A Review of the Implementation of JIT Algorithms and Models in Production Systems

Intense competition in today’s economy, the shrinking life cycles of products, and the heightening expectations of customers have forced business enterprises to focus their attention on correctly arranging and controlling their production and supply chain systems. Thus, manufacturing firms/industries adopt JIT techniques to enjoy competitive advantage. In this paper, a literature review is presented to show the important applications of JIT Algorithms and Models in Production Systems. The purpose of this step is to review the results obtained from the implementation and to provide the practical recommendations for further improvement. This will help reveal practical issues encountered in the implementation. All these issues should become main concerns if the manufacturing Plant wants to get maximum benefits from the JIT implementation. This study bridged a research gap by identifying a framework for re-design of manufacturing systems into practical optimum Just-In-Time systems. The conventional JIT approach is mostly applicable to static production systems and the dynamic production systems require a more practical integrated JIT approach

Integration of lean six sigma with multi agent systems in the food distribution industry in small to medium enterprises

This thesis was submitted for the award of Doctor of Philosophy and was awarded by Brunel University LondonThe service industry worldwide continues to face unprecedented challenges in decision-making and in managing the operations involved in delivering products at low cost and ever-faster delivery speeds. These pressures exert an even greater impact upon small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) involved in this industry who, influenced by globalisation, have to respond by handling the dynamic complexity within their operational supply chain. Many larger firms have implemented Lean and Six Sigma (LSS) and end-to-end integrated real-time information systems (RTI) that provide the information and the mechanisms needed to support flexibility and prompt decision-making. The recent emergence of new technologies such as multi-agent systems (MAS) provides enhanced capability to address complexity and decision-making with greater ease of use at a reduced cost. Whilst the application of Lean and Six Sigma are supported by significant published research, the application of integrated LSS and MAS in food distribution, especially in SMEs, is not. This study seeks to provide research to address this shortcoming for SMEs within the food distribution sector within Saudi Arabia, how this integrated approach can offer considerable performance improvement in SMEs and provide a base for further contributions in this field. This research undertook an empirical case study in Saudi Arabia to test the application of LSS in a food distribution SME. This approach demonstrated a significant improvement in the Six Sigma for late delivery. A single-stage MAS application extended this improvement, demonstrating that there is value in its application. The study conducted a survey of 39 firms in this sector to gain an insight into their current practices and challenges. The findings indicated there was a lack of Lean and Six Sigma principles adopted and that a lack of use of interconnected real-time systems to support decision-making and complex operational SCs. These findings identified the opportunity to design a conceptual framework with a stepped approach that integrated LSS with MAS, which was then developed on a Java-Assisted DEvelopment Framework (JADE) platform and tested using real-world data in an SME empirical case study. The results of the sequence of applications and the final simulations proved that this integrated Lean multi-agent system (LMAS) solution offered such substantial improvements in quality, time and costs that the SME considered that those factors justified making its implementation a priority

Radio frequency identification (RFID) technologies for locating warehouse resources: A conceptual framework

Copyright @ 2012 Information Technology SocietyIn the supply chain, a warehouse is a crucial component for linking all chain parties. It is necessary to track the real time resource location and status to support warehouse operations effectively. Therefore, RFID technology has been adopted to facilitate the collection and sharing of data in a warehouse environment. However, an essential decision should be made on the type of RFID tags the warehouse managers should adopt, because it is very important to implement RFID tags that work in warehouse environment. As a result, the warehouse resources will be easily tracked and accurately located which will improve the visibility of warehouse operations, enhance the productivity and reduce the operation costs of the warehouse. Therefore, it is crucial to evaluate the reading performance of all types of RFID tags in a warehouse environment in order to choose the most appropriate RFID tags which will enhance the operational efficiency of a warehouse. Reading performance of active and passive RFID tags have been evaluated before while, semi-passive RFID tag, which is battery-assisted with greater sensitivity than passive tags and cheaper than active tags, has not been examined yet in a warehouse environment. This research is in- progress research and it seeks to (i) provide a general overview of the existing real-time data management techniques in tracking warehouse resources location, (ii) provide an overall conceptual framework that can help warehouse managers to choose the best RFID technologies for a warehouse environment, (iii) Finally, the paper submits an experiment design for evaluating the reading performance of semi-passive RFID tags in a warehouse environment

