bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Operationalizing manufacturing strategy
Authors: Kim Jay S. , Arnold Peter
Published: July 2002

Reports that over the past several years, the concept of manufacturing strategy has been at the forefront of both managerial and academic thought, and that studies in the field lack a cohesive foundation that can guide researchers’ efforts in building a testing theory ‐ the research gap. States that an inability to relate specific programmes to long‐term objectives demonstrates the difficulty in bringing manufacturing strategy to the factory floor ‐ the practice gap. Believes that the unsatisfactory progress observed in research and practice is because of the failure to study rigorously the process of operationalizing manufacturing strategy. Builds a process model of manufacturing strategy and presents the results. Describes the model which focuses on three constructs of manufacturing strategy: competitive priorities, manufacturing objectives and action programmes for investment. Using data from a large‐scale survey, explores how manufacturing managers attempt to link their decisions in those three components of manufacturing strategy.
Strategies and measurement for workforce flexibility: an application of functional flexibility in a service setting
Authors: Riley Michael , Lockwood Andrew
Published: July 2002

In situations where a volatile product market meets an unstable labour market, as is often found in customer contact service operations such as the hospitality industry, there is a need for the constant manipulation of labour supply to match labour demand. Functional workforce flexibility, where multiskilled staff are able to move from jobs in one department to jobs in another, presents an opportunity for solving part of the problem. Presents an approach to calculating the need for functional flexibility dependent on the identified discrepancies in labour demand and supply. Having identified the size of the need, a strategy needs to be developed for fulfilling that need. In implementing this strategy, two approaches are identified: planned whole job substitution and boundary loosening. While the planned approach offers the rational course for maintaining quality and productivity levels, there is evidence that an evolving approach may help to stabilize a highly volatile situation by breaking down barriers from within.
A spine layout design method for semiconductor fabrication facilities containing automated material‐handling systems
Authors: Yang Taho , Peters Brett A.
Published: July 2002

A bay configuration arranged along a central spine and served by an automated monorail material‐handling system are common designs for the layout and material‐handling system in new semiconductor wafer fabrication facilities. Investigates the facility design problem in semiconductor fabrication facilities and proposes a procedure to determine the optimal spine layout design, given a design of the material‐handling system. Explains and tests the procedure to demonstrate the use of the model for solving semiconductor facility design problems. The procedure is applicable for the important semicondutor industry as well as in other facilities that use a central spine layout configuration.
Control: a contested concept in TQM research
Authors: Godfrey Graham , Dale Barrie , Marchington Mick , Wilkinson Adrian
Published: July 2002

Increased control of the process through, for example, reduction of special and common causes of variation, is fundamental to total quality management (TQM), yet this is one of the main areas targeted by its critics. However, there appears to be much misunderstanding between those from the operations management and quality management fields and those with human resource management and industrial relations backgrounds of the perception of the concept of control. Attempts to clarify some of the misunderstandings and widens what can be argued to be the somewhat “blinkered” views of those writing on TQM, both advocates and critics.
The effects of purchased parts commonality on manufacturing lead time
Authors: Sheu Chwen , Wacker John G.
Published: July 2002

Manufacturing managers as well as researchers suggest that reducing manufacturing lead time is essential for competing in world‐class manufacturing environments. To achieve world‐class manufacturing status, organizations implement a variety of programmes to decrease manufacturing lead time. Uses simulation to analyse the effect of purchased parts standardization on manufacturing lead time under the assumption of limited vendor delivery uncertainty. Creates a wide range of degrees of commonality based on three sets of multilevel product structures with the variations of end‐item demand and quantity usage. The statistical results indicate that: increased commonality lowers manufacturing lead time; a more informative commonality measure other than the well‐known degree of commonality index (DCI) is necessary to represent the actual commonality; and the distribution of purchased parts usage across different end items affects manufacturing lead time performance. The results provide important implications for both manufacturing and product design management.
“One more time: how do you win orders?”: a critical reappraisal of the Hill manufacturing strategy framework
Authors: Spring Martin , Boaden Ruth
Published: July 2002

Examines the manufacturing strategy framework developed by Hill and its development, comparing it to work in manufacturing strategy and other related fields. Discusses Hill’s distinctive concepts of order‐winning criteria and order‐qualifying criteria. Also raises issues relating to manufacturing strategy more generally. Concludes that strategy is now about the very ability to change, not just about choosing the “right” change to make.
An innovative survey in the transportation and distribution sector
Authors: van Donselaar Karel , Sharman Graham
Published: July 2002

