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The combination of the changes in the US hospital industry and resulting pressures on the workforce with the relative immobility of hospitals has led to the growth of unions in this industry while unions are losing members in most other industries. Drawing on theoretical work that places changing work experience as a major factor in pro-union behaviour, the article examines how the rise of competition among private hospital systems has led hospital managements to adopt ‘lean production’ methods borrowed from manufacturing. The consequent pressures on the workforce have encouraged workers to join unions. These same forces have shaped the content of collective bargaining and divergent styles of unionism. As the transformation of hospitals are a piece of the broader neoliberal era in which they occur, this analysis should be applicable to certain other industries as well. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This essay assesses the feminist potential of workplace flexibility when it emerged as an object of knowledge in 1980s US public culture. The keyword flexibility, which crossed economic discourses about topics ranging from production to remuneration to consumption, was constructed as coextensive with feminism at this time. The essay begins by analyzing popular knowledge concerning labor flexibility created in scholarship and mainstream news. Next, the paper focuses on the contemporaneous articulation of flexibility to feminism. Since 1980, news, scholarship, and film argued that flexibility might provide a feminist antidote for late twentieth-century capitalism's harsh draining of labor from bodies. Particularly, flexible working conditions became publicized as a way that mothers could be better accommodated in the workplace. Yet as the century waned, flexibility failed to uproot standard time-intensive models of work and excluded some women from job opportunities and job security. When flexibility appeared to fail, pundits blamed feminism for wage-earning women's difficulty balancing family and workplace. This analysis shows that the various contradictory practices understood as flexibility rendered it troublesome as a feminist strategy. The paper concludes with an examination of the contemporary implications of this recent discursive history of flexibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – This paper aims to peruse theories and practices of agile and lean manufacturing systems to determine whether they employ sustainability, complexity and organizational learning. Design/methodology/approach – The critical review of the comparative operational similarities and difference of the two systems was conducted while the new views and issues of emerging vital scenarios were analyzed in detail. Findings – In spite of their differences, the two systems of agile and lean manufacturing can co-exist in one system. The concepts of sustainability, complexity and organizational learning for agile and lean systems highlight outputs of differences in the output of operationalization but there can be substantial alignment in the input of intentions. The two excel at the three areas of consideration. Practical implications – The organizations of today must consider the applicability of designing both agile and lean systems within one organization for the purposes of achieving fast response time, high levels of productivity and better efficiency. Originality/value – The paper defines the relationship between agile and lean systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to analyze international and national research and development (R&D) programs and roadmaps for the manufacturing sector, presenting how agile and lean manufacturing models are addressed in these programs. Design/methodology/approach – In this review, several manufacturing research and development programs and roadmaps – national programs from the USA and Canada, and international programs from the European Union and from one international organization – are reviewed. Findings – The major finding of this review is that the main concerns in agile manufacturing, as highlighted in these programs, are networks, supply chain and product/service customization, and lean manufacturing's inclination towards achieving better cost efficiency. Although the lean manufacturing approach has been considered in many past and present programs, analysis of the most recent programs shows a greater priority is given to the agile manufacturing approach. The path towards sustainable manufacturing is delineated by pro-active attitude and action towards customers. Research limitations/implications – The study analyzes two national R&D programs from the USA, one international program from the European Union, three international roadmaps from the European Union, one business plan from Canada and one international roadmap from the global organization Intelligent Manufacturing Systems. Practical implications – The findings of this paper are intended to help managers, researchers and practitioners from the manufacturing sector to enhance their understanding and define suitable strategy for their organizations' sustainability and identify suitable manufacturing path with respect to agile and lean philosophies. This study could also help academics in defining course curricula for students more coherent with the R&D policies and/or requirements towards sustainable manufacturing with respect to agile and lean philosophies. Originality/value – There are reviews comparing agile and lean manufacturing paradigms, but there are no reviews about how the two manufacturing concepts are addressed in manufacturing R&D programs and roadmaps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to assess the current state of implementation of lean production practices in China as compared to the USA. Moreover, an