Purpose – The purpose of this study is to investigate how ABC-classified article placement can reduce transport distances within warehouse operations, which do not use volume-based article placement. Based on the purpose, two research questions have been formulated: [1]   How can an ABC-classified article placement be established in order to minimize transport distances within warehouses? [2]   How much can transport distances be reduced by using an ABC-classified article placement instead of a non-volume based storage? Method – The methods that have been used to collect data have been a case study and a literature review. The case study has been performed on Sherwin-Williams’ distribution centre in Nässjö and has mainly been based on two months of picking data. Interviews and observations have supplemented the document study. The literature review has resulted in a theoretical framework in which the relevant theories of the study have been presented. The collected data was analysed by comparing the different results against each other. Further comparisons analysed the empirical data against the theoretical framework. Findings – The study has resulted in a model of how ABC-classified article placement with the purpose to reduce transport distances can be designed. The model is based on a few steps that are: pilot study, performance of an ABC-analysis based on the articles picking rate, and zone division. According to the case study ABC-classified article placement can reduce up to 35 % of internal transportation distances and according to the theoretical framework of up to 55 %. Implications – Warehouses that want to use the study can proceed from the steps presented in the analysis section. Furthermore, the practical implications of the study results in a system configuration and the movement of goods to the introduction of the ABC-classified article placement. The study implies theoretically that the volume-based article placement minimizes transport distances. The existing theories stating this is evidenced in this study which also shows that warehouses with less skewed ABC-curves can benefit from placing high frequency goods near the loading area. The study contributes with a new model that has been developed by compiling theories in the studied area. Limitations – The study has been limited to a single case study. The calculations made in the study have excluded items that require special storage, small package picking and distance between the pallets that are retrieved together. Transport distances have been calculated from the loading area and has excluded the distance between the racks and unload area.

Testing in data warehousing has traditionally been done in large chunks at the end of development projects. This has often led to costly bug fixes because fixing bugs that are found late in the development process is generally a very time consuming task. In some cases, there is not enough time to fix these bugs because of narrow project deadlines. This can have major consequences for organizations because business decisions often relies on their data warehouse to provide accurate statistics and data. This study examines a department of a major Swedish agency that recently adopted agile methods to overcome some of the shortcomings associated with traditional data warehouse development. The effects of agile methods on data warehouse testing are examined, as well as the challenges that are needed to overcome for them to be successful. We also touch upon consequences of poor test design and what implications incorrect data that are delivered from a data warehouse can have both internally and externally. In conclusion, the study have found that adopting agile methods have led to test activities being carried out more often, more efficiently and with better results than in the past. In addition, product owners have been continuously involved in the development process through frequent acceptance tests. For agile methods to be successful in data warehouse testing, we also concluded that they need the support of tools, system environments and attitudes both among developers and product owners. / Nej

I takt med att tillverkande företag ökar sin försäljning ökar också produktionen. En ökad produktion kommer så småningom att kräva mer yta för en större maskinpark när de ordinarie maskinerna inte längre räcker till. Om produktion sker mot lager kommer kraven på lageryta samtidigt att öka. Både maskiner och lager tar plats och är företaget trångbodda redan innan expansionen och möjligheterna till utbyggnad inte är stora krävs alternativa lösningar på hur lokalerna kan utnyttjas på ett effektivare sätt. En sådan lösning kan vara AutoStore, ett tredimensionellt automatlager. Ett sådant lager kan underlätta optimering av lagerytan och är anpassningsbart då det kan implementeras i de flesta lokaler. Denna studie syftar till att besvara ett antal frågor som berör materialhanteringen vid byte av ett manuellt lagersystem till AutoStore. Studien har genomförts på ett fallföretag som planerar att implementera detta automatiska lagersystem. Problemfrågorna berör vilka artiklar som är lämpliga att lagerföra i AutoStore, i vilka kvantiteter de bör förpackas samt hur flytten från det gamla till det nya lagret ska genomföras utan att riskera leveranssäkerheten. Studien har genomförts med hjälp av litteratur för att få ett teoretiskt perspektiv samt intervjuer och studiebesök på såväl fallföretaget och på andra företag som redan har utfört en implementering av AutoStore för att få ett praktiskt perspektiv. De arbetsprocesser som berör materialhanteringen har beskrivits genom hur de fungerar både innan och efter en implementering för att kunna jämföra skillnader. Studien resulterade i beräkningsmodeller och matriser som ska underlätta valet av vart en artikel passar bäst, i ställage eller i AutoStore samt i vilka förpackningskvantiteter som är lämpliga för att underlätta plock. Vidare presenteras riktlinjer för vad som bör tänkas på vid en flytt till AutoStore. / As manufacturing companies increase their sales they also increasing their production. An increased production will eventually require more space area for a larger machinery as the regular machines no longer suffice. If production for stock is used, the demand for warehouse space will at the same time increase. Both machinery and storage require space and if the company is short on space even before the expansion and the potential for remodelling is low, this might require alternative solutions on how the space can be utilized in a better way. Such a solution can be AutoStore, a three-dimensional automated warehouse. Such a warehouse can facilitate a better use of the bearing surface and is adaptable as it can be implemented in most environments. This study aims to answer a number of questions relating to materials handling when changing from Manuel warehouse-system to AutoStore. The study was conducted on a case company planning to implement this kind of warehouse. The problem questions concern what items are suitable to store in AutoStore, in what quantities they should be packaged and how the switch from the old to the new warehouse could be implemented without jeopardizing security of supply. The study was conducted with the help of literature to get a theoretical perspective as well as interviews and visits on both the cases company and other companies that have already undergone an implementation of AutoStore to get a practical perspective. The work processes involving material handling described how they work both before and after an implementation of AutoStore to compare the differences. The study resulted in models and matrixes that will facilitate the choice of where an article is best suited, at racking storage or AutoStore and in what packaging quantities that are appropriate to facilitate picking. Furthermore, guidelines are presented for what should be thought of before switching to AutoStore.

