Senevi Kiridena

Exploring deeper structures in manufacturing strategy formation processes: a qualitative inquiry

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explicate deeper structures in manufacturing strategy (MS) formation processes, in order to advance process understanding. This would be useful in identifying and nurturing appropriate forms of MS formation within specific organisational settings.Design/methodology/approach – Nine case studies in the Australian metal products, machinery and equipment manufacturing sectors, guided by the grounded theory approach.Findings – Deeper structures in MS processes represent linear and parallel, convergent and divergent, sequential and iterative progression of strategic initiatives across four broad phases identified as: initiation, consolidation, commitment and realization. The multiple progressions are explained by the nature of strategic initiatives, the causal relationships between the phases or modes and the influence of internal and external organisational contextual factors. The aggregate patterns are presented in the form of a conceptual model.Research limitations/i...

Aircraft maintenance planning and scheduling: an integrated framework

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine how certain limitations of the current approaches to planning and scheduling of aircraft heavy maintenance can be addressed using a single integrated framework supported by unified data structures.Design/methodology/approach – The “unitary structuring technique”, originally developed within the context of manufacturing planning and control, is further enhanced for aircraft heavy maintenance applications, taking into account the uncertainty associated with condition‐based maintenance. The proposed framework delivers the advanced functionalities required for simultaneous and dynamic forward planning of maintenance operations, as well as finite loading of resources, towards optimising the overall maintenance performance.Findings – Execution of maintenance operations under uncertainty involves materials changes, rectification and re‐assembly. It is shown that re‐scheduling of materials (spare‐parts), resources and operations can be taken care of by simultaneou...

A fuzzy rough sets-based multi-agent analytics framework for dynamic supply chain configuration

Considering the need for more effective decision support in the context of distributed manufacturing, this paper develops an advanced analytics framework for configuring supply chain (SC) networks. The proposed framework utilises a distributed multi-agent system architecture to deploy fuzzy rough sets-based algorithms for knowledge elicitation and representation. A set of historical sales data, including network node-related information, is used together with the relevant details of product families to predict SC configurations capable of fulfilling desired customer orders. Multiple agents such as data retrieval agent, knowledge acquisition agent, knowledge representation agent, configuration predictor agent, evaluator agent and dispatching agent are used to help execute a broad spectrum of SC configuration decisions. The proposed framework considers multiple product variants and sourcing options at each network node, as well as multiple performance objectives. It also captures decisions that span the entire SC simultaneously and, by implication, represents multiple network links. Using an industry test case, the paper demonstrates the effectiveness of the proposed framework in terms of fulfilling customer orders with lower production and emissions costs, compared to the results generated using existing tools.

A utility-driven approach to supplier evaluation and selection: empirical validation of an integrated solution framework

Supplier evaluation and selection (SES) problems have long been studied, leading to the development of a wide range of individual and hybrid models for solving them. However, the lack of widespread diffusion of existing SES models in the industry points to a need for simpler models that can systematically evaluate both qualitative and quantitative attributes of potential suppliers while enhancing the flexibility decision-makers need to account for relevant situational factors. Furthermore, empirical validations of existing models in SES have been few and far between. With a view to addressing these issues, this paper proposes an integrated solution framework that can be used to evaluate both tangible and intangible attributes of potential suppliers. The proposed framework combines three individual methods, namely the fuzzy analytic hierarchy process, fuzzy complex proportional assessment and fuzzy linear programming. The framework is validated through application in a Turkish textile company. The results generated using the proposed framework is compared with the actual historical data collected from the company. Additionally, a feasibility assessment is conducted on the sample supplier selection criteria employed, as well as assessment of the results generated using the proposed model.

Operations strategy processes and performance: insights from the contract apparel manufacturing industry

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the significance and dynamics of alternative operations strategy (OS) processes towards developing a more complete picture of the strategy process-context-performance nexus. The findings are based on the statistical analysis of empirical evidence drawn from the contract apparel manufacturing industry in a developing country. Design/methodology/approach – Using a structured questionnaire and the key-informant approach data were collected from 109 contract apparel manufacturing firms in Sri Lanka. Cluster analysis was used to identify alternative configurations of strategy process modes. Findings – The analyses confirmed that the existence of alternative forms of OS development is statistically significant and that the alternative configurations of strategy process modes tested can all lead to superior performance, under certain circumstances. Research limitations/implications – The generalizability of these findings to other industry sectors within developi...

