Os Métodos Ágeis surgiram no final da década de 90, como uma alternativa aos métodos prescritivos de desenvolvimento de software. Eles propõem uma nova abordagem de desenvolvimento, eliminando gastos com documentação excessiva e burocrática, enfatizando a interação entre as pessoas e as atividades que efetivamente trazem valor ao cliente. Nos últimos anos, diversos princípios e práticas baseados na indústria de manufatura foram incorporadas pelos Métodos Ágeis de desenvolvimento de software. Um dos princípios absorvidos é o de melhorar a eficácia de uma organização através de melhorias globais. Embora este princípio seja bem difundido nos Métodos Ágeis, utilizá-lo não é uma tarefa fácil. Nem sempre é fácil ter uma visão global do processo de desenvolvimento. Além disso, para realizar melhorias globais é necessário descobrir a causa para possíveis problemas, o que também pode ser uma tarefa difícil. Esse trabalho investiga duas abordagens da indústria de manufatura que enxergam uma organização como um sistema no qual todas as partes são inter-relacionadas. Com base nelas, três abordagens de desenvolvimento de software existentes são analisadas. Finalmente, um estudo comparativo foi feito para avaliar as principais características dos métodos de desenvolvimento estudados. Esse estudo estende o trabalho feito por Abrahamssom et al., no livro Agile Software Development: Current Research and Future Directions, avaliando o desempenho dos métodos seguindo o arcabouço proposto pelos mesmos autores. / Agile methods appeared in the late 90\'s as an alternative approach to the classic prescriptive planning approaches to software development. They propose a new style of development, eliminating excessive and bureaucratic documentation, and emphasizing the interactions between people collaborating to achieve high productivity and deliver high-quality software. In the last few years, several principles and practices based on the manufacturing industry were incorporated by Agile software development. One of the principles absorbed is to improve the effectiveness of an organization through an overall improvement. Although this principle is quite widespread in Agile Methods, using it is not an easy task. It is not easy to get the big picture of the development process. Moreover, to achieve overall improvements is necessary to discover the cause of possible problems, which can also be a difficult task. This work investigates two approaches in the manufacturing industry that shares the assumption that the whole organization is focused on overall throughput, not on micro-optimization. Based on then, three approaches to existing software development are analyzed. Finally, a comparative study was done to assess the main characteristics of the studied methods. This study extends the work done by Abrahamssom et al. In the book Agile Software Development: Current Research and Future Directions, evaluating the performance of the methods following the framework proposed by the same authors.

Apribojimų teorijos principus Lietuvoje pastarąjį dešimtmetį savo veikloje, padedant profesionaliems konsultantams, ėmė naudoti vos keli procentai įmonių, tačiau apribojimų teorijos principų panaudojimas paslaugų įmonėse nėra išsamiai ištirtas. Šiuo magistro baigiamuoju darbu siekiama atskleisti analizuojamos teorijos poveikį konkrečiai Lietuvoje veikiančiai paslaugų įmonei.Tyrimas patvirtino hipotezę, kad aprobojimų teorijos metodus galima sėkmingai taikyti pasaugų versle, jie padeda surasti geriausius problemų sprendimo būdus, tačiau kiekviena organizacija yra gyvas organizmas, išsprendus vienas problemas atsiranda kitos. / Despite the fact that in the last decade just small percentage of companies in Lithuania with help from professional consultants, applied the Theory of Constraints principles in their business activities, still the issue of applying the Theory of Constraints principles in services providing companies is not thoroughly explored. This Master’s thesis aims to reveal the impact of the analyzed theory on the particular services providing company.The hypothesis was confirmed by the research that the Theory of Constraints methods could be successfully applied to service business, they are used to find the best solutions to the problems, but each organization is like a live organism which confronts new problems after solving the old ones.

