Aim: This study investigates the degree of Six Sigma implementation in the aviation industry where it has been successful and is widely spread. Six Sigma is a quality measurement and improvement program and provides businesses with the tools to improve the capability of their business processes. The paper scrutinizes the possible consequences of implementing Six Sigma in a strictly controlled environment and how the defined success factors for implementation could be interpreted in this context. The concept of Six Sigma is examined with the objective to define recommendations for implementation at Saab Avitronics, a company within the aviation industry. Method: The theoretical background presents what theories for Six Sigma successful implementation that are present and seeks to give the topic depth and perspective to establish a basis on which the analysis later is built on. Phases for implementation of improvement programs and success factors for Six Sigma are investigated. To establish the environment in which the theory is adapted the empirical part of the study presents a marketing audit and a SWOT analysis of Saab Avitronics. An internal survey is also performed to examine Saab Avitronics’ view on its own knowledge in the area of Six Sigma, improvement methodology, statistics, and the attitudes towards implementing a methodology based on Six Sigma. The analysis is performed by applying the theoretical background in the light of the reality of Saab Avitronics. The possibility of a successful implementation is discussed. Result & Conclusions:Continuous improvements are a general prerequisite for survival and success and the study shows that this has also become a requirement imposed on companies within the aviation industry. Although special conditions apply to the aviation industry and Saab Avitronics there is nothing preventing from implementing the improvement concept in general, but special criteria have to be considered when choosing suitable projects. The study concludes with recommendations for Saab Avitronics on five phases for implementation; Plan, Pilot, Implement, Expand and Integrate, and main activities within these phases are defined. Finally the most important success factors for implementation at Saab Avitronics are defined and also how these should be interpreted for continuous improvement and future success. Suggestions for future research: The investigation is limited to the aviation industry and to Saab Avitronics. Future research projects could further study the consequences at Saab Avitronics after implementation of Six Sigma, case studies of implementing best practise theories like these recommendations, and studying selection criteria for success factors. Contribution of the thesis: The study contributes with recommendations to Saab Avitronics when implementing Six Sigma and also to the know-how and knows-what, to others than Saab Avitronics, when studying the same topic or when planning their own implementation of Six Sigma.

Customer Relationship Management (CRM) which focuses on the relationship with customers has become more and more important in business management. CRM is a managerial system based on technological applications which can help companies to get competitive advantages. In our paper, we focus on the CRM in the Chinese context and our purpose is to identify important factors during the management of customer relationship in China. We have studied one of the largest Chinese Telecom companies.

An analysis of solid waste management was performed in Gaborone, Botswana to identify the quantity of different types of solid waste that are generated annually and the possible strategies for improved waste management. In order to achieve the objective of the project, present waste management practice in Gaborone was analysed and waste composition study was carried out in Gamodubu landfill, Gaborone. Waste from household, commercial, industrial and others (defence and institutional) stratums were selected for sampling. Different samples were taken and forwarded to sorting analysis. The waste was categorized into 10 categories and one of the categories (plastic) is further divided into 5 Subcategories. The output of the study results the quantity of solid waste generated in Gaborone, composition of solid waste categories from different stratums and its flow to the landfill and the quality of waste, annually. These findings helped in serving the importance and the need of better waste management system in order to improvise the potential for resource recovery under social considerations.

