Peter Sackett

Future manufacturing systems—towards the extended enterprise

Abstract Manufacturing research has been focused on point solutions and technology-driven solutions. These have not delivered the step changes in performance needed, nor have they been adopted by wide sections of industry so the total business benefit resulting has been modest. The authors propose that manufacturing research must now place greater emphasis on total manufacturing business systems development. Coupled with the integration and communication technologies now becoming available this is the best way to enable manufacturers to realise the competitive gain demanded by the market place. The primary pressures to which manufacturing will be subject are detailed. These are encapsulated in the concept of customer-driven manufacturing business systems. In these systems the customer increasingly becomes an integrated part of both the business systems and the engineering systems of the enterprise. Key product and process technological advances, environmental, and market place developments are described. Probably most significant are the changes in the value chain now emerging which transform manufacturing business systems and overturn both conventional manufacturing strategy and existing manufacturing metrics. The institutionalisation of the Extended Enterprise is one of the most tangible and has far reaching outcomes. This will involve major structural changes in business organisation. The basis of partnership within the Extended Enterprise is not yet well understood but alternative operations models are likely to be industry and market sector specific. Concurrent Engineering is becoming accepted but understanding of best practice on how, when and in what order to implement it is needed. The extension of tools to embrace environmental issues could offer significant benefit to small and medium sized enterprises. The appraisal of manufacturing business options must be developed to match the changes in the business operations environment described above.

Mass customisation -- an automotive perspective

Abstract Increasingly automotive manufacturers are aiming for mass customisation, providing such a variety of products that nearly everyone can find what they want. More product variety is causing escalating costs and complexity in the manufacturing system. It is not clear how the manufacturing system engendered by lean production will respond to this challenge. Manufacturers are experimenting with models of the assembly and supply chain as a cost-effective solution for customised manufacturing is yet to emerge. These models represent a continuum of supplier involvement in the assembly process, as manufacturers seek to establish the optimum balance between cost reduction, retention of control and devolution of responsibility to the supply chain. The authors argue that an effective approach must be developed to support decisions on initiatives aimed at promoting customisation and preventing escalating costs and complexity in manufacturing.

The Extended Manufacturing Enterprise Paradigm

Models able to describe state of the art practice are fundamental to understanding the manufacturing phenomenon. A study of innovative current practices enables us to foresee the emergence of a new manufacturing paradigm: the Extended Enterprise. This arises from the need to satisfy customers who are increasingly demanding tailored products with world class capability in every functional aspect. The Extended Enterprise is made both possible and viable by the progress made in manufacturing processes and information technology. It demands the development of a new management philosophy and particularly new organizational structures. Presents a reference model for the Extended Enterprise, and compares the characteristics of this paradigm against the Mass and Lean manufacturing philosophies. Describes the results of a study that analyses the development of co‐operation mechanisms in the aerospace industry.

Industry Requirements and Associated Research Issues in the Extended Enterprise

In this paper, we consider the difficulties faced by manufacturing companies and their response in terms of the emergence of the Extended Enterprise. We argue that the Extended Enterprise represents the context within which manufacturing systems research must be conducted and we identify what we consider to be the key topics for future manufacturing systems research and development.

A framework for implementing cost and quality practices within manufacturing

Purpose – The techniques that help organisations implement leading edge cost and quality practices in manufacturing operations management are typically disparate and generic in nature. There is a need to identify integrated practices at the right level of granularity, based on a clear definition of the existing operations practices. This paper proposes a novel framework for achieving and maintaining good cost and quality operations management practice within a manufacturing environment.Design/methodology/approach – The framework uses a new approach for identifying the profile of current activities and better practice activities for the roles of team leaders, cell leaders and operations managers within a manufacturing company.Findings – The paper proposes a recommended set of context‐specific activities for these roles. These recommended activities are utilised to develop a cascade of deployable recommendations.Originality/value – The framework is illustrated within a manufacturing environment producing co...

Design Requirements Management using an Ontological Framework

The specification activity is a critical enabler for collaborative product development through an extended enterprise. Often this activity involves numerous iterations before a shared understanding of the product requirements is achieved since various omissions, ambiguities and assumptions have to be resolved. This paper will present a framework for the electronic-enabling of the requirements founded on ontology-based constructs to provide a shared conceptualisation of the knowledge needed for the specification of a product. The application of ontology is a means to establish the consensual knowledge about the needs of a product and to then apply this shared understanding for its specification.

Customizing manufacturing strategy

Draws on the convergence in enterprise and manufacturing strategies apparent in the established theories and models. Develops this form through enterprise‐wide competitive dimensions into a customizable business environment and manufacturing technology/programme‐specific support framework. This generic framework links the competitive dimensions, the manufacturing‐enterprise, business‐process chains and the manufacturing typology; each is selectable and customizable for a specific manufacturing business operation. Describes the result which is a method of decomposing business goals into aggregate business‐specific, manufacturing‐performance indicators. These can be linked to measures of manufacturing performance and directly related to a manufacturing technology or a manufacturing programme.

Framework for the development of a product data management strategy

Manufacturing industry’s success in reducing time‐to‐market, costs, environmental impact; and improving quality, and flexibility, has exposed an underlying factor limiting further significant improvement in competitive performance ‐ the effective management of production data. This article identifies the business benefits of product data management and examines the building blocks for a product data management strategy.

The human factor in CIM systems: worker empowerment and control within a high-volume production environment

In response to European business pressures, an innovation-mediated model of production is emerging with an emphasis on the integration of the physical and intellectual capabilities of employees. Empowerment underpins the basis of competition in the emerging business environment. The authors develop a rigorous definition of empowerment that encompasses the concept of empowerment that has internal and external dimensions. The paradox concerning the conflict between control and empowerment is resolved by application of the definition. Control mechanisms emerge as a dominant theme in implementing empowerment strategies. Local process control necessitates simultaneous centralised control of the manufacturing system. An investigative study of industry experience with empowered teams undertaken by the authors provides evidence that autonomy in decision-making is, in practice, restricted to narrow domains. Major focus on the external dimension of empowerment is misplaced. The internal dimension must be emphasised to ensure that competitive advantage available from the innovation-mediated model is captured.

Requirements management: an enabler for concurrent engineering in the automotive industry

Defining and agreeing the product requirements is especially important when the design and manufacture of a system is part of an Extended Enterprise. To realize an all-inclusive concurrent engineering process, tools for the upstream design activities are needed. In practice, it is often difficult for the companies to have a shared understanding of what needs to be developed, and so specifications contain ambiguities in describing the product requirements. This paper clarifies the problem domain in the context of a complex product, designed and manufactured in a pan-national Extended Enterprise and serving a highly competitive market. The authors show how the challenge can be addressed through the application of ontology. A model of a requirements-management tool is proposed that will allow the various systems and associated levels of a product to be described and then shared through the supply chain. A prototype system is presented and illustrated through a case study from the automotive industry.