Os Métodos Ágeis surgiram no final da década de 90, como uma alternativa aos métodos prescritivos de desenvolvimento de software. Eles propõem uma nova abordagem de desenvolvimento, eliminando gastos com documentação excessiva e burocrática, enfatizando a interação entre as pessoas e as atividades que efetivamente trazem valor ao cliente. Nos últimos anos, diversos princípios e práticas baseados na indústria de manufatura foram incorporadas pelos Métodos Ágeis de desenvolvimento de software. Um dos princípios absorvidos é o de melhorar a eficácia de uma organização através de melhorias globais. Embora este princípio seja bem difundido nos Métodos Ágeis, utilizá-lo não é uma tarefa fácil. Nem sempre é fácil ter uma visão global do processo de desenvolvimento. Além disso, para realizar melhorias globais é necessário descobrir a causa para possíveis problemas, o que também pode ser uma tarefa difícil. Esse trabalho investiga duas abordagens da indústria de manufatura que enxergam uma organização como um sistema no qual todas as partes são inter-relacionadas. Com base nelas, três abordagens de desenvolvimento de software existentes são analisadas. Finalmente, um estudo comparativo foi feito para avaliar as principais características dos métodos de desenvolvimento estudados. Esse estudo estende o trabalho feito por Abrahamssom et al., no livro Agile Software Development: Current Research and Future Directions, avaliando o desempenho dos métodos seguindo o arcabouço proposto pelos mesmos autores. / Agile methods appeared in the late 90\'s as an alternative approach to the classic prescriptive planning approaches to software development. They propose a new style of development, eliminating excessive and bureaucratic documentation, and emphasizing the interactions between people collaborating to achieve high productivity and deliver high-quality software. In the last few years, several principles and practices based on the manufacturing industry were incorporated by Agile software development. One of the principles absorbed is to improve the effectiveness of an organization through an overall improvement. Although this principle is quite widespread in Agile Methods, using it is not an easy task. It is not easy to get the big picture of the development process. Moreover, to achieve overall improvements is necessary to discover the cause of possible problems, which can also be a difficult task. This work investigates two approaches in the manufacturing industry that shares the assumption that the whole organization is focused on overall throughput, not on micro-optimization. Based on then, three approaches to existing software development are analyzed. Finally, a comparative study was done to assess the main characteristics of the studied methods. This study extends the work done by Abrahamssom et al. In the book Agile Software Development: Current Research and Future Directions, evaluating the performance of the methods following the framework proposed by the same authors.

Operations improvement methodologies have been adopted by manufacturing companies since the early 20th century. Japanese manufacturers were able to offer products of high quality and efficient production costs through systems such as Lean. Manufacturers in the West soon adopted systems of their own thereafter. Operations Excellence is a generic term used to describe such systems, and can be described as a management system delivering competitiveness through the continuous improvement of operational performance. This study provides a critical review of the implementation of an Operations Excellence program by examining the system adopted by a petrochemical company in South Africa. The review allowed the implementation shortcomings to be identified so that resolutions could be suggested, thus facilitating successful utilisation of the system. An evaluation of Operations Excellence programs utilised globally and at the case study organisation was carried out as part of a literature study. This research included the critical success factors and lessons learnt from the systems employed by others. Experimental field work was carried out to allow the critical evaluation of the implementation in the case study. The experimental method utilised a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods for data collection. The primary research instrument was a questionnaire designed to examine the degree in which critical success factors and Operations Excellence requirements were present in the organisation. The implementation shortcomings were successfully identified through the experimental work undertaken. These shortcomings, together with the review of the available literature on Operations Excellence, allowed for the proposition of recommendations with the objective of successful utilisation of Operations Excellence programs for large enterprises. / MIng (Development and Management Engineering), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

