Large Engineering Company Research Articles

Do all roads lead to Rome? A multi-case analysis of informal learning and team innovation

PurposeIn this study, the authors use the actor-network theory (ANT) as a theoretical framework to better understand constructing learning as part of the networking process to produce innovations. Focussing on the antecedents of innovation within three teams in an engineering company, the authors propose a framework to enhance understanding of the innovative processes. The authors apply ANT to examine how informal learning is distributed amongst human and non-human actors.Design/methodology/approachBased on 27 interviews in a large Australian engineering company, the authors' qualitative investigation shows that innovation can have very different antecedents. The authors mobilised ANT as the authors' vantage point to explore inanimate actors and their effect on social processes or, more specifically, networks and informal learning.FindingsThe authors propose a framework to better understand innovative processes by exploring the network aspects of non-human actors and their connection to learning. More specifically, findings contribute towards a more granulated understanding of how networks, learning and non-human actors contribute towards innovations in organisations.Practical implicationsThis study has three significant implications for managers and organisations looking to improve their innovation processes. Firstly, fostering open communication is essential for developing successful innovation processes. Secondly, a close relationship with the customer and/or the final users has often been found to positively contribute to innovation processes. Finally, intrateam motivation is also critical when it comes to creating an environment that supports innovation processes.Originality/valueSurprisingly, leadership, communication and motivation did not give the best innovative outcome as the authors expected. Challenging traditional theorisations, low teamwork spirit and high individual performance orientation were some of the powerful drivers of highly innovative teams.

A qualitative exploration of managerial mothers' flexible careers: The role of multiple contexts

This study explores the lived career experiences of women managers with children in Sweden. Drawing on existing theory on flexible careers which proposes that multiple contexts – institutional, organizational and individual - shape employees' career decisions, we present findings from a study of 34 career mothers in dual-income households within a large engineering company in Sweden. We show that the institutional context in Sweden, with its shared parental leave, is an important element in the women's career decisions by directly mandating the fathers' engagement with childcare and home roles and indirectly fostering a family-supportive organizational culture. We theorize that the family context needs to be incorporated into existing theoretical models and specifically demonstrate how continuing shared childcare roles between the parents is critical to mothers' career outcomes. We evidence the various ways in which fathers engage with home responsibilities and how that influences the mothers' career decisions. Furthermore, we argue that the institutional environment has consequences which cascade down to each of the other contextual levels and that the importance of the different contexts can vary according to the work-care regime. We therefore challenge recent research which claims that the industry ecosystem is the crucial force in shaping women's careers.

Championing Design Thinking Practice in an Organization Driven by Engineering

While the adoption of design thinking practice to foster organizational innovation requires improving practice-fit with the organization, studies exploring the role design professionals may play in this process remain rare. We draw on championing and practice adoption literature to empirically investigate how design professionals champion the adoption of design thinking practice within their organization. Based on 66 semi-structured interviews among design professionals working in a variety of positions in large engineering company, our findings reveal that design professionals championed for the adoption of their professional practice through five practices: by consolidating their professional practice within innovation projects, by advancing and by regulating the replication of the practice across innovation projects, and by culturally legitimating and by sheltering the practice within the organization. While all design professionals championed their practice, design managers focused on the latter three of these practices. Our emergent conceptual model shows that professionals may champion their professional practice not only within and across innovation projects, but also across organizational structures and management levels. The study suggests that collective and coordinated engagement of professionals operating at different hierarchical levels in the organization could be a significant force in fostering adoption of a professional practice in organizations.

Benefits of Systems Engineering in Large Infrastructure Projects: the much‐anticipated empirical proof.

AbstractFollowing successful deployment in the aerospace and automotive industries, the demand for a structured approach to Systems Engineering on large infrastructure projects is rapidly increasing in the current decade. However, there is still certain inertia on the part of some firms to adapt their processes within this engineering discipline, and hence an empirical demonstration of the benefits of systems engineering is needed. The purpose of this paper is twofold: on the one hand, it outlines an overall methodology to perform studies on Return on Investment of Systems Engineering (SE‐ROI) in large infrastructure engineering companies; on the other hand, this paper presents the results of this methodology applied to calculate the SE‐ROI in one such infrastructure engineering company.

Laser Hardening of Stamps in the Conditions of a Large Engineering Company

The work addresses the possible use of a third-generation robotic complex with a fiber laser to restore and strengthen the working parts of the stamping rig in the conditions of a large engineering company. The method of restoring and fine-hardening of stamps from complex steels 5X2MNF, 4X5MFS with solid-state laser is justified. Economic analysis was carried out and the economic effect of the complex was described.

