Cellular manufacturing Cellular Manufacturing is a model for workplace design, and has become an integral part of lean manufacturing systems. Cellular Manufacturing is based upon the principles of Group Technology, which seeks to take full advantage of the similarity between parts, through standardization and common processing. In Functional Manufacturing similar machines are placed close together (e.g. lathes, mills, drills etc.). Functional layouts are more robust to machine breakdowns, have common jigs and fixtures in the same area and supports high levels of demarcation. History[edit] Cellular Manufacturing is the application of the principles of Group Technology in manufacturing. Design[edit] The goal of cellular manufacturing is having the flexibility to produce a high variety of low demand products, while maintaining the high productivity of large scale production. An additional goal in cellular manufacturing is the maximization of process ownership with moderation of capital investment. See also[edit]
Production leveling On a production line, as in any process,[2] fluctuations in performance increase waste. This is because equipment, workers, inventory and all other elements required for production must always be prepared for peak production. This is a cost of flexibility. If a later process varies its withdrawal of parts in terms of timing and quality, the range of these fluctuations will increase as they move up the line towards the earlier processes. This is known as demand amplification. Where demand is constant, production leveling is easy, but where customer demand fluctuates, two approaches have been adopted: 1) demand leveling and 2) production leveling through flexible production. To prevent fluctuations in production, even in outside affiliates, it is important to minimize fluctuation in the final assembly line. Production Leveling by volume or by product type or mix[edit] Leveling by volume[edit] Leveling by product[edit] Implementation[edit] Demand leveling[edit] Implementation[edit] See also[edit]
8 Dimensions of Quality | Lean Six Sigma Academy By Chris Akins of Trident-Consulting LLC The definition of quality is often a hotly debated topic. While it may seem intuitive, when we get right down to it, “quality” is a difficult concept to define with any precision. The most fundamental definition of a quality product is one that meets the expectations of the customer. In order to develop a more complete definition of quality, we must consider some of the key dimensions of a quality product or service. Dimension 1: Performance Does the product or service do what it is supposed to do, within its defined tolerances? Performance is often a source of contention between customers and suppliers, particularly when deliverables are not adequately defined within specifications. The performance of a product often influences profitability or reputation of the end-user. Dimension 2: Features Does the product or services possess all of the features specified, or required for its intended purpose? Dimension 3: Reliability Dimension 4: Conformance Summary
Total quality management Total quality management (TQM) consists of organization-wide efforts to install and make permanent a climate in which an organization continuously improves its ability to deliver high-quality products and services to customers. While there is no widely agreed-upon approach, TQM efforts typically draw heavily on the previously-developed tools and techniques of quality control. TQM enjoyed widespread attention during the late 1980s and early 1990s before being overshadowed by ISO 9000, Lean manufacturing, and Six Sigma. History[edit] In the late 1970s and early 1980s, the developed countries of North America and Western Europe suffered economically in the face of stiff competition from Japan's ability to produce high-quality goods at competitive cost. Development in the United States[edit] From the Navy, TQM spread throughout the US Federal Government, resulting in the following: Features[edit] The key concepts in the TQM effort undertaken by the Navy in the 1980s include:[11] Joseph M. [edit]
Muda (Japanese term) One of the key steps in Lean and TPS is the identification of which steps add value and which do not. By classifying all the process activities into these two categories it is then possible to start actions for improving the former and eliminating the latter. Some of these definitions may seem rather 'idealist' but this tough definition is seen as important to the effectiveness of this key step. The expression "Learning to see" comes from an ever developing ability to see waste where it was not perceived before. There can be more forms of waste in addition to the seven. The Eight Wastes - DOWNTIME[5] Each time a product is moved it stands the risk of being damaged, lost, delayed, etc. as well as being a cost for no added value. Inventory, be it in the form of raw materials, work-in-progress (WIP), or finished goods, represents a capital outlay that has not yet produced an income either by the producer or for the consumer. An easy way to remember the 7 wastes is TIMWOOD.
