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The purpose of this paper is to study the information support technologies of integrated production planning control for OEM (original equipment manufacturer) driven networked manufacturing systems, and offer implications to firms for implementing networked manufacturing.

OEM driven networked manufacturing and its operations modes and support technologies are first discussed. Then, integration framework of production planning and control is proposed and relative technologies are discussed. Finally, a case of the application of information support technologies in networked manufacturing is illustrated.

Both theory analysis and case experience show that information integration and sharing are critical for effective operations of OEM driven networked manufacturing and an integrated production planning and control system can benefit firms for successfully operating a networked manufacturing system.

It is valuable to develop and apply integrated production planning and control systems in OEM driven networked manufacturing, Firms should pay more attention to information sharing and communication with partners and utilize advanced information technologies to synchronize the operations of partners.

Integration framework of production planning and control proposed in this paper has originality and the technology strategies are also practical. Managerial ideas, technology framework and application strategies of integrated production planning and control are helpful for firms to implement OEM driven networked manufacturing.

Traditional cost management systems adopted by construction firms have many problems, which are widely discussed in the literature: the information provided by them is usually too late, and tends to be too aggregated and too distorted to be relevant for production management. The main objective of this research work is to propose a project cost planning and control model for construction firms. This model aims to support the development of production management systems, in which cost management and production planning and control can be gradually integrated, in order to overcome the existing limitations of cost accounting systems. The scope of the model was limited to building projects carried out by small and medium sized companies, involved in both product development and production. The development of the model was based on the literature review and also on the results of nine empirical studies conducted in four different Brazilian construction firms. The model suggests the integrated application of three fairly well known cost management techniques: operational cost estimating, S‐curves and target costing. By using this set of tools, it is expected that cost management will become more proactive, and able to deal with the dynamic, uncertain and complex construction environment that exists in most projects. The model was partially tested in two case studies, in which it provided key information for supporting decision making related to design, production planning and contracts with suppliers.

The organization of production processes is becoming increasingly complex. Begins with some observations of non‐linear dynamic effects and uncontrolled self‐organization in production, which back this statement. This leads to the demand for organization forms in which distributed decision making plays a crucial role. Against this background, however, a new conception of planning and control is necessary. The main question is how an overall corporate objective can be achieved, while the sub‐systems pursue their individual objectives and can only be controlled in a limited manner. The application of recent research results from systems theory can help in understanding the problem and concepts like interventionist and experimental planning are powerful expedients to describe the remaining rules of planning and control specialists. With regard to the decision‐making processes on the shopfloor, suggests a reliance on the laws of the market, which therefore have to be transferred to production systems.

Overview All organisations are, in one sense or another, involved in operations; an activity implying transformation or transfer. The major portion of the body of knowledge concerning operations relates to production in manufacturing industry but, increasingly, similar problems are to be found confronting managers in service industry. It is only in the last decade or so that new technology, involving, in particular, the computer, has encouraged an integrated view to be taken of the total business. This has led to greater recognition being given to the strategic potential of the operations function. In order to provide greater insight into operations a number of classifications have been proposed. One of these, which places operations into categories termed factory, job shop, mass service and professional service, is examined. The elements of operations management are introduced under the headings of product, plant, process, procedures and people.

In the last four years, since Volume I of this Bibliography first appeared, there has been an explosion of literature in all the main functional areas of business. This wealth of material poses problems for the researcher in management studies — and, of course, for the librarian: uncovering what has been written in any one area is not an easy task. This volume aims to help the librarian and the researcher overcome some of the immediate problems of identification of material. It is an annotated bibliography of management, drawing on the wide variety of literature produced by MCB University Press. Over the last four years, MCB University Press has produced an extensive range of books and serial publications covering most of the established and many of the developing areas of management. This volume, in conjunction with Volume I, provides a guide to all the material published so far.

