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- B Corp versus ISO 9001 and 14001 certifications: Aligned, or alternative paths, towards sustainable development?Publication . Fonseca, Luís; Silva, Vitor; Sá, José Carlos; Lima, Vanda; Santos, Gilberto; Silva, RuiCorporate social responsibility (CSR) emerged to deliver sustainable economic, environmental, and social value to organization's extended stakeholders and society in general. This study investigates the similarities, differences, and relationships between B Corp, ISO 9001, and ISO 14001 certifications and is supported by a mixed research methodology and a sample of 701 B Corp companies certified between January 2020 and March 2021. The results indicate that ISO 14001 and ISO 9001 certified B Corp companies have statistically higher scores for the Environment dimension but are inconclusive, or even contradictory, for the other BIA (B Impact Assessment) dimensions. Differences in size, activity sector and geographical location are discussed. It is shown that both B Corp, ISO 9001 and 14001 certified companies, guided by different missions and business models, contribute, at different levels, towards CSR and sustainable development goals.
- iLeanDMAIC – A methodology for implementing the lean toolsPublication . Ferreira, C.; Sá, José Carlos; Ferreira, Luís Pinto; Lopes, Manuel P.; Pereira, Maria Teresa; Silva, F.J.G.Organizations focus must reside in their constant desire for improvement in order to satisfy their clients as a result of high-quality products, thus maximizing their profits through a waste reduction in the flow production. Lean thinking allows organizations to identify and eliminate wastes within the organization. The use of lean tools is considered a simple, efficient and cost-effective solution to achieve productivity and profit. DMAIC (Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, Control) is a problem-solving methodology that improves processes, allows defect reduction and reduction of process variability, allowing companies to continuously improve their efficiency and performance. In this work, a combined methodology iLeanDMAIC based on Lean Tools and DMAIC was developed, aiming to help organizations to easily and accurately solve their problems. It includes a case-study implementation on an organization of the sector of wood products. We were able to successfully validate this methodology and to show its efficacy in enhancing production. Results using iLeanDMAIC allowed a reduction time in changeover in the assembly machine (from 39 min to 17 min), presenting this a 44% gain on manufacture. iLeanDMAIC can help organizations thrive against their competitors, make their business more cost-effective and efficient.
- Warehouse operations logistics improvement in a cork stopper factoryPublication . Martins, Rita; Pereira, Maria Teresa; Pinto Ferreira, Luís; Sá, José Carlos; Silva, F.J.G.In a market that is increasingly competitive, the success depends on the efficiency levels of the implemented processes, highlighting the importance of the operations related to the warehouse management in the logistics flow. This research focuses on the improvement of management and logistic flows within a Portuguese cork stopper production factory. The primary goal is to maximize the warehouse stocking capacity and to improve logistics operations associated to that. By using procedure mapping techniques, data analysis, and direct time monitoring, it was possible to identify non value added times, as well as the associated causes and impacts, inadequate planning, and sizing of the warehouse layouts that were causing significant negative impact in terms of efficiency management. Using lean thinking philosophy, several improvement suggestions were presented to mitigate the problems identified.
- Implementation of Lean Methodologies in the Management of Consumable Materials in the Maintenance Workshops of an Industrial CompanyPublication . Pombal, Tomé; Ferreira, Luís Pinto; Sá, José Carlos; Pereira, Maria Teresa; Silva, F.J.G.During the course of the 21st century, companies have constantly had to adapt to change. The solution resides in increasing operational efficiency, quality and productivity, while simultaneously reducing costs and establishing the waste-free organization. The objective of this work lies in the implementation of lean methodologies in the management of consumable materials in the maintenance workshops of an industrial company by adjusting/reducing the volume of materials and reorganizing their placement. It further explores the potential to eliminate waste and create value-added tasks in the maintenance activities involved. The development of this work allowed for an improvement in the organization of the consumable material cabinet through the implementation of 5S methodology, as well as a reduction in the time required to locate the consumable material by using visual management (in the order of 70%). Improved control of stock was also achieved through the reformulation of kanban (approximately 30%); a reduction in the time required to replenish material in the consumables cabinet was ensured by means of the mizusumashi (with an expected improvement of 50%).
