Productivity Improvement in Small and Medium Machine Manufacturing Industries in Kenya

Abstract

Productivity determines an organization's competitiveness and consequently its growth.  Kenya’s development plan dubbed vision 2030 recognizes small and medium industries (SMs) as key stimulants for the growth of industrial sector. Productivity improvement of SMIs is therefore critical for the achievement of vision 2030.  This paper reviews factors that determine productivity and quality of products manufactured by SMIs. Subjective method is used in the survey to investigate productivity levels in SMIs and identify the factors that influence productivity. The relationship of productivity to the factors is determined using multiple regression analysis. In addition, the interaction between the factors is determined. The technique facilitates SMIs to achieve optimum results by prioritizing areas in which to improve and invest more capital. The results indicated that application of technology is the best for improvement of productivity since it has multiple effects on other factors.