Since the early 1970s, production planning systems have evolved from material requirements planning (MRP) through manufacturing resource planning (MRPII) into enterprise resource planning (ERP) with simultaneous development of related control systems such as theory of constraints (epitomised by OPT), just‐in‐time (JIT), etc. One key area for all manufacturing companies is the planning and control function. There is a wide range of generic proprietary software available that aims to meet a company’s planning and scheduling requirements. The difficulty experienced by many companies is not only in examining available software, but also in understanding the match between business needs and the capabilities of that software. This paper first sets out some common manufacturing classification systems, then attempts to map them against accepted paradigms for production planning and control approaches. Analysis confirms the need for a more rigorous approach to software selection, and the need for a complete understanding of the drivers of the production control process before this can be achieved. The paper goes on to discuss a method for mapping these drivers, with the aim being to create a series of reference models for production planning and scheduling.

This monograph examines research needs in computer aided production management (CAPM). Recommendations for future research and its organisation are made. The monograph is based on an in‐depth study of current CAPM practice in a varied sample of 33 companies. The study conclusions confirm many existing beliefs. Many companies are paying inadequate attention to the necessary prerequisites for successful CAPM implementation. The prerequisites change as the extent of CAPM system integration increases. Organisational rather than implementation issues dominate as integration increases. The proposed research would bring together existing knowledge of best CAPM practice to form methodologies for the audit, design and implementation of CAPM systems. The aim is to reduce the time‐span of the learning curve required for successful CAPM integration. The methodologies need to be specific to particular industrial sectors.

In this paper, we present a planning and control framework for manufacture‐to‐order environments that enables and supports agile‐based discrete parts manufacturing. The characteristic elements of our framework are that it is decentralized, logistics and business oriented, and that it recognizes that more detailed and more reliable data become available as orders advance through the different manufacturing stages and departments. Furthermore, it is a generic framework in that it applies to any discrete parts manufacturer, ranging from an engineer‐to‐order to an assemble‐to‐order company. We also point out the necessity of an organizational structure that supports and reinforces the framework. Particularly, we discuss the adoption and implementation of the new framework by creating multi‐disciplinary teams and structural and operational supporting groups to strengthen the organization for agile manufacturing.

Evolvable production systems enable fully reconfiguration capabilities on the shop floor through process‐oriented modularity and multi‐agent‐based distributed control. To be able to benefit architectural and operational characteristics of evolvable systems, there is a need of a new planning approach which links shop floor characteristics and planning operations. This paper seeks to address these issues.

Evolvable production system has a structured methodology in itself. Consistent to this, a reference planning architecture is developed aiming to achieve agility on planning activities. Besides a workload control method is proposed and implemented as a part of the planning architecture.

First applications of evolvable systems have been implemented through European research projects. Shop floor working principles and architectural characteristics are consistent to facilitate more agility on planning activities which are framed at a planning reference architecture called demand responsive planning. As an implementation case, an agent‐based workload control method is proposed and implemented. The characteristics of EPS and proposed planning architecture enable continuous and dynamic workload control of the shop floor to be implemented.

This paper presents a new planning model compatible with evolvable production systems targeting to agility to demand on planning and control activities benefiting shop floor enhancements of a fully reconfigurable system which enables to relax constraints imposed from production systems to planning. In addition, a continuous and dynamic workload control method is proposed and implemented.

This paper seeks to explore the question of how to investigate the contribution of the operational network (comprising sales service, logistics, planning, production, etc.) to operational performance. In doing so, the paper aims to link concepts from organisational and social psychology to production planning and control.

The paper introduces the concept “operational network”, e.g. the network of people involved in customer and production order processing. Members of the operational network need some autonomy, but this autonomy may also lead to dysfunctional behaviour, due to conflicts of interest, ambiguities and individual preferences. The contribution of the operational network seems difficult to investigate. This is illustrated by an empirical study of the role of operational people in a semi‐process industry. This study shows that concepts of organisational psychology are very applicable here. However, most results relate perceived behaviour to perceived performance; it appeared to be difficult to relate actual organisation characteristics to actual performance. This paper discusses the research approach that is necessary to be able to fill the gap between “perceived” and “actual”.

To fill the gap between “perceived” and “actual” behaviour, it is necessary to formalize the behaviour of the members of the operational network by adopting an adequate planning and control framework. In most situations such a planning and control framework is not available. Therefore, a study of the role of the operational network needs to be accompanied by a participative design of the planning and control framework.

This paper conducts a convincing investigation into the contribution of the operational network to operational performance, a subject which hitherto has been only marginally addressed.