Building an innovation-based supplier portfolio: the use of patent analysis in strategic supplier selection in the automotive sector
With an increasing proportion of external spend allocated to a smaller number of suppliers in their supply base, car manufacturers rely more and more on the performance of key supply chain partners outside their own organisational boundaries, particularly for product innovation. The identification a...
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| Format: | Article |
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Elsevier
2017
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| Online Access: | https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/43454/ |
| _version_ | 1848796691783745536 |
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| author | Trautrims, Alexander MacCarthy, Bart L. Okade, Chetan |
| author_facet | Trautrims, Alexander MacCarthy, Bart L. Okade, Chetan |
| author_sort | Trautrims, Alexander |
| building | Nottingham Research Data Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | With an increasing proportion of external spend allocated to a smaller number of suppliers in their supply base, car manufacturers rely more and more on the performance of key supply chain partners outside their own organisational boundaries, particularly for product innovation. The identification and selection of innovative suppliers for strategically important supply categories require tools to determine which supply categories are supplier innovation-led and which suppliers are the most innovative. Here we discuss the use of patent analysis to identify product categories where supplier-led innovation is important, and which suppliers are leading innovation. We use data from the US patent office to analyse two important product innovation supply categories – car body technologies and car seats – from a leading premium automotive producer's supply portfolio. From the patent filings data we identify the innovation activities of car manufacturers and suppliers in each category over an eleven year period. It is evident from the analysis that innovation in car body technologies is dominated by the car manufacturers whereas innovation in car seats is strongly supplier-led. The results of the patent analysis are used to develop and discuss supply management options for the case company. Insights gained from patent analysis can be used to support procurement and sourcing processes at different levels: to identify innovation-active product categories at a supply portfolio level; to assess the innovativeness of potential suppliers at a product category level; and to identify which tier in a supply chain is active in product innovation at a supply chain level. Broader issues on the potential of patent analysis to inform and support procurement and sourcing processes are discussed. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T19:52:01Z |
| format | Article |
| id | nottingham-43454 |
| institution | University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus |
| institution_category | Local University |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T19:52:01Z |
| publishDate | 2017 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | nottingham-434542020-05-04T19:25:09Z https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/43454/ Building an innovation-based supplier portfolio: the use of patent analysis in strategic supplier selection in the automotive sector Trautrims, Alexander MacCarthy, Bart L. Okade, Chetan With an increasing proportion of external spend allocated to a smaller number of suppliers in their supply base, car manufacturers rely more and more on the performance of key supply chain partners outside their own organisational boundaries, particularly for product innovation. The identification and selection of innovative suppliers for strategically important supply categories require tools to determine which supply categories are supplier innovation-led and which suppliers are the most innovative. Here we discuss the use of patent analysis to identify product categories where supplier-led innovation is important, and which suppliers are leading innovation. We use data from the US patent office to analyse two important product innovation supply categories – car body technologies and car seats – from a leading premium automotive producer's supply portfolio. From the patent filings data we identify the innovation activities of car manufacturers and suppliers in each category over an eleven year period. It is evident from the analysis that innovation in car body technologies is dominated by the car manufacturers whereas innovation in car seats is strongly supplier-led. The results of the patent analysis are used to develop and discuss supply management options for the case company. Insights gained from patent analysis can be used to support procurement and sourcing processes at different levels: to identify innovation-active product categories at a supply portfolio level; to assess the innovativeness of potential suppliers at a product category level; and to identify which tier in a supply chain is active in product innovation at a supply chain level. Broader issues on the potential of patent analysis to inform and support procurement and sourcing processes are discussed. Elsevier 2017-12-31 Article PeerReviewed Trautrims, Alexander, MacCarthy, Bart L. and Okade, Chetan (2017) Building an innovation-based supplier portfolio: the use of patent analysis in strategic supplier selection in the automotive sector. International Journal of Production Economics, 194 . pp. 228-236. ISSN 0925-5273 Supplier management; Supplier portfolio; Supplier selection; Innovation; Patents http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0925527317301524 doi:10.1016/j.ijpe.2017.05.008 doi:10.1016/j.ijpe.2017.05.008 |
| spellingShingle | Supplier management; Supplier portfolio; Supplier selection; Innovation; Patents Trautrims, Alexander MacCarthy, Bart L. Okade, Chetan Building an innovation-based supplier portfolio: the use of patent analysis in strategic supplier selection in the automotive sector |
| title | Building an innovation-based supplier portfolio: the use of patent analysis in strategic supplier selection in the automotive sector |
| title_full | Building an innovation-based supplier portfolio: the use of patent analysis in strategic supplier selection in the automotive sector |
| title_fullStr | Building an innovation-based supplier portfolio: the use of patent analysis in strategic supplier selection in the automotive sector |
| title_full_unstemmed | Building an innovation-based supplier portfolio: the use of patent analysis in strategic supplier selection in the automotive sector |
| title_short | Building an innovation-based supplier portfolio: the use of patent analysis in strategic supplier selection in the automotive sector |
| title_sort | building an innovation-based supplier portfolio: the use of patent analysis in strategic supplier selection in the automotive sector |
| topic | Supplier management; Supplier portfolio; Supplier selection; Innovation; Patents |
| url | https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/43454/ https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/43454/ https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/43454/ |