Intern materialhantering är ett ofta bortglömt område inom logistik, ett ämnesområde som annars i takt med den snabba och globala utvecklingen har fått ökad uppmärksamhet de senaste åren. I detta examensarbete studeras den interna materialhanteringen på Fläkt Woods ABs fabrik i Jönköping begränsat till flödet mellan godsmottagning och slutmontering. Syftet med fallstudien är att undersöka vilka problem som finns med den nuvarande interna materialhanteringen samt ge förbättringsförslag för hur den skulle kunna utvecklas för att minimera antalet produktionstopp orsakade av materialbrist. Studien har en abduktiv ansats där datainsamling genom dokumentation, observationer och intervjuer ligger till grund för en flödeskartläggning av tre produktgrupper som företaget bedömt vara mest intressanta att studera. Utifrån flödet identifieras möjliga problem och med hjälp av ett analytiskt ramverk klassificeras dessa för att urskilja de problem som leder till produktionsstopp. Studien visar att dessa handlar om att komponenter av någon anledning är felaktiga/skadade, lagras in/plockas på ett felaktigt sätt eller att det sker felaktigheter vid godsmottagning med avseende på registrering och sortering. Genomförda litteraturstudier ligger till grund för ett teoretiskt ramverk innehållande principer som bör tas i beaktning vid arbetet med intern materialhantering. Ramverket är en utgångspunkt för de förbättringsförslag som tas fram för att lösa de problem som bedöms orsaka produktionsstopp. Övergripande sett hamnar förbättrings­­förslagen inom tre skilda områden. Det första området berör problem orsakade av mänskliga faktorer vilka kan minimeras genom ökad motivation, produktkunskap och helhets­förståelse. Område nummer två täcker fysisk förflyttning av material samt registrering av detta i affärssystemet vilket bör ske på ett standardiserat och mer säkert sätt. Det tredje området innefattar ett behov av utökad mätning och uppföljning av de problem som uppstår i flödet för att få ökad kontroll över vad som sker. Studenterna rekommenderar företaget att, förutom att implementera föreslagna förbättringar, också studera det teoretiska ramverket för att kunna tillämpa detta på ytterligare problem som studien har identifierat men som ligger utanför studiens omfång. / Internal material handling is an area within logistics that receive little attention. Logistics on the other hand has received increased attention in recent years due to the fast and global growth of markets. The aim for this report is to study the internal material handling at Fläkt Woods AB’s factory in Jönköping, Sweden. The study is limited to include activities from receiving goods until the start of final assembly. The purpose with this case study is to identify potential problem within the current setup of the internal material handling system and provide suggestions for improvements in order to minimize downtime in production caused by lack of material. Based on an abductive approach, the data collection performed via documents, observations and interviews lays the foundation for the compilation of a number of flowcharts. These flowcharts describe the flow for three separate product groups which the company previously has identified as most interesting to map. With the flowcharts as a starting point potential problems are identified and, with the use of an own-composed analytical framework, also classified in order to sort out problems that are likely to cause downtime in production. The study states that these problems originate from damaged/defective components, incorrect storing/picking or occur due to errors when recording and sorting newly arrived goods. Literature studies are the basis for a theoretical framework containing a number of principles that should be taken into consideration when handling material internally. This framework is the base on which the presented suggestions for improvements rely. The suggestions can be divided into three separate areas. Problems caused by human factors can be minimized by increased motivation, increased knowledge and a more comprehensive view within the workforce. All kinds of physical movement along with registration in the ERP-system should be conducted in a more standardized and secure way. A need of increased measuring and monitoring has also become evident in order to increase control over different types of undesirable events. Beside implementing the proposed suggestions for improvement the students also advice the company to study the theoretical framework in order to be able to apply it on other problems. This study identifies quite a few other problems, but due to the scope of the study they are not further analyzed.

To stay competitive, companies are forced to improve their products continuously. Field data is a source of information that shows the actual performance of products during operation, and that information can be used to clarify the items in need of improvements. This master thesis aims at identifying the set of field data that is required for dependability improvements and to develop a working procedure that enables increased utilization of the field data in order to make cost-effective design improvements. To achieve this, a 12-step model called the Design Improvement Cycle (DIC) was developed and tested in a single case study. The field data need was identified using a top-down method and was included as a part of the DIC. Testing of the model showed that it was practicable and each step could be carried through, even though the last steps only could be tested hypothetically during discussions with concerned personnel. The model implied a working procedure that should be aimed at, according to personnel with competence within the subject. As the DIC appeared to be very flexible it should be possible to use within several areas. It was discovered that field data was not a sufficient source of information to support design improvements but it could be used to indicate which items that should be focused on during further investigations. The quality of the field data had a big impact on the analysis possibilities and to point out which data quality issues that had to be amended to make the data more useful, the data need for dependability improvements could be used.

This thesis investigates problematic cases in AC substation grounding system design. Particularly, the grounding design for substations that are built on high resistivity soil is considered. Here, possible physical rectification schemes are introduced and compared for their effectiveness from safety and cost efficiency perspectives. For this comparison, the CYMGRD program (a finite element analysis tool for AC substation grounding) is used for detailed analysis of the various schemes. An additional computer program is developed to implement the formulations of the related AC substation standards (IEEE, IEE, and Turkish National Regulations). The output of this program is compared with the finite element analysis of the high-resistivity-soil rectification schemes to investigate the validity of the formulations in these standards.

