2017 Portland International Conference on Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), 2017
Companies are constantly being put under pressure to obtain the maximum return on their investmen... more Companies are constantly being put under pressure to obtain the maximum return on their investments, including the maximum return on their investment in Enterprise Resource Planning system (ERP) systems. Organisations are becoming increasingly aware that information is a valuable company asset, and applied correctly, it can be used as a competitive advantage. The way that information is managed and applied within an organisation is becoming increasingly important. This became even more evident since the organisation moved from a national company to an international company competing for market share internationally. The methodology adopted in the research is an investigation using a case study analysis to highlight some of the issues affecting the maintenance management systems applied in the organization and includes a review of secondary data including existing literature and documents, relevant research reports and journal articles and unstructured interviews with personnel.
A call centre is of strategic importance to an organisation and therefore needs to be developed w... more A call centre is of strategic importance to an organisation and therefore needs to be developed with ergonomics in mind. Call centre managers’ need to be trained in the field of ergonomics, so that an ergonomic “changeover” takes place to improve the workplace. Call centre agents are the lifeblood of the call center, and efficient managers need to do everything in their power to maintain a competitive workforce. The creation of worker friendly environment boosts the morale of the workforce, thereby reducing turnover and attracting professional agents. The issue of labour efficiency and productivity need to be addressed with the application of ergonomic principles which contribute process improvement. The result would be a reduction in absenteeism and worker's compensation claims as it is approximately ten million per year (www.statsa.org.za). Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) such as carpel tunnel syndrome arise from poor ergonomic practices. Thus, the focus of this article is to...
The clothing industry globally has undergone rapid change within the past few decades. The produc... more The clothing industry globally has undergone rapid change within the past few decades. The production of fashion has evolved into a multi faceted industry that is not only concerned with the manufacture of clothing but also the systems of production, distribution, diffusion, reception, adoption and consumption which drive the fashion industry. Within the last 10 years there has been a notable drop in applications for this programme even though there is a high employability rate with demand exceeding supply. A number of reasons for this trend have been identified. The South African Clothing and Textile Workers Union (Sactwu) estimates 13400 jobs were lost in the sector in the first 11 months of 2009. Sactwu researcher Etienne Vlok says that in the mid-2000s, the industry was losing about 20000 jobs a year, but in the past three years this has dropped to between 12000 to 14000 jobs a year (Mathews, 2010). This trend is also evident in both the United States of America as well as the U...
Dramatic changes are taking place within the world of work, as organisations seek to keep pace wi... more Dramatic changes are taking place within the world of work, as organisations seek to keep pace with an evergrowing rate of change driven by technological advances and changes in patterns of consumer demand. The drive to provide products or services, which meet or exceed customer expectations consistently and on-time must rely on quality as the basis of its efficacy. Customers perceive that the service quality within the Operations Department of the organisation is poor. Quality is the basis for the whole of modern manufacturing and service delivery processes; and research and practice have shown the importance of individual employees taking ownership over the quality of their work. The importance of employee identification with the organisation’s goals and values has gained increasing recognition, as organisations look for much more from their employees today than previously. Organisations are simultaneously restructuring their organisation structures, and empowering their staff by ...
2013 Proceedings of Picmet 13 Technology Management in the It Driven Services, 2013
The clothing industry globally has undergone rapid change within the past few decades. The produc... more The clothing industry globally has undergone rapid change within the past few decades. The production of fashion has evolved into a multi faceted industry that is not only concerned with the manufacture of clothing but also the systems of production, distribution, diffusion, reception, adoption and consumption which drive the fashion industry. The South African Clothing and Textile Workers Union (Sactwu) estimates 13400 jobs were lost in the sector in the first 11 months of 2009. SACTWU researcher Etienne Vlok says that in the mid-2000s, the industry was losing about 20000 jobs a year, but in the past three years' job losses has dropped to between 12000 to 14000 jobs a year. Changes in the global economy have enabled the requirement for flexibility, adaptability and innovation that have led to new education and training demands in order to remain competitive. The most significant demand is the proposed need for a highly skilled labour force that has the ability to employ new knowledge, technologies, business improvement methodologies and ultimately add value to existing goods and services. Essentially, these skills and capabilities are developed through a broad general higher education system. Based on research undertaken as part of doctoral studies at the University of Johannesburg, the paper highlights current experiences in the South African clothing industry and academia, and proposes the alignment of industry and academia in order to improve the skills of the workforce.
2012 IEEE International Conference on Industrial Engineering and Engineering Management, 2012
The most fundamental definition of a quality product is one that meets the expectations of the cu... more The most fundamental definition of a quality product is one that meets the expectations of the customer. In order to use quality as a strategic advantage, quality dimensions relevant within the specific industry needs to be specified. The company at which this case study was conducted faced various problems with regards to product quality and customer satisfaction. The objective of this research was to determine the relevant quality dimensions within the automotive seat cover industry and to evaluate these quality dimensions during a case study at a local seat cover supplier. The question that was raised was: “What are the factors or quality dimensions that must be considered when addressing issues related to product quality and customer satisfaction on an automotive seat cover production line?”.
