John A. Sharp

A review of manufacturing flexibility

Abstract In the field of operations management, manufacturing flexibility has been the subject of much academic enquiry. Moreover, the need for this fundamental characteristic has never been more urgent. However, a comprehensive understanding of the subject remains elusive. An extensive review of the literature is used to examine the issues surrounding the concept of manufacturing flexibility. Specifically: the use of manufacturing flexibility as a strategic objective, the relationship flexibility has with environmental uncertainty, the use of taxonomies as a vehicle for furthering understanding of the types of flexibility, the nature of flexibility, and its measurement. Through this process of synthesis, the paper attempts to establish the extent to which knowledge of manufacturing flexibility has now progressed. Suggestions for future research topics in flexibility are also presented.

A modified slacks-based measure model for data envelopment analysis with ‘natural’ negative outputs and inputs

This paper is primarily concerned with data envelopment analysis (DEA) of systems where negative outputs and negative inputs arise naturally. Examples of situations in which both negative inputs and negative outputs occur are given. More attention has been paid, in the literature, to the former type of problem. Most available DEA software does not solve this type of problem or copes with negative outputs and possibly negative inputs by assigning zero weights to them. A modified slacks-based measure (MSBM) model is presented, in which both negative outputs and negative inputs occur. The MSBM model overcomes the lack of translation invariance in the slacks-based measure model by drawing on the ideas from the range directional model (RDM). The MSBM model takes into account individual input and output slacks, which provides more precise evaluation of inefficient decision-making units (DMUs). It therefore, generally leads to lower efficiencies for inefficient DMUs than the RDM.

Manufacturing operations and strategic flexibility: survey and cases

The ability of manufacturing companies to adapt to their changing environment is frequently a key to long‐term success. As a consequence the strategic flexibility of manufacturing operations has become an increasingly important issue for organisations. There have been much theoretical work and some case studies in this domain. This paper reports part of a major study in the area. A key stage in this work has been an empirical study of UK manufacturing to investigate a broad range of issues surrounding manufacturing operations and strategic flexibility. In part this has been carried out through a questionnaire survey. This paper summarises some of the principal findings. These include respondents’ descriptions of their business strategies, the part played by manufacturing, the interfaces with customers, and the role of the information system and its contribution to manufacturing. This is complemented by a summary of 32 interviews/case histories which allow these issues to be explored further and which provide the input to the subsequent stages of the overall project.

A framework for deciding what to outsource in information technology

The theory and background of outsourcing are examined from a general perspective. It is concluded that the pressures to outsource activities can best be understood through two main sources: the work of organization theorists on the management of organizational complexity and the transaction economics approach of Williamson which argues the virtues of provision of many organizational services through market mechanisms rather than by internal departments. Within IT, the early motivation for outsourcing was the cost reduction one implied by the Williamson approach. However, a number of authors have argued that the complexity of managing IT outsourcing means that it is often preferable to try to improve the efficiency of internal suppliers. This suggests that there is a need to develop a framework that will enable a decision to be made about what to outsource and what to insource. A model is applied to the IT sourcing decision.

DEA Models via Goal Programming

In this paper, we investigate the relationship between Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) and Multiple Criteria Decision Making Theory. We re-examine DEA models from a goal programming perspective. It has been shown in this work that many known DEA models and new ones, can be derived via this approach.

AMT Investment in the Larger UK Firm

A survey of investment in new production technology and specific AMT techniques in larger UK firms are described. Though the majority of the responding firms were in the manufacturing sector, some were not. Interestingly, some of these considered that they had invested substantially in new production technology. Companies were also questioned about which factors they considered most important in making investment decisions. These showed an unexpected emphasis on the importance of “intangible” factors. Responses were analysed separately for manufacturing companies belonging to process industries and those classified as belonging to “general manufacturing”. As might have been expected, companies in the latter category had invested more heavily in AMT techniques. However, process industry companies had also invested significantly. Around two‐thirds of companies in the general manufacturing category reported difficulties in assessing the benefits of AMT investment. About a quarter of process industries compan...

The role of qualitative methods in production management research

Abstract This paper examines previous approaches to the identification and measurement of strategic flexibility and concludes that the use of quantitative methods alone cannot capture the essence of such a complex and intangible subject. It is reasoned that a holistic approach to research design should be adopted when carrying out particular categories of production management research. A research design used to investigate the concept of strategic flexibility in manufacturing industry is briefly outlined as an illustration. The role of the case study within this and the contribution it was able to make to the investigation is described.

Preference, Production and Performance in Data Envelopment Analysis

This paper attempts to provide a systematic approach to the DEA model building. To this end, we try to identify some essential aspects of DEA modelling. Three key building blocks in a DEA model are identified: they are preference order, production possibility set and performance measure. It is shown that the preferences and performance measurements used in the standard DEA models are only particular examples in this framework. It is also illustrated in this work that this methodology is useful in building new DEA models to handle nonstandard applications such as those involve non-Pareto preferences or undesirable inputs-outputs.

A system to support the enhancement of strategic flexibility in manufacturing enterprises

Manufacturing companies are finding it necessary to change their corporate strategy with increasing frequency, as a result of more rapid changes either in the demands made by customers or in the companys view of business. However, it is only possible to respond to these pressures for change if the information systems of the organisation are capable of helping the companies meet these new requirements. The aim of the work described here is to develop a decision support system (DSS) that will help companies to enhance their strategic flexibility, that is to increase the ability of their systems to support a broader range of corporate strategies. The development of this system is discussed. Particular attention is paid to describing the structure of the DSS and the manner in which the extensive fieldwork carried out with UK manufacturing businesses has provided information about the appropriate factors and parameters to be included in the system. Possible further development of the DSS is briefly considered.

The selection of information systems for production management: An evolving problem

Abstract The incidence of successful implementations of computer technology in manufacturing enterprises is disappointingly low. This paper argues that the selection of the manufacturing management information system is an essential activity in successful implementation, and that the problem is becoming more complex. A full account of the selection process used by one UK manufacturer is described to illustrate the benefits of using a selection and evaluation methodology based on the systematic application of several simple but effective procedures.