- B Impact Assessment as a Sustainable Tool: Analysis of the Certification ModelPublication . Silva, Vítor; Lima, Vanda; Sá, José Carlos; Fonseca, Luís; Santos, GilbertoCurrently, certification is an essential tool for a company’s sustainability and a seal of trust for the stakeholders. The B Corporation (B Corp) certification system is in line with the leading indicators of sustainable development and social responsibility published by the general assembly of the United Nations, namely: environment, community, workers, customers, and governance. Nevertheless, it is essential that academic research should empirically assess the B Corp model’s reliability for its validation and legitimization. In this study, we address the results of the B Impact Assessment of 2262 companies certified by B Corp from the beginning of 2017 to March 2021. The main objective is to analyze the B Impact Assessment, verifying the robustness and consistency of the model to measure and improve the economic, social, and environmental impact of companies. We analyzed the construct’s validity through a confirmatory factorial analysis using AMOS statistical software. The results allowed us to identify some weaknesses and limitations of the B Impact Assessment. This certification system reflects an unadjusted model where the main assessment indicators have problems with regard to the measurement scale. The governance and customer indicators are the most vulnerable. The findings also allow us to state that there are apparently no minimum values established for each of the parameters evaluated, which may cause imbalances in the sustainable development process of B Corp companies. This research contributes to enhancing B Impact Assessment as a sustainability tool, highlighting areas for improvement concerning the indicators’ measurement scales and the assessment process, including the monitoring of evaluators.
- Improving efficiency in a hybrid warehouse: a case studyPublication . Freitas, Andreia M.; Silva, F.J.G.; Ferreira, Luís Pinto; Sá, José Carlos; Pereira, Maria Teresa; Pereira, J.Logistics has assumed a determining position in the supply chain of each organization. This paper concerns the work carried out in a bus manufacturing organization with the aim of improving efficiency in its hybrid warehouse. A hybrid warehouse could be considered as one that mixes several different activities (reception, storage area, picking, shipping, supply to production lines and production preparation tasks) and brings together many different materials or raw materials and components. This factor led to the appearance of innumerable management methods to improve employee performance. These are intended to meet the needs of their customers, from the motto "do more with less". The work developed in a hybrid warehouse allows to detect logistic complaints related to communication failures between employees, the reduced efficiency in the activities like the check of raw materials or components and respective picking, the lack of space for their reception and storage, and the non-compliance of the FIFO stock management system. It is imperative that organizations can redefine internal spaces and flows, generating a more efficient and intuitive work and admit an opportunity for improvements in terms of space and content management, and hence, cost savings for an organization. The combination of Lean tools was implemented, and the results have been checked, showing a significant impact in the hybrid warehouse, with annual gains through the optimization of several activities: employee turnover (decrease by 50%), check and picking times (decrease about 75 minutes/picking) and better working conditions for employees.
- Development of a conceptual model integrating management systems and the Shingo Model towards operational excellencePublication . Carvalho, Mariana; Sá, José Carlos; Marques, Pedro Alexandre; Santos, Gilberto; Pereira, António MárioTo remain competitive in the marketplace, organizations are seeking the adoption of management models and tools that will allow them to find better and more effective practices to reinvent themselves, and continuously improve their business processes and product’s quality in a sustainable way, hence pursuing the ultimate goal of reaching enterprise excellence. The purpose of this paper is to present a conceptual model that relates the requirements of the ISO Management System Standards with the dimensions and guiding principles of the Shingo Model for Operational Excellence. The proposed approach allows an organization with and existing management system based on one or more ISO Management System Standards to adopt and perform an assessment tool to evaluate its level of maturity regarding the adoption of the best practices and behaviours prescribed by the Shingo Model, which is a novelty contribution of this research. The validation of the proposed assessment tool took place in a Portuguese organization from the automotive sector, having comprised two moments: in the first one, an external assessor performed a set of behavioural observations that acted as a base to assign a score, while in the second moment such score was internally obtained through a survey that was filled by the organization’s employees. The results reveal that these two methods converge to similar conclusions, hence confirming that the proposed model has the potential to enable an organization to assess the maturity level of its management system regarding the adoption of the guiding principles of the Shingo Model for Operational Excellence. A limitation of this research is that the model was only validated in a single company.
