Nelson K.H. Tang

The development of intelligent decision support tools to aid the design of flexible manufacturing systems

Abstract The design of flexible manufacturing systems (FMSs) is an essential but costly process. Although FMS design appears to be an excellent area for applying artificial intelligence (AI) and computer simulation techniques, to date there have been limited investigations on integrating AI with the modular simulation software available for FMS design. In this paper an integrated approach for the automatic design of FMS is reported, which uses simulation and multi-criteria decision-making techniques. The design process consists of the construction and testing of alternative designs using simulation methods. The selection of the most suitable design (based on the multi-criteria decision-making technique, the analytic hierarchy process (AHP)) is employed to analyze the output from the FMS simulation models. Intelligent tools (such as expert systems, fuzzy systems and neural networks), are developed for supporting the FMS design process. Active X technique is used for the actual integration of the FMS automatic design process and the intelligent decision support process.

The Effectiveness of Commercial Internet Web Sites: A User's Perspective

The main thrust of this article is to discuss a survey of 60 companies, predominantly from the user’s perspective, that use the Internet currently; and to examine the effectiveness of their current Internet Web sites. The results of an online survey were subjected to statistical analysis and this revealed some interesting findings. It was found that 30 percent of the companies had facilities for conducting transactions online and only 7 percent charged users for Web site access. Overall, the Web sites rated highly in terms of ease of access, content and structure but scored poorly for their number of unique features. Of the six industry sectors surveyed (electronic commerce, entertainment and leisure, financial and banking services, information services, retailing and travel and tourism), it was the retailing sector that showed the best overall performance. The best individual Web site in the survey was the Financial Times (http://www.ft.com). It is suggested that this initial survey work could be advanced by extending the sample size and by devising a programme of more extensive statistical analysis.

The development of a model for total quality healthcare

The rapid changes in the environment have exerted significant pressures on healthcare providers to reassess their strategies. Furthermore, it is a paradox that the best clinicians are, themselves, not the best managers in running the healthcare services. Hence, a management model is set up using quality function deployment (QFD) where strategies are developed through a partnership between managers and clinicians for the provision of total quality healthcare in the light of dramatic changes in the health‐care environment. The QFD‐led model consists of seven parts, which includes service planning, operational planning and new concepts deployment. The power of the QFD‐led model comes from the detailed discussions with customers about their expectations, comparisons with competitors and considerations of how the healthcare provider can meet the customers’ expectations most effectively. The application of QFD in a restructured regional acute‐care hospital is discussed.

An innovative framework for health care performance measurement

Today, hospitals not only have to contend with the dynamics of regulation and market forces but most importantly “service quality”. Service quality is a measure of how well the total service package meets customers’ expectations. The abilities to identify and prioritize customers’ expectations and to perform existing process assessment are important elements of a successful quality improvement strategy. The inherent characteristics of services complicate the efforts for quality improvement. Quality function deployment (QFD) is a systematic technique for designing services or products that are based on customers’ expectations. Given the proven success of QFD in manufacturing, this paper explores the applicability of QFD in health care. It describes the QFD technique and how it leads to a better understanding of customers’ expectations. It presents recommendations and a generic framework that is supported by empirical findings as a reference model for hospitals.

A simulation approach in supply chain management

Evaluates a simulation approach to measuring supply chain performance which incorporates order release theory. Within manufacturing a number of order release mechanisms have been developed. The importance of order release is first examined and its applicability to monitoring the performance of the supply chain is proposed. A simulation model of a typical, single channel logistics network was developed. Using the simulation model, each of the order release mechanisms was assessed and close agreement was obtained with the work of previous researchers. A new order release approach is proposed which is found to be superior to those analysed previously and should lead to improved supply chain performance.

