Impact of Lean Production on Perceived Job Autonomy and Job Satisfaction: An Experimental Study

Previous studies have indicated positive and negative effects of lean production on employees’ perceived work characteristics and job attitudes. The most detrimental consequence of lean production is a decrease in the perceived job autonomy of workshop employees. To reduce these negative consequences, we propose human resource practices for integration with lean production. Drawing on the job characteristics model, we hypothesized that the implementation of lean production combined with human resource practices would enhance perceived job autonomy, job satisfaction, and operational performance. To evaluate our hypotheses, we used an experimental design consisting of a simulation game that mimics a manufacturing company. We implemented lean production combined with human resource practices in this simulated company. The results indicated a significant increase in perceived job autonomy, job satisfaction, and operational performance. Moreover, the results revealed a positive relationship between job satisfaction and operational performance.     

Lean Production—An Evaluation of the Possibilities for an Employee Supportive Lean Practice

Lean is a contested concept. It has been praised for empowering employees, and it has been criticized for intensifying work and impairing the health and well‐being of employees. This article is reviewing the literature on the relations between lean and employees, and suggests ways for the development of an employee‐supportive lean practice. There is good evidence of lean's adverse consequences for low‐skilled employees in the auto industry and other assembly type manufacturing work, but there are also examples of more positive outcomes. It is important to emphasize that, not only lean thinking, but also the context and implementation of lean have consequences for employee outcomes. Research is still needed to demonstrate it in real life, but this analysis of lean thinking, context, and implementation suggests possibilities for developing a lean practice that is genuinely employee‐supportive. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

适用单片集成电路封测线的生产计划管理系统

根据单芯片集成电路封测生产线的特点,通过对比分析三种常见的生产计划管理系统:物料需求计划/制造资源计划/企业资源计划、准时制生产方式、约束理论,分析它们的优缺点,并综合这三种不同的生产管理系统,找出一种适合单芯片集成电路封测生产线多品种小批量特点的生产计划管理系统。多品种小批量的生产计划管理可分为三个层次,由单位机关职能部门组成的上层机构,由单位运营部门组成的中层机构,由单位车间等作业部门组成的下层机构,每个层次适用于不同的生产计划管理手段。通过图表,说明这种生产计划管理系统在实际生产中的应用。     

ErgoVSM: A Tool for Integrating Value Stream Mapping and Ergonomics in Manufacturing

Value stream mapping (VSM) is a lean tool aiming at waste reduction. Previous research suggests that the use of VSM may result in work intensification and thus an increased risk for the workers of developing work‐related musculoskeletal disorders (MSD). In the current study, VSM was developed to also consider physical exposure in the analyzed production system (ErgoVSM). As the VSM, ErgoVSM is based on a participatory approach. ErgoVSM was tested in a Swedish manufacturing company. The results suggest that ErgoVSM catalyzes change processes to include intervention proposals emphasizing ergonomics in addition to waste reduction. Thus, ErgoVSM appeared useful for the investigated target group of production engineers and experienced operators. The performance improvements suggested when using the ordinary VSM seemed not to be hampered by adding the ergonomics complement. However, the use of ErgoVSM was somewhat more time consuming than the use of VSM. In conclusion, ErgoVSM is suggested as a feasible tool to be used by production engineers and experienced operators for including ergonomics considerations in the rationalization process.     

An Integrated Model of the Toyota Production System with Total Quality Management and People Factors

The Toyota production system (TPS), or lean production, has been associated with many benefits for manufacturing firms that implement the system. However, to implement the TPS successfully, it is necessary to integrate the so‐called “hard side” of the system (that is, the technical aspects of material handling) with the “soft side” of the program (that is, the aspects associated with human factors). The present study makes a contribution to such a holistic view of the TPS by proposing an integrated model that consists of the technical aspects of the TPS, together with elements associated with total quality management (TQM), human resources management (HRM), and certain identified “people factors.” The study then uses structural equation modeling (SEM) to test this holistic model using data obtained from a questionnaire survey of 153 Taiwanese manufacturing firms. The empirical study confirms the appropriateness of the causal model, which is evaluated by several goodness‐of‐fit methods. The study confirms the proposition that the inclusion of the “people factors” together with TQM and HRM significantly improves the realization of benefits associated with the TPS practices of “just‐in‐time” (JIT) and “autonomation.” The conclusion is that such an integrated model provides a much more effective “lean system” and has the potential to produce significantly enhanced benefits for firms that implement it. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Application of Lean Manufacturing in Hospitals—the Need to Consider Maturity,Complexity, and the Value Concept

