This thesis presents the development and evaluation of a knowledge-based Design System. Despite the rise in Knowledge Management research and theories, there is insufficient evidence to conclude if Knowledge Management activities can increase business value. Furthermore, existing knowledge related research was found to insufficiently address the needs of Small to Medium Enterprises (SME). The research develops and demonstrates a suitable knowledge strategy for a design and manufacturing SME faced with a potentially critical knowledge loss from a retiring expert and constrained business growth. The pivotal component of the strategy was the establishment of a codified knowledge base or ‘Design System’, containing product knowledge, best practice guidelines and bespoke design tools to support design knowledge reuse. The system was successfully integrated into the business and a multifaceted evaluative approach applied in a longitudinal study. The evaluation analysed a series of facets including, user behaviour, case studies and financial data. The study found that the Design System led to an increase in business value and successfully protected against knowledge loss. The research therefore demonstrates a successful knowledge strategy that could be adopted by other SMEs and provides evidence of the benefit of knowledge-based systems in design and manufacturing.

Looking at iron slags from Eastern England, this thesis was designed to assess the possibility of inferring the ore type in use by the chemical composition of the slag. A number of case studies are examined. The first is a group of material from the Foulness Valley, East Yorkshire, which is known to be produced from high phosphorus bog ore. This allows direct comparison between this and other assemblages, based on phosphorus content, to infer if bog or bedded ore was in use. Assemblages from Iron Age East Yorkshire, Roman Caistor St Edmund and the Saxon sites of Quarrington and Flixboroughwere examined to infer on ore exploitation and possible metal production. The background examination provides a definition of phosphoric iron based upon its material properties and the parameters which govern the creation of the alloy. Further discussion of ore exploitation and the reasoning behind why smelting sites are more difficult to locate are covered, while the current direction of research is examined. The body of experimental work is discussed with notable case studies drawn upon to demonstrate where the literature concentrates its focus. This allows for the suggestion of future possibilities based upon the impacts of these works. An experimental smelt was carried out in order to inform on the processes and record observations which helped to dictate the choices made on raw material selection. The experimental material was analysed alongside archaeological slags produced from the same ore, and treated in the same way as the material used in the archaeological case studies. The selection criteria applied to the archaeological assemblages, based on morphology and perceived mass are outlined. A description of the preparation methods for sample examination follows. The physics of electron microscopy are then discussed covering the various effects which govern the generation of the characteristic x-rays which are responsible for the chemical composition data. Each of the case study assemblages are dealt with individually presenting photographs of the pieces before sampling and backscattered electron images of the material. As this is the first scientific analysis conducted upon the Saxon assemblages from Quarrington and Flixborough, the data generated provides critical, new insight into Early Medieval iron production. The data using phase composition and phosphorus content are presented on a site by site basis before being assembled into an overall synthesis which further clarifies the inferences of different ore exploitation. Further comparisons of phosphorus and sulphur content are used to demonstrate the use of the bog ore and Frodingham Ironstone available at Flixborough. The interpretation of the data is then drawn upon for final conclusions and inferences of ore exploitation and the identification of ironstone use at Flixborough which further supports the archaeological and historical evidence for this practice from the 7th century A.D.

