Agile manufacturing framework and practice

Ismail, Hossam; Snowden, Simon; Poolton, Jenny; Reid, Robert S.; Arokiam, Ivan C.

doi:10.1504/ijasm.2006.008856

Cited by 49 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…In fact, several authors (Sharifi and Zhang, 1999;Yusuf and Adeleye, 2002) have seriously questioned their viability in dealing with the changing nature of the business environment and point out that survival requires the adoption of agile practices. So, since the degree of turbulence in the environment determines the degree of agility a firm requires (Zhang and Sharifi, 2000), it is essential for the firm to understand its business environment, measure the degree of turbulence and know how this will impact on its organisation (Ismail et al, 2006). Validation of the model verified that the five sub-dimensions of agile manufacturing have a common background or, in other words, agile manufacturing is reflected in the dimensions of agile human resources, agile technologies, value chain integration, concurrent engineering and knowledge management.…”

Section: Analysis and Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Agility drivers, enablers and outcomes

Vázquez-Bustelo

Avella

Fernández

2007

International Journal of Operations &Amp; Production Management

248

141

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Purpose -Despite the fact that agile manufacturing has been frequently promoted as a means of improving business competitiveness, little empirical evidence exists in the literature validating its positive link with business performance. The purpose of this research paper is to analyse agile manufacturing in Spain and study whether it is a critical factor for success in different industries. Design/methodology/approach -A conceptual model is drawn up, based on the literature and a previous case study, to relate turbulence in the environment with agile manufacturing practices and business performance. The model is tested on a large sample of Spanish manufacturers using a survey methodology to obtain information and a structural equation model to analyse the data. Findings -The results obtained show that, in turbulent environments, the integrated use of agile manufacturing practices promotes manufacturing competitive strength, leading to better operational, market and financial performance. Research limitations/implications -This study has two main limitations. First, it is difficult to determine the most suitable unit of analysis when studying agile manufacturing. Second, single respondent bias may be considered a limitation. Practical implications -Managers should consider the integrated implementation of agile manufacturing practices in order to develop manufacturing strength and to outperform competitors in turbulent business environments. Originality/value -This study adopts a systematic approach to the analysis of agile manufacturing, considering various agility practices or enablers in an integrated way and relating them not only to environmental characteristics but also to business performance. This approach is especially interesting because most of the literature on agile manufacturing deals with agility strategies or techniques in an isolated way. The study also tests the suitability of agile manufacturing in real organisations -for the first time in the Spanish context.

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Section: Analysis and Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Agility drivers, enablers and outcomes

Vázquez-Bustelo

Avella

Fernández

2007

International Journal of Operations &Amp; Production Management

248

141

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…They have identified that "CAD/CAM users' appreciation of integration", "communication between design office and other users", "training", "organisational effectiveness", "management commitment and support", "security of CAD/CAM interface" and "user friendliness of ERP systems" as the critical factors. Chang et al (1997) have pointed out the absence of a technology to integrate CAD/CAM Rapid introduction of new and modified products; dynamic reconfiguration of production processes; upgradable products; product customisation (Lee 1998) Capability to operate profitably in an environment of continuous and unpredictable changes (McGaughey 1999) Reduction in lead time and life expectancy of products; diversification of demand; new technologies (Ismail et al, 2006) Demand volume is relatively low and life span is comparatively short (Elkins et al, 2004) Improved design realization by reducing the number of iterations and accelerating shop drawing development and improvement (De Lapp et al, 2004) The necessity of reacting quickly to changes in apparel trends and meeting ever increasing competition made apparel producers apply CAD/CAM systems in their production processes (Yan and Fiorito 2007) Increased profit margins, reduced design time; robust design; sharing of new designs and prototype creation in very short period of time (Lin and Uhler 2002) Shorten design cycle (Nandkeolyar et al, 1997) Cutting design costs; reducing cycle time; reducing matching time; improving information flow (Soliman et al, 2001) The interfacing of CAD and CAM with scheduling and control. They have brought out a solution to overcome this deficiency using parametric technology.…”