Describes an experiment begun in 1994 at Eindhoven University in The Netherlands, which aimed for the integration of research, education and knowledge transfer to industry. This experiment focused on the transportation and distribution (T&D) sector in a province in The Netherlands. The aim was threefold: to find the key success factors for companies in the T&D sector; to involve a group of students who were ready to start their graduation project; and to help T&D companies to improve their competitiveness. Benchmarking was used to find the key success factors. Discusses the organizational setting and the methodology of the experiment. Pays attention to the issue of segmentation, which is considered to be crucial in benchmarking.
International purchasing, inventory management and logistics research
Authors: Babbar Sunil , Prasad Sameer
Published: July 2002

Lays a foundation for a comprehensive awareness and understanding of research in the area of international supply chain management. More specifically, reviews publications constituting a decade of the most recent research in the three areas of international purchasing, inventory management and logistics in 22 leading academic and practitioner journals for the period 1986 through 1995. Through classification and review of this literature, enables a better understanding of this vast field while simultaneously making available a valuable source of information for academicians and practitioners to draw from. Discusses key research findings, provides an overall assessment of the research in these areas and shapes an agenda for future research by identifying important gaps in the literature.
Implementing manufacturing strategy through strategic production planning
Authors: Gianesi Irineu G.N.
Published: July 2002

Identifies the need for a formal mechanism aiming to integrate operational decisions both horizontally, between different functional areas, and vertically, within the manufacturing function. Outlines some of the desired characteristics of a potential method to fulfil the aforementioned need and proposes that the integration should be done under the domain of the production planning process. Partial results of a running field research on the theme among manufacturing companies in Brazil are presented and discussed.
Theory of constraints
Authors: Rahman Shams‐ur
Published: July 2002

A new approach to the management of production and operations was developed by Goldratt in the late 1970s. Now known as the theory of constraints (TOC), it provides a coherent management theory for running an organisation. It has two major components: a philosophy which underpins the working principle of on‐going improvement, and a generic approach for investigating, analysing and creating solutions to problems called the “thinking process” (TP). During the last decade several books and many articles have been published, and a journal has been established which deals solely with the TOC. This paper contains an analysis of a comprehensive list of publications on the TOC. Identified themes are classified as conceptual explanation and enhancement of the approach, comparison with other techniques based on its philosophy, and applications in areas such as production, purchasing, accounting, administration, education and quality management.
Core manufacturing capabilities and their links to product differentiation
Authors: Swink Morgan , Harvey Hegarty W.
Published: July 2002

Notes that substantive relationships between dimensions of competition and supportive manufacturing strengths have not been clearly established. Existing priorities‐based models of strategy ignore the dynamics of manufacturing capabilities. Furthermore, these models employ highly aggregated concepts which mix together operational priorities, outcomes, and capabilities, making hierarchical relationships in strategy difficult to define. Develops and proposes a new framework which modifies existing models of business strategy and manufacturing strategy in order to clarify and define core dimensions of competitive differentiation and manufacturing capabilities. Discusses relationships among these dimensions that are apparent in previous research and case studies. These relationships are summarized by a comprehensive model with propositions regarding supportive links between manufacturing capabilities, manufacturing outcomes, and product differentiation. Concludes by suggesting directions for tests of the model and for related future research.
Measurement of overall equipment effectiveness as a basis for TPM activities
Authors: Ljungberg Õrjan
Published: July 2002

Assessment of disturbance data from production equipment provides valuable information for improving productivity. To implement total productive maintenance (TPM) it is necessary to assess the magnitude of different types of production losses, in order to direct activities and allocate resources in an optimal way. In many enterprises, the focus is directed towards major time losses due to break‐downs rather than minor losses in speed and time. A method for implementing data collection is to start gradually by a simple model and develop this to a combined model with computerised systems and manual recording. This gives both an exact assessment of the magnitude of the disturbance and a deeper understanding of the reason for losses. According to about 20 cases, the overall equipment effectiveness was only around 55 per cent. Further, it is quite clear that performance losses are the dominating ones. If the production process is new to the company it is hypothesised that overall equipment effectiveness will be lower than if the company is already familiar with production process.
The cumulative effect of prevention
Authors: Martinez Lorente Angel R. , Gallego Rodriguez Alejandrino , Rawlins Louise
Published: July 2002

