FACTOR ANAYZING OF SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT IN THE RUBBERWOOD PROCESSING INDUSTRY IN SOUTHERN THAILAND

Abstract

Supply chain management is a crucial mechanism for enhancing the operational efficiency of the rubberwood processing industry. Therefore, this study aimed to: 1) Investigate and develop the components of supply chain management in the rubberwood processing industry, and 2) Examine the goodness-of-fit of the proposed supply chain management component model with empirical data. A quantitative research approach was employed. The sample consisted of 400 business executives from rubberwood processing enterprises in southern Thailand, selected using purposive and convenience sampling techniques. The research instrument was a questionnaire with an Index of Item-Objective Congruence (IOC) ranging from 0.66 to 1.00 and a Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of .994, indicating excellent content validity and reliability. Data were collected from rubberwood processing companies in southern Thailand and analyzed using descriptive statistics, including means and standard deviations. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) was conducted to assess the consistency of the proposed model with empirical data. The results showed that: 1) Supply chain management in the rubberwood processing industry in Southern Thailand comprises five key components, namely: 1.1) Sourcing, 1.2) Delivery, 1.3) Planning, 1.4) Production, and 1.5) Returns, represented by a total of 20 observed variables; and 2) The proposed model demonstrated a good fit with the empirical data, with goodness-of-fit indices of χ² = 107.402, df = 89, p = .090, χ²/df = 1.207, GFI = .975, CFI = .998, and RMSEA = .023. All fit indices satisfied the established criteria, indicating that the proposed components appropriately explain the structure of supply chain management in the rubberwood processing industry.