Explaining the impact of reconfigurable manufacturing systems on environmental performance: The role of top management and organizational culture

This study develops a theoretical model that links reconfigurable manufacturing systems with top management beliefs, participation, and environmental performance, drawing on agency theory and organizational culture. The study takes into account the possible confounding effects of organization size and organizational compatibility. Drawing on responses from 167 top managers, the results of hypothesis testing suggest that (i) higher top management participation, being influenced by top management beliefs, leads to higher chances of RMS becoming adopted by organizations as their manufacturing strategy; (ii) organizational culture moderates the relationship between the level of top management participation and RMS (and manufacturing strategies) adoption; and (iii) higher re-configurability of manufacturing systems leads to better environmental performance. Furthermore, we integrate Agency Theory and organizational culture to explain the role of top management beliefs and participation in achieving environmental performance via RMS. Finally, we offer guidance to those managers who would like to engage in leveraging top management commitment for achieving environmental performance, and outline further research directions

Beyond shame and stigma: The disclosure of mental illness

This paper, written in journalistic style, discusses the disclosure of mental illness and its relation to stigma and discrimination. It consists of two magazine length articles. The first article (designated as Chapter I) is about the personal disclosure of mental illness by mental health professionals, including psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, and others who have experienced mental illness themselves. This article discusses the extent of mental illness among professionals, the reasons professionals often remain silent, the risks and benefits of disclosing, and the complexity involved in revealing mental illness. The second article (designated as Chapter I) discusses disclosure as it pertains to all people who have mental illness. This article discusses disclosure and its relationship to stigma and discrimination, why stigma exists and persists, the disclosure of mental illness on the job, and the role of work in stigma reduction and recovery

Manufacturing system convertibility and configuration selection.

When companies design manufacturing systems, they must choose not only machine specifications and vendors, but also the configuration of the machines. It is important for manufacturers to assess the performance of these different system alternatives, particularly with regard to responsiveness. One aspect of responsiveness is convertibility, which is defined as the capability of a system to adjust production functionality, or change from one product to another. Two approaches are proposed: a manufacturing system-based approach which can be used to analyze the convertibility of different system configurations early in the design process, and a product-based approach which requires more detailed information about the products and part families that are being manufactured. Convertibility is defined as an intrinsic performance metric that can be applied to any type of manufacturing system, such as dedicated, flexible, or reconfigurable, so that such systems can be compared. The newly defined metric for system convertibility includes contributions due to machines, their arrangements or configuration, and material handling devices. Configurations and system designs that have higher convertibility exhibit higher costs, but provide many other advantages such as higher productivity, the ability to manufacture multiple part types, and shorter lead times for introducing new products. Performance analysis must include not only responsiveness issues, but also more traditional factors such as productivity, quality, and cost. Trade-offs frequently exist between these various aspects of performance, so a comprehensive analysis is needed. The analytic hierarchy process is proposed as a methodology that can be adapted for this purpose. The manufacturing system and configuration that a company selects can significantly affect performance, including the ability to respond to changing consumer needs. With increased consumer demands for a wider variety of products in changeable, unpredicted quantities, manufacturing system responsiveness has become increasingly important for industry competitiveness. This research provides a method for selecting preferred manufacturing system configurations, including a quantitative assessment of the capability of different manufacturing systems to respond to changes in product design.Ph.D.Applied SciencesIndustrial engineeringMechanical engineeringUniversity of Michigan, Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studieshttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/123711/2/3096208.pd

Selecting facility locations and transportation for multinational corporation supply chains

This research incorporates transportation factors into a facility location decision model for multinational corporations (MNC). Previous facility location models have considered the Transportation factor, but typically as a single, simplified component. The Transportation factor is actually complex, with many components such as nodes, routes, costs, time, distance, capacity, and demand. A case study is presented to demonstrate the proposed model. The integration of more Transportation factors into facility location models will transform the interdependencies between the MNC supply chain network and the Global Transportation Network from functional or transactional to a more structural and reciprocal format, thereby enhancing global competitiveness

Cost and Environmental Impacts in Manufacturing: A Case Study Approach

According to the Brundtland report, sustainable development “meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” (United Nations 1987). The 3 pillars of sustainability have been identified as economic development, social development, and environmental protection (United Nations 2005). These components interact and affect each other in any real world application. For manufacturing companies, sustainable manufacturing is one way to decrease the environmental impact of their products. In the literature, there are different approaches to assess sustainability. However, approaches which improve sustainability and reduce costs are difficult to realize, because these goals are often seen as conflictive and cannot be achieved at the same time. An overlap between cost reduction and sustainability can push companies to expend more effort in order to achieve long term business success while decreasing the environmental impact of their products. This case study aims to demonstrate this overlap. Besides an assessment of the current state of manufacturing processes, alternative future state models are determined, which are more sustainable and decrease the costs of production

Scales to measure culture change in healthcare organizations implementing continuous improvement methodologies

Increasing medical costs have made healthcare organizations strive for a culture of continuous improvement, which has been successful in other business sectors such as manufacturing. The success of these process improvement methodologies is contingent on employees of the organization being ready to adopt and embrace them, which necessitates behavior change of employees. This study focused on three of the constructs from the Transtheoretical Model (TTM)— stage of change, self-efficacy and decisional balance. The study was conducted at a mid-sized hospital, where all employees were surveyed five times over a period of two and one-half years using TTM measures. Descriptive analysis, reliability testing, and exploratory factor analysis was done to determine the reliability and validity of the scales. The study resulted in initial development and validation of scales, which were used to measure change in the hospital where the survey was conducted. The results can help the organization develop stage-matched interventions and strategies for change management, and help prioritize resources

Profitable remanufacturing processes in small and medium sized companies: A case study

Challenges like scarce resources and climate change will make it harder to satisfy the global demand for industrial goods in the future. The urgency of shifting from classic industrial production to a more sustainable approach drives companies to consider remanufacturing as a business opportunity and raw material source. This study investigates the profitability of remanufacturing in small and medium sized companies, since large corporations are ahead in this field. This problem is approached through a case study in the warranty returns department of a medium sized industrial equipment manufacturer. Different scenarios were calculated to show the benefits and difficulties of conducting remanufacturing operations. This example shows that utilizing returned products can be beneficial and profitable. Remanufacturing saves costs for raw material and is more environmentally friendly

Robust Project-Based Organizations for the Design of Complex Engineered Systems

Cost and schedule overruns have become increasingly common in projects that set out to deliver complex engineered systems. Considering the well-established relationship between systems and organizations that design them, this article compares real-world, project-based organizational forms to idealized forms using agent-based models. It identifies multiscale networks as the preferred theoretical form and structures based on military staffs as the preferred practical form for organizations that design complex engineered systems. Matrix organizations are particularly susceptible to congestion failure, whereas military staffs are more robust and better suited to meeting demands for cross-functional collaboration and communication