Seminars

ME/IE 8773-8774
INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERING SERIES (1130 ME)
Operations Research
Host: : Diwakar Gupta

POLCA: The Material Control Strategy for Low-Volume and Custom-Engineered Products

by

Rajan Suri
Professor
Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Madison, WI 53706

Wednesday, February 16, 2005
3:30-5:00 p.m.
Room 1130 ME
Coffee and cookies will be available at 3:15 p.m. in Room 1130 ME before and after the seminar

Abstract: - Although the Pull (Kanban) strategy associated with Lean Manufacturing can be powerful in certain situations, for companies making low-volume or custom-engineered products, Lean and Kanban have several drawbacks. Quick Response Manufacturing (QRM) can be a more effective competitive strategy for companies targeting such markets. We provide an overview of QRM strategy which focuses on lead time reduction throughout the enterprise. We explain why Lean strategies of Flow, Takt time and Pull don't work well for these markets, and why QRM is more applicable. We describe POLCA, a material control system to be used as part of QRM. We show why a Kanban system is not appropriate for these markets. Instead, POLCA provides an effective method to support both manufacturing and material control for companies serving these markets. The combination of QRM and POLCA provide companies with competitive advantage through their ability to deliver customized products with short lead times.

Bio: Rajan Suri is Professor of Industrial Engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He received his Bachelors degree from Cambridge University (England) and his M.S. and Ph.D. from Harvard University. Dr. Suri serves as Director of the Center for Quick Response Manufacturing (QRM), a consortium of over 40 firms working with the University on understanding and implementing QRM strategies. He is internationally regarded as an expert on the analysis of manufacturing systems, and is author of the book Quick Response Manufacturing: A Companywide Approach to Reducing Lead Times (Productivity Press). Dr. Suri has consulted for leading firms including Alcoa, Danfoss, IBM, John Deere, Pratt & Whitney, Rockwell Automation and TREK Bicycle. Consulting assignments in Europe and the Far East, along with projects for the World Bank, have given him an international perspective on manufacturing competitiveness. Dr. Suri has received awards from the American Automatic Control Council, The Institute of Management Sciences and the IEEE. In 1999, Suri was made a Fellow of the Society of Manufacturing Engineers.

Informal Faculty Luncheon: Wednesday, February 16, 2005, 12:00 noon. Meet in 1100 ME and walk to lunch with other faculty. Prof. Rajan Suri will be able to attend.