<p>To stay competitive, companies are forced to improve their products continuously. Field data is a source of information that shows the actual performance of products during operation, and that information can be used to clarify the items in need of improvements. This master thesis aims at identifying the set of field data that is required for dependability improvements and to develop a working procedure that enables increased utilization of the field data in order to make cost-effective design improvements. To achieve this, a 12-step model called the Design Improvement Cycle (DIC) was developed and tested in a single case study. The field data need was identified using a top-down method and was included as a part of the DIC.</p><p>Testing of the model showed that it was practicable and each step could be carried through, even though the last steps only could be tested hypothetically during discussions with concerned personnel. The model implied a working procedure that should be aimed at, according to personnel with competence within the subject. As the DIC appeared to be very flexible it should be possible to use within several areas. It was discovered that field data was not a sufficient source of information to support design improvements but it could be used to indicate which items that should be focused on during further investigations. The quality of the field data had a big impact on the analysis possibilities and to point out which data quality issues that had to be amended to make the data more useful, the data need for dependability improvements could be used.</p>

High quality within a Lean production system begins with standardised work, which creates stable processes able to generate predictable output. If nonconformity from the standard procedures occurs, routines are needed to analyse, correct and prevent the nonconformity from occurring again. In that way, the nonconformity can be a trigger for continuous improvements toward more stable processes. In takted production lines, where the operator follows a standard sequence with tasks set to be completed within the takt time, a nonconformity leads to downtime in the operator’s sequence, and no value is added. With short takt time, the nonconformity leads immediately to line stop and the nonconformity will be detected. With long takt time it is often possible to catch up in the sequence before the nonconformity stops the whole line. Thus, as a consequence the problem will be hidden. The aim of this study is to investigate how downtime and nonconformities can be tracked and measured in a Lean production system with long takt time, as well as investigate how this data can contribute to improvements. The study has been carried out as a case study of an assembly line at Atlas Copco Rock Drills division of Underground Rock Excavation in Örebro. Within this case study semi-structured interviews were performed to investigate needs from data collection and improvement processes. Beside the case study at Atlas Copco, external case studies have been performed to gather information about other companies’ processes. Participating companies for external case studies has been RUAG Space, AstraZeneca, Väderstad-Verken and Saab Aerostructures. The result of the study generated three different processes, one for collecting data about nonconformities and related downtime and two parallel processes to use the data for improvements. The data collection process shows how the downtime can be tracked to support investigated needs. The downtime data is also complemented with information about key factors that affect the accuracy of the downtime measurements. The different type of downtimes that are gathered from the process is the deviations total recovery time, recovery time affecting production and downtime for the entire production line. Together with the time measurement the nonconformities is categorised and described with attributes and text to make a thoroughly analysis possible. Analysis tools proposed for the gathered data is pareto analysis, trends, calculation of cost of poor quality and identification of areas with overcapacity. Also, the result shows how some classic TPM-indicators can be used in the analysis. The gathered data can then be used in two developed improvement processes, one for reactive improvements and one for proactive improvements. The reactive process aims to in a systematic manner find corrective and preventive actions for detected nonconformities with high impact on the production. The nonconformities are handled one by one like the procedure for many deviation systems for product quality assurance. The proactive improvement process focuses on patterns in historical data about major nonconformity areas. Together with high level KPI:s and SMART goals to support high level goals, the nonconformity areas helps to identify which activities to carry out in order to fulfil the goals. / Inom Lean utgår stor del av kvalitetsarbetet från att standardisera arbetssätt för att sträva mot stabila processer som genererar förutsägbara resultat. Om en avvikelse från den fördefinierade standarden upptäcks måste det finnas metoder för att analysera och åtgärda avvikelsen för att förhindra att den sker igen. På så vis kan avvikelser bidra till att verksamheten kontinuerligt förbättras. I taktade produktionssystem, där operatörer utgår från en standardsekvens som ska utföras inom takttiden, leder avvikelser till stopptid i det värdeskapande arbetet. Är takttiden kort ger stopptiden snabbt konsekvensen att takten inte kan hållas vilket ger stopp för hela produktionslinan. Således visar takten direkt om avvikelse förekommit. För långa takttider finns dock ofta möjlighet att arbeta ikapp stopptid inom takten. Därmed döljs avvikelser och den kontinuerliga förbättringen uteblir. Denna studie syftar därför till att undersöka hur stopptid och avvikelser kan följas upp vid produktion med långa takttider inklusive hur insamlad data kan användas vid förbättringsarbete. Studien har bedrivits som fallstudie vid Atlas Copco Rock Drills ABs division Underground Rock Excavation i Örebro där även interna semi-strukturerade intervjuer genomförts för att samla in data om behov kring stopptidsuppföljning och förbättringsarbete. Detta har kompletterats med externa fallstudier där processjämförelser genomförts vid RUAG Space, AstraZeneca, Väderstad-Verken samt Saab Aerostructures. Resultatet från studien ledde till tre framtagna processer, en för insamling av avvikelsedata samt två parallella förbättringsprocesser. Datainsamlingsprocessen visar hur stopptid och avvikelseinformation kan samlas in för att erhålla efterfrågad data och vad som påverkar mätningens noggrannhet. Stopptid som mäts i processen är total åtgärdstid, åtgärdstid som påverkat produktion samt stopptid för linan. Genom att mäta dessa tider tillsammans med att kategorisera data och sammanlänka med attribut möjliggörs exempelvis paretoanalyser av avvikelseområden, analys av trender, beräkning av kvalitetsbristkostnad samt lokalisering av överkapacitet. Dessutom redovisas hur klassiska TPM-nyckeltal kan integreras i analysen. Insamlad avvikelsedata kan sedermera användas i två förbättringsprocesser, en reaktiv förbättringsprocess och en proaktiv förbättringsprocess. Den reaktiva förbättringsprocessen syftar till att genom ett systematiskt arbetssätt skapa förebyggande åtgärder åt enskilt allvarliga stopp. Den proaktiva förbättringsprocessen visar hur data för övergripande avvikelseområden kan bidra till det långsiktiga strategiarbetet genom integrering av företagets övergripande KPI:er och SMART målsättning. De framtagna modellerna är generella nog att användas i de flesta verksamheter med taktade flöden men speciellt framtagen från behov för produktion med långa takttider.

