Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Manufacturing Strategies'

Some developing nations struggle with a diminishing manufacturing output market share because of a lack of appropriate procurement strategies. The purpose of this single case study was to explore the procurement strategies that managers successfully developed and deployed to improve company performance. The strategic alignment model was the conceptual framework for the study. Data were collected through semistructured interviews of 6 members of a Nigerian ceramics manufacturing company, as well as from a review of publicly available documents related to the performance of the company. A thematic analysis of the data was conducted to identify codes, extract subthemes and themes from the codes, and develop a thematic map. The 5 themes that emerged from data analysis included the procurement strategies needed for cross-functional collaboration, emergencies and downturns, alternatives and competition, applications of information technologies in procurement functions, and control of stock level and vendors' performance. The results of the data analysis confirmed empirical evidence that linked strategic procurement alignment to organizational performance. The implementation of the findings of this study may be beneficial to individuals, communities, organizations, institutions, cultures, and society through employment creation, costs savings, waste reduction, value creation, crime reduction, and local development.

The explosive growth of Internet-based architectures is allowing an efficient access to information resources over geographically dispersed areas. This fact is exerting a major influence on current manufacturing practices. Business activities involving customers, partners, employees and suppliers are being rapidly and efficiently integrated through networked information management environments. Therefore, efforts are required to take advantage of distributed infrastructures that can satisfy information integration and collaborative work strategies in corporate environments. In this research, Internet-based distributed solutions focused on the manufacturing industry are proposed. Three different systems have been developed for the tooling sector, specifically for the company Seco Tools UK Ltd (industrial collaborator). They are summarised as follows. SELTOOL is a Web-based open tool selection system involving the analysis of technical criteria to establish appropriate selection of inserts, toolholders and cutting data for turning, threading and grooving operations. It has been oriented to world-wide Seco customers. SELTOOL provides an interactive and crossed-way of searching for tooling parameters, rather than conventional representation schemes provided by catalogues. Mechanisms were developed to filter, convert and migrate data from different formats to the database (SQL-based) used by SELTOOL.TTS (Tool Trials System) is a Web-based system developed by the author and two other researchers to support Seco sales engineers and technical staff, who would perform tooling trials in geographically dispersed machining centres and benefit from sharing data and results generated by these tests. Through TTS tooling engineers (authorised users) can submit and retrieve highly specific technical tooling data for both milling and turning operations. Moreover, it is possible for tooling engineers to avoid the execution of new tool trials knowing the results of trials carried out in physically distant places, when another engineer had previously executed these trials. The system incorporates encrypted security features suitable for restricted use on the World Wide Web. An urgent need exists for tools to make sense of raw data, extracting useful knowledge from increasingly large collections of data now being constructed and made available from networked information environments. This explosive growth in the availability of information is overwhelming the capabilities of traditional information management systems, to provide efficient ways of detecting anomalies and significant patterns in large sets of data. Inexorably, the tooling industry is generating valuable experimental data. It is a potential and unexplored sector regarding the application of knowledge capturing systems. Hence, to address this issue, a knowledge discovery system called DISKOVER was developed. DISKOVER is an integrated Java-application consisting of five data mining modules, able to be operated through the Internet. Kluster and Q-Fast are two of these modules, entirely developed by the author. Fuzzy-K has been developed by the author in collaboration with another research student in the group at Durham. The final two modules (R-Set and MQG) have been developed by another member of the Durham group. To develop Kluster, a complete clustering methodology was proposed. Kluster is a clustering application able to combine the analysis of quantitative as well as categorical data (conceptual clustering) to establish data classification processes. This module incorporates two original contributions. Specifically, consistent indicators to measure the quality of the final classification and application of optimisation methods to the final groups obtained. Kluster provides the possibility, to users, of introducing case-studies to generate cutting parameters for particular Input requirements. Fuzzy-K is an application having the advantages of hierarchical clustering, while applying fuzzy membership functions to support the generation of similarity measures. The implementation of fuzzy membership functions helped to optimise the grouping of categorical data containing missing or imprecise values. As the tooling database is accessed through the Internet, which is a relatively slow access platform, it was decided to rely on faster Information retrieval mechanisms. Q-fast is an SQL-based exploratory data analysis (EDA) application, Implemented for this purpose.

Some global manufacturing businesses fail to reach an adequate level of financial performance within 5 years. The purpose of this single case study was to explore innovation strategies that business leaders of a global machinery manufacturing company in northwestern Illinois used to increase profit margins. The conceptual frameworks for this study included the holistic innovation model and the disruptive innovation theory. A purposeful sample of 9 business leaders who had more than 5 years of experience in the manufacturing industry and more than 2 years of experience using innovation strategies participated in the study. Data were collected from semistructured in-depth interviews and business documents, including multiyear strategic plans, annual reports, marketing campaign fliers, sustainability reports, customer needs documentation, statements, and other relevant information from the company's website. Data analysis involved manual and computer-aided techniques to compile the data, disassemble the data into codes, and reassemble the data into themes. The overarching theme emerging from data analysis was the importance of increasing a firm's competitiveness and sustaining profitable growth. There were 8 subthemes: distinctive customer experience, technology-based modernization, distinctive product quality, business model advantage, diversity of thoughts and inclusion, strategic partnerships and alliances, speed, and win in aftermarket. The implications of this study for positive social change include the potential to provide business leaders with evidence-based ideas to improve economic strength and sustainable development in the community.

Manufacturing hiring managers in the United States who fail to implement adequate recruitment strategies for skilled production workers experience reduced profits and sustainability challenges. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore the strategies that successful manufacturing hiring managers in North Carolina used to recruit skilled production workers to sustain business profitability. Inductive analysis was guided by the human capital theory, and trustworthiness of interpretations was strengthened by member checking. The population for the study consisted of 4 business leaders who demonstrated the use of effective recruitment strategies to sustain profitability in manufacturing businesses in southeastern North Carolina. Data were collected from face-to-face interviews with the leaders and review of artifacts pertaining to employee recruitment strategies. Six themes emerged: fueling competition for local labor market, enhancing advertising methods, networking, providing job training, growing talent, and building new perceptions of manufacturing. The application of the findings from this study could contribute to positive social change by providing manufacturing business leaders with effective strategies for recruiting skilled workers. Business leaders could contribute to positive social change by increasing workplace stability and employees' abilities to support their families. Businesses and individuals could benefit from improved standards of living, thereby contributing to the sustainment and prosperity of communities.

In April 2013, the U.S. unemployment rate was 7.6% and did not drop as quickly in the recent recession as in past recessions. The Unemployment and Job Creation Program study informed readers that many employers could not find qualified workers. The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore hiring managers' strategies to locate and hire skilled workers in the furniture manufacturing industry. The target sample included 3 furniture manufacturers located in Huntsville, Alabama who have successfully developed and implemented strategies for hiring skilled workers. The skill shortage theory was the conceptual framework for this study. In the job market, skill was a persistent theme in the discussion of unemployment. The data collected resulted from face-to-face interviews with 3 managers in the furniture manufacturing business, transcribed interview responses, company documentation, and observation notes. Data analysis included an assessment of word frequencies, keyword coding, and theme identification. The findings included 4 themes: strategy, effective strategy, barriers, and mitigation. Implementing these recommendations may increase managers' effectiveness in hiring. Implications for social change include establishing a credible hiring strategy that provides an opportunity for increasing local employment. The benefits of industries implementing an effective hiring strategy are community awareness and less local unemployment. The employment growth strengthens the community with the increase in spending which creates a thriving economy. An increase in pay provides opportunities for higher education and better provisions for employees' families.

