Evaluation and Analysis of Lean-Based Manufacturing Equipment and Technology System for Jordanian Industries

Authors: Mohammad D. AL-Tahat, Shahnaz M. Alkhalil

Abstract:

International markets driven forces are changing continuously, therefore companies need to gain a competitive edge in such markets. Improving the company's products, processes and practices is no longer auxiliary. Lean production is a production management philosophy that consolidates work tasks with minimum waste resulting in improved productivity. Lean production practices can be mapped into many production areas. One of these is Manufacturing Equipment and Technology (MET). Many lean production practices can be implemented in MET, namely, specific equipment configurations, total preventive maintenance, visual control, new equipment/ technologies, production process reengineering and shared vision of perfection.The purpose of this paper is to investigate the implementation level of these six practices in Jordanian industries. To achieve that a questionnaire survey has been designed according to five-point Likert scale. The questionnaire is validated through pilot study and through experts review. A sample of 350 Jordanian companies were surveyed, the response rate was 83%. The respondents were asked to rate the extent of implementation for each of practices. A relationship conceptual model is developed, hypotheses are proposed, and consequently the essential statistical analyses are then performed. An assessment tool that enables management to monitor the progress and the effectiveness of lean practices implementation is designed and presented. Consequently, the results show that the average implementation level of lean practices in MET is 77%, Jordanian companies are implementing successfully the considered lean production practices, and the presented model has Cronbach-s alpha value of 0.87 which is good evidence on model consistency and results validation.

Keywords: Lean Production, SME applications, Visual Control, New equipment/technologies, Specific equipment configurations, Jordan

Digital Object Identifier (DOI): doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.1334680

References:

