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With a cross-disciplinary perspective, this field-based case series uses the purchase of a manufacturing company based in China to set the stage for an analysis of cost accounting, operational effectiveness, and cross-cultural communication. It offers a discussion about the strategy to purchase a Chinese firm to enter a promising business line for the Chinese market and provides an opportunity to introduce basic accounting, management communication, and operational terms that can be explored in following classes. The material includes an overview of a partnership between a Westerner and two Chinese executives, the issues they discovered through due diligence, plans to break into a new market, and their efforts to communicate lean manufacturing principles in another language and culture. If possible, inviting colleagues from accounting, communications, or operations to jointly teach the class enriches the discussion and provides an integrated learning experience. The B case adds a twist. After the purchase, following a 90-day stabilization period, an optimization plan, a strategic review, and a purchase of land to build a larger operation, the leadership team was finalizing plans to drop two production lines and invest in supercapacitor production. At that point, a key air conditioner customer asked to meet with the team, seeking to double its capacity to meet market demand-which would entail ordering at least triple the number of capacitors China Star was then producing. There was only one problem: the requested product would be a line slated for elimination. Did it make sense to ramp up a line China Star had planned to de-emphasize?

A manufacturer of spiral freezers, which allow food manufacturers to replace a batch freezing process with single piece flow in a fraction of the space, reviews the economics of replacing a batch freezing process with a spiral freezer for a customer. The case enables students to demonstrate an understanding of process analysis, bottlenecks, and Little's Law in the context of an economic cost/benefit analysis.

Process capability, as revolutionized by Motorola, can be defined as the extent to which a process's natural variation falls within specifications. This note is a succinct introduction to the process capability ratio, which compares set specifications against the three standard deviations on either side of the process mean--six in total, referred to as Six Sigma. This introduction assumes a normal distribution of observations and a process that is performing predictably over time.

Two MBA students involved in a week-long kaizen event at a manufacturing plant in the Czech Republic must increase productivity and reduce gross inventory despite an uncooperative work group. Lean manufacturing principles are analyzed in the context of a deadline-driven process.

In the second part of a two-part case, two MBA students candidly evaluate their performance in a week-long kaizen event at a manufacturing plant in the Czech Republic.

Using the terminology of lean management practices, this note addresses muda, or waste, by defining its subtypes and providing a framework for their identification in production and service processes. A form useful for conducting a muda audit is provided.

Two MBA students involved in a week-long kaizen event at a manufacturing plant in the Czech Republic must increase productivity and reduce gross inventory despite an uncooperative work group. Lean manufacturing principles are analyzed in the context of a deadline-driven process.

Preparing a proposal for a DVD content partner, the production director for a digital media company must decide whether to advocate mass production or production on demand. The catalog of old television series and B-movies relies on a "long tail," making on-demand production an attractive option. What capital investment is required? And will the per-unit premium outweigh inventory holding costs?

This overview of inventory management covers ways to categorize inventories and measure performance. The financial implications of inventory, inventory management systems, economic order quantities, and decision rules for determining safety stocks are discussed.

Inventory replenishment concepts and tools are described.

Cycle-stock ordering decisions, including cost-element considerations, are examined. As materials flow from suppliers through a firm's operations to customers, the cost-effectiveness of inventory investment is improved by the development and implementation of an inventory management system.

A manufacturer of turboprop airplanes must evaluate its spare-part inventory control system. Economic order quantities, safety stocks, and reorder points must be calculated, and issues regarding relevant costs and performance measures must be addressed.

This case concerns Gene Cattie Enterprises (GCE), a manufacturer of a variety of fabricated metal house accessories, including mailboxes and window boxes. Founded in 2001 by Gene Cattie, a former HR professional for a large diversified financial-services company, GCE manufactures window boxes in five basic colors in a small plant in central Virginia. Historically, GCE has competed by providing a low-cost, high-quality product, sold mostly to specialty stores and catalog retailers. Competitive pressures have recently made delivery lead time an issue. Cattie believes that if he can significantly reduce the manufacturing lead time, he will be able to respond to market fluctuations as well as provide a line of custom-made window boxes. He wonders whether he can improve the effectiveness of his window-box production operation. As a former HR professional, he is unsure what his choices are. He is even unsure of the measures he should use to evaluate his decisions. He is, however, sure of one thing: his goal is to make money. His gut tells him that he is not making as much as he could.

Supplement case for UV1257.

Lean has been defined as the "relentless pursuit of the elimination of waste." This technical note provides a glossary of terms concerning Lean implementation, including muda, muri, nura, kanban, andon board, SMED, poka-yoke, 5S, gemba, takt time, heijunka, and kaizen.

This four-case series follows a team through a weeklong kaizen event. The A case sets up the situation, and the B (UVA-OM-1259), C (UVA-OM-1260), and D (UVA-OM-1261) cases depict what happens on the successive days. The series teaches such concepts as takt time, line balancing, and managing change. The A case is intended to be handed out as an assignment, and the B, C, and D cases provide real-time exercises for the students.

Supplement case for UV1257.

Supplement case for UV1257.

Thermaware, Inc., a manufacturer of top-of-the-line industrial thermostat controllers, is considering moving toward a single-piece-flow system. From the demand and production information given, students must determine a schedule that reduces inventory and approaches single-piece flow. The case can be used as a vehicle to reinforce the scheduling concepts found in the book The Gold Mine.

A Charlottesville-based manufacturer of "kooky" active-wear clothing must decide whether to outsource some of its shirts to a manufacturer in Hong Kong. While providing lower costs, the supplier reduces Yo Wear's flexibility to respond to changes in demand volume. Students must determine the relevant costs of sourcing in Hong Kong and making to order in house. A newsvendor-type model is required to determine the optimal order size from Hong Kong.