IEEM Newsletter, Autumn 2003

Abstract

IEEM newsletter Department of Industrial Engineering and Engineering Management School of Engineering Autumn 2003

The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology The HKUST Logistics and Supply Chain Management Institute - Milestone in Hong Kong Logistics Industry The HKUST Logistics and Supply Chain Management Institute (LSCMI), coordinating research, education and industrial cooperation efforts, was established in 2002. The new institute is expected to boost the Hong Kong logistics industry.

Initiated by the School of Engineering and Business Management, which provide their valuable faculty members and collective research experience, LSCMI, based in the department of Industrial Engineering & Engineering Management (IEEM), aims at acquiring. advancing and disseminating methodologies in the design and development of integrated logistics networks: as well as providing world leadership in Logistics and Supply Chain management research. Prof. Chung Yee Lee, the Head of the department of IEEM, took up the position of the Director of the institute, while Prof. Raymond Cheung, the Associate Professor of the department of IEEM. was appointed to be the Associate Director.

Besides devoting to research, LSCMI also plays an essential role in helping logistics operators and managers maintain their competitiveness through training seminars and programmes. It is hoped that such efforts can bring the institute one step closer in fulfilling the logistics needs of the regional and global industries.

Furthermore, the institute works with the government and industry to enhance the development of logistics and supply chain management and to integrate the needs of Hong Kong and its vicinity for the well being of the local economy.

LSCMI is serving as a strong backing for the Logistics & Supply Chain Forum, which aims at enhancing the competitiveness of Hong Kong’s distributive services in the Southern China Region, as well as the Master of Technology Management Program and the Executive Diploma in Transportation and Logistics Management.

Over 5 Million received from Innovation Technology Fund Our department has just been granted over 5 million dollars by the Innovation and Technology Fund to develop the Decision Support Tools for Intelligent Multi-modal Transportation Logistics Management Systems. Incorporating our expertise in transportation, logistics and supply chain management, it is a decision-based technological infrastructure that serves as the brain for planning, managing, and executing logistics activities efficiently. And it can be readily integrated and deployed by logistics management information systems developers and logistics service providers into their multi-modal transport logistics planning and execution systems.

Mass Customization Technology in Advanced Manufacturing Institute Contrary to conventional wisdom, customized products do not necessarily have to be produced at very small batch size, long lead time and/or expensive production cost. Mass customization technology is an inter-disciplinary knowledge that integrates marketing science, inventory theory, design methodology and production management to best satisfy customers individually with near mass production efficiency.

The scope of AMI encompasses the planning, design, implementation and operation of the manufacturing industry from marketing to delivery. The research and development of AMI focuses on : 1. Mass Customization and Personalization Technology (including product family development, customer buying decision making, process, and high variety low volume production technology)

As a world's class institute in Mass Customization and Personalization, the Advanced Manufacturing Institute at HKUST has taken a leading role of Mass Customization technology in apparel, shoe and electronics industry in upgrading their design capability and improving the overall effectiveness and interaction between OEM manufacturers and companies.

2. Collaboration Technology for Global Manufacturing (including web based remote management, negotiation and product life cycle management) 3. Design Technology (CADICAM, Concurrent Engineering, Human Modeling, Design Modeling and Virtual Reality Technology) 4. Automation Technology (including Motion Control, Sensor, Actuator, Instrumentation and Rapid Prototyping) Men Shirt Sample Factory visit to Nan Sha IT Park Prof. Mitchell M. Tseng, Director of Advanced Manufacturing Institute and the research team Prototype of cuff varieties of men shirt

World-renowned Speakers kicked off Distinguished Speaker Seminar Series The Distinguished Speaker Seminar Series commenced with seminars by Professor Gang Yu on and Professor Warren B. Powell, at HKUST: Over 150 logistics professionals and managers were attracted to attend the events.

