On the Metaphysics of Production

Since the pre-Socratic period of philosophy, there have been two basic metaphysical views. One holds that there are substances or things, that is, atemporal entities in the world. The other insists that there are processes, that is, intrinsically temporal phenomena. These metaphysical assumptions tend to strongly influence how the subject of the inquiry or action is conceptualized. The thing-oriented view seems to lead to analytical decomposition, the requirement or assumption of certainty and an ahistorical approach. The process-oriented view is related to a holistic orientation, acknowledgement of uncertainty and to a historical and contextual approach. It can be argued that production is intrinsically a process oriented endeavour. However, an analysis of current conceptualizations and methods shows that it is the thing-oriented view on the world that has dominated the research and practice of production management. The resulting mismatch between the assumed nature and true nature of production has arguably led to major generic failures of production management. As a conclusion, it is contended that the discipline of production management has to seriously address the metaphysical issues confronting both practitioners and scholars

Benefits realisation: an investigation of structure and agency

The last 3 decades have seen significant developments in all aspects of process management and New Product Development (NPD) in the Built Environment. Many of the characteristics of NPD models have been challenged and new key principles are emerging as necessary for success. The issue of delivering benefits rather than just tasks and processes has become more prominent also. Previous work related to NPD and Benefits Realisation has focused on the representational and process aspects of their implementation. This paper extends these notions and in particular introduces and explains ‘structure’ and ‘agency’ as they are understood in social sciences. In particular the notion of ‘structure’ will be presented as part of the overarching imperative for action and the actors involved in both undertaking and enacting processes. Finally, the paper concludes in describing how research should be undertaken within the particular context of benefits realisation. The Unique Adequacy (UA) requirement of methods is critical in researching benefits realisation. As such, researchers need to be competent (in theory and practice) of and in the context, which they investigate. Implications for future research are also identified

Developing production theory: What issues need to be taken into consideration?

The aim of this paper is to establish key issues that a theory of production should address, to conceptualize these issues and to sketch an account of their interaction. Aristotle's analyses of knowledge and causality are used, in conjunction with Wittgenstein's concept of language games, to integrate the insights of transformation-flow-value (TFV) theory and the language action perspective (LAP) within a framework derived from Liker (2004). Building on Liker, we identify four language games that are necessary for production: 1. drawing on scientific knowledge to determine the best physical arrangements for the achievement of a pre-given value; 2. two value discourses which determine (a) the target value for (1) and (b) the human relations which will enable the achievement of (1) - Liker's 'long term philosophy' and 'developing people and organization', plus the Language Action Perspective; 3. a discourse of learning and knowledge with the aim of continual improvement. Four of the key concepts used in these games are identified (flow; work, knowledge and commitment) and related to the functions of management. Finally, an overall theoretical framework is propose

How Analysis and Synthesis Have Been Understood in Design

In the disciplines related to the design of products and services, such as New Product Development and Design Science, there is a lack of a commonly accepted theoretical and methodical basis. This papers starts with the proposition that the ancient method of analysis and synthesis, developed originally by Greek geometers, is the basis of models that have been used to classify and describe the ill structured design problem. In this paper, we examine the possibility of improving our understanding of the design process and therefore lean design management by bringing to light a discussion about the concepts of analysis and synthesis and how these have been interpreted through time. Also, how this concept has been used within engineering design methods. To do so, we investigate how analysis and synthesis have been understood in the literature, indicating similarities and differences between ancient and current understandings

Realising benefits in primary healthcare infrastructures

Purpose: This paper focuses upon the requirements to manage change, tangible and intangible benefits in a joint approach to deliver outputs on time, to quality and cost without failing to realise the benefits of the change. The aim of the paper is to demonstrate the need for benefits driven programme/project management as well as the importance of identifying the stakeholders’ level of involvement and contribution throughout the process, and manage their expectations. Design/methodology/approach: The methodology used is based on an action research approach, combining findings from a literature review and case studies within UK’s primary healthcare sector. Findings: Findings demonstrate development of a Benefits Realisation (BeReal) approach in healthcare through looking at case studies taking place within UK’s primary and acute healthcare sector Research limitations/implications: The framework development is based upon theoretical evidence and further research is needed to test and validate its robustness. Originality/value: The application of Benefits Realisation and Management in developing and delivering primary healthcare facilities. Keywords: Benefits management, Benefits realisation, healthcare infrastructures, process and LIF