BIM-Based Life Cycle Assessment of Buildings—An Investigation of Industry Practice and Needs

The climate debate necessitates reducing greenhouse gas emissions from buildings. A common and standardized method of assessing this is life cycles assessment (LCA); however, time and costs are a barrier. Large efficiency potentials are associated with using data from building information models (BIM) for the LCA, but development is still at an early stage. This study investigates the industry practice and needs for BIM–LCA, and if these are met through a prototype for the Danish context, using IFC and a 3D view. Eight qualitative in-depth interviews were conducted with medium and large architect, engineering, and contractor companies, covering a large part of the Danish AEC industry. The companies used a quantity take-off approach, and a few were developing plug-in approaches. Challenges included the lack of quality in the models, thus most companies supplemented model data with other data sources. Features they found valuable for BIM–LCA included visual interface, transparency of data, automation, design evaluation, and flexibility. The 3D view of the prototype met some of the needs, however, there were mixed responses on the use of IFC, due to different workflow needs in the companies. Future BIM–LCA development should include considerations on the lack of quality in models and should support different workflows.

Состояние и перспективы развития машиностроения

The paper seeks to intensify innovation-driven development of Russian mechanical engineering enterprises and industries. The results of combined administrative and technological investigations unambiguously indicate the necessity and feasibility of restructuring the existing industrial system into large mechanical engineering companies and complexes. Integrating the efforts of every company department should ensure maintaining a competitive quality level and restoring the volume of engineering production, diversifying and modernising the manufacturing processes. Practical implementation of the investigation results in terms of substantiating the directions and steps involved in innovation-driven development will ensure not only high efficiency of introducing them into mechanical engineering and machine utilisation, but also the desired technological breakthrough in production, science and education

Effect of Leader-Member Exchange Relationship on Occupational Stress in the Energy Sector of Pakistan: A Mediating Role of Job Involvement

The relationship between leader-member exchange (LMX) and occupational stress has gained substantial attention in recent years. The objective of this study is two folds: a) to analyze the impact of LMX on occupational stress; and b) to investigate whether job involvement mediates the positive relationship between LMX and occupational stress. A useable sample of 342 responses is drawn from a leading multinational engineering company of the energy sector in Pakistan. LMX is measured by four dimensions i.e. affect, loyalty, perceived contribution and professional respect, whereas three dimensions are used to measure occupational stress i.e. personal resources, personal strain and occupational role. A measurement model is constructed with high validity and reliability. Following a segmentation approach, four hypotheses are tested using latent variable scores (LVS) through a variance-based partial least square structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) technique. The findings suggest that a) LMX shows a significant but on contrary to our expectation, a positive effect on occupational stress; b) LMX has no statistically significant effect on job involvement; c) job involvement has significant positive effect on occupational stress; however, d) job involvement does not mediate the relationship between LMX and occupational stress. The significant original contribution of this study in the leadership and management literature is that a high-quality LMX relationship can substantially increase the level of occupational stress. This research finding is emerged from the employees working in a large multinational engineering company of a developing country. Findings and managerial implications are discussed.

Improving the competitiveness of mechanical engineering

The low level of competitiveness of Russian machinery and equipment is due, first of all, to an insufficient level of workmanship and reliability indicators. In terms of technical characteristics, the level of resource saving, the implementation of modern technological methods and methods for the manufacturing of products, works and services, many models of modern machinery are not inferior, and often surpass foreign analogues. But the low level of reliability indicators and, above all, the reliability of machines in the end significantly reduce the efficiency of its use in real production and economic conditions of consumers of equipment. The work is aimed at searching and substantiating directions for improving the quality of manufacturing and reliability indicators of domestic machinery and equipment based on the creation of proprietary production and technological systems and complexes and the introduction of a proprietary method of technical service. Improving the quality of Russian equipment on an innovative organizational and technological basis will ensure the necessary technological breakthrough in mechanical engineering with the minimum needs of production and technical resources in a short time. Studies indicate the need to reorganize engineering enterprises into large firms, branded production and technological systems and complexes that can provide a sharp and significant increase in the quality of equipment to the level of the best world analogues. The organization of large engineering companies allows solving the quality problems of machinery and equipment at all the main stages of their life cycle: design, construction, production, operation and disposal. At the same time, the efficiency of resolving emerging issues is significantly increased, since all structural divisions of the company are managed from a single center, whose strategic goal is to comprehensively improve the quality of engineering products. A quick and significant increase in the competitiveness of domestic machinery and equipment based on an increase in their manufacturing quality and reliability indicators is possible only with the introduction of their proprietary technical service. The company service system will allow establishing and excluding the causes of operational failures of machinery.