Quality costs have been discussed widely in the literature. This discussion has not always agreed and it is possible to identify two basic schools of thought; one asserts the existence of a minimal level of quality cost for a given level of prevention and appraisal activities, and the other asserts that through prevention quality improvement is constant. This paper summarises these positions and outlines a behaviour model of quality costs that unifies and clarifies them. The behaviour model is based on the consideration of the cumulative effects of prevention. Ceteris paribus, continuous prevention activities should permit quality improvements whilst at the same time reducing the costs necessary to obtain them. The behaviour model introduces the effect of external quality requirements in an attempt to explain how, over time, quality improvement efforts do not necessarily result in decreased quality costs as customers’ quality requirements rise over the same period.
Determination of master production schedule replanning frequency for various forecast window intervals
Authors: Nathan Jay , Venkataraman Ray
Published: July 2002

This paper examines the impact of forecast window intervals on replanning frequencies for a rolling horizon master production schedule (MPS). The problem environment for this study is an actual MPS operation of a paint company and includes features such as multiple production lines, multiple products, capacity constraints, minimum inventory requirements. A mixed integer goal programming model formulated for the MPS problem is used to analyze the impact of forecast window interval length on replanning frequencies and MPS performance in a rolling horizon setting. Given demand certainty, results indicate that the length of the forecast window interval influences the choice of replanning frequency for this company environment. A three‐month forecast window interval with a two‐month replanning frequency provided the best MPS performance in terms of total cost.
Manufacturing strategy: a pictorial representation
Authors: Mills John , Neely Andy , Platts Ken , Gregory Mike
Published: July 2002

This article describes an updateable picture of manufacturing strategy content, called a “strategy chart”. It is based on established manufacturing and business strategy theory and is designed for use by managers in a wider strategy development process. Three cases are used to examine and improve methods for constructing a strategy chart; to explore the biases inherent in this representation of strategy; and to assess its utility. Preliminary conclusions are that charts present manufacturing strategy content more holistically than normally achieved and can make “strategy” a more understandable and communicable concept for manufacturing managers and workforce. The approach also provides useful insight into the development of a firm’s manufacturing strategy over time, providing the potential for managers to examine their strategy process and to learn from the past.
Cross‐utilization of a two‐skilled workforce
Authors: Brusco Michael J. , Johns Tony R. , Reed John H.
Published: July 2002

Cross‐utilization of the labour force is widely recognized as a method for improving productivity in service organizations. This paper investigates the effect of cross‐utilization on workforce staff size, at the aggregate level, for a two‐skilled labour force. Workers are assumed to have 100 per cent productivity in their primary skill, and cross‐training policies ranging from zero to 100 per cent productivity in the secondary skill were investigated across a variety of labour demand conditions. The results suggest that small degrees of cross‐utilization can provide significant workforce savings and that there tend to be diminishing returns beyond 50 per cent productivity in the secondary skill.
Joint venture manufacturing in China: an exploratory investigation
Authors: Lihong Zhang , Goffin Keith
Published: July 2002

International joint venture (IJV) manufacturing is important for both the Chinese economy and a large number of foreign investors. A review of the literature from both Western and Chinese researchers showed that although the purpose and advantages of IJV manufacturing in China are known, a vital aspect – operations management – has largely been ignored. Therefore, exploratory interviews with managers at six companies were conducted to investigate the operations management issues faced by IJV manufacturers in China. Four main problems were identified: the difficulty with recruiting and training suitable employees; all aspects of supplier management; problems with achieving high‐quality output; and achieving an effective IJV business culture. The results have implications not only for researchers, in that they indicate where more research is necessary, but also for practitioners, since they identify the areas where IJV manufacturers are most likely to encounter problems in China.
Lessons for implementing AMT
Authors: Burcher Peter , Lee Gloria , Sohal Amrik
Published: July 2002

With increasing global competition for manufacturers, interest has grown among researchers and practitioners in the role of advanced manufacturing technologies (AMT) in assisting firms to maintain their competitive edge. To contribute to the debate, this paper presents three case studies, one each from Australia, Britain and Canada, of companies investing in one type of AMT, computer numerical controlled (CNC) machines. The findings reported in this paper draw on the experiences of companies in developed economies but which are geographically dispersed and have different histories of industrialisation. Nevertheless when it comes to implementing AMT, there are far more similarities than differences in their experiences. The message is that for successful implementation of AMT, companies need to ensure that a broad, market driven perspective is taken to these investments, that attention is given to integration across systems and that people issues require as much attention as those directly relating to the actual technology.
Design of a global car production‐logistics system for a future ASEAN‐China region
Authors: Katayama Hiroshi
Published: July 2002

