Computer integrated manufacturing: a complex information system

To be successful in today's competitive global environment, manufacturers must be able to respond quickly to changes in the manufacturing environment. Automation technology makes it possible for manufacturers to have this essential capability. A conceptualized information system that integrates the programmable design of a product and its manufacture with both planning activities and the manufacturing process is described. The information system integrates the programmable automation technologies used in computer integrated manufacturing with engineering and business databases. The computer integrated manufacturing concept is expended to the concept of a computer integrated economy. The technological difficulties that arise when implementing a computer integrated economy are identified.     

Information Systems Adaptation and the Successful Implementation of Advanced Manufacturing Technologies*

Few plants have initial success with advanced manufacturing technologies (AMTs), and adaptations are commonly required after installing new technologies. We especially know little about the outcomes of adaptations that manufacturers regularly employ in the context of AMTs. Sociotechnical theory and the technology literature suggest that AMTs commonly require four types of adaptations including those to process technologies, human resources, operational structures, and information systems. This study investigates which of these four adaptations and their interactions lead to improved operational performance. Data were collected on 104 plants that implemented a single type of manufacturing AMT. Findings indicate that information systems (IS) adaptation during the course of AMT implementation was the most important action. Surprisingly, human resource and process technology adaptations were linked to lower performance, and no interactions had any clear effects. The results also show that practitioners underestimated the relevance of IS adaptations during contemporary or “second-generation” AMT implementation projects and overemphasized the need for shop floor changes.     

Measuring Dynamic Capabilities: Practices and Performance in Semiconductor Manufacturing

Research on dynamic capabilities emphasizes the importance and role of organizational routines in explaining interfirm differences in performance. While performance differences are well documented, few empirical analyses explore the processes inside organizations that lead to dynamic capabilities or attempt to define and measure their performance effects. This paper examines one type of dynamic capability – the development and introduction of new process technologies in semiconductor manufacturing. This dynamic capability is an important source of competitiveness in the semiconductor industry, given the short product lifecycles, rapid price declines, and rapid technological advances that define the industry. Because much of the knowledge that underpins semiconductor manufacturing is idiosyncratic, firm-level R&D organization and information technology practices that facilitate problem solving and learning-based improvement provide important and enduring advantages. We derive models of the rate of improvement in manufacturing yield (i.e. the quality of production) and cycle time (i.e. the speed of production) following the development and introduction of new process technologies in manufacturing facilities, and test the empirical specifications of these models. The ways in which semiconductor manufacturers accumulate experience and articulate and codify knowledge within the manufacturing environment build new process development and introduction dynamic capabilities that improve performance.     

The Impact of Contract Manufacturing on Inventory Performance: An Examination of U.S. Manufacturing Industries

In recent years, a growing number of original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) have transferred their manufacturing processes to specialized firms, known as contract manufacturers. In so doing, contract manufacturers can reduce an OEM's production costs and provide OEMs with flexibility in the production process. We examine another potential reason for the use of contract manufacturing—the potential for efficiency gains from inventory reductions. Employing econometric models and data representing manufacturing industries in the USA, we provide statistical evidence that contract manufacturing can lead to lower industry‐wide inventory levels, after controlling for other relevant factors. Key managerial implications are derived from the analysis.     

New manufacturing technology implementation: a study of the Thai automotive industry

The purpose of this study is to develop the conceptual framework for new manufacturing technology (NMT) implementation. Scales representing management activities within four stages (adoption, pre-implementation, implementation, and post-implementation evaluation) of the framework were developed. Data from the survey of 149 Thai automotive manufacturers were used to test for content validity and reliability of those scales. Then, factor analysis was applied to validate and confirm the construction of the framework of each stage. The result of data analysis indicates four stages of NMT implementation, consisting of (a) determining reasons for NMT adoption, (b) monitoring and justifying whether a certain NMT should be adopted, (c) adapting an existing organisational culture while implementing proper project management approach, and (d) evaluating an effectiveness of NMT implementation. This finding can be adopted by the manufacturers to assist them in the adoption and implementation of NMT in their manufacturing environment.     

