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1 – 5 of 5M.S. Narassima, V. Aashrith, C. Aldo Ronald, S.P. Anbuudayasankar and M. Thenarasu
The textile industry contributes 2 and 3% to the global and Indian Gross Domestic Product (GDP), respectively. India supplies a quarter of global cotton yarn. Yet, most yarn…
Abstract
Purpose
The textile industry contributes 2 and 3% to the global and Indian Gross Domestic Product (GDP), respectively. India supplies a quarter of global cotton yarn. Yet, most yarn manufacturing companies use outdated methods and lack organisational skills and strategies. Improvement in processes in India could significantly help the industry worldwide.
Design/methodology/approach
The variables that influence the performance of the system were identified. Their interrelationships and impact were identified from the employees in the chosen case study, a yarn manufacturing industry. A System Dynamics (SD) approach was employed to study the benefits of implementing 5S lean strategies. The impact of each variable on various performance measures such as throughput, Work In Progress, processing time, waiting time, idle time, over-processing and scraps was analysed.
Findings
Improvement in outcomes reflected an enhanced adoption of leanness in the industry. The decision-makers can utilise this study to optimise the necessary parameters in the system and attain the desired productivity levels. Better resource management and reduced processing time helped increase the despatch rate by 9.735% and decrease the WIP by 23.01%. Time management helped to reduce the inventory, idle time and waiting time. Over-processing, defects and scraps were minimised, indicating a shift towards lean.
Research limitations/implications
This study pioneers the use of SD simulation models for optimising yarn manufacturing using lean strategies. Improvement in performance measures by integrating these strategies opens avenues for future research using multiple approaches to address a problem.
Practical implications
Implementing 5S lean principles and simulations enhances productivity, reduces waste and optimises resource management for the yarn manufacturing industry. Decision-makers can employ simulation to witness the outcomes of their changes without investing cost and time and without associated implementation risks.
Originality/value
The use of a simulation model to witness the benefits of incorporating lean strategies in yarn production has not been explored. This approach could help the managers and policymakers understand their existing system's shortcomings and critical areas that require improvement.
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Balakrishnan Anand, Saleeshya P.G., Thenarasu M. and Naren Karthikeyan S.
This work presents the results of a case study aimed at revitalizing an agricultural equipment manufacturing consortium facing prolonged losses. The purpose of this paper is to…
Abstract
Purpose
This work presents the results of a case study aimed at revitalizing an agricultural equipment manufacturing consortium facing prolonged losses. The purpose of this paper is to enhance productivity and profitability by identifying and eliminating waste within the manufacturing processes. The study uses lean principles and tools to achieve this objective.
Design/methodology/approach
The study begins with the creation of a questionnaire, administered to the consortium to gather insights. The questionnaire responses serve as a foundation for pinpointing critical areas in need of immediate attention. To tackle the challenge of demand forecasting without customer data, a demand forecasting model is introduced. Value stream mapping (VSM) is used to identify and highlight process inefficiencies and waste. The findings are further analyzed using a Pareto chart to prioritize waste reduction efforts. Based on these insights, the study proposes alternative manufacturing methods and waste elimination strategies. A multiphase lean framework is developed as a step-by-step roadmap for implementing lean manufacturing.
Findings
The study identifies a broken process flow within the consortium’s manufacturing processes and highlights areas of waste through VSM. The Pareto chart analysis reveals the most significant waste areas requiring immediate intervention. Recommendations for process improvements and waste reduction strategies are provided to the consortium.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the field by applying lean principles and tools to address the unique challenges faced by an agricultural equipment manufacturing consortium. The integration of a demand forecasting model and the development of a multiphase lean framework offer innovative approaches to enhancing productivity and profitability in this context.
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To become a sustainable lean manufacturing (LM) system, an organization must be first distinctly cognizant of the terms “lean” and “sustainability” as they relate to the state of…
Abstract
Purpose
To become a sustainable lean manufacturing (LM) system, an organization must be first distinctly cognizant of the terms “lean” and “sustainability” as they relate to the state of affairs of their particular industry and business. Next, the organization must identify and acquire the necessary qualities it needs to become sustainable in lean philosophy and its practices in the organization. The LM paradigm has been a top priority for many businesses; thus, this article is based on actual research done in Indian small and medium scale organizations to see how widely it is understood and implemented.
