Application of Just‐in‐Time Manufacturing Techniques in the United Kingdom

Abstract

There is widespread interest and discussion of Just‐in‐Time (JIT) manufacturing but little is known about the actual uptake and pattern of use of JIT and its constituent techniques. This article reports the results of a survey of UK manufacturing companies. The survey examined the level of consideration of JIT in the UK, the nature of the JIT effort, the JIT techniques used and not used, the effectiveness of the various techniques and the benefits reported from JIT. The data are reviewed by industry, sector, size and parent company and conclusions are developed concerning the nature of the application of JIT in the UK. The data indicate that though the overall level of interest in JIT is high, there are a number of causes for concern in the way in which it is being implemented.