Terence M. Hancock

The Gender Difference: Validity of Standardized Admission Tests in Predicting MBA Performance

Abstract A difference in educational attainment has long been held as a major factor in the imbalance among men and women in upper business management. Women are far less likely to achieve graduate business degrees, and conventional blame usually includes a gender bias in MBA admissions criteria. This study reviews the issues and changing trends in this area, focusing on 269 recent MBA students (120 female, 149 male), finding that though the women performed significantly lower on the GMAT (Graduate Management Admissions Test), there was no discernible difference in overall MBA performance (graduate GPA).

Effects of Lot‐splitting under Various Routing Strategies

Lot‐splitting involves the possibility of lot sizes at intermediate processing steps being less than the production release of the finished good. However, the limited research in this area has not been sufficient to counter the conventional wisdom that lot‐splitting (1) is appropriate only where there are sophisticated control mechanisms, and (2) may actually create a log jam on machines where there is already a bottleneck because of the additional set‐ups required. This article includes a lot‐splitting provision as an extension of a published study of alternate routing strategies in a job shop environment. The lot‐splitting rule is very simple and tractable in any job shop; its performance is compared with the situation where, under identical conditions, the lot‐splitting provision is removed.

Effects of alternate routings under variable lot-size conditions

SUMMARY Research into alternate routings suggests that basing process plans solely on machine and expected batch characteristics may be ignoring two important elements. (1) As actual batch quantities vary from their expected values, the balance between fixed and variable process components sometimes shifts, causing different machines to exhibit lower total processing costs. (2) As the most cost-effective machines become disproportionately loaded, the efficiency of the system may be served by considering alternative machines that are more generally available. The focus of this study is to investigate the significance of considering actual process quantity and relative resource availability under common conditions.

A rule-based system to generate NC programs from CAD exchange files

Abstract A non-procedural (rule-based) system for converting engineering drawings into numerically controlled machine programs for two dimensional punched objects is described. The prototype system includes object representation on the basis of drawing exchange files and the prepration of NC programs. Such systems are significant due to their applicability to a large class of fabricated parts. The system is tested using parts taken from a actual manufacturing environment. The prototype system can be used as a model for the development of a comprehensive expert system shell tailored to numerically controlled environments.

A systems approach to sheet metal processing

Abstract Manufacturing flexibility and reaction time are not simply products of machine automation, but rather of the degree with which design, planning, and operation subsystems are independently defined, then integrated as a system. This paper describes the development of a prototype, fully automated manufacturing system—from part design to machine output—which exemplifies the strategic design of CIM elements so as to facilitate their fit and interaction. The application is presented in the context of sheet metal processing.

Effects of strategic lot-splitting in various manufacturing environments

A very simple lot-splitting rule, one tractable in any job shop, is presented. Its performance under identical conditions where the lot-splitting provision is removed is also examined. It is found that for all combinations of environment, routing strategy, and shop load, the lot-splitting provision offers a significant improvement in job timeliness at a modest increase in processing costs, despite the conventional wisdom that additional setups, especially at bottleneck machines, could further clog job throughput. The effect is more pronounced where there are greater imbalances in machine utilization.<<ETX>>