Advanced Concepts and Practices in Logistics Management - Prof. Gang Yu, 17 January 2003

Professor Gang Yu, the Jack G. Taylor Regents Professor in Business at the McCombs School of Business of the University of Texas at Austin. USA, is a world-renowned researcher whose work has been deployed as systems utilized in Fortune 500 companies. Professor Gang Yu was also recently awarded the prestigious Franz Edelman award for Management Science Achievement. During the seminar, Prof. Yu emphasized three main. Areas: Logistics network reengineering, Logistics Integration and Real-time operations control.

Real-Time Optimization for Real-World Problems - Prof. Warren B. Powell, January 24 2003

Professor Powell is on faculty at Princeton University in the US; he also founded and currently heads CASTLE Laboratory, which works with railroads, motor carriers, chemical distribution and the Air Force to develop strategic, tactical and real-time models, focusing on the problem of planning under uncertainty. Professor Powell is a former member of the board of directors of Informs, and has twice been a finalist in the Franz Edelman Management Science Achievement competition (1987 and 1991).

Logistics professionals and managers raised insightful questions in the Q & A session, which was scheduled near the end of the seminar. Both seminars received an overwhelming response from all the participants.

The distinguished Speaker Seminar Series is organized by the HKUST Logistics and Supply Chain Forum, which aims at enhancing the competitiveness of Hong Kong's distributive services in southern China. The forum is developed to foster partnership between industrial organizations and academia with the aim of advancing the practice of excellence in freight transportation, logistics, and global supply chain management. It also provides opportunities for managers and executives of different companies to exchange views and ideas on the managerial aspects of their operations.

The director of the HKUST logistics and Supply Chain Forum. Professor Andrew Lim said. 'The seminar has been a success overall. Since these are only the first two seminars of the Distinguished Speakers Seminar Series, we hope to make further improvement, so that we can get together with the professionals in the logistics industry, exchange ideas with them, as well as collaborate with both parties.'

There are two types of memberships of the forum - Corporate and Individual. Corporate membership has two levels, namely Leaders in Logistics and Supply Chain and Ordinary Member. The membership fee is HKD100,000 per annum for Leaders in Logistics and Supply Chain and HKD25,000 per annum for Ordinary Member. Membership for individual is at HKD1,000 per annum. All forum activities are open to representatives of corporate members and individual members. Corporate members will enjoy in-context and collaborative research and development with faculty members of the forum. Interested parties please contact Professor Andrew Lim, the Director of the HKUST Logistics and Supply Chain Forum at logforum@usth. k.

For more details of the forum, please refer to the following web site: http://forum.logistics. ust.hk

Contributing Society with Logistics & IT Expertise Our department, joining together with the Applied Technology Center (ATC) Project Management Team and ATC Nansha Software Engineering Team, has developed the Rehabus Information Management System (RIMS) that helps improve bus services for the elderly and disabled persons.

The Hong Kong Society for Rehabilitation has been providing transportation services, the Rehabus, as shown in the photos, to those who find it impossible or difficult to use public transportation. Operating a fleet of 84 mini buses with specialized equipment for transporting passengers in wheelchairs. Rehabus offers four types of transportation services - Scheduled Route, Pooled Dial-A-Ride and Feeder Service.

Since customer requests vary, not only does it require many resources and a large amount of overtime work for the drivers but also induces great complexity in route planning and scheduling. Furthermore, handling changes and ad-hoc requests make the situation more complicated. RIMS has been developed as a result.

Rehabus Information Management System (RIMS)

RIMS is a web-based information management system working in an intranet environment. It aims at maximizing resources utilization, improving efficiency and quality of bus services through full automation of the daily booking operation. In establishing electronic information flow regarding information on drivers, vehicles and customers, road network information, route plans and schedules and statistical information, it facilities efficiency and allows Rehabus to handle flexibly in changes and ad-hoc booking requests. It greatly reduces the operation overhead costs and duplicated paperwork.

Currently, RIMS is being developed in its second generation, RIMS 2.0, in which the system has been made more user-friendly with simplified workflow. Significant changes include the time-window being changed from timeslot-based to vector-based, greatly improving the degree of flexibility and accuracy. In the near future, another application regarding the customer billing system of Rehabus will be developed, which has interfacing with RIMS 2.0. Later, for RIMS Phase II, a decision support system allowing users to alter the planned routes and schedules so as to improve the efficiency for service fulfillment and resources optimization will be developed. The objectives of the system are to provide full functionalities from serving the booking requests of the customer to vehicle tracing and tracking, driver behavior monitoring for service improvement to dynamic real-time fleet management and route scheduling.

