Explore the vast range of titles available.

In the contemporary business environment characterized by risk and uncertainty, manufacturing companies need to focus on improving quality in every single aspect of their business model, with a focus on reaching the level of business excellence. As the central dimension of organizational design, organizational structure has the status of important support for achieving business excellence in the following areas: the success of the quality management system, process management, orientation towards employees (their satisfaction and motivation), the development of partnership relations with suppliers and customers, supply chain management, innovation, and social responsibility. The goal of the research is to identify the parameters of the organizational structure which have the highest influence on the success of manufacturing companies in terms of achieving business excellence. The results of the research conducted on a sample of 94 manufacturing companies in the territory of the Republic of Serbia showed the statistically significant influence of the organizational structure on each of the business excellence determinants, whereby the following parameters have the most important role: specialization, coordination (based on a combination of mechanisms) and formalization (based on compliance with QMS requirements - Quality Management System and the ISO 9001 standards).

In the contemporary business environment characterized by risk and uncertainty, manufacturing companies need to focus on improving quality in every single aspect of their business model, with a focus on reaching the level of business excellence. As the central dimension of organizational design, organizational structure has the status of important support for achieving business excellence in the following areas: the success of the quality management system, process management, orientation towards employees (their satisfaction and motivation), the development of partnership relations with suppliers and customers, supply chain management, innovation, and social responsibility. The goal of the research is to identify the parameters of the organizational structure which have the highest influence on the success of manufacturing companies in terms of achieving business excellence. The results of the research conducted on a sample of 94 manufacturing companies in the territory of the Republic of Serbia showed the statistically significant influence of the organizational structure on each of the business excellence determinants, whereby the following parameters have the most important role: specialization, coordination (based on a combination of mechanisms) and formalization (based on compliance with QMS requirements - Quality Management System and the ISO 9001 standards).

The literature has highlighted that the propensity of MNEs to co-locate offshore R&D labs with their production plants can vary substantially according to firm and industry characteristics. In this paper, we apply a novel two-stage estimation procedure that allows us to tease out this heterogenous behavior and investigate the factors that are associated with a higher propensity to colocate production and R&D activities abroad. Using data on 1483 greenfield international investments in R&D activities made by 855 firms in 587 cities worldwide, we uncover that the strength of the co-location effect is indeed highly heterogenous across firms. In particular, it is higher among firms with less international experience and geographical dispersion of international activities, as well as with a lower share of intangible assets. These results are consistent with the idea that co-location is a substitute for firms’ ability to coordinate complex and dispersed organizational structures, and that firms relying relatively less on codified knowledge can use co-location of offshore R&D and production to facilitate knowledge transfer across activities.

During recent years, one of the most familiar names scaling new heights and creating a benchmark in the world is the Internet of Things (IoT). It is indeed the future of communication that has transformed things (objects) of the real-world into smart objects. The functional aspect of IoT is to unite every object of the world under one common infrastructure; in such a manner that humans not only have the ability to control those objects; but to provide regular and timely updates on the current status. IoT concepts were proposed a couple of years ago and it may not be incorrect to quote that this term has become a benchmark for establishing communication among objects. In context to the present standings of IoT, a comprehensive review of literature has been undertaken on various aspects of IoT, i.e., technologies, applications, challenges, etc. This paper evaluates various contributions of researchers in different areas of applications. These papers were investigated on various parameters identified in each application domain. Furthermore, existing challenges in these areas are highlighted. Future research directions in the field of IoT have also been highlighted in the study to equip novel researchers in this area to assess the current standings of IoT and to improve upon them with innovative ideas.

Purpose National and organizational innovation is currently at the forefront of media discussion and is viewed as critical to economic development. While the argument for investment is universal, how it should be orchestrated is uncertain. The purpose of this paper is to bring together the three major related components of information and communication technology (ICT), knowledge management processes (KMP) and innovation, to explore empirically the constituents of ICT and KMP that improve innovation within Australian enterprises. Design/methodology/approach The method is a quantitative survey of 148 industry managers. The data was refined through confirmatory factor analysis. The hypotheses were evaluated by regression equations and parameter estimates. The findings were identified by the magnitude of the effect sizes. Findings The study’s evidence illuminated how specific components of ICT and KMP impact on particular aspects of innovation. The findings indicate key emerging relationships and then propose a conceptual model validated by the analysis of the survey evidence. The study identifies that investment in ICT and KMP has a positive impact on innovation performance. A particular finding is that information or data capture technologies have the most significant positive consequence for innovation. Practical implications The modeling can be used by managers as a guide to mapping ICT and KMP to specific innovation outcomes. In a modified form, it could be applied as a self-assessment instrument for managers in organizations. Originality/value This is a valuable addition to current literature, as it is unique in bringing these three key components together, confirming their instrumental impact, and indicating the differentiated investment strategies that can be implemented to achieve specific and unique innovation agendas. In addition, some refined constructs, which were developed as part of this study, provide a pre-tested, validated survey instrument for further research.

