Fall/ August 2012, MBA-3rd Semester

Master of Business Administration (MBA) Semester 3 MU0012 Employee Relations Management (4 Credits) (Book ID: B1230) Assignment Set- 1

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Q1. Explain briefly the Computer Integrated Manufacturing? Computer Integrated Manufacturing, known as CIM, is the phrase used to describe the complete automation of a manufacturing plant, with all processes functioning under computer control and digital information tying them together. It was promoted by machine tool manufacturers in the 1980's and the Society for Manufacturing Engineers (CASA/SME). Quite often it was mistaken for the concept of a "lights out" factory. It includes CAD/CAM, computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing, CAPP, computer-aided process planning, CNC, computer numerical control machine tools, DNC, direct numerical control machine tools, FMS, flexible machining systems, ASRS, automated storage and retrieval systems, AGV, automated guided vehicles, use of robotics and automated conveyance, computerized scheduling and production control, and a business system integrated by a common data base. The heart of computer integrated manufacturing is CAD/CAM. Computer-aided design(CAD) and computer-aided manufacturing(CAM) systems are essential to reducing cycle times in the organization. CAD/CAM is a high technology integrating tool between design and manufacturing. CAD techniques make use of group technology to create similar geometries for quick retrieval. Electronic files replace drawing rooms. CAD/CAM integrated systems provide design/drafting, planning and scheduling, and fabrication capabilities. CAD provides the electronic part images, and CAM provides the facility for toolpath cutters to take on the raw piece. The computer graphics that CAD provides allows designers to create electronic images which can be portrayed in two dimensions, or as a three dimensional solid component or assembly which can be rotated as it is viewed. Advanced software programs can analyze and test designs before a prototype is made. Finite element analysis programs allow engineers to predict stress points on a part, and the effects of loading.

Q2. What is automation? What are the kinds of automation? Automation is the use of control systems and information technologies to reduce the need for human work in the production of goods and services. In the scope of industrialization, automation is a step beyond mechanization. Whereas mechanization provided human operators with machinery to assist them with the muscular requirements of work, automation greatly decreases the need for human sensory and mental requirements as well. Automation plays an increasingly important role in the world economy and in daily experience. Automation has had a notable impact in a wide range of industries beyond manufacturing (where it began). Once-ubiquitous telephone operators have been replaced largely by automated telephone switchboards and answering machines. Medical processes such as primary screening inelectrocardiography or radiography and laboratory analysis of
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human genes, sera, cells, and tissues are carried out at much greater speed and accuracy by automated systems. Automated teller machines have reduced the need for bank visits to obtain cash and carry out transactions. In general, automation has been responsible for the shift in the world economy from industrial jobs to service jobs in the 20th and 21st centuries.[1] The term automation, inspired by the earlier word automatic (coming from automaton), was not widely used before 1947, when General Motors established the automation department. At that time automation technologies were electrical, mechanical, hydraulic and pneumatic. Between 1957 and 1964 factory output nearly doubled while the number of blue collar workers started to decline

Types:Automated IT-Service Management / ITSM Process Automation :This is an umbrella term for solutions focused on supporting Service Management workflows, usually based on best practices and standards like ITIL or Cobit. Subordinated terms are Support Automation or Run-BookAutomation. Support Automation:Support Automation refers to software packages are focused on supporting the routine work of help desk personnel. Think of it as a kind of script integration in existing Service desk, CRM application or even in Knowledge Base Applications for Automated Self Service. Examples for this category are products like CA SupportBridge or mValent Integrity, which is focused on Change Management Automation. Run-Book-Automation:Products belonging to this category are very popular nowadays. They allow to define a set of ITSM-Workflows through a Graphical user interface. Good products offer a multitude of connectors and interfaces to existing ITSM suites like OpenView, Tivoli or Unicenter. Examples for this kind of products are Opalis Integration Server, BMC Realops or HP/Opsware/IConclude Opsforce. Policy-Based Automation:Certain Automation solutions such as Enigmatec are elevating the importance of rules to an higher level. By bringing in the term Policy the rules management gets a more of the enterprise-style. Some solutions in the IT Process Automation area are providing a rich set of features for designing and managing policies. IT-Workload Automation:These concepts stem from early (mainframe) days of computing, where batch processing or job Scheduling were a big improvement, allowing operator to automate recurring tasks. Though modern products are highly evolutionized through offering

