Nigel S., Chambers S., Johnson R. Operations Management
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Costs and pricing
The standard costing system at the company involves
adding a 150 per cent overhead charge to the direct
labour cost of manufacturing the product, and the pro-
duct would retail for the equivalent of around A35 in
Europe where most retailers will sell this type of product
for about 70–120 per cent more than they buy it from the
manufacturer.
Questions
1 How many staff should the company employ?
2 What type of facilities and technology will the
company need to buy in order to assemble this
product?
3 Design a layout for the assembly operation (to include
the fly press work) including the tasks to be performed
at each part of the system.
4 How would the layout need to be adjusted as demand
for this and similar products builds up?
Part Two Design
204
These problems and applications will help to improve your analysis of operations. You
can find more practice problems as well as worked examples and guided solutions on
MyOMLab at
www.myomlab.com.
A loan application process involves 8 separate tasks. Task A takes 10 minutes and does not require any other of
the tasks to be performed before it can be started. Similarly, Task B can be started without any other task being
completed and takes 8 minutes. Task C takes 16 minutes and cannot be performed until Task A has been done.
Task D cannot be done until both A and B have been performed and takes 8 minutes. Task E requires tasks C
and D to be finished and takes 8 minutes. After task E has been performed, Tasks F and G, taking respectively 5
and 17 minutes, can be performed. Finally (but only after Tasks F and G have been performed), Task H can be
performed and takes 11 minutes. Devise a precedence diagram for this process, and, assuming a required cycle
time of 18 minutes, determine how many people will be required to perform the task, and if they are arranged in
a ‘product’ layout, how the tasks will be allocated to each person. Calculate the balancing loss for this layout.
A simple product has 8 elements (a to h) whose times and immediate predecessors are shown in Table 7.5.
Devise a product layout that will produce products at a rate of at least 6 products an hour. How many people
will be required for this layout, and what will be its balancing loss?
2
1
Problems and applications
Table 7.5 The immediate predecessors table for a simple product
Task Time (mins) Immediate predecessor task
a5 –
b4 a
c3 b
d4 b
e2 c
f6 c
g 3 d, e, f
h4 g
Table 7.4 Standard times for each element of assembly
task in standard minutes (SM)
Element Time in standard
minutes (SM)
Press operations
Assemble poke subassembly 0.12
Fit poke subassembly to frog 0.10
Rivet adjusting lever to frog 0.15
Press adjusting nut screw to frog 0.08
TOTAL PRESS OPERATIONS 0.45
Bench operations
Fit adjusting nut to frog 0.15
Fit frog screw to frog 0.05
Fit knob to base 0.15
Fit handle to base 0.17
Fit frog subassembly to base 0.15
Assemble blade subassembly 0.08
Assemble blade subassembly, clamp
and label to base and adjust 0.20
Make up box and wrap plane, pack
and stock 0.20
TOTAL ASSEMBLY AND PACK TIME 1.60
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The flow of materials through eight departments is shown in Table 7.6. Assuming that the direction of the flow
of materials is not important, construct a relationship chart, a schematic layout and a suggested layout, given
that each department is the same size and the eight departments should be arranged four along each side of
a corridor.
Sketch the layout of your local shop, coffee bar or sports hall reception area. Observe the area and draw
onto your sketch the movements of people through the area over a sufficient period of time to get over
20 observations. Assess the flow in terms of volume, variety and type of layout.
Revisit the opening short case in this chapter that examines some of the principles behind supermarket layout.
Then visit a supermarket and observe people’s behaviour. You may wish to try and observe which areas they
move slowly past and which areas they seem to move past without paying attention to the products. (You
may have to exercise some discretion when doing this; people generally don’t like to be stalked round the
supermarket too obviously.) Try and verify, as far as you can, some of the principles that were outlined in the
opening short case. If you were to redesign the supermarket what would you recommend?
5
4
3
Table 7.6 Flow of materials
D1 D2 D3 D4 D5 D6 D7 D8
D1 \30
D2 10 \ 15 20
D3 5\122 15
D4 6 \ 10 20
D5 8\81012
D6 32\30
D7 313\2
D8 10 6 15 \
Chapter 7 Layout and flow
205
This is a relatively technical chapter and, as you would expect,
most books on the subject are technical. Here are a few of the
more accessible.
Karlsson, C. (1996) Radically new production systems,
International Journal of Operations and Production Manage-
ment, vol. 16, no. 11. An interesting paper because it traces
the development of Volvo’s factory layouts over the years.
