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In the competitive world of manufacturing, the companies would like to produce their products at reduced price and superior quality. In the production system, the company faces many problems during the production of their products. Over the past years the manufacturing industry follows suitable techniques in their production system for the improvements in production. Still, companies are in search for new technology or techniques to improve their production in radical ways during a short period of time. Many researchers have discussed the development of production system through continuous improvements. Techniques like lean, kaizen etc are implemented in the production system but the effect of these techniques is realized in production unit only after many years. Kaikaku is another technique in lean production which occurs in a radical way to eliminate waste to provide a greater value. It is a radical process improvement which takes place in short period of time. Kaikaku is normally used when Kaizen techniques are not providing enough positive results to keep an organization effective. Still, radical improvements often need capital investment. It is often focused on introducing new technology, new strategies, or completely new production system. This main objective of this thesis is to understand and analyze the production system development process in manufacturing industries and suggest how it is effective to keep an organization competitive. The basic conception and research aid of various authors are explained in the theoretical framework, and is done for the enhanced understanding of the reader and also a new conceptual theory structure framework is done to introduce the new concept of process innovation for radical improvements in the company. The proposed structure framework can help companies to practice the process innovation in the production system for development in short period of time.  Based on the conceptual structure and relevant theoretical understandings, the interview questions are framed and case companies are analyzed for the process improvements and process innovation performance in the production system. The empirical data is collected from case companies through interviews. With the help of empirical results and the related theoretical results, an analysis and discussion is made which clearly explains about the problems faced in the production system and how they can be solved through in a radical way.

The objective of this study is to examine the applicability of process reengineering in a healthcare operational environment. The intake process of a mental healthcare service delivery system is analyzed systematically to identify process-related problems. A methodology which utilizes an open system orientation coupled with process reengineering is utilized to overcome operational and patient related problems associated with the pre-reengineered intake process. The systematic redesign of the intake process resulted in performance improvements in terms of cost, quality, service and timing.

Recent evaluations have demonstrated the ability of the bacteria Rhodococcus rhodochrous DAP 96253 to inhibit the growth of molds associated with plant and animal diseases as well as post-harvest loss of fruits, vegetables and grains. Pre-pilot-scale fermentations (20-30L) of Rhodococcus rhodochrous DAP 96253 were employed as a research tool with the goal of producing a practical biological agent for field-scale application for the management of white-nose syndrome (WNS) in bats and post-harvest fungal losses in several fruit varieties. Several key parameters within the bioreactor were evaluated for the potential to increase production efficiency as well as activity of the biocatalyst. These parameters included elapsed fermentation time, dissolved Oxygen, and carbohydrate concentration of which increased carbohydrate concentration at the time of harvest was shown to have a negative impact on the catalyst activity. In addition, process improvements including utilization of a liquid inoculum, an autoinduction feed strategy, and increased glucose concentration in the feed medium increased fermentation yields to 100-150g/L, while the biocatalyst efficiency was increased from previous work. To increase production efficiency, a multi-bioreactor scheme was developed that used a seed bioreactor and subsequent production tank, which doubled run yields per production cycle. Amidase, cyanidase, urease, and alkene-monoxygenase activity were monitored throughout the study as potential indicators for the multi-faceted mechanism of fungal antagonism. Of these amidase, cyanidase, and urease were demonstrated to be more elevated in cells that showed antifungal activity than those that did not. This study represents the first example of a reproducible pre-pilot plant-scale biomanufacturing process for a contact-independent biological control agent for established and emerging fungal pathogens of plants and animals, and facilitates large-scale production for broad application.

