Operations Research, Systems Engineering and Industrial Engineering Commons^™

The Factors That Affect The Implementation Of Enterprise Resource Planning (Erp) In The International Arab Gulf States And United States Companies With Special Emphasis On Sap Software, Saud Al-Sehali

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The primary purpose of this study was to investigate and determine the factors affecting the implementation of enterprise resource planning (ERP) in companies in the Arab Gulf States and the United States, using SAP software as an example.

A random sample was selected of 150 companies in the Arab Gulf States and in the United States that had implemented an ERP system using SAP software. Of the 150 respondents, 30 were companies from the Arab Gulf States and 120 from the United States. A total of 67 questionnaires were returned, a return rate of 44.7%.

The Statistical Package for the …

Pre-Inoculation Effect Of Sic In Production Of Thin Wall Ductile Iron Castings, Nikolay Y. Laukhin

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Pre-inoculation effect of SiC additions and its effect on castability, microstructure, and magnesium recovery in thin wall ductile iron plates have been studied. Experimental results were compared with alternative FeSi75 furnace pre-inoculation additions.

The first series of experiments aimed to set the baseline of iron quality, when using FeSi75 pre-inoculant

In the second series of experiment, different methods of introduction of Sic into liquid iron were studied. It was established that Sic added into the stream during the tapping into the flow-through chamber or added directly into the flow-through chamber produced lower Si recovery. The most effective method of introduction …

A Model For Production Scheduling And Sequencing Using Constraints Management And Genetic Algorithm, Ahmad Nadeem Choudhry

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Production planning and control (PP&C) are among the most critical activities in manufacturing. Proper use of PP&C methods can give organizations a competitive advantage in the global economy. The expected results of this research will allow manufacturing organizations to maximize the effectiveness of PP&C methods, thereby improving their competitive position in the global economy.

This research was an extension of a previous unpublished study, which investigated the PP&C methods being used at a midwestern manufacturer of agricultural equipment (MMAE). The current research study identified the constraints inherent in the production planning and control system and then developed and validated a …

Lithographers' Opinions About Waterless Lithography, Devang Pranlal Mehta

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The purposes of this study were to identify the advantages and disadvantages of waterless litho in comparison with traditional litho, to solve the controversial issues, to forecast the growth of waterless litho, and to inform graphic arts professionals about it. The problem of this research was to identify and measure perceived controversial issues for using the waterless litho process. These controversial issues were related to the return on investment and operating costs involved, productivity, quality of images, eco-friendliness, and technical problems associated with waterless litho.

Due to the fact that waterless litho was a developing technology and some controversial issues …

Perceptions Of Businesses On Environmental Regulatory Information, Kimberly K. Gunderson

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The purpose of this study was to determine the source and amount of information that a sample of businesses receive on environmental regulatory topics and from what sources they would prefer to receive this information. More specifically, the study demonstrated the discrepancy between the sources from which businesses currently receive their information and the sources from which they would prefer to receive it. The study also addressed how relevant this information was to the businesses and with which regulations the businesses were the most and least knowledgeable. The study was done by conducting a mail-back survey of 500 Iowa small …

Effects Of Refrigeration And Cryogenic Treatments On Austempered Ductile Iron, Gerard R. Thiel

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Low temperature treatment, as a method of improving mechanical properties of metals, has been studied and used for well over 60 years. Until recently these treatments have been limited to hardness and wear improvements of high alloy irons and steels. The purpose of this research is to determine the effects of refrigeration and cryogenic treatments on the mechanical properties, including hardness and tensile strength of austempered ductile iron.

This research included the production of a high strength ductile iron of low alloy content capable of being used in either the as cast, conventionally heat treated or austempered condition. Refrigeration and …

Ultrasound Modified Ferric Hydroxide/Cupric Ion Adsorption And Sequestration At Varying Ph Levels, Humberto Campos

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

This study was undertaken to determine if hydrous metal oxide adsorption, an important treatment method used to remove adsorbates from aqueous solution, could be enhanced through ultrasonic irradiation. A model system based on preformed hydrous ferric oxide as the adsorbent and copper as the adsorbate was investigated. Brief exposure of the preformed hydrous ferric oxide floe to intense ultrasonic radiation (ca. 13 Watts/cm2 ) in the presence of copper species effectively disrupted the flocculated particles permitting the copper adsorbate to access adsorption sites previously isolated within the floe. The experimental data indicate that ultrasonic disruption of pre-formed hydrous ferric oxide …

