IIE Solutions articles from December 2000

IIE Solutions archives from December 2000

Dear Santa.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... Just dropping you a short note to confirm the details of our transaction. Based on my past performance and our long-standing relationship (not to mention your omniscience), I'm sure you know that once again I have been good. All year....

Letters to the Editor.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... Salaries are good Interesting article on salaries in the October issue ("Money talks [but it doesn't say everything]"). IEs are doing much better than when I finally sat back and retired eight years ago. It's too bad there are still some...

Healthy workers are better for business.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... One hundred twenty-five American and Canadian business executives came together in October to discuss improving employee health and corporate productivity. The North American Leadership Summit: Employer Advances in Health and Productivity...

Typing in a bowl.(computer keyboard innovation)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... Keyboard? Forget it. Keybowl might be more like it in the future. Consultant Peter McAlindon has developed an ergonomic alternative to traditional keyboards that could increase comfort, prevent carpal tunnel syndrome, and help people with other...

White House fellowships available.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... You don't have to run for office to get into the White House. Your best shot may be the White House Fellows program, which was founded by President Lyndon Johnson in 1964 to encourage professionals with leadership potential to spend a year...

Following the leaders.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... The world's best-performing manufacturing companies produced a return on assets and sales of more than twice the average of other companies, according to the findings of a study conducted by management consulting firm A.T. Kearney. "We set out...

Sensing good human-machine interaction.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... Researchers at Ohio State University are exploring ways for pilots to monitor automated flight deck systems with their skin instead of just their eyes and ears. A study has revealed that pilots are more likely to notice changes in the...

NEWSMAKERS.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... * Roy King was appointed president and chief executive officer of Immedient Corp., an e-solutions and technology company. King, who also joined the company's board of directors, has a B.S. in industrial engineering from Iowa State University...

IE is tops for Israeli students.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... Israelis aged 19 to 26 know industrial engineering is a great career choice, according to a study conducted by Hadassah Career Counseling Institute. The country's 10 most popular subjects are: 1. Computer science 2. Business...

French companies.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... French companies Air Liquide and Gemplus have launched a joint subsidiary, Athelia Solutions, which will market electronic tags to help the agro-food, electronics, and health care industries trace mobile objects. The company's traceability...

Land Rover.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... Land Rover will invest $190 million in its Solihull, England, manufacturing site as part of a plan to nearly double annual output during the next five years and bring the Freelander sport utility vehicle to the United States. The money will go...

TraceAbility Systems Inc.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... TraceAbility Systems Inc. has acquired Sensis Corp.'s Bumpy Bar Code product line. The technology is used to identify and trace individual products for industrial environments in which traditional bar codes are ineffective or erode over time....

The end of the (assembly) line?(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... A world in which machines routinely talk to one another is closer -- perhaps much closer -- than we may think, several experts agreed at a workshop held at Stanford University earlier this year. Organized by research assistant Miguel...

Tents and trailers an option for temp offices.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... Working in a tent may not sound like a viable option to most people, but those who have tried it give it high marks. Constructing tent-like office "bubbles" is one way leading companies are responding at a moment's notice to the demands of the...

Mudpie's endless possibilities.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... Susan Bonds Chief design and production officer Cyan Inc. Mead, Wash. Inventing theme park rides for the "most magical place on earth" might seem like all the excitement one person can take. But industrial engineer Susan...

Information About Just-in-Time.
December 1, 2000... http://www.clubpom.com/Student Wing/Public/JITtutorial.html This Iowa State University site has a tutorial explaining JIT. The site also shows the relationship between JIT and other aspects of management.

Kaiser Permanente Supplier Certification Program.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... http://www.kaiserpermanente.org/scm/sqm/certification.htm Purchasing in the health care field in this day of managed care presents major challenges. This site shows how one large health care organization goes about it.

Flexfab Supplier Certification.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... http://www.flexfab.com/supplier/certification.htm This part of the Flexfab site serves as a sample supplier quality manual. As the site says, it conforms closely with the 1994 version of ISO 9000.

About Purchasing.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... http://www.purchasing.about.com A subset of the enormous About Web site, this information clearinghouse presents purchasing education, industry news, jobs, research, and sourcing.