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multi platform compatibility, event-triggering, policy-based execution and configured to smart coloured visual GUIs. These products are gaining ground in modern service oriented environments and are represented through products from big vendors like CA/Cybermation and IBM Tivoli or smaller competitors like ASG and UC4 Data Center Automation:This is the hottest topic today, as companies have started to deploy myriad of servers into an extremely fast growing number of data centers all over the world, bringing high demand for automated tools to provision, change and manage vast numbers of components. Any of the large vendor offers such a tool or suite and you guessed it here is place, where the bucks go. HP know that story. Products in this category are former Opsware Server Automation System, BMC BladeLogic, IBM Tivoli Provisioning Manager and to bring in some cloudy haze modern and cool products/players like Elastra or 3Tera/Applogic which allow to mix data center and cloud offerings

Q3. What are the factors that influence the plant location ?

Factors influencing plant location:1. Nature of the product: The nature of the product to be manufactured will significantly affect the layout of the plant. Stationary layout will be most suitable for heavy products while line layout will be best for the manufacture for the light products because small and light products can be moved from one machine to another very easily and, therefore, more attention can be paid to machine locations can be paid to machine locations and handling of materials. 2. Volume of production: Volume of production and the standardization of the product also affect the type of layout. If standardized commodities are to be manufactured on large scale, line type of layout may be adopted. 3. Basic managerial policies and decisions: The type of layout depends very much on the decisions and policies of the management to be followed in producing the commodity with regard to the size of plant, kind and quality of the product, scope for expansion to be provided for, the extent to which the plant is to be integrated, amount of stocks to be carried at anytime, the kind of employee facilities to be provided etc. 4. Nature of plant location: The size shape and topography of the site at which the plant is located will naturally affect the type of layout to be followed in view of the maximum utilization of the space available .For e.g., if a site is near the railway line the arrangement of general layout for receiving and shipping and for the best flow of production in and out the plant may be made by the side of the railway lines .If space is narrow and the production process is lengthy, the layout of plant may be arranged on the land surface in the following manner:

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5. Type of industry process: This is one of the most important factors influencing the choice of type of plant layout. Generally the types of layout particularly the arrangement of machines and work centers and the location of workmen vary according to the nature of the industry to which the plant belongs. For the purpose of lay out, industry may be classified into two broad categories: (i) Intermittent and (ii) continuous. Intermittent type of industries is those, which manufacture different component or different machines. Such industries may manufacture the parts, when required according to the market needs. Examples of such industries are shipbuilding plants. In this type of industry functional layout may be the best. The second type of industry in continuous industry. in this type of industry raw material are fed at one end and the finished goods are received at another end. A continuous industry may either be analytical or synthetic. A analytical industry breaks up the raw material into several parts during the course of production process or changes its form, e.g. oil and sugar refineries. A synthetic industry on the other hand mixes the two or more materials to manufacture one product along with the process of production or assembles several parts to get finished product. Cement and automobiles industries are the examples of such industry. Line layout is more suitable in continuous process industries. 6. Types of methods of production: Layout plans may be different according to the method of production proposed to be adopted. Any of the following three methods may be adopted for production- (1) Job order production, (2) batch production, and (3) mass production. Under job production goods are produced according to the orders of the customers and therefore, specification vary from customer to customer and the production cannot be standardized. The machines and equipment can be arranged in a manner to suit the need of all types of customers. Batch production carries the production of goods in batches or group at intervals. In this type of manufacturing the product is standardized and production is made generally in anticipation of sales. In such cases functional or process layout may be adopted. In case of mass production of standardized goods, line layout is most suitable form of plant layout. 7. Nature of machines: Nature of machines and equipment also affects the layout of plants. If machines are heavy in weight or create noisy atmosphere, stationery layout may reasonably be adopted. Heavy machines are generally fixed on the ground floor. Ample space should be provided for complicated machines to avoid accidents. 8. Climate: Sometimes, temperature, illumination and air are the deciding factors in the location of machines and their establishments. For example, in lantern manufacturing industry, the spraypainting room is built along the factory wall to ensure the required temperature control and air expulsion and the process of spray painting may be undertaken. 9.Nature of material: Design and specification of materials, quantity and quality of materials and combination of materials are probably the most important factors to be considered in planning a layout. So, materials storage, space, volume and weight of raw materials, floor load capacity, ceiling height, method of storing etc. should be given special consideration. This will
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affect the space and the efficiency of the production process in the plant. It will facilitate economic production of goods and prompt materials flow and soundly conceived materials handling system. 10. Type of machine: Machines and equipment may be either general purpose or special purpose. In addition certain tools are used. The requirements of each machine and equipment are quite different in terms of their space; speed and material handling process and these factors should be given proper consideration while choosing out a particular type of layout. This should also be considered that each machine and equipment is used to its fullest capacity because machines involve a huge investment. For instance, under product layout, certain machines may not be used to their full capacity so care should be taken to make full use of the capacity of the machines and equipment. 12. Human factor and working conditions: Men are the most important factor of production and therefore special consideration for their safety and comforts should be given while planning a layout, specific safety items like obstruction-free floor, workers not exposed to hazards, exit etc. should be provided for. The layout should also provide for the comforts to the workers such as provision of rest rooms, drinking water and other services etc. sufficient space is also to be provided for free movement of workers. Q4. Describe the seven basic quality control tools? Quality pros have many names for these seven basic tools of quality, first emphasized by Kaoru Ishikawa, a professor of engineering at Tokyo University and the father of quality circles. Start your quality journey by mastering these tools, and you'll have a name for them too: "indispensable."