The main objective of this study was to study the characteristics of the New International Business (NIS) or Born-Global in a sample of 81 SMEs belonging to the Spanish textile sector. This is descriptive analysis regarding the location, the subsector of activity, size, economic performance and internationalization strategy implemented by the NEI (2005-2009).The results identified three groups of NIS: export, import and export-import. The group of companies that makeup the largest importers and are associated with smaller companies. The exporters appear to be related more to low techsub-sectors while more internationally committed are those with a higher dimension. Regarding the location not detected any evidence of territorial pattern. Finally, among firms internationalized in the time period analyzed, it is also noteworthy that the economic performance of these is higher among importers. This study provides information on why the same country and same industry some companies decide shortly be created to assume certain levels of risk, engaging in operations engaged in foreign markets while others do not. It also participates in the debate on the competitiveness of manufacturing companies. / El principal objetivo de este estudio ha sido estudiar las características de las nuevas empresas internacionales (NEI) o born-global en una muestra de 81 pymes pertenecientes al sector textil-confección español. Para ello, se ha realizado un análisis descriptivo respecto a la localización, el subsector de actividad, el tamaño, la performance económica y la estrategia de internacionalización implementada por las NEI (2005-2009). Los resultados obtenidos identifican tres grupos de NEI: exportadoras, importadoras y exportadoras-importadoras. El grupo de empresas que conforman las importadoras es el más numeroso y está asociado a empresas de menor dimensión. Las exportadoras parecen vincularse más a subsectores low-tech mientras que las más comprometidas internacionalmente son las que tienen una mayor dimensión. Respecto a la localización, no se han detectado evidencias de algún patrón territorial. Por último, entre las empresas internacionalizadas en el periodo de tiempoanalizado, también es destacable que la performance económica de las mismas es mayor entre las importadoras. Este trabajo arroja alguna luz sobre la cuestión de por qué en un mismo país y en un mismo sector algunas empresas deciden al poco tiempo de ser creadas asumir determinados niveles de riesgo, implicándose en operaciones comprometidas con los mercados extranjeros mientras que otras no. Asimismo, también, participa del debate relativo a la competitividad de las empresas manufactureras.

D.Litt. et Phil. / The problem addressed in this study is to determine whether information is recognized as a resource in South African manufacturing enterprises and whether these enterprises use information to their competitive advantage. The role of information as a resource for competitive advantage is discussed and it is shown that the competitive position of enterprises can be strengthened on the strategic level if the information resources are efficiently managed. As a result of the lack of knowledge on the information management situation in manufacturing enterprises, an empirical investigation was necessary and a questionnaire was sent to enterprises in the Guateng province. South African manufacturing enterprises were grouped according to the strategic types identified by the Miles and Snow typology. Of the 172 respondents 21,5% were classified as Prospectors, 36,6% as Analyzers, 29,7% as Defenders and 12,2% as Reactors. The majority of the respondents pointed out that they frequently scanned the environment, but formal environmental scanning systems existed at only 20% of the enterprises. The majority of South African manufacturing enterprises are currently in Strategic Management Phase 2. Attention is paid to the strategic management of products with the emphasis on market growth and market share in comparison to those of competitors. The way in which information is managed in manufacturing enterprises relates to the management typology applied in these enterprises. Information is managed very fragmentally in South African manufacturing enterprises and integrated information management systems exist at only a small percentage of enterprises. The majority of enterprises are in Development Phase 2 of information management, that is, the management of corporate automated technology. Formal information management departments are found more regularly at Prospectors and Analyzers than at Defenders and Reactors. Prospectors and Analyzers make more use of information management systems. The proportion of personnel involved with information management is higher at Analyzers than at any of the other strategic types. Analyzers also apply records management more frequently than the others. More than half of the respondents evaluated their investments in information management resources periodically in order to determine practical use and value. Employee development was encouraged with 94,9% of the respondents and 9,9% of the enterprises were classified as learning organizations. It is concluded that information management is applied in South African manufacturing enterprises but that it is not used to the competitive advantage of these enterprises. It is recommended that South African manufacturing enterprises integrate information management with the other enterprise functions and that information management be a strategic management function. Manufacturing enterprises should strive to reach the Strategic Management Phase 4 as well as Phase 5 of information management. Guidelines are provided on how information management can be implemented as a strategic management function within enterprises classified as Prospectors, Analyzers, Defenders and Reactors. Unstableness and change are the main characteristics of the South African manufacturing industry and this changing environment makes it necessary to react appropriately in order to obtain competitive advantage. South African manufacturing enterprises should therefore strive towards a new management typology called Renewers or learning organizations.