How can business transformation be driven by a new ERP implementation: the Nice case study

openIn the last years, Nice has carried out several Mergers and Acquisitions operations. For the most part, acquired companies are still operating with their own industrial methods, tools and operating processes, configuring a situation of overall fragmentation in terms of Application Landscape within the Group, and generating various issues like timeliness and granularity of data availability and difficulties in processes integration across companies. Given such context, Nice Management would like to evolve its current Application Landscape, in order to enable the transformation into an integrated “One Company”, operating on the new Microsoft D365F&SCM as the common ERP platform. Furthermore, with the aim to reduce infrastructural complexity and rationalize related costs, such evolution will include switching from an On-Cloud “private” ERP setup to an On-Cloud totally outsourced ERP. This ERP implementation project starts from the revision, optimization and formalization of the business processes as fundamental requirement to then reproduce them on the Microsoft platform and this thesis will focus on the analyzed processes during the project. Taking into account the context and the needs, with the aim to perform a digital transformation of his business, Nice requested support to Deloitte in order to: • Define a Global Template to be applied to all Group’s countries standardizing the ways of working and adopting processes based on best practices as first step to prepare the ERP implementation. • Upgrade the Group’s Application Landscape to the new Microsoft D365F&SCM release. • Rationalize the overall IT architecture, to reduce the related cost and to improve the efficiency of it. This project is being followed by three Deloitte teams: • A supply chain team, which has in charge the Global Template definition and so the study and revision of all company’s processes. • A Microsoft team for the implementation of the ERP after the definition of formalized processes. This one is the team of which I am part and in the first part of the project will support the supply chain team for the definition of feasible processes for the implementation inside the ERP and in a second moment will actively implement the system for the company. In particular, for the ERP side I will be in charge of the definition of the production processes, from the planning based on forecast to the production lines. • A Finance team that study and revise financial processes. Considering the focus that I had during the project and the objectives defined, the Global Template will be characterized in this thesis with reference to following end to end processes. These processes are part of one of the frameworks, based on best practices, used by Deloitte for the analysis and improvement of the processes of a company: • Forecast to inventory (FTI): is intended the process of forecast and demand management and in particular the main phases considered are statistical forecast generation, sales plan generation, demand plan generation and management of demand signals. For Nice company the two critical processes analyzed were demand planning and replenishment planning. • Plan to schedule (PTS): is intended the process of planning based on forecast and in particular the main phases are supply and capacity planning, production planning, master planning (MPS and MRP) and production scheduling. In Nice case the main processes studied were the production plan definition and the raw material procurement planning, due to the criticality of these processes in their context. • Make to deploy (MTD): we intend the set of process that, starting from the planning and purchasing processes, aim to manage the flow of material throughout the whole production and distribution process to cover the demand of the Customers and/or Subsidiaries. In particular the main processes that has been analyzed are production and logistic.In the last years, Nice has carried out several Mergers and Acquisitions operations. For the most part, acquired companies are still operating with their own industrial methods, tools and operating processes, configuring a situation of overall fragmentation in terms of Application Landscape within the Group, and generating various issues like timeliness and granularity of data availability and difficulties in processes integration across companies. Given such context, Nice Management would like to evolve its current Application Landscape, in order to enable the transformation into an integrated “One Company”, operating on the new Microsoft D365F&SCM as the common ERP platform. Furthermore, with the aim to reduce infrastructural complexity and rationalize related costs, such evolution will include switching from an On-Cloud “private” ERP setup to an On-Cloud totally outsourced ERP. This ERP implementation project starts from the revision, optimization and formalization of the business processes as fundamental requirement to then reproduce them on the Microsoft platform and this thesis will focus on the analyzed processes during the project. Taking into account the context and the needs, with the aim to perform a digital transformation of his business, Nice requested support to Deloitte in order to: • Define a Global Template to be applied to all Group’s countries standardizing the ways of working and adopting processes based on best practices as first step to prepare the ERP implementation. • Upgrade the Group’s Application Landscape to the new Microsoft D365F&SCM release. • Rationalize the overall IT architecture, to reduce the related cost and to improve the efficiency of it. This project is being followed by three Deloitte teams: • A supply chain team, which has in charge the Global Template definition and so the study and revision of all company’s processes. • A Microsoft team for the implementation of the ERP after the definition of formalized processes. This one is the team of which I am part and in the first part of the project will support the supply chain team for the definition of feasible processes for the implementation inside the ERP and in a second moment will actively implement the system for the company. In particular, for the ERP side I will be in charge of the definition of the production processes, from the planning based on forecast to the production lines. • A Finance team that study and revise financial processes. Considering the focus that I had during the project and the objectives defined, the Global Template will be characterized in this thesis with reference to following end to end processes. These processes are part of one of the frameworks, based on best practices, used by Deloitte for the analysis and improvement of the processes of a company: • Forecast to inventory (FTI): is intended the process of forecast and demand management and in particular the main phases considered are statistical forecast generation, sales plan generation, demand plan generation and management of demand signals. For Nice company the two critical processes analyzed were demand planning and replenishment planning. • Plan to schedule (PTS): is intended the process of planning based on forecast and in particular the main phases are supply and capacity planning, production planning, master planning (MPS and MRP) and production scheduling. In Nice case the main processes studied were the production plan definition and the raw material procurement planning, due to the criticality of these processes in their context. • Make to deploy (MTD): we intend the set of process that, starting from the planning and purchasing processes, aim to manage the flow of material throughout the whole production and distribution process to cover the demand of the Customers and/or Subsidiaries. In particular the main processes that has been analyzed are production and logistic

