Ett nytt produktionskoncept på Saab Automobile AB – Lean Automation – är under implementering och utveckling. Inriktningen är att utveckla automationslösningar som stödjer principer och arbetsätt inom Lean Produktion. En gemensam nämnare är automation som byggs upp av enkel, standardiserad och modulariserad utrustning och som kan omkonfigureras av egen personal. Två pilotinstallationer har gjorts under 2010: Transport med enkel AGV (Lean AGV) samt Lean Automation Robot Cell (LARC). Dessa komponenter ingår i denna studie som inriktar sig på förändringar i det totala produktionssystemet med sikte på en konstant hög produktivitetsnivå även vid frekventa förändringar i volym och produktinnehåll. Studien pekar på vikten av att samla produktionspersonalen för att underlätta balansering, men även för att skapa en visuell process där fel snabbt kan upptäckas och åtgärdas. En effektiv balansering av robotar kräver en något annorlunda inriktning där fokus istället ligger på att distribuera arbetselementen på ett lämpligt sätt samt att utnyttja de sammanlagringseffekter som ett gemensamt flöde ger. Ett verktyg för att mer ändamålsenligt balansera det värdeskapande arbetet introduceras. Verktyget är avsett för såväl manuellt som robotiserat arbete En flödesorienterad metod att knyta samman delsammanbyggnader med huvudflöde presenteras. Metoden bygger på att ersätta gaffeltruckar och manuellt laddade magasin med ett enkelt AGV-flöde. Systemet förmedlar information om produktionsläget till personalen genom att lastbärarna utgör visuella "Kanban-kort". Genom detta visuella system, samt genom att lagkonceptet utnyttjas till att upprätthålla en billig och ändamålsenlig buffert, förebyggs materialbrister. Generella riktlinjer för konceptval av interna materialflöden presenteras och exemplifieras. Slutligen beskrivs hur flexibilitetslösningarna kan anpassas till nivån i förädlingskedjan och hur detta är kopplat till ett parallellt respektive seriellt flöde. / A new concept of production – Lean Automation – is being developed and implemented at Saab Automobile AB. The aim is to develop solutions for automation that supports the Lean Production principals and way of work. A basic idea is that automation should be build from simple, standardized and modular equipment and that it can be reconfigured by in house personnel. During 2010, two pilots have been installed: Transport using a simple AGV (Lean AGV) and Lean Automation Robot Cell (LARC). Those components are parts of this study that is aiming for a production system with an unchanged high level of productivity also during periods of frequent changes in volume and product scope. The study underlines the importance of gathering the production personnel to enable work balancing, but also to achieve a visual process where errors urgently can be discovered and resolved. The robots work balancing requires a somewhat different approach focusing on the distribution of work elements and taking advantage of the equalizing effect in a common production flow. A tool for an expedient balancing of value added work is introduced. The tool is intended for the balancing of both manual and robotized work. Further, a method to connect the sub assembly level to the main flow is presented. Fork lift trucks and manually loaded feeders is replaced by a simple flow of AGV’s. The system is conveying information about the state of production through the presence of empty carriers. Through this visual system, plus the use of the team concept to achieve a cheap and efficient buffer, shortage of material is prevented. For the selection of internal material flow systems, a set of general guidelines is proposed and exemplified. Finally, the adoption of different solutions for flexibility is linked to the level of assembly and this is also linked to the aspects of parallel versus serial production flow.

Ear piercing performed in hairdressing salons and jewellery shops using a piercing gun has been set aside from the obligation to notify the local environmental and public health authorities, due to the use of disposable cassette with the piercing gun. According to the Swedish environmental code each practitioner are required to prevent any health hazards arisen from the operation. Local bacterial infection is the most frequent complication associated with the ear piercing procedure and to prevent the potential risk of such an event, hygiene conditions in both the premises and in procedures are essential. The purpose of the report was to examine the presence of ear piercing practitioners in Umeå and their current hygiene conditions. The study consisted of interviews with employees and managers on site whose answers was evaluated and compared to the general recommendations of The National Board of Health and Welfare. The study indicates that most of the shops had appropriate premises and proper hygiene methods. However merely half of the shops never seemed to clean nor disinfect the ear piercing gun, which may be considered to be non negligible deficiency in current methods. One salon had questionable methods which may require a follow-up. The conclusion of this study is that more information within the various practitioners is required in most cases to increase consciousness of proper and safe course of action.