Collaborative concept design as socio-construction

This research addresses the problem of lack of integration on decision-making caused by misunderstandings between team members during collaborative concept design. Previous research on collaborative design indicated relevant empirical evidence that current concepts of collaboration in design and construction focus on changing the context and the media, and have not properly addressed the socio-constructive nature of collaboration, failing to allow the development of particular abilities required to engage in collective creative situations. In this research it is argued that while the development of such new context and new media can contribute for integrating organizations, process, communication and coordination, they have limited capacity to support collective reasoning on decision-making, especially during concept design. The research approach is a synthesis of the literature, presenting a new model to study collaboration in concept design. The paper discusses the concept of collaboration in conceptual design, and explains collaboration as a socio-constructive act. Collaboration in design should be considered as dependent on the group ability to engage in self-reflective actions, allowing the group to conduct collective decision-making. Further development will provide ways of measuring this and investigating how a multidisciplinary design team can improve collaboration. Keywords: Collaboration, Multidisciplinary Team, Concept Design, Shared Understanding and Social-Constructive Interactions

Collaboration through shared understanding in the early design stage

The complexity of the collaborative design process is related to the nature of the product and the processes, and also involves the social interplay that ultimately generates design. This fundamentally, affects the way people work, in the purposeful action of designing together. Low levels of collaboration are identified especially at early design stages, where the collective design creation is hindered by the lack of ability of the team to build shared understanding, embracing a multitude of expertise in the task. In this context, the research focused on how the concept of shared understanding can potentially support better collaboration at early design stages. This is based on a deeper understanding of collaborative design as a dynamic system of social interplay, in which the process to build shared understanding for concerted actions can be described as a system that combines mediated coupling and coordinated perception, in a context where division of labour exist. Based on a literature review, lean approaches that claim to support shared understanding between project participants are investigated. This paper contributes in discussing how shared understanding, as a process, can be the basis of the collaborative act, and how components of this process can be addressed through lean approaches

Lean Knowledge Management: The Problem of Value

Lean knowledge management is defined here as: getting the right information, in the right form, to the right people at the right time. This definition highlights series of practical problems for knowledge management in the built environment which, in turn, have implications for lean theory. In the terms of TFV theory, the problems that arise from getting information to the right people at the right time are essentially flow (F) issues, but those that are concerned with defining the right information and the form in which it is to be delivered are more concerned with value (V). Here, we focus primarily on the problem of defining right information. A distinction is made between sociological 'values' and economic 'value', showing how both relate to production theory. In the course of benefits capture and realisation, both values and value are negotiated between project participants and other stakeholders. It is argued that these processes are best conceived as conversations and that this is implied in the basic formulation of V theory. The notion of objectivity and its significance for these values/value negotiations is examined. The problem of benefits realisation is considered and a set of hypotheses are generated regarding the nature of an effective benefits realization management proces

Facilitators and Barriers to the Integration of Healthcare Service and Building Design

Service design research recognises the importance of infrastructure design in the achievement of streamlined service delivery. Although research about service design and building design is abundant, very little is known about the integration of these processes. Therefore, this research aimed at identifying facilitators and barriers to the integration of service and building design processes. To this end, the initial results from a historical investigation of the redevelopment of a hospital in Salford, UK were used to identify facilitators and barriers to the integration of service and building design. Data was collected through interviews, document analysis and a workshop. Initial results present internal and external factors related to the design process generating barriers to integration of service and building design

How evidence-based design supports better value generation for end-users

Interest in Evidence based design (EBD) has been growing extensively. Proper design decisions can not only maximise the occupant's health benefits, but also improve service delivery. There is a clear link between the concept of EBD and that of value generation to guide decision making for better healthcare design. Through an expensive literature review, a conceptual framework is presented, illustrating important decision making steps, considering EBD as means, with an emphasis on how it helps increase the end-users value generation. The paper concludes by identifying limitations and potential future studies