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To follow Digital Equipment Corp.: The Endpoint Model (C1). Students must assess what their next steps would be as plant manager and group manufacturing manager.

Describes the many international sourcing initiatives in a multinational connector manufacturing company from the standpoint of an independent and very successful subsidiary in Japan. Students can explore the conflicts inherent in the situation and thus the more general motives for centralization and decentralization in international manufacturing companies. Japanese purchasing methods and vendor relations are also presented in great detail.

The technical services manager must decide on how to proceed with the development of a new fish head cutting device based on results from a summer study of fish flesh waste. Various alternatives are presented along with projected costs, all with varying degrees of technological and financial risk. (A sequel to this case is available, titled Canadian Fishing Company (B), case 9A88D007.)

The services manager was reviewing the latest progress status of the new fish head cutting device development program. The project was behind schedule and decisions needed to be made on several contingency plans. The technical services manager also wondered how to ensure speedy development of the device without jeopardizing the joint venture relationship. (This case is a sequel to Canadian Fishing Company (A), case 9A88D006.)

Sunwind A.B. supplies interior trim (floor-lids) to Volvo Car company from its Säve plant. The newly appointed Managing Director is faced with capacity and quality problems on one hand and plant closure on the other. he is convinced that the successful implementation of the just-in-time, sequenced delivery of floor lids directly onto Volvo's 700 series assembly line at its Torslanda plant, only 8 km distant, would guarantee not only the viability of the Säve plant but also provide Sunwind with a sorely needed competitive advantage within Sweden's car trim industry. Participants are asked to develop an action plan for implementing the just-in-time sequence delivery of floor lids to Volvo. This requires the analysis of current operations and making recommendations for change consistent with the just-in-time approach.

Traditional programs of quality control in the United States have emphasized mainly defensive actions--preventing defects--and even these programs have been pursued halfheartedly. But high quality means pleasing consumers, not just protecting them from annoyances. Therefore, U.S. consumers have become skeptical about the quality of goods and services offered by U.S. corporations, while Japanese electronics, automobile, and semiconductor companies have come to dominate important U.S. markets. In order for a company to compete on quality deliberately and strategically, its managers must first divide the concept into manageable parts--the eight dimensions of quality by which consumers judge products: performance, features, reliability, conformance, durability, serviceability, aesthetics, and perceived quality. Managers should research potential markets and the strengths of their competition to ascertain which of these dimensions they can emphasize.

Examines a significant example of "technological pioneering"--the development of an emerging technology in pursuit of future commercial opportunity. In this case, the pioneer's efforts resulted in the birth of a major industry, the manufacture of videocassette recorders for the mass consumer market. The authors compare the actions of six firms that were pioneers in the development of this technology, two in the United States and four in Japan. Three firms, all Japanese, emerged in the late 1970s as the big winners in the growth of this new industry. However, this is not another case in which international differences in "competitiveness" were decisive. The real success story lies in the management practices of three pioneers, who just happened to be Japanese.

Describes Manufacturing Resource Planning (MRP II), a production technique designed to couple business and financial plans with manufacturing plans. It is an important tool for aligning manufacturing with a company's overall strategy and goals. Describes MRPII, distinguishing it from its predecessor, Material Requirements Planning (MRP); discusses the technique's basic elements; and reports survey results that show the factors distinguishing the most successful adopters of the technique.

The Logistics and Distribution unit of Xerox's Business Systems Group was gaining 3% to 5% a year in productivity - not good enough in light of industrywide price cuts in business machines. One solution, benchmarking, measures L&D's warehouse and distribution performance against comparable activities in other industries. After a search, L&D found the best warehousing and materials handling organization was at L.L. Bean. By looking closely at the operation of Bean and other noncompetitors, L&D has raised its productivity 10% each year and gained a better position against its real competition.

For more than ten years, U.S. manufacturers have tried to narrow their competitive gap with Japan by investing in flexible automation. But having the technology and using it well are two different things. A study of more than half the installed systems in both countries shows that American companies are using computerized manufacturing for the same old-fashioned, high-volume, low-variety production they have always pursued, while the Japanese are utilizing the new technology in remarkably flexible and effective ways.

Provides definitions of technology and operations management terms.

Kodak must decide whether to make a major investment in a production facility designed around a new technique for producing the gelatin critical to so many film and paper products. Currently, gelatin making is an arcane art, unchanged in 150 years and heavily dependent upon the sensory skills of experienced foremen. The new process, in a pilot stage now, is a chemical reaction which reduces the process time for one step from 6 months to 48 hours and which is much more "scientific." However, the old plant is fully paid for, the new process is only one potential avenue for improvement, and demand for gelatin is falling.

Describes the three distinct approaches to quality management represented by W. Edwards Deming, Joseph Juran, and Philip B. Crosby. Designed to introduce students to the elements of statistical quality control, structured approaches to quality improvement, and zero defects programs and to show them that there is more than one way to improve quality.

Before managers can take meaningful steps to boost factory performance, they need an accurate way to judge what good performance is and to compare performance among facilities. The measurement systems in place at many factories fail to tell managers what they really need to know. To clarify the variables that affect productivity, 12 factories in 3 companies were studied over time. A new measuring system called total factor productivity (TFP) was devised to gauge each plant's overall efficiency. Then, the managerial practices that, when done right, make a difference were identified: investing in new equipment, reducing waste, and cutting work-in-process inventories by solving the problems that produced them in the first place.

For more than ten years, American manufacturers have been trying to improve productivity--and thereby enhance their international competitiveness--through cost-cutting programs. But costs have not declined enough, nor has international competitiveness much improved. Instead, our decline has intensified. Real productivity improvement is not easy. Approaches that pare down direct labor costs and make factory workers more efficient have proven fundamentally flawed. Manufacturers need to direct their thinking away from straight cost cutting toward quality enhancement, strategy, and product technology. McKinsey Award Winner.

Examines different alternatives for the introduction of telemation and computer aided design in a small firm. The issues involve what extent of cooperation is required by different firms so that a telecommunicative interchange between them becomes effective.

A major Korean firm has begun production of televisions in the United States. Output and quality are below Korean standards. Students must determine why and suggest ways to improve.

The publicity surrounding just-in-time production, or JIT, emphasizes the lower inventory costs and greater ROI attributable to the technique. More important, however, are the improvements in manufacturing that result from operating with low inventories. Since converting to JIT involves a big change in a company's culture and operations, many companies have resisted it. Successful conversion to JIT rests on management commitment and the involvement of the entire work force. Appointing a champion to set up a training program, make a conversion schedule, and form a conversion team will expedite the transition.

Spreadsheet supplement for case 686118.

Summarizes how to construct and use statistical process control charts. Gives several examples. Discusses tolerances using control charts for debugging.