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1 – 10 of 410Ploytip Jirasukprasert, Jose Arturo Garza-Reyes, Vikas Kumar and Ming K. Lim
In this era of globalisation, as competition intensifies, providing quality products and services has become a competitive advantage and a need to ensure survival. The Six Sigma's…
Abstract
Purpose
In this era of globalisation, as competition intensifies, providing quality products and services has become a competitive advantage and a need to ensure survival. The Six Sigma's problem-solving methodology DMAIC has been one of the several techniques used by organisations to improve the quality of their products and services. This paper aims to demonstrate the empirical application of Six Sigma and DMAIC to reduce product defects within a rubber gloves manufacturing organisation.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper follows the DMAIC methodology to systematically investigate the root cause of defects and provide a solution to reduce/eliminate them. In particular, the design of experiments, hypothesis testing and two-way analysis of variance techniques were combined to statistically determine whether two key process variables, oven's temperature and conveyor's speed, had an impact on the number of defects produced, as well as to define their optimum values needed to reduce/eliminate the defects.
Findings
The analysis from employing Six Sigma and DMAIC indicated that the oven's temperature and conveyor's speed influenced the amount of defective gloves produced. After optimising these two process variables, a reduction of about 50 per cent in the “leaking” gloves defect was achieved, which helped the organisation studied to reduce its defects per million opportunities from 195,095 to 83,750 and thus improve its sigma level from 2.4 to 2.9.
Practical implications
This paper can be used as a guiding reference for managers and engineers to undertake specific process improvement projects, in their organisations, similar to the one presented in this paper.
Originality/value
This study presents an industrial case which demonstrates how the application of Six Sigma and DMAIC can help manufacturing organisations to achieve quality improvements in their processes and thus contribute to their search for process excellence.
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Pornthep Weerathamrongsak and Winai Wongsurawat
The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the recent developments in the natural rubber industry and identify the major factors that will likely determine the…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the recent developments in the natural rubber industry and identify the major factors that will likely determine the sustainability of Thailand's competitive advantage in this area.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were gathered through in depth interviews with industry experts both in the private and public sectors. The obtained information was then analyzed under the standard framework of national competitiveness widely referred to as the Diamond Model.
Findings
The recent success of the Thai rubber industry stems from the competitiveness of local firms in the upstream industry and the leadership of foreign firms in the downstream sector. To further strengthen competitiveness, a more concerted effort to encourage innovation and technology absorption by local downstream firms is required.
Originality/value
This research provides a comprehensive overview of one of Thailand's most significant agricultural exporting industries. It systematically analyzes the sector's strengths and weaknesses and offers recommendations for policy makers to manage future opportunities and threats.
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The Regulations prescribing minimum meat content of a wide variety of meat products, for which we have been patiently waiting several years, will soon be with us and merge with…
Abstract
The Regulations prescribing minimum meat content of a wide variety of meat products, for which we have been patiently waiting several years, will soon be with us and merge with the broad current of legislation controlling the quality of food. Even the plebeian sausage, living in sin all these years, may soon be legitimately wedded to a respectable meat content. It is interesting to note that the Food Standards Committee reported on sausages as long ago as 1956. Canned Meat and Meat Pies were reported on in 1962 and 1963 respectively and the Government's new proposals for regulations for these take into account the comments of interested parties. The present proposals lay down minimum standards of meat content for meat pies, uncooked meat pies, Scottish pies and meat and vegetable pies; for all types of canned meat except those which make clear that meat is not the major ingredient; and for all sausages, including frankfurters, liver sausage and black puddings, for meat with cereal and meat with jelly products; and in each class of meat product there are labelling and advertising provisions. So, at long last, it would seem that the unflagging efforts of all those engaged in food administration, especially the work of the Food Standards Committee, have borne fruit.