Impact of Employment on Newcomer's Values: Role of Supervisor's Transformational Leadership

An individual's first job is likely to change his or her values, and one's first supervisor is likely to play a significant role in this value change. In a series of three longitudinal studies, we show the impact of an individual's first job on his on her values and the role of the immediate supervisor's leadership on the change in values. In the first two studies at a large engineering company (N = 244) and a bank (N = 59), we found that after one month of classroom training and eighteen months of on-the-job experience respectively, newcomer's values changed such that they showed an increase in self-enhancement values and a reduction in self-transcendence values. In the third study (N = 100) at an automobile company, we looked at the effect of on-the-job experience on newcomer's values and found a similar result. Moreover, we matched newcomer-supervisor pairs (N = 64) and found that the supervisor's transformational leadership enhanced self-transcendence values and reduced self-enhancement values of newcomers. Also, supervisor's transformational leadership enhanced newcomer-supervisor value congruence. Our studies have demonstrated that employment makes people self-centered and that transformational leadership can reverse the effect.

Alternative friction stir welding technology for titanium–6Al–4V propellant tanks within the space industry

ABSTRACTFriction stir welding (FSW) offers an appealing solid state joining alternative to traditional fusion welding techniques for titanium alloys because it reduces problems associated with high temperature processing. Propellant tanks are a critical component of every spacecraft and contain several weld seams and a prime candidate for this innovative technology. This paper reviews the current technological maturity of FSW relative to titanium alloys and considers the application with respect to a pressure vessel. FSW is currently in a period of significant investment by large engineering companies and international research institutions. The technology is advancing and evolving to cater for high temperature alloys. Stationary shoulder FSW and hybrid techniques show promising potential with respect to Ti–6Al–4V. The tool material and limited process window for this material are restrictive factors at present but can be overcome with future development.

Información documentada y gestión del conocimiento en la ISO 9001:2015: aportación del profesional de la información

2016 has been a year in which many companies have undertaken the adaptation of the new ISO 9001:2015 “Quality management systems”. Based on the practical experience of the accreditation process by a large multinational engineering company, the author reflects on the role of information professionals in the implementation of the Knowledge Management and Documented Information sections of the standard.

The Anthropophagic Organization: How Innovations Transcend the Temporary in a Project-based Organization

This article shows how innovations in projects may be diffused successfully within a large project-based organization (PBO) and how they ‘live on’ through their adaptation. We draw on the metaphorical notion of anthropophagy, literally ‘human cannibalism’, which is used to explain the appropriation of otherness resulting in ongoing organizational life. Prior organization literature has stressed the difficulties of the transition from the temporary to the permanent, especially the failure of database-oriented approaches, and argued that these barriers may be overcome with repeatable standardized templates. In contrast we show that multiple innovations may be adopted within the same PBO, which manifest as differentiated, combined forms. Cases in the large energy and engineering company, Petrobras, show a systematic innovation process involving subject experts, but centrally a database containing records of 1104 mandatory and discretionary innovations. The article analyses these data, process documentation and observations of 15 completed innovation projects. The article argues that in addition to technical factors the anthropophagic attitude motivates adopters to take on the innovations of others with the appetising prospect of appropriation and adaptation.

An Innovative Approach to the Development of Project Management Processes for Small‐scale Projects in a large Engineering Company

AbstractA Canadian division of a large American engineering company has developed and implemented project management processes for their small‐scale and medium‐scale projects. The company was already using a robust project management process for their large‐scale projects. The objectives of this process improvement project were to reduce cost overruns and project delays, standardize practices to facilitate the integration of new managers, increase the level of customer satisfaction and to reduce risk‐related planning deviations. For this improvement project, the engineering organization used the new ISO/IEC 29110 standard developed specifically for very small entities. An analysis of the cost and the benefits of the implementation of small and medium scale project management processes was performed using the ISO economic benefits of standard methodology. The engineering enterprise estimated that, over a three‐year timeframe, savings of about 780,000$ would be realized due to the implementation of project management processes using the ISO/IEC 29110 standard.

