Developments in Operations Technology - Operations Management Perspective - Review Notes

This topic of developments in operations technology is also applicable in INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERING. Industrial Engineering is System Efficiency Engineering.  Its main areas are   Machine Effort Industrial Engineering  and Human Effort Industrial Engineering.  Industrial Engineering Knowledge Center. 

Industrial engineers have the responsibility for the continuous improvement of productivity and the resulting cost reduction. Cost reduction is a continuous activity, as competitors keep coming up with more creative and less cost ideas to capture the markets. Each time a competitor makes a successful entry, average price realized by all participants decreases in the market, and the existing companies are forced to make efforts to match the cost reduction achieved by the new competitor. Industrial engineers are responsible for monitoring the technology develops and implement various new developments along with creative application of existing technologies to maintain cost based competitiveness. Industrial engineers have to welcome small small improvements and make the efforts to implement them in processes.

Operations Technology Chapter from Chase Aquilano Jacobs Book


Much of the recent growth in productivity has come from the application of operations technology. In services this comes primarily from soft technology—information processing. In manufacturing it comes from a combination of soft and hard (machine) technologies.

Development in Technologies

Hardware technology developments  have generally resulted in greater automation of processes. Labor-intensive tasks originally performed by humans are getting more and more automated. Examples of these hardware technologies are numerically controlled machine tools, machining centers, industrial robots, automated materials handling systems, and flexible manufacturing systems. These are all computer-controlled equipments and machines  that can be used in the manufacturing of products.

Software-based technologies are being used in the design of manufactured products and in the analysis and planning of manufacturing activities. These technologies include computer aided design and automated manufacturing planning and control systems.

Hardware Systems

Numerically controlled (NC) machines are comprised of (1) machine tool used to turn, drill, or grind different types of parts and (2) a computer that controls the sequence of processes performed by the machine. NC machines are now in use many industries. In more recent models, feedback control loops determine the position of the machine tooling during the work, constantly compare the actual location with the programmed location, and correct as needed. This is often called adaptive control.

Machining centers represent an increased level of automation and complexity relative to NC machines. Machining centers not only provide automatic control of a machine, they may also carry many tools that can be automatically changed depending on the tool required for each operation. In addition, a single machine may be equipped with a shuttle system so that a finished part can be unloaded and an unfinished part loaded while the machine is working on a part.

Industrial robots are now used as substitutes for workers for many repetitive manual activities and tasks that are dangerous, dirty, or dull. A robot is a programmable, multifunctional machine that may be equipped with an end effector. Examples of end effectors include a gripper to pick things up, or a tool such as a wrench, a welder, or a paint sprayer.  Advanced capabilities have been designed into robots to allow vision, tactile sensing, and hand-to-hand coordination. In addition, some models can be “taught” a sequence of motions in a three-dimensional pattern. As a worker moves the end of the robot arm through the required motions, the robot records this pattern in its memory and repeats it on command.

Automated materials handing (AMH) systems improve efficiency of transportation, storage, and retrieval of materials. Examples are computerized conveyors and automated storage and retrieval systems (AS/RS) in which computers direct automatic loaders to pick and place items. Automated guided vehicle (AGV) systems use embedded floor wires to direct driverless vehicles to various locations in the plant. Benefits of AMH systems include quicker material movement, lower inventories and storage space, reduced product damage, and higher labor productivity.

The individual pieces of automation can be combined to form manufacturing cells or even complete flexible manufacturing systems (FMS).A manufacturing cell might consist of a robot and a machining center. The robot could be programmed to automatically insert and remove parts from the machining center, thus allowing unattended operation. An FMS is a totally automated manufacturing system that consists of machining centers with automated loading and unloading of parts, an automated guided vehicle system for moving parts between machines, and other automated elements to allow unattended production of parts. In an FMS, a comprehensive computer control system is used to run the entire system.