Operations improvement methodologies have been adopted by manufacturing companies since the early 20th century. Japanese manufacturers were able to offer products of high quality and efficient production costs through systems such as Lean. Manufacturers in the West soon adopted systems of their own thereafter. Operations Excellence is a generic term used to describe such systems, and can be described as a management system delivering competitiveness through the continuous improvement of operational performance. This study provides a critical review of the implementation of an Operations Excellence program by examining the system adopted by a petrochemical company in South Africa. The review allowed the implementation shortcomings to be identified so that resolutions could be suggested, thus facilitating successful utilisation of the system. An evaluation of Operations Excellence programs utilised globally and at the case study organisation was carried out as part of a literature study. This research included the critical success factors and lessons learnt from the systems employed by others. Experimental field work was carried out to allow the critical evaluation of the implementation in the case study. The experimental method utilised a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods for data collection. The primary research instrument was a questionnaire designed to examine the degree in which critical success factors and Operations Excellence requirements were present in the organisation. The implementation shortcomings were successfully identified through the experimental work undertaken. These shortcomings, together with the review of the available literature on Operations Excellence, allowed for the proposition of recommendations with the objective of successful utilisation of Operations Excellence programs for large enterprises. / MIng (Development and Management Engineering), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

This thesis discusses and demonstrates the benefits of simulating and optimising a manufacturing control system in order to improve flow of production material through a system with high variety low volume output requirements. The need for and factors affecting synchronous flow are also discussed along with the consequences of poor flow and various solutions for overcoming it. A study into and comparison of various planning and control methodologies designed to promote flow of material through a manufacturing system was carried out to identify a suitable system to model. The research objectives are; • Identify the best system to model that will promote flow, • Identify the potential failure mechanisms within that system that exist and have not been yet resolved, • Produce a model that can fully resolve or reduce the probability of the identified failure mechanisms having an effect. This research led to an investigation into the main elements of a Drum-Buffer-Rope (DBR) environment in order to generate a comprehensive description of the requirements for DBR implementation and operation and attempt to improve the limitations that have been identified via the research literature. These requirements have been grouped into three areas, i.e.: a. plant layout and kanban controls, b. planning and control, and c. DBR infrastructure. A DBR model was developed combined with Genetic Algorithms with the aim of maximising the throughput level for an individual product mix. The results of the experiments have identified new knowledge on how DBR processes facilitate and impede material flow synchronisation within high variety/low volume manufacturing environments. The research results were limited to the assumptions made and constraints of the model, this research has highlighted that as such a model becomes more complex it also becomes more volatile and more difficult to control, leading to the conclusions that more research is required by extending the complexity of the model by adding more product mix and system variability to compare results with the results of this research. After which it will be expected that the model will be useful to enable a quick system response to large variations in product demand within the mixed model manufacturing industry.

