Systematic literature review of theory of constraints

Abstract

The objective of the present study is to identify relevant research areas related to the subject of the Theory of Constraints by Goldratt. The methodology of systematic literature review was used in the article. Bibliometric research was conducted on the basis of four full-text databases of EBSCO, Emerald, ScienceDirect and SpringerLink from the years 2013–2017. Four main research directions related to the Theory of Limitations have been identified: (1) practical use of the TOC, (2) research TOC in the combining with the tools of Lean Manufacturing, (3) transformation (improvement) of TOC tools and (4) proposals for new instruments that are used to apply the Theory of Constraints.