<p>Savremeni uslovi trži&scaron;nog poslovanja zahtevaju visoku<br />konkurentnost robe u cilju ostvarivanja maksimalnog profita<br />proizvodnih kompanija odnosno distributera i zadovoljenja potreba<br />kupaca. Debalans rasta produktivnosti proizvodnih procesa i<br />logističkog sistema je jedan od glavnih uzroka usporavanja<br />celokupnog reproduktivnog procesa. Istraživanje transportnologističkog<br />sistema sa tendencijom razvoja elemanta fleksibilnog<br />skladi&scaron;nog koncepa je multidisciplinarnog karaktera i fokusirano je<br />na analizu procesa, funkcionalnih povr&scaron;ina, layout-a i regalske<br />opreme skladi&scaron;ta.</p> / <p>Modern conditions of market economy requires a highly<br />competitive goods in order to achieve maximum profit production<br />company respectively distributors and gratification the needs of<br />customers. Imbalance growth of productivity of production<br />processes and logistics system is one of the main causes of<br />slowing down the entire of reproductive process. The research of<br />transport and logistics system with the tendency development of<br />elements of flexible storage concept is multidisciplinary and<br />focused on process analysis, functional area, layout and storage<br />racks.</p>

At a certain point of its life cycle, each data warehouse gets into a state in which the length of the ETL processing starts slowly approaching the acceptable limit. Even the slightest lapse means a hardly erasable time lag and the data supplies to users are increasingly delayed. Before the situation becomes more problematic, we need to react. This diploma thesis deals with the possible solutions of this problem- the ETL performance optimization. The main aim of the thesis is to propose the set of recommendations for the ETL process optimization and its presentation based on practical real world examples. While going through this thesis, the readers get inside the running of the real ETL optimization project. They learn how to proceed during its particular periods, what to avoid and how to reduce the risk level as much as possible. Moreover, the thesis mentions the prevention of the ETL performance loss and discusses the critical factors of the effective ETL process design. Although the proposed methods are described in a general perspective, the thesis is mainly focused on Oracle's database, which is its certain limitation. Also hardware optimization is not a part of the text. First chapters of the thesis describe the problem from the theoretical point of view, which is important for the correct understanding of the main content and the existing literature concerning this problematic is included here as well. Next sections describe the proposed methods and recommendations for the optimization of the ETL processes including tests and project results evaluation. They are mainly focused on the ETL process synchronization and the SQL code optimization areas. All the methods are presented of examples of the real project implemented by the author.