Lean is widely applied in hospitals, but the impact tends to be limited. This paper investigates three possible explanations: 1) maturity, 2) complexity, and 3) the value concept and analyses the bearing of these in a case study of lean application in a large Danish university hospital. The results indicate that lean tends to be applied in secondary and support functions with a logistic character and therefore has had a limited impact on the overall healthcare performance. The case study shows that there are constraints related to low lean maturity, the complexity of processes and operations as well as differences in value perceptions among the different professions (e.g., doctors, nurses, and managers) within the hospital. The conclusion is that lean is useful for hospitals, but the lean concept as well as its implementation methods need to be fitted to the organizational complexity and diverging values in hospitals in order to bring about a larger impact. It is therefore necessary to develop new models for the lean concept as well as the implementation of lean adapted to the particular context of hospitals with a stronger focus on patient experiences and on coordination of social relations.     

生产制造全流程优化控制对控制与优化理论方法的挑战

从控制系统的观点描述了生产制造全流程的控制与运行管理流程, 分析了表征产品的质量、产量、成本、消耗等相关的综合生产指标与控制系统动作之间的联系, 回顾了涉及的控制与优化的研究成果. 从基于数学模型、基于数据和基于模型与数据相结合的角度综述了控制与优化方面的研究现状. 在此基础上分析了生产制造全流程优化控制对过程控制与运行优化、以及控制系统实现技术的挑战, 分析了实现生产制造全流程优化控制应开展的研究内容.     

油气开采成本预算系统权限管理的探讨应用

采用ASP.NET技术，用户／角色／权限的模型，实现中石化油气开采成本预算系统中的权限管理。阐述了权限管理的设计原则和设计方法．权限管理的数据库设计，用户授权的实现和用户权限控制的实现，在开发过程中，使用C#语言，开发了权限管理组件，提高了牙发效率．简化了权限管理．用户使用灵活方便。     

矿井安全生产监控系统通信协议的研究

文章分析了目前在矿井安全生产监控系统中被广泛采用的RS485通信协议的特点,针对它的局限性提出了一种逐渐成熟并表现出较大优越性的CAN通信协议。并在原有矿井安全生产监控系统的基础上,提出了一个采用CAN通信协议的矿井安全生产监控系统的设计方案,详细说明了CAN通信协议在矿井安全生产监控系统中的应用。     

The main features of BAHUS — biometeorological system for messages on the occurrence of diseases in fruits and vines

Recently, there has been an increasing demand for providing a high level of production of wholesome plant food but without losing its quality from the consumer's point of view. In this regard, it is required to provide reliable information about the occurrence of plant diseases so as to ensure their efficient control. The reliability of this information increases substantially if both the meteorological and the biological quantities, measured or modelled, are properly integrated in a prognostic system. By the joint efforts of the authors' institutions the biometeorological system BAHUS for messages on the occurrence of the most important diseases in fruits and vines has been developed. This system has been developed in Microsoft FoxPro 2.6(X) following standards of analysis of a large amount of data. It consists of two modules. The first provides input for prediction in the form of the measured or modelled meteorological and biological data, while the second, on the basis of available input data, selects the corresponding method for messages on the occurrence of disease. Depending on the method selected, the meteorological data can be assimilated either from weather stations, atmospheric models or software packages LAPS (land–air parameterization schemes providing 10 min prognostic values) and KARLOS (providing their climatological values) integrated in the system as a whole. The BAHUS has been designed as an open system giving a wide range of possibilities for increasing its level of sophistication.