Empirical Studies in Discrete Parts Manufacturing Management

Manufacturing firms are bound by the conditions of their environment. They have to fulfil the demands of various stakeholders, such as customers, suppliers, government, financiers, and employees) that provide them the resources to perform their operations. The effectiveness of a manufacturing firm depends on the fit between the manufacturing system and the level of uncertainty in its environment. There must be consistency between numerous manufacturing dimensions, such as operations strategy, process choice, level of decentralization, production planning and control strategies, concepts, and tools, and the characteristics of the dominant Product/Market/Technology (PMT) combinations of the manufacturing firm. This book focuses on empirical studies that address the impact of PMT-uncertainty on various operations management issues in Dutch discrete parts manufacturing firms. It includes an in-depth exploratory longitudinal case study at Urenco Aerospace, a second-tier supplier in the aerospace industry, and two independent surveys (i.e., questionnaire-based research) among Dutch discrete parts manufacturers. The central research question of this book is, ‘what is the impact of PMT-uncertainty on important discrete parts manufacturing management issues, such as the strategic focus on competitive priorities, the dominant type of manufacturing layout, the decentrality of the locus of production planning and control, the use of various production planning and control tools, and line management’s attention for social issues like individual competence management?’ In addition, we extensively focus on organizational and innovation-related characteristics that affect the adoption of an Advanced Planning and Scheduling system within the discrete parts manufacturing industry.Productiebedrijven in de maakindustrie, ofwel discrete productiebedrijven, zijn onvermijdelijk gebonden aan de condities van hun omgeving; ze moeten voldoen aan een scala van eisen en wensen van verschillende belanghebbenden (klanten, toeleveranciers, overheid, financiers, arbeidsmarkt en vakbonden) die hun de middelen verschaffen om de activiteiten te ontplooien. Daarbij is de effectiviteit van een willekeurig productiebedrijf gerelateerd aan de consistentie van het productiesysteem met de omgeving. Hierbij speelt het concept onzekerheid (met name de dimensies complexiteit, dynamiek en informatie onbeschikbaarheid) in de karakteristieken van de dominante Product/Markt/Technologie (PMT) combinaties van het productiebedrijf een belangrijke rol. Dit proefschrift richt zich specifiek op empirische studies binnen de Nederlandse maakindustrie met betrekking tot de invloed van omgevingsonzekerheid op enkele van bovengenoemde productiedimensies. De centrale onderzoeksvraag van dit proefschrift is ‘wat is de impact van PMT-onzekerheid, gegeven de karakteristieken van de PMT-combinaties, op belangrijke productiemanagementonderwerpen zoals de strategische focus op competitieve prioriteiten, de dominante vorm van de productie layout, de mate van centralisatie (i.e., hiërarchie) van de beslissingsstructuur voor productieplanning, de adoptie van verschillende soorten productieplanning- en besturingssystemen, en de aandacht van het lijnmanagement voor individuele competenties’. Gebaseerd op een aselecte steekproef van 206 respondenten, concluderen we dat de invloed van de verschillende dimensies van onzekerheid op de mate van centralisatie van de productieplanningsbeslissingen verschillend zijn. Omgevingscomplexiteit, en in het bijzonder klantenordercomplexiteit, leidt tot een meer gedecentraliseerde beslissingsstructuur voor productieplanning, maar ook tot een meer gecentraliseerde beslissingsstructuur van klantenorderacceptatie en levertijdafgifte. Verder concluderen we dat binnen de Nederlandse maakindustrie de invloed van omgevingsonzekerheid op het gebruik de verschillende productieplanning- en besturingssystemen gering is; complexiteit van interne routering, bijvoorbeeld, is geen voorspeller voor een bepaald type productieplanning- en besturingssysteem. Verder vonden we dat van alle gebruikte dynamiek-gerelateerde variabelen alleen productdynamiek negatief correleert met het gebruik van een APS systeem, en dat gebrek aan informatie juist leidt tot het gebruik van spreadsheetsoftware. Tenslotte is bedrijfsgrootte van belang als voorspeller voor het gebruik van een conventioneel planbord en een kanbanbesturingssysteem. Gebaseerd op een tweede survey onder Nederlandse discrete productiebedrijven, met uiteindelijk een representatieve steekproef van 136 respondenten, vonden we dat management ondersteuning, de aanschafkosten van APS systemen en de hoeveelheid verschillende eindproducten dat een productiebedrijf voert, direct van invloed is op de adoptie van een APS systeem. Verder zijn de begrippen observeerbaarheid (van de voordelen van het APS systeem), de mening van andere gebruikers en het innovatief vermogen van productiebedrijven van invloed op de adoptie van een APS systeem: productiebedrijven die hoog scoren op innovatief vermogen hechten minder waarde aan zowel de mening van andere gebruikers als de observeerbaarheid van APS systemen dan productiebedrijven die laag scoren op innovatief vermogen (en die meer onzekerheid ondervinden rondom een nieuwe technologie zoals APS). Daarnaast speelt professionaliteit op het gebied van operationeel management / logistiek een indirecte rol in de adoptie van een APS systeem.The Erasmus Research Institute of Management (ERIM) is the Research School (Onderzoekschool) in the field of management of the Erasmus University Rotterdam. The founding participants of ERIM are RSM Erasmus University and the Erasmus School of Economics. ERIM was founded in 1999 and is officially accredited by the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW). The research undertaken by ERIM is focussed on the management of the firm in its environment, its intra- and inter-firm relations, and its business processes in their interdependent connections. The objective of ERIM is to carry out first rate research in management, and to offer an advanced graduate program in Research in Management. Within ERIM, over two hundred senior researchers and Ph.D. candidates are active in the different research programs. From a variety of academic backgrounds and expertises, the ERIM community is united in striving for excellence and working at the forefront of creating new business knowledge

