Manufacturing Change Management - A Survey On Current Challenges, The State Of Digitalization And The Application Of Change Impact Analysis In Industrial Practice

Abstract

Modern manufacturing companies operate in a complex and highly dynamic environment. External factors such as new legislations and customer demands, as well as internal factors such as fluctuations in production rates and frequent product changes, make it essential for companies to respond quickly and effectively to changes of all kinds. Scientific literature already provides various processes and methods to manage Manufacturing Changes (MCs) efficiently and to precisely assess their possible impacts. Building upon the existing literature, this survey-based study aims to gain practical insights into the implementation of Manufacturing Change Management (MCM) and Change Impact Analysis (CIA) in real-world industrial settings. By examining the current challenges and exploring the state of digitalization, this research provides valuable insights to complement and further develop the existing theoretical frameworks. In order to gather diverse knowledge from experts across various industries, a web-based survey was conducted, with 99 participants representing 15 different industries. After introducing the necessary theoretical foundations and the current state of research in MCM literature, this contribution describes in detail the methodology of the survey development. The survey findings are then outlined and discussed thoroughly. Finally, the contribution concludes by offering an outlook on future research perspectives based on the identified industry challenges.