Las empresas de hoy en día se encuentran inmersas en una feroz competencia por sobrevivir y sobresalir. Para ello, la clave de la excelencia está en desarrollar estrategias globales orientadas hacia la mejora continua de los procesos en la organización. No obstante, uno de los principales obstáculos a superar en ese camino hacia la excelencia es precisamente lograr la participación y compromiso de todos los trabajadores de manera sostenida en el tiempo. Este problema aparece citado en repetidas ocasiones en la literatura, pero las razones por las cuales las personas deciden o no participar de estas iniciativas siguen sin estar del todo claras. Este artículo busca aportar en el conocimiento de la relación entre los sistemas de mejora continua y la intención de participar de los trabajadores. Mediante una encuesta a empresas españolas, se detectó que aquellas empresas que puntúan alto en una serie de hábitos relacionados con el éxito de los sistemas de mejora continua, consideran que sus sistemas son más sostenibles en el tiempo y que sus trabajadores están más comprometidos. A la luz de estos resultados, se desarrolló un Panel Delphi para profundizar acerca de cuáles son los elementos claves que los gerentes deben de tener en cuenta a la hora de desplegar los sistemas de mejora continua, con el objetivo de fomentar la participación de todos los trabajadores, obteniéndose como resultado una lista de elementos claves.

Lean manufacturing has been increasingly applied by leading manufacturing companies throughout the world, led by the major automobile manufacturers and their equipment suppliers. The aim of this case study is to show the applicability of lean manufacturing¿s body of knowledge to a different environment: a seasonal food industry. Several techniques and analyses such as value stream mapping (VSM), overall equipment efficiency, spaghetti diagrams, work balance, and discrete event simulation were applied in this case study. Some of the improvement ideas resulting from the tools used were tested in the field to corroborate the findings. Finally, the future state VSM was mapped, where most of the improvement ideas identified throughout the project were consolidated. Whether the path to improvement is marked by increased spending on systems and machinery, human capital, or both, engineers and managers in the frontlines of food production recognize that improvement is a quest and not a destination. Although process industries need a special version of lean manufacturing tools, this case study shows how, with slight modification, several tools can be applied to the seasonal traditional craft industry.

The design of vertical formworks is governed by the lateral pressure exerted by fresh concrete; while maximum lateral pressure is the key parameter for formwork design, the rate of pressure decay and the time needed for pressure stabilization is important for determining formwork removal time; the complexity of the problem is due the large number of factors which affect the rate of pressure decay. This works describes an experimental investigation of columns to determine the variation in the initial lateral pressure decay and in the time needed for pressure stabilization with the following variables: coarse aggregate concentration (different sand to total aggregate ratios were used), the use of a plasticizer, the presences of reinforcement and concrete temperature. In the last part of this work a correlation between setting time and maturity functions with the time needed for pressure stabilization was done. The results show that both thixotropic linked to cement grains nucleation and consolidation and cement hydration influences in lateral pressure decay to the point of stabilization. In references with the initial pressure decay, the presence of reinforcement seems to have a major influence. On the other hand the time needed for pressure stabilization could be correlated with the maturity functions. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Experimenters should be aware of the possibility that some of their observations may be unavailable for analysis. This article considers different criteria to assess the impact that missing data can have when running three-level designs to estimate a full second-order polynomial model. Designs for three to seven factors were studied and included BoxBehnken designs, face-centered composite designs, and designs due to Morris, Mee, BlockMee, DraperLin, Hoke, Katasaounis, and Notz. These designs were studied under two existing robustness criteria: (i) the maximum number of runs that can be missing and still allow the remaining runs to estimate a given model; and (ii) the loss of D-efficiency in the remaining design compared with the original design. The robustness of three-level designs was studied using a third, new criterion: the maximum number of observations that can be missing from a design and still allow the estimation of the given model with a high probability. This criterion represents a useful generalization of the first criterion, which determines the maximum number of runs that make the probability of estimating the model equal to one. The new criterion provides a better assessment of the robustness of each design than previous criteria.

