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Definition of a model for continuous evaluation of supplier performance: case study from the automotive battery industry
No full textAs in modern business world purchasing is increasingly perceived as a strategic function, firms are called to further develop their vendor management system (VMS). The extant literature highly testifies this trend, with a plethora of studies conducted on different purchasing processes in different industries. Surprisingly enough, the highly regulated automotive industry seems to have received less attention from scholars. In the last decades, industry standards played a crucial role in assisting automotive companies to achieve high levels of quality, efficiency, and risk mitigation. However, a radical transformation shaped by new trends such as autonomous cars, urban mobility, emerging markets, connectivity, and electrification is currently changing the automotive industry at a fast pace. In this context, the application of well-stablished industry standards poses additional challenges to companies operating in such evolving context.
The goal of this study was to investigate the relevant criteria adopted by manufacturing companies to evaluate the performance of current suppliers in the context of the rapidly growing automotive lithium-ion battery (LIB) industry. This study also unveiled the relative importance of the different performance criteria by examining the weights given to each criterion placed in a linear weighting model. The identified criteria were then used to design a performance evaluation system that could have been adopted by the case company that collaborated in this research.
This study was executed as a case study in collaboration with a case company operating in the fast-paced automotive LIB industry. To gather data, an extensive literature review including the automotive quality management standard IATF 16949:2016 was carried out. In addition, information from selected senior professionals within the case company was retrieved by conducting questionnaire surveys and semi-structured interviews.
The empirical findings of this study unveiled that quality, delivery and service, price/cost, and sustainability are the most relevant metrics for evaluating the performance of active suppliers in the automotive LIB industry. Furthermore, this study confirms the primary importance of quality and price/cost metrics, while it finds that the delivery and service performance of suppliers are less relevant than their performance in safety and sustainability. These findings underpin the well documented increasing importance of corporate social responsibility (CSR) as a key metric in purchasing and supply management (PSM), especially for supplier selection, supplier monitoring, and supplier development. This thesis also provided a framework to be used for the development of vendor ratings, as well as it defined a roadmap for the implementation of a system to evaluate the performance of suppliers. In particular, the developed vendor ratings were defined by applying the linear weighting model and the analytic hierarchy process (AHP).
Even though the defined roadmap could not be implemented within the scope of this study, its definition resulted to be particularly important for the case company, as it highlighted recommended short-term and long-term actions which were presented and discussed with the representatives of the company. Furthermore, the defined roadmap can be beneficial for the case company to meet the stringent requirements of IATF 16949:2016. Overall, the vendor ratings defined in this study offer interesting insights for future deployment and development of the supplier performance measurement
Detection of water system biofilms using fluorescence spectroscopy for contamination monitoring
No full textThe problem of water contamination is a pressing one. Nearly 800 million people around the world do not have basic access to clean drinking water, which results in millions of waterborne infections annually. Current regulations and control methods are proving to be insufficient in water contamination monitoring, largely due to lack of suitable methods and long processing times.
This study explores the concept of fluorescence spectroscopy as a method of real-time water quality control. Pathogens, often existing in biofilm form, exhibit intrinsic fluorescence in the visible region. This has been confirmed by multiple studies, which also show correlation between fluorescence intensity levels and bacterial cell amounts, meaning that increasing fluorescence can indicate increase of contaminants in water. Fluorescence spectroscopy by itself lacks specificity, however when combined with other methods, it can successfully act as a preventative contamination monitoring method.