Thesis (M.B.A.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sloan School of Management; and, (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering; in conjunction with the Leaders for Manufacturing Program at MIT, 2002.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 82-83).
The rapid growth of the digital communications market has prompted several large semiconductor manufacturers, including Intel Corporation, to begin the design and manufacture of communication ICs. The communications ICs are currently produced in much lower volumes than products such as microprocessors and memory. These low-volume products have been reported to cause operational problems, such as excessive cost, slow throughput time, and low yield when manufactured in semiconductor fabs designed for high volume manufacturing. This thesis examines the operational problems caused by the manufacture of low-volume semiconductor products and explores potential improvements. A financial model was developed to compare the cost of manufacturing low-volume products using several different strategies in existing high-volume fabs. The model results demonstrated that mask set cost, a fixed cost, becomes a very large component of total production cost as the product volume is reduced. Further, this model identified multi-product wafers, a scheme of fabricating several products on a single wafer, as a strategy with potential for savings up to approximately 75% of the manufacturing cost of low-volume products. A second financial model was developed to consider more detailed aspects of fabricating products on multi-product wafers. This model considered the sensitivity of the potential cost savings to changes in demand and changes to the design of multi-product wafers. This model also demonstrated that significant savings are possible with the multi-product wafer strategy, especially if the products are carefully matched (by die size and demand) with other products on the multi-product wafer. Finally, a brief organizational study was conducted to analyze the implementation of a multi-product wafer manufacturing process for the production of low-volume CMOS ICs at Intel Corporation.
by Robert L. Scholtz, III.
S.M.
M.B.A.

The increased consumption of finite resources threatens the preservation of the environment. Environmental pioneers George Perkins Marsh, Gifford Pinchot, and Aldo Leopold were the first to address this concern in the United States. With this background, environmental sustainability in the United States has become a common consideration for public, private, and government organizations. Many organizations have implemented environmental management systems to handle environmental issues. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore what environmental sustainability programs manufacturing firms in West Michigan pursue and their motivation for doing so. Leaders from 13 West Michigan manufacturing companies were interviewed. Research questions addressed the benefits administrators perceive can be gained by adopting environmental sustainability programs, disadvantages in adopting environmental sustainability programs, and what organizations are doing to pursue environmental programs. Cost savings was cited as a major reason for pursuing sustainability programs with the lack of time and resources being the greatest restraint environmental administrators encounter. Company leadership noted that sustainability programs provided their firm a competitive advantage with many Millennial employees preferring companies that manage robust environmental programs. The sustainability strategies identified in this research can be leveraged by firms seeking to implement or improve their environmental programs.

Thesis (MScEng)--Stellenbosch University, 2013.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The thesis evaluates control strategies for reconfigurable manufacturing systems by using a welding assembly cell as a case study. The cell consists of a pallet magazine, conveyor, feeder subsystem (comprising an articulated robot and singulation unit), welder subsystem (which uses a modular Cartesian robot), and inspection and removal subsystems. The research focuses on control strategies that enhance reconfigurability in terms of structure, hardware and software using agent-based control and the IEC 61499 standard, based on PC control. Reconfiguration may occur when a new product is introduced, as well as when a new subsystem is introduced or removed from the production cell. The overall control architecture is that the subsystems retain no knowledge of the product, but product information resides in the cell controller, while services offered by the subsystems are registered with the directory facilitator of the Java agent platform. The control strategies are implemented on the modular Cartesian weld robot and the cell controller for assembly cell. A layered architecture with low-level control and high-level control is used to allow separation of concerns and rapid changes in both hardware and software components. The low-level control responds in hard real-time to internal and external events, while the high-level control handles soft real-time actions involving coordination of control related issues. The results showed IEC 61499 function blocks to be better suited to low-level control application in distributed systems, while agents are more suited for high-level control. Modularity in software components enhances hardware and software scalability. Additionally, agents can support online reconfiguration of reconfigurable machines.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die tesis evalueer beheerstrategieë vir herkonfigureerbare vervaardigingstelsels deur gebruik te maak van ’n sweismonteersel as ’n gevallestudie. Die sel bestaan uit ’n palletmagasyn, vervoerbande, voersubstelsel (bestaande uit ’n geartikuleerde robot en singulasie-eenheid), sweissubstelsel (wat gebruik maak van ’n modulêre Cartesiese robot), en inspeksie- en verwyderingsubstelsels. Die navorsing fokus op beheerstrategieë wat herkonfigureerbaarheid verhoog in terme van struktuur, hardeware en sagteware met behulp van agent-gebaseerde beheer en die IEC 61499 standaard, wat gebaseer is op PC-beheer. Herkonfigurasie mag voorkom wanneer ’n nuwe produk in-gestel word, sowel as wanneeer ’n nuwe substelsel bygevoeg of verwyder word van die produksiesel. Die oorhoofse beheerargitektuur is dat die substelsels geen kennis van die produk hou nie, maar die produkinligting in die selbeheerder geberg, terwyl dienste wat aangebied word deur die substelsels wat geregistreer is by die gidsfasiliteerder van die Java agent platform. Die beheerstrategië is geïmplementeer op die modulere Cartesiese sweisrobot en die selbeheerder vir die monteersel. ’n Gelaagde argitektuur met ’n lae-vlak beheer en hoë-vlak beheer word gebruik om skeiding van oorwegings en vinnige veranderinge in beide hardeware en sagteware komponente toe te laat. Die lae-vlak beheer reageer hard intyds op interne en eksterne gebeure, terwyl die hoë-vlak beheer sag intyds die koördinering van beheerverwante kwessies hanteer. Die resultate het getoon dat IEC 61499 funksie-blokke beter geskik is vir lae-vlak beheer toepassing in verspreide stelsels, terwyl agente meer geskik is vir hoë-vlak beheer. Modulariteit in sagteware komponente verhoog hardeware en sagteware skaleerbaarheid. Boonop kan agente ook aanlyn herkonfigurasie van herkonfigureerbare masjiene ondersteun.

Inefficient supply chains result in unsold inventory and unfilled customer orders, posing a significant risk to company profitability and consumer satisfaction. The purpose of this single case study was to explore strategies supply chain managers in the manufacturing industry used to match the level of unsold inventory in the supply chain with customer demand consistently. Porter's value chain provided the conceptual framework for the study. A sample of 5 experienced supply chain managers from a global manufacturing company headquartered in the midwestern United States participated in semistructured interviews. Each participant provided company supply chain documentation for triangulation. Data analysis followed Yin's 5 stages of data analysis and yielded 4 themes: define policies and processes, develop collaborative partnerships, leverage technology, and consider the end-to-end supply chain. The themes are the foundation of successful supply chain management strategies that have improved matching of unsold inventory in the supply chain to customer demand. Study findings benefit both supply chain leaders and consumers by providing the potential to improve consistency in meeting customer demand with less inventory in the supply chain, resulting in customer satisfaction, business growth, and stable employment. The findings may contribute to positive social change by helping supply chain leaders create thriving businesses with satisfied employees and customers who are willing to spend their time and money contributing to community growth, economic stability, and enhanced social conditions.

Supply chains have become increasingly unstable due to unanticipated disruptive events, which undermines a firm's capacity to achieve a competitive market advantage and increase profitability. The disruption of a supply chain is essential to supply chain managers, as the interruption can be expensive, and the goods and services lost can negatively affect the entire supply chain. The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore strategies that manufacturing firm managers use to mitigate supply chain disruptions to remain profitable. The population consisted of 4 supply chain managers from 2 manufacturing firms located in the southern region of eastern Virginia. The conceptual framework for this study was the contingency theory of fit. Data were collected from semistructured interviews, company documents, and publicly available information. Based on the thematic data analysis, 3 emergent themes developed as collaboration and information sharing, information technology and supply chain risk, and use of multiple suppliers. The implications for positive social change include potential increased employment opportunities and salaries, investments in community projects, and enhanced consumer spending in the local community, thereby raising the standard of living and social well-being of local community residents.