The aim of the research is to develop a methodological analysis of problems in the area of design for manufacture in low volume high complex products found in the writer’s workplace. The majority of research in this area has been around high volume products, such as automotive products and little consideration has been given to designing complex products from industries like aircraft manufacture. This research evaluates design for manufacture (DFM) information in the design lifecycle (DLC). The author’s research introduces a unique DLC process, one which structures decisions and data transfer through the DLC. The research also looks at current academic work and introduces industrial issues present in today’s environment. It is crucial to the design of a product to select the appropriate design environment in which it operates, as it will structure the way the engineering activities are established and developed. It is also important for the organisation to decide on the environment in which the design definition should evolve. Therefore the research reviews the different design definition environments, these were carefully analysed by the author. The evaluation of a design to ensure its manufacturability is a major element in the research, a review of previous work has highlighted that within current publications there has been little work in this area. The research has developed a methodology to evaluate the robustness of a design. It not only looks at the engineering design but also evaluates its adherence to customer requirements and the effect on cost for the overall product life-cycle. It also considers industrial needs for a reduction in the length of design life-cycle, while ensuring a reduction in manufacturing costs. There are two main contributors to this, firstly the use of key characteristics and secondly, the ability to control the manufacturability of a design. The author has developed a novel software tool enabling efficient evaluation of a design. The author discusses his contribution to existing knowledge in three main areas of the research. The most significant being the introduction of a tool to evaluate a design early in the design life-cycle to ensure manufacturability. To validate the research the author introduces the reader to three experimental phases. He validates his methodology by analysing the design of various aircraft assemblies discussing his findings of how manufacturable the designs are. This leads to the conclusion that the author’s research adds substantial knowledge to the area of design for manufacture.

The seed bank dynamics of five habitats as well as a grazing gradient in the southwestern Kalahari, South Africa were studied. Soil samples were collected in the following habitats: dune crests, dune slopes, dune streets, a calcrete outcrop and a riverbed on the farm Alpha. Soil samples were also collected along a grazing gradient from a watering point. Three methods of soil seed bank analysis were used to analyse the soil samples and to gain insight into soil seed bank response to habitat type and to grazing pressure, over four seasons in the year 2004. Results from the three methods of analysis were also compared to each other. They included the direct seedling germination method, the seedling germination re-examination and the seed extraction method. These analyses were used to (a) estimate seed bank size and composition in response to habitat type and grazing pressure; (b) the differences between the standing vegetation- and the seed bank-flora in different habitats and along a grazing gradient and (c) the type of seed banks that tend to form in certain habitats and in response to grazing pressure. Analyses of soil seed bank size along a grazing gradient showed that the seedling emergence re-examinations estimated a larger size for the seed bank than the direct seedling emergence method. The seed extraction method estimated a significantly larger seed bank size than the other two methods. Heavy grazing pressure favoured annual/opportunistic species such as Schmidtia kalahariensis, which formed very large seed banks in heavily trampled areas. When Schmidtia kalahariensis data was removed from the seed bank analyses, it was found that, in contrast to previous results, the direct germination method mostly estimated a larger seed bank size than the re-examination. Also, the estimation of seed bank size by the flotation method, in this case, was much smaller. The flotation method produced data mostly for hard-seeded species, while the seedling emergence method produced data for species with small seeds and which were readily germinable. In all seasons, the dune crest habitat always had the smallest seed bank and the riverbed habitat always had the largest seed bank. All the dune habitats were characterised by perennial grasses. Perennial grasses formed transient seed banks which were relatively small. The riverbed habitat’s vegetation was mostly composed of annuals. Annual plants formed persistent seed banks which were relatively large. Species richness of the readily germinable seed bank in all habitats, fluctuated between the four seasons and was usually largest in summer. The difference in species richness between the above- and belowground floras fluctuated over four seasons. The dune habitats showed a large difference between the species richness of the above- and the below-ground flora, while the riverbed habitat showed a much smaller difference. The dune habitats had many species with transient seed banks while the riverbed was characterised by many species with short-term persistent and ‘permanent’ seed banks. / Dissertation (MSc)--University of Pretoria, 2011. / Plant Science / unrestricted

