Malaysian Automotive Industry Research Articles

An Empirical Analysis of New Product Development Success Among Automotive Industry Vendors in Malaysia

New product development in the automotive industry necessitates significant upfront investment, given the uncertainty of a product's competitiveness upon market launch. Hence, industries strive to comprehend and evaluate crucial success factors during implementation phases. This paper delves into the findings of an empirical qualitative analysis study on the success of New Product Development (NPD) in order to provide deeper insights into these success factors. The study delineates three primary dimensions: IT capability, new product development process, and new product development strategy. Conducted within the Malaysian automotive industry, the empirical results affirm the criticality of these factors to success.

Revolutionizing Operational Excellence: Advancing the automotive industry through Lean Principles

This paper aims to discover the effect of lean principles and practices (LPP) on the operational excellence of the Malaysian automotive industry. A quantitative research approach was adopted focusing on 112 designated managerial-level respondents who were experts in the automotive industry. This study provides future researchers with easy access to information on the need for LPP implementation in the automobile industry toward revolutionizing operational excellence. The authors foresee this study to have a significant effect on practitioners, particularly automobile manufacturers and other key stakeholders, about the possible benefits of LPP implementation across the automotive industry, notably in emerging market economies.

Awareness of CO2 Emission by Cars and Eco-Friendly Environment in the Malaysian Automotive Industry: A Study on Drivers’ Perspectives

Awareness of CO2 Emission by Cars and Eco-Friendly Environment in the Malaysian Automotive Industry: A Study on Drivers’ Perspectives

Conceptualising Loyalty Benefits as the Relational benefits perceived by Malaysian Automotive manufacturers

Objective - In the automotive industry, many companies look at strategic advantages in logistics to reduce costs. An enormous challenge faced by the Logistics Service Providers (LSPs) in Malaysia's automotive industry is preserving successful customer relationships. Methodology/Technique – Therefore, evaluating the most perceived criteria by logistics players in the automotive business is paramount. In this study, the companies are chosen to examine the relative importance of the three identified benefits, Special Treatment, Value Added (VAL), and Collaborative Benefits (COL), by data collected from manufacturing firms in the automotive industry. In addition, a new benefit, Loyalty Benefit (LOY), was added to the framework. Finding – The first stage of the survey involved the operational levels, i.e., The team leaders and below, to check on the relevance of the questionnaire. The second stage involved the management level or decision makers. Novelty – The contribution of the paper includes adding theoretical insight into the relationship concept that has been applied by manufacturers and LSPs and will help LSPs to perceive and understand what the manufacturers expect and how to provide the level of services that meet their expectations. Type of Paper: Empirical JEL Classification: G32, M39. Keywords: Loyalty Benefits; Logistics Service Provider; Linear Regression Writing and Investigation – M.F.S; Supervision, Methodology and Funding – S.S.R.S.; Methodology and Analysis – A.N.A; Data Collection and Analysis – N.A.M Reference to this paper should be referred to as follows: Sazali, M.F; Shariff, S.S.R; Aimran, A.N; Mohamad, N.A. (2023). Conceptualising Loyalty Benefits as the Relational benefits perceived by Malaysian Automotive Manufacturers, GATR-Global J. Bus. Soc. Sci. Review, 11(2), 26–37. https://doi.org/10.35609/gjbssr.2023.11.2(1)

Why did the Malaysian Automobile Sector not Achieve their Described Look East Targets in 1981?