Meyers, F.E. and Stephens, M.P. (2000) Manufacturing
Facilities Design and Material Handling, Prentice-Hall,
Upper Saddle River, NJ. Exactly what it says, thorough.
Meller, R.D. and Kai-Yin Gau (1996) The facility layout
problem: recent and emerging trends and perspectives,
Journal of Manufacturing Systems, vol. 15, issue 5, 351–66.
A review of the literature in the area.
Selected further reading
www.bpmi.org Site of the Business Process Management
Initiative. Some good resources including papers and articles.
www.bptrends.com News site for trends in business process
management generally. Some interesting articles.
www.iienet.org The American Institute of Industrial Engineers
site. They are an important professional body for process
design and related topics.
www.waria.com A Workflow and Reengineering Association
web site. Some useful topics.
www.strategosinc.com/plant_layout_elements Some useful
briefings, mainly in a manufacturing context.
www.opsman.org Lots of useful stuff.
Useful web sites
Now that you have finished reading this chapter, why not visit MyOMLab at
www.myomlab.com where you’ll find more learning resources to help you
make the most of your studies and get a better grade?
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Introduction
Advances in process technology have radically changed many
operations over the last two or three decades. And all indications
are that the pace of technological development is not slowing
down. Few operations have been unaffected by this because all
operations use some kind of process technology, whether it is
a simple Internet link or the most complex and sophisticated of
automated factories. But whatever the technology, all operations
managers need to understand what emerging technologies
can do, in broad terms how they do it, what advantages the
technology can give and what constraints it might impose
on the operation. Figure 8.1 shows where the issues covered
in this chapter relate to the overall model of operations
management activities.
Chapter 8
Process technology
Key questions
➤ What is process technology?
➤ How does one gain an
understanding of process
technologies?
➤ How are process technologies
evaluated?
➤ How are process technologies
implemented?
Figure 8.1 This chapter examines process technology
Check and improve your understanding of this chapter using self assessment
questions and a personalised study plan, audio and video downloads, and an
eBook – all at www.myomlab.com.
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Modern aircraft fly on automatic pilot for most of their
time, certainly more than most passengers realize.
‘Most people are blissfully unaware that when an aircraft
lands in mist or fog, it is a computer that is landing it’,
says Paul Jackson of Jane’s All the World’s Aircraft.
‘It is the only sensible thing to do’, agrees Ken Higgins
of Boeing, ‘When autopilots can do something better than
a human pilot, we obviously use auto pilots.’ Generally
this means using autopilots to do two jobs. First, they
can take control of the plane during the long and (for the
pilot) monotonous part of the flight between take-off and
landing. Automatic pilots are not prone to the tedium or
weariness which can affect humans and which can cause
pilot error. The second job is to make landings, especially
when visibility is poor because of fog or light conditions.
The autopilot communicates with automatic equipment
on the ground which allows the aircraft to be landed, if
necessary, under conditions of zero visibility. In fact,
automatic landings when visibility is poor are safer than
when the pilot is in control. Even in the unlikely event of
one of an aircraft’s two engines failing an autopilot can
land the plane safely. This means that on some flights,
the autopilot is switched on within seconds of the aircraft
wheels leaving the ground and then remains in charge
throughout the flight and the landing. One of the few
reasons not to use the autopilot is if the pilot is training
or needs to log up the required number of landings to
keep licensed.
As yet, commercial flights do not take-off
automatically, mainly because it would require airports
and airlines to invest in extra guidance equipment
which would be expensive to develop and install. Also
take-off is technically more complex than landing.
More things could go wrong and some situations
(for example, an engine failure during take-off) require
split-second decision-making from the pilot. Industry
analysts agree that it would be technically feasible
to develop automatic take-off technology that met
required safety standards but it could be prohibitively
expensive.
