Effective coordination is an important determinant of performance in globally dispersed offshored operations. This is an under-researched area particularly regarding the contextual factors that drive the choice of coordinating modes, and whether the most effective coordinating modes depend on...

The Customer Enquiry Management (CEM) process is of strategic importance to non-Make-To-Stock companies but few empirical studies have explored the CEM practices adopted by firms in practice. A study on the Italian capital goods sector by Zorzini, Hendry, Stevenson, and Pozzetti (2008) provides...

This paper aims at investigating the relationships existing between postponement and modularization practices actually implemented by Italian companies and contextual factors mainly linked to product features. A multi-case study research strategy was adopted and statistical techniques applied...

Additional efforts will be needed by European countries to improve the energy efficiency, as with current trends the 20% objective will be missed. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) manufacturing sector is a promising field, as SMEs are less energy-efficient than larger enterprises....

The paper identifies and evaluates barriers to industrial energy efficiency through the investigation of 48 manufacturing Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) in Northern Italy. The research provides interesting suggestions both for enterprises and energy policy-makers. Firstly, economic...

The need to increase the diffusion of energy efficiency measures (EEMs) is of crucial importance to achieve a consistent reduction of energy consumption and green house gases (GHG) emissions. A clear comprehension of the characteristics of such EEMs could assist in gathering and capitalizing all...

Several studies have investigated the barriers to industrial energy efficiency, but few have focused on the most effective means (drivers) to promote the adoption of energy-efficient technologies and practices. In this respect, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) have been completely...

Energy management plays an important role in the transformation of industrial energy systems towards improved energy efficiency and increased sustainability. This paper aims to study driving forces for improved energy efficiency in some European energy-intensive foundry industries. The...