The high-pressure die-casting process can effectively manufacture aluminium alloy castings with complex shapes and thin wall thicknesses. However, due to the complex flow characteristics of the liquid metal during the mould-filling process, there are significant differences in the mechanical properties of different parts of the casting. This paper analyses the effect of the high-speed ram transition position on porosity and mechanical properties of Al-Si-Mn-Mg aluminium alloys in the high-pressure die-casting (HPDC) process, comparing the 1160 mm and 1200 mm positions. Using a comprehensive methodology that combines CT, tensile tests, and SEM, the research demonstrates that the 1160 mm position improves mechanical properties and reduces porosity, with a larger gap at the near-end of the casting, where the yield limit and elongation of the casting increased by 13% and 25% at 1160 mm compared to 1200 mm, respectively. This result shows that appropriate adjustment of the high-speed ram transition position can effectively optimise the organisational structure of thin-walled castings, and then improve their mechanical properties.

Tungsten is a metal with many unique characteristics, such as a high melting point, high hardness, high chemical stability, etc. It is widely used in high-end manufacturing, new energy, the defense industry, and other fields. However, tungsten also has room-temperature brittleness, recrystallization brittleness, and other shortcomings due to the adjustment of the composition and organizational structure, such as the addition of alloying elements, adjusting the phase ratio, the use of heat treatment and deformation strengthening, etc. Its performance can be improved to meet the requirements for use in different fields. At present, the main production method of tungsten alloy is powder metallurgy. The use of a rolling open billet rotary forging–stretching process can improve production efficiency and product quality, but in actual production, due to the combined effects of various factors, such as elastic deformation of rolling elements, plastic deformation of the rolled material, etc., the mechanical properties of tungsten plates and bars are often difficult to control effectively, seriously affecting rolling stability and production efficiency. For this reason, researchers have conducted extensive and deep research and optimization on the rolling process of tungsten alloys, including establishing mathematical models, performing numerical simulations, optimizing process parameters, etc., providing important references for the rolling and forming of tungsten alloys. Meanwhile, the material properties are greatly influenced by the microstructure, and the evolution of the microstructure can be well quantified by some advanced characterization techniques, such as SEM, TEM, EBSD, etc., so that certain properties of tungsten can be obtained by controlling the texture evolution. In conclusion, this paper comprehensively summarizes the research progress of tungsten alloy roll forming and provides an important reference for further improving the processing performance and production efficiency of tungsten alloy.

The rapid development of network freight platforms has directly increased the level of social logistics resource collaboration and improved both the efficiency and quality of logistics industry services. As a bilateral platform that connects freight shippers and freight carriers, the organizational structure and operational mode of network freight platforms differ substantially from those of traditional logistics service providers. In this paper, a tripartite evolutionary game model is constructed in which a network freight platform, freight shipper, and freight carrier are considered, and the evolutionary stability strategies of the parties and the tripartite system are dynamically analyzed. The reliability of the model is verified through a numerical case, and several countermeasures have been proposed to improve the stability of the system based on the sensitivity analysis of important parameters. This paper helps standardize the principal behavior of all parties under the network freight mode, reduce the default risk of all parties, and improve the overall cooperation stability of the logistics service supply chain.

This article is devoted to the problems of the organizational structure optimization by the method of Value Analysis (VA). The analysis of the control system is of particular relevance in modern conditions. The purpose of this article is to adapt the Value Analysis to the management structure with the possibility of increasing efficiency. VA is a universal and highly effective method for optimizing parameters and other design, technological, organizational, economic characteristics of products, works and services. The hypothesis of the possibility of applying the Value Analysis to the organization of the enterprise subdivision work is considered. The article examines the VA tools using the example of an enterprise's repair service. An organizational structural-element model of the object is being built. Decomposition of functions is carried out. According to the level criterion, the functions are classified into main and auxiliary ones. The significance and functional costs are determined. A functional-cost diagram is constructed, which allows highlighting the functions with the greatest deviations that need to be improved. The VA stages are accompanied by graphical illustrations and tables which allow us to clearly demonstrate the logic of the method application to the work of the enterprise division. As a result, the optimal concept of the organization of the machine-building enterprise structural unit is formed.