Supplier selection with the integrated MEREC-CoCoSo method in a company manufacturing medical devices

The medical device industry is a rapidly developing industry in the world that includes various dynamics. Developed technologies show continuous improvement depending on diagnosis and treatment applications in health services. In order to keep up with this change and to survive in an increasingly competitive environment, medical device manufacturers need to be in continuous improvement activities. This situation, which is necessary for many companies producing in the industrial field, gains even more importance in the medical device sector when the direct impact of product safety and quality on human life is considered. In companies producing medical devices, the legal requirements of the product being a medical device are followed by the notified bodies and authorized authorities within the framework of standards and regulations within the scope of quality processes. Increasing costs and liabilities with MDR 2017/45 have pushed medical device manufacturers to question their processes. In this study, it was determined that customer requests could not be met in a company producing medical devices, and it was observed that delivery times increased. In the evaluation made on the reasons for the increase in the delivery time, it was determined that the supplier selection could not be carried out effectively. For this purpose, 6 suppliers and 6 criteria were determined as a result of the company's sector knowledge and focus group evaluations. Combined Compromise Solution (CoCoSo) method, which is one of the new generation multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) methods, is proposed for ranking the suppliers in the supplier selection problem. Method Based on Removal Effects of Criteria (MEREC) weighting method was used for the weighting of supplier selection criteria. In this study, a new generation supplier selection method application in medical devices has been carried out. Considering the inadequacy of the studies in the field of supplier selection in medical devices, it is thought that the relevant study will contribute to the literature.