[1] Bayou, M. and Korvin, A. (2008), Measuring the leanness of manufacturing systemsÔÇöA case study of Ford Motor Company and General Motors, Journal of Engineering and Technology Management (JET-M), 25, pp.287-304.
[2] Liker, J. (2004), The Toyota Way: 14 Management Principles from the World's Greatest Manufacturer. McGraw-Hill.
[3] Al-Tahat, M.D. and Eteir, M. (2010), Investigation of the potential of implementing Kaizen principles in Jordanian companies, Int. J. Product Development, Vol. 10, Nos. 1/2/3, pp.87-100.
[4] Norin, J. and Karlström, D. (2006), Lean Configuration Management, Softhouse Consulting, Stormgatan 14, SE-211 20 Malmö.
[5] Russell, R. and Taylor III. (2001), Operations Management, Fourth Edition. New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
[6] Eti, M., Ogaji, S. and Probert, S. (2006), Reducing the cost of preventative maintenance (PM) through adopting a proactive reliabilityfocused culture. Applied Energy 83, Vol. 83, Issue 11, pp.1235-1248.
[7] Meredith, J. and Shafer, S. (2007), Operations Management for MBAs with Crystal Ball CD, 3rd edition, Chapter 10: Lean Management, John Wiley and Sons, Inc.
[8] Feld, W.M. (2000), Lean Manufacturing: Tools, Techniques, and How to Use Them. The St. Lucie Press, London.
[9] Parry, G. and Turner, E. (2006), Application of lean visual process management tools, Production Planning and Control, Volume 17, Number 1, 77-86(10).
[10] Gisselquist, D. and Grether, M. (2000), an argument for deregulating the transfer of agriculture technologies to developing countries. The World Bank Economic Review, 14(10), pp.111-128.
[11] Lee, A. Wang, W. and Lin, T. (2010), an evaluation framework for technology transfer of new equipment in high technology industry, Technological Forecasting & Social Change, 77, pp.135-150.
[12] Hammer, M., Champy. J., (1993), Reengineering the Corporation: A Manifesto for Business Revolution, Harper Collins, London.
[13] Mayer, Richard J. and DeWitte, S. (1998), Delivering Results: Evolving BPR from Art to Engineering, Business Process Reengineering.
[14] Braggs, J. and Lesniak, D. (2010), aiming for Perfection: An Exploration of Leadership and Excellence, The quality Management Forum Winter, Vol. 35, No. 4.
[15] Arnauld, A. (2011), retrieved from: http://www.finestquotes.com/author_quotes-author-Angelique Arnauldpage- 0.htm.
[16] Ross, and Associates Environmental Consulting, Ltd. (2000), Pursuing Perfection: Case Studies Examining Lean Manufacturing Strategies, Pollution Prevention, and Environmental Regulatory Management Implications, Industrial Economics, Inc. U.S.
[17] Kirby, K., and Greene B. (2003), How value stream type affects the adoption of lean production tools and techniques, Proceedings of the 2003 Industrial Engineering and Research Conference, Portland, OR, May 18-20, 2003, Session S25: Organizational Change on CD-ROM.
[18] Czabke, J. Hansen, N. and Doolen, L. (2008), A multisided field study of lean thinking in US and German secondary wood products manufacturers, Forest Products Journal, Vol. 58, No. 9, pp.77-85.
[19] Rea, L. and Parker, A. (2005), Designing and conducting survey research: a comprehensive guide (3rd ed.), San Francisco, CA: Jossey- Bass.
[20] Shahin, A. and Janatyan, N. (2010), Group Technology (GT) and Lean Production: A Conceptual Model for Enhancing Productivity, International Business Research Vol. 3, No. 4.
[21] Tsai, Ch. and Lee Ch. (2006), Optimization of manufacturing cell formation with a multi-functional mathematical programming model, Int. J. of advanced manufacturing technology, volume 30, numbers 3-4, and pp.309-318.
[22] Hachicha, W. Masmoudi, F. and Haddar M. (2008), Formation of machine groups and part families in cellular manufacturing systems using a correlation analysis approach, Int. J. of advanced manufacturing technology, Volume 36, Numbers 11-12, pp.1157-1169.
[23] Rother, M. and Harris, R. (2001), Creating Continuous Flow: An Action Guide for Managers, Engineers and Production Associates, A Lean Toolkit Method and Workbook, The lean enterprise institute, Brookline, Massachusetts, USA.
[24] Hipkin, I. and Cock, C. (2000), TQM and BPR: lessons for maintenance management, Omega, 28, pp.277-292.
[25] Swenson, K. (1993), Visual Support for Reengineering Work Processes, Proceedings of the Conference on Organizational Computing Systems.
[26] Li-Hua, R. and Khalil, T. (2006), Technology management in China: a global perspective and challenging issues. J Technol Manage China, 1(1), pp.9-26.
[27] Vehkapera, H. Haapasalo, H. and Rusanen, J. (2009), Analysis of Technology Management Functions in Finnish High Tech Companies, The Open Management Journal, 2, pp.1-10.
[28] S├ínchez, A. and Pérez, J. (2001), Lean indicators and manufacturing strategies, Int. J. of Operations & Production Management, Vol. 21, No. 11, pp.1433-1451.
[29] Piirainen, K. Elfvengren, K. Korpela, J. and Tuominen, M. (2009), improving the effectiveness of business process development through collaboration engineering: a method for process elicitation, Proceedings of the 42nd Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences. IEEE.
[30] Chutima, P. and Kaewin, K. (2007), Using Lean & Business Process Reengineering (BPR) Model for Improving Agility, The IE Network Conference.
[31] Gliem, J. and Gliem, R. (2003), Calculating, interpreting, and reporting Cronbach-s alpha reliability coefficient for Likert-type scales. Midwest Research to Practice Conference in Adult, Continuing, and Community Education. The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, pp.82-88.
[32] Armstrong, R. and Tan, S. (2000), Corporate-customer satisfaction in the banking industry of Singapore, Int. J. of Bank Marketing, Vol. 18 Issue: 3, pp.97- 111.