A decision-making approach for investigating the potential effects of near sourcing on supply chain

Purpose - Near sourcing is starting to be regarded as a valid alternative to global sourcing in order to leverage supply chain (SC) responsiveness and economic efficiency. The present work proposes a decision-making approach developed in collaboration with a leading Italian retailer that was willing to turn the global store furniture procurement process into near sourcing. Design/methodology/approach - Action research is employed. The limitations of the traditional SC organisation and purchasing process of the company are first identified. On such basis, an inventory management model is applied to run spreadsheet estimates where different purchasing and SC management strategies are adopted to determine the solution providing the lowest cost performance. Finally, a risk analysis of the selected best SC arrangement is conducted and results are discussed. Findings - Switching from East Asian suppliers to continental vendors enables a SC reengineering that increases flexibility and responsiveness to demand uncertainty which, together with decreased transportation costs, assures economic viability, thus proving the benefits of near sourcing. Research limitations/implications - The decision-making framework provides a methodological roadmap to address the comparison between near and global sourcing policies and to calculate the savings of the former against the latter. The approach could include additional organisational aspects and cost categories impacting on near sourcing and could be adapted to investigate different products, services, and business sectors. Originality/value - The work provides SC researchers and practitioners with a structured approach for understanding what drives companies to adopt near sourcing and for quantitatively assessing its advantage

Influence of geometric shape on the deformation performance of natural jute/epoxy specimens under axial quasi-static compression

The interest in the using of natural composite has been increased significantly in recent years in many application of life due to their distinctive characteristics these like low density, high-energy dissipation ability, and fatigue resistance. Indeed, a seemingly good alternative candidate to metals.This work displays the deformation performance of two different types of geometrical natural composite shapes when subjected to uniaxial quasi-static loading. The purpose is to study the effect of geometrical on the progressive collapse of composite specimens. Two geometrical composite tubes have been fabricated by combination technique of manual lay-up and vacuum bladder moulding. The two types of the proposed tubes, which are the circular and corrugated shape. The experimental work was performed by using bidirectional jute fabric (with 3 layers and 100mm in length) and epoxy resin. Six patterns (three for each one) were tested and evaluated in the same conditions to provide a proper means of comparison between different geometric shapes. The result exhibited both kinds of samples demonstrated stable and progressive deformation with acceptable repeatability during the test process. It also showed the ability to absorb the higher energy of the corrugated samples configuration than the circular samples. Overall, the corrugated pattern configuration can be considered the optimal for crashworthiness structure application compared to a circular composite sample

Space station architectural elements model study

The worksphere, a user controlled computer workstation enclosure, was expanded in scope to an engineering workstation suitable for use on the Space Station as a crewmember desk in orbit. The concept was also explored as a module control station capable of enclosing enough equipment to control the station from each module. The concept has commercial potential for the Space Station and surface workstation applications. The central triangular beam interior configuration was expanded and refined to seven different beam configurations. These included triangular on center, triangular off center, square, hexagonal small, hexagonal medium, hexagonal large and the H beam. Each was explored with some considerations as to the utilities and a suggested evaluation factor methodology was presented. Scale models of each concept were made. The models were helpful in researching the seven beam configurations and determining the negative residual (unused) volume of each configuration. A flexible hardware evaluation factor concept is proposed which could be helpful in evaluating interior space volumes from a human factors point of view. A magnetic version with all the graphics is available from the author or the technical monitor

Special Session on Industry 4.0

No abstract available

The gaps between healthcare service and building design : a state of the art review

Healthcare buildings are designed to achieve diverse objectives, ranging from providing appropriate environments where care can be delivered to communities to increasing operational efficiency and improving patient flows and the patient experience. Improvements in operational efficiency should result from state-of-the-art buildings, more appropriate layouts, departmental adjacencies, efficient clinical and business processes and enhanced information systems. However, complexities around requirements and stakeholders management may prevent the achievement of such objectives. The aim of this article is to identify and understand how healthcare services (re)design and building design can be integrated to facilitate increased performance both in terms of service delivery and future changes. Findings indicate that current approaches and innovation are restricted due to functional barriers in the design process, and that there is a need to support the development of operations driven design through time (e.g. flexible and durable) that satisfies diverse needs

Analysis, Design, and Implementation of a training center for variable-speed drive assembly production : Case ABB Oy

