ISSN:
1467-8551
Source:
Blackwell Publishing Journal Backfiles 1879-2005
Topics:
Economics
Notes:
In recent years many commentators have addressed the ‘crisis’ in manufacturing industry (Gerwin, 1982; Drucker, 1988, 1990; Hayes and Jaikumar, 1988). Some have offered cross-national comparisons on Japanese and Western management methods and techniques (Kharbanda and Stallworthy, 1991; Oliver and Wilkinson, 1987; Pascale and Athos, 1981) whilst others have concentrated on improving performance in specific fields such as management accounting (Kaplan, 1984; Cooper, 1991) or manufacturing management (Schonberger, 1982; Halt, 1983). Empirical research into managing AMT in Japan and the UK (Currie 1991a) considers some of the broader managerial issues in manufacturing. Cultural differences are common in the areas of investment appraisal, post-auditing of AMT and preventive maintenance policy. For example, in Japan JIT is perceived ‘holistically’ incorporating production management, total quality assurance (TQA) and total preventive maintenance (TPM). This is contrary to the UK in that many large manufacturing companies fail to include TPM in their manufacturing strategies (Currie and Seddon, 1991). There are few management information systems (MIS) which provide an understanding of machine performance using both non-financial and financial information. Focusing on maintenance as a central theme, the paper discusses the development of the Failure And Scheduled Maintenance Analysis (FASMA) system, which offers a practical solution to the problem of collecting and manipulating manufacturing data on the shopfloor (Seddon, 1991a). Essentially, FASMA attempts to interface both the manufacturing and management accounting functions by translating machine performance data into valuable information from which preventive maintenance policy may be improved. Using FASMA to measure machine performance at a major UK automotive manufacturer, machine down-time has averaged 61% each month over a 3-year period. By manipulating this data, performance measurement information may be utilized by management accountants. FASMA thus develops a link between manufacturing and management accounting by providing data on machine performance which can be used for cost analysis within a manufacturing environment. The paper concludes by arguing that manufacturing strategies can only be developed using appropriate management information systems (MIS) designed to enhance functional integration. This will enable a better understanding of how the ‘manufacturing jigsaw’ fits together.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8551.1992.tb00040.x
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