Acceptance of automation manufacturing technology in China: an examination of perceived norm and organizational efficacy

Abstract

With a shift to more automation technology, social acceptance of technology plays an important role in the manufacturing sector. To what extent this occurs, and affects the adoption of technology, has been less researched, but is important in deciding how such technology is introduced, and the nature of the shift from labour-intensive manufacturing to automation. This research applies the revised technology acceptance model (TAM) to examine the impact of social and individual antecedents on the acceptance of automation manufacturing technology. Survey data are collected from 258 Chinese manufacturers. Results suggest that perceived norms significantly affect organizational intention to use automation manufacturing technology both directly and via perceived usefulness; organizational efficacy explains the intention to use via mediating effect of perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use. This research is one of the first extending and applying TAM from individuals to organizations.     

Partner selection for reverse logistics centres in green supply chains: a fuzzy artificial immune optimisation approach

The design of reverse logistics networks has now emerged as a major issue for manufacturers, not only in developed countries where legislation and societal pressures are strong, but also in developing countries where the adoption of reverse logistics practices may offer a competitive advantage. This paper presents a new model for partner selection for reverse logistic centres in green supply chains. The model offers three advantages. Firstly, it enables economic, environment and social factors to be considered simultaneously. Secondly, by integrating fuzzy set theory and artificial immune optimisation technology, it enables both quantitative and qualitative criteria to be considered simultaneously throughout the whole decision-making process. Thirdly, it extends the flat criteria structure for partner selection evaluation for reverse logistics centres to the more suitable hierarchy structure. The applicability of the model is demonstrated by means of an empirical application based on data from a Chinese electronic equipment and instruments manufacturing company.     

我国制造企业“服务增强”的实证研究及政策建议

通过服务增强制造企业竞争力已成为全球化竞争和知识经济背景下我国制造企业的重要战略选择。本文研究我国制造企业服务增强的背景、概念、特征、机理和对策。在界定制造企业服务增强概念的基础上,本文提出并阐述了国内制造企业服务增强的质量弥补特征;随后基于调查问卷数据,对基于要素替代的质量弥补以及服务差异化竞争对绩效的影响展开实证研究;最后,指出国内制造业服务增强存在的不足和问题,提出对策建议。本文对企业管理实践者和政策制定者都有较强的启发意义。     

考虑服务流的产品服务供应链网络均衡模型

产品服务供应链在向客户制造高质量产品的同时，也提供了产品全生命周期的专业服务，服务的嵌入增加了供应链协调的复杂性。考虑产品服务的双重需求，在分析各主体的运作行为的基础上，构建了包括多个制造商和多个销售商的多主体供应链网络；运用变分不等式刻画了制造商层、销售服务集成商层和需求市场的最优运作行为及其达成均衡的条件；最后，通过修正投影算法对数值算例进行了仿真。研究结果表明：产品服务供应链网络中的产品与服务均衡流相互影响，其中，服务水平直接影响到了产品需求；降低产品的售价将有利于服务价格和效益的提升。研究结论进一步印证了在产品服务供应链网络中承载于产品的服务将逐渐成为价值创造的主体。     

Customer‐Base Concentration and Inventory Efficiencies: Evidence from the Manufacturing Sector

What is the link between customer‐base concentration and inventory efficiencies in the manufacturing sector? Using hand‐collected data from 10‐K Filings, we find that manufacturers with more concentrated customer bases hold fewer inventories for less time and are less likely to end up with excess inventories, as indicated by the lower likelihood and magnitude of inventory write‐downs and reversals. Using disaggregated inventory disclosures, we find that inventory efficiencies primarily flow through the finished goods inventory account, while raw material efficiencies are offset by higher work‐in‐process holdings and longer work‐in‐process cycles. In additional analysis, we document a valuation premium for more concentrated manufacturers after controlling for other firm characteristics, including default risk and cost of capital estimates. We conclude that investors trade off the costs and benefits of relationships with a limited number of major customers and, on balance, consider customer‐base concentration as a net positive for firm valuation. Overall, our study adds to interdisciplinary research in accounting and operations management by shedding new light on the relevance of major customer disclosures for fundamental analysis and valuation in the manufacturing sector.     

The impact of modular platforms on automobile manufacturing networks

This paper explores the impact on automobile manufacturing networks of adopting modular platforms to replace the standard platforms used to date. Analysis of European manufacturers’ production networks shows that the use of modular architecture improves coordination by increasing manufacturing mobility and thriftiness ability. The changes resulting from this new modular approach also allow manufacturing capacity to be reorganised and overcapacity to be partially eliminated. From the point of view of production systems, the adaptation of manufacturing processes and facilities to this new architecture should aim to increase flexibility by integrating production around a single platform, allowing for different dimensions and for a larger number of models to be produced in a single plant.     

