Industrial Engineer articles from October 2005

Industrial Engineer archives from October 2005

Easy to love.(editor's desk)
October 1, 2005... I fell in love with New Orleans about 15 years ago. While on a church trip with my family, I was immediately taken with the city--drawn in by its romance, its charm, its culture. We did all the touristy things while we were there, but it's not...

Better health through engineering: National Academy calls for professional collaboration.
October 1, 2005... "While medicine has advanced rapidly in recent decades thanks to new diagnostic and therapeutic technologies developed by engineers, the health care industry has virtually ignored a broad spectrum of other technologies that could radically...

SHS: nursing ratios oversimplified.(Society for Health Systems)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2005... IIE's Society for Health Systems has weighed in on the national debate over state regulation of hospital nurse-to-patient staffing ratios. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] "Mandated ratios are oversimplified and may lead to inefficient and...

Jedi mom.(UNCOMMON IE)(Nicole Parrot retires from TheForce.net)
October 1, 2005... In public, Nicole Parrot admits she still says she's an engineer. Truth is, the former Webmaster for Star Wars Web site TheForce.net is retired from the engineering and programming businesses. But the industrial engineering graduate from...

Youthful inspiration: what's a fun way to inform young people about industrial engineering so they can consider it as a career option?(Brief Article)
October 1, 2005... "In order to generate interest in industrial engineering, there needs to be a focus on reaching out to high schoolers. By having industrial engineers from various industries visit local high schools, more young people will be exposed to...

Holistic solutions.(BOOK OF THE MONTH)(Total Operations Solutions)(Brief Article)(Book Review)
October 1, 2005... Total Operations Solutions demonstrates how a holistic approach to operational excellence can be applied equally to manufacturing, service, and public sectors. It offers an implementation program for putting the approach into practice, and it...

IE attempts presidency again.(industrial engineering)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2005... As the Bolivian election campaign season approaches, polls are showing a U.S.-educated industrial engineer as the front-runner. Former President Jorge Quiroga, an alumnus of Texas A & M University, promises to keep the country on a...

Chrysler's flexible future: robotics to lead cost reduction, productivity improvement, and market responsiveness.(Front Line)
October 1, 2005... Flexible robotics will be the key link in a chain of manufacturing flexibility, according to Frank Ewasyshyn, Chrysler Group's executive vice president of manufacturing. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] At the heart of the strategy is a unique...

Warehouse solutions on a roll.(PRIME NUMBER)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2005... After several slow years, business for warehouse management system software and services picked up steam in 2004. Expect the worldwide WMS market to be worth more than $1.3 billion in 2009, according to ARC Advisory Group. Source:...

A quality time.(MUST-DO EVENT)
October 1, 2005... Sponsored by the Atlanta Chapter of the American Society for Quality, IIE, and the Georgia Tech Economic Development Institute, the Southeastern Quality Conference marks its 25th year. Quality subjects from across a variety of industry sectors...

Facilities readiness.(risk assessment software )(Brief Article)
October 1, 2005... National Institute of Standards and Technology economists have released risk assessment software that building owners and managers can use to identify and guard against terrorist threats to their facilities. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ...

Calling all CAD students: competition tests young innovators.(Front Line)
October 1, 2005... Whether they have a new perspective on an everyday product or a fresh vision for updating a famous piece of architecture, CAD students are invited to enter their most creative, useful, and innovative plans in Extreme Redesign: The Ultimate 3D...

Energy research funded.(Front Line)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2005... Purdue University's new Energy Center, created from Lilly Endowment seed money, will get a share of $85 million worth of federal funding. Centers in Illinois and Kentucky are also in on the program. Two initial areas of research at Purdue will...

Long work hours are sickening: no matter what kind of job you have.(Brief Article)
October 1, 2005... Working long hours drives up the risk on injury and illness, reveals a study in the journal Occupational and Environmental Medicine. And the risk has nothing to do with how hazardous the job is. After adjusting age, gender, type of...

Support for disabled research students: Web site offers resources for institutions and educators.(Front Line)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2005... A British team has developed the first Web-based resource to support disabled research students through their courses. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The resource, called Premia, was developed after research at the University of Newcastle upon...