In the past decades, there was a growing demand in commodity vehicles that has contributed to the increase in market share of the automotive sector in many countries, including Japan and Korea. However, despite a lot of countries cherishing the significant sales in the automotive sector and also, Malaysia was not able to succeed. One example is Proton, which has failed with an immense decrease in market share and sales over the last two decades. The previous research has provided a dominant explanation for this failure as the lack of economies of scale, dependence at the home marketplace, technology development, Limited R&D, testing capabilities, compliance with worldwide standards, lack of professional workers, and poor linkages. I use the data from Tai and C.Y.Ku, Malaysian Investment Development Authority, Anazawa, and Ministry of International Trade and Industry to understand the organizational structure and industry performance. Similar to the previous findings, our findings indicated that the Malaysian automotive industry suffers from a lack of dynamics between state and private enterprises, a lack of scale efficiencies, and a reliance on domestic markets. Additionally, it made clear reference to the problems raised by Chang, Andreoni, and Rodrik. In contrast to Japan, where the automotive industry made a large contribution to the Gross domestic product, Malaysia's automotive industry, which includes companies like Proton, was unable to flourish and win the national championship.

FRAMEWORK FOR SUCCESSFUL PROBLEM-SOLVING IN LEAN: A FOCUS GROUP RESEARCH IN MALAYSIAN AUTOMOTIVE

From household issues to complex organizational cases, problem-solving is a common but critical matter in our life. Organizations have tried to harness maximum benefit from lean, but evidence of implementing problem-solving principles is rare. This study intends to emphasize on importance and expose the highly influencing success factors to establish continuous problem-solving and learning in any organization with the example of an automotive industry case in Malaysia. A list of elements of problem-solving principles of lean and another for success factors to implement lean has been compiled through a comprehensive review of contemporary literature. Then a focus group of sixteen professional experts selected meticulously from a reputed Malaysian Automotive industry thoroughly discussed the subject matter in group meetings to get their judgments based on experience and shared knowledge. The approach of grading success factors at the element level of principles of lean is an added methodology to the existing knowledge, and the results of highly influencing success factors for the implementation of elements of principles of problem-solving in lean is a new and helpful insight for organizational leaders and researchers. The author assumes this research may take lean implementation to the next level of success. Modern organizations must build lean problem-solving culture by motivating and empowering management employees who have process-level understanding and are accountable with different metrics. The key to success also depends highly on operators’ inclusiveness and managing their reactions to change. Both management and process workers must drive lean as a team.

FACTORS INFLUENCING GENERATION Y EMPLOYEE’ RETENTION IN MALAYSIA’S AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY: MEDIATING ROLE OF ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT

Under the 11th Malaysia Plan, Malaysian government aims to boost productivity and reduce dependency on inputs from capital and labor. However, the Malaysian automotive industry needs a lot of talents and are still depending on people. Due to that situation, the toughest challenge that the industry encounters nowadays is not only how to manage the people but also how to how to maintain them. Thus, an appropriate employee retention programs to attract, recruit and retain the talent is crucial for Automotive Industry in Malaysia. This study focused on Generation Y employees who were born between 1980 and 2000 due to their ever-increasing representation in the workforce, approximately 50 per cent by year 2020. Past studies stated that Generation Y possessed high level of turnover intention and have different attitude towards loyalty to the companies. Employee retention issue related to this generation might increase if there is lack of understanding on the expectation of Generation Y at the workplace. However, these employees will also be able to make significant contributions if properly managed. In line with that, the purpose of this study is therefore to identify factors that influence Generation Y employee retention in Malaysia Automotive Industry as well as to understand the mediating role of organizational commitments on those relationships. Data were collected though a survey with 204 employees working in automotive industry in Malaysia. Overall, findings from this study indicated that Herzberg’s Motivation Factors played significant roles in retaining employees at organizations than Hygiene Factors, suggesting that organizations need to focus more on advancement, recognition, responsibility and work itself to retain their employees. The study also showed that organizational commitment did mediate the relationship between the Motivation factors and employee retention in Malaysia’s automotive industry.