A FMS is in operation in the Cincinnati Milacron facility in Mt. Orab, Ohio, for over 20 years. In this system, parts are loaded onto standardized fixtures (these are called “risers”), which are mounted on pallets that can be moved by the AGVs. Workers load and unload tools and parts onto the standardized fixtures at the workstations. Most of this loading and unloading is done during a single shift. The system can operate virtually unattended for the other two shifts each day.  The system is capable of producing hundreds of different parts.

Software Systems 

Computer-aided design (CAD) is an approach to product and process design that utilizes the power of the computer. CAD covers several automated technologies, such as computer graphics to examine the visual characteristics of a product and computer-aided engineering (CAE )to evaluate its engineering characteristics. Rubbermaid used CAD to refine dimensions of its Tote Wheels to meet airline requirements for checked baggage. CAD also includes technologies associated with the manufacturing process design, referred to as computer-aided process planning (CAPP).CAPP is used to design the computer part programs that serve as instructions to computer-controlled machine tools, and to design the programs used to sequence parts through the machine centers and other processes (such as the washing and inspection) needed to complete the part. These programs are referred to as process plans. Sophisticated CAD systems are also able to do on-screen tests, replacing the early phases of prototype testing and modification.

CAD has been used to design everything from computer chips to potato chips. Frito-Lay, for example, used CAD to design its O’Grady’s double-density, ruffled potato chip. The problem in designing such a chip is that if it is cut improperly, it may be burned on the outside and soggy on the inside, be too brittle (and shatter when placed in the bag), or display other characteristics that make it unworthy for, say, a guacamole dip. However, through the use of CAD, the proper angle and number of ruffles were determined mathematically; the O’Grady’s model passed its stress test in the infamous Frito-Lay“crusher” and made it to your grocer’s shelf.

CAD is now being used to custom design swimsuits. Measurements of the wearer are fed into the CAD program, along with the style of suit desired. Working with the customer, the designer modifies the suit design as it appears on a human-form drawing on the computer screen. Once the design is decided upon, the computer prints out a pattern, and the suit is cut and sewn on the spot.

Automated manufacturing planning and control systems (MP&CS)are simply computer based information systems that help plan, schedule, and monitor a manufacturing operation. They obtain information from the factory floor continuously about work status, material arrivals, and so on, and they release production and purchase orders. Sophisticated manufacturing and planning control systems include order-entry processing, shop-floor control, purchasing, and cost accounting.

COMPUTER-INTEGRATED MANUFACTURING(CIM)

All of these automation technologies are brought together under computer-integrated manufacturing (CIM). CIM is the automated version of the manufacturing process, where the three major manufacturing functions—product and process design, planning and control, and the manufacturing process itself—are replaced by the automated technologies just described. Further, the traditional integration mechanisms of oral and written communication are replaced by computer technology. Such highly automated and integrated manufacturing also goes under other names: total factory automation and the factory of the future. All of the CIM technologies are tied together using a network and integrated database. For instance, data integration allows CAD systems to be linked to computer-aided manufacturing (CAM),which consists of numerical-control parts programs; and the manufacturing planning and control system can be linked to the automated material handling systems to facilitate parts pick list generation. Thus, in a fully integrated system, the areas of design, testing, fabrication, assembly, inspection, and material handling are not only automated but also integrated with each other and with the manufacturing planning and scheduling function.

TECHNOLOGICAL RISKS

An early adopter of a new technology has the benefit of being ahead of the competition, but he or she also runs the risk of acquiring an untested technology whose problems could disrupt the firm’s operations. There is also the risk of obsolescence, especially with electronics-based technologies where change is rapid and when the fixed cost of acquiring new technologies or the cost of upgrades is high. Also, alternative technologies may become more cost-effective in the future, negating the benefits of a technology today.

OPERATIONAL RISKS

There could also be risks in applying a new technology to a firm’s operations. Installation of a new technology generally results in significant disruptions, at least in the short run, in the form of plant-wide reorganization, retraining, and so on. Further risks are due to the delays and errors introduced in the production process and the uncertain and sudden demands on various resources.

ORGANIZATIONAL RISKS

Firms may lack the organizational culture and top management commitment required to absorb the short-term disruptions and uncertainties associated with adopting a new technology. In such organizations, there is a risk that the firm’s employees or managers may

quickly abandon the technology when there are short-term failures or will avoid major

changes by simply automating the firm’s old, inefficient process and therefore not obtain

the benefits of the new technology.