The pharmaceutical industry is one of the fastest growing and developing industries in the world today. With the ever advancing technology and manufacturing techniques, quality assurance has become the focus of regulatory bodies all over the world. The implementation of quality management systems (QMS) that ensures that quality is built into every step of the design and manufacturing process has been the focus of many pharmaceutical companies. With the implementation of quality systems, employee’s perception of those systems and overall quality standards of the organisation is very important in establishing the quality culture of the organisation. To benefit from sustainable quality systems the organisations must ensure that employees understand the importance of the systems and that employee’s take personal responsibility for ensuring that their functions are performed correctly the first time. FKMSA has invested in a QMS that seeks to integrate all quality issues. The quality system includes documentation, deviations, corrective and preventative action (CAPA), change controls and quality risk management (QRM) in the entire facility. This system is administered by the quality control department, but each department takes ownership for their quality issues with support and guidance from the quality unit. FKMSA also firmly believes that quality cannot merely rely on the quality control test results; every step of the production process has a quality aspect built in to ensure that quality standards are adhered to. Every employee is trained, assessed and deemed competent before they can perform their duties; this is to ensure that human errors are kept to a minimum. Employee’s perception of quality is an integral part of quality assurance and it is important for the organisation to know what the employees believe to be the company’s standards of quality.

The liberalisation of world apparel trade by the year 2005 will eliminate quota restrictions on imports from a large number of low labour cost countries. This will impose a series of challenges to higher cost countries, involved in apparel exports, which so far have had preferential access to the markets like Mauritius. The competition against suppliers from low labour cost countries can only be won if companies can achieve competitive advantage in terms of factors other than cost. These include, for instance, design and manufacture of high value products, providing manufacturing flexibility for rapid change in garment style, providing better service to customers and fast responsiveness to meet changing market requirements. These conditions can be met only if the companies adopt the appropriate manufacturing strategy within the market context. The importance of the manufacturing function for the achievement of competitive advantage has been extensively covered in the literature. The process of deciding upon appropriate manufacturing strategies for their implementation in specific sectors however remains to be fully investigated. The present research is an attempt to illustrate this process for the garment making sector in Mauritius which is currently at the cross roads of its development as it faces fierce competition for market share in the wake of world apparel trade liberalisation. The project involved the use of the IDEFO system-modelling tool for the development of an apparel manufacturing system reference model to illustrate details of all activities taking place in a typical company. The model was used for the production a manufacturing strategya udit tool to enablec ompaniest o make an assessmenot f their current manufacturing practice, benchmark the same against better practices from the industry and select alternative strategies for implementation with a view to achieving enhanced product competitiveness. The audit tool is supported by a set of data that was collected from a range of sources including ten different companies in Mauritius such that the tool illustrates all possibilities in terms of manufacturing practice from average to better practices. A novel methodology for manufacturing strategy auditing through the use of the developed audit tool was tested in three case study companies. The results clearly demonstrate the effectiveness of the audit tool and the methodology, to enable companies to assess their current practice and embark upon alternate strategies to pave the way towards achieving enhanced competitiveness. Also, the audit tool was used in a sample of seventeen collaborating companies, which enabled sector wise analysis determination of the strategies that best suit the sector for maintaining its market share in a world of free apparel trade.

