Contribution of lean production to the resilience of the Brazilian automotive supply chain

We propose a method to assess companies’ ability to cope with different types of disruptive events by developing resilience capabilities through Lean Production (LP) implementation. We use direct and reverse mathematical operations with two expert opinion-based matrices mapping relationships between LP practices and resilience capabilities, and resilience capabilities and types of disruptive events, obtained collecting opinions from 12 experts. We apply the method in two instances. First, using results from a survey with 135 practitioners from the Brazilian automotive industry regarding their adoption levels of LP practices. Direct matrix operations using this input indicated the development levels of eight resilience capabilities and the ability degree to cope with four types of disruptive events. Second, presenting four scenarios in which a company is exposed to high- and low-impact disruptive events of temporary and permanent nature, we perform reverse matrix operations to identify resilience capabilities and LP practices best fit to cope with each type of event. From the direct analysis of practitioners’ data two LP practices (supplier feedback and involved customers) and two resilience capabilities (provide a quick response to disruption and adapt to disruption easily) stand out. These practices and capabilities mainly prepare companies to cope with high impact disruptions of permanent nature.