... It can be observed that several tools are appearing for more than one issue as any improvement activity brings multiple advantages. Karlsson and Åhlström (1996), Burcher et al. (1996), Burton and Boeder (2003) Automated transport, cell based layout, JIT, pull system, set-up time reduction 2 Inventory reduction Katayama and Benett (1996), Karlsson and Åhlström (1996), Sohal (1996), Lamming (1996), Burcher et al. (1996), , Benders and Morita (2004), Dutta (1998), Mital (1998) Standardisation, shorten set-up time SMED), minimising down time of M/Cs by TPM, reducing lot size, JIT, kaizen, quality circles, composite inventory index (CII), manufacturing flexibility Bonito (1990), Engström et al. (1996), Amelsvoort and Benders (1996), Schuring (1996), Harrison and Storey (1996), , Niepce and Molleman (1996), Dangayach and Deshmukh (2000), Treville and Antonakis (2006), Upadhye et al. (2006), Jadhav and Khire, 2007 Valued and motivated employees, focused HRM practices, effective leaning and innovation, cooperative behaviour, standardised operational procedure (SOP), 5S, SPC, QFD, quality and flexibility, JIT, TQM, TPM, kaizen, design for manufacturing and assembly, supplier management ...