TOC- To improve Supply Chain with special emphasis

Research Papers

A Literature Review Of Theory Of
Constraint In Performance
Improvement With Special Emphasis
On Supply Chain Management

by Kuldeep Singh Malik

Theory of Constraint's role in the success of IT
with special reference to ERP

Abundant literature is available on the revolutionary theory of management known as “the Theory of Constraints” .It
discusses the applications of this theory but in very few limited aspects of management. The present paper overcomes
this limitation and broadens the scope of literature review by covering the latest studies including the studies
conducted till March 2011.Although the paper highlights different applications of TOC in manufacturing, project
management, ERP, integration of TOC with Lean, Six Sigma including 6TOC,specific applications in marketing, HRM,
Product management, sales management, education field, restaurants, Healthcare, medical science, sustainable
development E–commerce, Innovations management, Small business management, Enterprenership, Oil refineries,
Airlines, and Banking sector Yet, special mention has been given on the recent studies of TOC based on distribution
management and replenishments practices resulting in an increase in ROI, reduction in operating expenses,
improvements in sales force performance, sales force productivity and range selling in FMCG sector. The present paper
also highlighted the three level strategies i.e. Strategic, tactical and operational level planning of a TOC project. This
paper can serve as a quick reference guiding tool for academicians, researchers and industry professional to gain
insights into the TOC literature and applications to achieve significant improvement in manufacturing, services and
not-for profits sector.

The TOC is a system's management philosophy developed by an Israeli physicist Eliyahu M. Goldratt. It took over
two decades research, claiming that each system has at least one constraint, challenging current state of
businesses practices and it's been inspired from root cause analysis. In his book, “The Goal: A Process of Ongoing
Improvement”. Goldratt states that a firm's goal is to make money now and in the future. A company will not exist if
it is not making money. Any activity that does not help make money is a waste of time and resources [The Goal,
Goldratt].

1. Theory Of Constraints
The real inspiration of TOC came from Prof. Ishikawa's the Fish-bone analysis/ the root -cause analysis. It
builds on the Lean philosophy of eliminating waste to cut costs and decrease production time ([38] Lori
Ranson., 2010).In his book, “The Goal: A Process of Ongoing Improvement”. Goldratt states that a firm's
goal is to make money now and in the future. A company will not exist if it is not making money. Any activity
that does not help make money is a waste of time and resources ([15] Goldratt, 2004).Each system has at
least one constraint that challenges the current state of a business's practices and its location can be in the
market, resources, suppliers, knowledge and competence. In the absence of it, the system could produce
unlimited amounts of profit ([31] Kuldeep Singh Malik., (2011).The identification and exploitation of
constraints or bottlenecks remains focus of TOC to get closer and closer to fully attaining its performance
objectives ([38] Lori Ranson., 2010). Although TOC has been praised as a beneficial theory yet the same has
also been subject to criticism mainly by ([52] Paul Husby); 2007) on the ground of being complex to master,
excessively using an "intellectual" language for problem-solving process , a strong need of a well trained
experts for implementation and the top-down nature that discourages all team members.

2. Applications Of The Principle Of TOC
The TOC applications range from Project Management, Distribution, Production, Supply Chain, Financial
Management, Marketing, HRM, Sales& Buy-In, Managing People, and Strategy & Tactics, Health care and
Education sector .However, there are several other areas of TOC applications yet to be explored. In Project
management, it has been discussed through Buffer management by Dr Goldratt and Fox in 1986, Dr
Goldratt and Cox in 1992, Stein in 1996, Cox and Spencer in 1998, Goldratt in 1997 and Goldratt et al in
2000 and they found that Buffer management was the key to effective production scheduling. In
Distribution, It involves the drum-buffer-rope (DBR) scheduling method, buffer management, and the VAT
analysis through the TOC based measurements to make the system accomplish its goal of making money.
TOC based Performance measurement includes operating measures (throughput, inventory, operating
expenses) and local performance measures (throughput-dollar-days and inventory-dollar-days) ([68] Togar
M Simatupang et al; 2004).The benefits of the TOC interventions in Distribution are mainly an increment in
the sales volume together with the reduction in the expenses of a distributor/retailer in the distribution

Vector Consulting Group www.vectorconsulting.in


network, reduction in the investments and hence, improvement in the ROI. The bottlenecks are tackled
using automatic- replenishment method ([9] Cyplik P., Hadaś Lukasz, Domański R., 2009).In the Education
field, Goldratt established a not-for-profit foundation named "TOC for Education" in 1995 with a goal to
improve children's education by training them on TOC tools for better learning, thinking and
communication skills. The academic institutions of Philippines, Malaysia, Mexico, Yugoslavia, Venezuela,
United Kingdom, and South Africa are taking advantage of the TOC. In Malaysia alone, about 35,000
teachers and 650,000 students are being taught TOC. According to ([64] Smith et al;1996).TOC makes it
easier to make sensible decisions in areas such as product mix, product pricing, capital investment and
process improvement expenditures, and product addition/deletion decisions that are in alignment with
corporate goals.