The Effects Of Post Inoculant Additions On Ductile Iron Fade, Travis James Frush

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

This study involved the investigation of three specific, commercially available, post inoculants for ductile iron and their effect on the magnesium fading rate and chill reducing tendency in a low volume production environment. Although fading effects of ductile iron have been extensively investigated, in general, they apply to high volume production operations. Unfortunately, for the smaller foundry operations, many of the process solutions proposed for the prevention of the fading effects are not applicable or practical. In addition to the small production operations, new process technologies are also excluded from many of these process solutions. For this reason, a study …

Investigation Of The Relationship Between Fuel Injection Nozzle Roto Flow And Hydra Flow And The Engine Torque Of A Diesel Engine, Guang Jin

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The purpose of this study was to investigate the possibility of reducing diesel engine torque variation by optimizing fuel injection nozzle tip configuration. In order to reduce engine torque variation, test runs were conducted to determine whether fuel injection nozzles affected diesel engine torque. There was a further effort to determine whether a correlation existed between the fuel injection nozzle roto flow and hydra flow, and the engine torque at specified engine speeds.

Engines installed in cotton pickers and tractors were used for this study. Engines, five from the cotton picker and five from the tractor group were chosen randomly …

Perceived Importance Of Iso 9000 Factors As Indicators Of Quality In Industrial Technology Related Programs At Four-Year State Regional Universities, Floyd L. Olson

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Industry has often used a quality standard known as ISO 9000. No evidence has been located demonstrating the applicability of an industrial quality model to a singular academic department. The problem of this study was to determine if the guidelines for ISO 9004-2 could have been considered appropriate for Industrial Technology related programs and how they could have been used to indicate quality within such programs.

The purpose of this study was to seek knowledge relating the importance of ISO 9004-2 guidelines to audit and/or improve the quality management of Industrial Technology related departments at 4-year state regional universities. This …

Identification Of Success Factors In The Implementation Of Computer-Integrated Manufacturing, Dean Harold Jensen

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The review of recent literature showed a clear trend within the manufacturing sector toward the integration of design and production activities through increased application of the computer. The competitive advantages of computer integration were reported, as well as increased risk due to the amount of time and capital expended in system implementation. The identification of computer integrated manufacturing (CIM) success factors may reduce this risk.

Prior efforts to identify success factors for other areas of endeavor showed that success factors tended to vary with the four project phases, but were stable over time within a particular phase. More recently, empirical …

Manufacturing Curriculum Issues Of Two-Year Mechanical Engineering Technology Program In Taiwan, R.O.C., Chuan-Chun Wu

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The purpose of this study was to evaluate current practices and possible changes in the mechanical engineering technology manufacturing curriculum in Taiwan's two-year junior technical colleges. The study was based on survey responses from three populations: (a) graduates of mechanical engineering (manufacturing division) programs in two-year junior technical colleges, (b) their manufacturing supervisors, and (c) their company chief executive officers (CEOs). The survey was designed to develop responses for following:

1. Determine the degree of importance of courses in the current Taiwanese two-year curriculum in manufacturing, in the opinion of the three groups surveyed.

2. Determine what the future curriculum …

Industrial Technology Faculty's Valuation Of Consulting And Professional Performance, Daniel Richard Meyer

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The purpose of this study was to investigate university industrial technology faculty relationships between their consulting with industrial and perceptions of professional performance. The question addressed was that if effects on teaching ability, research activity, scholarly publishing, and public service arising from this activity. The information obtained adds to knowledge and may be useful for administrators in supporting this form of public service. The result should be increased faculty competence, better prepared students, and increased industrial competitiveness.

Exogenous variables of consulting with industry, competency maintenance, theory testing, enthusiasm regeneration, research opportunity, and scholarly publishing were identified as having potential impact …

Development Of An Automated Ultrasonic Inspection Cell For Detecting Subsurface Discontinuities In Cast Iron, John Scott Burningham

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Manufacturing of value added products by companies in todays global marketplace requires the vendors to meet certain minimum standards, SAE, ASTM, ISO, etc. In a global economy, as a manufacturer for the year 2000 and beyond, preferred vendors will become ISO 9000 certified to maintain a market share of produced goods.

An automated inspection cell was developed for the inspection of cast iron ports to detect subsurface discontinuities. The cell consists of an ultrasonic flaw detector (UFD), transducer, robot, immersion tank, computer, and software. Normal beam pulse-echo ultrasonic nondestructive testing is performed on each rough casting.

Using test blocks and …

A Wear Analysis Study Of Selected Alternative Foundry Tooling Materials Using Impact Abrasion Testing, L. Fred Vondra

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The purpose of this study was to simulate the wear characteristics of foundry tooling using an impact abrasion test apparatus. The wear characteristic was exhibited by non-metallic materials and was measured as a function of percentage weight loss and was benchmarked against Class 30 gray iron. The research question focused on whether or not a non-metallic material exists that exhibits comparable or superior wear characteristics to Class 30 gray iron for possible consideration as tooling materials for foundry applications. The information obtained adds to knowledge and is useful to foundry professionals in making tooling decisions.