In this paper, a systematic design procedure for an international mutual parts supply system for global car manufacturing is proposed and investigated. This procedure offers a rational way to determine the production countries of individual parts/components as well as the import countries for their procurement operations. The proposed procedure consists of three major steps, mathematical programming model development for minimum cost production‐logistic network design, database construction for model analysis and execution of mathematical programming model to obtain a recommendable global production‐logistics system. Actual data from the ASEAN‐China region are collected and processed by the proposed procedure for validity analysis. The results obtained through the investigation have confirmed the effectiveness of the procedure as a decision support model/database for designing such very large systems.
Impact of manufacturing response time on retailer inventory
Authors: Blumenfeld Dennis E. , Daganzo Carlos F. , Frick Michael C. , Gonsalvez David J.A.
Published: July 2002

Retailers receiving items from a manufacturer carry inventory to meet customer demand. As items are sold, a retailer orders new items to replenish the inventory. Once an order is placed, there is a time taken for the items to be delivered to the retailer. This time is the manufacturing response time. It includes processing, production, and delivery times. These different components of time can result in response times that are long and uncertain. This paper develops a queueing model for analysing how manufacturing response time affects the inventory needed at retailers to meet demand. The model accounts for variability in response times and allows for products to be delivered to a retailer in a different sequence than they were ordered. Simple equations are derived for the average inventory in terms of demand and response time parameters. The equations show how shortening average response time can substantially reduce retailer inventory.
Control of service parts
Authors: Fortuin Leonard , Martin Harry
Published: July 2002

Service parts are needed for maintenance of industrial systems as well as for consumer products. Their logistics has an inherent difficulty: common models for inventory management are invalid, as the demand process is different and demand data scarce. The paper discusses experiences gained in case studies of practical stock control techniques. New concepts aimed to reduce the problem of slow moving parts are described, for example: suppliers leasing service parts; standardisation of parts for the group of machines in a factory or over a complete sector of industry; a “broker” between suppliers and customers who makes the service parts inventories transparent and facilitates pooling of parts.
Supply chain management: an empirical study of its impact on performance
Authors: Tan Keah‐Choon , Kannan Vijay R. , Handfield Robert B. , Ghosh Soumen
Published: July 2002

Total quality management, supply base management, customer driven corporate policy, and other elements of supply chain management are frequently cited as strategic options to achieve competitive success in the 1990s. However, attempts by companies to implement these options have not been universally successful and have in many cases failed to yield the desired results. This study presents details of a survey carried out to determine whether particular quality management, supply base management, and customer relations practices can impact corporate performance. In addition it examines the impact analyzing the competitive environment has on performance. Regression models identify several factors that directly and positively impact corporate performance. These include the extent to which companies analyze the strategies of competitors and determine future customer requirements, and the commitment they have to evaluating performance throughout the supply chain.
Developing strategic continuous improvement capability
Authors: Bessant John , Francis David
Published: July 2002

In developing CI capability, organisations need to move to a level of development in which strategic goals are communicated and deployed and where improvement activity is guided by a process of monitoring and measurement against these strategic objectives. Policy deployment of this kind is more prevalent in Japanese examples and in a handful of cases in Western firms. Implementing it poses significant challenges and requires a different and additional toolkit of enabling resources. This paper reports on the experience of policy deployment in Japan and in Western enterprises and explores some of the implementation issues raised.
Development of a continuous improvement self‐assessment tool
Authors: Caffyn Sarah
Published: July 2002

During the 1990s a growing number of firms have been encouraging continuous improvement (CI) in all aspects of working life, and some impressive results have been achieved. However, the process of implementing CI is long and challenging. Companies need to know what progress they have made, and the outcome of any interventions, in order to consolidate and further develop CI. The CIRCA CI self‐assessment tool is a research‐based tool which helps users to make an objective assessment of CI in their company. It is designed to be used by any organisation regardless of size, industry, length of time working with CI, and the particular approach taken. The tool went through several phases of development, culminating in a paper‐based Version 3.0 in 1997. Since then further development and testing of the tool has taken place in the UK and abroad, and future plans include an electronic version.
Negotiating field roles in manufacturing management research
Authors: Johnson Phil , Duberley Joanne , Close Paul , Cassell Cathy
Published: July 2002