EXAMINING INDUSTRY-SPECIFIC AFTER-SALES SERVICE QUALITY TOWARDS THE LEVEL OF CUSTOMER LOYALTY: A CASE OF MALAYSIAN NATIONAL CARMAKERS

The intangible and elusive nature of service requires an industry-specific measures of service quality. This study is intended to assess the service quality in after-sales services by looking into each of the dimensions in SERVQUAL through modifying said dimensions tailored towards the needs of the industry. The findings show technical quality as the key driver of service quality in automotive after-sales service that determined customer loyalty, followed by other attributes such as customer service, tangibility and support service respectively. The data was collected from 312 respondents based on systematic sampling where every three customers were approached at the main entrance of the service branches to answer the self-administered questionnaire. Using PLSSEM as the method of data analysis, the data revealed that technical quality was the most important dimension which served as measures of service quality in automotive after-sales service industry. Even though support service was found to be an impotent element to represent service quality, the significant relationship with customer loyalty showed that it is important to capture a higher level of customer loyalty and needs equal attention. This study contributes to the Malaysian automotive industry, especially national carmakers, as it provides empirical evidence on the relative importance of service quality attributes to be prioritized in developing their marketing strategy to attract more loyal customers.

Assessing the Empirical Evidence of Attitude Intention Relationship in the Purchase of Energy Efficient Vehicle

Despite warnings about limited fossil fuel as well as the detrimental impacts of burning such fuels, the number of conventionally fueled vehicles in use is growing worldwide. While energy efficient vehicles (EEVs) produce far less emissions and provide power from renewable sources, EEVs are yet to get full acceptance from the local market and the penetration rate is still low. In Malaysia, thesales trend shows that there is a low level of EEV purchased, where energy efficient vehicle only owned 3 percent of market share in Malaysian automotive industry. To fill this gap, this study focuses to examine the relationship between consumers’ attitude towards EEV and their intention to purchase energy efficient vehicle. Data was collected using quantitative approach through mall intercept survey method at ten selected malls in Peninsular Malaysia. Respondents were intercepted at the entrance of the mall and were invited to take part in the survey. The complete process of data collection took five months and comprised a total of 515 respondents. The hypothesis in the present study was tested using Partial Least Squares (PLS). The analysis revealed a positive relationship exists between consumers’ attitudes on EEVs and intention to purchase EEVs. The present study provides recommendations, limitations, and suggestions for future study.

Prioritisation of barriers for supply chain management implementation in the Malaysian automotive industry

Paper aims Several Barriers impede the robust effectiveness of the supply-chain management implementation for the Malaysian automotive industry. The purpose of the present work is to identify these Barriers and prioritize them. Originality Originality of the present work lies in identifying the Barriers, putting them into categories and subsequently prioritize them by applying a scientific method such as Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP).Research Research method This study has identified five main categories of Barriers through literature reviews. Fourteen practitioners who are involved with the automotive industry helped prioritise those Barriers by applying the AHP.Main Main findings Five main categories of Barriers are found to be technological, organisational, individual, strategic, and cultural barriers. Organisational barrier is the most critical barrier followed by technological and strategic barriers. Implications for theory and practice This research provides important feedback to the automotive company managers to take appropriate measures to minimise negative impacts of the barriers identified.

Eco-innovation impacts on recycled product performance and competitiveness: Malaysian automotive industry

This study aims to develop a theoretical circular economy model that examines the impact of eco-innovation practices on recycled product performance and competitiveness in Malaysian automotive industry. The supply of recycled materials has been recognized as one of the critical components to produce brand new automotive products. This empirical study was conducted among automotive firms and groups consisting first, second, and third-tier suppliers. The data were analysed using structural equation modeling. The results support the importance of innovation and cost efficiency from the perspective of resource-based view and the ability of a firm to manage resources while practicing circular economy initiatives, whilst instrumental to the success of recycled product performance and competitiveness. The degree of competitiveness that a firm experiences through new product development is targeted by integrating the theory of resource-based view, eco-innovation, and circular economy. The findings reveal that eco-innovation practices with circular economy principles assist business competitiveness in the automotive industry.