Denna magisteruppsats behandlar e-handlares anpassning av en fysisk köpprocess till en virtuell. Med detta syftar vi mer specifikt på e-handlare av modekläder som i högre grad är beroende av en fysisk köpprocess. Vår frågeställning var således: Hur gör e-handlare inom klädbranschen för att anpassa den fysiska köpprocessen till ett virtuellt sammanhang? För att undersöka detta använde vi oss av Overbys artikel "Process Virtualization Theory and the Impact of Information Technology" från 2008 där han beskriver fyra olika faktorer som spelar in vid ett köp: sinnliga krav, förhållandekrav, synkroniseringskrav samt identifikations- och kontrollkrav. Denna teori har byggde vi även upp med stöd från Belks (1975) så kallade situationsvariabler samt allmän teori om Internetmarknadsföring. Detta utmynnade sedan i en teoretisk modell som vi byggde vår analys kring. För vår empiriska datainsamling utgick vi ifrån en kvalitativ ansats. Efter att ha utarbetat en intervjumall utifrån den teoretiska referensramen gjorde vi två telefonintervjuer och tre e-postintervjuer med e-handlare inom genren modekläder. Resultatet visade på att e-handlarna i olika grad har använt sig av faktorerna inom processvirtualisering. Marknadsföringen var av nödvändighet nästan helt anpassat till Internet. Den fysiska upplevelsen däremot kopierades i så hög grad som möjligt, och målet var att kunderna skulle få en uppfattning om hur produkterna såg ut och kändes i verkligheten. Vi kom fram till att virtualiseringsprocessen i slutändan handlar om en kompromiss, en kombination av fysiska processer anpassade till ett virtuellt sammanhang och nya idéer som inte hade varit möjliga i något annat medium. Att hitta en balans mellan dessa faktorer kommer att vara en av Internethandlarnas största utmaningar i framtiden. / This master thesis deals with e-traders adaptation of a physical shopping experience into a virtual one. More specifically we examine e-retailers of fashion apparel, a market that more dependent on the physical purchasing experience. Our research question is as follows: How do e-retailers of fashion apparel adapt the physical purchasing process to a virtual context? To examine this, we used Overby’s article "Process Virtualization Theory and the Impact of Information Technology" from 2008 where he describes four different factors that influence a purchase: sensory requirements, relationship requirements, synchronization requirements and identification and control requirements. To strengthen Overby’s theory we also used Belk’s (1975) theory about situation variables and the general theory of Internet marketing. These theories are summarized in a theoretical model which we have based our analysis on. For our empirical data collection we use a qualitative approach. After establishing an interview template based on the theoretical framework, we executed two telephone interviews and three e-mail interviews with e-retailers of fashion clothing. The results shows that e-retailers have used these factors in slightly different ways in the process of virtualization. Marketing is by necessity almost adapted to the Internet. The physical experience, however, is copied as closely as possible, and the goal is that customers gets an idea of what the products look like and feels like in reality. Our conclusion is that in the end, the virtualization process is a compromise between physical processes adapted to a virtual context, and new ideas that would not have been possible in any other medium. Finding a balance between these factors will be one of the greatest challenges for e-retailers in the future.

In this study a time based bidding framework is developed which is used for dispatching jobs to manufacturing resources in a virtual shop-floor environment. Agent-based shop-floor control approach is implemented with machine and part agents. The Contract-net communication protocol is utilized as the negotiation scheme between these agents. Single step product reservation (SSPR) technique is adopted throughout the study. Primary objective is determined as meeting the due dates and if the lateness is inevitable, avoiding the parts of high priority from being late. A balanced machine utilization rate is set as the secondary objective. During bid construction step, the SSPR technique is augmented with W(SPT+CR) sequencing rule in order to obtain weighted tardiness results. Bids containing Earliest Finishing Time (EFT) and machine loading values of the corresponding machine are evaluated with considering the priority of the part. An elimination algorithm which discards the highly deviated bids having obvious differences is implemented at the initial stage of the bid evaluation step. A basic algorithm to control the maximum tardiness value is applied, as well. A simulation test bed is developed in order to implement the time concept into the presented bidding framework. The test bed is mainly based on the Computer Integrated Manufacturing Laboratory (CIMLAB) located in Middle East Technical University, Department of Mechanical Engineering. The developed bidding algorithm is tested under several cases. Results revealed that the proposed bidding framework was quite successful in meeting the objectives. The study is concluded with some specific future work, outlined in the light of the results obtained.

Der steigende Effizienzdruck in der Automobilindustrie führt zu der Notwendigkeit bereits in der frühen Planungsphase umfassende Aussagen in Bezug auf die Leistungsfähigkeit des entworfenen Systems zu machen. In der vorliegenden Arbeit wird für den Fertigungsbereich Karosseriebau ein Kennzahlensystem entwickelt, das eine fundierte Entscheidungsbasis für das Management bietet und den Fertigungsplaner mit detaillierten Informationen zur Erkennung von Schwachstellen versorgt. Zur Beherrschung des komplexen Gesamtsystems wird zunächst ein hierarchisches Prozessmodell erarbeitet, anhand dessen die wesentlichen Erfolgsfaktoren des Karosseriebaus identifiziert und parametriert werden. Die Kennzahlen werden definiert und entsprechend ihrer Ursache-Wirkungs-Beziehungen in einem durchgängigen, modularen Kennzahlensystem angeordnet. Zur Sicherung der Praxistauglichkeit werden bei der Entwicklung des Kennzahlensystems der Kennzahlenbedarf und die Kennzahlenverfügbarkeit über den Projektverlauf berücksichtigt. Die Berechnung und Komprimierung der Kennzahlen sowie die Visualisierung der Leistungsentwicklung werden in die Digitale Fabrik integriert und so der manuelle Pflegeaufwand reduziert. Der Nutzen des Kennzahlensystems in der Unternehmerischen Praxis wird anhand von Beispielen verdeutlicht und nachgewiesen.