The outcome of the method analysis is confirmed by a fluorescence measurement performed on a biofilm sample taken from a water pipe in Tampere, Finland. Despite unknown pathogen concentration and biofilm composition, fluorescence is successfully observed and is speculated to result from NADH and pyridoxine, which are common intrinsic fluorophores found in microbes
Monorail-automaatiojärjestelmästä kerätyn tiedon hyödyntäminen Teollisuus 4.0:n näkökulmasta
No full textPuhtaudenhallinnan kriteerit korjausrakentamiseen: Tarkistuslista pölynhallintaan
No full textPuhtaudenhallinta ja pölyntorjunta ovat viime vuosina nousseet ajankohtaiseksi aiheeksi rakennusalalla. Tutkimuksen tavoitteena oli selvittää pölyntorjunnan merkityksellisyys rakennushankkeessa sekä keskeisimmät pölyntorjunnan puutteet nykyisessä toiminnassa rakennusalalla. Tämän lisäksi työhön koottiin keinot tehokkaaseen ja toimivaan pölyntorjuntaan ohjelistamuotona koko rakennushankkeen ajalle.
Työ jakaantuu kolmeen osaan. Ensimmäinen osa käsittelee teoreettista taustaa pölyntorjunnalle ja sen toteuttamiselle kirjallisuuslähteitä käyttäen. Tässä osassa käsitellään pölyn syntymistä sekä toimivasta pölyntorjunnasta saatavia hyötyjä ja huonosta pölyntorjunnasta aiheutuvia haittoja. Tutkimuksen toisessa osassa otettiin selvää pölyntorjunnan keinoista sekä haastatteluiden että kirjallisuuslähteiden avulla. Keinot ryhmiteltiin työmenetelmiin, henkilökohtaisiin suojaimiin ja työmaa-alueen järjestelyihin. Kolmannessa osassa tutkittiin pölyntorjunnan toteutumista haastatteluissa saatujen tietojen perusteella. Haastatteluihin osallistui viiden eri yrityksen edustajia. Haastateltaviin yrityksiin kuului sekä konsultointi- että suunnittelupalveluja tarjoavia yrityksiä.
Tutkimuksessa selvisi, että nykyisessä julkisessa ohjeistuksessa ei ole puutteita vaan ongelma on urakoitsioiden asenteessa pölyntorjuntaa kohtaan. Haastatteluiden perusteella kattava ohjeistus pölyntorjuntaan olisi kuitenkin hyödyllinen. Tällä hetkellä ei ole yhtä ohjeistusta, josta löytyy kaikki tarvittava tieto pölyntorjunnan toimivalle toteuttamiselle koko hankkeen ajaksi vaan ohjeistukset on hajautettu useampaan eri lähteeseen. Myös tavoitteiden kirjaaminen hankkeen asiakirjoihin sekä pölyntorjunnan valvominen on monessa hankkeessa puutteellista.
Tutkimuksen tuloksena valmistui ohjelista, jossa sekä neuvotaan että muistutetaan rakennushankkeeseen ryhtyvää tai osallistuvaa pölyntorjunnan keinoista. Ohjelista toimii tukilistana koko rakennushankkeen ajan niin tilaajan, urakoitsijan kuin konsultinkin näkökulmasta. Ohjelista on ryhmitelty rakennushankkeen eri vaiheiden mukaan, joten sen käyttäminen ja sieltä tiedon löytäminen on helppoa ja nopeaa
Factors Influencing Commercial Acceptance of Solar PV Technology
No full textRenewable energy technologies offer a sustainable solution towards the rising demand for electricity by the human population. In recent decades, environmental issues associated with hydrocarbon-based electricity production have been seriously considered by major countries leading to an acceptive trend towards renewable energy. Increased efficiency of these technologies namely solar and wind along with competitive levelized cost of energy (LCOE) have made these feasible choices for commercialization in several countries.
This thesis gives the reader an overall picture of how much renewable energy is accepted currently before isolating into the Solar PV technology, how its penetration has widened over the years and what specific factors are leading to its positive growth.
Results will focus specifically on explaining the factors that have had the greatest influence on commercial acceptance of Solar PV, narrowing these into the cost, technology and policy categories. In addition, it will be studied how upcoming scientific advancements will lead to further lowering of cost and thus, result in long-term benefits. Battery technology will also be discussed as well as its role in furthering the commercialization of Solar PV Energy Infrastructure
