A study of the relationship between radio frequency identification (RFID) technology and lean manufacturing

The primary purpose of this research effort is to investigate the relationship between Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology and reducing waste in a manufacturing setting where a lean manufacturing system has been implemented. This research identifies implementation areas where RFID can have the greatest impact on work-in-progress management, inventory management, manufacturing assets tracking and maintenance, and manufacturing control in lean manufacturing environments. The study specifically focuses on how RFID can help identify, reduce, and eliminate the seven common types of waste identified by Taiichi Ohno in the Toyota Production System. These seven include overproduction, waiting time, inefficient transportation, inappropriate processing, unnecessary inventory, unnecessary motion, and rejects & defects. The study expands the knowledge of manufacturing waste reduction through the use of RFID technology. Through the use of a forty-question survey, this research involved the collection, review, analysis, and classification of the perceptions of participants across six U.S. manufacturing industries regarding where RFID can have the greatest impact on lean manufacturing. Data collection involved a structured survey administered to 1900+ members of the Society of Manufacturing Engineers (SME). Based on the perceptions of the respondents, RFID technology can be used in several areas/functions/locations within manufacturing that helps to identify and reduce the seven types of manufacturing waste and that RFID technology may improve work-in-progress management, inventory management, and manufacturing control. The study concluded that the reduction of manufacturing waste can be achieved through the deployment of RFID technology in 23 of 35 potential applications. This study fulfills an identified need to study the implementation areas where RFID can have the greatest impact and add value within lean manufacturing settings. The research includes implications for industry practitioners, RFID suppliers, researchers and scholars by providing a better understanding of the benefits of RFID in manufacturing

Design and Development of a Multi-Wavelength Brillouin/Erbium Long-Band Fabry Perot Fiber Laser

Multi-wavelength fiber lasers operating in the long-wavelength band (L-band) wavelength region are needed as laser source for applications such as wavelengthdivision- multiplexed (WDM) communication systems, fiber sensors, spectroscopy and optical fiber gyroscopes. Multi-wavelength fiber lasers are emerging as attractive alternative technologies for wavelength-selectable WDM. They are used as source for direct compatibility with the fiber-optic transmission medium, excellent amplifying properties of rare-earth doped fibers, Brillouin gain, rapidly continuing progress in novel fiber gain media, maturity and robustness of the laser diode pumps used and availability of fiber-based components The multi-wavelength laser applications of interest to this work have distinct performance requirement. This requirement is the need for wide tunability (the ability to tune the lasing emission through a wide range of wavelengths). In this thesis, the design and development of a multi channel continuous wave Brillouid Erbium L-band fiber laser (BEFL), with novel loop mirror configuration, has been studied experimentally. The design parameters of multi-wavelength fiber laser (launched pump powers, single mode optical fiber lengths and Brillouin wavelengths), the multi wavelength Brillouiderbium linear fiber laser configuration with bi-directional pumping is demonstrated. Throughout this work different lengths of single mode optical fiber with various launched pump powers and Brillouin wavelengths have been examined to extract the optimum output performance of a BEFL. The performance of the BEFL is presented in terms of threshold pump power, output peak power, tuning range and the number of Stokes. This development fiber loop configuration exhibits considerably high performance. Twenty-four of Stokes with 10 nm tuning range and efficient output powers were obtained

Examining potential benefits and challenges associated with the Internet of Things integration in supply chains

Purpose The Internet of Things (IoT) is expected to have a huge impact on businesses and, especially, the way we think about supply chain management. However, there is still a paucity of studies on the impact of IoT adoption on supply chains and on different aspects of the business in general. The research aims to examine the perception of the academic community of the impact of the Internet of Things (IoT) adoption in organizational supply chains with a view to verify potential key benefits and challenges existent in the literature. The research presents the impact on an organization along with the impact across its entire supply chain. Design/methodology/approach Data was collected through the use of an online survey and 87 participants completed the survey. Participants were mainly from the academic community and were university scholars based in different countries located in six continents. Participants were authors, or co-authors, of academic papers published in the Decision Science Institute 2015 and 2016 annual conference proceedings, the 21st International Symposium of Sustainable Transport and Supply Chain Innovations, the Supply Chain Management : An International Journal 2016 issues, and the Operations and Supply Chain Management : an International Journal 2016 issues. Findings We were able to confirm the significance of some of the examined potential benefits to individual organizations and their entire supply chains. However, the study identified other potential benefits that were not seen as a direct impact of IoT adoption. Most of the examined potential benefits were found to contribute to a number of critical success factors for implementing successful supply chain management. We were also able to confirm that some of the examined potential challenges were still perceived as key hinders to IoT adoption but examined potential challenges were not seen as hurdles to IoT adoption. Originality/value To our best knowledge, this is the first study of its kind. Although some literature attempted to provide an overview about the IoT management, no study has specifically explored potential benefits and challenges related to the adoption of IoT in supply chains and ranked them based on their significance. The results can be beneficial to; academic scholars interested in the researched topic, business professionals, organizations within different sectors, and any other party interested in understanding more about the impact of adopting IoT on supply chain management

Capacity enhancement of virtual-mirror-based multiwavelength Brillouin-Erbium fiber laser.