The 34 test materials were …

The Relationships Between Technical Operator Turnover Rate And Selected Working Condition Factors In Taiwan's Printing Industry, Ling-Hsiao Lee

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The purpose of this study was to determine how technical operator turnover rate related to selected working condition factors in Taiwan's printing industry. These factors, as defined in this study, included wages, employee benefits, alternative work schedules, training programs, and gainsharings. If the results of this study showed that technical operator turnover rate was related to these selected factors, then the findings of this study would be helpful to a manager making decisions on turnover management.

The data for this study were collected by using three sets of questionnaires: (a) one designed for personnel directors, (b) one targeted at financial …

Factors Affecting The Development Of Unassigned Patents In Iowa, Diane Darlene Wheeler Schou

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Inventors granted patents from 1975 to 1990 in Iowa identified, via a questionnaire, where they perceived their invention on Bright's scale of eight stages of development. Stages were: idea, rationalization (has merit), experimentation, demonstration of prototypes, working model, commercial (market entry), commercial acceptance (sales), and commercial proliferation (other markets). The questions identified factors affecting development. The factors included: resources assisting development, events influencing start-up, sources of money for development, method of manufacturing, experiences with manufacturers, marketing techniques, sales, profit/loss, concerns, patent renewals, and age of patents. Open-ended questions allowed for additional comments.

Commercial acceptance or commercial proliferation was achieved by …

The Importance Of Technology Assessment Procedures For Missionary Trainees, James Michael Hoeksema

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The purpose of this study was to identify those technology assessment (TA) procedures that are most important to teach to missionary trainees. This was based on the perceptions of the chief executive officers of U.S. Protestant mission agencies.

A survey was used to collect the research data. A total of 175 usable survey instruments were returned (25.6%). Analysis of the data consisted of frequency distributions and Chi-square.

A "common core" of TA procedures which are being used by mission agencies was identified. These were: (a) on-site field investigation, (b) committee meetings, (c) brainstorming, (d) personal interviews, (e) review of related …

Development And Validation Of A Model For Training Maintenance Supervisors For Productivity Improvements In Manufacturing Operations, Robert Reed Johnson

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The problem of this study was to develop and validate a training model for training maintenance supervisors. This training model focused on those areas, defined by industrial managers, where additional supervisory training was most likely to improve the performance of the maintenance departments.

Research of industrial and maintenance publications identified the maintenance function as having one of the lowest productivity levels in manufacturing organizations. Supervisor training was identified as a means to improve productivity in maintenance departments. An industrial survey completed by maintenance managers in manufacturing organizations in Iowa, Illinois, Minnesota, and Wisconsin identified those activities that were the responsibility …

Competencies Required Of Baccalaureate Degree Graduates From Graphic Communications Programs, Eldon B. Swanson

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The problem of this study was to identify and validate a list of competencies that may be used by graphic communications educators as the basis for curricula development that meets the needs of the contemporary graphic communications industry. The purpose of this study was to provide the graphic communications educator with a comprehensive, prioritized, and logically clustered list of competencies required of baccalaureate degree graduates from graphic communications programs as perceived by representatives from the graphic communications industry and graphic communications educators.

The survey instrument used for this study is based on a seven point graphic rating scale on which …

An Experimental Cost Model For The Analysis Of Quality Cost In A Manufacturing Enterprise, Wallace Charles Carlson Jr.

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The intent of the study was to construct a quality cost model for manufacturing enterprises. A quality cost model provides a manufacturing enterprise with a cost structure which enables it to gauge and measure the efficiency and effectiveness of its management and processes. The quality cost model was specifically constructed to aid a manufacturing enterprise in establishing a quality cost system for its operations and activities and contains three distinct initial implementation or decision areas; the quality cost management decisions area, the quality cost system applications area, and the quality cost system utilization area.

The quality cost model was evaluated …

A Comparison Of Present And Future Tasks Performed By Quality Engineers Of Leading And Nonleading American Manufacturing Firms, Zenon Theodore Smolarek

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

This study identified and compared the level of importance and frequency of performance of 34 selected quality engineering tasks in the present and five years hence and determined potential catalysts for any expected change between the present and the future. Two sample groups of practicing certified quality engineers working for manufacturing companies in the United States were surveyed in three rounds to obtain the data. Group I consisted of 86 engineers working for companies that had been identified as leaders in product quality in a 1985 Gallup study. Group II consisted of 96 engineers from other companies.