Cause-and-effect diagram (also called Ishikawa or fishbone chart): Identifies many possible causes for an effect or problem and sorts ideas into useful categories. Check sheet: A structured, prepared form for collecting and analyzing data; a generic tool that can be adapted for a wide variety of purposes. Control charts: Graphs used to study how a process changes over time. Histogram: The most commonly used graph for showing frequency distributions, or how often each different value in a set of data occurs.

Pareto chart: Shows on a bar graph which factors are more significant. Scatter diagram: Graphs pairs of numerical data, one variable on each axis, to look for a relationship.
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Stratification: A technique that separates data gathered from a variety of sources so that patterns can be seen (some lists replace stratification with flowchart or run chart).

Q5. Define project management. Describe the five dimensions of project management.? What is a project? Project management is the way of managing change. Everything from the Olympics to organising a wedding can be considered a project. It describes the activities that meet specific objectives and can be used to introduce or improve new or existing products and services. The APM definition of a project identifies two of the key features: Uniqueness Projects are separate to business-as-usual activities, requiring people to come together temporarily to focus on specific project objectives. As a result, effective teamwork is central to successful projects. Transience A project has a specific start and end point and is set up to meet specific objectives, to create a specified result, product or service. Scope - time, cost and quality Projects need to be controlled to meet their objectives and deliver benefits. Objectives are defined in terms of expectations of time, cost and quality.

Time, cost and quality are called objectives or constraints. For example:
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The project must be completed by January 2013 (time). The project must not spend more than 500,000 (cost). The project should create a searchable and informative website (quality). All the work that has to be done to achieve the time, cost and quality objectives defines the project scope. The scope can change over time, and it is the project managers responsibility to ensure the project will still deliver its defined benefits. A project manager must maintain focus on the relative priorities of time, cost and quality.

What is project management?

Project management focuses on controlling the introduction of the desired change. This involves:

Understanding the needs of stakeholders. Planning what needs to be done, when, by whom, and to what standards. Building and motivating the team. Coordinating the work of different people. Monitoring work being done. Managing any changes to the plan. Delivering successful results.