A significant part of many building surveyors′ work is theinvestigation of building defects. In many cases a proper diagnosiscannot be made solely by visual means. Some building…
Abstract
A significant part of many building surveyors′ work is the investigation of building defects. In many cases a proper diagnosis cannot be made solely by visual means. Some building problems are difficult to assess without the aid of instruments and further tests. Outlines some of the main simple diagnostic chemical tests that building surveyors may wish either to undertake themselves or to instruct specialists to carry out as an aid to their diagnosis of defects. Although such tests are indicative, they are usually sufficient to allow a preliminary diagnosis in many building pathology cases.
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Georgy Sunny, S. Lalkrishna, Jerin James and Sreejith Suprasannan
Personal Protective Equipment plays an inevitable part in the current scenario of pandemics in the world. A novel coronavirus, Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome-Corona Virus-2…
Abstract
Purpose
Personal Protective Equipment plays an inevitable part in the current scenario of pandemics in the world. A novel coronavirus, Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome-Corona Virus-2 (SARS-Cov 2), began as an outbreak of pneumonia in Wuhan, China, in late December 2019, and quickly spread worldwide. It quickly escalated into an international public health crisis. This opened up the high demand for the innovation and research of new materials in the Personal Protective Equipment industry.
Design/methodology/approach
PubMed, Embase and Google Scholar were searched for relevant literature regarding personal protective equipment and the information was organized in a systematic way.
Findings
There are no adequate number of studies taken up in the field of use of textiles in medical applications especially with PPEs.
Research limitations/implications
This structured review will generate a sense of the significance of using PPE for controlling pandemics and also awaken need for additional research and innovations in this area.
Practical implications
The authorities of the management should take timely intervention in choosing the right material for their PPE in their hospitals. Hence health care professionals teams have an inevitable role in preventing the adverse environmental impact due to the inadvertent disposal of PPEs.
Social implications
There is a lack of systematic way of disposing contaminated single-use face masks in a safe, environmentally acceptable manner. The dumping of single-use PPE in domestic garbage has had an adverse effect on the environment. Mismanaged plastic waste endangers the health of ecosystems by polluting marine and terrestrial environments, posing a significant risk of ingestion or injury to animals and contaminating habitats.
Originality/value
This review article provides an in-depth review of the use of different materials in PPE and challenges regarding its long-term use and implications on the environment.
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Mark Lee Hunter and Luk N. Van Wassenhove
This paper aims to answer the following questions: Is corporate responsibility only a cost, or is it also a profitable business strategy? If so, can the strategy work in a B2B…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to answer the following questions: Is corporate responsibility only a cost, or is it also a profitable business strategy? If so, can the strategy work in a B2B context, as well as in the B2C context typically covered by research on corporate responsibility? Finally, how does the geopolitical context of a developing Asian nation affect corporate responsibility, from both a managerial and a stakeholder perspective?
Design/methodology/approach
The paper adopts a case study approach, building from observed data to grounded theory.
Findings
In a firm where trust and transparency are both ingrained and enforced among managers, Hayleys PLC used those values as tools to transform relations with key stakeholders from costs to marketing assets. In the process, it created an ethical market network in which membership depends on adherence to the same values. Thus emergent ethical marketplaces are directly related to the spread of CR practices.
Research limitations/implications
The effects of transparency beyond financial disclosure or sustainability reporting on stakeholder relations would be a particularly valuable object of further research. The structure of ethical markets, and the costs and benefits of participating in them, require and justify further study.
Practical implications
An ethical markets strategy can lead to stable long‐term relationships with major buyers. However, in the present circumstances, it also entails dependence on a limited number of major customers. Another issue is that, if “the factory becomes a sales tool”, it may also kill a sale if and when standards slip or a stakeholder creates conflict.
Social implications
A corporate responsibility strategy may transform not only managerial practices, but also the social environment, by enabling or disabling stakeholder partners or adversaries. The means to this objective include providing services and empowerment to stakeholders (in this case, workers) who cannot obtain them from their traditional interlocutors.