The fourth industrial revolution, also known as Industry 4.0, is based on digital industrial technology developments. The purpose of Industry 4.0 is to transform industrial manufacturing through digitalization and new technologies. The introduction of Industry 4.0 has led companies to consider digitalization as essential for company strategies. For decades, companies have aspired to increase performance by using advanced production practices, such as different operation methods and advanced manufacturing technologies. The intention of introducing these practices is to advance companies towards high performance by implementing advanced techniques. One way of utilizing the potential of new technologies is by an adoption of the concept Industry 4.0. This research studies the impact of Industry 4.0 on companies current manufacturing strategies and operational performance. The study is carried out by conducting case studies on two companies with connections to the concept of Industry 4.0 and implementations of Industry 4.0 technologies such as big data, Internet of things, the Cloud concepts, simulations, and autonomous robots. Through theoretical and comparative analysis and discussion, the study found that an adoption to Industry 4.0 as a concept is a long and stepwise process. Successful Industry 4.0 adaption requires integration of Industry 4.0 with current manufacturing strategies. Implementation of certain Industry 4.0 technologies can have an impact on operational performance if these are integrated with advancements of manufacturing practices. The practices of manufacturing strategies are significantly associated with operational performance. In other cases, the impact of implementing new technologies linger, and is not directly noticeable. With this in consideration, the value of these new technologies should not be limited to operational measurements such as financial measures.

Background – Increase in global competition, technological changes and demanding customers have resulted in more knowledge-intensive, unstable, complicated and an uncertain environment. In order to overcome these demand uncertainties and tough circumstances, manufacturers are required to investigate methods to increase flexibility. To achieve the flexibility improvements, each component of supply chain such as suppliers, manufacturing plants, warehouses, and distributors must possess the potential to be flexible. Theory implies that the main link between company’s upstream supply chain namely suppliers and its own business unit are the sourcing strategy. Usually sourcing practitioners distinguish between sourcing strategies using portfolio models. They normally categorize purchased items based on the strategic importance of the item and characteristics of its supply market. It is a critical issue to explore how different sourcing strategies, for different categories of procured items, can influence sourcing flexibility. Purpose– The purpose has been diagnosed as to study how the prerequisites of Bombardier’s procurement procedures along with its associated strategies, can affect the flexibility that can be provided through sourcing namely sourcing flexibility. This study desires to investigate the concept of sourcing flexibility with considerations on category level. It can be beneficial to investigate how different strategies, related to different categories of procured component, can influence the level of sourcing flexibility specified to that category. This would lead us to two key questions: How can sourcing flexibility be defined in Bombardier and why is it required? How can sourcing strategies influence sourcing flexibility considering different categories of components? Methodology– To provide appropriate definitions for sourcing flexibility and strategic procurement, this study went through a comprehensive review on the relevant literatures. By a deep analysis, accompanied with several unstructured interviews on one of the undergoing projects in the company, the drivers for the sourcing flexibility have been diagnosed. The procured components have been categorized into four categories of strategic, bottleneck, leverage, and noncritical through 4 different structured quantitative questionnaires. 33 diverse individuals with purchasing and/or engineering background answered those questionnaires. The categorization criteria have been extracted out from two models suggested by Kraljic (1983) and Olsen & Ellram (1997). Four independent components, one from each category, were selected for further observations. Finally, the links between sourcing strategies and sourcing flexibilities were expansively analyzed through 9 semi structured interviews with company’s strategic purchasers and suppliers’ representatives. Conclusion– Sourcing flexibility can be defined from two perspectives. First one refers to the capability of the focal firm to change the structure of its upstream supply chain. Second aspect refers to the ability of company’s suppliers to provide it with flexibility in three dimensions of delivery, volume and product. Both two aspects along with related dimensions can be measured in three different conditions of required, actual and potential by using range, mobility and uniformity as measuring elements. The results showed that the first perspective has a direct relationship to the sourcing strategies that focal firm may apply for different categories of procured component. Furthermore, the availability of second perspective is highly dependent on the relationship between the focal company and its suppliers, where strategic procurement plays an indispensable role. Based on the results the required level of sourcing flexibility, related to each category, differs significantly with other categories. The findings also suggested that the levels of delivery, volume and product flexibility have a close connection to the diverse strategies and attributes of the four different categories. Additionally they are well dependent on the internal operational capabilities of the suppliers along with the established relationship between buyer and supplier. Originality/Value– Main portions of previous studies have explored the concepts of sourcing flexibility and strategic procurement separately. Although, there exists some narrow numbers that have analyzed the relationship between sourcing strategies and sourcing flexibility to some limited extent. This study tries to contribute to the existing literature by empirically exploring the principal reasons for companies necessitating to increase sourcing flexibility. It investigates how sourcing flexibility can be improved through strategic procurement. The main contribution is to consider sourcing flexibility from the category perspective. Latter is a subject that has been neglected in the previous literatures. It is extremely hard to find literature which has analyzed sourcing flexibility at the category level. This report analyses the level of sourcing flexibility specified to different categories of strategic, bottleneck, leverage, and noncritical components. It suggests some factors that may influence the selection of a specific sourcing flexibility strategy regarding different component categories. Finally, it may introduce some extra elements that can be influential on the level of sourcing flexibility dimensions. Some examples of those influential elements are bargaining power and establishment of a close relationship.

Thesis (M.B.A.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sloan School of Management; and, (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division; in conjunction with the Leaders for Global Operations Program at MIT, 2012.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 113-116).
The transfer of information between the drug product development and manufacturing organizations is fundamental to drug product commercialization. This information is used to characterize the product-process interaction and ensure manufacturability, and to set operating ranges at fill/finish sites. Amgen has successfully commercialized drug products for years, yet opportunities exist to improve the efficiency of process development and technology transfer, and to better align the equipment, procedures, and data collection of the groups involved in these activities. We identify improvement opportunities and develop a strategic approach, which we term the "Pilot Plant Cooperative," to enable more efficient and effective commercialization. The benefits of this strategy are assessed in three case studies: (1) a capital investment project for new laboratory filling equipment, (2) enhanced data generation in clinical manufacturing, and (3) efficiency improvements in early-stage process development studies. Based on these studies, we make specific recommendations for future work. We make additional procedural and cultural recommendations, including revising capital investment processes and implementing alignment-focused incentives and hiring practices, to ensure widespread alignment is achieved and maintained.
by Christopher J. Garvin.
S.M.
M.B.A.

U.S. manufacturing companies’ offshoring of investments to China over the past 4 decades before 2017 has played a significant role in China’s economic growth. However, as China’s economy expands and the country’s standard of living improves, U.S. manufacturing executives are required to take a refreshed look at current investment strategies to adjust for rising costs and a tighter regulatory environment. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore economic strategies that U.S. manufacturing leaders used to offshore effectively to China. The study included in-person interviews of 9 purposeful sampled manufacturing leaders, fluent in English, from 2 U.S. organizations with China operations headquartered in Shanghai. The conceptual framework for this study was the total quality management theory. Four themes emerged in the data from these interviews, on-site observations, and company documentation review, including: (a) movement of innovation closer to production in China; (b) increased localization of the legacy offshoring business; (c) enhancement of China-based cross-functional teams; and (d) incrementally investing to achieve production scale. These findings suggest that U.S. manufacturing leaders need to adapt to a changing and dynamic China market by focusing on local issues to maintain global competitiveness. The implications for positive social change include equipping manufacturing business leaders with information to address offshoring-related decisions more effectively. Additional social change benefits include the overall rise in international safety standards in China, resulting from offshoring investments and the training of manufacturing workers, which prepare them for more advanced roles in the workforce.

