Manufacturing Departments Research Articles

Problems, success factors and benefits of QCs implementation: a case of QASCO

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to attempt to: explore the problems that the production division of Qatar Steel Company (QASCO) typically encounter in implementing QCs, identify the critical success factors promoting QCs implementation and discern the real benefits of QCs implementation.Design/methodology/approachData for this study were collected using a self‐administered questionnaire that was distributed to 400 QCs members within the five departments (i.e. Manufacturing, Maintenance, Direct Reduction, Material Control and Technical departments) which comprised the production division of QASCO. Of the 400 questionnaires posted, a total of 197 were returned and used for the analysis.FindingsThe results of the study indicated that lack of support from top management was reported as the biggest problem impeding the implementation, and also commitment and support from top management were reported as the most important success factor of QCs implementation in the five departments. More importantly, the findings indicated that QCs implementation has created an atmosphere of cooperation within QASCO and produced many positive results including improving quality, increasing productivity, and improving the management style.Research limitations/implicationsThe sample is restricted to only a single division, i.e. the production division of QASCO, so it would be strongly recommended that data be gathered from various divisions of QASCO, i.e. replications of this study are required to generalize its findings. Studying the deriving and inhibiting forces to QCs implementation in practice remains a task that requires further attention from researchers, whatever their motivations.Practical implicationsThe findings are important and relevant to all the departments in QASCO. The study hopes to create more awareness among management and employees of the strategic importance of QCs to operational processes. More importantly, the benefits attained would be a motivating factor for managers to use QCs.Originality/valueThe research provides empirical insights to the growing body of knowledge on QCs implementation. Most of QCs research has been done in developed countries. The study presents the successful adoption and implementation of QCs in a manufacturing firm in a developing country of the Middle East where published research results on the successful use of QCs have been rather scarce.

Factory Tour of Komatsu Oyama Plant

Here I'll be reporting on my visit to Komatsu's Tochigi Prefecture Oyama Plant on November 20, 2008, where General Manager Seiji Bandou showed me around the diesel engine machining and assembly shops at the engine manufacturing department of the Engines and Hydraulics Business Division. This visit and my interview with General Manager Bandou were made possible through the kind offices of Vice President Noriyoshi Yanase of the Institution of Tochigi Professional Engineers and a former senior Oyama Plant employee.

3202 CMSを活用した「改善活動の見える化」(OS3-2 生産システムの計測・制御・監視)

In this paper, a new system which accelerates the cycle of KAIZEN activities is described. KAIZEN activities can be carried out with the following two visualizations. 1. Visualizing operational information from the production equipments. 2. Visualizing KAIZEN activities themselves. The first visualization is popularly implemented on IT systems. On the other hand, the second visualization hasn't been mentioned. For the second visualization, we considered three functions, i.e. discussing KAIZEN issues, progress control of each activity, reusing the know-how. The system we proposed has been implemented in our manufacturing department. We confirmed that the second visualization is effective to make the collaboration possible in manufacturing-related sections in a factory.

Application of the sex-linked recessive lethal test in Drosophila melanogaster for monitoring the work environment of a rubber factory.

The intention of the study was to try the applicability of a biologic test system for the detection of potentially hazardous ambient exposures in a rubber factory. Drosophila populations (strain “white”) were exposed for five generations in the calendering and the vulcanization areas. No significant increases in SLRL frequencies were observed. The difference was statistically slightly significant (P ≤ 0.05) between the pooled materials of the exposed cages. Drosophila males (strain “white”) were exposed for 14 days in four manufacturing departments, vulcanization, weighing, calendering and moulding (the area where methylene-o-chloro aniline (MOCA) is used). Only in the pooled material from the exposures in the vulcanization area and in the MOCAroom was the SLRL frequency statistically slightly significantly (P ≤ 0.05) increased as compared with the control. The results suggest that potentially mutagenic air-borne contaminants may be found in specific areas, such as the vulcanization area and in the MOCA-room, and that monitoring of ambient exposures can be performed with the Drosophila SLRL system.