The Chartered Institute of Purchasing & Supply.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... http://www.cips.org A British organization serving the purchasing and supply profession, CIPS features technical information, news, and links.

CommerceNet.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... http://www.commerce.net Visitors will find up-to-the-minute news regarding e-commerce. Links to information such as television news programs on the topic are included.

CPR Consulting.
December 1, 2000... http://www.cprconsulting.com/purchasing_cards.htm Many organizations use what appear to be credit cards for purchases in an effort to cut costs and increase controls and accountability. This site explains how it works.

FedWorld.
December 1, 2000... http://www.fedworld.gov This site gives access to the FedWorld information network. Included are a variety-of databases as well as a search engine to help locate U.S. government reports.

eBidenergy.com.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... http://www.ebidenergy.com A facilitator of online energy procurement, data acquisition, end data analysis for U.S-based commercial and industrial businesses, eBidenergy.com allows companies to manage their energy purchasing requirements.

Acronym Finder.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... http://www.acronymfinder.com TQM, SCADA, BOM, SMED... industrial engineering is full of acronyms. Use Acronym Finder, the largest online database of its kind, to search for definitions.

WWW Virtual Library: Logistics.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... http://www.logisticsworld.com The name says it all. This virtual library includes a directory, discussion group, news groups, graphics, and more, all on the subject of logistics.

BestPracticeDatabase.com.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... http://www.bestpracticedatabase.com This service provides access to information about how quality initiatives drive success at many of the world's best-known corporations.

To change or not to change.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... When I speak to groups on the topics of high performance and total workforce involvement, there is one question I am asked more often than any other: What do we need to do to get others to change? In most cases, the people who ask this question...

A stubborn old philosophy.(production efficiency)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... Ever since Frederick Taylor launched the quest for using man to his greatest efficiency, managers and engineers have been striving to find better ways to get jobs done. But in recent years we have learned that 100 percent efficiency for every...

An auto industry beacon.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... In this exciting new-economy age of e-business, the masses are not clamoring to be a part of the automotive industry. To many young professionals, old-economy manufacturing has fallen somewhat out of fashion in favor of the glamour of dot-coms....

A Christmas Quandary.
December 1, 2000... T'wasn't the night before Christmas just yet. Actually, it was the end of the second fiscal quarter, but it might as well have been Dec. 24 because it was clearly stacking up to be the first year that Redsuit Inc. (NYSE: NOEL) was not going to...

Time standards that make sense.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... Ergonomic time studies are an innovative technique that make use of a conventional IE skill Industrial engineers are in a unique position to apply a conventional skill to a new field. Production time standards have traditionally been...

Maintenance staffs: Size them right.
December 1, 2000... Putting more maintenance personnel on duty can yield higher productivity -- and may even pay for itself The output of a manufacturing environment, especially one in which transfer lines are used, is heavily dependent on the ability of...

A note from the president.
December 1, 2000... Important IE news I recently had the pleasure of meeting Carol Ptak, president of APICS, the Educational Society for Resource Management. Their conference was held in October in my hometown, Orlando, Fla., attracting 6,000 attendees....

Mentor Day becoming a valuable pastime.
December 1, 2000... For the past six years, IIE's Greater Kansas City (Mo.) senior chapter has hosted Student Mentor Day. Targeted at area student chapters, which include the University of Missouri-Columbia and Kansas State University, the event helps build...

Panama chapter joins.(Institute of Industrial Engineers)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... Hamid Parsaei, Ph.D., IIE senior vice president-at-large, international, is a busy man. He is an industrial engineering professor at the University of Louisville in Louisville, Ky., and still finds time to comb the world for potential new IIE...

Lockheed tour educates on lean principles.(Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... IIE's Society for Work Science conference, held in October, wrapped with a tour of the Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co. in Marietta, Ga. The facility, one of three locations for the aerospace technology corporation, assembles F-22 fighter planes...

Ready to run.(Institute of Industrial Engineers' candidates for office)
December 1, 2000... A number of IIE members are prepared to serve their professional society by running for office in the upcoming election. Following are brief profiles of some of the candidates. Ballots, which will be mailed to IIE members in mid-December,...

