Tag: technology

Teaching Tip: iPad, I Saw, I Waited–The State of E-Texts

The article by this title in Wired Magazine (Aug.26, 2011)  just caught my eye, as Jay and I have been closely watching the role of e-texts for well over a decade. Surprisingly, there has been very little traction during this period, with sales of the e-versions of our OM books still hovering around the national average of 10%. Wired predicts that there will be little change any time soon, and puts e-text sales at $585 million by 2013–just 11% of all text sales.

How can this be when 27% of college students surveyed think their laptop is the most essential item in their bag?  Further, almost 75% say they wouldn’t be able to study without some type of digital technology. But here is the bad news from Wired for us as OM instructors: “Nearly 2 in 5 say they are unable to go more than 10 minutes without checking one of their digital devices”.

To answer the first part about e-text sales, Wired thinks : (1) students are smart and have figured out that buying a book–new or used– and then reselling it is still a good deal; and (2) everyone is still waiting to see around which platform the  major publishers will coalesce. As e-texts become more dynamic,  full of audio-visual content, and internet-connected, the question will be whether your e-text will work on your Kindle as well as your laptop? What about on the HP Touchpad that I just picked up this week for $100?

Now, about the second issue– of students focusing not on you, but rather on their freedom to multitask with their technology during lectures? Here is how Jay and I can  help: (1) Try showing some of our 31 video cases —  5-12 minute company inside views that tie directly to each chapter’s topics; (2) Use some of the 2,000+ PowerPoints we created to power up your lectures (with suggested comments on each in our Instructor’s Resource Manual); and (3) Experiment with some of the class exercises we describe in this blog under the Teaching Tips section.

OM in the News: Technology Puts the Brakes on Truckers

Who doesn’t remember the romantic age of the US trucking industry? Powered by cheap diesel, drivers could do pretty much as they pleased on the open road. The days of open-throttles were made famous by Bert Reynolds’ 1977 movie, “Smokey and the Bandit”. Using his CB radio to skirt police traps, the  hero shreds speed limits on a cross-country beer run. Well, those days are gone.

The Wall Street Journal’s article (July 11,2011), “Firms Put Brakes on Truckers”, describes the technology trucking companies are using to wring better fuel economy from their fleets.  Firms are putting computerized governors on trucks’ engines, cutting top speeds from 70 mph to 65 mph. Titan Transfer is even paying bonuses to drivers who get the best fuel economy–and chewing out drivers who don’t. Every decline of 5 mph improves an 18-wheeler’s fuel use by 1/2 mile per gallon–big savings to the shippers.

Today, a driver’s every move is electronically recorded and relayed back to dispatch centers. The black box in the cab is wired to a satellite dish near the roof that beams the truck’s location, its speed, and even what gear it’s in back to the company in real-time. When one driver tried to shift into neutral going down a hill, to override the truck’s governor, a red light immediately flashed telling him to pull over and call HQ for a tongue-lashing.

Drivers, understandably, are not happy about covering less distance each day, as they are paid by the mile. This cuts take-home pay and makes the old-time,  cross-country run stretch from 3 days (at 80 mph) to 4 or 5 days. But even some reluctant drivers agree that 65 mph saves not only fuel, but lives.

Discussion questions:

1. What are other ways that technology can help make the trucking industry more efficient?

2. Make the case, from the driver’s perspective, why the changes are not efficient.

OM in the News: Pilots and the iPad–Efficiency in the Airlines, Part 2

Yesterday’s blog was on building efficient airplanes that weigh less and pollute less. With jet fuel  prices at near record high prices, we noted that every pound lighter a plane can be made saves 30 gallons of fuel a year. It’s interesting that the very next day, The New York Times (July 5, 2011) reported that 1.5 pound iPads are replacing 60 pounds worth of   flight manuals that pilots currently drag around.  The FAA has started to authorize airlines to use the tablet computer as an electronic flight bag to take the place of bulky paper manuals that contain operations instructions, checklists, log books, navigation charts, weather information and airport diagrams.

The flight director at Alaska Airlines says: “The iPad allows pilots to quickly and nimbly access information. When you need to make a decision in the cockpit, 3 to 4 minutes fumbling with paper is an eternity”.  Every one of Alaska’s pilots is now using the device — and  American Airlines, which just got FAA approval, is not far behind. The e-manuals include hyperlinks and color graphics. And pilots skip the tedium of updating manuals by swapping out old pages with new ones. Switching to the iPad is also expected to reduce absenteeism from shoulder and back injuries associated with hoisting the heavy bags (which also tear up the seats, according to one AA pilot).

There are now over 250 aviation apps for the iPad, including some that are easier to use than avionics technology installed in the planes. As we discuss in Ch.7, technology can play a major role in increasing operational efficiency. With American’s fleet at about 620 planes, the airline stands to save over 1 million gallons of fuel per year just with the iPads!

Discussion questions:

1. How else does technology save the airlines time and money?

2. Can the iPads be used when the plane is in flight?

OM in the News: Obama vs. ATMs and Technology vs. Jobs

In headlines last week, President Obama linked technology to job losses when he stated:  “There are some structural issues with our economy where a lot of businesses have learned to become more efficient with a lot fewer workers. You see it when you go to a bank and you use an ATM, you don’t go to a bank teller”. The Wall Street Journal (June 22,2100), however, says: “We usually call it progress. It isn’t exactly a new phenomenon. Businesses relentlessly look for ways to replace workers with machines”.