This thesis is devoted to the study of the optimisation-based control techniques for the design of control strategies that contribute to improve the energy efficiency of smart manufacturing systems. Currently, manufacturing industry is suffering a transformation towards smart, flexible, and energy-efficient manufacturing systems. This transformation requires modularised and reconfigurable manufacturing systems to respond to changes in productions programs and to the time-varying pieces demand while keeping an energy-efficient operation. Thus, suitable control systems should be designed to satisfy the requirements of this transformation while minimising the energy consumption and maximising the plant profit. In this regard, optimisation-based controllers are suitable for the design of control systems that minimise the total energy consumption of such systems while remaining their productivity taking into account the operational conditions and the factors that affect them. First, this dissertation presents how optimisation-based control techniques can contribute to face the challenges of the smart manufacturing systems. Based on this review, manufacturing industry is classified by levels, i.e., machine, process line, and plant levels, for the design of optimisation-based controllers. Besides, to design control strategies that do not affect plant productivity, manufacturing systems are also classified according to the operations performed. Based on these classifications, control strategies are proposed to minimise either the total energy consumption of manufacturing systems or the energy costs related to the operation of such systems. At both machine and process line levels, control strategies are designed based on model predictive control approach to minimise their energy consumption. The underlying idea behind the proposed control strategies consists of managing independently those devices (or systems) that are not directly involved in the machining operations. Thus, energy consumption models are required to predict the total energy consumption profile of manufacturing systems and, based on this, to select the activation/deactivation instants of the manipulated devices that minimise their energy consumption and guarantee their proper operation. Next, due to at the process line level the size and complexity of manufacturing systems increases, a control strategy based on two control modes is proposed to reduce the computational burden of such controllers by switching from a control mode based on online optimisation to an autonomous control mode without solving an optimisation problem. Since the need for flexible and reconfigurable manufacturing systems, non-centralised control strategies are proposed at higher industrial levels to minimise their energy consumption. Thus, both cooperative and non-cooperative local controllers are designed considering a fixed system partitioning and using alternative direction methods of multipliers to solve the optimisations problems in a distributed fashion. Besides, due to the nature of the proposed control objectives, a way to define the consensus stage among the local controllers with coupled dynamics is proposed. Finally, the control strategies designed at plant level are based on the economic model predictive control approach to maximise the plant profit and minimise the operational costs related to the plant operation. At this level, control objectives are focused on determining the economic-optimal production programming of the plant that the control strategies at lower levels should follow. In this regard, the production programming of the plant is determined taking into account the pieces demand, the energy consumption of manufacturing systems, and the current energy market and their fluctuations. All control strategies proposed in this thesis are tested in simulation considering different scenarios designed based on the real operation of an automotive part manufacturing plant.
Esta tesis se basa en el estudio de las técnicas de control basadas en optimización para el diseño de estrategias de control que mejoren la eficiencia energética de los sistemas de manufactura inteligentes. La industria de manufactura se está transformando hacia sistemas de manufactura inteligentes, flexibles y eficientes energéticamente, que requiere de estructuras modulares y reconfigurables para poder responder a los cambios en la programación de la producción y la demanda de piezas. Así, se deben diseñar sistemas de control que cumplan los requerimientos de dicha transformación mientras minimizan el consumo de energía y maximizan la rentabilidad de la planta. En este sentido, los controladores basados en optimización son adecuados para el diseño de sistemas de control que minimicen el consumo de energía de dichos sistemas mientras mantienen su productividad teniendo en cuenta los factores que los afectan. Primero, se presentan como las técnicas de control basadas en optimización pueden contribuir a hacer frente a los desafíos impuestos por la industria de manufactura. Con base en esta revisión, la industria manufacturera se clasifica por niveles, nivel de máquina, línea de proceso, y planta, para el diseño de controladores basados en optimización. Además, para diseñar estrategias de control que no afecten la productividad de la planta, se propone una clasificación para estos sistemas en función de las operaciones realizadas. Con base en estas clasificaciones, se diseñan estrategias de control que minimicen el consumo de energía de los sistemas de manufactura o los costos asociados a dicho consumo. A los niveles de maquina y línea, se diseñaron estrategias de control para minimizar el consumo de energía de los sistemas de manufactura con base en el enfoque de control predictivo basado en modelo. Las estrategias propuestas se basan en la gestión independiente de aquellos dispositivos que no están directamente relacionados con las operaciones de mecanizado. Por lo tanto, modelos de consumo de energía fueron necesarios para predecir el perfil del consumo de energía de estos sistemas y, a partir de esto, seleccionar los instantes de activación/desactivación de los dispositivos manipulados que minimicen el consumo de energía y garanticen el correcto funcionamiento de dichos sistemas. Dado que al nivel de línea el tamaño y la complejidad de estos sistemas aumenta, se propone a una estrategia de control basada en dos modos de control para reducir la carga computacional mediante la conmutación de un modo de control basado en optimización a un modo autónomo que no requiere optimización. Dada la necesidad de sistemas de manufactura flexibles y reconfigurables, estrategias de control no centralizadas se proponen para minimizar el consumo de dichos sistemas a los niveles más altos. Para este fin, los sistemas de manufactura se dividieron en subsistemas, y se diseñaron controladores locales de tipo cooperativo y no cooperativo usando métodos alternativos de dirección de multiplicadores para resolver los problemas de optimización. Además, debido a la naturaleza de los objetivos de control propuesto, se propuso una forma de establecer el consenso entre los controladores locales con dinámicas acopladas. Finalmente, a nivel de planta, se diseñan estrategias de control con base en el enfoque control predictivo basado en modelo económico para maximizar la rentabilidad de la planta. A este nivel, los objetivos de control se centran en determinar la programación de la producción óptima que deberán seguir las estrategias de control diseñadas a niveles más bajos. Así, la programación de la producción de la planta se determina teniendo en cuenta la demanda de piezas, el consumo de energía total, y el mercado energético con sus fluctuaciones. Las estrategias de control propuestas en esta tesis se probaron en simulación considerando diferentes escenarios diseñados con base en la operación real de una planta de fabricación de piezas automotrices.
Aquesta tesi es centra principalment en l’estudi de les tècniques de control basades en optimització per al disseny d’estratègies que contribueixin a millorar l’eficiència energètica dels sistemes de manufactura intel·ligents. Actualment, la indústria manufacturera està experimentant una transformació cap a sistemes de manufactura intel·ligents, flexibles i eficients energèticament, impulsada pels avenços en dispositius de mesura, gestió de dades i eines de comunicació i connectivitat. Aquesta transformació requereix que els sistemes de manufactura siguin modulars i reconfigurables per poder respondre als canvis en la programació de la producció i de la demanda i disseny de les peces mentre continuen operant de manera eficient i sostenible. Per tant, per tal d’assolir una indústria de manufactura m’és intel·ligent, s’han de dissenyar sistemes de control adequats que permetin complir els requeriments d’aquesta transformació, així com també minimitzar el consum d’energia i maximitzar la rendibilitat de la planta. En aquest sentit, els controladors basats en optimització i les arquitectures de control no centralitzat podrien ser adequats per al disseny de sistemes de control que contribueixin a minimitzar el consum d’energia total d’aquests sistemes mentre mantenen la seva productivitat i tenen en compte les restriccions operatives i els factors externs que afecten aquests sistemes. Per tant, mitjançant l’ús d’estratègies de control avançat, els sistemes de control poden ser degudament actualitzats per incloure la informació sobre els canvis en l’operació dels sistemes de manufactura, així com també la variació del mercat energètic per minimitzar els costos d’energia durant l’operació de la planta. Primer, en aquesta tesi, es presenten i discuteixen les estratègies actualment implementades en la indústria manufacturera per millorar la seva eficiència energètica. En base a aquesta revisió, s’identifiquen les principals bretxes de recerca en aquest camp i es discuteix com les tècniques de control basades en optimització poden contribuir a fer front als desafiaments imposats per la nova era de la indústria manufacturera (Industry 4.0). Recolzant-se en la revisió de la literatura, es proposa classificar la indústria manufacturera per nivells, considerant el nivell de màquina, línia de procés i planta, per al disseny de controladors basats en optimització. A més, per tal de dissenyar estratègies de control que no afectin la productivitat de la planta, és a dir, el nombre de peces processades per unitat de temps, els elements constitutius dels sistemes de manufactura també es classifiquen en dispositius de mecanitzat i perifèrics en funció de les operacions realitzades. Els elements de la primera classe corresponen a aquells que estan directament involucrats en les operacions de mecanitzat, mentre que els de la segona classe són aquells que s’encarreguen de proveir els recursos requerits pels dispositius de mecanitzat. Després, en base a aquesta classificació, es proposen estratègies de control en cada nivell per minimitzar el seu consum d’energia o els costos associats a aquest consum. Per als nivells de màquina i línia de procés, es dissenyen estratègies de control per minimitzar el consum d’energia dels sistemes de manufactura en base a l’enfocament de control predictiu basat en model. Les estratègies proposades es basen en la idea de gestionar de manera independent els dispositius (o sistemes) perifèrics per tal de no afectar el temps de processament de les màquines tot mantenint l’operació dels dispositius de mecanitzat. Per tant, calen models de consum d’energia per a predir el perfil de consum d’energia dels sistemes de manufactura i, en base a aquesta predicció, seleccionar els instants d’activació / desactivació per als dispositius manipulats a partir dels quals es minimitzi el consum d’energia total i es pugui garantir el correcte funcionament d’aquests sistemes. D’altra banda, atès que al nivell de línia de procés la mida i la complexitat dels sistemes de manufactura augmenta, es proposa una estratègia de control basada en dos modes de control per tal de reduir la càrrega computacional i dissenyar controladors que puguin ser implementats en temps real. En aquest sentit, tenint en compte que els sistemes de manufactura presenten un comportament diari, es proposa un algoritme per detectar la periodicitat d’aquests sistemes i, després, commutar a un mode de control autònom que no requereixi resoldre un problema d’optimització en línia. D’altra banda, donada la necessitat de sistemes de manufactura flexibles i reconfigurables, es proposen estratègies de control no centralitzades per minimitzar el consum d’energia dels sistemes de fabricació als nivells més alts. Amb aquesta finalitat, els sistemes de manufactura es divideixen en subsistemes, i es dissenyen controladors locals de tipus cooperatiu i no cooperatiu utilitzant mètodes alternatius de direcció de multiplicadors per resoldre els problemes d’optimització de manera distribuïda. A més, a causa de la naturalesa de l’objectiu de control proposat, el qual està enfocat en minimitzar el consum d’energia dels sistemes de manufactura, es proposa una forma d’establir el consens entre els controladors locals amb dinàmiques acoblades. Després, les estratègies de control proposades són extrapolades al nivell de planta usant objectius de tipus econòmic, i es comparen les arquitectures de control centralitzat i no centralitzat pel que fa al seu acompliment en llac¸ tancat i la càrrega computacional requerida per trobar una solució. Finalment, a nivell de planta, es dissenyen estratègies de control en base a l’enfocament de control predictiu basat en model econòmic per tal de maximitzar la rendibilitat de la planta i minimitzar els costos associats a la seva operació. Per tant, a aquest nivell, els objectius de control se centren a determinar la programació de la producció òptima de la planta que hauran de seguir les estratègies de control dissenyades als nivells més baixos. En aquest sentit, la programació de la producció de la planta és determinada tenint en compte la demanda actual de peces, el consum d’energia dels sistemes de manufactura i el mercat energètic amb les seves fluctuacions. Totes les estratègies de control proposades en aquesta tesi es proven en simulació considerant diferents escenaris basats en l’operació real d’una planta de fabricació de peces automotrius.