An evaluation study of a digital library of ideas: Workflow Model and classroom use

The Department of Design Manufacturing and Engineering Management at the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, UK, has been developing a digital library to support design engineering student learning through the Digital Libraries for Global Distributed Innovative Design Education and Teamwork project (http://www.didet.ac.uk, December, 2007). Previous related studies have observed and analysed how students search for, store, structure and share design engineering information (Grierson et al. in paper presented at the Network Learning Conference, pp. 572–579, 2004; Nicol et al. in Open Learning 20(1):31–49, 2005) and these studies have identified the need for the design and development of a digital library with two system components, which best suit the design process: (i) an informal shared workspace; the ‘LauLima’ Learning Environment and (ii) a repository of more formal searchable and browsable design information; the ‘LauLima’ Digital Library (McGill et al. in Br. J. Educ. Technol. 36(4):629–642, 2005). This paper focuses on the Workflow Model developed to populate the digital library and presents findings from early use of the digital library by students and staff.

Manufacturing Performance

AbstractThe use of rapid prototyping to produce scale models has in recent years become commonplace in architectural practices and universities. Employing such layer manufacturing processes at the scale of construction opens up entirely new possibilities for articulating and manufacturing a performative built environment. Achim Menges discusses Freeform Construction, a collaborative effort between Loughborough University's Civil & Building Engineering Department and Loughborough's Wolfson School of Manufacturing and Mechanical Engineering to develop construction‐scale rapid manufacturing processes. Crossing conventional boundaries of the manufacturing domain, the research is not only concerned with developing new modes of production, but also contributes to establishing an alternative approach for designing performative architecture where form, material, structure and performance are understood as inherently related and integral aspects of the manufacturing and construction process. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Minimizing and balancing setups in a serial production system

This paper addresses a problem arising in the coordination between two consecutive manufacturing departments of a production system, in which parts are processed in batches, and each batch is characterized by two distinct attributes. Due to limited interstage buffering between the two stages, the two departments have to follow the same batch sequence. In the first department, a setup occurs every time the first attribute of the new batch is different from the previous one. In the downstream department, there is a setup when the second attribute of the new batch changes. The problem consists of finding a common batch sequence optimizing some global utility index. Here we propose a metaheuristic approach to a bi-criteria version of the problem considering two indices, namely the total number of setups paid for by the two departments and the maximum number of setups paid for by either department.

Detailed layout planning for irregularly-shaped machines with transportation path design

In order to obtain a competitive level of productivity in a manufacturing system, efficient machine or department arrangements and appropriate transportation path structures are of considerable importance. By defining a production system’s basic structure and material flows, the layout determines its operational performance over the long term. However, most approaches proposed in the literature provide only a block layout, which neglects important operational details. By contrast, in this paper, we introduce approaches to planning layouts at a more detailed level. Hence, this present paper introduces an integrated approach which allows a more detailed layout planning by simultaneously determining machine arrangement and transportation paths. Facilities to be arranged as well as the entire layout may have irregular shapes and sizes. By assigning specific attributes to certain layout subareas, application-dependent barriers within the layout, like existing walls or columns, can be incorporated. We introduce a new mathematical layout model and develop several improvement procedures. An analysis of the computational experiments shows that more elaborate heuristics using variable neighborhoods can generate promising layout configurations.

Target costing in New Zealand manufacturing firms

PurposeAs there is scant research outside Japan on the implementation of target costing, the purpose of this research is to examine target costing practices in New Zealand.Design/methodology/approachA mail questionnaire survey was sent to 80 New Zealand manufacturers, with a response rate of 31 (39 per cent).FindingsA total of 12 of the 31 respondents use target costing. Findings on the use of target costing that contrast with or add to prior studies include the following: target costing is being applied to existing products; the manufacturing department is highly involved in target costing; the involvement of suppliers in target costing is relatively low; considerable adjustments are made to the calculated allowable costs, especially in order to assist sales of future products and to ensure the achievement of target costs; and higher achievement of target costs is associated with higher firm performance. The goals of target costing and the departments involved in the practice were similar to those in prior studies.Research limitations/implicationsThe sample size and minimal number of firms actually using target costing has made it difficult to obtain statistically significant results. The survey method prevents follow‐up questions and clarification of ambiguities. Single measures of performance and strategy were used.Originality/valueThis survey provides academic researchers and teachers and firms implementing or using target costing systems with a greater understanding of how target costing is being used by New Zealand manufacturers, as well as adding to the scant research on target costing outside Japan.

