Ikea Production and Operations

Production and Operations

Before entering a contract with a supplier, IKEA check for the supplier’s ability to meet IKEA’s Quality Compliance Standard. This standard, also known as GO/NOGO requirements, must be fulfilled continuously by all active IKEA suppliers. For new suppliers, GO/NOGO requirements has to be audited and approved before their first delivery, while for active suppliers, a minimum of every two years.

Below are the said GO/NOGO requirements, as quoted from the IKEA’s official supplier portal website:

1. The IKEA Supplier shall secure that all products are produced according to, and meet, IKEA product documentation or otherwise as agreed with IKEA in writing.

2. The IKEA Supplier shall register, structure and maintain all verification documents and information required in the IKEA product documentation into the Connect system, unless otherwise agreed with IKEA in writing.

Registered verification documents and information shall together reflect the material, components and production setup used for each product in relation to production date-stamp. For all purchased materials and components the sub-supplier of those shall be specified.

3. The IKEA Supplier shall secure that special process control is implemented at its own production unit as well as at sub-suppliers according to IKEA requirements specified in:

• IKEA product documentation

• special processes appendices

4. The IKEA Supplier shall perform final inspection as agreed in writing between the parties. The detailed content of the final inspection shall be determined on product level, based on Supplier´s internal as well as IKEA quality key performance indicators, and include:

• inspection method

• reference material to use

• sampling plan

• acceptance criteria

The IKEA Supplier shall document the result from the final inspection as agreed with IKEA.

5. The IKEA Supplier shall secure that inspected non-conforming materials, products and components are identified and separated, to avoid that non-conforming products are delivered to IKEA.

Also part of GO/NOGO requirements are the special process appendices, which applies to selected production processes, consisting of:

• Insect management for natural fibre

• Surface treatment - spraying waterborne lacquer and waterborne UV curing

• Surface treatment - roller coating UV

• Gluing

• Polyurethane foam

• Printing/dyeing in 100% woven cotton textiles

• Inorganic coating of metal substrates

• Injection molding of thermo-plastics

• Packing process

• Gelfoam rubber

To control its inventory management, IKEA employs in-store logistics personnel, whose duties are to monitor and record deliveries, check delivery notices, sort and separate the goods, and sent them to the correct area. There are also in-store logistics manager responsible for the ordering process and a store goods manager responsible for material handling logistics.

IKEA chooses the locations that maximize the respective operations activities, for example; Sweden is where most of designing activities for new products takes place, while most of the factories where the products are created are located in developing countries, like China, because of the lower cost of labor.

Research and Development

The challenge that IKEA faces is to provide high quality products at the lowest price, in accordance with its vision and cost leadership strategy.

While IKEA doesn’t have a dedicated department for R&D, all R&D aspects are present in