Despite some notable exceptions, the intricacies, dilemmas and impact of manufacturing management researchers’ adoption of different field roles during data collection in collaborating organizations tends to be glossed over in published work. The aim of this paper is to investigate the potential impact of different field roles upon manufacturing management research. Through a discussion of the research methodology literature two ideal types are presented: the researcher field role and the consultant field role. By drawing upon examples from the authors’ own experience we argue that inadvertent oscillation between these roles influences research findings. Nevertheless it is argued that both field roles are important in manufacturing research, so what is important is to maintain a balance between them. Such a balance requires both situational and epistemic reflexivities. This paper seeks to encourage researchers to be more reflexive in their published research and to avoid the tendency to present rationalized (and sanitized) accounts. The consequence would be a more rigorous analysis of the impact of the researcher’s field role upon the manufacturing management research process and findings.
Focal points in manufacturing strategic planning in Spain
Authors: Avella Lucía
Published: July 2002

The aim of this work is to analyse the manufacturing strategies of the large Spanish industrial companies during the 1990s, making a comparison with the experience of American and other European manufacturers. To this end, and taking 1994 as a reference, this paper describes the planning process and content of the manufacturing strategies of a representative sample of the largest industrial companies in Spain, analysing, in particular, the high priority manufacturing objectives and policies maintained during the period 1992‐1993 and those foreseen for the period 1995‐1999. The information analysed has been obtained from a mail survey. The comparison of the Spanish companies with American and other European manufacturers attempts to observe how the Spanish experience is similar to that of other countries, in order to obtain interesting conclusions for the managers who may be responsible for managing industrial companies located in Spain.
Mathematics and the social sciences at the time of the modern beginnings of the social sciences
Authors: Senn Peter
Published: July 2002

Surveys the use of mathematics in what are now commonly called the social sciences up to the time of the earliest use of the term “social science” in the late 1700s. Explains the rationale for the organization and structure of the paper and proceeds to reason for the broad definition of mathematics as it relates to the social sciences. The introduction also describes the periodization used. The next section contains a brief description of the state of what were to become the social sciences in the late 1700s. This is followed by a brief description of the state of mathematics at that time. Then follow sections demonstrating that mathematics was used by important developers of social thought from the earliest times right up to the dawn of the modern social sciences. Concludes with a discussion of some of the lessons to be learned from history. The most important lesson that history teaches us about the role of mathematics in the modern social sciences at the dawn of their existence is that the social sciences require the use of mathematics and could not exist without them.
Full circle: economics from scholasticism through innovation and back into mathematical scholasticism
Authors: Reinert Erik S.
Published: July 2002

Through the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, European science slowly lifted itself out of the fog of Mediaeval scholasticism. A rational, quantified and mechanised world picture emerged. In 1769 an essay questioned why economics benefited so little from the use of mathematics and quantification. Today the opposite may be argued – the increasing loss of relevance of economics is associated with the use of mathematics. Based on Francis Bacon’s criticism of scholasticism, it is argued here that strong parallels exist between the decay of scholasticism and the decay of modern economics. From being a science of practice, late neoclassical economics has degenerated into “working upon itself”, as Bacon says about late scholasticism. Since the 1769 essay, economics has come “full circle”. The problem for economics is not then mathematics per se – mathematics is just one language in which science may decay.
The welfare effects of inflation and financial innovation in a model of economic growth
Authors: Bashir Abdel‐Hameed M.
Published: July 2002

Constructs a simple neoclassical growth model in which financial factors play an important role. The model demonstrates that the injunction against fixed interest payments induces the monetary authority in the Islamic economy to develop and innovate alternative financial instruments that do not have fixed nominal values and do not bear predetermined rates of return. The model also proves that financial innovation is welfare enhancing, while inflation reduces welfare and hampers growth. The model further proves that the government in an Islamic economy can effectively coordinate its fiscal and monetary policies to finance the budget using the Zakat and seigniorage.
Tourism Earnings Instability in Singapore, 1972‐88
Authors: Wilson Peter
Published: July 2002

Investigates the time series relationship between export earnings
instability and instability in receipts from international tourism for
Singapore between 1972 and 1988. Computes four standardized instability
indexes for both merchandize exports and international travel receipts,
having suitably adjusted the official export series for re‐exports and
corrected the two data series for trend. There is some support for the
view that export receipts are more unstable than tourism receipts.
Although exports are generally more unstable over the whole period, they
were relatively more unstable in the early to mid‐1970s during a period
of international instability. Tourism receipts, on the other hand, were
relatively more unstable in the 1980s, partly as a result of world
recession, but also because of structural problems in the tourism
industry in Singapore. Also finds that the development of the tourism
sector in Singapore has exerted a net destabilizing effect on total
exports of goods and services.
Freedom and Economic Power: Neglected Aspects of Walter Eucken′s Work
Authors: Oswalt‐Eucken Irene
Published: July 2002

