Supplier Information Integration for Mitigating Supply Risk in Chinese and Thai Manufacturing Industries

Abstract: Background:  Supply risk becomes a crucial risk that manufacturing companies are facing while supplier information integration is one of the most important parts of supply chain management and supplier integration. The research based on the relationship between them is rarely found. Purpose: To find, describe, and compare the significant relationship of supplier information integration and supply risk and identify whether supplier information integration can help to mitigate supply risk in Chinese and Thai manufacturing industries. Methods: In order to answer the research questions, the search of the relevant literatures were carried out. The theoretical frame was made of basic concepts, approaches of supplier information integration, and sources of supply risk. The questionnaire was designed based on the theoretical framework and sent out among Chinese and Thai listed manufacturing companies. The correlation analysis was carried out as the main approach to check the significant relationships while the   descriptive statistics were used to described, compared, and analyzed in order to indentify the level of SII and perception of supply risk. Conclusion: The level of supplier information integration and the perception of supply risk showed differences in Chinese and Thai manufacturers. Chinese manufacturing industry was at medium level of IT and share tactical and strategic information with suppliers with a concern on suppliers’ suppliers while the Thai manufacturing industry was at low level of IT and shared only tactical information with suppliers with very less concern on suppliers’ suppliers. Chinese manufacturers showed an obvious lower perception of getting affected by terrorist incidents and natural disasters while Thai manufacturers showed the same perception of all sources of supply risk. The results indicated that most of relationships between the sub items of supplier information integration and supply risk were not significant with some special cases that showed small and medium relationships. The contribution and suggestion were concluded at the end.