O presente trabalho trata da determinação de um roteiro ótimo de separação manual de peças em armazéns, buscando a minimização da distância total percorrida. São considerados armazéns com dois corredores transversais localizados em suas extremidades, os quais conectam todos os corredores de separação, perpendiculares aos corredores transversais e paralelos entre si. O problema abordado é prático e comum a várias empresas, com impacto nos custos operacionais e relevância para a assertividade em relação aos itens coletados. Ainda assim, o tema é pouco explorado nos estudos de roteirização disponíveis em língua portuguesa e muitas empresas optam por confiar a criação das rotas aos próprios separadores. O método escolhido é baseado em programação dinâmica e foi aplicado na roteirização de listas de separação relacionadas a subconjuntos do produto final, na roteirização de grupos aleatórios de peças, e no estudo do impacto do número de corredores de separação no comprimento das rotas, totalizando 184 experimentos. A forma de avaliação do algoritmo foi comparar as rotas por ele criadas com aquelas criadas pelos separadores. Conclui-se que quanto mais complexa for a rota, maiores serão os ganhos da seqüência de coletas proposta pelo sistema em comparação com aquelas criadas por processos subjetivos. Concluiu-se também que o número de corredores a ser visitado é o fator que mais influencia no comprimento da rota a ser percorrida. Ainda, o algoritmo é flexível e genérico para ser utilizado em qualquer armazém com dois corredores transversais, independente da política de localização ou separação adotada e, por sua facilidade de implementação e utilização, representa uma alternativa de roteirização eficiente e de baixo custo para pequenas e médias empresas. Finalmente, tem-se um algoritmo que pode ser utilizado também como ferramenta gerencial e de simulação visto que pode ser configurado para diferentes leiautes e diferentes tamanhos listas de separação. / The present work deals with the shortest route creation for a low-level pickers-to-part warehouse, intending to minimize the total traveled distance. The considered warehouse has two traversing aisles, located in its extremities, connecting all of the picking aisles and perpendicularly set in relation to them. The proposed problem is practical and common to several companies, impacting their operational costs and important for mis picking reduction. Nevertheless, that theme is little explored among routing studies in Portuguese language and several companies still opt to trust the routes to be subjectively prepared by their own pickers. The proposed solution method is based on dynamic programming and it was applied in the routing of picking lists related to subsets of final products, random groups of items, and in the study of the impact that picking aisle quantity has on the total length of the routes, totaling 184 experiments. The proposed algorithm was evaluated comparing the routes prepared by it with those created by the pickers. Results show that the more complex the route is, the higher the earnings of the algorithm utilization in relation to the subjective processes will be. Besides it shows that the number of corridors to be visited is the main influence to the length of the route. Still, the algorithm is flexible and generic to be used at any warehouse with two traverse corridors, independent of the locating police or separation strategy adopted. Furthermore the algorithm implementation easiness and use support it to be an efficient low cost routing alternative for small and average size companies.

A gestão do desempenho organizacional tem assumido grande importância nos últimos anos. O surgimento de diversas metodologias de medição, as experiências de remodelagem de sistemas de medição em empresas e o aumento da produção científica mostram esse fato. Ao mesmo tempo, com o avanço das tecnologias de informação, diversos sistemas computacionais, oferecidos por empresas de informática e consultoria, se propõem a dar suporte à medição do desempenho organizacional. Observa-se porém que a taxa de falhas e insatisfação com o uso de sistemas de medição de desempenho, por parte dos executivos e gerentes, é alta. Assim, nesse trabalho são pesquisadas diversas propostas de sistemas de medição de desempenho, envolvendo arquiteturas, conceitos e ferramentas de tecnologia da informação (como os conceitos relacionados ao uso do Data Warehouse) e são especificados critérios para a análise, comparação e aquisição de sistemas. Para a realização desse trabalho é feita uma ampla revisão bibliográfica, a partir da qual são levantados conceitos e uma listagem de características desses tipos de sistemas e são realizados estudos com empresas clientes e fornecedoras de soluções de informática para o suporte ao processo de medição de desempenho, validando a listagem de critérios levantada e as análises realizadas. Assim, este é uma contribuição para o uso mais eficaz e eficiente da tecnologia da informação no processo de medição de desempenho. / Organizational performance management is nowadays a very important issue. Several methodologies of measurement, the re-shaping of processes and systems of measurement in the companies and the rising of literature on this issue show this fact. At the same time, with the development of information technology, several performance measurement systems, built for consultant and IT companies, are sold as supporting the process of organizational performance measurement. But the dissatisfaction on its use by managers is high. Thus, in this work, theoretical frameworks, experiences on the use of performance measurement systems and proposals on architectures, concepts and tools of IT are reviewed and criteria to analysis, comparison and acquisition of those systems are proposed. To the elaboration of this proposal, also different systems were availed and users necessities and preferences were raised. The proposal consists on a general framework for the classification of the systems on its four basic functions: collect, analysis, communication and learning; and the detailing of its functions on specific criteria to a more detailed analysis or comparison of systems on its functions. Then, this is a contribution for a more efficiently use of IT on the support of organizational performance measurement.