Argues that different elements in Eucken′s work have had insufficient
attention in post‐war Germany, in science as well as in political
practice. In Eucken′s thinking, order (especially order in the economic
and political field and the interconnection between them) is the central
concept. In politics, insufficient attention was paid to the
interdependence between the different orders, and the balance of freedom
and power. Politics was characterized by pragmatism. A principal
decision in favour of the Wettbewerbsordnung (an economic order based on
competition), advocated by Eucken, was never made. This was expressed in
insufficient fighting against the formation of economic power
(competition policy) and in a neglect of the environment. Compares the
social philosophies of Eucken and Hayek.
Methodological Aspects of Eucken′s Work
Authors: Herrmann‐Pillath Carsten
Published: July 2002

Describes the methodological ideas of Eucken and points to the actual
significance of them. Eucken is, in his thinking on philosophical and
methodological problems, related to Husserl. The theory of the economic
order (Ordnungs‐theorie) is interdisciplinary. All kinds of modern
directions in economics, which develop separately, e.g. property rights
theory, evolutionary economics and new institutional economics, can be
integrated in his methodological approach.
The Entrepreneur in Theory and Practice
Authors: Hamilton R.T. , Harper D.A.
Published: July 2002

The entrepreneur, in one form or another, has been around a long time in both economic theory and empirical studies of entry. Argues that these traditions have exhibited an over‐concern with the entrepreneur′s function at the expense of the supply of entrepreneurs, an area which has received only sporadic attention in the literature. It is this supply aspect which is critical to economic development and economists should now devote more attention to it.
Monetary model of black market exchange rate determination: evidence from African countries
Authors: Odedokun M.O.
Published: July 2002

Analyses parallel exchange rate behaviour in African countries, using a monetary approach. Employs quarterly data over the 1980‐1991 period, pooled across 18 countries and the predictions of the monetary approach are not contradicted by the data. Finds, in particular, that monetary expansion, depreciation of official exchange rate, expectation of inflation, and rising interest rate cause depreciation of domestic currency in the black market while rising real income causes its appreciation.
On Stackelberg’s oligopoly theory
Authors: Heertje Arnold
Published: July 2002

Goes back to thinking on the price theory of oligopoly in 1960. In particular, is concerned with Stackelberg’s oligopoly theory. Presents a careful description of the development of Stackelberg’s analysis. Takes into account his mathematical appendix. Confronts the theory with game theory and concludes that in a dynamic game a Nash‐Cournot equilibrium will emerge.
Employment persistence and wage setting in the Greek labour market
Authors: Miaouli Natasha
Published: July 2002

This paper studies the behaviour of employment and real wages in Greek manufacturing 1954‐1993. Since employment dynamics are driven by trade union membership, wage aspirations and adjustment costs, the paper tries to identify the relative importance of these propagation mechanisms for the stylized fact of full (un)employment persistence. The empirical results suggest that adjustment costs in firms’ decision making, due to institutional and technological constraints, are the main reason for the slow response of (un)employment to changes in the economic environment.
Trade liberalization effects on commodity imports in Cameroon
Authors: Emmanuel Tambi N.
Published: July 2002

The hypotheses that an increase in relative price elasticities is not associated with increased import substitution and that an increase in income and foreign exchange elasticities is not associated with a greater degree of “openness” of the Cameroon economy are investigated using cointegration and error‐correction modelling. Disaggregation of total imports into raw materials, consumer, intermediate and capital goods shows that long‐run relative price elasticities of import demand are greater than short‐run values, being above unity for raw materials and consumer goods; thus leading to rejection of the first hypothesis for these categories of imports. Imports are income‐elastic for capital and intermediate goods and foreign exchange inelastic for all categories of import, implying that the Cameroon economy has been less open to trade in general. Some policy implications of the results are provided.
Aggregate demand and aggregate supply in UK regions
Authors: Funke Michael , Hall Stephen
Published: July 2002

UK regional data on GDP and the GDP deflator are analysed to extract information on underlying demand and supply shocks as well as aggregate demand and supply shocks. Identification is achieved using long run restrictions, based on a theoretical model. The main results are that the supply shocks are almost completely symmetric across UK regions and that there is no evidence of these shocks being propagated slowly across the regions.
Unemployment and the open economy wage‐price spiral
Authors: Kolsrud Dag , Nymoen Ragnar
Published: July 2002

