Erwin Rauch

Design of a Scalable Modular Production System for a Two-stage Food Service Franchise System

The geographically distributed production of fresh food poses unique challenges to the production system design because of their stringent industry and logistics requirements. The purpose of this research is to examine the case of a European fresh food manufacturers approach to introduce a scalable modular production concept for an international two-stage gastronomy franchise system in order to identify best practice guidelines and to derive a framework for the design of distributed production systems that perform in a highly dynamic environment. The design framework was developed by creating a theoretical model through literature review and the thorough analysis of an industrial case. Information was collected through multiple site visits, workshops and semi-structured interviews with the companys key staff of the project, as well as examination of relevant company documentations. By means of a scenario for the Central European market, the model was reviewed in terms of its development potential and finally approved for implementation. However, research through case survey requires further empirical investigation to fully establish this approach as a valid and reliable design tool.

SMART Reconfigurability Approach in Manufacture of Steel and Façade Constructions

In recent years the principles of industrialisation and prefabrication of factory-finished elements have gained more and more acceptance in the construction sector. Due to the limited duration of projects in this sector, manufacturing cells and assembly line configurations show a very short life time and they have to be highly flexible and adaptable to changing circumstances. This paper gives an overview about the state of the art in prefabrication and reconfigurability in the building industry. Based on the experiences from an industrial case study the paper shows the first research results of an approach to increase a company’s ability for smart reconfiguration of pre-assembly.

Continuous Improvement of Manufacturing Systems with the Concept of Functional Periodicity

To compete effectively in the dynamic global marketplace, manufacturing companies have to maintain a high level of responsiveness to remain competitive. This paper presents a theoretic framework for the installation of mechanisms in order to control the effects of the time-dependent combinatorial complexity caused by the uncertainty of maintaining the fulfillment of once defined functional requirements for a manufacturing system. Inspired by the idea of a system that automatically detects, diagnoses, and repairs identified areas of inefficiency, the objective of this research is to find mechanisms that anticipate market or environmentally driven events and help to set up the manufacturing system in advance in order to maximize total system efficiency. The paper builds on previous research about system complexity and on recent findings of a research project conducted in an Italian manufacturing company. Starting from the overall objective of “enhanced survivability” for the company and its manufacturing system, functional system requirements are deducted mapping between functional and system design domain, first on a time-independent basis. With the help of the scenario-technique, time-dependent influence is shown and improvement strategies are developed, using functional periodicity as a trigger point for their release. The first results from practical application show very promising results which will be discussed in the paper.

Mobile On-site Factories — Scalable and distributed manufacturing systems for the construction industry

The concept of the “On-site Factory” consists in the temporary use of fully functioning mobile mini-factories or production cells at the site of consumption. This concept of a Mobile Factory is well suitable for situations in the construction industry with long distances and therefore high logistics costs. The advantage of this concept is not only the proximity to customers, but also the economic efficiency combined with a maximum of flexibility. By a high degree of reconfigurability and scalability of the On-site Factory, it can also be adapted to its individual mission and the quantity demand at the construction site. This paper presents the current state of research in the area of distributed manufacturing as well as on-site and off-site manufacturing. It discusses the need for new and innovative JIT solutions for construction industry and addresses the specific requirements for scalable and reconfigurable on-site manufacturing factories. The main content of this research paper consists in the definition of generally applicable Design Parameters for On-site Factories using Axiomatic Design as a methodology for the analysis of functional requirements and the related design solutions. Through practical examples and illustrations, the application of the deduced Design Parameters will be explained.

Collaborative Cloud Manufacturing: Design of Business Model Innovations Enabled by Cyberphysical Systems in Distributed Manufacturing Systems

Collaborative cloud manufacturing, as a concept of distributed manufacturing, allows different opportunities for changing the logic of generating and capturing value. Cyberphysical systems and the technologies behind them are the enablers for new business models which have the potential to be disruptive. This paper introduces the topics of distributed manufacturing as well as cyberphysical systems. Furthermore, the main business model clusters of distributed manufacturing systems are described, including collaborative cloud manufacturing. The paper aims to provide support for developing business model innovations based on collaborative cloud manufacturing. Therefore, three business model architecture types of a differentiated business logic are discussed, taking into consideration the parameters which have an influence and the design of the business model and its architecture. As a result, new business models can be developed systematically and new ideas can be generated to boost the concept of collaborative cloud manufacturing within all sustainable business models.