The study attempted …

The Role Of Multinational Corporations In The Transfer Of Management Technology To Nigeria, Liwhu Undiandeye

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The development of an active and viable managerial cadre in the developing nations is necessary for the initiation and sustainment of industrial growth and productivity. Management is not only able to recognize profitable opportunities but also possess sufficient entrepreneurial skills that can be organized for technological growth. Managerial skills are abundantly present in the West and significantly lacking in the developing nations. One of the ways to stimulate industrial growth in the developing nations is to transfer these abundant skills from the West. The transferability of western management technology to non-western cultures has been characterized by uncertainty as regards its …

Computer Usage In The Construction Industry And Construction Education, Stephen Douglas Stulken

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The rapid growth of computer usage in American society, and in the construction industry in particular, has important implications for construction education programs. There is a lack of current information about computer usage in the construction industry. Without this information, construction educators are less likely to provide students with relevant computer competencies that relate to the needs of the construction industry.

The objective of this study was to determine to what extent construction education programs provide the necessary computer competencies for their students. This was accomplished by comparing the current status of computer usage in the construction industry with computer-related …

Self-Perceived Benefits Which Occur As The Result Of Kimberly-Clark's Health Management Program, Richard Lee Langford

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The purpose of this study was to determine if employee participants in Kimberly-Clark's Health Management Program perceived benefits from their participation that have affected their lifestyles, both at work and outside of work.

The population for this study consisted of all salaried employees of Kimberly-Clark in the Fox Valley of Wisconsin who have been participants within the Health Service Center for at least six months at an adherence level of two days per week or more. A random sample of this population was used to conduct the survey. A total of 130 employees were surveyed.

The research study was of …

A Study Of Industrial Arts Teachers' Opinions Of Gifted And Talented Students In Black Hawk County, Iowa, James Robert Wrona

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

While the handicapped and disadvantaged have enjoyed the benefit of some unique industrial arts educational programming, relatively little has been done to provide for the special educational needs of gifted and talented students. This may be partially a result of little research completed associating the gifted and talented student with industrial arts. Additionally, legislative support for gifted and talented students has been lacking. It was not until 1978, with the passage of Public Law 95-561, that programs for gifted and talented students have been granted some funding on the federal level. Although this public law can authorize up to $35 …

The Relationship Between Management Training And Other Predictor Variables And Managerial Performance Among Selected Industrial First-Line Supervisors, Joseph Thomas Martelli

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The purpose of this study was to determine whether a relationship exists between industrial first-line supervisors' participation in management training programs and subsequent job related performance as assessed by the subjects' overall management by objectives (MBO) performance appraisal rating .

Also, the relationship between managerial performance and predictor variables (age, years of supervisory experience, formal education level, self development, prior management training, and professional society involvement) was assessed.

Twenty-three first-line supervisors from a medium sized manufacturing organization participated in the study. A questionnaire was designed which extracted measures on the predictor variables from the subjects. Corporate management supplied the measure …

A Feasibility Study Of A System For Computer-Aided Selection Of Materials For Industrial Production, Seth Pardee Bates

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

This study was a comparative analysis of two methods of selecting materials for industrial production. The specific objectives were to find out if (a) a computer-aided materials selection system would select materials which were not significantly different from materials chosen by practicing professional engineers; and (b) the time required by the computer system to select materials would be significantly less than the time required by the engineers.

The criterion measures were (a) the closeness of fit of properties to design specifications for each material selected; and (b) the amount of time consumed by each subject in the selection of each …

The Relationship Between Teacher Sex Role Models And Career Aspirations Of High School Industrial Arts Students, Janet Lynn Robb

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Sex role stereotyping has been the focus of a number of research projects trying to determine just where stereotyping lies and ways to eliminate it. Although most of the research points toward role modeling as a major cause, little has been done to test that theory.

The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between teacher sex role models and the career aspirations of students enrolled in high school industrial arts courses throughout the United States. This study was limited to tenth, eleventh, and twelfth grade students enrolled in industrial arts programs in high schools in the United …

The Effects Of A Kinesthetic Training Program On The Acquisition Of Industrial Skills Among University Students, John V. Mockler

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Training workers for specific jobs is receiving much attention in industry. The demand for skilled workers is increasing constantly and as this happens newer and more efficient methods of training are sought In the psychomotor/sensory area. skills that appear to offer a wide amount of transferability are those dealing with fine sensitivity, manual dexterity, and coordination. Even though these skills lend themselves well to training, this area is somewhat deficient in current educational and training programs (Sjogren, 1977, p.23). Presently, on-the-job training is widely used for training workers in the actual tasks they will perform during their job.

The process …