Industrial Engineer articles from January 2005

Industrial Engineer archives from January 2005

Lessons from the blue.(acrophobia keep it away by rockwall climbing)(Editorial)
January 1, 2005... CROUCHING ON ONE KNEE IN THE AIRPLANE'S OPEN DOORWAY, LOOKING down 13,000 feet, I wasn't experiencing the fear of heights that had become familiar over years of avoiding stepladders and open stairways. I had anticipated that the skydive would...

Positive project returns: program delivers research while encouraging would-be engineers.(Front Line)
January 1, 2005... University research that could help mail-order clothing distributors improve their inventory management while increasing profits is enabling high-school teachers to show students how math can be applied to real-world problems. ...

Turning the tide: NSF supports programs that aim to reverse engineering graduate decline.(Front Line)
January 1, 2005... As part of an effort aimed at increasing the number of engineering graduates in the United States, which is experiencing a significant decline in new engineers, the National Science Foundation has awarded grants to two universities that support...

Get, give PM data: benchmarking study enters seventh year.(Front Line)
January 1, 2005... Organizations participating in Interthink Consulting's Organizational Project Management Baseline Study can give benchmarking data and obtain the compiled results in return. The study, now in its seventh year, is open to companies around...

Training required.(QUOTE, UNQUOTE)
January 1, 2005... "The industry does not need more money thrown at research. Unless the FAA mandates that human factors maintenance training is required, the new emphasis... will not succeed." --Former Federal Aviation Administration inspector Bart Crotty,...

Unlock productivity in the office: be sure the entire enterprise is lean.(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Most companies that implement lean practices do so in the production areas of their organizations only. While lean success in manufacturing can create productivity increases of 35 percent to 40 percent over the course of several years, authors...

Diverse decision making to improve the effectiveness of problem solving, mix up the team.(Front Line)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... A diverse group of people is likely to outperform a team of the best and brightest problem solvers, a University of Michigan study shows. Individuals chosen from a diverse, randomly selected pool offer different perspectives that could...

Starting salaries edge up; median starting salaries for U.S. engineers.(Front Line)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... [GRAPHIC OMITTED] Starting salaries edge up MEDIAN STARTING SALARIES FOR U.S. ENGINEERS With bachelor's degree $50,600 With master's degree $61,008 With doctoral degree $86,532 Source: "Engineers' Salaries: Special...

Events.(Brief Article)(Calendar)
January 1, 2005... > JANUARY JAN. 10 * Lean Enterprise: An Introduction seminar, Norcross, Ga. JAN. 11-13 * Lean Enterprise II seminar, Norcross, Ga. JAN. 18 * Introduction to Supply Chain Improvement seminar, Norcross, Ga. JAN....

An IE for a-b-c's and 1-2-3's.(UNCOMMON IE)(Institute of Advanced Learning and Research in Danville)
January 1, 2005... Kenneth Tyburski, of the Institute of Advanced Learning and Research in Danville, Va., says he loved being a student. As an undergraduate at the Georgia Institute of Technology, he wanted to help ensure that other students were enjoying their...

An obvious value.(PRIME NUMBER)
January 1, 2005... Manufacturers value the benefits of Six Sigma: 54% of respondents in a survey sponsored by Kronos Inc. said they plan to apply Six Sigma to their work force within six months to two years.

Patient safety: the culture connection: information technology not nearly as promising, say women hospital CEOs.(Front Line)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... A shift in hospital culture is key to improving patient safety, say female hospital CEOs who responded to a survey by a health care information technology company. PHNS Inc. conducted a survey of women hospital executives and found that...

Up with computers: workers respond well to adjustable-height work surfaces.(Front Line)(electrically adjustable tables)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Four out of five workers prefer to work at electrically adjustable tables that allow them to stand at their computers part of the day, according to a Cornell University study. "We found that the computer workers who had access to the...

The nerd at the end of the street.(SITE TO SEE)
January 1, 2005... Think of the possibilities: Thousands of fans of the world's favorite cartoon engineer work together to design the definitive Dilbert house. Dilbert cartoonist Scott Adams did just that with his Dilbert's Ultimate House project, which gave...

Phone to flower.(Front Line)(mobile telephone case that grows into a flower when discarded)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Technology is not always a bane of the environment. Kerry Kirwan leads a team of researchers who are turning discarded electronics into living beauty. Working with high-tech materials company PVAXX Research and Development and Motorola,...

