Agilent Technologies
Application: Agilent Technologies was formed in
1999 from the former Hewlett-Packard test and measurement, chemical
analysis, semiconductor components and medical products businesses.
Agilent Technologies uses an Intranet and the Internet to support
its product development teams. Teams located in different parts
of the world share data and information and practice design reuse
to save development time. The collaborative environment is also
used to help achieve a cross-functional perspective, with marketing,
design and manufacturing sharing data and information. The application
helps to save time and money as a result of less travel and improved
communications leading to fewer misunderstandings and the resulting
rework.
Illustrates: The use if the Internet and an Intranet
to improve communications between geographically distributed
teams engaged in product development, and also to improve cross-functional
working.
Clyde Blowers
Application: Clyde Blowers, an engineering company,
manufactures products such as the tools used to clean the insides
of coal-fired power station boilers. It has manufacturing plants
in Europe, the US, China and India. The company has been using
the Internet for a number of purposes. Document exchange and
e-mail are used based on Lotus Notes (a widely used group working
software tool) and video conferencing software is used to enable
face to face meetings, thus helping to reduce travel costs. Also,
the firm uses Lotus Notes to track customer enquires, so that
firms throughout the group can see what is going on thus helping
to avoid the situation where firms within the group are competing
with each other for the same business.
Illustrates: The use of the Internet to improve
communications between geographically distributed parts of the
firm and to increase co-ordination of activities.
Frigomechanica
Application: Frigomeccanica is a small Italian
company that designs, assembles, installs and maintains freezing
and defrosting machines, drying cells and other in-process and
post-process treatment cells for the food industry (ham, salami,
meat, cheese, etc.). Frigomeccanica's markets, clients and network
of sales agents are geographically distributed all over the world.
It is common for clients to demand customised machines as well
as continuous, cost-effective and efficient support during the
entire working life of the machine, from pre-sales assistance,
to installation and post-sales support. Frigomeccanica's equipment
is always tailor-made to meet the needs of each individual customer.
Many unforeseen problems have to be faced at the machine installation
stage and during the initial period of use at the customer sites.
Huge costs are usually incurred to assist customers on-site during
these phases. Here, the problem solving process is based heavily
on the skills and knowledge of a small number of very experienced
technicians, who are forced to rush around the world in order
to ensure the necessary customer support, and their expertise
represents a scarce and critical resource. Hence modern communication
technologies such as desk-top video conferencing operating over
the Internet are being investigated and piloted to support pre
and post sales support without increasing the price to the customer.
Illustrates: Using the Internet to increase the
productivity of skilled employees by making their expertise more
accessible without the need for expensive and time consuming
journeys.
GKN
Application: GKN, a British engineering company
that manufactures among other things automotive components, is
using its Intranet as a knowledge management tool. The objective
is to enable knowledge about manufacturing techniques, normally
communicated within a single plant, to be made available throughout
the group, thus reducing duplication of problem solving and also
unnecessary capital expenditure on eliminating problems that
may have a simpler solution discovered elsewhere but not communicated
company wide. In addition to sharing explicit knowledge such
new ideas generated at each of its plants, GKN is also expecting
that tacit knowledge will be shared.
Illustrates: Knowledge sharing between geographically
separated parts of a large firm using the Internet as the prime
means of communication.
Other manufacturing case examples
are included in our publication "Electronic Business: The Executive
Guide".
- Dell Computers
- Electrolux
- Ford
- General Electric
- Intel
- Rolls-Royce
- Rover Group
- Styles Precision Components
- Unipart
- United Technologies
There are also a number of
non-manufacturing examples in the Executive Guide:
- British Airways
- J. Sainsbury
More detailed information on
two of the manufacturing case examples, General Electric and
Styles Precision Components, can be found in our publication
"E-business Strategy: Case
Studies, Benefits and Implementation", along with
a detailed case study from the retail sector.
Executives and managers can
learn more by reading our e-business publications. "Electronic
Business: The Executive Guide" provides an introduction
to the Internet and its potential. It is written for the benefit
of non-specialists and avoids the use of jargon. No prior knowledge
of the Internet is assumed. "E-business
Strategy: Case Studies, Benefits and Implementation"
is a much more detailed publication which is focused on both
understanding and development of an e-business strategy. "E-business Strategy Tools: Practical
Help for Executives" is a publication that provides
a number of practical tools to help formulate an e-business strategy
or to check/verify an existing strategy. "E-business
Technical Change: A Manager's Guide" is a publication
that provides assistance to managers wishing to manage the organisational
and people changes associated with the introduction of e-business
technologies - includes guidance, checklists and analysis tools. |