Arvind Bhardwaj

Selection of logistic service provider using fuzzy PROMETHEE for a cement industry

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop a method to select the best alternative in a multi‐criteria decision making (MCDM) environment when the decision is taken by a group of members in an uncertain environment.Design/methodology/approach – In this paper, Fuzzy Preference Ranking Organization Method for Enrichment Evaluations (Fuzzy PROMETHEE) technique has been used for MCDM problems. The team of decision makers is constituted to integrate their opinion. The analysis is done using Geometrical Analysis for Interactive Aid (GAIA) plane, available in Decision Lab 2000 software, which provides valuable help in understanding the conflicts among criteria.Findings – The selection of best alternative is done on the basis of generally conflicting criteria. Fuzzy PROMETHEE technique has been proposed and the same is demonstrated using Decision Lab 2000 software. This software can be used for as many criteria as possible and also in a fuzzy environment, where the crisp data for criteria comparison are no...

Occupational Noise-Induced Hearing Loss in Indian Steel Industry Workers: An Exploratory Study

Objective: The present study focused on exploring the current level of hearing protection and subsequently determined the prevalence of occupational noise-induced hearing loss among casting and forging industry workers. Background: The casting and forging industry provides employment to a significant portion of the population. Method: The level of hearing protection was assessed through questionnaire survey of 572 workers. Out of these workers, 165 and another control group of 57 participants were assessed by formal audiometry. Audiometric tests were conducted at frequencies of 1.0 KHz to 8.0 KHz. The occurrence of hearing loss was determined on the basis of a hearing threshold level with a low fence of 25 dB. Student’s test and ANOVA were used to compare the various groups; a p value <.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: More than 90% of the workers sampled showed significant hearing loss at medium and high frequencies. The analyses revealed a higher prevalence of significant hearing loss among the forging workers compared with the workers associated with the other activities. Conclusions: The workers of the Indian steel industry are highly exposed to occupational noise. The majority of workers are not protected from noise-induced hearing loss. There is a need to provide special ear protectors for workers engaged in forging. A complete hearing protection program, including train-ing, audiometry, job rotation, and the use of hearing protection devices, needs to be introduced.

Critical factors analysis and its ranking for implementation of GSCM in Indian dairy industry

Purpose – Sustainability in food sector is the need of the hour. It has been revealed that Green supply chain management (GSCM) is an emerging new and effective approach to improve the productivity, efficiency of any enterprises and to achieve sustainability. The purpose of this paper is to rank the key performance indicators which are responsible for implementation of GSCM in Indian dairy sector. Ranking is done by giving weightage to them based on survey reports. The study includes literature review, personal interviews and surveys using the detailed questionnaire. Since food processing industry, e.g. dairy industry is the major energy user and directly affecting the health of public is being chosen for implementing GSCM practices. The approach is to form an effective framework for successful implementation of GSCM in dairy sector. Grouping of key performance indicators has been done using factor analysis and thereafter Analytic hierarchy process (AHP) method has been applied to determine the suitable f...

Occupational Exposure to Respirable Suspended Particulate Matter and Lung Functions Deterioration of Steel Workers: An Exploratory Study in India

Objective. Manufacturing industry, especially casting and forging (iron and steel) industry, comprises a major part of the occupation in India. However, health protection is still ignored. Therefore the present study explores the respiratory symptoms among steel workers and subsequently measured the level of exposure to RSPM and lung functions parameters using spirometry investigation. Method. Present study assessed the level of respiratory symptoms through questionnaire survey of 572 workers, out of which 309 workers and another control group of 74 subjects were assessed for the spirometry test. Both of the groups were statistically matched for age and BMI. Students’ t-test and one-way ANOVA were used to compare the various subgroups. Results. The results reveal that workers are exposed to higher respirable suspended particulate matter (RSPM) levels than the limit of 5 mg/m3 prescribed by Indian factory act. The spirometric parameters such as FVC, FEV1, FEV1/FVC ratio, FEF25–75, PEFR, PIFR, and FIVC were significantly lower in exposed group than in controls. In the present scenario the iron and steel SMEs of the region are very much lagging behind in implementing the occupational health and safety practices. Conclusions. The majority of the workers were not wearing proper PPEs like masks due to ergonomically bad design, and at the same time they were working 60 to 72 hrs/week, which leads to very high level of exposure to RSPM. Therefore, the workers were under higher risk of lungs functions deterioration.

Prevalence of permanent hearing threshold shift among workers of Indian iron and steel small and medium enterprises: a study.

