Literature review on successful JIT implementation in developing countries : obstacles and critical success factors

The importance of new and modern systems in the industrial world has increased in the last decade because of the advantages that they bring to the industries. Just-in-time is considered as one of these new systems that receive more attention in developed countries, however developing countries are still unaware of the importance of this system because of the obstacles that prevent it from being successful. In this article, we will discuss some of the obstacles faced by firms when introducing JIT into their operations, drawing from published research about manufacturing organisations in developing countries. The study enables to conclude that there are many difficulties that face just-in-time implementation, but the lack of management commitment is considered the most important obstacle that prevent just-in-time understanding and success. The employees and suppliers are also some of the major obstacles that face JIT implementation. To overcome these obstacles, critical success factors of JIT implementation must be understood, starting from improving production strategy, management commitment, choosing the right and better workers, finding the right suppliers, and finally trying to decrease all inventory types to the lowest possible level.