It’s true that telephone operators lost jobs to automated switching, toll collectors are being replaced by E-Z Pass, and that auto workers lose jobs to robots. The Journal gives 2 great examples of productivity increases that benefit society with lower priced goods. The 1st is the textile industry where 50 years ago, one N. Carolina worker operated 5 machines at once, each running a thread through a loom 100 times a minute. Now machines run 6 times as fast, and one worker overseas 100 of them. That’s a 120 fold increase in productivity!

The 2nd example is how 2 workers can now manage an egg laying operation of 1 million chickens laying 240 million eggs a year. The two keep an eye on the highly-mechanized, computerized process that no one could even imagine 50 years ago.

 The result of such productivity gains is a higher standard of living for all of us, in which we work fewer hours to afford enough money to buy  a dozen eggs, a flat-screen TV, or new shoes. Our blog a few months ago discusses why productivity increases are such a plus to society.

Discussion questions:

1. How do new jobs get created to replace the old ones?

2. Why do productivity increase help our society?

OM in the News: The Pressure on Hospitals to Improve Efficiency and Curb Waste

As the White House and Congress debate how to contain runaway medical costs, equipment maker GE is embarking on its own quest to help hospitals reduce wasteful spending and treatment errors. As much as $500 billion out of the $2.2 trillion spent on health care is wasted on duplicate processes, bad coordination, and out-of-date scheduling, says GE, in the latest Businessweek (April  18-24, 2011). “It’s generally accepted that for every $100 spent on health care, $20 or more is waste”, adds the CEO of GE’s health-care/IT unit.

GE’s plan takes two approaches. The first is to cut costs of medical imaging, with 80 new products coming on-line in the next 2 years, including an MRI that scans only extremities. This frees up whole-body machines for more complex scans, which both cuts a hospital’s costs and raises its revenues.

Although improving molecular imaging , which helps catch diseases earlier, is the most glamorous way to save money, the US health-care overhaul is also looking at a second source. For GE, that means branching into information technology and consulting. The 2010 law signed by Obama  requires hospitals to use more IT to reduce costs and medical errors. As a result, hospitals are looking for outside expertise. GE  Healthcare plans to do $1 billion annually with its new consulting unit, analyzing patient data and digitizing medical records.

OM is again at the center of these changes, leading the way with new technology (Ch.7), process improvements, and quality tools. Many profs have asked us to keep an eye out for health-related examples such as this one.

Discussion questions:

1.Why are so many expensive devices used in hospitals?

2. How can OM help make hospitals more efficient?

3. How can medical records increase the quality of healthcare?

OM in the News: Terrorism Spurs New Product Development

One of the biggest generators of new product development (Ch.5) has been global terrorism. And one of the biggest exporters of domestic security technology has been Israel. The Orlando Sentinel just reported (Dec.5,2010) that more than 400 Israeli companies export $1.5 billion annually ( a number predicted to grow exponentially), with such products as biometric devices, anti-intrusion systems, airport screening machines, explosive detectors, and remote-controlled vehicles.

Israel is focusing on Brazil, which plans to spend $3 billion on security for the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Summer Olympics, and on India whose internal security budget tops $1 billion a year.

Here are just a few of the products you may not have heard of:

Magal Security Systems’ perimeter-intrusion systems at 11 airports in China.

Nice Systems’ data analysis and surveillance systems at the Eiffel Tower, Statue of Liberty, Bank of America, and NYC Police Dept.

MagShoe, a machine operated in airports in Europe and Australia to detect weapons in shoes without passengers having to remove their footware.

IntuView’s document-scanning software that not only translates Arabic text, but searches for key words, including names, dates and Quranic verses commonly cited by extremists. One customer is the US Army.

WeCU Technologies’ camera-monitored airport kiosks, which are designed to detect “malicious intent” of users by tracking facial expressions, stress levels, breath/heart rate, and sweating.

As I mentioned in my blog on Sept. 21st about the book A Start Up Nation, Israel cannot compete with mass-production countries such as the US and China, so Israeli firms need to be creative in new product development.

Discussion questions:

1. Why is new product development so important to every company?

2. Why does Israel have more  high-tech firms listed on Nasdaq than any other country?

3. How will terrorism continue to provide the need for OM solutions?

OM in the News: Solar–Will the U.S. Lose Out to China?

A few days ago, our blog gave the good news that BMW and Mercedes were expanding their manufacturing in the US. For our nation’s standard of living to rise, we indeed need to make things. And such jobs pay well and provide a path for middle class success.

But the New York Times headline (Oct.13,2010), “In the Future, Already Behind” brought me back to reality with a thud. The story is about Silicon Valley and its commitment to transforming the economics of solar panel production. Firms like Solyndra, Nanasolar, and MiaSole bet the farm that their “thin film” technology would make them the Intels and Apples of the exploding global solar industry.

But just as Solyndra flipped the switch on its new $733 million California  factory last month, everything changed. The Chinese, using vast economies of scale and government subsidies, sent the price of panels plunging 40%  and grabbed 40% of the vast California market. They also took the bulk of the European market. What looked like a chance for US manufacturing to dominate a critical growing market has crumbled to the realities of globalization.

“How do you fight against enormous subsidies, low-interest loans, cheap labor and scale, and a government strategy to make you no.1 in solar?”, asks an American CEO.

New technologies (see Ch.7), meant to be cheaper, must get there faster is one lesson we learn here.

Discussion questions:

1. What are the dangers of ceding this industry to the Chinese?

2. How can the US firms counter this threat (see Ch.2 for a strategy discussion)?

3. Should the US provide the same benefits that China does to new companies?