An enhanced multiwavelength Brillouin-erbium fiber laser with virtual mirror concept is demonstrated. The performance of three linear amplifier schemes is investigated and optimized. Wide tuning range of 39 nm and maximum of nine laser lines are achieved utilizing a 915 nm pump laser at 616 mW pump power

The PROVENT-C19 registry: A study protocol for international multicenter SIAARTI registry on the use of prone positioning in mechanically ventilated patients with COVID-19 ARDS

Background The worldwide use of prone position (PP) for invasively ventilated patients with COVID-19 is progressively increasing from the first pandemic wave in everyday clinical practice. Among the suggested treatments for the management of ARDS patients, PP was recommended in the Surviving Sepsis Campaign COVID-19 guidelines as an adjuvant therapy for improving ventilation. In patients with severe classical ARDS, some authors reported that early application of prolonged PP sessions significantly decreases 28-day and 90-day mortality. Methods and analysis Since January 2021, the COVID19 Veneto ICU Network research group has developed and implemented nationally and internationally the "PROVENT-C19 Registry", endorsed by the Italian Society of Anesthesia Analgesia Resuscitation and Intensive Care. . .'(SIAARTI). The PROVENT-C19 Registry wishes to describe 1. The real clinical practice on the use of PP in COVID-19 patients during the pandemic at a National and International level; and 2. Potential baseline and clinical characteristics that identify subpopulations of invasively ventilated patients with COVID-19 that may improve daily from PP therapy. This web-based registry will provide relevant information on how the database research tools may improve our daily clinical practice. Conclusions This multicenter, prospective registry is the first to identify and characterize the role of PP on clinical outcome in COVID-19 patients. In recent years, data emerging from large registries have been increasingly used to provide real-world evidence on the effectiveness, quality, and safety of a clinical intervention. Indeed observation-based registries could be effective tools aimed at identifying specific clusters of patients within a large study population with widely heterogeneous clinical characteristics. Copyright

Sustainable supply chain management towards disruption and organizational ambidexterity:A data driven analysis

Balancing sustainability and disruption of supply chains requires organizational ambidexterity. Sustainable supply chains prioritize efficiency and economies of scale and may not have sufficient redundancy to withstand disruptive events. There is a developing body of literature that attempts to reconcile these two aspects. This study gives a data-driven literature review of sustainable supply chain management trends toward ambidexterity and disruption. The critical review reveals temporal trends and geographic distribution of literature. A hybrid of data-driven analysis approach based on content and bibliometric analyses, fuzzy Delphi method, entropy weight method, and fuzzy decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory is used on 273 keywords and 22 indicators obtained based on the experts’ evaluation. The most important indicators are identified as supply chain agility, supply chain coordination, supply chain finance, supply chain flexibility, supply chain resilience, and sustainability. The regions show different tendencies compared with others. Asia and Oceania, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Africa are the regions needs improvement, while Europe and North America show distinct apprehensions on supply chain network design. The main contribution of this review is the identification of the knowledge frontier, which then leads to a discussion of prospects for future studies and practical industry implementation

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Abstract Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

A five-year study of core competencies by students in a technology management undergraduate program

Effective technology management programs support students in their knowledge related to skills and competencies required in the workforce. When developing a curriculum relevant to the needs of the students and today\u27s technology industries, it is important to identify the prior knowledge and experience that students bring into the program. For this study, an online survey was utilized to collect primary data from 2013 to 2017 from 289 newly enrolled technology management students. The study examined their entry level of knowledge through multiple questions focused on four competencies: Strategic management of technology, management of technological change, quality management of technology, and assessment and evaluation of technology. The study found that while two competencies showed an increase in the first-year students\u27 knowledge over the five-year period, two competencies consistently showed a low level of knowledge throughout the same timeframe. The results also highlighted gaps in students\u27 competencies when they initially entered a technology management undergraduate program. The significance of this study will help academic institutions improve their curricula, which ultimately will better equip students with core competencies that contribute positively to their academic and professional success