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A new type of pure carbon fiber (C f ) preform with complex shape was prepared by gel-casting. C f /SiC composite with high performance was rapidly prepared by reactive melt infiltration (RMI). The microstructure which determined the mechanical properties of the C f /SiC composites could be controlled by in-situ fiber coating preparation process. The fracture toughness of the C f /SiC composite with SiC and PyC coating, 8.3 ± 1.5 MPa m 1/2 , was far superior to pure SiC ceramic prepared by RMI. This method showed excellent manufacturing capability and remarkable potential in fabrication of C f /SiC composites with complex shape and high mechanical performance.

In the past few years, additive manufacturing with metal powders industry has gained rapid traction in the metal manufacturing sector, prominently in those regions where conventional manufacturing encounters limitations related to manufacturing capability and design methodology.

“Evaluating the Past and Present of Regenerative Medicine (RM)” was the first part of an Industry Symposium dedicated to the subject during the 2015 TERMIS World Congress in Boston. This working session presented a critical review of the current RM landscape in Europe and North America with possible projections for the future. Interestingly, the RM development cycle seems to obey the Gartner hype cycle, now at the enlightenment phase, after past exaggerated expectations and discouragements, as suggested by increasing numbers of clinical trials and recent market approvals of RM solutions in both Europe (Glybera and Holoclar® from Chiesi Pharma and Strimvelis® from GSK) and Japan (Remestemcel-L from Mesoblast®). The successful commercial translation of RM research is governed by five major drivers: (i) fully validated manufacturing capability for autologous or allogeneic products, (ii) reimbursement for targeted clinical indications with high and demonstrable medico-economic benefits versus standard of care...

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the development of manufacturing capabilities in Central and Eastern Europe. In particular, top management's competitive priorities, plants' manufacturing strategies, and plants' manufacturing performances are compared between old and new European Union member states. Internationally collected data are compared using various analyses of covariance. The findings are interpreted against the background of the sand cone model, which is extended by integrating sustainability twice—that is, in its proactive and reactive forms. The results indicate that old and new member states dwell on different steps of cumulative manufacturing capability development. It is hypothesized that this can be attributed to differing labor costs; the requirements imposed by supply chains; and the pressure from stakeholders, such as civil society organizations. Our study responds to various calls to refine the sand cone model through the use of contingency theory by considering the operating conditions of plants in the two country groups as environmental contingency factors.

Facing the challenge of rapid response to customer personalized demand and developing high quality competitive ordnance equipment, the paper proposes a capability-driven dynamic federal collaborative design methodology to support inter-enterprise development. The core is dynamic constructing collaborative development capability federation (CDCF) by combinatorial optimizing and intelligent disposing various inter-enterprise designing and manufacturing capability. The paper presents the business model and capability models of CDCF and focuses on the capability constraints-based constructing method and requirement-capability matching algorithm of CDCF. Applying service-oriented architecture (SOA)-based integrating method, the inter-enterprise federal collaborative development platform was constructed. Finally, a heavy military vehicle inter-enterprise collaborative design engineering application case validates the effectiveness and feasibility of the method.

The subject of this column is a quite remarkable German aircraft from World War II (WW2): the Horten Ho-229. This was a single-seat fighter/bomber aircraft with a steel and laminated plywood airframe, powered by two turbojet engines, and designed and built by the Horten brothers, Walter and Reimer. Its maximum speed was close to 1000 km/h. It looks for all the world like a modern-day stealth aircraft - but from 75 years ago. A prototype aircraft flew in test flights in February 1945 - just three months before the end of WW2 in Europe. The results were encouraging, but there was no time and no manufacturing capability to develop it to operational status. The prototype was recovered as the Allies overran Germany, and now-declassified documents in the British National Archives show that the airframe was carefully inspected and the performance assessed. It is not clear how much of this information may have been used in the design of the Northrop XB-35 (1946) and YB-49 (1947) "flying wing" aircraft. The prototype aircraft lay in storage for many years, but has now been taken to the Smithsonian Udvar-Hazy museum, close to Dulles airport, VA, USA, where it is being restored.

The pressurized water reactor CAP1400 is one of the sixteen National Science and Technology Major Projects. Developed from China's nuclear R&D system and manufacturing capability, as well as AP1000 technology introduction and assimilation, CAP1400 is an advanced large passive nuclear power plant with independent intellectual property rights. By discussing the top design principle, main performance objectives, general parameters, safety design, and important improvements in safety, economy, and other advanced features, this paper reveals the technology innovation and competitiveness of CAP1400 as an internationally promising Gen-III PWR model. Moreover, the R&D of CAP1400 has greatly promoted China's domestic nuclear power industry from the Gen-II to the Gen-III level.