Vertical integration A diagram illustrating vertical integration and contrasting it with horizontal integration Vertical integration is one method of avoiding the hold-up problem. A monopoly produced through vertical integration is called a vertical monopoly. Nineteenth-century steel tycoon Andrew Carnegie's example in the use of vertical integration[1] led others to use the system to promote financial growth and efficiency in their businesses. Three types[edit] Vertical integration is the degree to which a firm owns its upstream suppliers and its downstream buyers. There are three varieties: backward (upstream) vertical integration, forward (downstream) vertical integration, and balanced (both upstream and downstream) vertical integration. A company exhibits backward vertical integration when it controls subsidiaries that produce some of the inputs used in the production of its products. Examples[edit] Oil industry[edit] Telephone[edit] Reliance[edit] Media industry[edit] Apple[edit] Agriculture industry[edit]
Link Manufacturing Process and Product Life Cycles Summary by Christina Thayer Master of Accountancy Program University of South Florida, Fall 2004 PLC Main Page | Strategy Related Main Page | Structure and Restructure Main Page This article is the first in a two part sequence of papers (See note). The authors stress the importance of using a process life cycle in choosing among the different manufacturing and marketing options. The authors contend that simply using the traditional product life cycle for decision making can place too much emphasis on marketing alone. Individual companies will often find this to be too simplistic and misleading for strategic planning. The Product-Process Matrix The article describes a series of stages that the production process passes through. Click on graphic for larger view. The natural flow of the matrix is a negatively sloped line from the top left corner to the bottom right. Using the Concept Hayes and Wheelwright discuss three issues that follow from the product-process life cycle.
Batch processing Batch processing is the execution of a series of programs ("jobs") on a computer without manual intervention. Benefits[edit] Batch processing has these benefits: History[edit] Batch processing has been associated with mainframe computers since the earliest days of electronic computing in the 1950s. Batch processing is still pervasive in mainframe computing, but practically all types of computers are now capable of at least some batch processing, even if only for "housekeeping" tasks. Modern systems[edit] Despite their long history, batch applications are still critical in most organizations in large part because many common business processes are amenable to batch processing. Scripting languages became popular as they evolved along with batch processing. Batch window[edit] A batch window is "a period of less-intensive online activity",[1] when the computer system is able to run batch jobs without interference from online systems. Common batch processing usage[edit] Databases[edit] Images[edit]
Job shop Job shops are typically small manufacturing systems that handle job production, that is, custom/bespoke or semi-custom/bespoke manufacturing processes such as small to medium-size customer orders or batch jobs. Job shops typically move on to different jobs (possibly with different customers) when each job is completed. In job shops machines are aggregated in shops by the nature of skills and technological processes involved, each shop therefore may contain different machines, which gives this production system processing flexibility, since jobs are not necessarily constrained to a single machine. In computer science the problem of job shop scheduling is considered strongly NP-hard. In a job shop product flow is twisted, also notice that in this drawing each shop contains a single machine. The opposite would be continuous flow manufactures such as textile, steel,food manufacturing and manual labor. Advantages[edit] Compare to transfer line Disadvantages[edit] See also[edit] Job-shop problem A.
Resource-based view The resource-based view (RBV) as a basis for the competitive advantage of a firm lies primarily in the application of a bundle of valuable tangible or intangible resources at the firm's disposal (Mwailu & Mercer, 1983 p142, Wernerfelt, 1984, p172; Rumelt, 1984, p557-558; Penrose, 1959[1]). To transform a short-run competitive advantage into a sustained competitive advantage requires that these resources are heterogeneous in nature and not perfectly mobile (:[2] p105-106; Peteraf, 1993, p180). Effectively, this translates into valuable resources that are neither perfectly imitable nor substitutable without great effort (Barney, 1991;:[2] p117). If these conditions hold, the bundle of resources can sustain the firm's above average returns. Key Points[edit] The key points of the theory are: The VRIN characteristics mentioned are individually necessary, but not sufficient conditions for a sustained competitive advantage (Dierickx and Cool, 1989, p1506; Priem and Butler, 2001a, p25). 1. 2.