Education briefs.(University of Engineering and Technology Peshawar for engineering program )(University of Pittsburgh engineering students not attending the program)(womens in high level faculty positions)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2005... Pakistan's University of Engineering and Technology Peshawar will initiate an industrial engineering program as part of its objective to increase engineering enrollments. A new campus will be constructed in Peshawar to accommodate 200 students....

Ergo research honored: movement study may help industrial ergonomists.(Liberty Mutual Best Paper Award)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2005... A study of shoulder kinematics during wheelchair use revealed a new method for researchers to investigate awkward or harmful shoulder postures during repetitive tasks. It was awarded the 2005 Liberty Mutual Best Paper Award. "Identifying...

Sleep well.
October 1, 2005... MY SUSPICION IS THAT THE PER-centage of people who are sleepy at work today is greater than ever before. The amount and quality of sleep we get directly affects performance on the job, both in terms of the number of mistakes made and the speed...

Keep your books lean.(management)(Generally accepted accounting principles )
October 1, 2005... IS LEAN ACCOUNTING IN AND TRADItional accounting out? There are two forms of financial accounting and reporting in most manufacturing and distribution companies. The first is designed to state the company's financial condition accurately...

Sensible style.(security in supply chain)
October 1, 2005... EACH YEAR AROUND THIS TIME, major fashion designers unveil their fall lines. There are always a few wardrobe staples that seem to remain fashionable regardless of trends, and the same can be said of supply chain management. Although recent...

Fostering creativity.(member forum)
October 1, 2005... MANAGERS WOULD LIKE TO HAVE a crystal ball to anticipate market trends and then align organizational strategies accordingly. But even the best prognosticators can rarely envision the myriad challenges that arise in business. By creating an...

Gridiron engineers: volunteers score a reality show touchdown.
October 1, 2005... A team of industrial engineers from H.B. Maynard and Co. will get precious little recognition, much less any glory, in the new television reality series "Bound for Glory." But their behind-the-scenes work during production of the show that...

Waiting for practicality: after 20 years, one IE discovers that queuing theory really can be used in the real world.(industrial engineer)
October 1, 2005... Have you ever had that conversation around the coffee pot that goes something like this? "Yup, I took that course in college and have been in the industry for 20 years. I've never used that stuff once." For me, that topic was queuing theory....

A class by itself: a remarkable educational assignment enhances lives.
October 1, 2005... Nothing worthwhile comes easy, I warned my students on the first day of class in the graduate-level Technological Project Management course I teach. The class is part of the industrial and manufacturing engineering department's program at...

Cleared for liftoff: industrial engineering is front and center in space shuttle safety at NASA.
October 1, 2005... Historically, NASA has aggressively expanded initiatives to improve safety in the space shuttle program. One such initiative was Industrial Engineering for Safety, which was created to make improvements across the NASA hierarchy of safety by...

Take the work out of networking: let the art of small talk help you build better business relationships.
October 1, 2005... Although you may enjoy your work, you may hate going to business-related social events with clients, colleagues, and others in your field. You are not alone. Many people feel anxious and nervous when entering a room filled with unfamiliar...

Research.
October 1, 2005... The October 2005 issue of IIE Transactions (Vol. 35, No. 11) is a special issue dedicated to financial engineering, which was edited by professor Xiuli Chao of the industrial engineering department at North Carolina State University, professor...

Keep lean fair.(ANSWERS TO YOUR TECHNICAL QUESTIONS)(labor standards)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2005... Q: How often should you have a mass update of labor standards after you have measured improvements? Since the standards are used to calculate productivity, when do you establish a new baseline after the improvements have been achieved? Or do...

Shifting shift work.(ANSWERS TO YOUR TECHNICAL QUESTIONS)
October 1, 2005... Q: Our company runs three shifts five and a half days a week. We want to implement a 24/7 schedule. Some suggestions have been to work people four days on and three days off over two 12-hour shifts instead of three eight-hour shifts. Is this...

Hurricane Katrina: IIE responds.(institute for international economics)
October 1, 2005... IIE extends its condolences to the many victims of Hurricane Katrina. IIE staff and members join with the nation in sorrow over the magnitude of the loss and suffering and pledge support to help restore the well-being of the affected states....

Five for five: new tracks highlight the annual lean gathering.
October 1, 2005... The fifth annual Lean Management Solutions Conference in Orlando, Fla., will feature five new educational tracks, including aviation; maintenance, repair, and overhaul; health care; product design; and food processing. [ILLUSTRATION...