Q6. What is meant by Supply Chain Management (SCM)? What are the objectives of SCM? A supply chain is a system of organizations, people, technology, activities, information and resources involved in moving a product or service from supplier to customer. Supply chain activities transform natural resources,raw materials and components into a finished product that is delivered to the end customer. In sophisticated supply chain systems, used products may reenter the supply chain at any point where residual value is recyclable. Supply chains link value chains In the 1980s, the term Supply Chain Management (SCM) was developed[5] to express the need to integrate the key business processes, from end user through original suppliers. Original suppliers being those that provide products, services and information that add value for customers and other stakeholders. The basic idea behind the SCM is that companies and corporations involve
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themselves in a supply chain by exchanging information regarding market fluctuations and production capabilities. If all relevant information is accessible to any relevant company, every company in the supply chain has the ability to help optimize the entire supply chain rather than sub optimize based on a local interest. This will lead to better planned overall production and distribution which can cut costs and give a more attractive final product leading to better sales and better overall results for the companies involved. Incorporating SCM successfully leads to a new kind of competition on the global market where competition is no longer of the company versus company form but rather takes on a supply chain versus supply chain form. Objectives:

Enhancing Customer Service Expanding Sales Revenue Reducing Inventory Cost Improving On-Time Delivery Reducing Order to Delivery Cycle Time Reducing Lead Time Reducing Transportation Cost Reducing Warehouse Cost Reducing / Rationalize Supplier Base Expanding Width / Depth of Distribution

Assignment Set-2

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Q1. What is productivity? Write a brief note on capital productivity A.1 Productivity is a measure of the efficiency of production. Productivity is a ratio of production output to what is required to produce it (inputs). The measure of productivity is defined as a total output per one unit of a total input. A production model is a numerical expression of the production process that is based on production data, i.e. measured data in the form of prices and quantities of inputs and outputs. Productivity is necessary to identify the entity it belongs to. Such an entity is defined as production process. It goes without saying that productivity is a critical factor of production process in one way or another. To define the way is the object of this article. The benefits of high productivity are manifold. At the national level, productivity growth raises living standards because more real income improves people's ability to purchase goods and services, enjoy leisure, improve housing and education and contribute to social and environmental programs. Productivity growth is important to the firm because more real income means that the firm can meet its (perhaps growing) obligations to customers, suppliers, workers, shareholders, and governments (taxes and regulation), and still remain competitive or even improve its competitiveness in the market place.

CAPITAL PRODUCTIVITY Capital productivity characterizes the efficiency with which fixed capital stock is used. It is commonly employed in economic analysis and in the formulation of production plans and plans for capital expenditures, both for the national economy as a whole and for individual sectors, production associations, and enterprises. Data on the gross social product and on national income (from productive activities) are used in calculating capital productivity for the national economy as a whole; for calculating the productivity of individual sectors, data on gross (commodity) or net output are used. In sectors where the output is homogeneous (petroleum, coal, cement), physical units are sometimes used in the calculations. Capital productivity is calculated on the basis of the balance valuation of the
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fixed production assets (depreciation costs included), using either the average value over the year or the value as of the end of the year. Capital productivity is the reciprocal of the capital-output ratio. Capital productivity differs from one branch of material production to another. Thus, the national income produced in current prices per ruble of fixed production assets in the USSR in 1975 amounted to 45 kopeks in the national economy as a whole, 50 kopeks in industry, 36 kopeks in agriculture, 13.4 kopeks in transport and communications, and 1.18 rubles in construction. Productivity is influenced by a number of factors. Its growth depends primarily on the level of technology, the organizational and technical measures employed in managing production capacities, and the proportion of capital investment earmarked for reconstruction and retooling. Many factors act to lower productivity. For example, the accelerated development of industrial branches with relatively low capital productivities may lower productivity for industry as a whole. The expansion of production in the countrys eastern and northern regions has the same effect because the cost of fixed capital stock is between 30 and 50 percent higher there than in the European part of the USSR. Various purification facilities included in industrial projects which do not directly influence the volume of production nevertheless raise the total cost of the fixed capital stock, thereby lowering capital productivity. The working of mineral deposits at greater depths requires additional expenditures in fixed capital, again leading to lower productivity. The level of capital productivity and the pattern of changes in productivity depend in large measure on technical and economic indicators describing the utilization of machinery and equipment and especially on increases in the equipment shift index. Capital productivity has fluctuated over the years because it is simultaneously influenced by a variety of factors. Thus, capital productivity in industry in the USSR rose through the 1950s and declined between 1961 and 1965. During the eighth five-year plan (196670), productivity showed no change with regard to gross output but increased with regard to net output. During the ninth five-year plan, there was a slight decline (by 3 percent), caused primarily by construction programs launched in the countrys eastern and northern regions, by the deterioration of geological and mining conditions in the existing mineral deposits, and by difficulties
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encountered in supplying light industry and the food processing industry with agricultural raw materials because of extremely adverse weather conditions over a number of years. Improved use of fixed capital stock is reflected not only in higher capital productivity but also in higher labor productivity, lower production costs, and improved product quality. Thus, if outlays for additional fixed capital stock can be recouped in the period prescribed by norms, the investment is economically warranted even if capital productivity is slightly lowered. The raising of capital productivity leads to increased efficiency of production. Five-year plans make provision for better use of fixed capital stock and for the development and implementation of programs to raise capital productivity in various sectors of the national economy, at enterprises, and in organizations