Bob Hayes: Forty Years of Leading Operations Management Into Uncharted Waters

The enormous contributions of Bob Hayes to Operations Management (OM) are reviewed. His early work made innovative contributions to probability theory and utility estimation that enabled existing Operations Research theory to be applicable to real problems. Later, inspired by field trips to Japanese and German manufacturers, he joined Kim Clark to conduct an ambitious study of 12 plants in three companies, establishing the impact on productivity of factors such as reject rate, work‐in‐process, and production rate variation. In the 1980s, when adoption of advanced manufacturing automation was in vogue, Bob joined Jai Jaikumar to offer a caution, that new manufacturing technologies required new ways of managing and that advanced technology coupled with obsolete management would produce poorer, not better, results. Perhaps Bob's greatest contribution was to raise OM to a more strategic level. With numerous coauthors, notably Steve Wheelwright, he provided a framework for corporate and manufacturing strategy and showed how to achieve alignment between the two, particularly in the choice of production processes. Recent papers articulated a vision for OM in which a focus on the issues of operating managers provides a consistent framework, but enables our research agenda to evolve as the world's economy changes.     

EXPLORING THE STRATEGY-TECHNOLOGY CONNECTION IN SMALL MANUFACTURING FIRMS

Small manufacturing firms make a significant contribution to the economy. Yet, partly because of the greater availability of data on larger firms, strategic management and manufacturing strategy research have tended to neglect small business. Using a survey of small manufacturers, we examine the applicability of Porter's typology of generic strategies to this context and investigate the links between generic strategies and one important dimension of manufacturing strategy-technology management. The analysis of generic strategies shows consistency with previous work on larger firms and tends to support the use of the typology in this setting. Moreover, the internal and external influences on the technology adoption decision process vary significantly with generic strategies, implying that the role played by individuals and networks constitutes a dominant factor. Surprisingly, no distinction was found between firm groupings with respect to decision criteria, which suggests that the decision process of small firms remains rather inexplicit, informal, and, to a large extent, intuitive. We also found that technologically more sophisticated firms tend to hold stronger competitive positions and that technological strength appears to be related to both cost advantage and differentiation.     

An integrated approach for the electronic contract manufacturer selection problem

In the global competitive environment, lead companies have to outsource their manufacturing to electronic contract manufacturers (ECM) in order to reduce operational cost and capture higher profit. Thus, the process of selecting contract manufacturers to be strategic partners is important for these companies. For this reason, this paper proposes an integrated approach for the electronic contract manufacturer selection problem, combining the voting method and the goal programming (GP) model to take into account quantitative factors involved in the selection process, which is applied to a real-world ECM selection problem encountered by a leading provider of complete broadband access solutions. Results of the case study indicate that the voting method can acquire the rating information quickly from manufacturing managers based on suitable evaluating criteria. The rating information simultaneously incorporates ECMs' performance scores as a weight for each ECM. A production planner can easily employ the GP model and ECMs’ weight information to effectively assign demand quantities to ECMs. Therefore, the integrated approach is a practical and useful tool for solving the contract manufacturer selection problem.     

废旧产品再制造环境下的产品定价和再制造方式分配

原材料价格的不断上涨,使得制造企业开始通过废旧产品的回收和再制造来缓解制造成本的上涨.然而,制造企业可以采用较昂贵的技术生产与新产品无差异的再制造品,也可以采用较廉价的技术生产在低端市场销售的再制造品,不同的再制造方式会给制造商带来不同的利润;另一方面废旧品的边际回收成本随着回收率的上升而上升,使得制造企业必须小心选择废旧品的回收数量.文中构建了高端市场和低端市场之间存在需求的线性替代关系时,再制造品和新产品的定价问题,并在优化计算的基础上得到了成本结构对于最优利润、最优价格、最优回收率和不同再制造方式比重的影响.     

Computer support for continuous improvements

Abstract. The view of manufacturing has changed in recent years. This is evident from how the focus of management's attention is shifting more and more towards the basics of operating the business. The challenge to manufacturers in the West today is how to introduce leaner practices in their operations. The objective of this paper is to demonstrate how computer technology and information systems can be applied to support the transition to leaner practices in a complex operation. The problem with the large information systems developed to manage the complex operations of many Western companies is that they were designed to help maintain performance and not to support finding opportunities for new improved practices. Results from the ESPRIT II project, CIM for Multi-supplier Operations (CMSO), show that an existing data infrastructure can be effectively utilized to develop inexpensive, customized tools to support a process of continuous improvements. In this project a set of tools for planning the material flow from supplier to the assembly line was developed for the Saab-Valmet automobile assembly plant in Uusikaupunki, Finland. Hypertext tools were used to quickly develop decision support applications that supported problem solving and finding improvement potentials.     