3. Literature Review
According to ([71] Victoria J. Mabin: (2003), majority of books and items on TOC made claims like increased
throughputs, reduced inventories and lead-times, which in turn would lead to higher sales, and improved
profits, quality, and customer satisfaction. While, majority of the TOC applications involved the philosophy,
operations management, DBR, and the constraint management led continuous improvement along with the
Five Focusing Steps. The TOC applications in an FMCG sector has been discussed by ([31] Kuldeep Singh
Malik, 2011), in the area of Supply Chain Management and significant improvements in the system has been
presented .The paper also discusses the variable affecting the success of a TOC project. The variables most
significant are the initial loss of sales due to changeover of the old system of replenishment to TOC based
DBR, The loss of man days as a result of the sales force being trained of the job, 3) Resistance to change of
the concerned entities, Training of 980 distributors, Sales officers, and 1698 salesmen of the company at the
mass level covering over thousand distributors and salesmen. The paper describes the unique strategy
adopted by the management to buy back the existing excess stock of retailers to start from scratch rather
than awaiting for the stock to get sold. The need and challenges of monitoring the physical stock at retail by
the sales force for each outlet to adhere to TOC guideline has been mentioned. Since the TOC generates
data on replenishment and It has to be Managed by the less equipped sales force, which becomes a
challenging issue in the success of a TOC project. Fulfilling of single piece orders by the distributors requires
strong commitment levels. Training of the all retailers in their outlets by the company sales force on TOC
without any formal arrangements suitable for training becomes a challenge to HR department.([31] Kuldeep
S.Malik, 2011) discussed the TOC applications in distribution logistics in FMCG sector and explained how
TOC can improve ROI of distributors and retailers leading to improvements in Sales force performance. This
paper's strength lies in the TOC projects practical application described at strategic, tactical and operational
level. The challenges narrated through a case study can serve a guide to top management, practitioners and
TOC consultants while successful implementing TOC. The paper also discusses a survey of opinions of
distributors and the company executives to gain buy-ins of all the entities concerned. ([32]Kuldeep
S.Malik;2011) presented a unique combination of TOC and ERP called TOC-ERP which is suggested to make
an ERP Project to achieve success during all the stages of an ERP project life cycles. The presentation of the
paper in the conference covered the success achieved of the TOC-ERP in an Indian firm named Sheela Foam
limited. In a study conducted by ([34]Kuldeep S.Malik,2011),a combination of TOC and Lean has been
discussed and it has been revealed that the TOC-Lean combination is very powerful tool in which the
weaknesses of Lean are covered into strengths and the combination leads a firm in achieving continuous
improvements.([65]Seung-Hyun Rhee ,2010) discussed combination of TOC and BPMS and asserted that
TOC improves the efficiency in a system by BPMS in heavy workloads.([41] Mahesh Pophaley, 2010)
discussed the combination of TOC and TPM; and explained how the combination leads called “TOC-TPM”
improves flow and Throughput, reduces OE and inefficiencies. The author studied An Indian plant that was
already using the 5S, Kaizen, and Daily Management. In a study ([2] Amarpeet Kohli, 2010) implemented
TOC in Restaurants and presented a case study on a small family-owned Pizza restaurant and presented the
results achieved using the TOC's five focusing steps .The significant improvement noticed in Throughput,