The study focuses on the use of information systems in the Heavy Engineering industry in South Africa and the decision to make, buy or rent information systems. Special focus was placed on the factors that influence the decision to make, buy or rent information systems. It is undeniable that changes in the competitive environment, such as technological advances and globalisation, are driving organisations toward new ways of operating. In striving to become flexible, lean, and more competitive, organisations have been increasingly swift to externalise support service functions. Every organisation must adapt to the current economic environment, the technology available in its industry and consider the risk and rewards within the industry framework. Organisations should carefully analyse the impact of their decisions, especially in consideration of the extent to which organisational competencies and competitive advantage could be affected. An extensive literature study was conducted on the factors that influence the decision to make, buy or rent. The literature study portrays the ideal state or methodologies for acquiring information systems and the best practices used in evaluating the best option for the organisation. The literature indicated the criteria for evaluating the decision to make, buy or rent information systems are the business need, in–house experience, project skills, project management and the time frame. These criteria can be broken down into the factors that have an influence on the decision, competitive advantage, security, skills, expertise, available resources, cost, time, implementation, support, maintenance, performance, quality, documentation, vendor issues, size of organisation, expected annual transactions, software control, functionality, productivity and increased turnover. Calculating the benefit that can be achieved from information systems must also include measures to incorporate the total benefit, not only the financial benefit. The balance scorecard approach measures the total return accompanying an investment in information systems, broken down into four sections, the financial perspective that measures the tangible outcomes, the customer perspective that measures customer value (quality, delivery and skill), the internal process perspective that measures the internal processes that add value and have the greatest impact on strategy and finally the learning and growth perspective that measures the intangible assets which focuses on human capital. Information systems form part of the corporate strategy, competitive positioning and must be aligned with the overall strategy of the organisation. A survey was done to determine the opinions about the different options managers/organisations have to consider when seeking to fulfil organisational requirements for information systems. Methodological issues as well as considerations with regard to gathering the data were discussed. A questionnaire was designed to collect data to obtain the information needed to solve the research problem. The internal consistency of the questionnaire was tested and it was found that a moderate to high level of consistency exists. The survey results were then presented in frequency tables and were analysed using descriptive statistics as well as inferring possible trends or conclusions based on relationships between certain responses on specific related questions and referring to the literature study. A framework was compiled from the literature study and empirical study that can be used for the purpose of decision–making in the make, buy or renting of information systems in the heavy engineering environment in South Africa. Benefits from purchasing software from a vendor include competitive advantage, available resources, implementation of the system, support to the system, system performance, documentation and training, and business functionality. Benefits from open source offerings include the size of the organisation and the number of expected annual transactions by the organisation. Benefits from SaaS (Software as a service) include competitive advantage, expertise, system performance and business functionality. Benefits from the outsourcing of development and other IT functions include competitive advantage, security, skills, available resources, implementation of the system, support to the system, system performance, documentation and training, business functionality and technical functionality. Benefits from developing in–house all or part of the effort include competitive advantage, security, skills, expertise, available resources, time, implementation of the system, support to the system, maintenance and upgrades, system performance, quality, documentation and training, business functionality, technical functionality, productivity improvements and increased turnover. Overall the linkage between the literature study and the empirical study concludes / Thesis (MBA)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2012.

