Papers by maria thomassen
IFIP Advances in Information and Communication Technology, 2015
IFIP Advances in Information and Communication Technology, 2014
Lecture Notes in Production Engineering, 2014
ABSTRACT Norwegian leisure boat manufacturers have experienced a transition from large to small p... more ABSTRACT Norwegian leisure boat manufacturers have experienced a transition from large to small production series during the last years following a general decline in demand. They are forced to transform large-scale operations into handling small volumes of highly customized products while maintaining the same level of cost efficiency. The literature presents several frameworks that can help to “crack the code” of mass customization. However, the mass customization strategy is still little understood and deployed in industry. There is thus a need to develop more in-depth understanding of how companies can get started and enhance their mass customization capabilities. This paper presents a chart approach for defining the solution space of a leisure boat production network. Opportunities and limitations of the suggested approach are also addressed.
Handbook of Global Supply Chain Management
The operation of global manufacturing network is challenging due to the complexity in product and... more The operation of global manufacturing network is challenging due to the complexity in product and information flow, diversity in sites, localization and processes and the information processing needed for control. Thus information technology has to be developed to cope with this complexity and to develop decision support for controlling the network. In this paper the concept of the Global Control Centre for manufacturing activity is developed based on research on a Norwegian supplier of fish hooks. The main elements of the GCC is found to be the global control model, performance measurement system, ICT solutions and the organization and the physical environment. In order to realize the GCC the main challenges are ICT investments and standardization, and the management of change and organizational resistance. The findings presented in this paper are not yet collectively implemented and tested and must therefore only be viewed as conceptual proposals.
Proceedings of the 2006 EurOMA Conference in …, 2006
International Journal of Business Information Systems, 2006
... Even though large amounts of information are captured at different points in the logging proc... more ... Even though large amounts of information are captured at different points in the logging process and stored in the shared SDC solutions, use of this information still seems to be ... A much earlier version of this paper was presented at SISC in San Diego in the summer of 2005. ...
Advances in Manufacturing, 2014
In order to retain a certain level of production in Norway, suppliers to the Norwegian maritime i... more In order to retain a certain level of production in Norway, suppliers to the Norwegian maritime industry need to lower their production costs. Automation is generally an effective way of achieving this in standardized high-volume, low variety production. However, manufacturing companies in the Norwegian maritime industry typically supply capital-intensive, advanced and customized products in low volumes. In this engineer-to-order production situation, manual labor is traditionally preferred over automation. Nonetheless, such companies increasingly automate parts of their production. This paper presents a case of a supplier that has chosen to automate its welding operations, the implications and determinants of this decision.
Based on an analysis of the supply chain of four producers of local specialty foods, we explore h... more Based on an analysis of the supply chain of four producers of local specialty foods, we explore how planning and control principles can be applied to align supply chain capabilities and market requirements. It has been shown that local food struggles with market access, and that the supply chain is one of the obstacles preventing local food producers from gaining a solid market position. We identify a number of features of the local food chain, analyse the obstacles and develop generic designs and control principles for local food producers.
This thesis deals with the role of information and communications technology (ICT) in supply chai... more This thesis deals with the role of information and communications technology (ICT) in supply chain settings where partners collaborate on planning and control. Recent ICT developments offer numerou ...
Automation of industrial processes is a necessary step towards the Industry 4.0 vision. There are... more Automation of industrial processes is a necessary step towards the Industry 4.0 vision. There are several justification techniques available that can help to improve chances for success in automation projects. A literature review on justification techniques and their usefulness is carried out. Based on the review, a set of criteria for evaluating justification techniques are developed. A case study is carried out in a company with an ongoing manufacturing system development project that includes decisions regarding processes and technologies that require a systematic evaluation and justification. Two justification techniques were selected and tested in the development project. The tests show that both justification techniques provide good support for the technology acquisition process. Strengths and weaknesses of the tested techniques are highlighted. The study suggests that the choice of method should depend on the type of acquisition process of a company, especially with respect t...
