Delphi Research Questionnaires (round 2)

Question 1: ‘Based on your personal experience in the Manufacturing Industry, what do you see as the most significant factors that have contributed to the shift in employment within the European Manufacturing sector?’
1. Your response from Round 1

Category	Factor	Frequency %
Cost	Low labour cost	26%
Cost	Cost leadership	5%
Cost	Taxrates	5%
Cost	Energy cost	3%
Cost	Transport cost	2%
Cost	Exchange rates	2%

Technology	Automation	20%
Technology	Productivity	2%

Market	Close to end market	8%
Market	Labour availability	8%
Market	RM availability	3%
Market	Improved infrastrcture	2%

Operations strategy	Outsourcing (core competence)	15%

Other	Environmental issues	2%
Other	Mergers	2%
		100%

Question 2: ‘In the next 10 years, do you expect employment in the European Manufacturing Industry to increase or decrease?’
2. Your response from Round 1

Aggregated responses from all Expert panel members Round 1

Option	Factors	%
Decrease	Automation, robotics, Internet of Things, Industry 4.0	65,6%
	Ongoing LCC shift
	High cost of Energy
	High cost of investment in MF capacity

Increase	Automation, robotics, Internet of Things, Industry 4.0	28,1%
	Local content regulations
	Near shoring
	Increasing transportation cost

Stable	Automation, robotics, Internet of Things, Industry 4.0	6,3%
	Nearshoring <> LCC shift
		100%

Question 3: ‘Considering the Manufacturing Industry has now entered the 4th Industrial Revolution, what do you currently consider to be main strategic and operational drivers for manufacturing companies working across borders for the coming decade?’
3. Your response from Round 1

Strategic and operational drivers	Frequency %

Maccarthy & Atthiwarong (2002)
Access to low labor cost and labor skills	20%
Access to markets	17%
Access to raw materials and technology	12%
Tax incentives	9%
Counterattack against competitors	2%

Other factors
Access to cost effective, flexible supply chain	22%
New manufacturing technologies (IoT, 3D printing, Industry 4.0)	13%
Stable Infrastructure	1%
CO2 footprint	1%
Access to energy	1%
Cost of transport	1%
Adaptability	1%
	100%

Question 4: ‘Based on your professional experience, how would you rate the critical location factors for industrial location of the European Manufacturing Industry in the coming decade?’
4. Your response from Round 1

Location factors	Unimportant	Slightly important	Important	Very important
4.1 Transportation	0%	16%	53%	31%
4.2 Labor	3%	13%	41%	44%
4.3 Raw materials	3%	38%	28%	31%
4.4 Markets	0%	19%	28%	53%
4.5 Industrial site	6%	41%	34%	19%
4.6 Utilities	9%	28%	34%	28%
4.7 Government attitude	0%	13%	50%	38%
4.8 Tax structure	0%	19%	44%	38%
4.9 Climate	22%	38%	34%	6%
4.10 Community	3%	34%	53%	9%
4.11 Political situation of foreign country	0%	3%	44%	53%
4.12 Global competition and survival	0%	22%	47%	31%
4.13 Government regulation	0%	9%	50%	41%
4.14 Economic factors	0%	22%	53%	25%

Additional factors
IT infrastructure
IP protection
Environmental regulations
Education & skills
Quality
Workforce ethics
Social innovation
Company culture
Location direct customer / OEM

Question 5: ‘Based on your previous and personal experience, what do you consider to be the most difficult problem or problems to overcome when dealing with international manufacturing location decisions?’
5. Your response from Round 1

Problems with international location decisions	Frequency %
Lack of in depth local knowlwdge	23%
Lack of objective evaluation criteria	13%
Cultural differences	13%
Lack of capable expertise / mgt to support DM process	13%
Sheer complexity of the problem	10%
High speed of business climate change	8%
No TCO focus	5%
No government support	5%
Imbalance short/long term	5%
Environmental regulations	3%
Bureaucracy	3%
	100%

Question 6: ‘Based on your business experience, what recommendations do you have to overcome the problems related to the industrial location decision making process?’
6. Your response from round 1
Aggregated responses from all Expert panel members Round 1

Recommendations for international location decisions	Frequency %
Understand local dynamics, way of working, culture	28%
Apply objective and raitonal evaluation criteria	18%
Keep a long term view / perspective	15%
Take enough time for in depth analysis	13%
Stakeholder analysis & mgt	8%
Use cross functional teams	5%
Link to overall vision & strategy	5%
Understand government regulations	3%
Risk mitigation plan	3%
Propoer IT infrastructure	3%
Education & selection of right staff	3%
	100%