Background: Digitalization and digital technologies are of significance to management consultant firms since they influence them and force them to reshape and improve their business processes. For that purpose, firms can use Business Process Improvements methods, such as process mapping, benchmarking and maturity models. The authors identified multiple gaps in literature which this thesis aims to address. One gap was the lack of literature focusing on the industry of professional service firms, like management consultant firms. Another gap was on a standardized management consulting process, and the knowledge of how digital technologies are being used within it. There was also a lack of knowledge about what performance improvements management consulting firms can expect when using digital technologies in their management consulting process. Lastly, there is no digital maturity model that is focused towards management consultant firms, that can identify management consultant firms' level of digital maturity. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to explore, describe and explain digital technologies used within a standardized management consulting process, expected performance improvements through the use of digital technologies and the levels of digital maturity through a maturity model for management consultant firms. Method: A qualitative study with an exploratory and explanatory research strategy was used. An abductive approach was applied for this multiple case study, which was based on semi-structured interviews with nine different Case Firms. Findings and Conclusion: The results of the study developed a standardized management consulting process including following activities; initial contact, background research, current status assessment, present project plan, developing solution, closing project by implementing solution and follow up, feedback and lessons learned. Across the standardized consulting process, the firms used technology types of artificial intelligence, analytical applications, cloud computing, automation and web-based applications. The digital technologies are used for collecting information, collaborative presentations, communicating, collaborating to develop consulting solutions, storing and managing documents, managing projects, tracking time, analysing information, developing and sharing insights, and customer relationship management. Seven key categories of performance were identified, which could be improved through the use of digital technologies. The categories include improved knowledge transfer, increased efficiency, measurable value based impact to client, increased quality of consulting, increased competitive advantage, improved knowledge management, increased client reaction and satisfaction. Each of these categories of performance improvements can be further categorized into improvements of efficiency and effectiveness for the consulting process. Improvements in efficiency relate to improvements in the utilization of resources. Improvements in effectiveness relate to improvements in quality of the resulting client solution. The study defined four levels of digital maturity for management consultant firms, including researchers, beginners, adopters and leaders. The key dimensions for assessing their digital maturity include culture, strategy, organization and operations, technology and insights. Across the dimensions there are 15 sub-dimensions and 52 statements for self-assessing digital maturity. The maturity model may be applied by future management consultant firms for benchmarking position within the industry and identifying gaps, opportunities and vision for improvement in their own consulting process and performance through leveraging digital technologies.

In this age of technology, people or the companies all over the world have started using the easyway to find information or to process a particular task selected or given. In this path, Informationsystems have gone a long way with day to day improvements and upgrades with everythingabout what it can be done to give the right access and right task to the users.The developers have gone to such an extent that nothing can be compromised in the developmentor in the implementation of Information systems, however in the practical scenario there aremany issues that are to be taken into consideration to develop an Information System and also inthe implementation of the same.Here, in this thesis we will try to bring out those factors where in the implementation ofInformation Systems can go wrong and what are to be considered in order for the IS to be usefulthan it has to be emphasising on user satisfaction and user acceptance / Program: Magisterutbildning i informatik

Cleaner production (CP) is the continuous application of a preventive environmental strategy process associated to the products and services of an organization, with the goal of increasing efficiency and reducing risks to human beings and the environment. Its implementation has generally increased productivity from the rational use of resources. Total Performance Scorecard (TPS) is a sistematic learning process, developing and continuous improvement, based on the sustainable growth of personal and corporate actions. The objective of this research was to propose a strategy to manage organizational processes, based on the principles of cleaner production in metal mechanic companies. The proposal for maintenance and continuity of improvements is based on the TPS cycle. The research was made from the data of a producer of agricultural machines in Rio Grande do Sul, which has the objective of reducing scrap in its processes. Three cases were considered in this research: obsoletes items, purchasing process of sheet metals and cutting the sheet metals to produce the pieces. The data show a significant improvement with the use of the cleaner production principles in the researched processes. / Produção mais limpa (PML) é a aplicação contínua de uma estratégia ambiental preventiva e integrada aos processos, produtos e serviços de uma organização, visando aumentar sua eficiência e reduzir riscos para a humanidade e o meio ambiente. Sua adoção, em geral tem elevado a produtividade a partir da racionalização no uso dos recursos. Total Performance Scorecard (TPS) é um processo sistemático de aprendizagem, desenvolvimento e melhoramento contínuos, baseado no crescimento sustentável das atuações pessoais e corporativas. O objetivo desta pesquisa é propor uma estratégia para o gerenciamento de processos organizacionais, com base nos princípios da produção mais limpa em empresa do setor metalmecânico. A proposta para manutenção e continuidade das melhorias baseia-se no ciclo TPS. A pesquisa foi feita a partir de dados de um fabricante de máquinas agrícolas do Rio Grande do Sul, que busca reduzir resíduos em seus processos. Três estudos de caso: itens obsoletos, processo de compra de chapas e corte de chapas para produção de uma peça, foram tratados na pesquisa. Os dados comprovam uma melhora significativa com a aplicação dos princípios da produção mais limpa nos processos estudados.

<p>While the energy field has been primarily dominated by fossil fuels such as coal and oil, there is evidence that renewable energy sources are starting to gain a stronger foothold in the energy market to accommodate growth (Debbage, 2008; Intelligent, 2008; Sterzinger, 2006). This has been the result of greater social concern, as well as tax and other government incentives (Intelligent, 2008; Debbage, 2008). Due to these trends, a growing market opportunity exists for cities and states to increase their renewable energy component production (Intelligent, 2008; Regional, 2013; Debbage, 2008; IPCC, 2014). The primary purpose of this study was to survey existing manufacturers in the Bluegrass Region of Kentucky to obtain information and identify manufacturers who: were currently in the renewable energy market, interested in entering the renewable energy market, or have no interest in entering the renewable energy market. Respondents also addressed potential barriers to the growth of the renewable energy field including workforce development, government policy, and investment capital. A total of 25 companies responded to the survey. Correlation analysis was used and determined that no significant correlation existed between surveyed companies who identified themselves as suppliers of renewable energy components and those companies who were identified as possible suppliers of renewable energy components within the REPP (Renewable Energy Policy Project) standards. This study builds on previous methodology used by Debbage (2008) for North Carolina. </p>