U.S. manufacturing companies' offshoring of investments to China over the past 4 decades before 2017 has played a significant role in China's economic growth. However, as China's economy expands and the country's standard of living improves, U.S. manufacturing executives are required to take a refreshed look at current investment strategies to adjust for rising costs and a tighter regulatory environment. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore economic strategies that U.S. manufacturing leaders used to offshore effectively to China. The study included in-person interviews of 9 purposeful sampled manufacturing leaders, fluent in English, from 2 U.S. organizations with China operations headquartered in Shanghai. The conceptual framework for this study was the total quality management theory. Four themes emerged in the data from these interviews, on-site observations, and company documentation review, including: (a) movement of innovation closer to production in China; (b) increased localization of the legacy offshoring business; (c) enhancement of China-based cross-functional teams; and (d) incrementally investing to achieve production scale. These findings suggest that U.S. manufacturing leaders need to adapt to a changing and dynamic China market by focusing on local issues to maintain global competitiveness. The implications for positive social change include equipping manufacturing business leaders with information to address offshoring-related decisions more effectively. Additional social change benefits include the overall rise in international safety standards in China, resulting from offshoring investments and the training of manufacturing workers, which prepare them for more advanced roles in the workforce.

Voluntary employee turnover is a challenging problem for manufacturing leaders. Leaders today are challenged to find and retain human capital to remain competitive. The lack of strategies to reduce voluntary turnover among manufacturing leaders has contributed to high turnover rates and increased costs for manufacturing firms. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore the strategies that some southeastern Wisconsin manufacturing leaders used to reduce voluntary turnover. The conceptual framework supporting the study was Herzberg's 2-factor theory. Results for the study were derived from the analysis of semistructured interviews of 6 manufacturing leaders across 4 manufacturing locations, as well as company documents. Data analysis followed Yin's 5-step process and included coded results, themes derived from interview transcripts, and company documents. Credibility was ensured through member checking and triangulation of both interviews and company documents. The main themes that emerged were professional growth, salary competitiveness, and working environment. The implication for positive social change include healthy working communities through decreased voluntary turnover and greater productivity and profitability of organizations.

Additive manufacturing (AM), also called 3-dimensional printing (3DP), emerged as a disruptive technology affecting multiple organizations' business models and supply chains and endangering incumbents' financial health, or even rendering them obsolete. The world market for products created by AM has increased more than 25% year over year. Using Christensen's theory of disruptive innovation as a conceptual framework, the purpose of this multiple case study was to explore the successful strategies that 4 individual managers, 1 at each of 4 different light and high-tech manufacturing companies in the Netherlands, used to adopt AM technology into their business models. Participant firms originated from 3 provinces and included a value-added logistics service provider and 3 machine shops serving various industries, including the automotive and medical sectors. Data were collected through semistructured interviews, member checking, and analysis of company documents that provided information about the adoption of 3DP into business models. Using Yin's 5-step data analysis approach, data were compiled, disassembled, reassembled, interpreted, and concluded until 3 major themes emerged: identify business opportunities for AM technology, experiment with AM technology, and embed AM technology. Because of the design freedom the use of AM enables, in combination with its environmental efficiency, the implications for positive social change include possibilities for increasing local employment, improving the environment, and enhancing healthcare for the prosperity of local and global citizens by providing potential solutions that managers could use to deploy AM technology.