The System Architecture of Rehabus Information Management System (RIMS). RIMS External Email Server Security Subsystem Calendar Subsystem Driver Subsystem Vehicle Subsystem Customer Subsystem Booking Subsystem Road Network Subsystem Scheduling Subsystem Parameter Subsystem Result Recording Subsystem Reporting Subsystem Database Server

Industrial Engineering Magic on Disneyland

Besides the famous Mickey Mouse, what would pop into your mind when Disneyland is mentioned? It is now time to start thinking about Industrial Engineering!

Indeed, the knowledge of Industrial Engineering has been one of the key elements used by Ms. Erin Wallace, the senior vice president of Walt Disney World Resort Operations, to climb up her career ladder in the magic kingdom, according to Industrial Engineer, a magazine for Industrial Engineers.

The photo shows Mr Andrew Bolstein from Hong Kong Disneyland Park and Prof. C.Y. Lee, the head of the Department of Industrial Engineering & Engineering Management, HKUST.

Magic makers can hardly afford mistakes. Besides finances and strategies, guest services are critical to the impression guests have when they visit Disney World. Wallace proudly relies on her industrial engineering skills to make sure no guest is disappointed.

'I look at industrial engineers as problem solvers, and truly when you think about all the things you learn as an IE, it's all for the aim and goal of solving problems in a multitude of different environments. I'm working to try to solve some of the largest kinds of problems in operations ... and then I also have the knowledge of how to utilize those support areas that enable operations to perform better,' said Wallace. (extracted from p. 30 May 2002 Industrial Engineer)

Industrial engineering at Walt Disney World began in 1971. By 1980, its role had expanded to support all divisions of the company and other special development projects.

The work of the industrial engineering teams can be divided into the following categories: Capacity/demand planning and process improvement initiatives. The FastPass system that reduces customer waiting time for some of the Disney attractions is one of the latest innovations developed by the industrial engineering department; Flexible bus routing, which has increased the efficiency of the 234-bus fleet; Customers relationship management implementation; and New theme park development. For example, the IE teams have expended much effort in developing the Hong Kong Disneyland.

Starting from June 2003, our third year students are working on final-year-projects associated with Hong Kong Disneyland. Currently we have on-going 5 projects and we expect the number of projects will increase.

Mr. Andrew Bolstein, from the Department of Operations & Industrial Engineering of Hong Kong Disneyland Park, will give our students a talk later in HKUST.

Our Department offers Part-time Programmes in Logistics & Global Enterprise Management

Executive Diploma in Transportation Logistics Management (EDTLM) Consisting of 18 days of teaching and assessment, the EDTLM, a part-time program, is offered by our department through the School of Engineering Continuing and Professional Education Program at HKUST. Since its first offering in 1999, known as Graduate Diploma in Transportation Logistics Management (GDTLM) then, the program has been well received.

The program aims at bringing participants the knowledge and tools to achieve efficient and well-organized management decisions and operations. It is targeted at managers and engineers employed in the manufacturing, transport, logistics, distribution, and related sectors. Participants from the last few offerings have an average of over 10 years of experience in the transportation/logistics industry and a majority of them assume mid-to senior management positions.

So far three batches of students have been graduated. The photograph besides shows Prof. Raymond Cheung (right), the Program Director of the EDTLM program, presenting the executive diploma to one of the EDTLM graduates in 2001-2002 at the graduation ceremony held in Sept 2002.

Master of Technology Management (MTM) Program in Information Technology and Global Logistics Management.

Another programme is the MTM. With its unique combined emphasis on the development of technical expertise and business intelligence. MTM, an 18-month, part-time program, is especially designed to inspire professionals. engineers, and managers to become Chief Technology (CTO's). Chief Information Officers (CIO's), and Chief Executive Officers (CEO's).