resource utilization and customer satisfaction along with a reduction in Operating Expenses. ([43] Mariza
Siller ;2010) used a TOC Project case study of a Mexican firm with one- piece production for on-time
delivery.([1] A Ray ,2010) developed a unique TOC modeling and presented an Analytic hierarchy process
(AHP). The study also compared the TOC, AHP and Integer Linear Programming models and concluded that
AHP was the best among the three methods. TOC in Healthcare was studied by ([57] Roy Stratton ,2010)
wherein the TOC based time buffer management was used to improve patient flow in UK hospitals using
Jonah software and the results reported were reduction in length of stay over 20%, improvement in
emergency and accident handling. In a case study presented by([6]Bernardo Villarreal ,2010) a Mexican
firm was studied for handling agility using FMS and explained a scheme by ranking set-up reduction
projects to achieve the Goal .TOC applications in small scale firms was discussed by ([40] Mahesh c. Gupta
,2010) and suggested 3 M frameworks for small fir owners with a new mindset of “Increasing Throughput
rather than “Reducing Expenses”. In a study by ([60] Seonmin Kim, 2010) a literature review of TOC TPs was
conducted to find the research gaps. The Compared TOC tools and their usages, by using TOC Evaporating
Cloud and simulation and it was concluded that the level of WIP inventory and the protective capacity
determines cycle time and throughput of the re-entrant line. TOC project and the critical chain
methodology and simulations was used by ([26]John H Blackstone Jr , 2009) using uniform, triangular and
exponential distributions. TOC and A3 reports were implemented by ([59] Satya S Chakravorty; 2009) in
manufacturing operations of an Aircraft repair project the results were discussed using an exploratory
study. The study highlighted the four phases of a TOC project with the help of A3 reports. The four phases
are namely; 1) Preparation and training, 2) Process mapping and current state analysis,3) Process mapping
and future state analysis and 4) Implementation and ownership. The role of TOC in innovation has been
described by ([59] Michael A Dalton, 2009) wherein TOC lead innovation discovered bottleneck-the the
constraint that is holding back the entire process. The Five focusing steps were used to eliminate constraints
and move to next level with increased innovation throughput. The importance of a good implementer to
reduced the perceived risk of failure has been discussed by ([25] John Fagan, 2009). TOC improved the
efficiency and financial performance of the sick and inefficient shop owned by ([66] Tim Sramcik, 2009). The
author asserted that Lean should not be partly applied in a business. It should be adopted throughout a
business to gain its full benefits. An Exploratory study was undertaken by ([19]Frank Birkin (2009) in Nordic
countries to identify business model for sustainable development and it was concluded that social context
and the right management tools such as TOC were found to be critical for sustainable development. TOC
applications in retail and supply chain were studied by ([49]Neetu Andotra , 2009) by comparing a firm
practices and its customers' perceptions on supply chain links variables using survey based research and
suggested some specific lot sizes in retail towards supply chain efficiency. ([67] Todd Creasy, 2009) said that
6 TOC as a combination of Lean and Six Sigma was proposed to avoid the organizational failures and a new
method for buffers management at critical resources in shop floor control was proposed. ([54] R. A. Inman,
2009) empirically examined the relationships among TOC, expected results of TOC, and organizational
performance by using a structural equation modeling and revealed the results in form of improved
performance. The book “The Goal” was reviewed by ([56] Ronald S, 2009) using a fictional case study. It was
asserted by ([7] Bob Sproull, 2009) that Lean and Six Sigma are important for success of TOC. It was
discussed by ([44] Maria Z Ramos, 2009) that a TOC and Lean integration helps to create the right
sequence of production on equipment. TOC application in mental health discussed by ([20] Gupta and Kline,
2008) and revealed that TOC could improve clinician efficiency and reduce waiting times in mental health
care industry. TOC applications in banking industry has been study area of ([53] Richard A Reid, 2008) and it
was revealed that TOC improved efficiency in banking system through the use of the five focusing steps and
system control. TOC applications in marketing has been proposed by ([10]David Lavin ,2008) to satisfy
customer demand with reliable delivery and rapid response and it was concluded that TOC helps to
increase demand for products. An Empirical research on Inter organizational systems based on TOC has
been conducted by ([50] Nitza Geri, 2008) in 139 firms in Israel. The proposed study explained organizations
reluctance to implement IOS models and barrier found were lack of management support and uninterested



potential partners. It was suggested that TOC removes these barriers. A case study of a dynamic Expert
system developed on the TOC was presented by ([22]I Rosolio ,2008) and the proposed system was
implemented at an Oil Refineries in Israel. The model responds to dynamic bottlenecks and market
constraint by linking production planning and operation control to maximize profits. A case study was
presented by ([46] Mats Larsson, 2008) and the limitations of continuous improvement philosophies were
discussed along with a proposal of the nine ways of increasing the system boundary. In a study of TOC and
JIT by ([29] K J Watson, 2008) the impact of buffering was discussed under JIT and TOC and a simulation
output suggested that TOC was better than JIT. ([3] Amitava Ray, 2008) developed an outsourcing model by
combining the Hurwicz criterion, TOC and linear programming and with the help of a case study proved that
the proposed model could maximize the product throughput. In a study of TOC & Technology ([4] Anton V.
D. Merwe, 2008) presented limitations of TOC in providing opportunity cost and technology adoption
decision scenarios. TOC and Inventory area was explored by ([27] John Mansuy, 2008) and it was revealed
that TOC did not regard inventory as an asset. It was proposed to add inventory contra account to the
balance sheet. TOC and healthcare were discussed by ([51] Noriaki Aoki, 2008) with TOC applications in
medicine, diagnosis and treatment field. The study proposed physician executives to use the systematic
thinking along with the three principles: 1). Total optimization 2) Constraints and 3) Policy-measurement-
behaviour.TOC Literature was reviewed by ([42] Mahmoud M Yasin, 2008) and a field research was
conducted. The field research revealed operational and customer related benefits as a result of TOC
implementation and emphasized the need of systematic implementation, change management techniques,
the total system and Benchmarking. TOC for Green Environment was discussed by ([28] Julie Lockhart,
2008) the role of TOC has been highlighted in the production of clean products with maximum benefits
through a better mix of Earth-friendly products. TOC in E-Businesses studied by ([48] Narcyz Roztocki, 2008)
and the paper explored TOC based Throughput Accounting (TA) using a case study of an on-line retailer and
the TOC based TA has been proposed over costing for E-Businesses for operating efficiency and profitability.
TOC and Six sigma has been discussed by ([52] Paul Husby, 2007) stated that Six Sigma lacks a value chain
orientation and supply chain orientation whereas TOC has both these orientations. The author also
discussed the limitation of TOC .The TOC language is tough to understand becoming a barrier in
improvement efforts. TOC Replenishment and supply chain area has been explored by ([68]
T.M.Simatupang, 2007) and studied a conceptual framework for TOC approach through supply chain
collaboration. It was concluded that collaborative replenishment policy with Collaborative performance
metrics helped in improving customer satisfaction in Supply chain. The quantification of replenishment by
TOC and reverse logistics were given as the future research areas. The area of Supply chain management
through replenishment has been discussed by ([72] Victoria J Mabin, 2007) with a case survey to ascertain
the real impact of TOC for improving lead time, cycle-time, and revenue. The research indicates TOC is a
source of competitive advantage for manufacturing organizations and proposed for commercial and for not-
for-profit sectors. Goldratt & Goldratt, (2007) Considered that points of sale generally operate with shortage
levels of at least 20%.The TOC distribution methodology decreases system stock (typically 50%),increase in
sales (typically at least 20%),increases stock turnover (typically over 100%),decreases internal transferences
between regional warehouses, decreases obsolescence (typically to less than 50%),Operational Expense
kept approx the same and improvement in relationship between clients and suppliers.