Building Workforce Competencies through Complex Projects

This chapter illuminates the current theories and concepts concerning complexity and the project management workforce competencies necessary to deal with it in projects. It exposes the valuable, yet underutilised, opportunities complex projects may present to develop the knowledge and competencies of a workforce to successfully manage complexity within a project space and across an organisation more generally. The theoretical implications of this analysis imply that more research is necessary to establish a framework of competencies that relate appropriately to the levels of complexity within a project. The practice implications are profound since managing complexity in projects requires a more expansive and divergent set of practitioner skills that move well beyond the baseline ‘technically oriented’ project management skills set. In sum, this chapter highlights the current strengths and weaknesses of extant research and standards concerning complexity in projects and provokes discussion on developing a workforce that is more ‘complexity’ capable.

Alternative operations strategy processes: do they matter?

Abstract With the increasing significance of business model innovation, and due to the ongoing difficulties encountered in executing formally developed strategies, there is a strong case for studying the functional-level strategy processes from fresh perspectives. This paper examines the significance of alternative operations strategy (OS) processes and organisational context and explores how they relate to operations performance. The empirical evidence was drawn based on the statistical analysis of data collected through 242 survey responses from the senior management staff of the Canadian oil and gas industry. The evidence drawn from the empirical study confirmed that alternative forms of OS development do indeed exist in practice and that certain organisational factors have a direct influence on OS processes. The analysis discerned four strategy process configurations representing singular and multiple combinations of the three process modes identified through the literature review. The results explain the differences between these process configurations in terms of certain contextual factors and operations performance. The findings of this study help advance the understanding of OS processes and may contribute to theory building, particularly what is known as ‘mid-range’ theory, as the evidence was built through the analysis of a relatively large sample of data drawn from an industry sector that has not been reported on in previous studies.

Solving closed-loop supply chain problems using game theoretic particle swarm optimisation

In this paper, we propose a closed-loop supply chain network configuration model and a solution methodology that aim to address several research gaps in the literature. The proposed solution methodology employs a novel metaheuristic algorithm, along with the popular gradient descent search method, to aid location-allocation and pricing-inventory decisions in a two-stage process. In the first stage, we use an improved version of the particle swarm optimisation (PSO) algorithm, which we call improved PSO (IPSO), to solve the location-allocation problem (LAP). The IPSO algorithm is developed by introducing mutation to avoid premature convergence and embedding an evolutionary game-based procedure known as replicator dynamics to increase the rate of convergence. The results obtained through the application of IPSO are used as input in the second stage to solve the inventory-pricing problem. In this stage, we use the gradient descent search method to determine the selling price of new products and the buy-back price of returned products, as well as inventory cycle times for both product types. Numerical evaluations undertaken using problem instances of different scales confirm that the proposed IPSO algorithm performs better than the comparable traditional PSO, simulated annealing (SA) and genetic algorithm (GA) methods.

A review of supply network configuration literature and decision support tools

Supply chain literature highlights the increasing importance of effective supply network configuration decisions that take in to account such realities as market turbulence and demand volatility, as well as ever expanding global production networks. Supply network configurations decisions that account for these contingencies are expected to meet the evolving needs of customers while delivering better outcomes for all parties involved. This paper presents the findings of a structured review of supply network configuration literature which is synthesized under the two categories, drivers of supply network configuration decisions and the key parameters considered in developing decision support tools. This review also included an evaluation of the tools used for supporting supply network configuration decisions. The paper identifies the areas for future research, as well as the decision support tools required for building supply network capacity to meet the challenges brought about by the changing business environment.

Profiling Project Complexity: Insights from Complexity Science and Project Management Literature

The current understanding of project complexity is limited in that there is neither a widely recognized conceptualization of project complexity nor a convergent view on how to deal with its effects. Drawing on the extant literature concerning project complexity and complexity science, this article develops a coherent and holistic profile of project complexity and provides reflections on its implications for project management theory and practice. This profile serves as a touchstone for practitioners to better understand, assess, and address complexity in their projects and as an aid to researchers in framing their research efforts.