The present status of quality and manufacturing management techniques and philosophies within the Libyan iron and steel industry

Purpose – This paper aims to investigate the present status of the implementation levels of total quality management (TQM), just‐in‐time (JIT) and manufacturing resource planning (MRPII) within the iron and steel industry in Libya and the management implications for this industry. Design/methodology/approach – A survey methodology was applied in this investigation using an extensive questionnaire and one‐to‐one interviews within the correspondent Libyan iron and steel industry. Findings – Based on the analysis of the questionnaire survey and the one‐to‐one interview responses, the results show that the strategies applied by the executive management body towards most of the areas that are considered as being crucial in any successful implementation of the investigated quality and manufacturing management techniques and philosophies are not well planned. The actual implementation levels of the TQM, JIT and MRPII practices were found to be in the modest levels within the surveyed industry. The paper has identified limitations within the iron and steel industry in terms of the investigated quality and manufacturing techniques and philosophies, and has pointed to areas where the senior managers need to take action in order to achieve an effective and successful implementation of these techniques and philosophies within their business areas. This is an important finding for the future success of the surveyed industry within Libya. Research limitations/implications – Future research could be applied to cover other industries within Libya in order to investigate how widely these quality and manufacturing management techniques and philosophies from this research are reflected in other Libyan industries. Originality/value – This paper investigates the present implementation status of TQM, JIT, and MRPII within the Libyan iron and steel industry, not covered in previous research. It makes a contribution by providing an insight into what extent the TQM, JIT and MRPII are understood and implemented within the Libyan iron and steel industry.