Occupational noise exposure and noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) have been recognized as a problem among workers in Indian industries. The major industries in India are based on manufacturing. There are appreciable numbers of casting and forging units spread across the country. The objective of this study is to determine the prevalence of permanent hearing threshold shift among the workers engaged in Indian iron and steel small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and compared with control group subjects. As a part of hearing protection intervention, audiometric tests were conducted at low (250-1000 Hz), medium (1500-3000 Hz), and high (4000-8000 Hz) frequencies. The occurrence of hearing loss was determined based on hearing threshold levels with a low fence of 25 dB. Comparisons were made for hearing threshold at different frequencies between the exposed and control groups using Students t test. ANOVA was used for the comparison of hearing threshold dB at different frequencies among occupation and year of experience. A P value <0.05 was considered as statistically significant. All data were presented as mean value (SD). Over 90% of workers engaged in various processes of casting and forging industry showed hearing loss in the noise-sensitive medium and higher frequencies. Occupation was significantly associated with NIHL, and hearing loss was particularly high among the workers of forging section. The analyses revealed a higher prevalence of significant hearing loss among the forging workers compared to the workers associated with other activities. The study shows alarming signals of NIHL, especially in forging workers. The occupational exposure to noise could be minimized by efficient control measures through engineering controls, administrative controls, and the use of personal protective devices. Applications of engineering and/or administrative controls are frequently not feasible in the developing countries for technical and financial reasons. A complete hearing conservation programme, including training, audiometry, job rotation, and the use of hearing protection devices, is the most feasible method for the protection of industrial workers from prevailing noise in workplace environments in the developing countries.

A framework for selection of logistics outsourcing partner in uncertain environment using TOPSIS

With globalisation and liberalisation, the markets are turning competitive. The key area for industry now is to make the product available to the end customer in time, without damage and loss due to over or under stocking. Hence, logistics is seen as an important area where industries can cut costs and improve their customer service quality. The latest trend is to outsource logistics activities to allow the outsourcing company to concentrate on the core competence, improve the service and reduce the capital cost. In this paper, a framework is proposed to select the most suitable outside Logistics Company (3PL) using fuzzy Delphi method to shortlist the most important criteria and fuzzy technique for order performance by similarity to idea solution (TOPSIS) to choose the best 3PL by finding the closeness to the positive ideal solution. The weights to the opinion of decision-makers (DMs) are assigned according to their qualification, experience and designation. The integrated approach of fuzzy Delphi and fuzzy TOPSIS enhances the accuracy of the result and proves to be helpful for the DMs. A case study is conducted in an automobile company in North India to select the best suitable 3PL service providers to demonstrate the proposed methodology.

Measuring manufacturing performance with the implementation of TPM: an exploratory study

The role of maintenance in modern manufacturing is becoming ever more important, with companies adopting maintenance as a profit-generating business element. The failure of equipments or machines to produce products on time as required can reflect the inefficiency in operations. The objective of total productive maintenance (TPM) is to create a relationship between production and maintenance functions, for continuous improvement of product quality and operational efficiency. Though it has been well established that total quality management, just-in-time and employee involvement have strongly contributed to the manufacturing performances (MPs) of the organisations, but there is limited evidence of the role that TPM plays in improving the MP of the organisations. In this paper, we investigated the relationship between TPM and organisational performance through multi-attribute decision model using analytical hierarchy process. In the findings, it was observed that TPM has a positive and significant relationship with the performance level of the organisations.

Impact of ISO 9000 certification on performance of SMEs: a study of Indian industry

In todays completive and quality conscious market, acquiring ISO certification has become a critical factor for the Indian companies for their existence. The purpose of this paper is to find whether the organisations are really benefited by getting the certification and to what extent the various performances are affected. Four major areas of measuring organisational performance (quality and cost of quality, external quality, time performance and purchasing) were selected for studying the level of impact. It was observed that organisations have been able to improve their performance in all the four area of study with degree of improvement varying from marginal to significant.

An interpretive structural modelling approach for analysing barriers in total productive maintenance implementation

To be successful in modern manufacturing environment organisations must be supported by both effective and efficient maintenance programmes. One approach to improving the performance of maintenance activities is to implement and develop a total productive maintenance (TPM) strategy. However, TPM implementation is adversely affected by a few factors, which are known as TPM barriers. The objective of this paper is to develop the relationships among the identified TPM barriers. Further, this paper is also helpful to understand mutual influences of barriers and to identify those barriers which support other barriers (driving barrier) and also those barriers which are most influenced by other barriers (dependent barriers). The interpretive structural modelling (ISM) methodology is used to evolve mutual relationships among these barriers.

Quality Management Practices vs. Performance of SMEs: An Empirical Study of Indian Industries

The intense competition in the current marketplace has forced firms to re-examine their methods of doing business. Economic liberalization and globalization of economy is becoming a worldwide phenomenon. However survival of industry and its economic growth is dependant on the productivity level. This is very true in developing countries like India because of higher population growth, higher interest rates, rising inflation, domestic and international competition, scarcity of raw materials, fiscal deficit etc. The present work is an empirical study of impact of quality management practices like just-in-time, 5Ss tools, suggestion schemes, workers participation, quality circles and ISO certification on performance of SMEs. The performance parameters incorporated for the study were manpower and assets utilization, inventory management, quality aspects, cost aspects, time performance and purchasing procedure. A comprehensive questionnaire was developed and circulated to the different firms and responses were collected for analyzing the data. On the basis of literature review and the survey of the industry, objectives were identified; the impact was validated on the basis of correlation analysis