Thesis (MBA)--Stellenbosch University, 2004. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: With the demand for ferrochrome increasing, Middelburg Ferrochrome is considering various capacity expansion opportunities. One of the proposed expansions would entail the construction of a pelletising and sintering facility on the site. During the feasibility study, a study was necessitated to verify if the inbound raw material logistics system at Middelburg Ferrochrome would be able to accommodate the additional raw material required for the pelletising and sintering facility. The objective of this study was to validate if the existing raw materials system is indeed capable of accommodating the additional demand placed on it by the addition of a pelletising and sintering plant at Middelburg Ferrochrome. This will be analysed with the use of the Theory of Constraints. In the study project, an overview of the principles of the Theory of Constraints is presented. An integral part of the Theory of Constraints is the Five Focussing Step process. This process was applied to the existing inbound raw materials logistics system at MFC, in an effort to maximise the raw material processing capability of the system. The methodology that was used to verify whether the inbound raw materials logistics system was capable of handling the additional raw materials involved the construction of a simulation model that was representative of the operation of the existing system. Measurements that were required to assess the performance of the system relative to its goal were defined. The performance of the existing raw materials system was assessed by subjecting the results of the simulation to the defined measures. The simulation model was then adapted to include the pelletising and sintering facility and the increased raw material requirements were introduced to the adapted model. The performance of the future system was then assessed in the same way as the existing system. The benefits that were derived from the application of the Five Focussing Steps were introduced to the adapted simulation model and the simulation results were then reassessed according to the defined measures. Key findings of the study were that through the application of the Five Focussing Steps the processing capability of the inbound raw materials logistics system could be increased. Only with the inclusion of benefits derived from the application of the Five Focussing Steps would the inbound raw materials logistics system at Middelburg Ferrochrome be capable of meeting the additional demand placed on it by the introduction of a pelletising and sintering facility at the site. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: ‘n Toename in die vraag na ferrochroom het tot gevolg dat Middelburg Ferrocrome (MFC) verskeie kapasiteit-uitbreidingsgeleenthede oorweeg. Een van die voorgestelde uitbreidings behels die konstruksie van ‘n pelletisering- en sinteraanleg. Hierdie voorstel se lewensvatbaarheidstudie het onder meer behels dat die bestaande logistieke stelsel wat Middelburg Ferrocrome se inkomende grondstowwe hanteer, ontleed moes word. Die doel van die analise was om te bepaal of die bestaande logistieke stelsel in staat sou wees om die addisionele grondstowwe, benodig vir die pelletisering- en sinteraanleg, te hanteer. Die doelwit van hierdie studie is om vas te stel of die vermoë van die huidige grondstofstelsel in staat is om die addisionele las van die voorgestelde Middelburg Ferrocrome pelletisering- en sinteraanleg te kan hanteer. Dit word met die behulp van die "Theory of Constraints" ondersoek. ’n Oorsig van die beginsels van die “Theory of Constraints” word in hierdie studie weergegee. ’n Integrale deel van die “Theory of Constraints” is die Vyf Fokus Stappe proses. Met hierdie studie is die Vyf Fokus Stappe proses toegepas op die inkomende grondstof logistieke stelsel van MFC ten einde die grondstof proseseringskapasiteit van die stelsel te maksimeer. Die metodologie wat gevolg is om te bepaal of die inkomende grondstof logistieke stelsel die vermoë het om die addisionele grondstoflas te hanteer, het die konstruksie van ’n simulasie model wat die bedryfskondisies van die bestaande stelsel naboots, behels. Die huidige logistieke stelsel se inset waardes is geïdentifiseer en in die simulasie model ingevoer ten einde die model se akkuraatheid te verifieer. Die simulasie model is hierna aangepas om die voorgestelde pelletisering- en sinteraanleg in te sluit. Die werkverrigting van die voorgestelde stelsel is hierna op dieselfde wyse as die bestaande stelsel geëvalueer. Die voordele wat uit die toepassing van die Vyf Fokus Stappe afgelei is, is by die aangepaste simulasie model bygevoeg waarna die simulasie resultate herevalueer is. Die hoof bevindings wat tydens die studie gemaak is, is dat die inkomende grondstof logistieke stelsel se kapasiteit wel deur die toepassing van die Vyf Fokus Stappe verhoog kan word. Daar is verder gevind dat die bestaande inkomende grondstof logistieke stelsel wel die addisionele las van ‘n pelletisering- en sinteraanleg kan hanteer, maar slegs indien die voordele wat uit die toepassing van die Vyf Fokus Stappe verkry word, ingesluit word.

Scheduling is a major task in project management. The current scheduling technique, Critical Path Method (CPM), has been widely applied for several decades, but a large number of projects fail to be completed on time and schedule delays occur in many projects. This raises question about the validity of the current project scheduling system. Critical Chain Project Management (CCPM), derived from Theory of Constraints, is a relatively new alternative approach toward scheduling projects. This study compared CCPM and CPM to determine which scheduling method delivers a shorter project duration and has a better usage of resources. A scheduling software called ProChain was used to reschedule a CPM based construction project using CCPM. The study concluded that the CCPM has the possibility to deliver shorter project duration and better resource usage in comparison to CPM. It was revealed that ProChain has limitation in the process of transforming a CPM schedule to a CCPM schedule. For example, ProChain treats any tasks without any predecessor as a project terminating task and puts a project buffer after it.