Manufacturing of dies has been presenting greater requirements of geometrical accuracy, dimensional precision and surface quality as well as decrease in costs and manufacturing times. Although proper cutting parameter values are utilized to obtain high geometrical accuracy and surface quality, there may exist geometrical discrepancy between the designed and the manufactured surface profile of the die cavities. In milling process
cutting speed, step over and feed are the main cutting parameters and these parameters affect geometrical accuracy and surface quality of the forging die cavities. In this study, effects of the cutting parameters on geometrical error have been examined on a representative die cavity profile. To remove undesired volume in the die cavities, available cutting strategies are investigated. Feed rate optimization is performed to maintain the constant metal removal rate along the trajectory of the milling cutter during rough cutting process. In the finish cutting process of the die cavities, Design of Experiment Method has been employed to find out the effects of the cutting parameters on the geometrical accuracy of the manufactured cavity profile. Prediction formula is derived to estimate the geometrical error value in terms of the values of the cutting parameters. Validity of the prediction formula has been tested by conducting verification experiments for the representative die geometry and die cavity geometry of a forging part used in industry. Good agreement between the predicted error values and the measured error values has been observed.

The thesis presents an approach to adaptive decision making strategies to reduce bottlenecks in a drilling operation and to extend tool life. It is an attempt to portray the real drilling system in a typical Flexible Manufacturing System (FMS) layout. The system designed serves as back end intelligence to drilling machines (INTELLIDRILL) in a Flexible Manufacturing System for making dynamic and real time decisions. INTELLIDRILL uses mathematical and adaptive tool reliability models to simulate the machining conditions and tool availability for an operation based on history of tool failures. The results are used to compute the machining parameters and the tools required for an operation. INTELLIDRILL can devise strategies for different tool materials to operate on batches of different materials. INTELLIDRILL decisions could lead to significant savings in tooling costs and reduction in flow line bottlenecks.

In order to face and win the competitive manufacturing environment, which is particularly relevant in automotive industry, companies need to improve and update their machining lines and continuously evaluate their performance. This is usually done by analyzing the impact of the flow of material on the performances of the line. However, machining system parameters also have a great influence on the performance of a machining line. Therefore, it is extremely important to settle machining system conditions that take into account their effect on the system performance. This is particularly crucial in the case of the selection of new machine tools, new lines and, in general, when relevant decisions have to be taken. Nevertheless, there is no methodology or decision support system for the improvement of performance based on the analysis of machining system and related parameters. This thesis aims to provide a framework for the evaluation of machining strategies in the context of a machine tool selection for a face milling process of a cylinder-block. The work will be based on a case study performed at Scania CV AB.

Thesis: M.B.A., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sloan School of Management, 2015. In conjunction with the Leaders for Global Operations Program at MIT.
Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Mechanical Engineering, 2015. In conjunction with the Leaders for Global Operations Program at MIT.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 84-85).
This thesis and the associated project explore lean automation strategies for high volume, high complexity manufacturing systems. In particular, we study how to reduce the footprint and cost of an automotive sealing line, while maintaining current levels of production, maintainability and safety. The key challenge researched in this thesis concerns how to reduce space requirements and cost of a highly automated facility without sacrificing system maintainability, safety or throughput. For this study, any solution must utilize currently available technology. The thesis will review the basic research, concept development, layout development and solution refinement activities that lead to a final concept and recommendation. The key findings for this study include three strategies that led to a lower cost footprint that consumed less space. These strategies are: " Intelligent reduction of conveyance systems "Increased system flexibility" Increased automation density Additionally the study highlights how these strategies complement each other when addressing cost and space reduction challenges. In this particular study the three strategies yielded space savings of approximately 33% and capital cost savings of about 10%.
by Peter Evan Kimball.
M.B.A.
S.M.

Thesis (M. Eng.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Materials Science and Engineering, 2005.
Includes bibliographical references (leaves 58-59).
Consumer demand is hard to predict in any industry, let alone the automotive industry. Vehicle manufacturers try to produce according to what their customers want, but if these wants change, the company is faced with lots of unsold cars and a huge changeover cost. In order to help fight the problems of demand variability, automotive manufacturers have begun the move towards plant flexibility. This includes designing vehicles comprised of similar subassemblies and the development of flexible tooling. The hope is that multiple vehicles can be produced on the same line so if demand starts to fluctuate, they can change the production levels of their styles with minimal lead time. There are a number of different approaches to flexible tooling. One approach using programmable robotic repositionable tools (PRRT) is particularly promising because it can handle a large number of styles and requires low style specific reinvestment costs. This thesis examines the PRRT technology as well as other forms of flexible tooling to understand the conditions under which these approaches make the most economic sense.
(cont.) For this project an algorithm was developed to choose assembly tools based on subassembly characteristics, production levels, style counts, and flexibility approaches. The algorithm was connected to an already existing vehicle assembly model and two forms of economic analysis were performed. The first looked at the costs of using PRRT versus other forms of tooling for various product mixes. The second analyzed the potential cost savings when considering product changeover. The results indicated that the initial outlays for PRRTs cannot be justified even for a large number of styles unless multi-generational product changeover is also considered. However, PRRTs provide a cost effective flexible tooling option for plants producing multiple styles when considering product changeovers.
by Jeffrey C. Povelaites.
M.Eng.

Leaders in manufacturing industries are increasingly concerned with the lack of skills among applicants, emphasizing the gap that exists between employer expectations and skills of employees entering the workforce. Developing successful recruitment strategies is critical for hiring managers seeking to hire skilled workers. The purpose of this qualitative single case study was to explore successful strategies hiring managers used to recruit skilled production workers at a manufacturing company in Southeastern South Carolina. The human capital theory, which represents the knowledge individuals provide to enhance productivity, was the conceptual framework. Data were collected from face-to-face interviews with 3 hiring managers and an exploration of company documents that included the standard of quality and excellence policy, the company handbook, and the company website. Data analysis included assessment of word frequencies, keyword coding, and theme identification. Four themes emerged: provide industry and education partnerships to enhance recruitment efforts, maximize community industry specific recruitment, offer computer numerical controlled training as a recruitment incentive, and provide market competitive compensation. By implementing these strategies, managers may have greater levels of success in hiring skilled workers. Implications for positive social change include the potential for manufacturing hiring managers and other industry hiring managers to recruit and retain skilled workers through training, advancement opportunities, and compensation commensurate with employees' skills. Skilled workers may increase organizational productivity and profitability, which may promote economic prosperity in the local community.

The manufacturing industry has been on a decline. Companies have been closed, and employees have lost their jobs. The purpose of this qualitative exploratory multiple case study was to understand how 5 small manufacturing companies in Massachusetts remained competitive. Systems theory was used to focus on process and innovation management implemented by organizational leaders. A purposeful sampling was conducted to identify 15 organizational leaders from 5 small manufacturing companies in Massachusetts. Data were collected through semistructured interviews with the 15 participants. Interviews were recorded and transcribed with NoNotes software. Data were compiled and submitted to participants to member check information. Once participants confirmed the data, data were compiled with NVivo 12 software. Through the compilation process, 10 themes emerged. Seven of the themes were directly related to the positive steps of process management: employee involvement, customers, communication, products, innovation, knowledge, and analysis. Three emergent themes regarding negative strategies were managing from a distance, lack of communication, and no buy-in from stakeholders. Positive social change could emerge from the results of this study if organizational leaders use this information to increase their success and help grow the Massachusetts manufacturing GDP. The increase of business may lead to more jobs and revenue to help support local communities in Massachusetts.