A freqüência nas mudanças no ambiente empresarial exige que as empresas tenham uma elevada capacidade de adaptação. Neste sentido, é fundamental que mecanismos para avaliar suas ações e operações tenham totais condições de análise objetiva da situação atual e futura da empresa. É dentro deste enfoque, que os indicadores de desempenho se tornam instrumentos eficazes para estas análises e avaliações. A partir dessa constatação, este trabalho trata do desenvolvimento de indicadores de desempenho para as operações de produção de uma empresa de manufatura inserida no contexto de uma cadeia de suprimentos. O conjunto de indicadores de desempenho foi desenvolvido para o cenário da cadeia de suprimentos de moto redutores criado para o projeto IPROS. Como características fundamentais destacam-se o ambiente de sistemas de gestão, onde o Data Warehouse é utilizado como ferramenta principal e o ambiente de cadeia de suprimentos onde os indicadores foram focados tanto no desempenho dos processos internos de uma empresa elo da cadeia, quanto no relacionamento desse elo com a cadeia de suprimentos. É também proposto um estudo de caso que analisa uma empresa representativa da cadeia de suprimentos que está sendo estudada. / The frequent changes in the management environment demand that the companies must have a high capacity of adaptation. In this way, it is fundamental that mechanisms to measure the actions and operations have conditions to analyze the current and future situation of the company. In these analyses, the performance measures became good tools to analyze these evaluations. Following this argument, this work discusses the development of performance measures to the operations of one manufacturing company in a supply chain environment. The performance measures were developed in a scenario of a company that produces gearbox, and this scenario was called IPROS project. As fundamental characteristics of this scenario, the use of a system called Data Warehouse, as the main tool for process the informations, and the supply chain environment, where performance measures was focused in the internal processes of one company and the relationship between this company with all the supply chain. This work also presents a case study that discusses the performance measures of a representative company.

Embora o conceito de Data Warehouse (doravante abreviado DW), em suas várias formas, continue atraindo interesse, muitos projetos de DW não estão gerando os benefícios esperados e muitos estão provando ser excessivamente caro de desenvolver e manter. O presente trabalho visa organizar os conceitos de DW através de uma revisão bibliográfica, discutindo seu real benefício e também de como perceber este benefício a um custo que é aceitável ao empreendimento. Em particular são analisadas metodologias que servirão de embasamento para a proposta de uma metodologia de projeto de DW, que será aplicada a um estudo de caso real para a Cia Zaffari, levando em conta critérios que são encontrados atualmente no desenvolvimento de um Data Warehouse, um subconjunto das quais será tratado no trabalho de dissertação. / Although the concept of Data Warehouse (DW), in its various forms, still attracting interest, many DW projects are not generating the benefits expected and many are proving to be too expensive to develop and to keep. This work organizes the concepts of DW through a literature review, discussing its real benefit and how to realize this benefit at a cost that is acceptable to the company. In particular methods are discussed to serve as a foundation for proposing a design methodology for DW, which will be applied to a real case study for the CIA Zaffari, taking into account criteria that are currently found in developing a data warehouse, a subset of which will be treated in the dissertation.

This research investigates the role of strategic alignment in the success of data warehouse implementation. Data warehouse technology is inherently complex, requires significant capital investment and development time. Many organizations fail to realize the full benefits from it. While failure to realize benefits has been attributed to numerous causes, ranging from technical to organizational reasons, the underlying strategic alignment issues have not been studied. This research confirms, through two case studies, that the successful adoption of the data warehouse depends on its alignment to the business plans and strategy. The research found that the factors that are critical to the alignment of data warehouses to business strategy and plans are (a) joint responsibility between data warehouse and business managers, (b) alignment between data warehouse plan and business plan, (c) business user satisfaction, (d) flexibility in data warehouse planning and (e) technical integration of the data warehouse. In the case studies, the impact of strategic alignment was visible both at implementation and use levels. The key findings from the case studies are that a) Senior management commitment and involvement are necessary for the initiation of the data warehouse project. The awareness and involvement of data warehouse managers in corporate strategies and a high level of joint responsibility between business and data warehouse managers is critical to strategic alignment and successful adoption of the data warehouse. b) Communication of the strategic direction between the business and data warehouse managers is important for the strategic alignment of the data warehouse. Significant knowledge sharing among the stakeholders and frequent communication between the iv data warehouse managers and users facilitates better understanding of the data warehouse and its successful adoption. c) User participation in the data warehouse project, perceived usefulness of the data warehouse, ease of use and data quality (accuracy, consistency, reliability and timelines) were significant factors in strategic alignment of the data warehouse. d) Technology selection based on its ability to address business and user requirements, and the skills and response of the data warehousing team led to better alignment of the data warehouse to business plans and strategies. e) The flexibility to respond to changes in business needs and flexibility in data warehouse planning is critical to strategic alignment and successful adoption of the data warehouse. Alignment is seen as a process requiring continuous adaptation and coordination of plans and goals. This research provides a pathway for facilitating successful adoption of data warehouse. The model developed in this research allows data warehouse professionals to ensure that their project when implemented, achieve the strategic goals and business objectives of the organization.