New Web site for the new millennium.(Institute of Industrial Engineers)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... After months of intense planning, IIE will unveil its new Web site early next year. The site will be more user-friendly and more valuable to members and other visitors. "The new Web site is going to be a huge leap for us," said Terry...

IIE welcomes 'Jack' of all sales.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... IIE's internal restructuring has prompted many changes at headquarters during the past two years. Now add to the list the creation of a new position at headquarters: general sales manager. Assuming the new role is Jack Eller, who brings more...

Students, unite and simulate.(Institute of Industrial Engineers' simulation competition)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... It's not too late to register for the annual student simulation competition sponsored by IIE and Rockwell Software Corp. The deadline is Jan. 26, 2001. Participants are given a case study to solve using Rockwell's simulation software...

Industrial Management crowns King.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... The latest issue of Industrial Management spotlights Roy King, president and CEO of Immedient Corp. The cover story, written by Assistant Editor Erin O'Briant, offers a look at how King climbed to the top and how he plans to make Immedient "the...

A conference that works.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... In October, the Society for Work Science welcomed more than 70 attendees to its fourth annual conference, which was held at Southern Polytechnic State University in Marietta, Ga. "I was delighted with it," said Larry Aft, conference chair...

Trailer stand for safer loading.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... The TS-2000 is a trailer stand that helps prevent tip-over accidents when placed at the nose of most types of trailers at the loading dock. Features include a 100,000-pound static load capacity, 16-inch solid rubber tires, single-speed 1 2-inch...

WMS update.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... Lilly Software Associates has released version 2.0 of Visual DCMS, a radio frequency-enabled warehouse management system. Version 2.0 allows third-party logistics providers to manage multi-customer inventory, accumulate activity and storage by...

Stats in French.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... Minitab 13 Pour Windows in Francais is the French-language version of Minitab 13. It runs on Windows 95, 98, 2000, and NT and contains completely translated menus, dialog boxes, text output, graphs, and all the features and functionality of the...

Packaged WMS for mid-market firms.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... Stradivari is a packaged warehouse management system for middle-market distribution and warehouse facilities. It enables streamlined management of receiving, put-away inventory cycle counting, picking, shipping, and other areas of warehouse...

Leading dock lift.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... The Pit Mounted Dock Lift Model 2500K is the most popular dock lift in the country, according to its maker, Advance Lifts Inc. The lift comes standard with a five-horsepower hydraulic system providing about 12 feet per minute of speed. Its...

Selective soldering robots.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... Pace Unix's Robosol Pro 401 P is a four-axis desktop selective soldering robot designed for high-volume cellular manufacturing environments. It is capable of both linear and point-to-point selective soldering within an 11.8-inch-by-11.8-inch...

Cart for gas tank mobility.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... The LP Cart model LP-6 is designed to transport and store up to six LP tanks, allowing one person to load or unload a rack or fork truck. The unit can he disassembled for shipping and storage. Features include phenolic front and back wheels, a...

Working on the (supply) chain gang.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... A new version of WorkBridge e-supply chain software is available. The business process management solution encompasses technologies such as work flow, document management, enterprise application integration, and portals. WorkBridge is designed...

New WAVE working.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... Crown Commercial Products Group's Work Assist Vehicle (WAVE) elevates person and load to work heights up to 14 feet. It travels at speeds up to four miles per hour, navigates small spaces and can be used for stocking shelves, taking inventory,...

Invisible product tracking.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... Isotag's ClirCode technology is an invisible marking system for process and quality control. It can be applied to almost any substrate and is compatible with most ink and coating materials. It can be provided as powders, suspensions, liquid...

Cynical employees created by bad management.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2000... Researchers from the Fisher College of Business at Ohio State University spent three years studying more than 1,000 blue-collar and white-collar workers at a Midwestern auto-parts manufacturing plant to determine what causes workers to be...

Shadowboxing for preparedness.
December 1, 2000... "I use the shadowbox technique for my Boy Scout troop's camping and cooking gear. We use shadowboxes for all our hand tools at work, so I adapted the concept for the troop. It makes for a quick inventory of gear and gets us on the road a lot...

No need to discover more ego.
December 1, 2000... "A scientist can discover a new star, but he cannot make one. He would have to ask an engineer to do that."