The purpose of this study was to develop a typology of small apparel manufacturers (SAMs), firms classified between SIC 2310 to 2389 and less than 50 employees. The objectives were to (a) determine if distinct manufacturing strategies existed among SAMs, (b) develop a profile of these groups using environmental factors known to affect the apparel industry and small businesses (i.e., customer service, operations, barriers, assistance, customer size, customer location, competitor size, competitor location), (c) develop a profile of SAMs based on demographics (i.e., SIC, end-use for products, manufacturing process, type of firm, fashion position, employee size, manufacturing strategy, marketing strategy, annual gross revenue), and (d) determine the existence of a relationship between SAMs use of market strategies and manufacturing strategies. Data were collected from 146 SAMs, which represented 15 states with the highest number of SAMs. Factor analysis was used to identify manufacturing strategy factors (i.e., flexibility, environmental consciousness, product attributes, lot sizes), which were used to cluster respondents; and environmental factors (i.e., customer service, education/industry awareness, flexibility, timing, unit costs, production resources, technology/automation, consistency in sales, investment capital, import reductions). Four clusters of manufacturing strategies emerged and were profiled according to environmental factors and demographic variables (i.e., products, product classification, manufacturing processes, type of firm, type of fashion, manufacturing strategies, marketing strategies, firm's employee size, annual gross revenues). Significant differences occurred among the four manufacturing strategy groups and environmental factors. Significant differences occurred among the four manufacturing strategy groups and demographic variables. No relationship existed between manufacturing strategy groups and their marketing strategy.
Ph. D.

The high capital cost of robots prohibit their economic application. One method of making their application more economic is to increase their operating speed. This can be done in a number of ways e.g. redesign of robot geometry, improving actuators and improving control system design. In this thesis the control system design is considered. It is identified in the literature review that two aspects in relation to robot control system design have not been addressed in any great detail by previous researchers. These are: how significant are the coupling terms in the dynamic equations of the robot and what is the effect of the coupling terms on the performance of a number of typical independent axis control schemes?. The work in this thesis addresses these two questions in detail. A program was designed to automatically calculate the path and trajectory and to calculate the significance of the coupling terms in an example application of a robot manipulator tracking a part on a moving conveyor. The inertial and velocity coupling terms have been shown to be of significance when the manipulator was considered to be directly driven. A simulation of the robot manipulator following the planned trajectory has been established in order to assess the performance of the independent axis control strategies. The inertial coupling was shown to reinforce the control torque at the corner points of the trajectory, where there was an abrupt demand in acceleration in each axis but of opposite sign. This reduced the tracking error however, this effect was not controllable. A second effect was due to the velocity coupling terms. At high trajectory speeds it was shown, by means of a root locus analysis, that the velocity coupling terms caused the system to become unstable.

Revenue management is a concept aimed to maximize capacity utilization and through that maximize revenues. It originated in the airline industry in the 70’s and due to its effectiveness  quickly spread to other sectors of the service industry. Today it is used in several industries like hotels, television and radio broadcasters, and energy transition companies to name a few. Since revenue management was developed in and for the service industry, most studies on revenue management are done on the service industry, creating a rather large research cap. Recently this concept has spread to the manufacturing industry as well. Despite this, there is very limited research done on revenue management in the manufacturing industry. Therefore, this paper’s aim is to partially filling this research gap by studying capacity management and pricing strategies (two mechanisms of revenue management), and how they have been shaped when implemented in a manufacturing company. This paper was done with a case study done on a multinational manufacturing company, who recently implemented revenue management. Interviews were conducted with people in key positions with good insight to the usage of revenue management in this company. Some of the most important result was that in this manufacturing company it is not possible to nest capacity on a customer segment level. However, in this company nesting was done on a market level instead. Also the pricing strategy differed between the service industry theory and this company. Instead of having a dynamic price that changed the total price up or down to change demand, this company had more of a fixed total price, and instead added more features to the product, decreasing the profit margin. The conclusion was drawn that the industry characteristics of the manufacturing industry have forced a rather large modification of revenue management. However, since this was a qualitative case study, no generalizing conclusions for the entire manufacturing industry can be drawn.

Purpose: Finding which resources and capabilities are deployed among Istanbul-based apparel manufacturers, evaluating to what extent they are tangible, intangible as well as capabilities as well as lastly analysing them according to the valuable, rare, inimitable and non-substitutable framework. Design/methodology: The research design consists of a case study held at several firms. Empirical data was collected using semi-structured interviews. Empirical data: Empirical data was primarily collected at nine different apparel manufacturers within the greater Istanbul region. Conclusion: Conclusions show that within the bundles of resources and capabilities, a large variation was noted with high international competitiveness. However there are areas such as design and quality which could be continuously developed among firms. In the end, whatever bundle of resources and capabilities a firm has, it’s the end price that speaks.
Program: Textilekonomutbildningen

Additive manufacturing is an innovative technology that allows to build complex shape structures and components. With the development of new technology and materials, in these last years there was a big expansion in the aerospace field. However, the 3D printing, due to the layer-by-layer process, can create different infill geometries and anisotropic properties. The mechanical properties are vital for understanding the performance of 3D printed material and need to be further studied. To study properly the new materials behaviour is necessary before to understand the operational mode of the 3D printer and then, by a reverse engineering model, reconstruct the 3D printed model. The reconstruction is performed firstly analysing the machine code (Gcode) of the printer and extracting all the coordinates. Then these coordinates have been fed to different code in different softwares to reproduce virtually the printed layers. The used codes are able to recreate a solid geometric representation of the layer that can be exported into a STEP file and therefore can be imported into a finite element analysis software. Lasty, the imported files are meshed and analysed to predict how different specimen printed with different orientation and infill can support under different load conditions without the necessity characterize in advance the material properties.

Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Technology: Business Information System In the Faculty of Business At the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2013
The South African manufacturing industry landscape has changed due to the pressures of globalisation and liberalisation of trade policy regimes. The structural shift of this industry has led to a global market in which many small businesses in the manufacturing sector find it difficult to compete with competitors for example, in Asian countries. Companies are required to improve their competitiveness by using various strategies such as e-commerce. However, these strategies are changing economics, markets, industry structure, products and services, the flow of products and services, consumer segmentation, consumer values, consumer behaviour and labour markets. An e-commerce strategy could assist small businesses in emerging markets to streamline their business processes in their respective sectors and industries, thus enabling them to enhance their business activities. Yet, literature reveals that most SMMEs do not take full advantage of e-commerce applications in their business activities. A qualitative approach using a case study methodology is used for this research. The researcher adopted models such as the Technology-Organisational-Environmental model, a value proposition model and a key assets model to collect and analyse evidence to propose guidelines for e-commerce initiatives in the selected environment. The findings indicate that SMMEs could improve their performance by establishing formal strategies and structures to increase their worth. This is done by creating e-commerce strategies to fit their organisational goals and objectives. Furthermore, manufacturing SMMEs need appropriate online platforms to transact and build strong relationships with suppliers, customers and partners. In addition, it is essential for SMMEs to establish and monitor quality standards in their e-commerce activities. It was found that the key assets needed by SMMEs in the manufacturing sector could impact their ability to sustain their business activities. Finally, manufacturing SMMEs need to deliver targeted and contextual marketing messages to help influence potential decision makers. This research contributes to the field of e-commerce by providing guidelines which manufacturing SMMEs could use as a starting point, to understand and improve their current e-commerce strategies and sustain their business growth.