Q2. Describe briefly the automated flow lines. A2. When several automated machines are linked by a transfer system which moves the parts by using handling machines which are also automated, we have an automated flow line. After completing an operation on a machine, the semi-finished parts are moved to the next machine in the sequence determined by the process requirements a flow line is established. The parts at various stages from raw material to ready for fitment or assembly are processed continuously to attain the required shapes or acquire special properties to enable them to perform desired functions. The materials need to be moved, held, rotated, lifted, positioned etc. for completing different operations. Sometimes, a few of the operations can be done on a single machine with a number of attachments. They are moved further to other machines for performing further operations. Human intervention may be needed to verify that the operations are taking place according to standards. When these can be achieved with the help of automation and the processes are conducted with self regulation, we will have automated flow lines established. One important consideration is to balance times that different machines take to complete the operations assigned to them. It is necessary to design the machines in such a way that the operation times are the same throughout the sequence in the flow of martial.In fixed automation or hard automation, where one component is manufactured using several operations and
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machines it is possible to achieve this condition-or very nearly we assume that product life cycles are sufficiently stable to invest heavily on the automated flow lines to achieve reduced cost per unit. The global trends are favouring flexibility in the manufacturing systems. The costs involved in changing the setup of automated flow lines are high. So,automated flow lines are considered only when the product is required to be made in high volumes over a relatively long period. Designers now incorporate flexibility in the machines which will take care of small changes in dimensions by making adjustments or minor changes in the existing machine or layout. The change in movements needed can be achieved by programming the machines Provision for extra pallets or tool holders or conveyors are made in the original design to accommodate anticipated changes. It is not possible to think of inventories in a flow line. Bottlenecks cannot be permitted. By necessity, every bottleneck gets focussed upon and solutions found to ease them. Production managers see bottleneck as an opportunity to hasten the flow and reduce inventories. However, it is important to note that setting up automated flow lines will not be suitable for many industries.

Q3. What is meant by Total Quality Management? Mention the 14 points of Demings approach to management. A3. Total quality management or TQM is an integrative philosophy of management for continuously improving the quality of products and processes. TQM functions on the premise that the quality of products and processes is the responsibility of everyone who is involved with the creation or consumption of the products or services offered by an organization. In other words, TQM capitalizes on the involvement of management, workforce, suppliers, and even customers, in order to meet or exceed customer expectations. Considering the practices of TQM as discussed in six empirical studies, Cua, McKone, and Schroeder (2001) identified the nine common TQM practices as cross-functional product design, process management, supplier quality management, customer involvement, information and feedback, committed leadership, strategic planning, cross-functional training, and employee involvement

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The TQM concept was developed by a number of American management consultants, including W. Edwards Deming, JoesephJuran, and A.V. Feigenbaum.[3] Originally, these consultants won few converts in the United States. However, managers in Japan embraced their ideas enthusiastically and even named their premier annual prize for manufacturing excellence after Deming. The 14 Points 1. Constancy of purpose for continuous improvement 2. Adopt the TQM philosophy for economic purposes 3. Do not depend on inspection to deliver quality 4. Do not award any business based on price alone 5. Improve the system of production and service constantly 6. Conduct meaningful training on the job 7. Adopt modern methods of supervision and leadership 8. Remove fear from the minds of everyone connected with the organisation 9. Remove barriers between departments and people 10. Do not exhort, repeat slogans, and put up posters 11. Do not set-up numerical quotas and work standards 12. Give pride of workmanship to the workmen 13. Education and training to be given vigorously 14. State and exhibit top managements commitment for quality and productivity

The 14 points are a guide to the importance of building customer awareness, reducing variation, and fostering constant continuous change and improvement throughout organizations

