Avinash Waikar

A comparative study of some priority dispatching rules under different shop loads

Abstract Priority dispatching rules and shop load affect job-shop performance. This paper evaluates ten different priority dispatching rules with respect to six different performance criteria under light, medium and heavy shop loads. Simulation was used as a tool to determine the rankings of the dispatching rules for a given shop load and performance criteria. A comparative study was conducted to investigate the performance of these rules. Two rules, ‘shortest processing time” and ‘least work remaining’, performed well under criteria related to the processing time. It was found that the rules that perform well in average and r.m.s. tardiness perform poorly under percentage-of-jobs-late criterion. The experimental results are conveyed with critical comments on the performance of the dispatching rules under different loading conditions of the shop.

Aviation safety: a quality perspective

“Safety is no accident.” It is not a coincidence that this slogan appears often in FAA literature, correspondence and advisory circulars. It is a frequent reminder to all of us that reliability and safety in aviation is a team effort and that all individuals are responsible for doing their part towards the maintenance of a safe flying environment. Presents aviation safety in the TQM framework of customer focus, continuous process improvement and total involvement. Identifies customers at various levels and illustrates, with examples, how continuous improvement occurs. Highlights the mechanism in place which helps ensure these improvements. Shows that total involvement yields safety, reliability and quality in the aviation services that we receive today. Discusses the presence and prevalence of TQM in various sectors of aviation and suggests that further continual improvements are still needed in today’s aviation.

Evaluating key factors in supplier selection for micro-businesses: implications for buyer satisfaction

Final quality of products/services starts with suppliers in the supply chain. Problems can occur if suppliers do not deliver the quantities requested in full, on time, or buyers select suppliers solely on the basis of lowest price. Supplier selection has been studied for large businesses but not for very small (micro) businesses. Therefore, a survey was administered to micro–businesses to determine: what factors are important to micro–businesses in selecting suppliers and how satisfied they are with their suppliers. Factors included Brand Name, Consistency, Cost/Lower Price, Loyalty, Quality, and Warranty. Results indicated that none of the factors were unimportant. However, buyer satisfaction was found to be dependent on Quality, Brand Name, and the Length of Time of the Buyer/Supplier Relationship. Additionally, it was concluded that quality, along with complete, on–time delivery are key to buyer satisfaction and may help suppliers achieve preferred status with micro–business buyers.

Knowledge-based approach to simulation model validation

Abstract Validation is an important part of simulation modeling. The shortcoming of traditional validation is lack of sufficient knowledge and lack of organization of the existing knowledge. This research explored the possibility of using knowledge from fields other than simulation, such as functional design and database design, for conceptual validation. Two simulation models were tested using the knowledge. An organization of all the knowledge into a knowledge-base was suggested.

How Can Internet Service Providers Tap into the Potentially-Lucrative Small Business Market?

Small businesses need Internet service to be competitive, and their spending on IT activities continues to grow. How can Internet Service Providers tap into this potentially lucrative market? This study attempts to identify Internet service features that are important to small businesses. Specifically, it used a survey method to explore the relationships between the importance of various features and organizational characteristics of small businesses, for example, size and type of business. The results show that the size of business affects the perceived importance placed on certain features, while the type of business does not. Implication of this finding for packaging Internet service is discussed.

Exercise in the workplace? Employee preferences

Discusses musculoskeletal stress as a result of sedentary work, which has been and still is a problem in workplaces. Simple, quick exercises may be a low‐cost solution to this problem. Provides an account of an investigation, the aim of which was to determine employees′ preference about and the status of such exercise programmes in local businesses. A questionnaire was administered to 203 employees engaged in sedentary work in 21 south‐east Louisiana businesses. The results show that many office, managerial and technical employees suffer musculoskeletal discomfort and pain and that they are interested in relieving this discomfort by participating in an exercise programme. Very few of their companies, however, provide formal exercise programmes. Regarding establishing an exercise programme, respondents indicated preference for exercises targeted on specific parts of the body and do not desire to be prompted by computer software.

An Exploratory Analysis of Job-Related Stress: Implications for Real Estate Sales Management

This study used a mail survey of real estate sales agents to test several hypotheses related to sources and outcomes of job tension, A path analytical model was used to test hypo-theses. Appropriate conclusions were drawn and directions for future research were highlighted.