A holistic model of dynamic capabilities and environment management system towards eco-product innovation and sustainability in automobile firms

PurposeEnvironmental pollution has emerged as a major concern in the 21st century following the introduction of sustainable development (SD) by the year 2030, whereby one of the predominant goals is related to the manufacturing industry. In Malaysia, the automotive industry is acknowledged as the backbone driving for economic growth and recognised as a source of environmental deterioration. Therefore, eco-innovation is, thus, introduced as one of the efforts for minimised environmental effects, reduced social impact and firm value sustenance. In particular, eco-product innovation is one of the renowned environmental innovation dimensions and displays high adoption and diffusion rates in developed countries due to green awareness and government financial assistance. However, developing countries such as Malaysia show relatively low adoption of such practices amongst companies, whereby most of the efforts are driven by the governments, supplier and customer demands. Therefore, this paper aims to delineate the factors of voluntary initiatives undertaken by the Malaysian automotive and auto parts industry towards eco-product innovation.Design/methodology/approachThe research drew from the micro-level perspective, thus using dynamic capabilities (DC) constructs and environmental management system (EMS) strategy variables. The constructs included technology collaboration, green human resources and eco-culture, while the variables denoted formal EMS and top management support. Survey data were obtained from 242 entities within the Malaysian automotive and auto parts industry, which were subjected to analysis via confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modelling.FindingsThe findings revealed the moderating role played by eco-product innovation for the association linking EMS strategy and sustainability development, while no moderator effects were observed between DC and sustainability development. Thus, future research can be performed in the meso and macro-level areas by using qualitative research across different sectors.Originality/valueThis paper explicates novel literature content, particularly for the field of eco-product innovation; it positions an empirical analysis from the micro-level perspective regarding the antecedence of DC and environmental strategy towards eco-product innovation and SD, mainly in the automotive industry.

AHP-Consensus Judgement on Transitional Decision-Making: With a Discussion on the Relation towards Open Innovation

Green and sustainable engineering business models have become a major topic across industries due to concerns regarding environmental issues and the decline of natural resources. Remanufacturing is showing promise as a preferable solution in terms of environmental, societal, and economic factors compared to alternatives such as repairing, reconditioning, and recycling. By considering the nature of the closed cycle loop system, this paper proposes the idea of a transitional agenda into remanufacturing. However, different countries should employ different approaches to such a transition in order to appropriately account for and integrate diverse stakeholders, perspectives, and preferences. Therefore, the main objective of this study is to evaluate prioritized elements and sub-elements in the development of a transitional decision-making framework (TDMF) in the Malaysian automotive industry by applying the analytical hierarchy process (AHP). Aggregation of individual and group judgement is done for prioritised elements and their sub-elements, which are then ranked accordingly using element weights based on the acceptance of individual and group consistency index values.

The relationship between sustainable manufacturing practices, lean improvement and performance

The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between sustainable manufacturing practices, lean improvement, and performance in Malaysian automotive industry by using structural equation modelling technique. Survey questionnaires were used among 227 managers in Malaysian automotive industry. SEM technique was used to test the statistical analysis of the data required in the study. Based on the results, sustaining lean improvement is part of a mediating relationship between sustainable manufacturing practices and performance which is positive results. For this purpose, it assists academicians and researchers for sustainable manufacturing practices implementation in order to assist the automotive industry to increase lean improvement and performance.

The Politics and Institutional Arrangements in Malaysia's Automotive Industry

The Politics and Institutional Arrangements in Malaysia's Automotive Industry

The Implemention of Total Productive Maintenance in Malaysia Automotive Industry

The purpose of this paper is to determine the implementation of total productive maintenance in Malaysian automotive industry. 400 questionnaires were distributed to Malaysian automotive industry and 229 were completed, giving a response rate of 57.25%. Based on the developed models, the results of the study provide guidance for effective implementation of total productive maintenance in Malaysian automotive industry. This study makes a new contribution to the Malaysian automotive industry for total productive maintenance implementation. This study provides important information for decision makers to implement total productive maintenance in automotive industry and also provides useful information for future researchers in the total productive maintenance area.

