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In this paper, the authors investigate the effects bottleneck machines have on the performance of a multi‐stage job shop. The operation performed by the bottleneck and its position in the product Bill of Materials is varied to determine the effects on system performance. It was found that the best place for the bottleneck machine to be located was at gateway operations located low in the Bill of Materials.

In job‐shop scheduling research, the shortest processing time despatching rule (SPT) has received considerable attention. Several truncated shortest processing time (SPT) despatching rules have been published in the literature. The motivation for such rules is that SPT despatching will frequently result in favourable inventory levels but unfavourable due date performance. Thus, the truncated SPT rules periodically switch from SPT despatching to despatching by some other rule. Owing to the complexity associated with these truncated rules, their implementation is doubtful. As a result, a modified truncated rule is presented that is easy to implement and yet performs favourably with respect to inventory and due date performance.

Operations managers are now more than ever acutely aware of the importance of Manufacturing Lead Times (MLT). Tremendous advantages such as increased flexibility, increased responsiveness, decreased work in process (WIP) inventories, improved due date performance, and decreased finished goods inventory can be realized with a shorter MLT. Unfortunately, US manufacturers have not been very successful at efforts to reduce MLT. This is especially true for those companies using MRP. In MRP, component lead times are often exaggerated to insure that sufficient time is available for the completion of all components. With the exaggeration of component lead times comes an increased manufacturing lead time. Also, due to the normally accepted weekly time bucket, a product with six levels in its bill of materials requires a minimum of six weeks to manufacture. A second reason US companies have failed to significantly reduce MLT is the over‐emphasis on machine utilizations. When plant performance is based on overall utilization, shop floor foremen try to maintain a sufficient level of work in front of their department to ensure that the machines are never starved. As a result of these large queues at each workcentre, a high level of WIP in the entire plant is maintained. And, due to the direct relationship between lead times and WIP to be discussed later, as the level of WIP increases, a proportional increase in lead time follows.

Drum‐Buffer‐Rope (DBR) is a relatively new approach to inventory and logistics management that effectively supports reduced manufacturing lead‐time. Previous studies have not emphasized this fact nor explained how it is accomplished. This paper describes DBR mechanics, proposes appropriate implementation steps, identifies key ideas, and reports experience with one DBR application. Key ideas identified include the use of input control and excess capacity. Input control is readily implemented within DBR while excess capacity permits DBR flow to be maintained. The reported application demonstrates both the effectiveness of DBR in reducing lead‐time and its vulnerability to misunderstanding.

A well developed manufacturing strategy is becoming increasingly important to many manufacturing organizations. A major feature of such a strategy is the definition of a manufacturing infrastructure that is consistent with how products and services compete in the selected market. The managerial accounting system is a key component of this infrastructure. Reports the results of a survey of 85 manufacturing companies. Finds that many companies use an accounting system that appears to be inappropriate. The systems are often ill suited to their marketplace and inconsistent with an appropriate manufacturing strategy. Discusses recommendations for change for companies currently developing a manufacturing strategy.

Introduces the concept of a manufacturing strategy based on a service orientation. Traditional manufacturing strategies have often been driven by cost minimization decisions and have encouraged the over‐reliance by managers on inventories to satisfy demand. In today′s business environment, a reliance on inventory is often not feasible. Suggests a reliance on capacity available to meet demand, as used by the service industry. Such a strategy is in direct conflict with most cost‐accounting systems because of the absorption of overhead costs based on direct labour. Proposes two alternatives for changing the accounting system, to enhance the move towards the service‐based strategy. Lastly, presents a case study of a US plant to illustrate the results that a company adopting this approach should expect.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of protean and boundaryless career attitudes in early career employees during a time of economic recession in Ireland, specifically regarding their relationship to work characteristics, job satisfaction and career satisfaction.

Using a quantitative design, data were obtained from a variety of Irish organizations. Employees in the trial career stage (aged between 18 and 29) responded to questions pertaining to their career attitudes, perceived work context and satisfaction.

Skill variety was related to higher job satisfaction for those with a strong organizational mobility preference, and skill specialization was related to lower job satisfaction for those with a weak organizational mobility preference. Autonomy and skill specialization were positively related to career satisfaction for those who held a strong self-directed career attitude.

For researchers, this study contributes to our understanding of the boundary conditions of the work design-satisfaction relationship, and provides further insights into how these findings extend to career satisfaction.

For managers, they demonstrate the importance of considering career attitudes when considering the relationship between job design and satisfaction during recessionary times.

The research extends past findings on careers attitudes during times of recession, and provides insights into psychological and contextual variables that contribute to satisfaction during such economic periods.

According to national surveys, every year approximately 20% of school-age students report bullying victimization. The risk of victimization is even higher for students with disabilities, particularly those whose disabilities are characterized by social–emotional or behavioral traits. To address public concern over bullying, states passed anti-bullying laws and schools implemented bullying prevention programs, with little effect on the frequency of bullying. Consequently, parents of students with disabilities increasingly filed lawsuits to address the harm caused by bullying. Previous research established an increasing trajectory for the frequency of these lawsuits, although the outcomes remained largely favorable to the district defendants. To determine whether these trends continue, this study examined bullying-related court decisions over a 2.5 year period to determine the frequency of cases and claim basis rulings, the representation of disability categories among student plaintiffs, and the outcomes distribution for the claim rulings and cases. The findings noted a continued increasing trajectory for the frequency of cases with an overrepresentation of plaintiffs with ADHD, mental health diagnoses, and autism. Most commonly cited legal bases were Section 504/ADA and negligence, with the overall outcomes distribution more parent plaintiff-favorable than the previous research. To prevent potential liability, educators should strengthen efforts to both comply with reporting and investigation requirements as well as establishing a school culture that accepts differences among students.