Teamwork is one of the most powerful tools to ensure success across any activity. The purpose of this paper is to examine the factors that actively contribute to the effectiveness of teams. This research looks at two different types of teams: care delivery teams representing healthcare and improvement teams representing the manufacturing industry. The aim is to provide greater knowledge about the application of team work factors in different environments. Design/methodology/approach -- Qualitative interviews about teamwork factors were conducted with 17 leaders of teams from healthcare and 22 leaders from manufacturing industries. The responses were categorized into different levels according to the application of each factor. Then, the factors were analyzed to draw conclusions about the different approaches to teamwork and their application. Findings -- Most of the factors analyzed are highly applied in both sectors. However, we found significant differences between hospitals and the manufacturing industry when it comes to factors such as strategies, feedback on results, leadership, participation and communication. Originality/value -- Measuring each factor in two different sectors (healthcare and industry) has yielded noteworthy findings and the best practices for their implementation

El trabajo en equipo es uno de los elementos más importantes para los sistemas de Mejora Continua, ya que facilita el intercambio de información, la resolución de problemas y el desarrollo de las personas. Esta investigación tiene como objetivo obtener conclusiones sobre los factores críticos para conseguir el éxito del trabajo realizado por los equipos de mejora, a través de una investigación cualitativa basada en entrevistas a empresas industriales de la Comunidad Autónoma Vasca, en España, gestionadas según el modelo EFQM y premiadas por su gestión. Para ello se ha adaptado el modelo IMO de efectividad de trabajo en equipo, que permite la evaluación de los distintos factores críticos. Los resultados obtenidos indican que las organizaciones deben prestar atención a los factores relacionados con el equipo y sus miembros, como el reconocimiento grupal y la formación en conjunto, entre otros.

Many researchers consider absenteeism to be a significant problem for employers. Absenteeism lowers the overall level of worker expertise, which may affect product quality and trigger an increase in customer complaints. This research was carried out in a prominent automobile manufacturing company, with an assembly line¿driven rigid production process. This article gathered customer quality complaints registered during the 17 months after cars were delivered to customers, from one year of car production, to analyze how employee absenteeism affects customer quality complaints. The empirical evidence presented by this research in the automotive industry confirms that absenteeism does not lead, necessarily, to a decrease in quality. This evidence must make organization redefine the value of their expert workers. Moreover, these results could have an impact on assembly-line design and the use of worker job-rotation programs for technologically sophisticated assembly lines.

By means of a case study of an automotive manufacturer, this paper aims to study the impact of a continuous improvement (CI) programme on quality defects. The analysis aims to ascertain if several independent variables such as production, CIs, and shifts are correlated to each of two dependent variables: internal quality defects and auditor quality defects (detected in the line). We gathered daily data for each shift of internal quality and auditor quality in a 12-month period. The defects considered and analysed through this study amounted to more than 68,000. This analysis could be useful as a methodology to evaluate the CI programmes of other manufacturers, since there is very little literature in terms of case studies or examples that focus on the daily struggle that manufacturers face when transforming these strategies into working practices

The design of vertical formwork is governed by the lateral pressure exerted by fresh concrete; the complexity of the problem is due to the large number of factors which affect pressure. This work describes an experimental investigation in columns to determine the variation in lateral pressure and initial rate of pressure drop with the following variables: formwork size and shape, coarse aggregate concentration and concrete temperature. An 8-run factorial design 23 was done to determine the influence of formwork size and shape and coarse aggregate concentration. It was impossible to vary temperature between two levels in the field, so in this analysis this factor was considered as a co-variable. With this objective, square and circular experimental columns 3 m high but with different cross sections were instrumented, and two concrete mixtures with different sand to total aggregate ratios were used. Afterwards, two tests were done to determine the influence in pressure of concrete impact, changing the method for filling the columns. Formwork shape, coarse aggregate concentration and concrete impact have a minor effect in maximum lateral pressure, while temperature shows an inverse relationship with the pressure, but not to a sufficient degree to be considered a significant parameter. On the other hand, formwork size has a major effect on the pressure, narrow sections generate less lateral pressure than higher ones. This is attributed to the friction forces between concrete and formwork which are much more important in small sections. Formwork shape and size present a major influence in the initial rate of pressure decay. While circular formworks present a higher value than squares ones, smaller cross sections present a lower value than larger ones. On the other hand, coarse aggregate concentration has a minor effect on this parameter. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Purpose ¿ Since the field of healthcare was a latecomer to the quality movement, knowledge transfer has generally flowed in one direction, from industry to healthcare. However, organisations can also be enriched by healthcare. In particular, this paper aims to show industry that important lessons can be learned regarding how teamwork is generally managed within healthcare. Design/methodology/approach ¿ To identify the useful lessons that healthcare can teach industry, the authors started with a brainstorming session among the members of the research team to pin-point the lessons based on their experience with healthcare and industrial environments. Afterwards, an exhaustive review of the relevant literature from the last ten years was carried out. Findings ¿ Industrial organisations need to develop teamwork frameworks focused on involving every employee in cross-disciplinary, empowered and trained teams. Moreover, from a team perspective, special care must be shown when defining clear roles, focusing on end clients, formulating shared objectives and facilitating internal communications. Practical implications ¿ The ten lessons from healthcare teamwork best practices believed to be the most important are given in the paper. Although some of these lessons may not be completely new concepts for industrial organisations, the paper shows how healthcare develops, spreads and applies these concepts in the real world. Originality/value ¿ The paper summarises, in ten useful lessons for organisations, healthcare's best teamwork practices in the literature