Widespread and persistent high levels of unemployment now appear to be endemic in many "advanced" economies and are commonly recognized as the major socioeconomic problem (with staggering direct and indirect costs on society and individuals) to be confronted by policy and decision-makers in the incipient form of modern Western society. The province of British Columbia (B.C.) in Canada (which contains the principal study area (the Vancouver C.M.A)) lost over six percent of its employed workforce over the two years between July 1982 and July 1984 and currently (in 1985) has the second highest unemployment rate in the nation with levels well above the OEGD average. This study comprises an attempt to identify the nature and causes of unemployment in 1981 in the major metropolitan area in B.C. (the Vancouver CMA), in addition to an assessment of changes in the characteristics of unemployment during the economic downturn that has vexed the province since 1981. The research methodology is sharply divided into a specific focus on the nature of unemployment, and in particular, the processes underlying intra-urban variations in unemployment rates within the Vancouver CMA on one hand, and a more general analysis of regional trends over the 1970's in one major relevant economic sector (the goods-production industries) on the other. Unfortunately, significant problems are faced in the use of data restricted to the exceptionally low unemployment census year of 1981 and the scope of the investigation is necessarily modest given the complexity of the problem and the resources available. The urban level analysis is basically a series of tests (including the regression and correlation of aggregated and individual social and spatial data) to ascertain the relevance of the two major hypotheses of intra-urban spatial variations in unemployment The "trapped" hypothesis stresses the role of space as a direct influence on unemployment probability (often as a perceived joint result of confinement to certain housing locations within the city and the suburbanization of industrial employment demand). The alternative hypothesis explains the pattern of unemployment rates in terms of the concentration of unemployment upon workers with certain socioeconomic characteristics who occupy geographically distinct sections of the housing market From the research results, the role of space in the determination of unemployment probability, within the CMA, appears to be limited. However, there is some evidence that personal characteristics and spatial effects may be simultaneously having some effect on expected unemployment rates and a consideration of spatial separation between labour supply and demand, even within the CMA, may well be important for labour market theory and policy. Hence, the CMA cannot be unequivocally adopted as the appropriate local labour market for all groups of people (divided on the basis of their socioeconomic characteristics and location) in the CMA. The detailed analysis of the personal characteristics of the unemployed has also suggested the high-unemployment probability, in low and high employment demand times, of the lower-skilled and the occupations with the higher proportions of low-skilled workers (generally the manual blue-collar and service occupations! A preliminary analysis of trends in manufacturing production sector changes throughout the 1970's (at the B.C. regional scale) has been completed as a result of the perceived inadequacy of the urban level focus. Although a resolution on the manufacturing production sector has meant only a partial analysis of employment demand, the goods-production industries have been the central area of focus. This sector has been specifically selected in view of a number of restrictions (including data availability and overall research resource constraints) and in order to test the relevance, in the B.C. context, of some of the processes hypothesized in the literature produced by the prolific radical geographers. Unemployment and production activities are usually important aspects of radical theory on the relation between labour and the restructuring of capitalism. The empirical research for this second section is essentially a simple comparison of some major structural characteristics of manufacturing production employment and output in 1971 and 1981 at three geographic scales (based on a core-periphery classification) within the province. Although there is little evidence of the processes hypothesized by the radical geography school, the methodological problems faced are prohibitive and conclusions remain tentative. There is, however, a distinctive trend toward the reduced demand for production labour input With continued capital-intensification in the face of international competition and reduced world demand; together with the direct effect of reduced- output' demand in an historical period that appears to involve a rather dramatic redefinition of B.C.'s role in the world economy, the unemployment problem is unlikely to be substantially reduced in the foreseeable future without a major absorption of displaced labour into rapidly growing, labour-intensive service industries. "Full" employment policy in the contemporary mode, will probably be ineffectual in the B.C. setting. / Arts, Faculty of / Geography, Department of / Graduate

This study is concerned with- the effects of changes in industrial concentration on average costs of production in 17 Canadian 4—digit food manufacturing industries over the period 1961-1982. The model employed is a dual Translog cost function adapted to include a concentration variable (Herfindahl index) and technical change, and is estimated using pooling techniques to allow simultaneous analysis of all 17 industries. The results indicate that there was a significant relationship between concentration and average costs for this sample. In particular, there appears to have been a decrease in average costs for low-concentration industries as concentration increased, ceteris paribus, while in high-concentration industries, increases in concentration led to increases in costs. Concentration changes have also had an effect on the relative shares of factors of production for these industries. An evaluation of employment effects across industries indicates that the benefits in efficiency due to increases in concentration in low-concentration industries must be weighed against apparent decreases in the overall employment (of labour) for these industries. Alternatively, the efficiency losses in high-concentration industries appear to have been offset by increases in overall employment as concentration has increased. Thus, depending on the criterion used, relative concentration effects may have been beneficial or detremental to social welfare; the outcome is not unequivocal. / Land and Food Systems, Faculty of / Graduate