Automotive industry is believed to be the pioneer in pushing the growth of manufacturing industry in Indonesia. By implementing manufacturing strategy, the industry will get its performance improved. Automotive component manufacturer is an important part of automotive industry. This research discusses the relationship between influential variables with performance in Indonesia automotive component manufacturer namely manufacturing capability and manufacturing strategy. A model is developed and data are collected from automotive component manufacturers around Jakarta area. Data is processed using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). The result shows that manufacturing capability significantly influences manufacturing strategy while manufacturing strategy also significantly influences performance of Indonesia automotive component manufacturer.

Changeovers stand as a critical operation in the manufacturing companies, however in their current state with significant economic and environmental impacts they are more of a burden then a capability. Market pressures and sustainability requirements soon will push companies even harder to convert this burden into a manufacturing capability. Purpose of this paper to investigate the value definition of changeovers, type of impacts and possible improvement opportunities from an industrial perspective. Due to the lack of data availability on changeover impacts in the current literature, a case-study was conducted through interviews and onsite observations. Current findings indicate that, changeovers may be considered as value adding in some cases. Moreover, from an environmental perspective water consumption, wastewater treatment, energy use, chemical use and product loss were the type of impacts that were frequently brought up, whereas loss of production time was highlighted as the main economic impact. Additionally, companies believe that both design and operational changes can provide improvements for their current systems. Current findings represent the issues within the type of industries included in this early stage of the study and therefore may change in the later stages of the project. This paper highlights important aspects of changeover operations that are commonly neglected in industrial practice while improvements towards these aspects could provide substantial economic benefits while improving companies’ environmental performance.

With the development of information and computer network technology, cloud manufacturing has been developing rapidly, industrial robots (IRs) as a vital symbol and an advanced technology of manufacturing industry, in scheduling service, the constantly changing information data will result in the corresponding vary of the manufacturing capability. Under a fixed constraint of some capability service request, this will decrease the number of the optimal solutions and provide the inaccurate service to users. So it is important to make the manufacturing capability stable and obtain more optimal solutions to satisfy the constraint, thus the dynamic assessment of manufacturing capability based on information feedback is investigated in this paper. A set of indicators is established considering the IRs’ manufacturing capability and a new dynamic assessment model is proposed to achieve the actual data and the expected data information feedback, using the “normal distribution” model, which can correct the assessment weight. By the way, a case study is simulated in the MATLAB, which shows the reliability and reasonability of this method in evaluate the manufacturing capability in IR.

This paper discusses a method to determine optimum numbers of kanban in Just In Time production system and analyzes effect of optimum numbers of kanban to manufacturing performance. Method to determine kanban numbers was carried out by designing kanban flow based current situation, gathering relevant parameter on floor and company database, and calculating of kanban quantity through basic mathematical model. The basic mathematical model of kanban is derived according to designated kanban flow in JIT production system. The optimum number of kanbans would control and regulate material flow in manufacturing, thus JIT is achieved. As a result, product lead time and inventory stock level are improved. The conclusion is that an appropriate determination numbers of kanban could lead to optimizing manufacturing capability.

Design and manufacture of aircraft requires deep multi-disciplinary understanding of system behaviour. The intention of the designer can get lost due to the many changes occurring to the product and the inability of the methods and tools used to capture it. Systems engineering and optimisation tools underpin industrial approaches to design, but are not without issue. The challenge is to find a route from concept to manufacture which enables designers to maintain their original intent. The novelty in this work is that the parameterisation used to build the CAD model reflects the manufacturing capability, ensuring design intent is maintained from concept to manufacture.

With the continued scaling to emerging technology nodes, modern circuit designs in nanometer era introduce many strict or even unprecedented design constraints and challenges. On one hand, conventional 193i wavelength lithography has pushed to its resolution limit, and the gap between manufacturing capability and design expectation becomes more critical. On the other hand, new metal layer (e.g. middle-of-line layers) as well as new device layer rules become more complex and restricted. We argue that detailed placement is the appropriate stage to consider the emerging manufacturing and design rule constraints. In this paper, we discuss sophisticated design constraints and challenges in emerging technology nodes, and survey the state-of-the-art detailed placement solutions and methodologies to overcome these challenges.

