earticle

영어

Economy has been changed from resource-based to knowledge-based with advances in technology. Work in manufacturing operation also has been changed from simply performing specified procedures to applying expertise and creating new knowledge. It means that organizational learning and learning by workers become important in production system and it`s infrastructure. Various organizational learnings(quality circle, job rotation, education and training, and suggestion system for improvement, etc) take place in JIT(Just-in-Time) manufacturing. However it has not been studied theoretically and statistically whether there is a relationship between organizational learning and success of JIT manufacturing. So this study tried to verify the importance of organizational learning in JIT manufacturing with the assumption that JIT manufacturing is composed of JIT practices and organizational learning. This study focused on the impact of both JIT practices and organizational learning on manufacturing performance, and we developed fives hypotheses to test statistical correlations. Before analyzing the empirical data, organizational learnings were categorized as systematic problem solving, knowledge acquisition, knowledge creating, knowledge sharing, and knowledge utilization. Empirical data were collected by direct interview or mail survey from Korean manufacturing companies. The samples were selected mainly in the auto and electronic industries which JIT practices were common. Cronbach`s alpha and factor analysis were used to test the variables` validities and reliabilities, and canonical correlation analysis was used to test five hypotheses. The results indicated that: (1) there was a significant relationship between the use of JIT practices, alone, and manufacturing performance, and kanban and maintenance was significantly related to manufacturing performance; (2) there was a very strong relationship between JIT practices and organizational learning, and all organizational learning variables were significantly related to JIT practices; (3) the combination of JIT practices and organizational learning have strong relations than the use of JIT practices only, and kanban, maintenance, systematic problem solving, and knowledge acquisition were significantly related to manufacturing performance; (4) organizational learning itself was related to manufacturing performance, and systematic problem solving was significantly related to manufacturing performance; and (5) manufacturing performance was related to competitive advantage, but there was not a significant manufacturing performance variable related to competitive advantage. These findings provide support for the notion that JIT practices accompanying organizational learning are useful for Korean companies to increase their`s manufacturing performance and to enhance their`s manufacturing process. And organizational learning enhances the performance of production system. In conclusion, as economy becomes knowledge-base, organizational learning becomes more important in JIT manufacturing as an infrastructure of production system.