scholarly journals Product architecture, global operations networks, and operational performance: an exploratory study

2019 ◽  
Vol 30 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 149-162
Author(s):  
Sebastian Pashaei ◽  
Jan Olhager
Keyword(s):  
Exploratory Study ◽  
Product Architecture ◽  
Operational Performance ◽  
Global Operations

Do repetitive and non-repetitive companies equally benefit from Lean 4.0?

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Fabiana Dafne Cifone ◽  
Alberto Portioli Staudacher
Keyword(s):  
Quantitative Analysis ◽  
Exploratory Study ◽  
Industry 4.0 ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Deep Understanding ◽  
Operational Performance ◽  
Network Approach ◽  
Ongoing Debate ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Production Strategies

PurposeThe integration between the traditional lean management and Industry 4.0, namely called Lean 4.0, is under the spotlight of both academia and practitioners. While we agree on the benefits Lean 4.0 may bring to companies performance, we still lack a deep understanding of the characteristics of this paradigm, such as its effective application space. Recalling traditional lean better suits repetitive companies, we are keen to understand whether the anew Lean 4.0 will enlarge its application space.Design/methodology/approachWe performed an exploratory study, using a quantitative analysis based on Bayesian network approach to investigate whether Lean 4.0 results to be as effective in repetitive companies as in non-repetitive ones, in terms of operational performance.FindingsWhile our findings confirm that Lean 4.0 will enhance companies' performance regardless their production strategies, companies adopting a repetitive strategy do benefit from a much higher improvement. Our findings provide an insight on the true applicability space of Lean 4.0, which seems to be the same as the traditional lean.Originality/valueWe contribute to the ongoing debate of Lean 4.0 providing initial empirical evidence on how to improve the operational performance in non-repetitive companies, seeing that Lean 4.0 might not be the best choice in its current format.

The impact of global operations on product architecture: an exploratory study

2017 ◽  
Vol 37 (10) ◽  
pp. 1304-1326 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sebastian Pashaei ◽  
Jan Olhager
Keyword(s):  
Product Architecture ◽  
Manufacturing Companies ◽  
Modular Architecture ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Modular Product ◽  
Internal Network ◽  
Multiple Case ◽  
Global Operations ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore how global operations of manufacturing companies influence the choice of product architecture decisions, ranging from integral to modular product designs. Design/methodology/approach The authors perform a multiple-case study of three global manufacturing companies with integral and modular product architectures. Findings The authors find that the internal network capabilities, the number of capable plants, the focus of component plants, the focus of assembly plants, the distances from key suppliers to internal plants, and the number of market segments significantly influence the choice of integral vs modular architecture. Research limitations/implications This study is limited to three large manufacturing companies with global operations. However, the authors investigate both integral and modular products. The authors develop propositions that can be tested in further survey research. Practical implications The findings show that the type of global operations network influences the decision on product architecture, such that certain global operations characteristics support integral product designs, while other characteristics support modular designs. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge this paper is the first study on the explicit impact of global operations on product architecture, rather than the other way around.

The impact of product architecture on global operations network design

2017 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 353-370 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sebastian Pashaei ◽  
Jan Olhager
Keyword(s):  
Product Architecture ◽  
Manufacturing Companies ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Modular Product ◽  
Modular Products ◽  
Key Technologies ◽  
Key Aspects ◽  
Global Operations ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Assembly Plants

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore how integral and modular product architectures influence the design properties of the global operations network. Design/methodology/approach The authors perform a multiple-case study of three global manufacturing companies, using interviews, seminars and structured questionnaires to identify ideal design properties. Findings The authors find that the choice of integral vs modular product architecture lead to significant differences in the preferred design properties of global operations networks concerning number of key technologies in-house, number of capable plants, focus at assembly plants, distance between assembly plant and market, and number of key supplier sites. Two of these were identified through this research, i.e. the number of capable plants and number of key supplier sites. The authors make a distinction between component and assembly plants, which adds detail to the understanding of the impact of product architecture on global operations. In addition, they develop five propositions that can be tested in further survey research. Research limitations/implications This study is restricted to three large manufacturing companies with global operations. However, the authors investigated both integral and modular products at these three companies and their associated global operations network. Still, further case or survey research involving a broader set of companies is warranted. Practical implications The key aspects for integral products are to have many key technologies in-house, concentration of production at a few capable plants, and economies-of-scale at assembly plants, while long distances between assembly plants and markets as well as few key supplier sites are acceptable. For modular products, the key aspects are many capable plants, economies-of-scope at assembly plants, short distance between assembly plants and markets, and many key supplier sites, while key technologies do not necessarily have to reside in-house – these can be accessed via key suppliers. Originality/value This paper is, to the authors’ knowledge, the first study on the explicit impact of product architecture on global operations networks, especially considering the internal manufacturing network.