Combinating the process theory and system theory organically, this paper views enterprise’s technological innovation as a continuously improved system process. It builds a system model for the evaluation of technological innovation capability based on the view of process. Considering the features of cement industry, the technological innovation capabilities in cement industry are divided into innovation management capability, innovation input capability, research & development capability, manufacturing capability, marketing promotion capability and innovation output capability. And we propose a comprehensive and complete evaluation index system of cement industry’s technological innovation capability and provide a ruler for the evaluation of cement industry’s technological innovation capability

This paper illustrates a new manufacturing capability which is driven by design and sustainability. Several objectified design cases by using or waiting the new insertion of manufacturing technologies have been discussed. The cases of the leading products or systems in the world include Kazuo Kawasaki eyeglasses, Mac ibook, Boeing 787-8, integrated circuit, plasmafication, and information based medicine. The research also forecasts the value increased the activities of design centered manufacturing. After defining the scope of sustainability, an analysis of a strategy of a sustainable organization is also included. The research results predict that the competitive advantages of new products come not only from the advanced manufacturing technologies but also from a sustainable design centered manufacturing approach.

As the transferring, application and integration of knowledge can highly improve organizational dynamic manufacturing capability, this paper takes an empirical study to explore the relationships among knowledge transfer, flexible manufacturing capability and manufacturing performance based on questionnaires from 113 advanced manufacturing firms in Pearl River Delta of China by the used of structural equation model method.

Cloud manufacturing (CMfg) is a new service-oriented, highly efficient, lowly consumption knowledge based, and intelligent networked manufacturing model. It aims to achieve on-demand use, dynamic collaborative work, and circulation of manufacturing resources and manufacturing capability(MC). In order to achieve the above goal proposed, how to realize the formal description of MC is the key point in CMfg. This paper emphasizes the multi-dimensional information model of MC based on knowledge. According to the requirement and characteristics of manufacturing, the concept and connotation of MC were presented firstly in this paper, then the multi-dimension information model for MC was proposed based on knowledge, it contains three dimensions, such as elements dimension, relationship dimension, evaluation dimension.

The use of readiness levels to describe system maturity has become an increasingly recognizable element of the development of technologies for future products in the aerospace and defence sectors. Technology readiness levels (TRLs), as originally defined by NASA, are now widely used by global organizations to articulate the relative maturity of key generic technologies. The implementation of radically new manufacturing capability can also benefit from such an approach. However, the direct use of TRLs in a manufacturing environment is problematic on the basis that it is hard to interpret them precisely, and because the effectiveness of the technology itself is only one of a number of success factors associated with a successful implementation. For several years now the aerospace industry has recognized the need for a manufacturing specific readiness interpretation to enable the delivery of new capabilities in a defined sequence of events. This paper describes an approach used within a single aerospace organization, Rolls-Royce plc. The framework has been identified as a good practice by the UK Aerospace Design and Manufacturing National Technical Committee.

Cloud manufacturing (CMfg) is a new service-oriented, highly efficient, lowly consumption knowledge based, and intelligent networked manufacturing model. It aims to provide theoretical and technical supports for the transformation from production-oriented manufacturing to service-oriented manufacturing [1]. In order to further analyze the connotation and characteristics of CMfg, multi-view models for CMfg are investigated based on [1] and [2] in this paper. The first is the network view model, which describes four kinds of network involved in the running process of CMfg system; the second is the function view model, which describes the functional subsystems of CMfg; the third is the running view model, which represents the running process after a requirement is submitted to CMfg system.

This study aims to identify and understand the key factors that need to be considered when deciding production allocation in the pharmaceutical industry as well as to develop a managerial framework to guide the location decision in the same industry. A total of ten case studies have been performed in an international pharmaceutical company based in Singapore over an 8-month period. The case studies revealed that production allocation decisions are largely driven by the desire to maximize benefits through the exploitation as well as the development of manufacturing capabilities at both the plant and network level. The study also identified and detailed the influence of legislation requirements, market, and product specifications on these decisions. It was observed that the degree of influence varies from case to case, resulting in two categories of decision criteria: qualifying (i.e. must meet) and ranking (differentiation) criteria. A framework is created to aid managers to decide the best location, maximizing the overall manufacturing network as well as the single plant capabilities.