Reimagining site-walks: Sites for rich learning

ABSTRACTThis paper presents the preliminary results of a multi-phased qualitative investigation of continuing professional learning. The study focused on the identification of common engineering practices that contribute to learning. This paper examines a particular practice, that of the site-walk. It draws on practice theory, an emerging set of conceptual resources used in workplace learning research. Data was elicited via qualitative methods such as interviews, focus groups and site visits with experienced engineers employed in a large Australian engineering company. It was analysed using the lens of practice theory. The findings suggest that site-walks, while an everyday practice for engineers, are also highly learning-rich. This understanding has implications for continual professional learning, and for educators of novice engineers.

Competency mapping in project management: An action research study in an engineering company

The present study proposes a seven-step method for the project management competency map. Additionally, the method helps to evaluate and design evolution trajectories based on organisational experience and challenges. This methodological approach merges literature reviews with qualitative and quantitative research methods. Data were collected in a large Brazilian engineering company through the analysis of documentation, behavioural event interviews, self-assessment surveys and statistical analyses. The proposed method is simple, replicable and insightful for managers across all industries and consists of the following: a description of competence and performance criteria, an assessment process, a diagnosis of the current proficiency level, the identification of competence levels that differentiate professional categories, the establishment of expected profiles, a gap analysis and the association between experience and competency development.

The cost of customising: assessing the performance of a modular product programme

Introducing modularity in product development as a mean for dealing with increasing levels of variance within product portfolios has been widely and successfully applied by many companies. It is however important to acknowledge that challenges related to product portfolio variance will not disappear after introducing modularity. A new type of variance on modular level is likely to develop over time. Empirical work carried out in a large international engineering company designing customer specific products confirms that increasing levels of variance within module portfolios can lead to reduced performance according to crucial key performance indicators. The findings illustrate the importance of recognising the potential trade-off when continually complying with unique customer requests. The paper contributes with a detailed insight into a company’s competitive performance trade-off on a modular level after introducing mass customisation. The paper also adds a dimension to existing survey-based findings on the potential trade-offs.

Integrating Fuzzy Delphi with Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process for Multiple Criteria Inventory Classification

A systematic approach to the inventory control and classification may have a significant influence on company competitiveness. In practice, all inventories cannot be controlled with equal attention. In order to efficiently control the inventory items and to determine the suitable ordering policies for them, multiple criteria inventory classification is used. In this paper, a systematic and logical approach is structured for multiple criteria inventory classification through integrating Fuzzy Delphi Method (FDM) with Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (FAHP). Fuzzy Delphi method used to identify the most important and significant criteria and, Fuzzy AHP is used to determine the relative weights of the attributes or criteria, and to classify inventories into different categories. To accredit the proposed model, it is implemented for the 351 raw materials of switch gear section of Energypac Engineering Limited (EEL), a large power engineering company of Bangladesh. Implementation results show that the proposed method can be used in inventory classification.

Multi-criteria inventory classification through integration of fuzzy analytic hierarchy process and artificial neural network

A systematic approach to the inventory control and classification may have a significant influence on company competitiveness. In practice, all inventories cannot be controlled with equal attention. To efficiently control the inventory items and to determine the suitable ordering policies for them, multi- criteria inventory classification is used. The objective of this research is to develop a multi-criteria inventory classification model through integration of fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (FAHP) and artificial neural network approach. FAHP is used to determine the relative weights of the attributes or criteria using Chang's extent analysis and to classify inventories into different categories. Various structures of multi-layer feed-forward back-propagation neural networks have been analysed and the optimal one with the minimum mean absolute percentage of error between the measured and the predicted values have been selected. To accredit the proposed model, it is implemented for 351 raw materials of switchgear section of Energypac Engineering Limited, a large power engineering company of Bangladesh.

Multiple Criteria Inventory Classification Under Fuzzy Environment

A systematic approach to the inventory control and classification may have significant influence on company competitiveness. In practice, all inventories cannot be controlled with equal attention. In order control the inventory items and to determine the suitable ordering policies for them, multiple criteria inventory classification is used. A systematic and logical approach is structured for multiple criteria inventory classification under fuzzy environment through integrating Fuzzy Delphi Method (FDM) with Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (FAHP). Fuzzy Delphi method is used to identify the important criteria and, Fuzzy AHP is used to determine the relative weights of the criteria, and to classify inventories into different categories. To accredit the proposed model, its implemented for the 351 raw materials of switch gear section of Energypac Engineering Limited (EEL), a large power engineering company of Bangladesh.