In manufacturing constant developments in production, processes, and layouts are required to respond towards increased production volume, quality, and customer requirements while meeting production targets and objectives. The case company of this thesis is ABB Ltd Drives Manufacturing Unit, which specializes in variable-speed drive production. ABB has recognized the need for re-designing a new and effective training center that supports One-piece flow assembly production since the old model is based on a cell production method. The training center is used for the training and integration of the company's new and experienced assemblers. The aim of the research is to analyze the current training concept, design a new technical solution, and create a detailed implementation plan. Thus, the following research questions were developed: RQ1: How to develop and re-design a training center that supports the assembler for One-piece flow method production of variable-speed drives? RQ2: How to design and create the best possible layout and solution to guarantee safety, flexibility, ergonomics, clear flow, and the maximum utilization of space? RQ3: How to implement a training center that does not disrupt the main production lines and makes that way operations more efficient? To achieve the objectives, the waste, bottlenecks, and issues of the current design were first identified by observing the training process and organizing focus groups and workshops with the production line and logistics (customer), and with the project team. Work-time studies were also conducted to solve the flow, outputs, cycle time, and waste time of the current process. These data collection methods aided in identifying potential improvement opportunities for the new design. The layout design process was committed by utilizing Lean principles and the Systematic layout planning procedure. AutoCAD was used to create and map various layout structures, options, and alternatives. The design process required the tendering of two layout location options, which were solved using the quantitative multiple attribute decision-making method, Weighted decision matrix (WDM), with voting based on the scoring of various criteria and features. The result was a Flexible 6-phase U-model one-piece flow training center that allows assemblers to be trained in both one-piece flow and cell production methods. The new design's scope of work was delivered to the supplier, numerous negotiations were held to achieve the best final solution, and the new training center was ordered. In the end, a detailed implementation plan with an estimated schedule was created and a future action list was established. The new design fulfils the objectives and eliminates all issues, waste, and bottlenecks while also ensuring safety, ergonomics, flexibility, a clear flow, and a high-quality training process. With the new design, the efficiency, quality, and output of training and production operations will improve.Teollisuuden alalla tuotantojärjestelmiä, prosesseja ja layouteja on jatkuvasti kehitettävä sekä modifioitava reagoidakseen kasvaneisiin tuotantomääriin sekä laatu- ja asiakasvaatimuksiin ja saavuttaakseen asetetut tuotantotavoitteet ja päämäärät. Tämän opinnäytetyön toimeksiantaja on ABB Oy Drives Manufacturing -yksikkö, joka on erikoistunut taajuusmuuttajatuotantoon. Toimeksiantaja on tunnistanut tarpeen uuden ja tehokkaamman koulutuslinjan suunnitteluun One-piece flow malliseen taajuusmuuttajien kokoonpanotuotantoon, sillä vanha tuotantomalli perustuu solutuotantomenetelmään. Koulutuslinjaa käytetään niin uusien kuten jo talossa olevien vanhojen kokoonpanoasentajien koulutukseen ja integrointiin. Tutkimuksen tavoitteena on analysoida nykyinen koulutuskonsepti, suunnitella uusi tekninen ratkaisu ja laatia yksityiskohtainen implementointisuunnitelma. Tavoitteiden saavuttamista varten on kehitetty seuraavat kolme tutkimuskysymystä: RQ1: Kuinka kehittää ja suunnitella koulutuslinja, joka tukee asentajia One-piece flow malliseen kokoonpanotuotantoon? RQ2: Miten suunnitella ja luoda paras mahdollinen layout ja ratkaisu, joka takaa turvallisuuden, joustavuuden, ergonomian, selkeän virtauksen ja maksimaalisen tilankäytön? RQ3: Kuinka implementoida koulutuslinja, joka ei häiritse päätuotantolinjoja ja tehostaa siten operaatioiden tehokkuutta? Saavuttaakseen tavoitteet, nykyisen koulutuskonseptin aiheuttamat pullonkaulat, ongelmat ja hukka tunnistettiin ensin havainnoimalla koulutusprosessia ja järjestämällä haastatteluja sekä työpajoja tuotantolinjan ja logistiikan (asiakkaan) sekä projektiryhmän kanssa. Nykyisen prosessin virtauksen, ulostulon, tahti -ja hukka-ajan selvittämiseksi suoritettiin myös työaikatutkimuksia. Nämä tiedonkeruumenetelmät auttoivat kehitysmahdollisuuksien tunnistamisessa uutta ratkaisua varten. Layout suunnitteluprosessi toteutettiin Lean-periaatteita ja systemaattista layout suunnittelua käyttäen. AutoCAD layout suunnittelusovellusta käytettiin erilaisien asettelurakenteiden ja vaihtoehtojen luomiseen sekä kartoittamiseen. Suunnitteluprosessi edellytti kahden layout-sijaintivaihtoehdon kilpailuttamista. Lopputulos ratkaistiin äänestämällä kvantitatiivisen päätöksentekomatriisin (WDM) avulla, joka perustui eri kriteerien ja ominaisuuksien pisteytykseen. Tulokseksi saatiin joustava 6-vaiheinen U-mallinen One-piece flow koulutuslinja, jonka avulla asentajia voidaan kouluttaa sekä One-piece flow että solutuotantomallisesti. Uuden koulutuslinjan työn laajuus -dokumentti toimitettiin toimittajalle sekä lukuisia neuvotteluja käytiin parhaan loppuratkaisun saavuttamiseksi, jonka jälkeen uusi koulutuslinja tilattiin. Lopuksi koostettiin yksityiskohtainen implementointisuunnitelma arvioituineen aikatauluineen ja laadittiin toimenpidelista tulevaisuutta varten. Uusi ratkaisu täyttää asetetut tavoitteet ja eliminoi kaikki ongelmat, hukat ja pullonkaulat sekä takaa turvallisuuden, ergonomian, joustavuuden, selkeän virtauksen ja laadukkaan koulutusprosessin. Uuden ratkaisun myötä koulutuksen ja operaatioiden tehokkuus, laatu ja tuottavuus paranevat