Yet some in the airline industry believe that technology
could be developed to the point where commercial flights
can do without a pilot on the aircraft entirely. This is not
as far-fetched as it seems. In April 2001 the Northrop
Grumman Global Hawk, an ‘unmanned aerial vehicle’
(UAV), completed the first entirely unmanned flight across
the Pacific when it took off from California and landed
nearly twenty-four hours later in South Australia. The
Global Hawk made the journey without any human
intervention whatsoever. ‘We made a historic flight with
two clicks of the mouse’, said Bob Mitchell of Northrop
Grumman. The first mouse click told the aircraft to take
off; the second, made after landing, told it to switch off
its engine. UAVs are used for military reconnaissance
purposes but enthusiasts point out that most aircraft
breakthroughs, such as the jet engine and radar, were
developed for military use before they found civilian
applications. However, even the enthusiasts admit that
there are some significant problems to overcome before
pilotless aircraft could become commonplace. The entire
commercial flight infrastructure from air traffic control
through to airport control would need to be restructured,
a wholly automatic pilotless aircraft would have to
be shown to be safe, and perhaps most important,
passengers would have to be persuaded to fly in them.
If all these objections could be overcome, the rewards
are substantial. Airlines’ largest single cost is the wages
of its staff (far more than fuel costs or maintenance
cost) and of all staff, pilots are by far the most costly.
Automated flights would cut costs significantly, but no
one is taking bets on it happening soon!
Chapter 8 Process technology
207
Operations in practice Who’s in the cockpit?
1
Source: Rex Features
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What is process technology?
In this chapter, we discuss process technology – the machines, equipment and devices that
create and/or deliver the goods and services. Process technology ranges from milking machines
to marking software, from body scanners to bread ovens, from mobile phones to milling
machines. Disney World uses flight simulation technologies to create the thrill of space travel
on its rides, just one in a long history of Disney Corporation and its ‘imagineers’ using techno-
logy to engineer the experience for their customers. In fact, process technology is pervasive in
all types of operations. Without it many of the products and services we all purchase would be
less reliable, take longer to arrive and arrive unexpectedly, only be available in a limited variety,
and be more expensive. Process technology has a very significant effect on quality, speed,
dependability, flexibility and cost. That is why it is so important to operations managers,
and that is why we devote a whole chapter to it. Even when technology seems peripheral to
the actual creation of goods and services, it can play a key role in facilitating the direct trans-
formation of inputs to an operation. For example, the computer systems which run planning
and control activities, accounting systems and stock control systems can be used to help
managers and operators control and improve the processes. This type of technology is called
indirect process technology. It is becoming increasingly important. Many businesses spend
more on the computer systems which control their processes than they do on the direct pro-
cess technology which acts on its material, information or customers.
Integrating technologies
In this chapter, we distinguish between material, information and customer processing techno-
logies, but this is only for convenience because many newer technologies process combinations
of materials, staff and customers. These technologies are called integrating technologies.
Electronic point of sale (EPOS) technology, for example, processes shoppers, products and
information. Figure 8.2 illustrates examples of processing technology, some of which primarily
process one type of transformed resource and others that integrate the processing of more
than one transformed resources.
Figure 8.2 Process technologies can be classified by the transformed resource that they
process (material, information or customer processing), but many technologies integrate
more than one transformed resource
Process technology
Indirect process
technology
Integrating technologies
Electronic point of sale
M08_SLAC0460_06_SE_C08.QXD 10/20/09 9:30 Page 208
Chapter 8 Process technology
209
Operations management and process technology
Operations managers are continually involved in the management of process technology. They
do not need to be experts in engineering, computing, biology, electronics or whatever con-
stitutes the core science of the technology, but they should be able to do three things. First,
they need to understand the technology to the extent that they are able to articulate what the
technology should be able to do. Second, they should be able to evaluate alternative techno-
logies and share in the decisions of which technology to choose. Third, they must implement
the technology so that it can reach its full potential in contributing to the performance of the
operation as a whole. These are the three issues which this chapter deals with.
Understanding process technologies
Understanding process technology does not (necessarily) mean knowing the details of the
science and engineering embedded in the technology. But it does mean knowing enough
about the principles behind the technology to be comfortable in evaluating some technical
information, capable of dealing with experts in the technology and confident enough to ask
relevant questions, such as:
● What does the technology do which is different from other similar technologies?
● How does it do it? That is, what particular characteristics of the technology are used to
perform its function?
● What benefits does using the technology give to the operation?
● What constraints or risks does using the technology place on the operation?
In the rest of this section we (briefly) look at some of the more significant material, informa-
tion and customer processing technologies. Our discussion of any of these technologies could
be expanded into a whole book. Here we confine ourselves to answering (also briefly) the
four questions posed earlier.
Materials-processing technology
Technological advances have meant that the ways in which metals, plastics, fabric and other
materials are processed have improved over time. Generally it is the initial forming and
shaping of materials at the start, and the handling and movement through the manufactur-
ing process that has been most affected by technology advances. Assembling parts to make
products, although far more automated that once it was, presents more challenges. Here are
just some of the technologies that have helped to transform material processing industries.