Get With the Plan

This paper provides examples to show the importance of blueprints in improving working of a company. In order to blueprint, managers need intricate workings of how projects get done. They must know exactly how engineering works with the manufacturing, marketing, and IT departments, as everything is interconnected. As project manager at BAE Systems Naval Ships in Glasgow, Scotland, Scott Jamieson oversees the creation of two landing-ship docks for the Royal Fleet Auxiliary. Jamieson reviews his advance blueprint all the time to make sure his team uses its time effectively. He compares the initial blueprint against the present project to ensure that the plan is still pertinent. Another blueprint success example is its extensive usage in aerospace projects. According to Jack Gallagher, executive director for the Bell/Agusta 609 Tiltrotor, aerospace projects are so large that it is easy for company executives and managers to lose control. A blueprint helps to keep all aspects of a huge project on track.

The change of knowledge, attitude and practice on musculoskeletal diseases after exercise program in an electronic parts manufacturing company

This study was conducted to find the change of knowledge, attitude and practice on musculoskeletal diseases after a preventive exercise program. The 169 subjects who worked at an electronic parts manufacturing company in Seoul participated in 11-week exercise program from February 14 to April 29, 2005. We surveyed the questionnaires about general characteristics, subjective symptoms of musculoskeletal diseases, the knowledge, attitude and practice of musculoskeletal diseases before and after preventive exercise program. The change of complaint rate of musculoskeletal symptoms based on NIOSH diagnosis standard for each body part was not statistically significant. Before exercise program, complaint rates of musculoskeletal symptoms were 48.0% in shoulder, 40.8% in arm/wrist/finger, 39.6% in upper back/lower back, 32.6% in leg/knee/foot and 27.8% in neck. After the exercise program, complaint rates of musculoskeletal symptoms were 43.2% in shoulder, 36.6% in arm/wrist/finger, 42.0% in upper back/lower back, 26.6% in leg/knee/foot and 27.8% in neck. The change of knowledge, attitude and practice on musculoskeletal diseases after exercise program was statistically significant. The change of knowledge after exercise program was higher in the group of participation days (17–32 days), work department (electronic components department, mold manufacturing department, and condenser department), marital status (married). The change of attitude after exercise program was higher in the group of work department (electronic components department) and job position (employee). The change of practice after exercise program was higher in the group of participation days (17–32 days), and job position (employee). The complaint rates of musculoskeletal symptoms after 11-week exercise program were not significantly changed, but the change of knowledge, attitude and practice on musculoskeletal diseases was significantly changed. Therefore, the continuous and regular exercise program will help to prevent musculoskeletal diseases.

Joint Production and Pricing Decisions with Setup Costs and Capacity Constraints

We consider the problem of setting prices and choosing production quantities for a single product over a finite horizon for a capacity-constrained manufacturer facing price-sensitive demands. There is a fixed cost per production run and a variable cost per unit produced, both of which may vary by period. We characterize properties of the optimal solution, considering cases with constant and time-varying capacity, and with and without speculative motive for holding inventory. We show that, counter to intuition, optimal prices may increase as the capacity increases, even when capacity is constant over the horizon. We also show that increases in capacity do not always exhibit diminishing marginal returns. Our procedure produces solutions with much higher profits than can be obtained from a sophisticated sequential procedure in which a well-informed and optimum-seeking marketing department makes pricing decisions and the manufacturing department seeks to satisfy the resulting demands at minimum cost. Our results also suggest that firms with seasonal demand and tight capacity constraints should be more aggressive in setting prices to manage their demands than what is typically done in practice. Finally, we discuss how a decision maker can use our procedure as an aid in solving multiproduct versions of the problem.

