Wouter Beelaerts van Blokland

Measuring lean implementation for maintenance service companies

Purpose – Implementation of lean manufacturing is currently performed in the production industry; however, for the airline maintenance service industry, it is still in its infancy. Indicators such as work in process, cycle time, on-time performance and inventory are useful indicators to measure lean implementation; however, a financial economic perspective taking fixed assets into consideration is still missing. Hence, the purpose of this paper is to propose a method to measure lean implementation from a fixed asset perspective for this type of industry. With the indicators, continuous improvement scenarios can be explored by value stream discrete event simulation. Design/methodology/approach – From literature, indicators regarding asset specificity to measure lean implementation are found. These indicators are analysed by a linear least square method to know if variables are interrelated to form a preliminary model. The indicators are tested by value stream-based discrete event simulation regarding continuous improvement scenarios. Findings – With the new found lean transaction cost efficiency indicators, namely, turnover, gross margin and inventory pre-fixed asset (T/FA, GM/FA and I/FA, respectively), it is possible to measure operation performance from an asset specificity perspective under the influence of lean implementation. Secondly, the results of implementing continuous improvement scenarios are measured with the new indicators by a discrete event simulation. Research limitations/implications – This research is limited to the airline maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) service industry regarding component repair. Further research is necessary to test the indicators regarding other airline MRO service companies and other sectors of complex service industries like health care. Practical implications – The lean transaction cost efficiency model provides the capability for a maintenance service company to simulate the effects of process improvements on operation performance for service-based companies prior to implementation. Social/implications – Simulation of a Greenfield process can involve employees with possible changes in processes. This approach supports the adoption of anticipated changes. Originality/value – The found indicators form a preliminary model, which contributes to the usage and linkage of theories on lean manufacturing and transaction cost theory – asset specificity.

Survey on Characteristics and Challenges of Synchromodal Transportation in Global Cold Chains.

Transportation of perishables such as fruits and vegetables with short shelf life in international, long distance and cooled condition, plays a key role in global cold chains. Compared with truck transportation, intermodal transportation largely reduces logistics cost and emissions, however, has less flexibility for disturbances. Another aspect is that truck transportation occupies the largest share in inland transportation, which causes traffic congestion and environmental pollutions. Synchromodal transportation is a known method to study the effectiveness, efficiency and sustainability of transportation by using real-time information. However, limited articles can be found about the cold chain perspective, an integral analysis is missing. Our objective is to thoroughly analyze the characteristics and challenges of synchromodal transportation in global cold chains. The critical successful factors are analyzed at first. After that, we survey on planning problems in strategic, tactical and operational level, respectively. Finally, we conclude by suggesting further research directions.

Does Value Leverage Pay off? A Model for Measuring Value-Leverage Capabilities in Automotive Large-Scale System Integrators

Trends in the car and aircraft manufacturing industry showed an evolution in the configuration and management of the production network. For instance, the aerospace manufacturing industry tended to be a closed system, competing on scale of production and focusing on maximization of own profit. Nowadays the automotive companies are developing open systems under the influence of globalization, outsourcing, and co-creation of value. Doing this with suppliers causes a shift of value from the focal firm to the supply chain, creating a value levering position for the so-called large-scale system integrator (LSSI). The leverage of value on suppliers introduces the value-leverage capability of the LSSI company. The capability of the LSSI to balance continuation, conception, and configuration is crucial for (long-term) profitability and competitive position. To express the value-leverage capabilities, the authors propose the variables “turnover per employee” (T/E), “research and development per employee” (RD/E), and “profit per employee” (P/E), whose (inter) relationship determines the capabilities.

A Many-to-One Algorithm to Solve a Many-to-Many Matching Problem for Routing

This paper investigates the multi-commodity multi-service matching problem of synchromodal hinterland container transportation. To improve the computational efficiency, this paper proposes a many-to-one algorithm to solve the many-to-many matching problem. We assess the performance of the proposed method with 51 instances of the problem, and perform sensitivity analysis to analyze the influence of different demand patterns. The computational results indicate that the algorithm is suitable for large-scale instances of the problem.

Value Assessment for Aero-engine Design: A Case Study on Large Turbofans

,The paper addresses the main research question of “How can an aero-engine manufacturer assess engine design from an engine performance and total value perspective?” The relation of as many technical engine parameters as possible was studied. The objective was to obtain information about design strategy in aeroengines and which design efforts do contribute most to engine value. The value assessment and validation by the case study used an attribute weighting technique based on correlation analysis of nine attributes of 103 engines. Stronger correlation proofed to be an indication of importance of an attribute. With normalization of the correlations of nine attributes a weighting was obtained to measure operational performance of aeroengines in order to indicate value optimization. A three cases were selected from these 103 engines. One group of five engines of each of the three companies. From the assessment it appeared that pressure ratio, airflow and bypass ratio were the most important attributes. Initially the financial performance of the OEM seems not to be directly related to the value of the engines produced. However after applying the weighing based on the correlations the product performance and financial performance of the companies show a much better relation. A value assessment was developed and validated with the available data and proofed to be a useful instrument to assess value and design strategy. The value assessment is expected to assist design strategy by indicating which attributes require most attention. This is important because higher product value benefits OEM, customer and supplier. The value assessment can be concluded to be the answer to the research question of how to better assess engine design. The main recommendations following from this research are: to implement VDD methodologies such as this value assessment, to study why seemingly high product performance does not lead to financial performance; and in general: to apply the value assessment to other areas within the aerospace industry and beyond.

Co-Innovation and the Value–Time Curve: A Case Study on the Dassault Falcon 7X and Embraer 170/190 Series

Little quantitative research has been done about the effects of an open innovation methodology and its relationship to the 3C model (Beelaerts van Blokland et al. in 4th international conference on business market management, Copenhagen, 2009), value–time curve and other lean metrics. This study seeks to determine the value–time curves for the Embraer E-170/190 and Dassault Falcon 7X aircraft and substantiate the theories embodied in the 3C principles. Both these aircraft have seen recent market introductions, with development investments on the same order of magnitude during their development phase, making them relevant candidates for this study. The value–time curve will be used as a basis to derive the first and second order derivatives, which represent directional and growth coefficients, respectively. Both cases are analyzed for their relevance to the 3C model.

Drivers of Customer Satisfaction in a Project-Oriented, Business-to-Business Market Environment: An Empirical Study

Quantitative analysis with respect drivers of customer satisfaction in a projectoriented, business-to-business environment is very scarce. The aim of this paper is to make headway into this terrain by statistical analysis of quantitative empirical research. Five drivers of satisfaction are posited. Analysis of 41 observations shows that the overall model is highly reliable, valid and generalizable. The overall model fit is excellent. Bi-variate correlation shows the promise of the individual drivers of satisfaction. However, multiple regression analysis suffers from a large degree of multicollinearity. Based on this regression, ‘Solution’ is the only driver of satisfaction that can unequivocally be accepted, being both significant and meeting effect size requirements. A larger dataset (N > 80) is recommended for further research to combat multicollinearity and test smaller effect sizes.