A survey of simulation modeling techniques in production planning and control (PPC)

The manufacturing sector as a whole has undergone remarkable changes in terms of scale, complexity and technology over the past decades and this applies across most modern high-technology manufacturing such as electronics, semiconductor, aerospace and automotive industries. In order to remain competitive, manufacturers have to produce high-quality products at low cost, and at the same time retain sufficient flexibility and to meet rapidly changing customer demands. Production planning and control (PPC) is a key role which enables the manufacturer to gain visibility and control over all aspects of manufacturing activities. PPC in itself forms a subject of study, within which simulation techniques have proven themselves to be one of the most practical methodologies available to investigate and evaluate manufacturing issues. In this review paper, we focus on state-of-the art applications of simulation techniques in PPC to demonstrate their applicability to modern manufacturing issues. The review reports on academic publications on simulation applications in manufacturing from 2002 to 2014, incorporating surveys of peer-reviewed literature. The review covers three types of simulation techniques (system dynamic, discrete event simulation and agent-based simulation) and eight PPC issues (facility resource planning, capacity planning, job planning, process planning, scheduling, inventory management, production and process design, purchase and supply management). Literature survey is analysed on the basis of simulation application to PPC problems which can give a guideline for simulation technique selection and also can help for simulation modelling in PPC problemsWould you consider changing the term “modeling” to “modelling” in the title. Please check, and correct if necessary.     

Additive manufacturing’s impact and future in the aviation industry

Additive manufacturing (AM) is a technology that has the potential to change the future of aviation supply chains and how the aviation industry designs, manufactures and repairs aircraft in the future. The purpose of this research was to shed light on the current and future states of AM in the aviation industry. From focus groups with nearly 50 aviation professionals from aircraft original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), suppliers, maintenance repair overhaul providers, and AM service providers and AM production firms, we found that the adoption of AM will be triggered by the accumulated AM experience in the industry, the stability of AM technology and the development of new aircraft generations. For AM to be finally adopted, aircraft OEMs must actively manage several success factors and monitor numerous control factors identified and discussed in this research. AM will supplement traditional manufacturing processes at least in the short to midterm, likely grow exponentially and offer benefits for players in the aviation supply chain.     

The Impact of Outsourced Manufacturing on Timing of Entry in Uncertain Markets

Several firms are interested in manufacturing and selling new products based on a new process technology. Before manufacturing can begin, either these Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs), or a Contract Manufacturer (CM) needs to adopt the process technology, i. e., make a capacity investment in it. Due to market uncertainty, the timing of capacity investment is crucial. In such a setting, we investigate how the timing of process adoption, an important determinant of time‐to‐market, is impacted by the make/buy decision. We first characterize the optimal time for process adoption and show that this delay depends on competitive intensity, cost structure and the rate of forecast improvement. Due to differing cost structures, incentives and risks, an OEM and a CM may invest in a new process technology at different times. We show that while there are conditions where outsourced manufacturing can be advantageous for the OEM from a time‐to‐market perspective, there are also cases where the OEM would be disadvantaged. In these cases, the OEM can accelerate process adoption by risk sharing through joint investment. Finally, the right choice of CM is extremely important for an OEM that faces a short time window for product introduction: An efficient CM not only provides low costs but also rapid access to new process technologies, and therefore higher revenues.     

The emergence of sustainable manufacturing practices

Sustainable manufacturing appears to be a rapidly developing field and it would be expected that there is a growing body of knowledge in this area. Initial examination of the literature shows evidence of sustainable work in the areas of product design, supply chain, production technology and waste avoidance activities. Manufacturers publish metrics showing significant improvements in environmental performance at high level but information on how these improvements are achieved is sparse. Examining peer-reviewed publications focused on production operations there are few cases reporting details and there has been little prior analysis of published sustainable manufacturing activity. Moreover, the mismatch between academic and practitioner language leads to challenges in interpretation. This article captures and analyses the types of sustainable manufacturing activities through literature review. In turn, this can help manufacturers to access examples of good practice and help academics identify areas for future research.