Adaptation of logistic operating curves to one‐piece flow processes

PurposeTo provide a model for precise logistic controlling of one‐piece flow processes and for the description of the interactions between logistic performance measures. The developed method can help manufacturing enterprises to control their production processes and therewith to exploit existing rationalization potentials in their production.Design/methodology/approachThe Institute of Production System and Logistics adapted the logistic operating curve for schedule reliability and the logistic operating curve for mean throughput time to describe the behaviour of one‐piece flow processes. This model‐based method depicts the correlation between the delivery reliability and mean WIP level of single manufacturing systems and enables a goal‐oriented modelling as well as a controlling of single manufacturing processes.FindingsThe derivation, calculation, and fields of application of the logistic operating curves for one‐piece flow processes, that give a functional relationship between mean WIP, mean throughput time and schedule reliability, are presented in this paper. Moreover, the paper presents how the logistic performance measures can be adjusted to target values.Originality/valueThis paper offers practical help to manufacturing enterprises confronted with the task of evaluation and optimization of manufacturing processes within the framework of production controlling. Moreover, the developed method enables manufacturing enterprises to identify bottleneck work systems where action can be taken to optimize their schedule situation and thereby improve the delivery reliability of an entire manufacturing department.

SCM system effects on performance for interaction between suppliers and buyers

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the impacts of supply chain management (SCM) benefits on the interactive performance between supply chain members.Design/methodology/approachThe contingency theory and socio‐technical theory were applied in the construction of the research model. Four constructs were adopted for the development of the research model: contingency factors, interaction process, interactive performance, and SCM system benefits.FindingsTo respond to the challenges in global markets, an increasing number of enterprises strive for better profits by working closely with suppliers. As the interaction increases, the buyer‐seller relationship changes accordingly.Research limitations/implicationsEmpirical studies require further analysis and suggestions were also made for further explication.Practical implicationsThe interaction between the manufacturing and marketing departments is a determinant for the firm's competitive advantages.Originality/valueInterviews with six case firms in the information/electronic industry show that external and internal factors affect the interaction between supply chain members and result performance improvement.

Relationships between bullying, psychosocial work environment and individual stress reactions

It is frequently assumed that a poor psychosocial working environment will create conditions that encourage bullying. However, few studies have examined this assumption while comparing work environment ratings of bullied and non-bullied employees who work in the same organization and/or department. The objectives of this study were therefore, first, to investigate relationships between bullying and other psychosocial work environment factors within a particular organizational setting and, second, to investigate if bullied employees reported higher levels of stress than non-bullied employees. A total of 186 blue-collar employees from a Danish manufacturing company participated in the study (response rate of 93%). Results showed significant differences in bullied and non-bullied employees’ ratings of psychosocial factors such as job control, management style, role clarity, social climate, social contact and work centrality. In order to investigate assumptions that a poor psychosocial work environment creates conditions that encourage bullying, a number of analyses compared the company's manufacturing departments with either high, medium or low levels of bullying. Results showed significant departmental differences. Yet, when bullied employees were removed from the statistical analyses, with regard to the perceived psychosocial environment these same departments could be differentiated only on the basis of rated job demands and management style. The results therefore bring into question the assumption that a generally poor work environment contributes to bullying. None the less, they do suggest that management style may directly or indirectly have contributed to a higher level of bullying. Also, bullied employees reported significantly more symptoms of psychological stress and mental fatigue than non-bullied employees.

Impacts of ERP systems on the integrated‐interaction performance of manufacturing and marketing

Interactions between manufacturing and marketing departments often determine the competitiveness and profitability of a firm. Enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems address integration issues of business functions; and benefits contributed by ERP implementation found in the literature are similar to those achieved through the integration of manufacturing and marketing functions. Uses a research model based on contingency theory and socio‐technical theory to study the effects of ERP implementation on marketing and manufacturing integration. A study of four companies in the electronic industry shows that internal organizational and external factors affect the interaction between manufacturing and marketing and results in performance improvement. Provides a new perspective of the factors that impact the effectiveness of ERP systems.

Prolonged Time to Pregnancy in Female Workers Exposed to Ethylene Glycol Ethers in Semiconductor Manufacturing

Previous research on reproductive effects of working in the semiconductor industry is limited and has produced conflicting results. This retrospective cohort study was designed to investigate the risk factors for female fertility in a wafer-manufacturing company of Taiwan in 1997. Waiting time to pregnancy and potential confounders were collected by face-to-face interview. Exposure was assessed by directors and senior engineers in manufacturing, administrative, and safety and health departments according to safety records, personnel records, and job histories from questionnaires, using a tiered exposure-assessment approach. Of a total 842 female workers, 720 (85.5%) participated. There were 292 pregnancies from 173 workers eligible for analysis. Relative fecundability (fecundability ratio, or FR) was calculated using Cox's proportional hazard models to evaluate the effect of occupational exposure to ethylene glycol ethers on female fertility. Waiting time to pregnancy of female workers in the photolithography area was longer than that of those in the nonfabrication area (FR = 0.77; 95% CI = 0.45-1.32), and those who were potentially exposed to ethylene glycol ethers showed longer time to pregnancy compared with those not exposed (FR = 0.59; 95% CI = 0.37-0.94). This study provides further evidence that ethylene glycol ethers may cause female subfertility.

