Doctoral Dissertation Research: The Role of IT in High Tech Manufacturing: A Process Level Study

在过去的三十年里，美国制造商承受着以更低的成本生产更高质量产品的巨大压力。传统的应对措施是将生产设施迁至环太平洋地区。在降低生产成本的同时，它给管理协调带来了新的挑战，特别是随着产品开发生命周期的缩短和可制造性设计的趋势，产品设计和开发（通常在美国完成）与制造过程的联系更加紧密。在过去的二十年中，提高制造操作效率的两个最流行的机制是计算机的广泛使用和世界一流制造实践的传播。先进的以计算机为基础的信息技术使公司能够通过自动化和改善工厂内部和工厂之间的一体化来削减成本和提高质量。诸如电子邮件和视像会议等信息技术被用来减少地理距离对通讯的不利影响，并扩大利用世界范围的业务专门知识基础的积极影响。许多以人为本的世界级制造实践也变得流行起来，包括统计过程控制、全面质量管理和持续改进。特定的生产技术，如JIT和看板也很普遍。这些技术和实践不仅改善了产品流的协调，而且通过不断减少可变性增加了对制造过程的控制。在这样一个充满活力和竞争的市场中，这些更高水平的生产控制对于提高性能绝对至关重要。本研究解决了管理人员如何使用信息技术和世界一流的制造实践来协调工厂内部和工厂之间的制造活动。对信息技术的投资是否会产生更高水平的绩效，或者，它们必须伴随着对“以人为本”的世界级实践的投资？这些资讯科技及实践的影响有何性质？我们通过对30家工厂的实地研究来调查这些问题，这些工厂构成了世界磁盘驱动器行业的大部分生产能力。已经参观了14个工厂，产生了有趣的初步结果。我们建议参观另外16个工厂，以便进行更有力的分析。数据收集将涉及使用调查工具和结构化访谈。公司已经提供了现场访问。

Over the last thirty years US manufacturers have come under enormous pressure to manufacture higher quality goods at lower cost. A traditional response has been to relocate production facilities to the Pacific Rim. While reducing production costs, it introduces new challenges in managerial coordination, especially as ever-shorter product development life-cycles and trends in design for manufacturability demand that product design and development (usually done in the US) become more tightly linked to the manufacturing process. Two of the most popular mechanisms for improving manufacturing operational efficiency over the last twenty years have been widespread use of computers and dissemination of world class manufacturing practices. Sophisticated computer-based information technologies (ITs) have enabled firms to cut costs and improve quality through automation and improved intra- and inter-plant integration. Information technologies such as electronic mail and video conferencing are used to reduce the negative effects of geographic distance on communication and amplify the positive effects of tapping into a world-wide base of operational expertise. A number of people-based world class manufacturing practices have also become popular, including statistical process control, total quality management, and continuous improvement. Specific production techniques such as JIT and kanban are also widespread. These technologies and practices not only improve coordination of product flows but also increase control over manufacturing processes by continuously reducing variability. These higher levels of production control are absolutely critical to improved performance in such a dynamic and competitive market. This study addresses how managers use information technologies and world class manufacturing practices for coordination of manufacturing activities, both within and between plants. Do investments in information technologies yield higher levels of performance, or, must they be accompanied by investments in 'people-based' world class practices? What is the nature of the impacts of these ITs and practices? We investigate these issues via a field study of 30 plants constituting a majority of the world's production capacity in the disk drive industry. Fourteen plants have already been visited, yielding interesting preliminary results. We propose to visit an additional 16 plants to enable more powerful analyses can be performed. Data collection will involve use of survey instruments and structured interviews. Firms have already provided site access.