Computer numerically controlled machine tools (CNC) are machine tools that use com-
puters to control their actions, rather than control by human hand. What does the technology
do? Performs the same types of metal cutting and forming operations which have always been
done, but with control provided by a computer. How does it do it? Programmed computer-
stored instructions activate the physical controls in the machine tool. What benefits does it
give? Precision, accuracy, optimum use of cutting tools which maximizes their life, and higher
labour productivity. What constraints or risks does it impose? Higher capital cost than manual
technology. Needs programming skills.
Robots. What does the technology do? Primarily used for handling materials, for example,
loading and unloading work pieces onto a machine, for processing where a tool is gripped
by the robot, and for assembly where the robot places parts together. Some robots have some
limited sensory feedback through vision control and touch control. How does it do it? Through
a programmable and computer-controlled (sometimes multi-jointed) arm with an effector
end-piece which will depend on the task being performed. What benefits does it give? Can
Operations managers do
not need to be experts
but do need to know the
principles behind the
technology
Computer numerically
controlled machine tools
Robots
M08_SLAC0460_06_SE_C08.QXD 10/20/09 9:30 Page 209
be used where conditions are hazardous or uncomfortable for humans, or where tasks are
highly repetitive. Performs repetitive tasks at lower cost than using humans and gives greater
accuracy and repeatability. What constraints or risks does it impose? Although the sophistica-
tion of robotic movement is increasing, their abilities are still more limited than popular
images of robot-driven factories suggest. Not always good at performing tasks which require
delicate sensory feedback or sophisticated judgement.
Automated guided vehicles (AGVs). What does the technology do? Small, independently
powered vehicles move materials between operations. Can be used as mobile workstations;
for example, truck engines can be assembled on AGVs, which move between assembly stations.
AGVs are also used in warehouses, in libraries to move books, in offices to move mail and even
in hospitals to transport samples. How do they do it? They are often guided by cables buried
in the floor of the operation and receive instructions from a central computer. What benefits
do they give? Independent movement, flexibility of routeing and long-term flexibility of use.
What constraints or risks do they impose? Capital cost considerably higher than alternative
(conveyor) systems.
Flexible manufacturing systems (FMSs). What does the technology do? Completely manu-
factures a range of components (occasionally whole simple products) without significant
human intervention during the processing. So, an FMS is not a single technology as such, but
one that has integrated several technologies such as CNC ‘workstations’, loading/unloading
facilities, transport/materials handling facilities and a computer control system, to realize
a potential that is greater than the sum of its parts. The flexibility of each of the individual
technologies combine to make an FMS (at least in theory) an extremely versatile manufac-
turing technology. How does it do it? By integrating programmable technologies such as
machine tools, materials handling devices and robots through centralized computer control.
What benefits does it give? Faster throughput times, higher utilization of capital equipment,
lower work-in-progress inventories, more consistent quality, higher long-term product flexib-
ility. A sequence of products, each different but within the capability ‘envelope’ of the sys-
tem, could be processed in the system in any order and without changeover delays between
each product. The ‘envelope of capability’ concept is important here. Any collection of
Part Two Design
210
Robots, long used for repetitive and heavy activities, are
also increasingly used to tackle dangerous ones. Robots
were used during the clear-up operation amongst the
rubble of the Twin Towers in New York. ‘Enough people
have died here’, said a spokesperson for the emergency
services. ‘We don’t want to risk anyone.’ Likewise, bomb
disposal squads have developed specialized robots which
can take at least some of the risk from what remains a
hazardous job. Another job where robots reduce the risk
is in decommissioning spent nuclear power stations. It is
an agonizingly slow process which in many countries will
take well over 100 years to complete. It is also a delicate
and potentially dangerous process for those involved.
This is why robots are used where possible to move,
dismantle and manipulate hazardous radioactive material.
Robots are also used for controlled-circuit television
Short case
Robots reduce the risks
2
inspections as well as the pumping and removal of
radioactive sludge. For example, at BNFL’s Windscale
plant in the UK, remote-controlled robotic crushers
are being used to dismantle the plant’s pile chimneys,
and in nearby Sellafield a floating robot is draining and
dismantling a tank of highly radioactive liquid waste.