Period Key Focus Areas

1980-90 Production, Throughput Accounting.
1990-95 TOC TPs(Jonah certification)
1995-97 Distribution, Marketing management
1997-99 Project Management
1999-00 TOC-Technology
2000-07 TOC-Business strategy, TOC for Airlines management.



2007-09 TOC-JIT-Six Sigma-TQM-Lean
2009-10 TOC--5S-TPM- Kaizen–FMS–BPMS
2010-11 TOC in NGOs, E-Business, Environment, Healthcare, Retail, Sustainable Development.

The Theory of Constraints development in literature can be examined by drawing a parallel with Product life
cycle. The Introduction stage (1980-90) of the Theory of constraints focused on Production and Throughput
accounting and the TOC was considered as a software program only rather than a philosophy. During it,
Dr.Goldratt himself was the pioneer in popularizing it across the world through his novels and books such
as, The Goal, The race, and The Haystack Syndrome. The second stage, the growth stage further can be
broken down into the initial tools based growth stage (1990-95) which marked an era of the TOC thinking
process in which structured training and certification programs were developed that were riding high on the
success of the success at the introduction stage. The tools developed at this stage were namely The
Evaporating Cloud (EC) based on The Core Conflict (CC), The Current Reality Tree (CRT), The Transition Tree
(TT), and The Future reality tree (FRT). The second part of the growth stage (1995-97) is TOC based
Distribution, Marketing and logistics management. During this phase, several research papers and success
stories exhibited how TOC was effective in reducing the Operating Expenses (OE), reducing the stock levels
across the supply chain, improving Throughputs and reduce investment to improve ROI. The impact of DBR
and the Dynamic Buffer Zones on inventory control was highlighted in several cases studies. The third part
of the growth stage marked a beginning of using TOC in managing projects with the Critical Chain to ensure
on time performance. The fourth part of the growth stage (1999-00) dealt with collaboration of TOC with
ERP and other technologies. There is special mention of how TOC can help ERP project to achieve success
throughout the life cycle of an ERP implementation. The book “Necessary but Not Sufficient” deals with
same issue in this phase. The fifth part of the growth stage (2000-07) involves a focus on TOC application in
business strategy and some highly specific applications in service sector e.g. Airlines management. In this
period, TOC has been made popular using the TOC holistic approach through the eight video session
released by the Goldratt School. The sixth part of TOC (2007-09) discussed TOC in collaboration with the
other management philosophies of improving the system performance of an organization. The
collaborations of TOC –JIT, TOC-Six Sigma, TOC-TQM and TOC-Lean have been discussed by several thought
leaders like ([52] Paul Husby, 2007) on TOC and Six sigma. However TOC applications in the area of Supply
chain management have been mentioned by([68] T.M.Simatupang, 2007),Goldratt & Goldratt, (2007) and
([72] Victoria J Mabin, 2007) .The seventh part of the growth stage of TOC philosophy (2009-10) again
demonstrates TOC collaboration with several popular philosophies namely TOC--5S, TOC-TPM, TOC- Kaizen,
TOC–FMS, and TOC–BPMS. The current year (2010-11) represents the latest stage of growth of TOC
philosophy with discussion recent issues belonging to the new millennium. The notable work in this era
deals with TOC applications in NGOs, E-Business, Environment protection, Healthcare management ,Retail
sector, Sustainable Development, Banking & Insurance, small business management, Restaurant
management, biomedical and engineering services, aircraft maintenance and repair operations, and
innovation investment & leadership. The work of ([60] Seonmin Kim, 2010) on TOC and re-entrant lines
using TOC TPs, ([40] Mahesh c. Gupta, 2010) on 3 M frameworks for small firm entrepreneurs, ([6] Bernardo
Villarreal, 2010) on a case study of a Mexican firm for handling agility using FMS, ([57] Roy Stratton, 2010)
on TOC in Healthcare to improve patient flow in UK hospitals using the Jonah software to improve in
emergency and accident handling, ([1] A Ray ,2010) presented and compared the TOC, AHP and Integer
Linear Programming models, ([43] Mariza Siller ;2010) discussed one piece production using TOC case study
of a Mexican firm to achieve on –time delivery, ([2] Amarpeet Kohli ,2010) presented a case study on a small
family-owned Pizza restaurant to improved Throughput, resource utilization and customer satisfaction with
lesser OE, ([41]Mahesh Pophaley ,2010) and ([65]Seung-Hyun Rhee ,2010) studied the collaborations of
TOC with TPM and BPMS respectively, ([34]Kuldeep S.Malik,2011) studied the combination of TOC with
Lean to overcome the weaknesses of Lean to provide a powerful combination to improve business
performance, ([32]Kuldeep S.Malik;2011) revealed that when TOC is used along with an ERP