Originality/value
This paper adds insight into the implications of corporate responsibility for firms involved in B2B markets, as well as for Asian multinationals. It also contributes to answering the question of how corporate responsibility adds value, by demonstrating how corporate responsibility may strengthen key productive and commercial relationships with stakeholders essential to the sustainability of the firm.
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During the last year the use of rubber and its derivatives as anti‐corrosive lining agents has been brought into what might be called ‘daily newspaper prominence’ by the…
Abstract
During the last year the use of rubber and its derivatives as anti‐corrosive lining agents has been brought into what might be called ‘daily newspaper prominence’ by the completion of two projects using vast quantities of these materials. These projects—the lining of the various parts of the Associated Ethyl Co.'s bromine plant at Amlwch, Isle of Anglesey, and the preparation of the ‘world's largest rubber bag’ for the Mill Hill reservoir at Easington, Co. Durham—are striking examples of the development of this branch of chemical engineering. However, although it is only recently that such large amounts of rubber have been used in single undertakings, this does not minimise the important position which this extremely adaptable material has held for very many years in anti‐corrosive work.
Many potentially hazardous materials and processes are employed in the manufacture of printed circuits and printed circuit assemblies. This article draws attention to these and…
Abstract
Many potentially hazardous materials and processes are employed in the manufacture of printed circuits and printed circuit assemblies. This article draws attention to these and lists the salient properties of those most commonly employed. Methods of assisting in the assurance of the safety of personnel handling and processing these materials are suggested. It is stressed that it is important always to know exactly what is being handled and how it is being modified by process operations. Finally, suggestions are made with regard to the availability of information and assistance and the need for communication with, and education of, all personnel concerned.
July 31, 1972 Master and servant — Negligence — Safe system of work — Dermatitis — Known risk — No practicable means of avoiding contact with oil — Extent of risk — Whether…
Abstract
July 31, 1972 Master and servant — Negligence — Safe system of work — Dermatitis — Known risk — No practicable means of avoiding contact with oil — Extent of risk — Whether negligent to expose employees to small risk with serious consequences. Pleading — Particulars of negligence raised in counsel's closing speech — Not pleaded or covered by evidence — Whether plaintiff entitled to rely on those particulars.
Evelyn S. Devadason, V.G.R. Chandran Govindaraju and Shujaat Mubarik
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the potentials and barriers to trade in the Malaysia–Chile partnership.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the potentials and barriers to trade in the Malaysia–Chile partnership.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper estimates two-way export potentials from an augmented three-dimensional panel gravity model of bilateral trade between Malaysia and the Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) region, spanning the 1990–2014 period. Utilizing interviews with government officials and industry experts in Malaysia and Chile, this paper also provides insights into market access issues.
Findings
The empirical findings of this study suggest that Malaysia has trade potential in Chile, but Chile is “overtrading” with Malaysia. By major products traded, both countries are found to be “overtrading,” as the export basket remains concentrated in this partnership. Through the interviews, fewer restrictions are reported by the various stakeholders, as the extent of trade engagement remains somewhat low. The main challenge identified within specific sectors in both the countries relates mainly to procedures established to secure compliance with labeling regulations for food products.
Research limitations/implications
The sectoral findings reveal that there is indeed scope for expanding exports beyond the current major products traded, particularly in base metal and scientific and measuring equipment from the Malaysia and Chile perspectives, respectively. Thus, product diversification matters to intensify trade cooperation between the two countries. Non-tariff measures need to be streamlined by both parties to ensure further product diversification to food trade, particularly for Chile.
Originality/value
The limited literature on cross-regional trade within the broader framework of Southeast Asia and LAC only support the fact that potentials do exist but do not appear to provide much research evidence. Empirically, this paper will add to the existing literature on the potentials that hold in the Malaysia–Chile partnership. Further, a lack of adequate information remains on market access and other barriers in both the nations to facilitate decisions on trade opportunities. The findings of the study fill that vacuum of information pertaining to market access and trade facilitation through interviews with various stakeholders in Malaysia and Chile.
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