Employee Engagement and Retention in Automotive Industry in Malaysian Context. Job Stress as a Moderator

Employee engagement has been extensively researched lately as it delivers a positive business outcome. Due to the complex competition prevailing in the automotive industry, maintaining a high-level engagement among the employees is important for long term business performance. The level of employee engagement can be improved by identifying its drivers. For this purpose of study, The Malaysian automotive industry was chosen as it plays a significant role in the manufacturing sector which drives towards industrialization nation, hence contributing to the Malaysian economy. The drivers of employee engagement are identified as (rewards and recognition, leadership, empowerment, compensation and career development) and their relationship between employee engagements are examined. Furthermore, Job stress was used as a moderator to examine the relationship of Employee Engagement and Retention. 288 responded from this industry in Malaysia based on random sampling and Structural equation modelling (SEM) was utilised as statistical tools to perform the analysis. It is hoped that this study will benefit many organizations, especially the employers and human resource managers in Malaysia by developing a better understanding on the importance of employee engagement within the organization, in a way, which could improve the performance of the business competitiveness and retain the employees

An Improved Resin Supply Chain Framework for Malaysia Automotive Industry – Case Study of a Foreign Car Maker

An Improved Resin Supply Chain Framework for Malaysia Automotive Industry – Case Study of a Foreign Car Maker

Challenges and Strategies of Malaysian Automotive: A Literature Review 2016-2018

Malaysia automotive industry is facing extraordinary challenges from global competition such as foreign brands through trade liberalization and the changes on customer behavior. The National Automotive Policy (NAP) still not fully transformed Malaysian automotive industries into a globally competitive and export-oriented sector. Hence, more research needed to find out more strategies to overcome every single challenge. Hence, this paper aim to study about Malaysia automotive industry’s challenges and strategies comprehensively.Based on findings, there are nine main strategies to overcome various challenges; EEV, ELV, sustainability, performance monitoring, relationship, management, NPD, customer engagement and continuous improvement. Most of the studies related to green such as end-of-life vehicle (ELV), Energy Efficient Vehicles (EEV) and sustainability but still lack of study about new product development (NPD) even though the significance towards industry’s survival. Due to that, further research will investigate on NPD specifically on cross-functional team empirically in the future due to cross-functional team is one of the factors of NPD success.Total 46 the most relevant articles has been chosen from various journals and databases between year 2016 and 2018 with keywords “Malaysia” and “Automotive” for the most updated review. The challenges and strategies reviewed due to other than as a guidance for further research, it can help companies to improve the strategies suitable with the challenges they are facing. From author knowledge, no studies about comprehensive review on Malaysia automotive industry’s challenges and strategies as most of the study focus on certain topic such as on quality management.

The Impact of Employee Involvement and Empowerment in Lean Manufacturing System Implementation towards Organizational Performances

Lean Manufacturing System (LMS) implementations in Malaysia’s automotive industry has not been extensive in its expected reach, as extensive inquiries revealed it being adopted as a “pick-and-choose” system for certain processes or only upon determined levels within the industry. Current implementation strategy does not permit the industry to gain total benefits from the system itself. Undeniably, a few significant factors are being given less significance in multiple stages of LMS’ execution. Employee involvement and employee empowerment have been identified as part of these contributing factors in a successful implementation of LMS in an organization. However, important criterion with its contributing aspects of these factors is not given the necessary attention, translating into a lamer impact upon companies embarking on a LMS deployment. This paper examines the impact of these two factors in the implementation of a lean manufacturing system towards achieving organizational performances in the automotive industry. A questionnaire-survey was administered to gauge the impact of these two factors in an implementation process of a lean manufacturing system and later analyzing the effect towards their organizational performances. Data from 204 automotive parts manufacturers were gathered and analyzed. The correlation between the influencing factors, 5 lean activities and 6 organizational performances were measured. The results gained suggest that the integration between employee involvement and employee empowerment will be a valuable critical organizational capability impacting organizational performances towards the successful implementation of LMS in the Malaysian automotive industry.