ENVIRONMENTAL OR  MARKET RISKS

In many cases, a firm may invest in a particular technology only to discover a few years later that changes in some environmental or market factors make the investment worthless.

For instance, in environmental issues auto firms have been reluctant to invest in technology

for making electric cars because they are uncertain about future emission standards of state

and federal governments, the potential for decreasing emissions from gasoline-based cars,

and the potential for significant improvements in battery technology.

One more revision of the write up has to be made.

Further Updates

Industry 4.0: Reimagining manufacturing operations after COVID-19

July 29, 2020 | Article

https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/operations/our-insights/industry-40-reimagining-manufacturing-operations-after-covid-19

2021

Top 10 industrial automation trends in 2021

January 4, 2021

https://www.automationmag.com/top-10-industrial-automation-trends-in-2021/

Key Technology Trends for 2021

February 5, 2021

https://blog.se.com/sustainability/2021/02/05/key-technology-trends-for-2021/

Key Technology Trends for 2021

https://www.ge.com/digital/blog/key-technology-trends-2021

Technology deep dive: Industrial Internet of Things - McKinsey

https://www.mckinsey.com/~/media/mckinsey/Business%20Functions/McKinsey%20Digital/Our%20Insights/The%20top%20trends%20in%20tech%20final/Tech%20Trends%20slides%202%203%204

Strategy & Consulting

Supply Chain & Operations

What are the supply chain’s technology priorities?

MAY 28, 2021

https://www.accenture.com/us-en/insights/supply-chain-operations/technology-vision-supply-chain-perspective

Worldwide Future of Operations 2021 Predictions - PDF

14-Jul-2021 

https://search.abb.com/library/Download.aspx?DocumentID=9AKK107992A5141&LanguageCode=en&DocumentPartId=&Action=Launch

Implementation of Technology in Warehouse Operations.

The work is a part of the three-year Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering and Management, specialization Sustainable 

Supply Chain Management.

https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:1572242/FULLTEXT01.pdf

Automation in pharmaceutical industry

Priya Digarse

December 22, 2021,

http://www.pharmabiz.com/ArticleDetails.aspx?aid=144762&sid=9

2022

Tech Trends 2022 - An essay by Deloitte Consulting LLP’s chief futurist Mike Bechtel, 

Three  trends that are notable:

Quantum technologies, which are poised to transform computing, sensing, and communications within the next decade

Exponential intelligence, the next generation of AI technologies that promises to understand human emotion and intent

Ambient computing, which will make technology ubiquitous in our work and home environments

https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/insights/focus/tech-trends/2022/macro-technology-trends.html

Tech Roadmap: Technologies For Remote Industrial Operations

PUBLISHED 23 FEBRUARY 2022 BY THOMAS WEALD & MALAVIKA TOHANI

https://research.verdantix.com/report/tech-roadmap-technologies-for-remote-industrial-operations

Open AccessArticle

Advancing Smart Manufacturing in Europe: Experiences from Two Decades of Research and Innovation Projects

by Paul Grefen et al.

School of Industrial Engineering, Eindhoven University of Technology, P.O. Box 513, 5600 MB Eindhoven, The Netherlands

Machines 2022, 10(1), 45; https://doi.org/10.3390/machines10010045

Abstract

In the past two decades, a large amount of attention has been devoted to the introduction of smart manufacturing concepts and technologies into industrial practice. In Europe, these efforts have been supported by European research and innovation programs, bringing together research and application parties. In this paper, we provide an overview of a series of four content-wise connected projects on the European scale that are aimed at advancing smart manufacturing, with a focus on connecting processes on smart factory shop floors to manufacturing equipment on the one hand and enterprise-level business processes on the other hand. We analyze the experiences, both the positive ones and those including problems, and draw our learnings from these. 

https://www.mdpi.com/2075-1702/10/1/45/htm

Updated 2.4.2022,  2 April 2017, 9 December 2011