Increasing productivity in ETO construction projects through a lean methodology for demand predictability

Construction is one of the main sectors of the economy, globally. In Italy this sector is highly fragmented and consists mostly of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). During a traditional construction project many different disciplines interact causing high coordination efforts. The main problem is a weak planning of on-site construction processes. Especially shared resources (like tower cranes) are often the bottleneck processes on-site. The paper presents a methodology for demand predictability which is based on the Rolling-Forecast approach and consists of three modules: “Planning”, “Actualization” and “Progress”. Within the module “Planning”, tasks are assigned following budget specifications. By the module “Actualization” the deviation from budget is measured. By the module “Progress” the construction progress is measured and a reliable budget monitoring is performed. For aligning the engineering, prefabrication and installation of Engineer-to-Order (ETO) components a Constant Work in Process (CONWIP) control loop is described. For increasing the productivity on-site a continuous improvement process which is based on the plan-do-check-action (PDCA) cycle is presented. A practical implementation of the methodology for demand predictability within the expansion project of the central hospital of Bolzano in North Italy is included. Scientific findings up to now and the expected outcomes are presented.

An axiomatic design-based approach for the patient-value-oriented design of a sustainable Lean healthcare system

The global healthcare expenditures have grown steadily in the last decades. However, this spending is not reflected in significant healthcare improvements due to obvious inefficiencies in processes and resource consumption. To stop and reverse this unhealthy trend, a completely new approach is needed to sustainably improve healthcare services in terms of costs, response times, service quality, and resource utilisation. To address this, an integrated target system was developed and top-down decomposed using the axiomatic design method in order to comprehensively redesign healthcare organisation starting from a strict patient value focus. This methodology was chosen because it provides a systematic mapping procedure for the design of large and complex systems. The mapping was accomplished within a regional health system, involving healthcare experts from the medical, nursing and administrative areas. Results prove that the method yields a clear system view and is useful when it comes to systematically improving healthcare operational processes.

Axiomatic Design of a Framework for the Comprehensive Optimization of Patient Flows in Hospitals

Lean Management and Six Sigma are nowadays applied not only to the manufacturing industry but also to service industry and public administration. The manifold variables affecting the Health Care system minimize the effect of a narrow Lean intervention. Therefore, this paper aims to discuss a comprehensive, system-based approach to achieve a factual holistic optimization of patient flows. This paper debates the efficacy of Lean principles applied to the optimization of patient flows and related activities, structures, and resources, developing a theoretical framework based on the principles of the Axiomatic Design. The demand for patient-oriented and efficient health services leads to use these methodologies to improve hospital processes. In the framework, patients with similar characteristics are clustered in families to achieve homogeneous flows through the value stream. An optimization checklist is outlined as the result of the mapping between Functional Requirements and Design Parameters, with the right sequence of the steps to optimize the patient flow according to the principles of Axiomatic Design. The Axiomatic Design-based top-down implementation of Health Care evidence, according to Lean principles, results in a holistic optimization of hospital patient flows, by reducing the complexity of the system.Lean Management and Six Sigma are nowadays applied not only to the manufacturing industry but also to service industry and public administration. The manifold variables affecting the Health Care system minimize the effect of a narrow Lean intervention. Therefore, this paper aims to discuss a comprehensive, system-based approach to achieve a factual holistic optimization of patient flows. This paper debates the efficacy of Lean principles applied to the optimization of patient flows and related activities, structures, and resources, developing a theoretical framework based on the principles of the Axiomatic Design. The demand for patient-oriented and efficient health services leads to use these methodologies to improve hospital processes. In the framework, patients with similar characteristics are clustered in families to achieve homogeneous flows through the value stream. An optimization checklist is outlined as the result of the mapping between Functional Requirements and Design Parameters, with the right sequence of the steps to optimize the patient flow according to the principles of Axiomatic Design. The Axiomatic Design-based top-down implementation of Health Care evidence, according to Lean principles, results in a holistic optimization of hospital patient flows, by reducing the complexity of the system.

Design and Implementation Approach for Distributed Manufacturing Networks Using Axiomatic Design

Rising logistics costs, mass customization, and market-specific product variants are the reason for the current trend toward decentralized and geographically distributed manufacturing systems. Often, these mini-factories are organized and managed in production networks. While there exist already many scientifically discussed methods for the design of single manufacturing systems, there are only few works discussing the design of production networks with distributed manufacturing units. This chapter provides an Axiomatic Design-based approach for the design, planning, and implementation of distributed manufacturing systems using the example of a franchise network with geographically distributed, changeable, scalable as well as replicable manufacturing units. The aim of the proposed approach was to derive a set of appropriate design parameters (DP), which supports practitioners in their work to design the manufacturing system. The presented approach has been successfully applied in a real case study of an Italian franchise company.

A Three Level Model for the Design, Planning and Operation of Changeable Production Systems in Distributed Manufacturing

This paper reviews the state of the art in reconfiguration of distributed production systems and develops an integrated model for the design, planning and operation of changeable production systems in distributed manufacturing. For the model development, a heuristic research method was applied involving a selected group of experienced experts. To test the practical relevance of the model, it was successfully applied for the design of a geographically distributed manufacturing network based on scalable and modular manufacturing units.