Q4. Describe briefly the Project Monitoring and control. A4. Any project aimed at delivering a product or a service has to go through phases in a planned manner, in order tomeet the requirements. It is possible to work according to the project plan
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only by careful monitoring of the projectprogress. It requires establishing control factors to keep the project on the track of progress. The results of any stage in aproject, depends on the inputs to that stage. It is therefore necessary to control all the inputs and the correspondingoutputs from a stage. A project manager may use certain standard tools to keep the project on track. The project managerand the team members should be fully aware of the techniques and methods to rectify the factors influencing delay of theproject and its product.To analyze the project, methodologies such as, PERT (Program Evaluation Review Technique) and CPM (Critical PathMethod) may be used. In the PERT method, one can find out the variance and use the variance to analyze the various probabilistic estimates pertaining to the project.

Using the CPM, one can estimate the start time and the finish time for every event of the project in its WBS (Work Breakdown Structure).The analysis charts can be used to monitor, control, track, and execute a project. The various steps involved in monitoring and controlling a project from start to end are listed below. (See Figure 9.3 Steps for monitoring and controlling a project

Preliminary work: The team members must understand the project plans, project stage schedule, progress controls, tracking schedules, summary of the stage cost and related worksheets. All the members have to understand the tolerances in any change and maintain a change control log. They must realize the need and importance of quality for which they have to strictly follow a quality review schedule and frequently discuss the quality agendas. They must understand the stage status reports, stage end reports, stage end approval reports.

Project progress: The members must keep a track of the project progress and communicate the same to other related members of the project. They must monitor and control project progress, through the use of regular check points, quality charts, and statistical tables; control the quality factors which are
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likely to deviate from expected values as any deviation may result in changes to the stage schedule. The project manager ensures that these changes are made smoothly and organizes review meeting with the project management group. Thus all the members are aware about the progress of the project at all times. This helps them to plan well in advance for any exigency arising due to deviation from planned schedule.

Stage control: The project manager must establish a project check point cycle. For this, suitable stage version control procedures may be followed. The details are to be documented stage wise. Project files have to be frequently updated with suitable version control number and revision status should be maintained for each change. Team members are identified who will exercise controls at various points of the project.

Resources: The project manager has to plan the resources required for various stages of the project. He has to brief both the project team and the key resources about the objectives of every stage, planned activities, products, organisation metrics, and the project controls. This increases the visibility into the project performance and hence a quality control can be achieved. Allocating a right resource at the right place and the right time will significantly enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the resource.

Quality control: Quality control is very important in any project. Quality control is possible if the project members follow the quality charts and norms very strictly. The following lists the possible ways to control quality.

Schedule quality review:

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Project members are recommended to schedule the quality review at the beginning and alsothe end of every stage. This helps the project manager and team members to plan well in advance for any unforeseen deviation.

Agenda for quality review: The project manager should create and distribute a quality review agenda specifying the objectives, products, logistics, roles, responsibilities, and time frames. This increases the effectiveness of the review and also reduces the time gap.

Conduct quality review: The quality review is to be conducted in a structured and formal manner. Quality reviewshould focus on product development and its quality factors. The project members should check whether the review meets the prescribed quality standards.

Progress control: The progress control of a project can be achieved by considering the following:

Monitor performance: The first step for any project control mechanism is to monitor the progress. There are numerous ways to monitor and measure various project parameters. For example, the team members log in details of actual start date, actual finish date, actual hours worked per task, estimated hours to complete the task elapsed time in hours to complete the task, any miscellaneous costs incurred during a stage. These inputs become the base to monitor the performance of the project and its stages.

Update schedule: Update the schedule for:

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Actual start date for tasks started

Actual finish date for tasks finished Actual hours worked per task

Latest estimated work in hours to complete the task

Update costs: Update the stage cost summary worksheet with actual costs incurred during the period andestimated remaining costs. Miscellaneous costs will be automatically updated from the scheduler, since they arecalculated from actual work.

Re-plan stage schedule: Review the tracking Gantt and Cost workbook and identify any deviation from thebaseline. Analyse the cause of the deviation. Refer back to the project control factors to help determine theappropriate corrective action and adjust the schedule accordingly. Determine if the stage has exceeded theprogress, cost and quality tolerance levels agreed with the project management team. Review status of openissues and determine any further action required on these issues. Review the status of any outstanding quality reviews. Review any new change requests.