Section: Literature Surveymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The SPSS package was used to conduct t-test and examine the acceptance of "Contribution of mold adviser package for enabling agility". In the first case, the test value was given as 9 which would mean that "90% of the opinions are in favor of successful Benefits of using M 4 front plate mold designed and analysed using mold adviser package Characteristics of AM that maps with the benefits achievable through the use of M 4 front plate mold Reduced cycle time Reduced cycle time (Ismail et al, 2006;Onuh et al, 2006;Elkins et al, 2004;Onuh and Hon, 2001;Vokurka and Fliedner, 1998) Reduced clamp force Reduced injection pressure Reduced shot volume Increased fill confidence Dynamic reconfiguration of production processes; upgradeable products (Lee, 1998) Reduced manufacturing cost (Onuh and Hon, 2001) Reconfigurability and low cost products (Gunasekaran, 1999;Vokurka and Fliedner, 1998) Increased quality prediction Quality improvement (Onuh and Hon, 2001;Gunasekaran, 1999;Vokurka and Fliedner, 1998) Table III. JEDT 7,2 contribution of mold adviser package for enabling agility in practice at 95% confidence interval". As the significant (two-tailed) values for some cases are less than 0.05, this null hypothesis is rejected.…”

Section: Statistical Validationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Agility through the interfacing of CAD and CAM

Vinodh

Sundararaj

Devadasan

et al. 2009

Journal of Engineering, Design and Technology

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Purpose -Agile manufacturing (AM) refers to the capability of an organisation to quickly respond to the customers' dynamic demands. The purpose of this paper is to report a research which is carried out to explore the interfacing of computer aided design/computer aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM) in a traditional manufacturing company with the purpose of acquiring AM characteristics. Design/methodology/approach -The CAD model of an existing electronics switch is developed using Pro/E package. Then, the mold adviser package is used to design the existing mold of this component. On studying this mold, ten new models of it are designed using the mold adviser package. Findings -The new models developed through CAD/CAM interfacing are found to possess more agile characteristics than those possess by the existing mold.Research limitations/implications -The explorative study is conducted in only one traditional manufacturing company. In this company several world class manufacturing strategies like kaizen and total productive maintenance are implemented. This endeavour mimics those pursue in majority of the companies situated in different parts of the world. This implies that the contributions of this research would be useful to majority of those companies as well. Practical implications -A roadmap is developed which will be useful for practically applying CAD/CAM interfacing with the objective of implementing AM. Originality/value -It appears that no researcher has examined the interfacing of CAD/CAM for achieving agility in manufacturing organisations. This paper reports a research, which is conducted to fill this research and practice gap. Hence, this research is original and valuable to both researchers and practitioners.

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“…During the recent years, few researchers have been aspiring to identify the Agile ITQFD strategies and criteria which would ascribe agile manufacturing (AM). For example, Ismail et al (2006) have enumerated agility performance indicators. Devadasan et al (2005) have brought out 20 criteria AM model.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Agile ITQFD and its financial viability: a pilot project approach

et al. 2008

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Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to explore the feasibility of adopting a pilot project approach for foreseeing the working and financial viability of a technique, named as agile innovative total quality function deployment (agile ITQFD). Design/methodology/approach -The agile ITQFD technique and its financial accounting system were designed. The implementation study of two pilot projects on agile ITQFD was conducted in an electronics switches manufacturing company. The statements of the financial accounting system were used to foresee the financial viability of agile ITQFD projects. Findings -The research reported in this paper indicates the feasibility of adopting a pilot project approach and its financial accounting system for test implementing new techniques and models in the organisations aspiring to attain global competitiveness. Research limitations/implications -Like many other modern organisations, the company in which the research work was carried out has been aspiring to compete globally. Hence, even though the implementation study involved only two pilot projects, the implications of this research would represent the global scenario as well. Practical implications -Currently practitioners struggle to choose the best techniques for applying them in specific cases. The research reported in this paper would help practitioners in this regard to adopt the pilot project approach and its financial accounting system. Originality/value -The pilot project approach reported in this paper helps a company save time and money while exploring the practical compatibility of the technique. The financial accounting system presented would be useful in foreseeing the viability of projects using monetary values.

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Agile manufacturing framework and practice

Cited by 49 publications

References 7 publications

Agility drivers, enablers and outcomes

Agility drivers, enablers and outcomes

Agility through the interfacing of CAD and CAM

Agile ITQFD and its financial viability: a pilot project approach

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