The application of CAD/CAM in the Sri Lankan SME footwear industry : a developmental strategy

Abstract

The Sri Lankan small and medium scale enterprise (SME) footwear industry is at crossroads. Developmental strategies for this industry are vital given the economic condition of these organisations and the global context of the footwear industry. The overall objective of this research is to identify the present state of technology usage in the SME footwear industry and to recommend pragmatic solutions to develop it. To this end, a random sample of the stakeholders (n=l4) in the SME footwear industry was surveyed and the data was analysed. This paper presents the initial findings from survey on the current status of CAD/CAM applications and the stakeholder view on a proposed common facility named "CAD/CAM Resource Centre" (CRC) for the SME footwear industry.