implementation, TOC can provide support on human issues during all stages of the ERP project life cycle and
([31]Kuldeep S.Malik,2011) demonstrated through a case study of an Indian FMCG firm that how TOC can
not only help a firm to reduce stock pressures at retail, distributors and CFA but also improve the Key
Performance Indicators (KPIs) of the FMCG sales force including significant improvements in productivity
and Total Lines Sold in Day (TLSD).

The Theory of Constraints development in literature can be examined by drawing a parallel with Product life
cycle. The Introduction stage focuses on Production and Throughput accounting and it is a software
program only rather than a philosophy. The second stage is tools based growth stage which marked an era
of the TOC thinking with tools developed like The Evaporating Cloud (EC) based on The Core Conflict (CC),
The Current Reality Tree (CRT), The Transition Tree (TT), and The Future reality tree (FRT). Later ,TOC based
Distribution, Marketing and logistics management to reduce the Operating Expenses (OE), reducing the
stock levels across the supply chain, improving Throughputs and ROI have been mentioned in the TOC
literature through cases studies. The third part mentioned Projects management which later followed by
collaboration of TOC with ERP and other technologies. The book “Necessary but Not Sufficient” remained
the most significant work in this phase. Later, the focus of TOC shifted to application in business strategy
formulation and service sector along with the audio-visual content developed in the form of eight video
session released by the Goldratt School. The sixth part discusses TOC in collaboration namely TOC –JIT, TOC-
Six Sigma, TOC-TQM and TOC-Lean. However TOC applications in the area of Supply chain management
have been mentioned by several authors including Dr Goldratt himself .Later till the end of the present
decade, TOC collaborations namely TOC--5S, TOC-TPM, TOC- Kaizen, TOC–FMS, and TOC–BPMS were
highlighted. The first quarter of current year (2011) represents the latest stage of growth of TOC philosophy
with discussion of recent issues & TOC applications in NGOs, E-Business, Environment protection,
Healthcare management, Retail sector, Sustainable Development, Banking & Insurance, small business
management, Restaurant management, biomedical and engineering services innovation investment
&leadership. As per the authors' knowledge the recent study by ( Kuldeep S.Malik,2011) demonstrated a
TOC case study in FMCG sector in the areas of distribution, replenishment and supply chain across retail
and distributor points .The study stands unique to discuss findings of the opinion survey conducted on the
distributors and executives of the firm prior to the TOC rollout and the associated improvements of the Key
Performance Indicators and sales force performance management in a TOC environment.

References:
A Ray, B Sarkar, S Sanyal (2010), the TOC-Based Algorithm for Solving Multiple Constraint Resources, IEEE Transactions on
Engineering Management. New York: May 2010. Vol. 57, Iss. 2; pg. 301.

Amarpeet S Kohli, Mahesh Gupta (2010), “Improving Operations Strategy: Application of TOC Principles in a Small Business”,
Journal of Business & Economics Research. Littleton: Apr 2010. Vol. 8, iss. 4; pg. 37, 9 pgs.

Amitava Ray, Bijan Sarkar, Subir Sanyal (2008), “A holistic approach for production outsourcing” Strategic Outsourcing: an
International Journal. Bingley: 2008. Vol. 1, Iss. 2; pg. 142.

Anton van der Merwe (2008), “Debating the principles-Theory of Constraints”, Cost Management. Boston: Mar/Apr 2008. Vol. 22,
Iss. 2; pg. 26, 9 pgs.

Balintfy J.L (1964), On a Basic Class of Multi-Item Inventory Problems, Management Science, vol.10.

