Towards a Component Concept for Continuous Engineering

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Jönköping Region - a center for SME development


Swedens most SME-rich region A living laboratory
for SME-development gt60 of mechanical industry
within 200 km An extensive network of
subcontractors A network of development centers
for SMEs
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Where is Jönköping?
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Jönköping University

• Four schools Engineering, Business, Learning and
  Health
• Focus on entrepreneurship and development
  processes
• Joint research programme with 3 perspectives
• Technology, Organisation and Learning

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Development processes in SMEs and SME-networks

Three perspectives Technology
Organisation
Learning Three
technology domains (computer and
mechanical) Product life cycle
Network life cycle Knowledge
supply
Network formation Matching skills
Regional linkage
Interregional linkage Web infrastructure
University networks
Student teams
Some practical cases
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Three ICT-technology domains Product life
cycle Knowledge supply Network life cycle

• ICT Technology Team
• Jönköping University (Computing Mechanical)
• Fraunhofer ISST, Berlin
• Computas, Oslo
• SPIIRAS, St Petersburg
• Universidad Complutense Madrid

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Product life cycle
Product Design
Market Requirements
Production Planning
After Sales
Logistics
Sales Fulfillment
Manufacturing
Distribution

• specialised solutions for SMEs
• integration of different systems
• integration of modeling, execution
• integration of business strategy, corporate
  knowledge and IT infrastructure

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Knowledge Supply in SME-Networks
Supplier A
Supplier C
Co-operation Process
Customer
Manufacturer
Supplier D

• complex co-operation process
• need for optimized knowledge supply
• intransparency w.r.t. knowledge sources
• no common language

Supplier B
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Knowledge Sources in SMEs
Personal competences of the employees
Corporate competences of the enterprise

• Electronically stored comptence objects
• Documents (design rules, reports)
• CAD drawings
• Simulation routines
• Requirement specifications
• Etc.

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Research Lifecycle of SME networks
Community Building
Matching skills Regional linkage Interregional
linkage
Formation
Community Dissolvement
Integration
Dis- continuation
Operation
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Network Formation web support

Structure of products/services
Matching
Structure of competences/skills
Gap analysis
Negociation
Learning
Formation
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The host company concept
Combining theory and practice
The
students have during the first study years a host
company where the students combine theory and
practice in small curriculum related studies
All students are given a host company
The students can
choose from about 500 host companies and the
study project are related to the companies
business and industrial processes
A springboard to employment
The sequence
host gtdiploma workgtemployment is common.
Emloyment of engineers in SMEs is facilitated.
Strong links between university and regional
industry
The university has a good contact and knowledge
of the regional industry. Students convey
knowledge to SMEsbbb
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Year 1
Year 2
Selection students SWMulti
8 universities EU Latin America
Start of student project
Information to SMEs
SME-selection
Student admin
Student-SME interviews
SME Data base
1 SME at UNI 1 1 SME at UNI 2 2 students from UNI
1 2 students from UNI 2
Selection students SWMulti
Linking SMEs and students from UNI 1 2
Information to SMEs
Student admin
Student-SME interviews
Start of student project
Hand- book package
SME Database
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Value chain
Pulp
Process
Paper
Harvest
Saw-mill
Process
Component
Plantation
Mainten.
Board
Process
Component
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Some practical cases
ALFA project SME-chains

Student exchange projects between SMEs in Chile
and SMEs in Germany, Spain and Sweden. 1 with
Germany, 2 with Spain and 4 with Sweden. Projects
are formulated as diploma works, but have
potential to lead to continued cooperation.
Chambers of Commerce Jönköping Montevideo
Student exchange based on cooperation
between two Chamber of Commerce and two
e-learning SMEs. The concept starts from a
Swedish educational programme to promote
e-business in SMEs and to transfer some of the
concept to Uruguay, in particular industries
involved in export.
Antioquia Wood Cluster in Colombia
The project
is financed by SIDA the Swedish Aid Agency. A
survey of regional value chain including RD and
education, on a web-portal supports interregional
linkage. Starting from reforestation plans of the
Antioquia wood cluster consequencies on further
processing and logistics are considered
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Observations

• The SME interest in the exchange depends on
  possible benefits of establishing commercial
  relations and the capacity to receive students.
• The matching of SMEs is supported by web-tools
  and an exellent tool for awareness, but finally
  the mediating of the university coordinators
  close the deal.
• Economically weak regions have a stronger
  interest to establish relations with strong
  regions and vice versa. An advantage if SME on
  one side is rather large.
• Between economically unequal regions an
  institutional and funded cooperation between
  regions is better, e.g Chambers of Commerce or
  AID organisations.
• It is easy to motivate students from idealistic
  reasons and for valuable international
  experience, at the same time meeting
  requirements from students and participating
  universities on valid diploma works for the
  students.
• The possibilities to find interested SME exchange
  partners reflects the situation in different
  countries.

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Future plans

• Basic RD in the areas of common terminologies
  and ontologies, database structuring and search
  based on value chain, links to project planning
  and management based on Logical Framework.
• University student and diploma work exchange
  based on interregional industrial cooperation
  especially as regards SMEs and SME-networks.
• Concepts for promoting less developed regions
  through interregional cooperation and provide new
  planning tools for International Aid Agencies. Of
  special importance is the role of SMEs in the
  integration of the economies of the 10 new EU
  member states

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Value chain Time diagrams
Value chain
(to)
1
Value chain (t1)
2
Value chain (t2)
3
Value
chain (t3)
4
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