Jamaica?s small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have a high failure rate. In 2016, the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) recorded Jamaica's SME start-up rate at 4.06% and the discontinuance rate at 9%. The purpose of this qualitative descriptive multiple case study was to explore the strategies some Jamaican SME owners used to achieve business sustainability in the manufacturing sector for longer than 5 years of operation. The conceptual framework used was the entrepreneurship theory, which provided insights into business sustainability. A purposive sample of 5 owners of SMEs who had achieved business sustainability in the manufacturing sector for longer than 5 years of operation were the participants in this study. Semistructured interviews of participants and review of company documents produced in-depth insights into the strategies they used to achieve business sustainability. Coding keywords, sentences, and ideas from the interviews and company documents and categorizing them was the approach taken for data analysis, using methodological triangulation. The themes from the study were entrepreneurial characteristics, competitive advantages, resource management, customer relationship management, quality management, and marketing. Implications for social change include the potential to provide strategies that support SMEs? business sustainability and lead to greater job creation and ultimately the Jamaican government?s ability to fund social projects.

Employee absenteeism costs organizations billions of dollars annually in losses in revenue and productivity, temporary labor costs, and low morale. The purpose of this qualitative single case study was to explore the strategies information technology (IT) managers in the manufacturing industry used to reduce employee absenteeism. The theory of planned behavior provided the conceptual framework for the study. Data collection included semistructured interviews with 5 IT managers in Maryland and a review of organizational documents addressing nutritional education information, employee participation rates in health programs, and physical activity. Data were analyzed using compilation, disassembly, reassembly, interpretation, and development of conclusions. Through thematic analysis, 4 themes emerged: workplace wellness and health programs, employee engagement, work-life balance programs, and organizational culture. Findings of this study may be used by IT managers to bring about positive change by reducing employee absences, encouraging employment opportunities, contributing to organizational sustainability, and improving quality of life for community members.

Some Nigerian manufacturing organizations suffer significant losses yearly due to a lack of employee commitment and engagement. The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to gain understanding of the strategies that leaders in the manufacturing industries in Lagos need to know in order to change employee behavior to achieve increased organizational productivity levels. The conceptual framework that grounded the study was the path-goal theory of leadership. Data were collected from semistructured interviews with a purposeful sample consisting of 24 managerial and non-managerial staff members of 2 manufacturing organizations in Nigeria who have had experience in, and training, and education on how to change employee behavior to achieve increased productivity. The interview consisted of open-ended questions. Using Yin's 5 step data analysis process, member checking, and triangulation, 13 themes emerged: motivated employees, productivity, motivation, enabling work environment, transformational leadership style, continuous improvement, unprofitable organization, low capacity utilization, demotivation, dwindling capacity, diversification, capability development, and innovation. Leaders of Nigerian manufacturing organizations may be able to use these emergent themes to develop strategies to increase the productivity of their employees. The potential implications for positive social change stem from Nigerian manufacturing organizational leaders' development of more effective leadership skills, which may contribute to the growth of the Nigerian manufacturing sector and be a viable source of employment creation.

Jamaica's small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have a high failure rate. In 2016, the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) recorded Jamaica's SME start-up rate at 4.06% and the discontinuance rate at 9%. The purpose of this qualitative descriptive multiple case study was to explore the strategies some Jamaican SME owners used to achieve business sustainability in the manufacturing sector for longer than 5 years of operation. The conceptual framework used was the entrepreneurship theory, which provided insights into business sustainability. A purposive sample of 5 owners of SMEs who had achieved business sustainability in the manufacturing sector for longer than 5 years of operation were the participants in this study. Semistructured interviews of participants and review of company documents produced in-depth insights into the strategies they used to achieve business sustainability. Coding keywords, sentences, and ideas from the interviews and company documents and categorizing them was the approach taken for data analysis, using methodological triangulation. The themes from the study were entrepreneurial characteristics, competitive advantages, resource management, customer relationship management, quality management, and marketing. Implications for social change include the potential to provide strategies that support SMEs' business sustainability and lead to greater job creation and ultimately the Jamaican government's ability to fund social projects.

African women in South Africa have for decades, if not centuries, been marginalized in the workplace. With the dawn of the new South Africa came Affirmative Action and subsequently, the Employment Equity Act. These policies offered African women opportunities to enter the workplace. The review of the literature shows that the psychological functioning of African women managers has received minimal research attention. In addition, the literature review on coping focused on the individual and communal coping strategies which indicated that individual and systemic strategies have been neglected in both the theories of coping and extant empirical literature. The current study addresses this through the conceptualisation of coping from a systemic perspective. The current study aimed to explore and describe the coping strategies of African women middle managers in the manufacturing industry in the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan area. The study was conducted within a qualitative research paradigm and took the form of exploratory research. Non-probability snowball sampling was utilized to identify participants for the study. The sample consisted of three African women managers who held middle management positions in the manufacturing industry in the Nelson Mandela metropolitan area. Semi-structured interviewing was utilised to collect the data. In order to analyse the data, Tesch’s (1990) qualitative analysis steps were utilised. The study showed that African women middle managers relied on individual strategies such as assertiveness, spirituality and, positive attitude to cope. These individual strategies were not used in isolation, as the participants relied on various subsystems within which they were embedded to cope with the demands they faced.

In this dissertation, I use interview data to answer three questions concerning the deindustrialization of southwest and southside Virginia. First, how have Radford City, Montgomery County, Pulaski County, the City of Martinsville and Henry County been affected by plant closures and mass layoffs at the community level? Second, how have displaced workers and their households been affected by this loss of manufacturing jobs? And third, what survival strategies have displaced workers and their households employed as a result of being displaced? In carrying out this research, I engage with four theoretical discussions: (1) deindustrialization of the US South, (2) the impact of deindustrialization on local communities and economies, (3) the impacts of deindustrialization on workers, and (4) workers' strategies for coping with job loss. I argue that the strategies employed are influenced, shaped, and/ or constrained by regional resources, family structure, and previous experience(s) with job loss due to plant closures and layoffs. The findings from this research suggest that household survival strategies are based on four influential or motivating factors: (1) the presence of a spouse and/or children in the home, (2) having prior experience with being displaced, (3) use of personal networks, and (4) utilization of spouses' knowledge, skills, and abilities. At the community level, there are two major findings. First, there is a level of resilience in the worst affected communities that keeps them moving forward, if at a slower pace than desired. Second, deindustrialization does not affect all manufacturing communities the same way. Local economic profiles, local resources, and past ties to manufacturing matter both in the severity of impacts and the options for rebounding and/ or creating new economic identities. For these reasons and others, it is suggested that future research continue to focus on individual communities and localities which are working to identify good long term solutions to address changes due to large scale economic disruption.
Ph. D.

The United States manufacturing employment decreased 33% from 1985 to 2014. During the same period, the United States semiconductor manufacturing, accounting for 1.7% of the total of the United States manufacturing workforce, lost 35% of its employees. The decline in semiconductor manufacturing jobs began in 1985 when semiconductor firms began offshoring product manufacturing overseas because of low cost of qualified labor force and facilities. This qualitative case study explored the analytical approaches and strategies business leaders of semiconductor firms that offshore manufacturing use in making informed strategic outsourcing and offshoring decisions conducive to sustainability and profitability of operations. The location theory provided the conceptual framework for this research study. Semistructured interviews were conducted using video conferencing with 5 midlevel managers who conducted offshoring or were currently offshoring semiconductor manufacturing. There were 10 themes identified and analyzed from transcription software. The themes were manufacturing cost, onshore manufacturing, offshoring site selection, competitive cost analysis, offshoring advantages, offshoring disadvantages, national manufacturing program, offshoring, reshoring, and social Impact. The findings showed that offshoring of the semiconductor product manufacturing will continue because of lower cost of operation. Social change could ensue if the leader of firms, together with the educational institutions and lawmakers, establish a national program for the industrial type of knowledge to build skills in the United States.