Bernardo Villarreal (2010)., “A TOC Approach to Setup Reduction to Improve Agility”; Journal of Business Case Studies. Littleton:
Jul/Aug 2010. Vol. 6, Iss. 4; pg. 1, 7 pgs.

Bob Sproull (2009),“To focus improvement efforts to find the "Leverage Point"; Foundry Management & Technology. Cleveland: Mar



2009. vol. 137, Iss. 3; pg. 40, 2 pgs.

Cynthia Ruppell (2010), “Velocity: Combining Lean, Six Sigma and the Theory of Constraints to Achieve Breakthrough Performance-A
Business Novel”; Journal of Applied Management and Entrepreneurship. Fort Lauderdale: Jul 2010. Vol. 15, Iss. 3; pg. 113, 2 pgs.

Cyplik P., Hadaś Lukasz, Domański R (2009), “Implementation of the theory of constraints in the area of stock management within
the supply chain - a case study.” Log Forum vol5/issue3/no6.

David Lavin, Max Krug (2008); “Grow your capacity. Grow your market share”, Wood Digest. Fort Atkinson: Dec 2008. Vol. 39, iss.
12; pg. 14, 2 pgs.

Derek Korn; Revisit "The Goal", Modern Machine Shop. Cincinnati: May 2009. Vol. 81, Iss. 12; pg. 14, 1 pgs.

Eliyahu M. Goldratt (1990), “The Haystack Syndrome: Sifting Information Out of the Data Ocean.” Great Barrington: North River
Press.

Eliyahu M. Goldratt (1990), “What is thing called the Theory of Constraints, and how should it be implemented.” Croton-on-Hudson:
North River Press.

Eliyahu M. Goldratt (1997). Critical Chain. Great Barrington: North River Press.

Eliyahu M. Goldratt (2004)., “The Goal: A Process of Ongoing Improvement”. North River press.

Eliyahu M. Goldratt. (1994). “It's not luck.” Great Barrington: North River Press.

Eliyahu M. Goldratt., Schragenheim, E & PTAK, C (2000)., “Necessary but not sufficient.” Great Barrington: North River Press.

Fernando Bernardi de Souza, Sílvio R.I. Pires (2010), “Theory of constraints contributions to outbound logistic”, Management
Research Review. Patrington: 2010. Vol. 33, Iss. 7; pg. 683.

Frank Birkin, Thomas Polesie, Linda Lewis (2009), “A new business model for sustainable development: an exploratory study using
the theory of constraints in Nordic organizations”, Business Strategy and the Environment. Chichester: Jul 2009. Vol. 18, Iss. 5; pg.
277.

Gupta, Mahesh, Chahal Hardeep Kaur, Gurjeet Sharma, Ramji (2010); “Improving the weakest link: A TOC-based framework for
small businesses”; Total Quality Management & Business Excellence; Aug2010, Vol. 21 Issue 8, p863-883, 21p, 2.

Holmberg, S (2000). , “A system perspective on supply chain measurement.” International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics
Management, v. 30, p. 847-868.

I Rosolio, B Ronen, N Geri (2008)., “Value enhancement in a dynamic environment - a constraint management expert system for the
oil refinery industry”; International Journal of Production Research. London: Aug 2008. Vol. 46, Iss. 16; pg. 4349.

J Q Wang, S D Sun, S B Si, H A Yang (2009)., “Theory of constraints product mix optimization based on immune algorithm”,
International Journal of Production Research. London: 2009, Vol. 47, Iss. 16; pg. 4521.

James F. Cox, Michael Shea Spencer (1997), the constraints management handbook, CRC press series.

John Fagan (2009), “Break free from constraints”, Automotive Body Repair News. Cleveland: Jul 2009. Vol. 48, Iss. 7; pg. 56, 3 pgs.

John H Blackstone Jr, James F Cox III, John G Schleier Jr(2009), A tutorial on project management from a theory of constraints
perspective ,International Journal of Production Research. London: 2009. Vol. 47, Iss. 24; pg. 7029.

John Mansuy (2008), “ACCURATE VALUE”, Industrial Engineer. Norcross: Mar 2008, Vol. 40, Iss. 3; pg. 47, 5 pgs.

Julie Lockhart, Audrey Taylor (2007)., Environmental Considerations in Product Mix Decisions Using ABC and TOC Management
Accounting Quarterly. Montvale: Fall 2007. Vol. 9, Iss. 1; pg. 13, 6 pgs.

K J Watson, A .Patti (2008). , “A comparison of JIT and TOC buffering philosophies on system performance with unplanned machine
downtime”, International Journal of Production Research. London: Apr 2008. Vol. 46, Iss. 7; pg. 1869.



Kendal, G.I (2005). “Viable Vision: transforming total sales into net profits.” Boca Raton: Ross Publishing.

Kuldeep Singh Malik, Hemalatha PK (2011). “Theory of Constraints applications in FMCG Distribution channel: A case Study”
proceedings of the “Biennial Supply Chain Management Conference 2011” organized by Indian Institute of Management Bangalore,
dated Jan 7– 8, 2011.