Lonza (SWX: LONN) was founded in 1897 in Valais, Switzerland, on the banks of the Lonza River. With a long history of chemical manufacturing and custom services to the pharmaceutical and chemical industries, its expansion into the biotechnology sector was a response to the growing demand for high-quality reagents and custom manufacturing capabilities to support life science research. The acquisition of the Bioproducts and Biopharmaceuticals Companies of Cambrex in 2007 solidified Lonza’s presence in the life science market and expanded a world-class manufacturing capability to support the commercialization needs of the nascent regenerative medicine market.

In the mold parts industry, customers typically place orders for order-made parts with some changes to the design specifications of ready-made parts within the extent of the manufacturing capability of the supplier. Being customized for ready-made parts, existing e-Catalog systems cannot support this trade pattern. To solve this problem, an engineered-to-order (ETO) approach is proposed here, enabling the trade of order-made parts in an e-Catalog system by utilizing the design and manufacturing knowledge of part suppliers. After addressing technological challenges and their solutions, we describe application results of the ETO approach to two types of mold parts — ejector pins and mold bases.

Image Sticking is one of critical issue in TFT-LCD, since it affects product quality and also shows technical and manufacturing capability of LCD factory. In this paper, we use 2D-CCD and automatic machine to measure image sticking phenomenon. The different Q-time panels are measured to compare the image sticking level. A simple model is also proposed to evaluate the panel quality in this thesis. we can get the image sticking quantity by this kind measurement and realized the effect of different Q-time.

Aiming at the difficulty of clearly defining relationship between manufacturing capacity(MC) and information due to high volume of information, this paper presents definitions of MC and production processing capacity , the sub manufacturing capability, by combining existing research. Further, MC is decomposed and represented by adopting set theory, especially production processing capacity and relative information, in details. Based on this, a relation model between MC and information is established. The model could provide support for MC calculation and a ssessment. Last but not least, some manufacturing sub-capacity is calculated using manufacturing information of model, which effectively supports quantitative analysis of any MC and sub-capacity.

Chapter 12 summarizes the general situations of the UHV DC power transmission projects put into operation and under construction in China and their main equipment parameters. It briefly outlines the UHV engineering innovation, experimental base and simulation center construction, system commissioning, standard formulation, domestic equipment manufacturing capability, and large facility transportation.

Pfizer API manufacturing consists of 16 sites around the world and represents a large manufacturing capability. This network has expanded in recent years through mergers. This community of manufacturing sites represents a wide range of practical knowledge for conducting safe API (active pharmaceutical ingredient) manufacturing. Taking advantage of this wealth of experience, Pfizer manufacturing operations performed a global survey of hydrogenation current practices. From the information gathered, a “Hydrogen and Catalyst Handling Good Practice” guide was developed that covered the facility design and operational practices. The team that developed the “Good Practice” guide is also involved in overseeing the implementation of the recommended practices at all manufacturing sites conducting hydrogenations. © 2005 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Process Saf Prog, 2005

One of the important factors resulting in the high-speed machinery performance is its machine tool dynamic characteristic. It will directly influence the final manufacturing capability of the machinery and it is also the important criterion of evaluating machinery performances. Especially, the dynamic characteristic of spindle assembly has large effect on manufacturing capability of machinery. So it is very important both analyzing dynamic-static characteristic of the spindle assembly and machine tool of high-speed machinery and studying the effect to machinery function. Using Finite Element Analysis software did a Finite Element Analysis of spindle assembly of the high-speed machine tool, and some experiments are done to validate the result the Finite Element Analysis results.

The couplers and wavelength division multiplexers have been widely used in high-speed, high-volume image data transmission systems to provide sufficient bandwidth and smaller channel spacing for greater throughput. In this paper, we develop a method for measuring the manufacturing capability of a process making couplers and wavelength division multiplexers. The proposed method measures the process capability of reproducing product items meeting the manufacturing specifications where multiple product quality characteristics are involved, including the polarization dependent loss, and the insertion loss, which are critical in fiber-optic transmission quality.

On October 29, 2014, the Specific Manufacturing Capability (SMC) facility located at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) conducted its annual evaluated emergency drill. As a result, this after action report is required by DOE O 151.1C, “Comprehensive Emergency Management System.” The SMC facility, in coordination with other onsite organizations, and the Department of Energy Idaho Operations Office (DOE ID) conducted an annual facility emergency drill to demonstrate the ability to implement the requirements of DOE O 151.1C, “Comprehensive Emergency Management System.” The INL contractor, Battelle Energy Alliance, LLC (BEA) in coordination with other onsite organizations, conducted operations and demonstrated proper response measures to mitigate an event and protect the health and safety of onsite personnel, the environment, and property. Report data was collected from multiple sources, including documentation generated during drill response, critiques conducted immediately after terminating the drill, and evaluation critiques.

