Manufacturing vision and competitiveness

Discusses a refinement to the process by which manufacturing strategy is created. Builds on an existing strategy process (Platts, 1990) and adapts it to fit more closely within the dynamic manufacturing vision. The method for creating a manufacturing vision allows a business to do this in a two- to three-week period as part of a 10-12 week manufacturing strategy project. A conceptual model of manufacturing vision has been developed that enables practitioners to explore the factors that influenced the potential competitive contribution of manufacturing and to agree an explicit direction for change. Describes the successful application of the process in six manufacturing organizations and highlights the practical limitations of the approach.

Reasons for roadmapping: A study of the Singaporean SME manufacturing sector

To encourage Singaporean small and medium sized enterprises to move up the value chain, Operation and Technology Roadmapping (OTR) has been developed and introduced to the sector. This technique is based upon the T-Plan process developed at Cambridge University. To-date close to thirty companies have used the process to create a 'first-cut' roadmap. This paper initially reviews the application of roadmapping in small companies, and then highlights the various areas where the companies have applied the roadmapping technique. © 2004 IEEE.

Manufacturing clarity

A framework has been developed for the UK economy that categorizes companies who provides a more defined perspective on the structure of the economy in order to help decision makers, government and industry to achieve sustained economic growth. The Institute for Manufacturing (IfM) has established a broader definition of manufacturing that equates manufacturing to the full cycle of activities from research and development, through design, production, logistics and services, to end of life management, within an economic and social context. This approach recognizes that manufacturing firms turn ideas into products and services and that they are inventors, innovators, global supply chain managers and service providers. It is hoped that this categorization provides policy-makers with a clear frame of reference for discussing measures to adapt interventions to address the needs of the diverse set of companies.

A tool for assessing reconfigurability of distributed manufacturing systems

In recent years, a large number of approaches to developing distributed manufacturing systems has been proposed. One of the principles reasons for these development has been to enhance the reconfigurability of a manufacturing operation; allowing it to readily adapt to changes over time. However, to date, there has only been a limited assessment of the resulting reconfigurability properties and hence it remains inconclusive as to whether a distributed manufacturing system design approach does in fact improve reconfigurability. This paper represents part of a study which investigates this issue. It proposes an assessment tool - the so called "Design Structure Matrix" as a means of assessing the modularity of elements in a manufacturing system. (Modularity has been shown to be a key characteristic of a reconfigurable manufacturing system.) The use of the Design Structure Matrix is illustrated in assessing a robot assembly cell designed on distributed manufacturing system principles. Copyright © 2006 IFAC.