Kuldeep Singh Malik,Hemalatha PK (2011)., “Theory of Constraint's role in the success of IT with special reference to ERP”
proceedings of the “1st International Conference on Computing Business Applications and Legal Issues”, hosted by Institute of
Management Technology , Ghaziabad , dated March 3-4, 2011.

Kuldeep Singh Malik,Hemalatha PK (2011)., “Theory of Constraints in Social Engineering: an application in consumer durable
Industry in India” presented in “International Conference on Green Business Strategy 2011” organized by JK Business School,
Gurgaon, Haryana, dated Jan 6 - 7, 2011.

Kuldeep Singh Malik, Binod Kumar Singh (2010)., “Lean & TOC collaboration: The whole is greater than the sum of the parts”
proceedings of “The National Conference on Recent Trends in Mechanical Engineering 2010” hosted by Datta Meghe College of
Engineering, Maharashtra , dated Aug 28-29,2010.

Kiyun Woo, Soonyoung Park, Shigeru Fujimura (2009).“Real-time buffer management method for DBR scheduling” International
Journal of Manufacturing Technology and Management. Geneva: 2009. Vol. 16, Iss. 1/2; pg. 42.

Kuldeep Singh Malik, Hemalatha PK (2011), “Theory of Constraints applications in FMCG Distribution channel: A case Study”
proceedings of “Biennial Supply Chain Management Conference 2011”; Indian Institute of Management Bangalore on 7& 8Jan,
2011.

L Hadas, P Cyplik, M Fertsch(2009)., “Method of buffering critical resources in make-to-order shop floor control in manufacturing
complex products”, International Journal of Production Research. London: 2009. Vol. 47, Iss. 8; pg. 2125.

Lori Ranson (2010), “Delta's focus on constraints is driving down engine overhaul turnaround times”, Flight International. London:
Sep 14-Sep 20, 2010. Vol. 178, Iss. 5257; pg. 28, 1 pgs.

Mabin, V.J.; Balderstone S.J (2003). “The performance of the theory of constraints methodology: Analysis and discussion of
successful TOC applications”. International Journal of Operations & Production Management, v. 23, n. 6. Publishing, 2005.

Mahesh C. Gupta, Lynn H. Boyd (2008), “Theory of constraints: a theory for operations management”, International Journal of
Operations & Production Management. Bradford: 2008. Vol. 28, Iss. 10; pg. 991.

Mahesh Pophaley, R K Vyas (2010). “Optimizing Maintenance Management Efforts by the Application of TOC: A Case Study”, UP
Journal of Operations Management. Hyderabad: Aug 2010. Vol. 9, Iss. 3; pg. 48, 14 pgs.

Mahmoud M Yasin, Andrew J Czuchry, Rani A Kady (2008),“Re-engineering operational practices and processes to improve the
customer focus of a marketing organisation”, Advances in Competitiveness Research. Indiana: 2008. Vol. 16, Iss. 1/2; pg. 47, 15 pgs.

Mariza Siller, Taidé Sanchez, Jair Onofre (2010)., Reducing Order Cycle Time Through a TOC-Lean Approach: A Case Study, IIE
Annual Conference Proceedings. Norcross: 2010. pg. 1, 6 pgs.

Maria Zita Ramos, Alexandra Tenera (2009)., “Leveling the Production of a Potting System: A TOC/Lean approach”, IIE Annual
Conference Proceedings. Norcross: 2009. pg. 2091, 6 pgs.

Mark Stephen (2009). “Trimming Waste? A Guide to Six Sigma, Lean, and the Theory of Constraints”, Canadian Plastics. Don Mills:
Jan/Feb 2009. Vol. 67, Iss. 1; pg. 19, 3 pgs.

Mats Larsson, Mohammed Arif, Hani M. Aburas (2008)., “Incremental changes and efficiency leaps in the improvement of internal
effectiveness”; Management Research News. Patrington: 2008.Vol. 31, Iss. 8; pg. 583.

Michael A Dalton (2009), WHAT'S CONSTRAINING YOUR INNOVATION? Research Technology Management. Arlington: Sep/Oct 2009.
Vol. 52, Iss. 5; pg. 52, 13 pgs.

Narcyz Roztocki (2002)., “Successfully Managing an E-Business by Applying the Theory of Constraints”., IIE Annual Conference



Proceedings. Norcross: 2002. pg. 1,1pgs.

Neetu Andotra, Pooja(2009). “TOC Supply Chain Management Solution for Food Processing Industries”, Journal of Small Business
and Entrepreneurship. Regina: 2009. Vol. 22, Iss. 3; pg. 239, 14 pgs.

Nitza Geri, Niv Ahituv (2008)., “A Theory of Constraints approach to Inter organizational systems implementation”, Information
Systems and eBusiness Management. Heidelberg. Vol. 6, Iss. 4; pg. 341, 20 pgs.