scholarly journals Are competencies and corporate strategy aligned? an exploratory study in Brazilian steel mills

2017 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 117-132
Author(s):  
Ualace Carvalho Marques Porto ◽  
Francisco Uchoa Passos ◽  
Paulo Soares Figueiredo
Keyword(s):  
Market Share ◽  
Exploratory Study ◽  
Corporate Strategy ◽  
Core Competencies ◽  
Business Environment ◽  
Business Strategies ◽  
Operational Performance ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Steel Mills ◽  
Technological Orientation

In this qualitative and exploratory study, a measurement of alignment of competencies with corporate strategy was carried out in nine steel mills, using a methodology developed specifically for this purpose. Four companies (“big and aligned”), accounting for 86% of the steel produced in the country, indicate full alignment of competencies with their strategies. Two companies (“small and partially aligned”), represent 4% of the market and try to reconcile the corporate strategy of technological orientation with short-term operational performance imposed on them by the business environment. In contrast to the latter, three companies (“small and not aligned”), having 10% of the combined market share, primarily concern themselves with performance in terms of productivity, without having synergy with the corporate strategy. The major contribution of this work is the development of a specific methodology to operationalize the mapping of core competencies, in order to facilitate the mobilization of resources to support business strategies.

scholarly journals Performance monitoring in the Victorian health care system: an exploratory study

2005 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 17 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandra G Leggat ◽  
Timothy Bartram ◽  
Pauline Stanton
Keyword(s):  
Performance Management ◽  
Chief Executive Officers ◽  
Exploratory Study ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Performance Monitoring ◽  
Health Sector ◽  
Chief Executive ◽  
Operational Performance ◽  
Performance Information ◽  
Executive Officers

This paper reports on an exploratory study which aims to improve our understanding of how the Chief Executive Officers of Victorian health services monitor strategic and operational performance in their organisations. As a component of a large scale human resource management study, we surveyed 130 Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of Victorian health sector agencies. Our findings suggest that performance monitoring was more advanced among the larger Victorian health sector organisations, and that there were areas for improvement throughout the system. Overall, the CEOs reported limited use of performance indicators related to service and clinical perspectives, with financial and volume indicators most widely used. There was little evidence that these organisations had processes in place (such as benchmarking and linking required outcomes to staff performance management) to understand the implications of the performance information and translate them into management action. The findings suggest that the sector requires technical expertise and support in data reporting, benchmarking and quality improvement in order to improve performance monitoring and ensure its relevance to strategic control, but further study is required.

scholarly journals Integrating sustainable supply chain practices with operational performance: an exploratory study of Chinese SMEs

2019 ◽  
Vol 30 (5-6) ◽  
pp. 464-478 ◽  
Author(s):  
Niraj Kumar ◽  
Andrew Brint ◽  
Erjing Shi ◽  
Arvind Upadhyay ◽  
Ximing Ruan
Keyword(s):  
Supply Chain ◽  
Exploratory Study ◽  
Operational Performance ◽  
Sustainable Supply Chain

Classifying Disfluencies in Preschool- and School-Age Spanish–English Bilinguals Who Do Not Stutter: An Exploratory Study

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 119-130
Author(s):  
Raúl Rojas ◽  
Farzan Irani
Keyword(s):  
Exploratory Study ◽  
Evidence Base ◽  
Medium Effect ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
Linear Regression Models ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Total Percentage ◽  
Narrative Production ◽  
Language Measures ◽  
Mean Length Of Utterance

Purpose This exploratory study examined the language skills and the type and frequency of disfluencies in the spoken narrative production of Spanish–English bilingual children who do not stutter. Method A cross-sectional sample of 29 bilingual students (16 boys and 13 girls) enrolled in grades prekindergarten through Grade 4 produced a total of 58 narrative retell language samples in English and Spanish. Key outcome measures in each language included the percentage of normal (%ND) and stuttering-like (%SLD) disfluencies, percentage of words in mazes (%MzWds), number of total words, number of different words, and mean length of utterance in words. Results Cross-linguistic, pairwise comparisons revealed significant differences with medium effect sizes for %ND and %MzWds (both lower for English) as well as for number of different words (lower for Spanish). On average, the total percentage of mazed words was higher than 10% in both languages, a pattern driven primarily by %ND; %SLDs were below 1% in both languages. Multiple linear regression models for %ND and %SLD in each language indicated that %MzWds was the primary predictor across languages beyond other language measures and demographic variables. Conclusions The findings extend the evidence base with regard to the frequency and type of disfluencies that can be expected in bilingual children who do not stutter in grades prekindergarten to Grade 4. The data indicate that %MzWds and %ND can similarly index the normal disfluencies of bilingual children during narrative production. The potential clinical implications of the findings from this study are discussed.

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