Ask and learn.(performance)(employee survey as a tool for better industrial management)
January 1, 2005... I HAVE WORKED IN A VARIETY OF organizations over the years. One cause of my nomadic behavior was rooted in the fact that few of the companies where I worked used an employee survey as a tool to identify employee concerns and assess the degree...

The project management office.(management)
January 1, 2005... BUILDING A NEW PLANT, INSTALLING software, or rolling out a new product are examples of expensive, time-consuming endeavors that carry risk and often come in addition to our normal work schedules. According to the Standish Group, as reported in...

The letter "C".(supply chain)
January 1, 2005... DO YOU REMEMBER WHEN EACH episode of "Sesame Street" was "sponsored" by a different letter of the alphabet? Suppose the business world had a similar alphabetical theme. What letter would your industry choose and why? For supply chain management...

What your manager wants: a look at what makes you marketable to some of the biggest IE employers.(Cover Story)
January 1, 2005... According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, overall employment of industrial engineers, including health and safety, is projected to increase 10 percent to 20 percent for all occupations through 2012. That's great news for the group, but...

Distribution made lean: the key that unlocks operations on the plant floor can unlock operations in the warehouse, too.
January 1, 2005... DISTRIBUTION AND LOGISTICS FUNCTIONS HAVE BEEN under assault to reduce costs, streamline inventories, and respond more effectively to customers. The focus has intensified in the past few years as supply chain innovators Wal-Mart and Dell, along...

Bright lights, not-so-big city: Jacksonville goes the extra yard to ensure a smooth Super Bowl.
January 1, 2005... FROM THE VERY BEGINNING, CRITICS OPINED THAT Jacksonville, Fla., was simply too small to host the Super Bowl. Boasting the second smallest market in the NFL after Green Bay, Wisc., Jacksonville simply did not have the infrastructure to handle...

Meeting the competitive challenge: a new architecture for lean transformation.
January 1, 2005... CUSTOMERS DEMAND A HIGH DEGREE OF RESPONSIVENESS that can result only from manufacturing agility. Unpredictability in the marketplace, resulting difficulties in forecasting, and demands for reduced lead-times and inventories place increased...

Research: executive summaries.
January 1, 2005... This edition of Research highlights three problems that relate to manufacturing and production planning for a range of products. The first paper proposes a novel facility layout that is robust with respect to changes in the product mix and...

Label me confused.(Ask the Expert)(human factors for labels)
January 1, 2005... Q: I have a question regarding human factors for labels. Our product comes in three colors, and we want to add a label to the box to represent the color of the product. The labels ordered have the color of the product as the background and the...

Some tools don't translate.(Ask the Expert)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Q: I have to solve a problem by using the 7M tools. Could you give me information about them? A: The Japanese Union of Scientists and Engineers started the development of a supplementary set of total quality management aids called 7M tools...

Fare thee well: John Powers steps down as executive director.(FOCUS)
January 1, 2005... After more than six years as executive director of IIE, John Powers has decided to return to the retirement that he put on hold when he was asked to temporarily fill the position in 1998. Nevertheless, Powers said it was the opportunity for...

Finding your center.(ASK IIE)
January 1, 2005... Q: I was recently laid off from a post I've held for 23 years. I'm currently looking for a new position. Can IIE assist me in my job search? A: IIE has always been committed to helping its members--whether students just beginning their...

Girl empower: set aside Feb. 24 to Introduce a Girl to Engineering.(FOCUS)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... In conjunction with National Engineers Week, which is observed Feb.20-26, engineers around the world are encouraged to volunteer Feb. 24 to be a part of Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day. The event, also known simply as Girl Day, was...

Ergo intrigue: new additions to the 2005 Applied Ergonomics Conference.(Focus)
January 1, 2005... The eighth annual Applied Ergonomics Conference will be held March 21-25 in New Orleans. Among the perennial draws such as the Ergo Cup competition, exhibit hall, and innovative benchmarking sessions, new offerings promise to add value for...

It's all in the delivery: UPS Chief Mike Eskew to present keynote at Annual Conference.(Focus)(United Parcel Service)(Institue of Industrial engineers)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... United Parcel Service Chairman and CEO Mike Eskew was recently announced as a keynote speaker at the IIE Annual Conference being held May 14-18 in Atlanta. Eskew earned his bachelor's degree in industrial engineering from Purdue University and...