The study focuses on the use of information systems in the Heavy Engineering industry in South Africa and the decision to make, buy or rent information systems. Special focus was placed on the factors that influence the decision to make, buy or rent information systems. It is undeniable that changes in the competitive environment, such as technological advances and globalisation, are driving organisations toward new ways of operating. In striving to become flexible, lean, and more competitive, organisations have been increasingly swift to externalise support service functions. Every organisation must adapt to the current economic environment, the technology available in its industry and consider the risk and rewards within the industry framework. Organisations should carefully analyse the impact of their decisions, especially in consideration of the extent to which organisational competencies and competitive advantage could be affected. An extensive literature study was conducted on the factors that influence the decision to make, buy or rent. The literature study portrays the ideal state or methodologies for acquiring information systems and the best practices used in evaluating the best option for the organisation. The literature indicated the criteria for evaluating the decision to make, buy or rent information systems are the business need, in–house experience, project skills, project management and the time frame. These criteria can be broken down into the factors that have an influence on the decision, competitive advantage, security, skills, expertise, available resources, cost, time, implementation, support, maintenance, performance, quality, documentation, vendor issues, size of organisation, expected annual transactions, software control, functionality, productivity and increased turnover. Calculating the benefit that can be achieved from information systems must also include measures to incorporate the total benefit, not only the financial benefit. The balance scorecard approach measures the total return accompanying an investment in information systems, broken down into four sections, the financial perspective that measures the tangible outcomes, the customer perspective that measures customer value (quality, delivery and skill), the internal process perspective that measures the internal processes that add value and have the greatest impact on strategy and finally the learning and growth perspective that measures the intangible assets which focuses on human capital. Information systems form part of the corporate strategy, competitive positioning and must be aligned with the overall strategy of the organisation. A survey was done to determine the opinions about the different options managers/organisations have to consider when seeking to fulfil organisational requirements for information systems. Methodological issues as well as considerations with regard to gathering the data were discussed. A questionnaire was designed to collect data to obtain the information needed to solve the research problem. The internal consistency of the questionnaire was tested and it was found that a moderate to high level of consistency exists. The survey results were then presented in frequency tables and were analysed using descriptive statistics as well as inferring possible trends or conclusions based on relationships between certain responses on specific related questions and referring to the literature study. A framework was compiled from the literature study and empirical study that can be used for the purpose of decision–making in the make, buy or renting of information systems in the heavy engineering environment in South Africa. Benefits from purchasing software from a vendor include competitive advantage, available resources, implementation of the system, support to the system, system performance, documentation and training, and business functionality. Benefits from open source offerings include the size of the organisation and the number of expected annual transactions by the organisation. Benefits from SaaS (Software as a service) include competitive advantage, expertise, system performance and business functionality. Benefits from the outsourcing of development and other IT functions include competitive advantage, security, skills, available resources, implementation of the system, support to the system, system performance, documentation and training, business functionality and technical functionality. Benefits from developing in–house all or part of the effort include competitive advantage, security, skills, expertise, available resources, time, implementation of the system, support to the system, maintenance and upgrades, system performance, quality, documentation and training, business functionality, technical functionality, productivity improvements and increased turnover. Overall the linkage between the literature study and the empirical study concludes / Thesis (MBA)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2012.