- Quality and safety continuous improvement through lean toolsPublication . Santos, Gilberto; Sá, José Carlos; Oliveira, J.; Ramos, Delfina; Ferreira, C.The purpose of this chapter is to suggest the use of several lean tools that can be used, indicating the improvements that can be obtained with each of the recommended tools. The main objective is to be a contribution to the organizations, showing how they can detect the wastes in the productive flow through VSM, and at the same time to improve the quality of products through lean tools. The method presented was a case study. The various lean tools were also collected and described. This chapter intends to show several lean tools that can be applied in different situations, as well as, the wastes that each can eliminate and the benefits that are obtained from each one. Throughout the production process, with the support of Value Stream Mapping (VSM), it was possible to detect several wastes. A case study is presented as results from a work carried out in a company that is dedicated to the production of mechanical equipment. This work can be a guide to support organizations that wish to start their lean road. Smart value creation remains today dependent on the maturity of how lean management tools are applied. Lean, innovative technologies, critical knowledge, talent and big data need other dimensions to be sustainable. Quality and safety continuous improvement through lean tools, as well as, Industry 4.0 assumes a critical pillar for the new journey toward the future of our organizations.
- Automating Equipment towards Industry 4.0: A New Concept for a Transfer System of Lengthy and Low-Stiffness Products for AutomobilesPublication . Vieira, Diogo; Silva, Francisco J. G.; Campilho, R.D.S.G.; Sousa, Vitor F. C.; Pinto Ferreira, Luís; Sá, José Carlos; Brito, MarleneSeveral products with a high length/section ratio and with a relatively low stiffness are used in the automotive industry, causing several problems because of a lack of stiffness. One of the examples where this occurs is in the production of Bowden cables, where automation has played a very important role in the flexibility of processes and product quality. Within this product family, conduits, one of the components of Bowden cables, have proven to be one of the points of continuous improvement. Currently, the production process for this type of component is done in a fully automated way, which proves the importance of automation. However, the need to manufacture different references means that the equipment used needs to be characterized by its high flexibility. This work aims to develop a new transfer system for conduit preparation machines, which are focused on increasing the range of references possible to manufacture without affecting the quality and productivity of the equipment. Thus, a new concept of conduit transport has been successfully developed, able to deal with lengthy conduits without lacking quality or experiencing breakdowns of the equipment. The concept used to overcome this problem can be extended to other equipment with similar problems, even in the manufacturing of other kind of products.
- Flexible Automation and Intelligent Manufacturing: Establishing Bridges for More Sustainable Manufacturing SystemsPublication . Silva, Francisco J. G.; Pinto Ferreira, Luís; Sá, José Carlos; Pereira, Maria Teresa Ribeiro; Pinto, Carla M. A.This volume of LectureNotes in Mechanical Engineering (LNME) is one of two volumes including papers selected from the 32nd International Conference on Flexible Automation and Intelligent Manufacturing (FAIM 2023), held in Porto, Portugal, from June 18 to 22, 2023. The FAIM 2023 conference was organized by the School of Engineering, Polytechnic of Porto, located in Porto, Portugal. Flexible Automation and Intelligent Manufacturing (FAIM) is a renowned international forum for academia and industry to disseminate novel research, theories, and practices relevant to automation and manufacturing. For over 30 years, the FAIM conference has provided a strong and continuous presence in the international manufacturing scene, addressing both technology and management aspects via scientific conference sessions, workshops, tutorials, and industry tours. Since 1991, FAIM has been hosted in prestigious universities on both sides of the Atlantic and, in recent years, in Asia. The conference attracts hundreds of global leaders in automation and manufacturing research whoattend program sessions where rigorously peer-reviewed papers are presented during themultiple-day conference. The conference links researchers and industry practitioners in a continuous effort to bridge the gap between research and implementation. FAIM 2023 received more than 400 contributions from over 40 countries and over 220 institutions around the world. After a two-stage double-blind review, the technical program committee accepted 263 papers. From these, 242 papers have been included in two LNME volumes, and 21 extended papers are published as fast-track articles in Robotics and Computer-Integrated Manufacturing and The International Journal of Advanced Manufacturing Technology. A selection of these LNME articles will be invited to submit substantially extended versions to special issues in ten international indexed journals, such as the International Journal of Computer Integrated Manufacturing, Journal of Mechanical Engineering Science, Journal of Testing and Evaluation, Sustainability journal, Machines journal, Metals journal, Actuators journal, Systems journal, FME Transactions journal, and Technological Sustainability journal. We are grateful to the authors for their contributions and would like to acknowledge the FAIM steering committee, advisory board committee, honorary chairs, the scientific committee members, and manuscript reviewers for their significant efforts, continuous support, sharing their expertise, and conducting manuscript reviews.Manuscript reviewers came from various locations around the world, performing 1339 reviews in total. With such effort and toughness, the high standards of the papers included in the FAIM program have been kept.