Automated guided
vehicles
Flexible manufacturing
systems
Source: Corbis/Yiorgos Karahalis
M08_SLAC0460_06_SE_C08.QXD 10/20/09 9:30 Page 210
machines within an FMS must have some finite limits on the size and shape of the materials
it can process. What constraints or risks does it impose? Very high capital costs with uncertain
payback, needs programming skills, and can be vulnerable to tool breakage (which can stop
the whole system).
Computer integrated manufacturing (CIM). What does the technology do? Coordinates the
whole process of manufacturing and manufactures a part, component or product. How does
it do it? Connects and integrates the information technology which forms the foundation
of design technology (CAD), manufacturing technology (flexible manufacturing centres or
systems), materials handling (AGVs or robots) and the immediate management of these
activities (scheduling, loading, monitoring). What benefits does it give? Fast throughput times,
flexibility when compared with other previous ‘hard’ technologies, the potential for largely
unsupervised manufacture. What constraints or risks does it impose? Extremely high capital
costs, formidable technical problems of communications between the different parts of the
system, and some vulnerability to failure and breakdown.
Information-processing technology
Information-processing technology, or just information technology (IT), is the most com-
mon single type of technology within operations, and includes any device which collects,
manipulates, stores or distributes information. Often organizational and operational issues
are the main constraints in applying information technology because managers are unsure
how best to use the potential in the technology. The following quotation gives some idea
of how fast information technology is changing:
‘The rate of progress in information technology has been so great that if comparable advances
had been made in the automotive industry, you could buy a Jaguar that would travel at the
speed of sound, go 600 miles on a thimble of gas and cost only $2!’
7
Chapter 8 Process technology
211
YO! Sushi are sushi restaurants with an accent on
style. They also employ technology to create their
unique atmosphere. Prepared dishes are circulated
around the sitting area on a moving conveyor.
Customers simply take what they want as they
pass by. In fact, this idea goes back to 1958 when
Yoshiaki Shiraishi saw beer bottles moving down
an Asahi brewery conveyor. Wanting to cut overheads
in his restaurant, he developed the idea of the
rotating conveyor belt. Originally known as
‘satellite-turning-around-sushi’ (rough translation),
he calculated that the dishes should move at a rate
of 8 centimetres per second. No more, no less. Any
slower and customers get bored and the food may
dry out. Any faster and customers do not have time to
decide and the food may fly off the belt. At YO! Sushi
tables also have personal metred beer taps but also
a one-metre-high automated moving trolley, which,
stocked with drinks, glides gently through the eating
area inciting customers to ‘stop me if you wish’.
Short case
YO! Sushi
3
A moving belt used to serve customers at YO!
Sushi restaurant
Computer integrated
manufacturing
Information technology
Source: YO! Sushi/Jonathan Roberts
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Here we will examine just some of the types of (and developments in) IT that are having, or
could have, a significant impact on operations management.
Networked information technology
When used in IT, networking means two or more computers or devices linked together in some
way so that data can be shared between them. The ‘network’ is, in effect, a combination of
computer hardware and computer software that can be categorized in terms of the geographic
area that it covers. So, at the micro level, a desk-area network (DAN), extends over a single desk.
At the macro level a wide-area network (WAN) covers a large physical distance. Even the
Internet itself could be classified as the largest WAN, covering the whole world. In between
these extremes are local-area networks (LANs), wireless local-area networks (WLANs), campus-
area networks (CANs), wide-area networks (WANs), metropolitan-area networks (MANs)
and so on. The LAN and the WAN were the original categories. The others have emerged as
technology has evolved. A LAN connects networked computers and devices a relatively short
distance such as within an office, department or home. Sometimes one building may contain
more than one smaller LAN, and sometimes a LAN will span a group of nearby buildings.
Whatever its scope, a LAN is usually controlled by a single person or organization. WANs,
by contrast, are geographically dispersed collection of LANs, and are not usually owned by a
single organization but have some kind of collective or distributed ownership and management.
A router is used to connect LANs to a WAN. A wireless local-area network is a LAN based
on ‘Wi-Fi’ wireless network technology that uses radio waves to transmit information.
Computers can be connected through wired or wireless networks. Originally almost all
businesses networks used wired (Ethernet) connections; more recently wireless networking is
being widely used. Whereas wired networking relies on copper or fibre-optic cabling between
network devices, wireless networks use radio waves (or microwaves) to connect computers.