Superior manufacturing capability provides long lasting competitive benefits to a company in the market. It is thus imperative to have an instrument to assess the manufacturing capability of companies. However, empirically tested and reliable tools for the purpose of evaluation of manufacturing capability along different decision areas are scarcely available in the literature. This paper develops questionnaires based on generally accepted principle of instrument design to assess the manufacturing capabilities along different decision areas for four categorization schemes of manufacturing decision areas reported in the literature. The reliability and validity of all four instruments are assessed through responses from managers of 32 manufacturing units and are found to be satisfactory for most of the factors. The criterion validity is found to be fairly good for all the four instruments.

The precision engineering sector lies at the heart of the UK’s manufacturing capability. Successful precision engineering businesses are required to master process innovation and supply chain solutions. Companies operating in this sector support, amongst others, economy-driving industries such as aerospace, defence, motorsport, nuclear, off-highway equipment, oil and gas and renewable energy. The main companies that constitute this sector are SMEs (or small and medium-sized enterprises). In these types of business environment, the implementation of innovative, collaborative solutions has become a necessary strategy for enhancing SME decision-making processes as well as for improving overall business competitiveness. The aim of the research described in this paper is to present how, by implementing a web and onlinebased collaborative tool, precision engineering SME’s can benefit, and are able to enhance their performance, by improving their production planning processes collaboratively. The research is presented with the help of a description of case study undertaken in a precision engineering SME.

Purpose: A critical issue has been absent from the conversation on supply chain coordination: how supply chain coordination influence the enterprise performance. This research proposes a new vision to research the performance mechanism of supply chain coordination capability as a dynamic capability. Manufacturing capabilities are existed as mediating role. Design/methodology/approach: Data from International Manufacturing Strategy Survey in 2009 is used to verify the mediating model by hierarchical regression analysis. Findings: The results show that supply chain coordination impacts the enterprise performance positively and indirect impacts the enterprise performance through quality, cost, flexibility. Research implications: This study presents an overview of the impact of supply chain coordination and manufacturing capabilities on enterprise performance, giving grasp for further research of the relationships that exist between them. Originality/value: This finding integrates insights from previous research in dynamic capability framework and supply chain management into a generalization and extension of the performance mechanism in manufacturing enterprises.

Unexpected disturbance to the manufacturing capability and production schedule of a production system may always lead to the stoppage of the production line and delay to fulfill the production order. In order to cope with these disturbances, traditional production planning and control approaches focused on the “localized” problem and only provided limited adjustment of the system. A Dynamic Integrated Process planning and Scheduling system (DIPS) is developed that provides a complete systematic examination to the disturbances. DIPS contains a two-stage, genetic-algorithm-based control mechanism that can dynamically generate both the optimal process plan and production schedule. Statistical optimization technique is adopted to evaluate the performance of DIPS. Simulation results show that DIPS significantly improves the total production cost under all problem domains.

Many indices for evaluating gage capability have been developed and applied, but these methods are ambiguous to users. By considering both manufacturing capability and gage capability, a mathematical model for the measurement loss cost was developed for dinstinct off-line gage evaluation; however, some measurement loss cost still exists after the gage capability study. On-line usage of a gage is improved by reducing the remaining on-line measurement loss cost with the concept of guard limits. Feasible guard limits can be determined by considering the measurement loss cost resulting from both type I and type II errors. Instead of applying a series of gages to confirm the measurement on every part, unreliable measurement can be screened out in advance by the guard limits. Only the necessary precise inspection needs to be further performed. Rather than applying a better gage with higher cost, the concept of guard limits can also be applied to produce a better or similar effect when adopting a gage that is marginal for its applications. The unsatisfactory on-line measurement loss cost can be further reduced until it is acceptable.