Noriaki Aoki, Sachiko Ohta, Nobutaka Kikuchi, Mariko Oishi (2008)., An Introduction to the Theory of Constraint and How it Can Be
Applied to Medical Management. Physician Executive. Tampa. Vol. 34, Iss. 2; pg. 52, 5 pgs.

Paul Husby (2007); “Competition or Complement: Six Sigma and TOC”; Material Handling Management. Cleveland .Vol. 62, iss. 10;
pg. 51, 5 pgs.

Richard A. Reid (2007)., “Applying the TOC five-step focusing process in the service sector; A banking subsystem”., Managing Service
Quality. Bedford: 2007. Vol. 17, Iss. 2; pg. 209.

R. Anthony Inman et al (2009)., “Analysis of the relationships among TOC use, TOC outcomes, and organizational performance”,
International Journal of Operations & Production Management. Bradford: 2009. Vol. 29, Iss. 4; pg. 341.

Rik Berry, Lola Belle Smith (2005),“Conceptual foundations for The Theory of Constraints”, Human Systems Management, IOS Press,
Volume 24.

Ronald S Tibben-Lembke (2009), “Theory of constraints at UniCo: analyzing The Goal as a fictional case study”, International
Journal of Production Research. London, Vol. 47, Iss. 7; pg. 1815.

Roy Stratton, Alex Knight (2010). “Managing patient flow using time buffers, Journal of Manufacturing Technology Management”,
Bradford, Vol. 21, Iss. 4; pg. 484.

Satish Mehra, R Anthony Inman, Gregory Tuite (2005), “A simulation-based comparison of TOC and traditional accounting
performance measures in a process industry”, Journal of Manufacturing Technology Management. Bradford: Vol. 16, Iss. 3; pg. 328,
15 pgs

Satya S Chakravorty (2009), “Process Improvement: Using Toyota's A3 Reports”, the Quality Management Journal. Milwaukee, Vol.
16, Iss. 4; pg. 7, 20 pgs.

Seonmin Kim, Victoria Jane Mabin, John Davies (2008), “The theory of constraints thinking processes: retrospect and prospect”,
International Journal of Operations & Production Management. Bradford, Vol. 28, Iss. 2; pg. 155.

Schragenheim, A. (2007a), "Managing distribution according to TOC principles", available at: www.inherentsimplicity.com

Seonmin Kim, James F Cox, Victoria J Mabin (2010), “International Journal of Production Research”, London, Vol. 48, Iss. 14; pg.
4153.

Simatupangetal T.M., Wright A.C., Sridharan R (2004),”Applying the Theory of Constraints to Supply Chain Collaboration, Supply
Chain Management”, an International Journal Volume 9.

Smith, D., Noreen, E., & Mackey, J. T. (1996). The Theory of Constraints and Its Implications for management Accounting, North
River Press, Inc., Croton-on-Hudson, New York.

Seung-Hyun Rhee, Nam Wook Cho, Hyerim Bae (Sep 2010), “Increasing the efficiency of business processes using a theory of
constraints”, Information Systems Frontiers. Boston, Vol. 12, Iss. 4; pg. 443.

Tim Sramcik (July 2009)., “SLIMMING DOWN IS CHALLENGING” Automotive Body Repair News. Cleveland, Vol. 48, Iss. 7; pg. 10, 1
pgs.

Todd Creasy (2009). “Pyramid POWER”, Quality Progress. Milwaukee, Vol. 42, Iss. 6; pg. 40, 6 pgs.

Togar M Simatupang, Alan C Wright, Ramaswami Sridharan (2004); “Applying the theory of constraints to supply chain
collaboration”, Supply Chain Management. Bradford, Vol. 9, Iss. 1; pg. 57



Umble, E.J. and Umble, M. (2002), "Integrating the theory of constraints into supply chain management", pp. 479-84.

Victoria J Mabin, Steven J Balderstone (1999), “The World of Theory of Constraints”, Lucie Press.

Victoria J Mabin, Steven J Balderstone (2003)., “The performance of the theory of constraints methodology: Analysis and discussion
of successful TOC applications”, International Journal of Operations & Production Management. Vol. 23, Iss. 5/6; pg 568, 28 pgs.

Kuldeep Singh Malik is Head of Research at Vector Consulting Group.

Vector Consulting Group (www.vectorconsulting.in) is the leader of ‘Theory of Constraints’ consulting in India. Vector has been
working closely with some of the well known retail chains, FMCG, fashion products, custom manufacturing industry and auto
after market companies to improve their overall profitability through supply chain effectiveness.

Kuldeep Singh Malik can be reached at kuldeep@vectorconsulting.in


TOC- To improve Supply Chain with special emphasis

Recommended

Recommended

More Related Content

Viewers also liked

Viewers also liked (14)

More from Vector Consulting Group

More from Vector Consulting Group (18)

Recently uploaded

Recently uploaded (20)

TOC- To improve Supply Chain with special emphasis