L'algorithme génétique (AG), est fondé sur les méanismes de codage, sélection, croisement, mutation et insertion. Chacun présente plusieurs choix ce qui donne résultat à plusieurs variantes de AG.<br /><br /> Nous avons obtenu une variante meilleure d'algorithme génétique pour le problème du voyageur de commerce. Dans laquelle, nous avons introduit notre nouvel opérateur de croisement Cedrx qui est jumelé avec l'opérateur edrx donne de bons résultats. <br /><br /> Cette étude, nous a permis de créer des variantes efficaces d'algorithme génétique pour les probèmes suivants: <br /><br />+ Le problème d'ordonnancement dans les ateliers de type Job Shop;<br />+ Le problème des atterrissages d'avions (PAA);<br />+ Le problème d'ordonnancement des véhicules sur une chaîe de <br /> production dans une usine (POV).

Thesis (M.B.A.)--University of Hong Kong, 1983.

Die aktuelle Ausgabe des Newsletter für Freunde, Absolventen und Ehemalige der Technischen Universität Chemnitz.

Šiomis dienomis ypač didelis dėmesys skiriamas žmonių su negalia integracijai į informacinę visuomenę, o taip pat ir skaitmeninės atskirties mažinimui. Pasaulyje vyrauja nuomonė, kad informacija turi būti prieinama visiems visuomenės nariams, nepriklausomai nuo jų turimos negalios. Todėl magistro baigiamajam darbui pasirinkta tema „Lietuviškų elektroninių parduotuvių prieinamumas asmenims su regos negalia“ yra ypač aktuali. Magistro baigiamojo darbo tikslas yra išanalizuoti lietuviškų elektroninių parduotuvių prieinamumą asmenims su regėjimo negalia. Šiam tikslui pasiekti keliami uždaviniai yra: išanalizuoti elektroninę parduotuvę, kaip vieną iš elektroninės komercijos formų; nustatyti būdus ir priemones, padedančius mažinti žmonių su regos negalia skaitmeninę atskirtį; ištirti lietuviškų elektroninių parduotuvių prieinamumą asmenims su regėjimo negalia. Darbo objektas – elektroninių parduotuvių prieinamumas asmenims su regėjimo negalia. Naudojant mokslinės literatūros ir dokumentinių bei internetinių informacijos šaltinių analizės, dedukcinį bei indukcinį metodus, nustatyta, jog dalis elektroninių parduotuvių yra nepatogios net ir regos negalios neturintiems asmenims. Jose vartotojams sudėtinga rasti reikiamą informaciją, tinklalapių kūrėjų naudojami navigaciniai sprendimai yra neprieinami, todėl siekiant išlaikyti esamus klientus ir norint pritraukti naujų, svarbu prisitaikyti prie įvairių vartotojų grupių poreikių. Nuolatinis vartotojų poreikių stebėjimas, analizė ir... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / These days, much attention is paid to the integration of disabled people into information society and to the digital divide bridging. In the world it is generally felt that information should be available to all society members, nevertheless of their existing disability. Therefore, master work topic “The access to the Lithuanian internet shops for the people with visual impairment” is particularly important. The aim of this master work is to analyze the access to the Lithuanian internet shops for the people with visual impairment. The goals of the work are: to analyze the online shop as one of the forms of e-commerce; to identify ways and means that could help reduce digital divide for people with visual impairment; to explore access to the Lithuanian electronic shops for the people with visual impairment. The object of this master work is the access to the online shops for the people with visual impairment. Using deductive and inductive methods of scientific literature and information resources analyses, it was detected that some of the online shops are problematic to use even to the people without visual impairment. In these shops sometimes it is actually difficult to find relevant information; furthermore Web developers are using inaccessible navigation solutions. Therefore, in order to retain existing customers and to attract new ones, it is important to adapt to different user groups' needs. Continuous monitoring of user needs analysis and endeavor to meet them is one of... [to full text]

Automotive industry is facing fundamental challenges due to the rapid depletion of fossil fuels, energy saving and environmental concerns. The need of sustainable energy development has motivated the research of energy reduction and renewable energy sources. Efficient use of energy in vehicle manufacturing is demanded, as well as an alternative energy source to replace gasoline powered engines. In this thesis, we introduce a case study at an automotive paint shop, where the largest amount of energy consumption of an automotive assembly plant takes place. Additionally, we present a summary of recent advances in the area of hybrid and electrical vehicles battery manufacturing, review commonly used battery technologies, their manufacturing processes, and related recycling and environmental issues. Our study shows that energy consumption in paint shops can be reduced substantially by selecting the appropriate repair capacity, reducing the number of repainted jobs and consuming less material and energy. Also, it is seen that considerable effort needs to be devoted to the development of batteries for hybrid and electric vehicles in the near future, which will make this area challenging and research opportunities promising.