The Adoption of Lean Operations and Lean Accounting on the Financial-Performance Measures of Publicly Traded Companies

For fiscal years 2008 through 2010, manufacturers and service providers that adopted lean operations outperformed companies that did not adopt lean operations. Using non-parametric tests and a matched-pairs design, lean companies had greater returns on both net operating assets (RNOA) and total assets (ROA). Lean companies also experienced better operating cash flows and cash adequacy than non-lean companies. The profit margins and financing-assets ratios were marginally better for lean companies than non-lean companies. Several working-capital measures, however, were not significantly different. Lean companies also experienced higher total-inventory turnover and raw-materials inventory turnover than non-lean companies. Although work-in-process inventory turnover did not differ significantly between the two groups, the test for that hypothesis contained the fewest number of matched pairs due to fewer companies reporting values for work-in-process. Lean companies experienced lower days\u27-sales in inventory and marginally higher finished-goods inventory turnover than non-lean companies

Benefits of visual management in construction: cases from the transportation sector in England

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore the benefits of Visual Management (VM) systems in transportation construction projects in England. Design/methodology/approach: Following a comprehensive literature review, the benefits of VM were investigated through action and case study research executed within two construction projects in England. Findings: The main findings are; VM can contribute to (i) increased self-management, (ii) better team coordination, (iii) better promises or an increasing Plan Percent Complete (PPC), (iv) easier control for the management, and (v) improved workplace conditions in the transportation sector. It is important for the management to obtain the engagement of their workforce for VM through increased participation and demonstrating the actual benefits. However, managerial monitoring and control on the systems should not be underestimated. Originality/value: The transportation sector in England has been systematically deploying lean construction techniques in its operations for a while. One of those lean techniques is a close-range visual communication strategy called Visual Management (VM). The literature on the VM implementation in construction is scarce and generally limited to the building construction context. This paper documents the benefits of VM systems for the transportation sector by using data captured through both qualitative and quantitative data collection methods. The paper also identifies a set of recommendations for similar research efforts in the transportation context in the future

A Lean Accounting Curriculum

This paper is written as a part of my honors thesis. My objective for my thesis was to develop a curriculum to be used in the classroom here at Utah State University, on the subject of lean accounting. This curriculum includes a set of lecture slides, selection of an assigned textbook, a case study assignment, and a DVD. Also compiled were several other optional materials that may be used as supplements to the aforementioned set of materials or as a means to briefly cover lean accounting in another course if so desired. This paper contains a brief summary of lean thinking and explains many fundamental principles of lean accounting. It also records the efforts of my thesis and describes the compiled materials

A New Management Model for Government: Integrating Activity Based Costing, the Balanced Scorecard, and Total Quality Management with the Planning, Programming and Budgeting System

Modern governments throughout the world face the same basic set of management challenges: a) to improve effectiveness.emphasizing outputs over inputs; b) to improve efficiency.managing costs; and c) to improve accountability.tying budgets to performance. This paper builds a new management model for government that addresses these challenges. Combining key principles of Activity Based Costing (ABC), the Balanced Scorecard (BSC), and Total Quality Management (TQM) with the spirit of the Planning, Programming and Budgeting System (PPBS) a new model emerges that bridges the gap between business and government. This integrated public management model is applied to generate fresh insights into two ongoing U.S. federal management initiatives: i) the Congressionally-mandated .Government Performance and Results Act. (GPRA), and ii) the President's "Management Agenda.