Magazine feedback: volunteer to give your opinion.(Brief Article)
October 1, 2005... Members have the opportunity to become active IIE volunteers as they help shape their member magazine. IIE Editorial Director Jane Gaboury is assembling an Industrial Engineer feedback team to serve for a period of 12 months. [ILLUSTRATION...

Winning design: student member wins calculator design contest.(Bashar Al Salim)
October 1, 2005... Bashar Al-salim's industrial calculator design has not only earned praise among his classmates and professors at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, it also earned the Ph.D. student a cool $2,000. Al-salim, who developed his industrial...

New news is good news.(ConoIIEndo la Ingeniera electronic bulletin)(Phoenix project)(David Gruszkowski plan)
October 1, 2005... Universidad del Mayab Student Chapter 987 from Universidad del Mayab in Merida, Mexico recently published its electronic bulletin "ConoIIEndo la Ingeniera," a play on words that translates into "knowing about engineering." The first...

Felipe C. Abala.(KUDOS CELEBRATING MEMBER ACHIEVEMENTS)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2005... Felipe C. Abala is listed in the eighth edition of Who's Who in Science and Engineering and in the 23rd edition of Who's Who in the World. Abala holds a bachelor's degree in industrial engineering and a master's degree in business...

Texas A & M University.(KUDOS CELEBRATING MEMBER ACHIEVEMENTS)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2005... Sila Cetinkaya, Ph.D., an associate professor in the department of industrial engineering at Texas A & M University, was selected to participate in the National Academy of Engineering's 11th annual Frontiers of Engineering Symposium. ...

Robins School of Business.(KUDOS CELEBRATING MEMBER ACHIEVEMENTS)(appointment of Jorge Haddock)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2005... Jorge Haddock, Ph.D., has been named dean of the Robins School of Business at the University of Richmond. Haddock previously served as associate dean and professor of management science and information technology at the Lally School of...

Randolph Hall, Ph.D.(KUDOS CELEBRATING MEMBER ACHIEVEMENTS)(appointment at University of Southern California)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2005... Randolph Hall, Ph.D., formerly co-director of the Center for Risk and Economic Analysis of Terrorism Events and senior associate dean of the Viterbi School of Engineering, has been promoted to vice-provost for research advancement of the...

Virginia Tech's College of Engineering.(KUDOS CELEBRATING MEMBER ACHIEVEMENTS)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2005... Bevlee Watford, Ph.D., associate dean for academic affairs for Virginia Tech's College of Engineering, has accepted a temporary assignment as a program director at the National Science Foundation. Watford began her one-year term in August. As...

A sharper image: challenge inspires tag line.(Brief Article)
October 1, 2005... If anyone asks you what industrial engineers do, you should state that IEs design and improve systems. That's what IIE fellows Behrokh Khoshnevis, Joe H. Mize, Gerald Nadler, and F. Stan Settles advocate in their article "Industrial...

Economical feats: nominate for the Wellington Award.(Brief Article)
October 1, 2005... Nominations are being accepted for the 2006 Wellington Award, which IIE presents annually in recognition of significant contributions to the field of engineering economy. The award is named after Arthur M. Wellington, who in 1887 wrote one of...

Build and sustain.
October 1, 2005... The features in the September/October issue of Industrial Management focus on success. Fariborz Ghadar discusses sustainability on a global level in "Population: Shifting Demographics." He writes that some countries that can least afford to...

Sound management practice: device promises telephone privacy.(Babble)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2005... Herman Miller, the company that launched cubicle culture with the invention of the first office system in the 1960s, now offers a solution to the most irksome drawback of open work environments: lack of acoustic privacy. A device called...

Dilbert[R].(Cartoon)
October 1, 2005... Dilbert reprinted by permission of United Feature Syndicate, Inc. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Art scan.(Brief Article)
October 1, 2005... Some music fans were getting a deal on their tunes thanks to CD cover art that was mistaken for a bar code. According to Reuters news, some London retailers reported that employees were scanning the cover of the CD compilation "Electric...

Vroom, vroom.(Warwick Manufacturing Group)(Sound and Vibration Technology Ltd)(partnership)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2005... Engineers' quest for ever-quieter autos isn't music to consumers' ears, who want a sports car to sound... well, like a sports car. British researchers at the University of Warwick's Warwick Manufacturing Group have partnered with the...