Process Management

There is a variety of empirically validated methods for implementing pull-systems in the manufacturing industry, but pull-based replenishment for the process industry remains a research gap. This article describes the development of a model for implementing a pull-system for an intracompany production network in the process industry and its validation in a case company.

Digitization opens extensive opportunities to gather real time information, exchange them and use them for a variety of different purposes. In industry, the related developments are referred to as the transition to Industry 4.0. They relate to the workplace design as well as to the alignment of business strategies and the underlying business models.

Volatility in market demand leads to temporary over- and under utilization of productive assets. Heijunka aims at de-coupling the production system from market volatility. The production program is spread as even as possible over time. This achieves high asset utilization, short lead times, and low inventories. There are validated Heijunka methods for the manufacturing industry, but for the process industry this remains a research gap. This article describes the development of a Heijunka model for the process industry in order to close that gap.

The sustainable implementation of efficient processes requires a corporate culture that ensures continuous optimization. In order to achieve this level of operational excellence employees’ capabilities must be developed with regard to the identification and active pursuit of improvements. For this purpose, lean management principles and tools have to be implemented at all hierarchy levels (lean thinking). In many instances, learning factories have proved to be an appropriate platform to support this process of transformation. For the first time in Germany, this concept has now been transferred to the process industry with its special requirements by realizing a learning factory within a pharmaceutical company. The procedure of planning and deploying this industry-specific learning environment with the identified success factors are discussed in this paper.

The successful combination of the advantages of an ERP system with the benefits of the lean approach may lead to considerable potentials for improvement and thus to significant competitive advantages for an enterprise. As this approach is often criticized in practice, this paper aims to present an innovative solution which is not only theoretical, but also shows empirically, with the example of an ERP implementation project in a SME, that Lean and ERP can and should be profitably linked.

Achieving lean structures and principles in a company means taking care that a cultural change takes place through all the parties everyone, including the leaders and employees, should be convinced that it is sensible, necessary and the correct thing to establish Lean. Lean should not be considered to be a foreign object in an environment where old habits persist. Cultural changes can be brought when thoughts about Lean are internalized by the people in the company, which become a part of the corporate philosophy. This article shows which measures the decision makers in management can take to develop Lean and make it an everyday practice.

When seeking to leverage potentials in core working processes, the development of coherent standards, methods and capabilities too often remains underrepresented. Every task-owner needs to be able to define the exact extent and origin of deviations in operational processes via KPIs. A systematic design of management- and support-processes supports transparent structures and standards throughout the company and leads to significant and sustainable improvements of critical working routines and their outcomes. In our article, we offer an outline on how to systematically build shared capabilities in order to induce measurable improvements - in immediate results as well as in crucial cultural aspects.

A study of the international manufacturing industry undertaken by Oxford Economics and PTC revealed that nearly 70 percent of the executives surveyed believe that a radical transformation of their companies’ business operations is inevitable within the next three years. The study analyzes the seven main forces influencing the global manufacturing market and discusses strategies that can ensure companies will be able to compete internationally. Process changes can lead to opportunity when completely new business models are discovered.

The presented QuickCheck enables a short and efficient analysis, understanding and modeling of as-is business processes in mid-size companies. Root causes of elaborated optimization potential of those analyzed business processes will be identified. Needed actions are qualified using an effect to cost portfolio analysis by relevance. Based on the portfolio analysis human resources can be utilized effectively in resulting projects which can be executed efficiently.

Traditional productivity analysis has emerged in mass production and cannot be adopted one-to-one on One-of-a-kind production (OKP). Due to the non-repetitive character of the processes in OKP, productivity improvements do not reproduce like in mass production. In addition, preparatory activities such as orientation, material handling and positioning usually consume a lot more time than the actual value-adding activities in OKP. Therefore, OKP requires analysis methods that deliver: 1) a generic working cycle to enable repetitive productivity improvements; 2) activities of personnel in production processes, which include the preparatory activities. We introduce a state-oriented approach for productivity measurement in OKP. With a case study we show how to capture, visualize and evaluate state data of an OKP.