Orientador: Marcos Valerio Ribeiro / Resumo: Ambientes industriais são altamente competitivos. Fatores como a agilidade, a flexibilidade, a prestação de serviços, a qualidade e preços são as vantagens competitivas procuradas pelas organizações. Neste cenário, as otimizações propostas que abordam tais fatores são de particular interesse para o planejamento de processos. O procedimento proposto tratado é o resultado líquido direto e o aumento da competitividade no mercado de uma determinada empresa, visando que sua estrutura financeira seja a mais saudável possível. Este trabalho tem como objetivo auxiliar e desenvolver um procedimento padrão de verificação do nível de rentabilidade de uma empresa e ainda, se esta empresa tem a probabilidade de tornar-se mais rentável. Tal procedimento visa atingir um segundo objetivo no sentido de maximizar os recursos já existentes na própria organização. O aspecto chave desta pesquisa diz respeito à utilização de máquina com tempos ociosos e plena utilização de todos os sistemas disponíveis de fábrica. Quando a ociosidade destas máquinas utilizadas em pleno processo produtivo, é possível concluir como resultado das aplicações realizadas, uma maximização dos recursos propiciando o melhor resultado da organização. Esta ociosidade quando não apurada com a devida acurácia é lançada indevidamente nos custos dos produtos, fazendo com que a empresa possa perder competitividade / Abstract: Industrial environments are highly competitive. Factors such as agility, flexibility, service delivery, quality and prices are the competitive advantages sought by organizations. In this scenario, the proposed optimizations that address such factors are of particular interest for process planning. The proposed procedure is the direct net result and the increase of the competitiveness in the market of a certain company, aiming that its financial structure is as healthy as possible. This work aims to assist and develop a standard procedure for verifying the level of profitability of a company and still, if this company has the probability of becoming more profitable. This procedure aims to achieve a second objective in order to maximize resources already existing in the organization itself. The key aspect of this research concerns the use of idling machines and full utilization of all the systems available from the factory. When the idleness of these machines used in full productive process, it is possible to conclude as a result of the applications made, a maximization of the resources propitiating the best result of the organization. This idleness when not verified with the correct accuracy is improperly thrown into the costs of the products, causing the company to lose competitiveness / Doutor

Identificar a meta, pensar na empresa como um todo e não como um conjunto de partes isoladas, reconhecer e aumentar a capacidade da restrição, são etapas necessárias para a implementação da Theory of Constraints (TOC). Essa utilização, seja por meio de raciocínio lógico ou por meio da metodologia Tambor-Pulmão-Corda, visa racionalizar os processos nas organizações e criar novas abordagens que permitam alavancar a competitividade das organizações. Este trabalho parte da intenção de abordar os princípios e as práticas da Teoria das Restrições, identificando e analisando o impacto da implantação da TOC na gestão da produção. Neste contexto, a pesquisa apresenta um enfoque tanto exploratório, quanto descritivo. Pode ser considerado exploratório, uma vez que a revisão da literatura servirá como referência central para as seguintes discussões - a partir da implantação da TOC, quais as mudanças geradas no processo de gestão de uma empresa, quais as alterações nas rotinas de trabalho, qual a reação da equipe envolvida no processo. É descritivo, por meio da descrição e análise de estudos de caso. Sendo assim, pretende-se a partir do levantamento e avaliação do desempenho organizacional e de pesquisa realizada junto a empresas conceituadas, identificar como essas organizações vêem o papel e importância da TOC, sua relevância, efetividade, bem como os aspectos importantes para sua implementação. / Identifying the goal, thinking of the company as a whole and not as a set of isolated parts, to recognize and to increase the capacity of restriction, are necessary stages for the implementation of the TOC (Theory of Constraints). This utilization, be it by means of logical reasoning or by means of methodology Drum-Buffer-Rope, aims to rationalize the processes in the organizations and to create new approaches that allow for the organizations to leverage competitiveness. This article aims to approach the principles and practices of the Theory of Constraints, identifying and analyzing the impact of implantation of TOC in the production administration. In this context, the research presents an exploratory focus as well as a descriptive one. It can be considered exploratory, being that the literature revision will serve as the main reference for the following discussions - from TOC implantation, what changes are generated in the administration process of a company, what are the alterations in the working routines, what is the reaction of the team involved in the process. It is descriptive, by means of description and analysis of case studies. Thus, it is intended from the rising of information and performance evaluation and of research accomplished along with relevant companies, to identify how these organizations see the role and importance of TOC, its relevance, effectiveness, as well as the important aspects for its implementation.