institutional-theoretic framework is developed that explores the interplay among economic, socio-cultural and regulative forces that may shape the adoption process of lean production practices in China. Design/methodology/approach – The paper draws its conclusions from an analysis of survey data from samples of Chinese and US manufacturing executives. Lean production implementation is measured via a survey instrument, and the data are analyzed via regression analysis. Findings – The results suggest that the degree of implementation of lean production in China is equal to, if not greater than lean production implementation in the USA. While the results are fairly consistent across industries, they vary across different lean production practice bundles. In light of these findings, an institutional theory perspective is adopted to develop further insight into the potential drivers of and barriers to lean production implementation in China. It is argued that, while several economic factors function as enablers for the implementation of these practices, various social processes and cultural traits in China still hinder the full adoption of lean production. Research limitations/implications – Larger-scale empirical studies are required for further hypothesis testing and enhanced validity. In particular, the explicit measurement of institutional forces and the statistical analysis of their effects on lean production adoption are recommended for future research. Originality/value – This is the first study to systematically compare the adoption of lean practices in China and the USA. The analyses and discussions provide a basis for further theory building and hypothesis testing research. In addition, the insights offered in this study may help firms gain a better understanding of the unique opportunities and challenges associated with adoption of lean production in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article attempts to expose the contradictions embedded in lean production by examining the early stages of transition from a Fordist to 'lean' model at the Toledo Jeep Assembly Plant in northwest Ohio. Initial research was conducted during 1999 and 2000 - prior to the opening of the new production facility - and is based on interviews with production workers, UAW representatives, and plant management, in addition to direct observations and content analyses of DaimlerChrysler documents. The effort is seen as part of a larger literature that deals with changing perceptions of, resistance to, and acceptance of new forms of work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are five generally recognized manufacturing systems with Toyota Production System (TPS) being the most recent manufacturing system design. The TPS is functionally and operationally different from any other manufacturing system. The TPS uses less of everything when compared to the common functional job shop manufacturing system. In addition, the implementation of TPS by a manufacturer results in fewer defects; and therefore, an increase in quality. The fundamentals of the TPS are: manufacturing and assembly cells, pull system methodology, 100% good quality, on-time delivery every time, respect for people, and maximum utilization of non-depreciable resources—people and raw materials. The Toyota Production System uses its cellular manufacturing subsystem for increased productivity. The cellular manufacturing subsystem is flexible while designed to sproduce superior quality products, on-time, at the lowest possible cost, and on a continuous basis. This article reports the applied research utilized to convert a U.S. furniture manufacturer into a TPS factory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The failure of Japanese electronics firms to participate fully in the Internet-fueled growth of the global electronics industry during the late 1990s triggered a period of questioning among top executives. This article examines Japanese managerial responses to the organizational model "value chain modularity," which was deployed by the US electronics firms driving the creation of the Internet. While there were partial but significant steps taken in the direction of this new US model--increased specialization, outsourcing of low-end products, and shared factory investments in Japan--wholesale restructuring was resisted. This evidence is consistent with larger patterns of gradual institutional change in Japan. I argue that the result of this process will likely be increased, not diminished, institutional diversity over time. While globalization has accelerated the pace of change by opening new avenues for organizational experimentation and institutional layering, the drag on organizational change exerted by existing institutions slows the process enough to allow institutional and organizational innovations to develop into coherent systems with distinct characteristics. The result, inevitably, will be a uniquely Japanese approach to the challenges posed by globalization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents an examination strategies developed by chemical firms to resolve skill shortages in the United States. The article presents a relevance of high-skilled well-trained labor force on economy. The evolution of the chemical industry has been based on a significant culture of innovation since its emergence during the nineteenth century, where the largest firms have grown as a result of continuous technological advancement. The economic recession experienced by the chemical industry during the last three decades is not independent of the global economic crisis suffered by all industries as a whole. With the steel industry being so capital intensive, firms could maintain only a minimum of investment in their physical plants, thus sacrificing long-term intangible investment, particularly in the areas of training and R & D.