Development of a decision-support system for the formulation of manufacturing strategy

Corporate strategy can be divided into various substrategies, such as marketing, manufacturing, research and development, etc. In the current enterprise environment, products are highly varied and product life-cycles are shortening owing to customers' changing needs and market competition. In such an environment, the formulation of a good manufacturing strategy is critical for the success of manufacturing enterprises. In this research, for the establishment of good manufacturing strategy, we propose a framework enabling a decision-support system for the modelling and analysis of the manufacturing system. For this task, we have constructed a single integrated object model that contains information about products, processes and resources in the manufacturing system. The model is flexible, allowing the objects in the model to be defined according to the levels of detail required by analysis. The process model can then be transformed to a generalized stochastic Petri net (GSPN). Furthermore, a Petri net separation procedure is presented to relieve the complexity of the analytic method. By using the analytic analysis of GSPN, the system throughput is easily obtainable. An example is included to demonstrate the applicability of this framework. The proposed decision-support system for manufacturing strategy formulation enables (1) the analysis of the relationship between strategic input variables and performance measures, (2) the scenario evaluation for coordination between the manufacturing department and other departments, and (3) the formulation of manufacturing strategy using what-if analysis against dynamic manufacturing environments.

Causes and consequences of perceived goal differences between departments within manufacturing organizations

Differences between departments' perceptions of goals are assumed to impede interdepartmental coordination because they are often biased and therefore likely to be related to interdepartmental conflict. Results from a study in 11 manufacturing organizations among 120 employees in manufacturing, planning and marketing departments show that employees believed that they pursued goals that are valuable to the organization more strongly than other departments. Manufacturing and marketing employees perceived the largest goal differences with regard to their own department goals. Planning employees perceived the largest goal differences with the manufacturing department with regard to the goals of marketing, and with the marketing department with regard to manufacturing goals. This suggests that the ‘boundaries’ of the social identity of planning employees seem to change depending on which comparison is salient. The more an organization had an integrative strategy of competing on both low cost and high customer service, the smaller were some of the perceived goal differences. Furthermore, perceived goal differences were positively related to interdepartmental conflict frequency and seriousness. This study demonstrates the importance of reducing perceived goal differences, which can be achieved partly by interventions at the organizational level.

Market orientation, interdepartmental integration, and product development performance

Various research studies have shown that a market orientation and interdepartmental integration can positively influence product development performance. Addressed in this article is whether market orientation and interdepartmental integration both equally influence product development performance, whether one of these constructs is more influential than the other, and whether such influence is dependent on the type of department being examined? Analyzing survey data from 156 marketing, manufacturing, and R&D managers, the tentative results suggest that a market orientation and interdepartmental integration correlate to improved product development and product management performance in varying degrees across these three manager sets. It appears that a positive relationship between market orientation and product development performance is likely to be reflected by the marketing department, while marketing and manufacturing departments are likely to reflect a positive relationship between the general construct of market orientation and product management performance. Manufacturing managers also reflect a positive relationship between interdepartmental integration and product development and product management performance. Further analyses involving the elements of a market orientation and interdepartmental integration find that a customer orientation appears important to performance in the case of marketing managers, and that collaboration is important to performance in the case of manufacturing managers. R&D managers did not reflect any statistically significant relationships between market orientation, interdepartmental integration, their constructs, and performance. These results should not be taken as refuting the claim of an important relationship between market orientation and product development performance, however. The present results refine our understanding of market orientation to consider department-specific effects, as well as temper the claims that implementing a market orientation will readily lead to improved product development performance across all departments in an organization. This may or may not be the case, depending on the focal department.