Automation in Automotive Industries: Recent Developments

ISBN-13: 9783642641572 / Angielski / Miękka / 2012 / 140 str.

Anna Comacchio; Guiseppe Volpato; Arnaldo Camuffo

Opis

G. Volpato, A. Camuffo, A. Comacchio 1.1 The background During recent years the dynamics of automotive industry and its supply chain has catalysed the attention and the research effort of a wide international group of scholars as: the International Motor Vehicle Program (JMVP) of Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the Permanent Study Group for the Automobile Industry and Its Employees (GERPISA) of Paris, and the International Car Distribution l Programme (ICDP) of Solihull. This favoured the publication of relevant studies and the growth of networks of academicians and practitioners interested in studying the patterns of industry evolution and in organising meetings to present and discuss issues of common interest. In 1992 some members of these research projects decided to organize a first conference in Berlin dedicated to the main theme of automation and organization in the automobile industry. In 1993 a second conference took place in Tokyo, followed by a technical visit to a few automobile manufacturers and components suppliers plants (Toyota, Nissan, Mitsubishi, etc.).

Spis treści

1 Introduction.- 2 Industry clockspeed and competency chain design: an introductory essay.- 3 New perspectives on automation.- 4 Competitive strategies, industrial models and assembly automation templates.- 5 Automation and Inertia.- 6 Automation strategies at the first-tier suppliers in Japan. Process development and product trajectory. Hypothesis on the supplier-assembler relationship.- 7 Anticipating problems with manufacturing during the product development process.- 8 Diffusion patterns of lean practices: lessons from the European auto industry.- 9 The transfer of organizing principles in the world auto industry: Cross-cultural influences on replication at Opel Eisenach.- The Authors of the Book.

Blurb

The book focuses on understanding the most recent change patterns in automation, manufacturing systems, organization and management of human resources of the world automobile firms. In brief, even if the automation issue is one of the main focuses of this book, regarding specific technological solutions, we refer the readers to the in depth analysis of the proceedings of previous conferences. This book deals with adjustment processes underlying significant experiences. Specifically, the main aim of the book is to understand the new step of the evolutionary process which involves the manufacturing system of the automobile supply chain (automobile manufacturers and parts manufacturing firms). The drivers of this evolution are analyzed, specifically focusing on the continous interaction among changing competitive context, new technological patterns and emerging human resource management and organizational issues.