Since 1992, Ceramic Fuel Cells (CFCL) has grown to what is now the largest focussed program globally for development of planar ceramic (solid oxide) fuel cell, SOFC, technology. A significant intellectual property position in know-how and patents has been developed, with over 80 people involved in the venture. Over $A60 million in funding for the activities of the company has been raised from private companies, government-owned corporations and government business-support programs, including from energy — particularly electricity — industry shareholders that can facilitate access to local markets for our products. CFCL has established state-of-the-art facilities for planar SOFC R&D, with their expansion and scaling-up to pilot manufacturing capability underway. We expect to achieve commercial introduction of our market-entry products in 2002, with prototype systems expected to be available from early 2001.

The major trends in PV technologies, applications and markets show promise for the future of renewable energy. The 30% growth projected for PV shipments in 1998 appears sustainable if current trends in new markets and applications reinforce and accelerate improvements in PV costs and performance. Through established partnerships and programs, R&D continues to focus on improving efficiency of solar energy systems, increasing manufacturing capability, reducing solar energy systems costs, enhancing reliability and flexibility of PV products, and producing innovations in thin-films and other emerging PV technologies. Continued research and market development in the US and other nations will advance quality and performance standards, and reduce the overall price of PV systems, laying the foundation for large-scale market expansion worldwide.

Kistler Aerospace Corporation is developing the world's first privately funded, fully reusable aerospace vehicle, the K-1. This vehicle represents a new implementation of proven technologies, designed by an elite, experienced team of engineers and managers and implemented by the best manufacturing capability in the United States. Kistler Aerospace expects to begin commercial operations of the K-1 in 2000. Market researchers predict that during the next decade telecommunications satellite ventures will require launch services for over 1,400 payloads to LEO. This prediction greatly exceeds the current available industry capacity. The K-1 was designed primarily to meet this anticipated growth in demand. Significant progress has been made in constructing the K-1 vehicle fleet. The fully reusable K-1 vehicle is designed to lower the cost of access to space, increase launch reliability, and reduce lead-time-to-launch requirements. The K-1 will offer significant cost benefits and aircraft type reliability based on a proven flight record.

An important element in the design and management of cellular manufacturing systems is the ability to determine capabilities. This paper describes a generic methodology of Capability Analysis (CA) which can be used for the integrated assessment of various capability factors. The main aspect of CA is the ability to compare different factors alongside one-another. This is done by determining priority confidence scores (PCS values) which are capability scores (measures of performance) represented as proportions of required capability scores adjusted to take into account improvement potential, factor importance and financial considerations. CA is used to form a recovery schedule of targets for improvement ranked in order of priority and is produced by ranking the PCS values for each capability level (cell, product, part, workstation and operation). Targets at a higher level can be broken down into more detailed targets at a lower level using the concept of transparency. The workings of CA are demonstrated usi...

The transfer of lead molecules from discovery into process development at a relatively fast pace requires a process of candidate selection that assesses if a candidate is not only active and safe but also “manufacturable.” Formulation and process stability of potential candidates help narrow down lead candidates at an early stage, prior to large-scale manufacturing, by a process of rank-ordering properties generated from process and long-term stability studies. Such an assessment of the molecules’ manufacturability is especially useful when binding affinity and bioactivity are comparable among the various candidates under question. This chapter reviews several case studies that explore the utility of early-stage molecule or manufacturability assessments in moving forward therapeutic candidate/s by finely balancing potency and pharmacokinetics with the manufacturing capability of the candidate/s under question.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship of strategic manufacturing effectiveness utilizing the four-stage model of Hayes and Wheelwright (H-W) with overall performance of manufacturing, market alignment and production competence (PC). In addition, it attempts to understand the relationship of strategic manufacturing effectiveness with manufacturing capability development modes, strategic groups of companies and the nature of improvement programs being employed. Design/methodology/approach Structured questionnaire was used to capture data from manufacturing organizations. Responses from managers of 47 Indian manufacturing companies were used to test the seven propositions that were developed to examine the paradigms of manufacturing competence. Findings The analysis revealed that the strategic manufacturing effectiveness of manufacturing companies based on H-W’s four-stage model has significant positive correlation with the overall performance of manufacturing and PC of the company. Further, the analysis substantiated the relationship of strategic manufacturing effectiveness with capability development process and the nature of improvement programs. Research limitations/implications This exploratory study is based on a small sample of manufacturing companies with diversity and hence it may not be representative of all industry sectors. Second, it has used several scales for measuring the relevant constructs which themselves are not proven, hence, the findings should be taken with caution. Originality/value This is an initial research focussing on the relationships among different elements of manufacturing competence such as manufacturing capabilities, PC, manufacturing capability development mode and overall performance of manufacturing with strategic manufacturing effectiveness using H-W model. H-W model was primarily proposed as an audit tool for managers, was hitherto not adequately studied in relation to other paradigms of manufacturing competence.