We present a dynamic model of real wages in the open economy that encapsulates the well‐known “competing claims model” or “incomplete competition model” of real wage determination. In general, the model determines the development of inflation, real wages and the real exchange rate for any given rate of unemployment. Inflation, rather than unemployment, is the “conflict solver” in the unrestricted model. However, a supply side determined equilibrium rate of unemployment is subsumed as a special case. A re‐appraisal of the empirical literature shows that there is little evidence in support of the “natural rate” restrictions.
Monetary policy and the definition of money
Authors: Senn Peter R.
Published: July 2002

The focus of this paper is the economic theory of the plans for the European Monetary Union. Part 1 demonstrates that economists, bankers and policy makers know very little about monetary policy. Part 2 explains the errors of the common practice of defining money by its functions. Because any monetary policy must rest on a definition of money it seems reasonable to conclude that a flawed definition might lead to problems with monetary policy. Part 3 applies this insight to the plans for a common currency in Europe. Because of uncertainties about the timing and details of the implementation, some important considerations are necessarily speculative. They are relegated to appendices. Appendix 1 comments on the timing and authorship and responsibility for the official reports with their unspecified authors. Appendix 2 supplies some grounds for doubting the ultimate durability of the European Monetary Union focusing on reasons that are historical, economic and pragmatic. Because the entire movement is driven by politics, not economics, Appendix 3 considers some of the relevant political issues. The conclusions summarize and speculate on possible reasons for successful outcomes.
Computing tolerance parameters for fixturing and feeding
Authors: Chen Jingliang , Goldberg Ken , Overmars Mark H. , Halperin Dan , Böhringer Karl F. , Zhuang Yan
Published: July 2002

Fixtures and feeders are important components of automated assembly systems: fixtures accurately hold parts and feeders move parts into alignment. These components can fail when part shape varies. Parametric tolerance classes specify how much variation is allowable. In this paper we consider fixturing convex polygonal parts using right‐angle brackets and feeding polygonal parts on conveyor belts using sequences of vertical fences. For both cases, we define new tolerance classes and give algorithms for computing the parameter specifications such that the fixture or feeder will work for all parts in the tolerance class. For fixturing we give anO(1) algorithm to compute the dimensions of rectangular tolerance zones. For feeding we give anO(n2) algorithm to compute the radius of the largest allowable tolerance zone around each vertex. For each, we give anO(n) time algorithm for testing if ann‐sided part is in the tolerance class.
Large scale collection assessment
Authors: Grover Mark L.
Published: July 2002

An important responsibility of collection development libraries is to ensure that what is being collected is appropriate for the university’s curriculum and research needs. Unfortunately the large number of techniques that have been developed to measure collections work better with small college collections. As libraries grow and the range of library materials increase, many of these methods have proved to be inadequate. This study explores the use of statistics from the National Shelflist Count Project to gather enough valid statistical information to adequately assess large research collections.
Social intelligence for developing countries: the role of grey literature
Authors: Sturges Paul
Published: July 2002

The necessity for social intelligence, broadly defined, to inform decision making in developing countries is apparent as globalization places increasing demands on governments, non‐governmental organizations (NGOs), parastatals, and business corporations. Yet the existing information systems of developing countries suffer from a range of problems which afflict all three main elements: documentary services (libraries and information centres), statistical services, and management information systems (including records management and computerized systems). Grey literature is vital to each of these three systems, either as the partially‐processed product of the internal information‐generating capacity of the country itself, or in the external scanning process. Information professionals have tended to concentrate on the technical problems of acquiring, listing, indexing, retrieving and alerting potential users to documents. This largely ignores questions about the capacity and propensity of the targeted users to absorb information, however well it might be organized by information systems. An examination of the decision‐making process in a selected country (Malawi) and a case study of planning for technology transfer (from Kenya) are used to illustrate these problems and the role of intelligence. A range of structural and non‐structural constraints on the absorption of information is identified. The conclusion is that the problems of existing information systems can only be relieved by information professionals further processing and refining the information content of grey literature so as to present it to the decision makers in the form of intelligence reports.
Standards collection development in an academic library
Authors: Taylor Donald
Published: July 2002

A university library should be able to provide access to industrial standards through a properly developed collection policy and an ability to quickly acquire needed standards. The collection should support instruction in the basic curriculum and important areas of research at the university. Collecting beyond the minimum core of standards should be done in consultation with faculty and researchers to ensure that the collection meets users’ needs. Standards can be collected via standing orders with standards organizations, individual selection or through a combination of these two methods. Also a standards document delivery can be set up in order that faculty and engineering students can order standards that the library does not carry.
Machine vision guides the automotive industry
Authors: Kochan Anna
Published: July 2002