Purpose - This research paper aims to explore how intranet mechanisms for knowledge transfer in a multinational automotive company can he improved with the inclusion Of a human interface. specifically a resident engineer. A resident engineer is an assembly line employee who spends the majority of their lime in the Advanced Engineering Center, which aims to improve knowledge transfer through face-to-face interaction. Design/methodology/approach - A multinational automotive company was selected for the study Six years of data containing all product modifications were analyzed. Findings The paper concludes that electronic knowledge transfer can be significantly improved when resident engineers physically interact with the Advanced Engineering Center Intranet knowledge transfer alone cannot overcome the considerable handicap involved in knowledge assimilation. Practical implications - For companies with Advanced Engineering Centers located far from assembly-line plants. the creation of specific human mechanisms to explain the knowledge generated and to reduce approval time is indispensable. Originality/value - This research paper features a complete case study from a multinational automotive company with more than EGO analyzed modifications.

In the healthcare sector, teamwork is a key issue. Although the sector promotes research on improving the quality of teamwork, it rarely focuses on evaluating this process. This paper develops a methodological proposal for assessing teamwork effectiveness. The model considers 36 factors used to measure it, by observing the existence, importance and application level of these factors in the teamwork. The model was used to assess teams working in the public hospital network in the Basque Country (Spain). Methodology was of the exploratory type and developed with data obtained from interviews carried out according to a script based on the model's structure. The assessment was conducted through interviews in order to qualitatively assess the existence, degree and level of implementation for those factors. From applying the model to the practical case, conclusions are that most of the factors analyzed in those hospitals had medium and high scores; the lowest scores were for factors related to results, recognition, training and selecting team members.

As comfort has become an important factor in the lift industry, validated lift models are currently a significant research area. In this article, we present an analysis of a lift guiding system, which transmits vibrations to the cabin and affects passengers' comfort. The project consisted of determining the most important lift guiding system factors that affect a lift's comfort. The Design of Experiments technique was chosen as the best technique available to maximize the information gathered from the experiments. in order to carry out the experiments, a lift test rig was specially constructed in order to simulate a real installation. We screened and analyzed the influence of many factors on the response with an adapted factorial fractional design. This article shows the steps carried out in planning and analyzing the experiments, putting special emphasis on the planning during every phase of the DoE application. This research project was co-developed by a research center, a university and a well-known Spanish lift company. Copyright (C) 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Este artículo analiza el grado de sostenibilidad de las empresas en la gestión de la mejora continua y los factores que apoyan la sostenibilidad en el tiempo, a través de una encuesta enviada a 350 empresas de la Comunidad Autónoma Vasca y Navarra durante el mes de junio de 2009. El estudio presenta datos sobre la evolución de los sistemas de mejora en los últimos años, y la implantación de las distintas metodologías utilizadas. A continuación realiza un análisis de los factores que las empresas asocian con el abandono de los sistemas de mejora. Dado que los sistemas de mejora se basan en la participación de las personas, el estudio caracteriza cómo es dicha participación. Finalmente se analizan los elementos que las empresas utilizan en sus sistemas de mejora, y en qué grado se han introducido indicadores y objetivos en la gestión de la mejora. Como conclusiones se apuntan las siguientes claves para la mejora sostenible: una mayor implicación del personal directo en el sistema de mejora continua, la integración del sistema de mejora continua en la organización y el establecimiento de indicadores asociados al sistema.

An extensive literature review was carried out to detect why design of experiments (DoE) is not widely used among engineers in Europe. Once 16 main barriers were identified, a survey was carried out to obtain first-hand information about the significance of each. We obtained 101 responses from academics, consultants and practitioners interested in DoE. A statistical analysis of the survey is introduced, including: (a) a ranking of the barriers, (b) grouping of barriers using factorial analysis, (c) differences between characteristics of respondents. This exploratory analysis showed that the main barriers that hinder the widespread use of DoE are low managerial commitment and engineers' general weakness in statistics. Once the barriers were classified, the most important resultant group was that related to business barriers.