The advantages of a wireless network, when compared with a wired network, include mobility
and the elimination of cables. However, wireless networks may suffer from radio interference
due to weather, other wireless devices, and signal deterioration when obstructed by walls.
Networks can have two types of overall design, depending on the relationship between
the computers – client–server and peer-to-peer. Client–server networks feature centralized
server computers that store data, such as files, e-mails, web pages and applications. The client
program makes a ‘service request’ from a server program. The server program then fulfils the
request. The client–server model in networks provides an efficient method of connecting
programs that are physically in different locations, which is why this type of relationship is
generally used in business. It is one of the central ideas underpinning network computing.
For example, if one company wanted to check what it had ordered from a supplier, a client
program in its computer sends a request to a server program at its supplier. That program may
send the request to its own client program, which, in turn, may send a request to a database
server in another part of its organization to retrieve the customer’s account details. These
account details are then sent back to its own client program, which in turn sends it back to
the customer. By contrast, a peer-to-peer network connects computers, all of which tend to have
the same, or similar, functions or capabilities and either party can initiate a communication
session. Peer-to-peer networks are much more commonly used for domestic purposes.
So, returning to our four questions. What do networks do? Allow decentralized computers
and devices to communicate with each other and with shared devices over a varying distance.
How do they do it? Through a hard-wired, or wireless, network and shared communication
protocols. What benefits do they give? Flexibility, easy access to other users, shared databases
and applications software. What constraints do they impose? Wired network installation costs
can be high, while wireless networks may have security issues.
The Internet, intranets and extranets
In 1989 a computer scientist called Tim Berners-Lee who was working at CERN, Geneva
(Europe’s particle physics laboratory) wrote a paper entitled ‘Information management: a
proposal’. Little did he realize that his idea would blossom into the World Wide Web. This,
World Wide Web
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and the Internet, has been the most influential technology in the last several decades. In
practical terms most of us think of the Internet as the provider of services such as the ability
to browse the World Wide Web. The World Wide Web (WWW) provides a ‘distributed
hypermedia/hypertext’ system, where elements of stored pages are identified as links allow-
ing users to transfer to another page of information, which in turn had hypertext links to
other pages, and so on. An intranet uses the same technologies as the Internet, but does
so in order to provide a computer network that is private. Its purpose is to allow secure
sharing of information to any part of an organization, its systems and its staff. It may be as
simple as an internal web site. Alternatively, it could be a more complex arrangement that
communicates with an organization’s operating systems. Extranets, by contrast, link organ-
izations together through secure business networks using Internet technology. They are used
primarily for various aspects of supply chain management (see Chapter 13). They tend to be
cheaper to set up and cheaper to maintain than the commercial trading networks which
preceded them. For example, details of orders placed with suppliers, orders received from
customers, payments to suppliers and payments received from customers can all be trans-
mitted through the extranet. Banks and other financial institutions can also be incorporated
into these networks. The use of networks in this way is often called electronic data inter-
change (EDI).
Again, returning to our four questions for the Internet, intranets and extranets. What do
they do? Allow companies to use networks to exchange information electronically, publicly or
securely. How do they do it? By connecting through networks, allowing businesses, customers,
suppliers and banks to exchange trading information. What advantages do they give? Almost
unimaginably significant (potentially!), allowing many applications (see Table 8.1) such as
electronic data interchange (EDI). What constraints do they impose? Costs of setting up net-
works can be high for a small firm, yet is now a prerequisite for doing business. There can be
problems in integrating networks into internal systems.
Intranet
Extranets
Chapter 8 Process technology
213
One would expect that IBM, one of the world’s
foremost technology companies, would be an early
adopter of many technologies. For example, when it
wanted to consult with its employees over restating
the company’s core set of values, it organized a
72-hour online real-time chat session. It also opened
an online suggestions box called ‘Think Place’ where
ideas are posted for everyone to see (and possibly
improve upon). This type of internal communications
technology not only promotes collaboration, it can also
help when fast response is a priority. For example,
along with other companies, IBM suffered technical
problems after Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans
and the surrounding area. Using its ‘Blue Pages Plus’
expertise located on its corporate intranet it identified
the people who had the potential to solve its problems
within the space of a few hours. It also set up a wiki
(a web page that can be edited by anyone who has
Short case
Recovering from Hurricane
Katrina
4
access) that it used as a virtual meeting room.
This enabled a group of IBM experts from the US,
Germany and the UK to solve the problems within
a few days.
Source: Rex Features
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