A Survey of Manufacturing Strategy and Technology in the Chinese Furniture Industry

We investigate the manufacturing strategy of 72 Chinese furniture companies based on a nationwide survey conducted in mid-2001, just prior to WTO accession. We provide an overview of the industry and its context before reporting on the operations objectives of the firms — focusing on their relationship to financial performance and technology. We report on the current status of, and future plans for, manufacturing technology implementation and initiatives (such as computeraided design, safety improvement, new product introduction, and reducing changeover times). We make comparisons with other studies, in particular in the US — where Chinese furniture imports are increasingly viewed as a competitive threat.  2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.