Many mass customization challenges can be ascribed to insufficient integration of front-end (e.g.... more Many mass customization challenges can be ascribed to insufficient integration of front-end (e.g., customer choice navigation processes, product configuration, user interfaces, and customer behavior patterns) and back-end (e.g., order management, purchasing and production planning and control) systems. To succeed as a mass customizer, customer/manufacturer integration is critical. This paper provides in-depth insights to integration challenges and opportunities based upon a case study of four manufacturing companies. For solution space and product development, high uncertainty in new idea generation, lack of systematic product and solution space development, and limited knowledge of what is the “right” solution space are identified as challenges with opportunities for improvement. Regarding choice navigation, many companies have limited direct contact with end customers due to sales through dealers and resellers. Associated inefficient information flows are another challenge. The co...
Managing Complexity
Companies in engineer-to-order (ETO) manufacturing environments that seek efficiency gains throug... more Companies in engineer-to-order (ETO) manufacturing environments that seek efficiency gains through adopting a mass customization strategy meet major challenges. Current research on the implementation of mass customization (MC) in companies traditionally has a strong focus on the transition from mass production, and few studies only involve settings characterized by high variety and low volume production. The purpose of this study is to bring further detail to major areas of concern when adopting mass customization principles in ETO manufacturing. A literature review of mass customization and ETO was carried out, and principles for mass customization implementation were tested in a case company. The study revealed that major issues of MC in ETO are interdependent across several decision areas and involve manufacturing as well as engineering and design phases. This paper provides more in-depth insights to practical consequences of implementing MC in ETO manufacturing.
Information support in kit preparation is critical for the design of efficient kitting systems. E... more Information support in kit preparation is critical for the design of efficient kitting systems. Existing literature is dominated by studies that address in-house kitting and order picking support in warehouse settings and that are based upon laboratory experiments. This study explores critical aspects of information support for kit preparation outsourced to partners in the supply chain based upon empirical evidence of a web application for kitting adopted in a real-life case of a manufacturer and a supplier. Detailed insights to kitting efficiency, information sharing and user acceptance are presented. Critical aspects are identified primarily related to the relationship and interaction between companies, quality of information sharing, usefulness, parts identification efficiency, and joint improvement and development efforts. This work highlights the importance of considering supply chain information sharing in outsourced kitting.
Customization 4.0
Choice navigation can support customers in identifying their own solutions while minimizing compl... more Choice navigation can support customers in identifying their own solutions while minimizing complexity and the burden of choice. Product configurators are used as an interactive tool to help customers in this process. For companies aiming to develop a configurator from scratch, there are many hurdles. Particularly for SMEs, there are additional challenges, such as shortage of resources, experience, and knowledge in developing a viable configurator tool. In this paper, we explore the process of designing choice navigation through a product configurator tool. We review existing methodologies and propose a new process model. Empirical data come from a case study of three SMEs embarking on the process of establishing a choice navigation tool. The proposed model is developed in the context of the research project CustomR. The new process model is cyclic and customer-driven and aims to develop need-based configurators (as opposed to a linear, technology-driven, and function-based approach). The paper reports on challenges and success factors from an ongoing configurator development project.
Advances in Production Management Systems. Initiatives for a Sustainable World, 2016
Value stream mapping (VSM) is a widely applied method for manufacturing systems design in repetit... more Value stream mapping (VSM) is a widely applied method for manufacturing systems design in repetitive and stable industries. A literature review of challenges and modified solutions for lean flow in high-variety low-volume (HV/LV) value streams is carried out. The solutions are categorized according to manufacturing turbulence level. The review shows that existing VSM solutions take their starting point in the original VSM principles and incorporate other relevant works only to a limited extent. Based upon the review, a coherent framework with revised VSM principles that that can be used to develop lean flow in HV/LV environments with medium and high turbulence levels is proposed.
This paper reviews the impact of digitization and information technology over several decades in ... more This paper reviews the impact of digitization and information technology over several decades in four industries representing a cross-section of the entire economy. It is based on in-depth studies ...
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Papers by maria thomassen