In recent years, hybrid manufacturing technologies that combine different processes (e.g. additive and subtractive processes) together have gained significant attention. This is due to their ability to capitalise on the advantages of each individual process, whilst minimising their disadvantages. However, there are limited process planning methods that are able to effectively utilise manufacturing resources for hybrid processes. In this paper, a hybrid process entitled iAtractive, combining additive, subtractive and inspection processes, along with part specific process planning is proposed, aiming to provide the designer with greater manufacturing capability and flexibility. This novel process planning approach enables a plastic part to be manufactured in a proper way in terms of process capabilities, production time and material consumption. This approach can be also adopted to remanufacture and reincarnate exiting parts or legacy products into other products. In this paper, the principle and framework of this process planning approach is presented and a test part was manufactured to validate this innovative approach.

The importance of presbyopia is that it affects 100% of people at their late adulthood and it starts to show up at 40s. The market for high quality progressive lenses is very large. There is a growing need for freeform progressive lenses with a small interval of degree to provide a clear and comfortable intermediate vision for presbyopic patients. Due to the lack of adequate design and manufacturing capability, most of the freeform progressive lenses are designed and imported from overseas at a high price and with long delivery time. This paper presents an integrated approach for supporting design, fabrication and measurement of freeform progressive lenses. A prototype of an integrated system has been developed based on key technologies including an advanced optics design method, computer controlled ultra-precision polishing (CCUP), precision injection moulding, as well as a new freeform surface characterization method. A prototype system has been built and experimental verified successfully through a series of experiments. Successful development of the system will provide an important means for optometry research of freeform progressive lenses.

Automation of polymer composite manufacturing would allow better control of part quality and consistency, reduce cost, and improve quality of work environment. In this article, automation of the different stages of the manufacturing process, fully automated procedures, and machining of the composites is discussed. The cost and manufacturing capability limitations are the two main obstacles, which limit use of composite parts in consumer products. Expansion of automated composite manufacturing facilities would eliminate these obstacles, allowing large-scale production of high quality products. Keywords: composite; automation; machining

At the 2010 meeting of the Defense and Security Symposia Raytheon reported on the status of their efforts to establish a high rate uncooled detector manufacturing capability. At that time we had just finished the transition of the 640 × 480, 25 μm product to our 200 mm wafer fab line at Freescale semiconductor and established an automated packaging and test capability. Over the past year we have continued to build on that foundation. In this paper we will report on this year's progress in completing the transition of our 25 μm product line to Freescale semiconductor. Included will be the 320 × 240 product transition and a summary of SPC and defectivity data from one year's production. Looking beyond 25 μm, we are well along in our transition of the 17 μm product line to Freescale, with test results being available for the 640 × 480. Additionally, we will report on progress / status of the Tailwind program, which is developing a 2048 × 1536, 17 μm uncooled sensor. Data to be reported includes the establishment of subfield stitching at a high rate commercial fab and the development of the detector package and electronics. With 17 μm transitioned to production, Raytheon has started work on the HD LWIR program, which is laying the foundation for the next generation of uncooled detectors by further shrinking the pixel to

During the last eighteen months, Abound Solar (formerly AVA Solar) has enjoyed significant success under the SAI program. During this time, a fully automated manufacturing line has been developed, fabricated and commissioned in Longmont, Colorado. The facility is fully integrated, converting glass and semiconductor materials into complete modules beneath its roof. At capacity, a glass panel will enter the factory every 10 seconds and emerge as a completed module two hours later. This facility is currently undergoing trials in preparation for large volume production of 120 x 60 cm thin film CdTe modules. Preceding the development of the large volume manufacturing capability, Abound Solar demonstrated long duration processing with excellent materials utilization for the manufacture of high efficiency 42 cm square modules. Abound Solar prototype modules have been measured with over 9% aperture area efficiency by NREL. Abound Solar demonstrated the ability to produce modules at industry leading low costs to NREL representatives. Costing models show manufacturing costs below $1/Watt and capital equipment costs below $1.50 per watt of annual manufacturing capacity. Under this SAI program, Abound Solar supported a significant research and development program at Colorado State University. The CSU team continues to make progress on device and materials analysis. Modeling for increased device performance and the effects of processing conditions on properties of CdTe PV were investigated.