Outlines the factors causing the automotive industry to increase machine vision application, reviews new developments in vision technology that are targeted at expanding and improving it use in the automotive industry, reports on an innovative application of vision guided robotics at DaimlerChrysler
LEDs: A flexible option for machine vision
Authors: Houghton Harlen
Published: July 2002

Describes the benefits that arise from the use of Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) for illumination in industrial machine vision systems. These include long life, stability and narrow frequency bands. Also discusses precautions that need to be taken for obtaining a uniform illumination and pulsed operation.
Development of a microcontroller‐based humidity sensing system
Authors: Arshak K. , Twomey K. , Heffernan D.
Published: July 2002

This paper documents the development of a microcontroller‐based humidity sensing system. The humidity sensors are manufactured by thin film technology from a novel combination of SiO/In2O3. The fabrication and characterization of the sensor samples is presented and discussed in this paper. The sensor pattern consists of an interdigitated conductor on top of which the sensing layer is deposited. A humidity sensitivity of 0.25%/RH% and a thermal sensitivity of 0.103%/°C has been measured. The samples exhibit a low drift over a one‐year time span (0.0013RH%/yr), low hysteresis (0.34RH%), good linearity (±2RH%) and a reasonably fast time response (18 sec). The entire sensor system has been analyzed mathematically and the necessary algorithms for error‐compensation have been developed. The resulting measurement system is efficient, accurate and flexible.
The work of managers in new organisational contexts
Authors: Chapman Judith Ann
Published: July 2002

Focuses on the work of managers in new forms of organisations which are flexible, horizontally integrated, and decentralised. Although much has been written about managers, including their roles, functions, and skills, the organisational context is changing, and new perspectives are needed. A process perspective is a way of understanding the work of managers in these contexts. The paper suggests two pivotal management processes, the exercise of judgment and the use of influence, through which managers add value to more general organisational processes. Some directions for research are suggested and a classroom exercise for introducing graduate students to this topic area is outlined.
Improving management performance in rapidly changing organizations
Authors: Longenecker Clinton O. , Fink Laurence S.
Published: July 2002

This article reports the results of a study on management development practices in US service and manufacturing organizations. Data and statistical analyses from a sample of 433 middle and front‐line managers from 59 different US service and manufacturing organizations are reported which examined: What specific management development practices are most important from a manager’s perspective to improving their performance in rapidly changing organizations; and, are managers actually getting the development experiences they need to be effective in these organizations? Among the top ten important practices identified by managers as improving their performance, focus, feedback, and learning (e.g. problem solving, new communication and leadership) by experience are re‐occurring themes. The results also point to startling differences between the management development experiences they want and what they are actually getting from their organizations. Based on the data a series of lessons for improving the effectiveness of managers is provided.
Applying situational leadership in Australia
Authors: Avery Gayle C. , Ryan Jan
Published: July 2002

Situational leadership (SL) remains highly popular among practitioners, despite considerable academic criticism, lack of theoretical debate, and relatively little published research into SL. We interviewed practicing managers trained in SL about their experiences in applying the model. SL appealed to the managers because of its intuitive simplicity, ease of use, and perceived relevance to managerial roles. SL can be applied consciously (with deliberation) or automatically. Contrary to expectations, practitioners did not report difficulty in assessing follower developmental levels. While respondents were aware that they needed to use all four SL styles in managing their people, consistent with previous research, these Australian managers preferred using supportive styles, and some went to considerable lengths to avoid being directive. The intercultural applicability of SL is questioned, and directions for further research into some of the hypotheses generated by this study are proposed.
Indian society, total quality and the Rajiv Gandhi National Quality Award
Authors: Tan Kay C. , Khoo Hsien H.
Published: July 2002

In India, religious beliefs and social values play an important role in the workforce’s perception of work, learning, and human relation. These factors affect how total quality (TQ) should be implemented. This paper attempts to provide insights on what management needs to know about the culture‐related values of India’s workforce. The Rajiv Gandhi National Quality Award (RGNQA) is taken as India’s approach to TQ excellence. The approaches suggested for some of the RGNQA criteria are: leaders should hold authority with kindness; there should be careful/calculated planning and ethical practices; consider cultural background for human resource management, team building, and employee training; consider Gandhi’s teachings and selfless service to customers provide security and rewards; and promote harmony and respect for nature.