Transactions transition: Candace Yano, Ph.D., named editor-in-chief of IIE Transactions.(Focus)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... With the conclusion of Mark Daskin's four-year tenure as editor-in-chief of IIE Transactions, it was time to find a new face to take over editing duties for the publication. Candace Yano, Ph.D., a professor in the department of industrial...

Courtney B. Miller.(KUDOS)
January 1, 2005... Western Michigan University named senior Courtney B. Miller a Presidential Scholar in Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering. WMU Presidential Scholars are selected on the basis of general academic excellence, excellence within their major,...

David A. Nembhard.(KUDOS)
January 1, 2005... Pennsylvania State University selected David A. Nembhard, Ph.D., as the Harold and Inge Marcus Career Development Professor in Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering. Previously, Nembhard served as associate professor of industrial...

Elinor S. Pape.(KUDOS)
January 1, 2005... IIE fellow Elinor S. Pape Ph.D., has stepped down from the board of directors of the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology. Pape, a professor of industrial engineering at the University of Texas at Arlington, served on the board...

Heather Ritz.(KUDOS)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Heather Ritz, a senior in industrial engineering at the University of Toledo, was honored with a $1,500 scholarship from the American Association of University Women's Dean Katherine Easly Wemmer Scholarship Fund. The scholarship was...

John M. Samuels.(KUDOS)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... John M. Samuels, Ph.D., received an honorary doctorate of engineering from Kettering University. Samuels is the senior vice president of operations, planning, and support at Norfolk Southern Railroad. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] SHARE YOUR...

University regional conferences.(Focus)(Calendar)
January 1, 2005... REGION 1 Hosted by Northeastern University, April 1-3 Contact Jeremy Labonte and Chrissy Hawk, iie_conference@coe.neu.edu; or Emanuel Melachrinoudis, Ph.D., emelas@coe.neu.edu; www.coe.neu.edu/Groups/nuiie/Pages/confhome.html ...

A mighty party: the Irish IIE celebrates its golden anniversary.(Focus)(Institute of Industrial Engineers)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... This year, the Institute of Industrial Engineers in Ireland will celebrate its 50th anniversary. Festivities will be held March 10-12 in conjunction with the Institute's annual conference at the Radisson SAS Hotel in Limerick, which is easily...

Action items.(IN OTHER PUBLICATIONS)
January 1, 2005... The November/December issue of Industrial Management features four innovative articles that discuss unconventional ways in which managers can make their company more effective and be more sympathetic to the needs of its workers. In "The Value...

Easy door maintenance.(Pick List)
January 1, 2005... Damaged sectional doors can be fixed easily with Rite-Hite's Universal GX-4000 Replacement Panel. Made from extruded vinyl, the panel can be retrofitted to suit most existing sectional doors. An interlocking modular design allows the panels to...

Weigh in wirelessly.(Pick List)
January 1, 2005... Mitsubishi Forklift Trucks and Mettler Toledo have introduced the first integral, wireless forklift scale in the industry. Direct from the factory and integrated into the carriage, the scale offers advanced wireless technology that allows...

Pallet optimizing totes.(Pick List)
January 1, 2005... The FlapNext series of plastic containers from IPL Material Handling features attached lids and are nestable. Designed for pallet optimization, the totes are made for retail goods distribution, including grocery dry goods, perishables,...

Plug into Wi-Fi.(Pick List)
January 1, 2005... Aruba Wireless Networks and Ortronics Inc. have developed the world's first Wi-Fi wall outlet. Unlike existing Wi-Fi access points that are deployed in the ceiling, the Wi-Jack outlet can be used on walls as part of a structured wireless...

Buggy building design: termites demonstrate self-sufficient building.(Outliers)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... African termite mounds may be the inspiration for new construction methods that result in self-sufficient, environmentally friendly, and cheap-to-run buildings. Termite mounds are self-regulated living environments that respond to changing...

Combover engineer.(Outliers)
January 1, 2005... Long the butt of jokes, the hairstyle commonly known as the combover has earned a place in engineering history. The annual Ig Nobel awards, which recognize dubious scientific achievements, honored the late Frank Smith and his son Donald for...

Why stones curl.(Outliers)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... One of sport's great mysteries is unraveling at the hands of two Canadian physicists: Why do curling stones curl? Curling involves sliding 44-pound granite ovals (stones) down a length of ice toward a bull's-eye. No one has been able to...