Industrial Management Problems Research Articles

Mining machines accident problem solving via the Toyota A3 Report

The Aim of the paper is to show the advantages associated with the application of the Toyota A3 Report as a standard method of information exchange. It must be noted that as of today this method has not found widespread application. It deserves better. Using specific examples of accidents involving mining machines, the authors show how a Report is completed hoping that this information will help in the adoption of this system in other enterprises. That may contribute to the solution of many problems of industrial management. This paper will be most useful for operators of mining machines.TheMethodconsists in presenting material on an А3 sheet of paper, that is required in order to set forth all the information needed to solve a problem. Why the А3 format? A3 is the maximum size of a sheet of paper that can be faxed. Before the emergence of personal computers it was the most common tool of communication between Toyota Motor factories. The above example of application of the Toyota A3 Report contains such crucial sections as maintenance and reliability of mining machines, information on prior research, application of the “5 Why?” method and consideration of the human factor. In the example given in the paper, the report describes the circumstances of the accident involving the SRs 1200 24/4 (G2) excavator, that occurred on April 6, 1995 in the open-pit mine Field D, mining basin Kolubara by the Electric Power Industry of Serbia. The report also includes an estimate of the consequences and analysis of the causes of the accident.TheFindingsinclude the methodological approach to the solution of problems, brief format of information presentation, documentation and registration, so that other people involved in the process can review it; assuring the persons involved can form an idea of the operating procedures and outcome of problem resolution. A common language is provided for communication within the company along with a culture of Lean production. The А3 Report is a training process and foundation for future changes in the manufacturing process management.Conclusions.The Toyota A3 Report has two primary functions: submission of proposals and reporting on the approved measures per the submitted proposals. It allows strictly defining the problem and proceeding to the measures aimed at improving the situation. The practical application of the Report as part of communication within the company and with suppliers will enable quick and targeted solution of managerial problems. Initially developed in Japan within the Toyota company, the method currently finds wider application in Serbian enterprises and elsewhere.

A Note on the Management by Objectives

After introducing the basic concept of the management by objectives, important factors relevant with the subject have been discussed. This system is very powerful and can be applied to manage either a research projec to ran industrial management problem or the business organisation. The merits of the system have been pointed out and it is concluded that if this system is properly introduced, it is bound to yield better results and increased efficiency.

Problems of industrial management at public lecture centers

Problems of improving the management of the national economy remain, as usual, quite urgent. In the summary report to the 24th Party Congress, General Secretary of the Central Committee of the CPSU Corraade Leonid Ii 'ich Brezhnev indicated that -Improvement of the management system is not a one-time measure but a dynamic process of solving problems promoted by life. These problems in the future also will have to be at the center of our attention." Special courses on these problems were organized in February 1974 in Moscow by the State Committee on Science and Technology of the USSR Council of Ministers, All-Union Central Trade Union Council, and the society "Znanie.A large group of heads of public lecture centers was in the audience of these courses.

The role of statistics as a tool of management*

Summary Growth of the mass production industries has posed new and complex problems in industrial management. Scientific solution of these problems necessitates statistical analysis of the vast quantities of data generated in these industries as a by-product. To date, selected but limited headway has been made in using these data to solve the problems of industrial management. Improvements bordering on the spectacular have been achieved in selected instances of industrial applications of statistical analysis. Quality control and market research afford two such instances. These improvements have been mainly the result of commencing to use facts at all (to replace hunch) rather than the result of superior analysis of data long utilized. In consequence, these pioneering adventures in industrial applications of statistics have been made largely without the aid of statisticians. However, the great need for science in management, and the presence of vast quantities of data on which to base a science, suggest that industry will use trained statisticians in increasing numbers, to the extent that industry may become a principal employer of statisticians. The professional statistical societies can do much to aid the greater utilization of statistics in industry by: (a). organizing in each society u nrujor division to deal with the problems of statistics in industry. (b). sponsoring joint meetings with societies of managers, industrial engineers, and others interested in industrial statistics. (c). injecting into the current literature and into the statistical text-books, cases and problems drawn from industry. (d). research to develop new statistical tools, and to simplify existing tools for use by industrial personnel. (e). recognizing useful work in industrial statistics through honors and awards.