of the end-to-end process of a food industry is vital for the achievement of the key strategic objectives of this organisation. However, various factors have limited the performance and productivity of the supply chain system of food industries; thus hindering an organisation from meeting its customers demand target. Hence; there is a need to appraise the performance of the supply chain system of a food industry with a view to identify factors limiting its performance and ensure continuous end-to-end process improvement. In light of this, this paper assesses the performance of the supply chain system of a food industry using a questionnaire-based approach. The structure of the questionnaire consists of myriad of questions that appraises the performance of various factors responsible for effective functioning and optimal flow of the supplier and production sections of the supply chain of a food industry based on the industry benchmark for these factors. The production operators responded to the appropriate sections of the questionnaire. The questionnaire result revealed that the overall performance of work stations 1, 3, 4 and 5 are below the organisation’s target. Hence, the resolutions of various factors lowering the performance of these work stations were recommended as future studies. The questionnaire developed in this study serve as a template that could be used by supply chain managers to measure the performance of their supply chain systems, with a view to ensure continuous and sustainable end-to-end process improvement.