Detta examensarbete utgör den avslutande delen i högskoleingenjörsprogrammet inom maskinteknik på Kungliga Tekniska Högskolan med inriktningen industriell ekonomi och produktion och bedrevs i samarbete med Skanska Sverige AB. Studien undersöker hur Lean kan användas för effektivisering av armeringsprocessen av en stödmur genom att tillämpa Kata-metodiken adapterad för byggindustrins kontext. Det huvudsakliga målet med studien var att undersöka hur kostnadsbesparingar skulle kunna uppnås med hjälp av processförbättringar som minskar ledtiden för armeringsprocessen genom att ta fram ett måltillstånd för hur systemet bör fungera i framtiden. För att nå fram till målet med examensarbetet används en anpassad förbättringsmodell, Skanska Process Improvement (SPI) som steg-för-steg visar hur processförbättringar kan uppnås med hjälp av Lean-principer som exempelvis Genchi Gembutsu och PDCA. Vid genomförandet av studien har datainsamling till största del skett genom att följa yrkesarbetarna ute på arbetsplatsen under fem arbetsdagar vid progressionen av armeringsprocessen, vilket har genererat flertalet tidsadderande observationer. Tre måltillstånd har därefter tagits fram med syftet att eliminera avvikelserna varefter ett av måltillstånden valdes ut som lämpligast att bearbeta först, vilken är att implementera en standardiserad monteringsanvisning för armeringsprocessen. I ett längre perspektiv skulle SPI-modellen kunnat tillämpas för att förbättra helt andra byggprocesser som till exempel formsättning eller gjutning. För fortsatta studier skulle måltillståndet behöva omsättas i verkligheten genom utförandet av de PDCA-experiment som har förberetts i examensarbetet och med vägledning av SPI-modellen. / This bachelor thesis is the final part of the university engineering program in mechanical engineering at the Royal Institute of Technology with a focus on industrial economics and production and was conducted in collaboration with Skanska Sverige AB. The study examines how Lean can be used to streamline the reinforcement process of a retaining wall by applying the Kata methodology adapted to the context of the construction industry. The main goal of the study was to investigate how cost savings could be achieved with the help of process improvements that reduce the lead time for the reinforcement process by developing a target condition for how the system should work in the future. To achieve the goal of the bachelor thesis, a customized improvement model is used, Skanska Process Improvement (SPI), which step-by-step shows how process improvements can be achieved with the help of Lean principles such as Genchi Gembutsu and PDCA. In conducting the study, data collection has largely taken place by following the construction workers out in the workplace for five working days during the progression of the reinforcement process, which has generated several time-adding observations. Three target conditions have subsequently been developed with the aim of eliminating the deviations, after which one of the target conditions was selected as most suitable to process first, which is to implement a standardized assembly instruction for the reinforcement process. In a longer perspective, the SPI model could be applied to improve completely different construction processes such as formwork or casting. For further studies, the target condition would need to be tested in real world performing the PDCA experiments that have been prepared in the bachelor thesis and with guidance from the SPI model.

An initial review of literature concerned with commercial and industrial office design indicated the need to research and develop a method for the design of the management systems of offices with the purpose of improving the operational effectiveness and alignment to strategy. In particular the literature review indicated that the application of lean methods, in non-manufacturing areas is comparatively rare. A critical review of the literature identified that Value Stream Mapping has been used to map mechanistic task activities, however, a need was identified for a new generation of Value Stream Mapping to map mixed mechanistic and organic task activities. To complement the literature survey and discover if there were significant variables (e.g. task uncertainty, interdependence, task complexity, mechanistic / organic structures, risk, task analysability etc) influencing office design, pilot studies were carried out in a mechanistic and organic office. Several additional variables were identified. From the pilot studies combined with the literature review a conceptual model was formulated which provides guidelines for managers enabling them to design the management systems fully taking all the variables into account. The conceptual model was then tested using a multiple case study design of two small consulting type offices that exhibited mixed mechanistic and organic characteristics. This resulted in an improved version of the model which was then further validated. This validation based upon the opinions of office managers focused mainly on identifying the practical usefulness of the model from an industrial perspective. Following the validation a final form of the model has been proposed in this research. It remains for future researchers to fully test the model by applying it in a wider range of offices. This study makes an explicit contribution to the redesign of offices as well as the utilisation of Value Stream Mapping to the mechanistic and the organic task activities within commercial and industrial offices.