Research Outputs (Mechanical and Industrial Engineering)
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Item An investigation into stock capacity utilization of a manufacturing line at a catalyst manufacturer(Southern African Institute for Industrial Engineering (SAIIE), 2022-10-03) Munilal, Joel Jeremy ; Ndou, Ndivhuwo; Ramdass, KemlallBottlenecks in a manufacturing line are the fundamental reason that obstructs productivity.Accurately and effectively recognizing bottleneck areas, can improve the use of limitedassembling resources, increment the framework throughput, and limit the complete expenseof production. This article focuses on improving the throughput of a manufacturing line in anautomotive component supplier plant. The project aims to develop a solution to increase thecapacity of the production system by following an adapted design thinking method to approachthe problem. The first step in the process is to Underline (Emphasize), followed by Define,Research, Analyse, Ideate, and Conclude with Testing and Verification. Tools used in thisproject are Process mapping, Genchi Gembutsu, Time studies, Ishikawa diagrams (Root causeanalysis), and five why analysis. Insight was gained in the Emphasize phase using Gemba walksand observation.Item Using lean management to advance supply chain efficiency(33rd ANNUAL SOUTHERN AFRICAN INSTITUTE FOR INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERING CONFERENCE, 2022-10-03) Mncwango, Bongumenzi Talent; Ramdass, Kemlall; Ndou, NdivhuwoLean management has been traditionally used in the manufacturing world but recently there has been a move to apply lean manufacturing principles in the supply chain management. There is an ever-growing pressure for organisations to achieve shorter lead times, lower costs and better quality. Lean provides a systematic approach to optimize value stream from suppliers to consumers through elimination of non-value adding activities. This paper looks at the benefits of implementing lean in supply chain, supply chain performance review tools, evolution of lean in other sectors out of manufacturing and how it can be implemented in an integrative manner with other approaches such as Industry 4.0. It further reviews the peer reviewed case studies where lean has been implemented successfully and how can the results be amplified further.Item Applying lean to the supply chain in the railway industry(IEOM Society International, 2024-04-23) Ramdass, Kemlall; Phuluwa, Humbulani Simon; Ndou, NdivhuwoThe railroad sector, a crucial part of contemporary transportation systems, is required to meet rising demands for effectiveness, economy, and sustainability. This study investigates how to apply lean principles to improve supply chain efficiency that is impacted by the railroad industry. According to the analysis, using lean approaches can result in significant gains in customer satisfaction, cost control, and output. It also reveals significant issues with material accessibility, quality assurance, payment conditions, and supplier inspection procedures. For the supply chain to fully benefit from lean principles, several issues must be resolved. This study intends to offer useful insights for industry stakeholders by looking at case studies, identifying problems, and making recommendations. It provides a road map for organisations to enhance their supply chains, achieve operational excellence, and satisfy changing market needs through thorough analysis and strategic recommendations. This study emphasizes how crucial it is to use lean principles to the railway sector to make it a more effective, affordable, and environmentally friendly method of transportation.Item An overview of torrefied bioresource briquettes: quality-influencing parameters, enhancement through torrefaction and applications(2022-11-28) Waheed, M. A.; Akogun, O. A.; Enweremadu, C. C.Abstract In recent years, the need for clean, viable and sustainable source of alternative fuel is on the rampage in the global space due to the challenges posed by human factors including fossil induced emissions, fuel shortage and its ever-rising prices. These challenges are the major reason to utilize alternative source of energy such as lignocellulosic biomass as domestic and industrial feedstock. However, biomass in their raw form is problematic for application, hence, a dire need for torrefaction pre-treatment is required. The torrefaction option could ameliorate biomass limitations such as low heating value, high volatile matter, low bulk density, hygroscopic and combustion behaviour, low energy density and its fibrous nature. The torrefied product in powder form could cause air pollution and make utilization, handling, transportation, and storage challenging, hence, densification into product of higher density briquettes. This paper therefore provides an overview on the performance of torrefied briquettes from agricultural wastes. The review discusses biomass and their constituents, torrefaction pre-treatment, briquetting of torrefied biomass, the parameters influencing the quality, behaviour and applications of torrefied briquettes, and way forward in the briquetting sector in the developing world.Item Experimental investigation into the effect of surface roughness and mechanical properties of 3D-printed titanium Ti-64 ELI after heat treatment(2021-11-17) Lebea, L.; Ngwangwa, H. M.; Desai, D.; Nemavhola, F.Abstract The initial stability after implantology is paramount to the survival of the dental implant, and the surface roughness of the implant plays a vital role in this regard. The characterisation of surface topography is a complicated branch of metrology, with a huge range of parameters available. Each parameter contributes significantly towards the survival and mechanical properties of three-dimensional printed specimens. The purpose of this paper is to experimentally investigate the effect of surface roughness of three-dimensional printed dental implants and three-dimensional printed dogbone tensile samples under areal height parameters, amplitude parameters (average of ordinates), skewness parameters and mechanical properties. During the experiment, roughness values were analysed, and the results showed that the skewness parameter demonstrated a minimum value of 0.59%. The three-dimensional printed dental implant recorded the arithmetic mean deviation of the assessed profile with a 3.4-mm diameter at 43.23% and the three-dimensional printed dental implant with a 4.3-mm diameter at 26.18%. Samples with a complex geometry exhibited a higher roughness surface, which was the greatest difficulty of additive manufacturing when evaluating surface finish. The results show that when the ultimate tensile stress decreases from 968.35 to 955.25 MPa, the arithmetic mean deviation increases by 1.4%, and when ultimate tensile stress increases to 961.18 MPa, the arithmetic mean deviation increases by 0.6%. When the cycle decreases from 262,142 to 137,433, the arithmetic mean deviation shows that less than a 90.74% increase in the cycle is obtained. For the three-dimensional printed dental implants, the higher the surface roughness, the lower the mechanical properties, ultimately leading to decreased implant life and poor performance.