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Conduct team status review: Conduct a status meeting with the project team. This is important to bring everyoneon the same page of the project progress.

Create status report: The status report provides a record of current achievement and immediate expectations of the project. The status has to be effectively communicated to all concerned parties.

Create flash report: Summarize the accomplishments for the month, schedule status, upcoming tasks for themonth and any major issues. Distribute the same to all project team members and stakeholders.

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Project status reports: As discussed earlier, the status report provides a record of current achievements andimmediate expectations of the project. This is generated on a regular basis depending upon the type,requirements and phase of the project. Typically it is generated for a week.

Approvals: In any project, it is important to have top management or project sponsors into confidence about allthe aspects of the project. This project stage reviews the decisions taken and actions planned and get it approvedby the top management. The goals of such review are to improve quality by finding defects and to improveproductivity by finding defects in a cost effective and timely manner. The group review process includes severalstages like planning, preparation, overview of a group review meeting, rework recommendations and follow-up.

Q5. Write a brief note on Just-In-Time (JIT).

Answer: Just-In-Time (JIT) manufacturing is a process by which companies don't keep lots of excess inventory; instead, they manufacture a product as an order comes in. It is a management philosophy of continuous and forced problem solving. The objective of JIT manufacturing system is to:

Eliminate waste that is, minimise the amount of equipment, materials, parts, space, and workers time, which adds a great value to the product

Increase productivity JIT means making what the market demands when it is in need. It is the most popular systems that incorporate the generic elements of lean systems. Lean production supplies customers with exactly what the customer wants, when the customer wants, without waste, through continuous improvement. Deploying JIT results in decrease of inventories and
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increases the overall efficiencies. Decreasing inventory allows reducing wastes which in turn results in saving lots of money. There are many advantages of JIT. JIT:

Increases the work productivity Reduces operating costs Improves performance and throughput Improves quality Improves deliveries Increases flexibility and innovativeness For industrial organisations to

remain competitive, cost efficiencies have become compulsory. JIT helps in this process. It is extended to the shop floor and also the inventory systems of the vendors. JIT has been extended to mean continuous improvement. These principles are being applied to the fields of Engineering, Purchasing, Accounting, and Data processing. However, for organizations to completely implement JIT manufacturing system, they need to have a proper commitment along with the following basic facilities - proper material, quality, equipment, and people involvement.

Q6. What is value engineering? Explain its significance.

Answer: A.6 Value Engineering (VE) or Value Analysis is a methodology by which we try to find substitutes for a product or an operation. The concept of value engineering originated during the Second World War. It was developed by the General Electric Corporations (GEC). Value Engineering has gained popularity due to its potential for gaining high Returns on Investment (ROI).This methodology is widely used in business re-engineering, government projects, automakers, transportation and distribution, industrial equipment, construction, assembling and machining processes, health care and environmental engineering, and many others. Value engineering process calls for a deep study of a product and the purpose for which it is used, such as, the raw materials used; the processes of transformation; the equipment needed, and many
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others. It also questions whether what is being used is the most appropriate and economical. This applies to all aspects of the product. Value Engineering uses rational logic (a unique "how" "why" questioning technique) and the analysis of Function to identify relationships that increase Value. It is considered a quantitative method similar to the Scientific Method, which focuses on Hypothesis - Conclusion to test relationships, and Operations Research.

Value Engineering helps your organization in: Lowering O & M costs Improving quality management Improving resource efficiency Simplifying procedures Minimizing paperwork Lowering staff costs Increasing procedural efficiency Optimizing construction expenditures Developing value attitudes in staff Competing more successfully in marketplace

Value Engineering helps you to learn how to:

Improve your career skills Separate "Symptoms" from "problems" Solve "root cause" problems and capture opportunities Become more competitive by improving "benchmarking" process

Take command of a powerful problem solving methodology to use in any situation.

MU0012: Employee Relations Management

Roll No. : 541110058

Page 22

Fall/ August 2012, MBA-3rd Semester

MU0012: Employee Relations Management

Roll No. : 541110058

Page 23