Reducing the delivery lead time in a food distribution SME through the implementation of six sigma methodology

Purpose – Six sigma is a systematic data driven approach to reduce the defect and improve the quality in any type of business. The purpose of this paper is to present the findings from the application of six sigma in a food service “small to medium sized enterprise” (SME) in a lean environment to reduce the waste in this field. Design/methodology/approach – A simplified version of six sigma is adopted through the application of appropriate statistical tools in order to focus on customer's requirements to identify the defect, the cause of the defect and improve the delivery process by implementing the optimum solution. Findings – The result suggests that modification in layout utilization reduced the number of causes of defect by 40 percent resulting in jumping from 1.44 sigma level to 2.09 Sigma level which is substantial improvement in SME. Research limitations/implications – Simplicity of six sigma is important to enabling any SME to identify the problem and minimize its cause through a systematic approach. Practical implications – Integrating of supply chain objectives with any quality initiatives such as lean and six sigma has a substantial effect on achieving to the targets. Originality/value – This paper represents a potential area in which six sigma methodology along side the lean management can promote supply chain management objectives for a food distribution SME

Taxonomic classification of planning decisions in health care: a review of the state of the art in OR/MS

We provide a structured overview of the typical decisions to be made in resource capacity planning and control in health care, and a review of relevant OR/MS articles for each planning decision. The contribution of this paper is twofold. First, to position the planning decisions, a taxonomy is presented. This taxonomy provides health care managers and OR/MS researchers with a method to identify, break down and classify planning and control decisions. Second, following the taxonomy, for six health care services, we provide an exhaustive specification of planning and control decisions in resource capacity planning and control. For each planning and control decision, we structurally review the key OR/MS articles and the OR/MS methods and techniques that are applied in the literature to support decision making

Multi-level evolutionary algorithms resource allocation utilizing model-based systems engineering

This research presents an innovative approach to solve the resource allocation problems using Multi-level Evolutionary Algorithms. Evolutionary Algorithms are used to solve resource allocation problems in different domains and their results are then incorporated into a higher level system solution using another Evolutionary Algorithm to solve base camp planning problems currently faced by the U.S. Department of Defense. Two models are introduced to solve two domain specific models: a logistics model and a power model. The logistic model evaluates routes for logistics vehicles on a daily basis with a goal of reducing fuel usage by delivery trucks. The evaluation includes distance traveled and other constraints such as available resource levels and priority of refilling. The Power model incorporates an open source electrical distribution simulator to evaluate the placement of structures and generators on a map to reduce fuel usage. These models are used as the fitness function for two separate Evolutionary Algorithms to find solutions that reduce fuel consumption within the individual domains. A multi-level Evolutionary Algorithm is then presented, where the two Evolutionary Algorithms share information with a higher level Evolutionary Algorithm that combines the results to account for problem complexity from the interfacing of these systems. The results of using these methods on 5 different base camp sizes show that the techniques provide a considerable reduction of fuel consumption. While the Evolutionary Algorithms show significant improvement over the current methods, the multi-level Evolutionary Algorithm shows better performance than using individual Evolutionary Algorithms, with the results showing a 19.25 % decrease in fuel consumption using the multi-level Evolutionary Algorithm --Abstract, page iii