2017 Portland International Conference on Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), 2017
Companies are constantly being put under pressure to obtain the maximum return on their investmen... more Companies are constantly being put under pressure to obtain the maximum return on their investments, including the maximum return on their investment in Enterprise Resource Planning system (ERP) systems. Organisations are becoming increasingly aware that information is a valuable company asset, and applied correctly, it can be used as a competitive advantage. The way that information is managed and applied within an organisation is becoming increasingly important. This became even more evident since the organisation moved from a national company to an international company competing for market share internationally. The methodology adopted in the research is an investigation using a case study analysis to highlight some of the issues affecting the maintenance management systems applied in the organization and includes a review of secondary data including existing literature and documents, relevant research reports and journal articles and unstructured interviews with personnel.
A call centre is of strategic importance to an organisation and therefore needs to be developed w... more A call centre is of strategic importance to an organisation and therefore needs to be developed with ergonomics in mind. Call centre managers’ need to be trained in the field of ergonomics, so that an ergonomic “changeover” takes place to improve the workplace. Call centre agents are the lifeblood of the call center, and efficient managers need to do everything in their power to maintain a competitive workforce. The creation of worker friendly environment boosts the morale of the workforce, thereby reducing turnover and attracting professional agents. The issue of labour efficiency and productivity need to be addressed with the application of ergonomic principles which contribute process improvement. The result would be a reduction in absenteeism and worker's compensation claims as it is approximately ten million per year (www.statsa.org.za). Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) such as carpel tunnel syndrome arise from poor ergonomic practices. Thus, the focus of this article is to...
The clothing industry globally has undergone rapid change within the past few decades. The produc... more The clothing industry globally has undergone rapid change within the past few decades. The production of fashion has evolved into a multi faceted industry that is not only concerned with the manufacture of clothing but also the systems of production, distribution, diffusion, reception, adoption and consumption which drive the fashion industry. Within the last 10 years there has been a notable drop in applications for this programme even though there is a high employability rate with demand exceeding supply. A number of reasons for this trend have been identified. The South African Clothing and Textile Workers Union (Sactwu) estimates 13400 jobs were lost in the sector in the first 11 months of 2009. Sactwu researcher Etienne Vlok says that in the mid-2000s, the industry was losing about 20000 jobs a year, but in the past three years this has dropped to between 12000 to 14000 jobs a year (Mathews, 2010). This trend is also evident in both the United States of America as well as the U...
Dramatic changes are taking place within the world of work, as organisations seek to keep pace wi... more Dramatic changes are taking place within the world of work, as organisations seek to keep pace with an evergrowing rate of change driven by technological advances and changes in patterns of consumer demand. The drive to provide products or services, which meet or exceed customer expectations consistently and on-time must rely on quality as the basis of its efficacy. Customers perceive that the service quality within the Operations Department of the organisation is poor. Quality is the basis for the whole of modern manufacturing and service delivery processes; and research and practice have shown the importance of individual employees taking ownership over the quality of their work. The importance of employee identification with the organisation’s goals and values has gained increasing recognition, as organisations look for much more from their employees today than previously. Organisations are simultaneously restructuring their organisation structures, and empowering their staff by ...
2013 Proceedings of Picmet 13 Technology Management in the It Driven Services, 2013
The clothing industry globally has undergone rapid change within the past few decades. The produc... more The clothing industry globally has undergone rapid change within the past few decades. The production of fashion has evolved into a multi faceted industry that is not only concerned with the manufacture of clothing but also the systems of production, distribution, diffusion, reception, adoption and consumption which drive the fashion industry. The South African Clothing and Textile Workers Union (Sactwu) estimates 13400 jobs were lost in the sector in the first 11 months of 2009. SACTWU researcher Etienne Vlok says that in the mid-2000s, the industry was losing about 20000 jobs a year, but in the past three years' job losses has dropped to between 12000 to 14000 jobs a year. Changes in the global economy have enabled the requirement for flexibility, adaptability and innovation that have led to new education and training demands in order to remain competitive. The most significant demand is the proposed need for a highly skilled labour force that has the ability to employ new knowledge, technologies, business improvement methodologies and ultimately add value to existing goods and services. Essentially, these skills and capabilities are developed through a broad general higher education system. Based on research undertaken as part of doctoral studies at the University of Johannesburg, the paper highlights current experiences in the South African clothing industry and academia, and proposes the alignment of industry and academia in order to improve the skills of the workforce.
2012 IEEE International Conference on Industrial Engineering and Engineering Management, 2012
The most fundamental definition of a quality product is one that meets the expectations of the cu... more The most fundamental definition of a quality product is one that meets the expectations of the customer. In order to use quality as a strategic advantage, quality dimensions relevant within the specific industry needs to be specified. The company at which this case study was conducted faced various problems with regards to product quality and customer satisfaction. The objective of this research was to determine the relevant quality dimensions within the automotive seat cover industry and to evaluate these quality dimensions during a case study at a local seat cover supplier. The question that was raised was: “What are the factors or quality dimensions that must be considered when addressing issues related to product quality and customer satisfaction on an automotive seat cover production line?”.
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Papers by Kem Ramdass