Design/methodology/approach
A framework was developed based on literature review and academic research. A preliminary analysis of a small number of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that, conceptually, summarizes and demonstrates the concerted efforts that a company may undertake to increase its leanness. This conceptual model was employed to create a questionnaire that was administered to survey the SMEs of India. The information gathered through this questionnaire was analyzed using the model developed by the researchers. Then fuzzy logic and systems approach were used to find out the effectiveness index (EI) of the organization.
Findings
The EI for system leanness at different organizational levels within an organization is determined using fuzzy logic and systems approach for 48 SMEs in different clusters. The average EI of the system was found to be 0.336 on a scale of 0–1 which indicates that the current state of lean implementation and its sustainability is very low and poor in Indian SMEs. This article outlines the key model components and describes how they were applied to analyze the data gathered from an industry study.
Research limitations/implications
The research aims to make lean continuously sustainable by surfacing and eliminating the wastes in the Indian SMEs whenever it appears rather than using it as a cleaning tool. The present study was focused on India’s southern industrial areas and it was difficult to gather the information around the country due to its diverse industrial culture and geography. Hence, more research and the comparative study of the same that takes into account the various regions of the nation’s industrial lean behavior can be conducted.
Practical implications
The generalized sustainable lean framework analyzed using fuzzy logic and systems approach gives the current effectiveness of the leanness in SMEs of south India. This model can be effectively implemented in other areas of the nation to identify the scenario of lean and its sustainability and a final comprehensive model can be developed.
Originality/value
There is a dearth of comprehensive studies on the assessment of sustainability of the lean philosophy in Indian SMEs. With the help of combined fuzzy logic and systems approach, the model developed in this study evaluates the sustainability of the lean methodology using the EI used in SMEs by taking into account both the lean and sustainability factors as well as enablers like customer satisfaction, ethics, innovation and technology.
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Naila Fares, Jaime Lloret, Vikas Kumar, Guilherme F. Frederico and Oulaid Kamach
The purpose of the study is to propose a framework for fleet management and make suitable distribution solution choices in the food industry.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of the study is to propose a framework for fleet management and make suitable distribution solution choices in the food industry.
Design/methodology/approach
This study reviews the literature to examine food distribution criteria. These criteria are used in the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) assessment and combined with discrete events simulation in a structured framework, which is validated through an empirical study.
Findings
The empirical case results demonstrate that both the AHP and discrete events simulation converge toward the same solution in most cases.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the literature on distribution management and develops a framework that can both guide future research and aid logistics practitioners in analysing distribution decision-making systems in dynamic environments.
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Ahmed Al Kuwaiti and Arun Vijay Subbarayalu
– The purpose of this paper was to examine the perceptions of students of health sciences on research training programs offered at Saudi universities.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper was to examine the perceptions of students of health sciences on research training programs offered at Saudi universities.
Design/methodology/approach
A cross-sectional survey design was adopted to capture the perceptions of health science students about research training programs offered at selected Saudi universities. A criterion-based sampling technique was adopted, and accordingly, 630 students were selected to participate in the study. A pre-tested questionnaire tool titled, “Students Attitude towards Research (SAR) questionnaire ”, was used to capture student responses on a five-point Likert scale with respect to three dimensions, namely, extent of research activities offered in their college, involvement of faculty in research and the infrastructural facilities offered by the college for research. The students’ attitudes with respect to various components of research training programs were analyzed using mean and cumulative percentage of students satisfied with the training. Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was used to study whether there is any significant difference in attitudes among the students belonging to four health science programs of the seven selected universities.
Findings
The results of this study demonstrate that only less than 50 per cent of the students from the selected health science colleges are satisfied with the existing research training programs. There are significant differences in the students’ attitude toward research training programs offered in seven selected Saudi universities.
Originality/value
This is the first Saudi Arabia-based study that provides an alarming signal to educational-policy planners on students’ perceptions and attitudes toward research training programs offered in Saudi higher education institutions.
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