Application of QFD for e-Business planning

E-Business represents new avenues for sustainable competitive advantage. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are now expected to be digital-ready to continue as trading partners for their customers. SMEs require socio-technical skills and organizational skills and know-how to comprehend e-Potentials and transform them into e-Implementation. An e-Business planning framework is proposed here which links both in strategic and operations management by applying quality function deployment (QFD, also known as house of quality). The balanced scorecard (BSC) will be used to provide an organization overview to objectives setting, critical in ensuring e-Initiatives are aligned with organization vision and objectives. The paper presents the pilot stage of this research project, discussing how the proposed planning framework works. Data from a case study are employed, and expert advice was sought to prioritize and rank the system components (the ‘whats’) and their interrelationships. The paper begins with an introduction to the importance of e-Business to SMEs, and a brief review of the key components of the proposed framework. Next follows a discussion of the case study and how the framework can be applied in this particular situation. The paper concludes with suggestions for proposed future work; the conclusion can also be extended to provide a series of matrices to provide a clear, step-by-step planning framework for SMEs which are planning and implementing e-Business, by converting customer needs into feasible e-Business plans.

An empirical study of the imperatives for a supply chain implementation project in Seagate Technology International

Singapores electronics manufacturers are facing many questions. In the computer hard‐drive industry, where the problem of obsolescence is common and where a products lifecycle may be only six months, manufacturers are anxious to know what the next order‐winning criteria will be. Since low labour costs are no longer a key factor, many organisations are developing their competencies in research and development, sales and marketing, logistics and supply chain management in order to maintain competitiveness. This paper illustrates how Seagate has envisaged a climate of cooperation and collaboration to better serve its customers in the areas of technology, cost and delivery. The paper is based on observations and findings following a longitudinal case study approach at the Seagate Storage Product Group (SPG) in Singapore. The seven‐stage implementation framework adopted by Seagate in their SCM project is discussed, together with the process of how Seagate has created a paradigm shift towards a new culture of teamwork‐based collaboration.

The introduction of patient process re‐engineering in the Peterborough Hospitals NHS Trust

Patient process recognition and re-engineering (PPR) has become a major concern of recent health care development and management. This paper discusses the position of the National Health Service (NHS) in the UK; where it is at present and where it aims to be. It suggests that the work of the current government in developing community care is central to the work of both the Leicester Royal Infirmary and the Peterborough Hospitals NHS Trust, when building relationships between primary (community) and secondary (hospital) health care provision. This paper aims to examine whether and how PPR can improve patient processes in the NHS. It does this through a case study of PPR in Peterborough Hospital.

An application of the Delta Model and BPR in transforming electronic business – the case of a food ingredients company in UK

Abstract.  Companies are leveraging existing resources and the internet to come up with new or modified business models to respond to the demands of e‐business. Companies in the food processing industry are also waking to the reality that e‐business technology can make a big difference to the bottom line. This paper presents the result of an action research project which applied a new approach labelled as the Delta Model developed by Hax and Wilde (2001) of Sloan School of Management to strategy development for brick‐n‐mortar companies launching e‐business initiatives. The case company is called Whetstone Food Ingredients (WFI), located in UK. The company is firmly embedded in the agri‐product industry and operates in the ‘egg by‐product’ subsector. This paper is based upon action research supplemented by a programme of in‐depth interviews with managers at WFI for various aspects of their supply chain and e‐business initiatives. On the basis of these interviews and the companies also made a range of documents available throughout. These included internal memos, strategy plans, operational control documents and minutes of meetings. The Delta Model and Davenports methodology of business process reengineering were adopted to structure this analysis. Used in conjunction, they helped to develop a vision, analyse the business processes, identify critical business processes, benchmark the critical processes, and then develop the information technology infrastructure. The infrastructure thus supported the critical business processes and leveraged the e‐business supply chain to enable the company to gain competitive edge.

Organizational growth demands concurrent engineering

In the past few years a considerable amount of research knowledge regarding organizational change and concurrent engineering (CE) has been accumulated. Suggests that organizational growth provides a framework for the emergence of CE techniques. Organizational growth demands CE and it is important to consider how changes to the organizational structure can best enhance the implementation of CE principles.