The other attractive aspects of the MTM program are its integration of professional activity series and a compulsory study trip to visit technology companies in a major Asian city. With the purpose of facilitating the networking of professional colleagues, the professional activity series consists of seminars, discussion forums, and company visits. Students can also strengthen their network with professionals from outside Hong Kong and enhance their experience through the compulsory study trip to visit companies in a major Asian city.

The MTM program has recently been offered in Shanghai, in partnership with the Shanghai Jiao Tong University, to nurture senior technology managers in the Mainland China. In addition to the regular classes, the program also provides students with a compulsory trip to technology companies in Shanghai, the Pearl River Delta, Hong Kong and Shenzhen, as well as an optional trip to the United States.

Master of Science in Engineering Enterprise Management (MSc in EEM) Besides the logistics programmes, a new Postgraduate programme, Master of Science in Engineering Enterprise Management (EEM) is commencing at September 2003. Uniquely balanced for the needs of today's global enterprise management, the part-time programme is a collaboration of HKUST's Engineering and Business Schools. Practicing engineers and scientists of all disciples who seek to launch their careers in management and technical managers who programme. Master of Science in wished to have advanced and up-to-date training to further their careers in global enterprises in either the services or manufacturing industries will benefit from the programme.

Stanford Tour opens Eyes Eighteen of our students flew lo the US in January 2003, as part of the course IEEM 550 Global Manufacturing.

Jointly offered by Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) and Stanford University every year in the Spring Semester since 1995, IEEM 550 has aimed at providing a group of highly motivated cross-culture-team students with an environment to solve industrial problems.

The course focuses on issues that are global in nature, and are related to the Product Development, Strategic Planning and Design of Supply Chains. Three to four students from each institution work together as a team to tackle a defined problem sponsored by an industrial company that interests in North America and the Asia-Pacific region. Managing cross-border, cross-function, and cross-culture aspects are also discussed.

Julian Wong, one of the IEEM 550 students shared his experience, said that, 'This course offered me a challenging and rewarding opportunity to know about specific industries and work with foreigners. Stanford University has a very beautiful and grand campus. I was able to feel their passion and intelligence once I stepped on it. I'm definitely sure this valuable experience enhanced my communication and thinking skills which will benefit my future career.'

'It was an interesting and unforgettable experience. Through working a collaborative project with Stanford students. I explored cultural differences and strengthened my knowledge and skills.' said Fiona Yip, another IEEM 550 student this year.

The President of Stanford University (third from left, upper row) and our students in the Stanford University bookstore

New Faculty Andrew Lim Education: PhD. University of Minnesota (1992) Before coming to UST: From 1992-1997, Dr. Lim was a systems developer, project leader and consultant to many large private and government organizations in Singapore. From 1997-2002, he was an associate professor of Computer Science at the National University of Singapore. He has published more than 110 papers in premier international conferences and journals. His work has been translated into deployed systems like UTTS-Exam, Online-Judge etc. and has received numerous awards. In 2002 alone, he received the HP Innovative IT award, AAAI Innovation Applications in Artificial Intelligence Award and a Startup@Singapore award for applications and products he deployed. He was the coach and trainer of the Singapore team in the International Olympiad in Informatics from 1999 to 2001, which culminated in Singapore being ranked first out of 75 competing countries. He has been a coach of the NUS ACM team in the intercollegiate programming contests. His teams have always been in the top 30 teams worldwide out of more than 1000 participating Universities. Teaching Interests: Algorithms Software components, framework and architecture for Global Supply Chain management

Research Interests: Combinatorial Optimization Decision Support in Supply Chains Artificial Intelligence Software Architecture Design Patterns

Kaijie Zhu Education: PhD, Stanford University (2002) MS and BS, Shanghai Jiao Tong University (1996 and 1993, respectively)

Before coming to UST: He was a pre-professional Intern, IBM T. J. Watson Research Center, New York (2000) Teaching Interests: Production and operations management Inventory control Operations research Research Interests: Supply chain management Production planning Inventory control, and Marketing-operations interfaces

Alumni Updates Have you ever wondered how your former classmates and those who studied the same program with you have been doing? Here is a recent update on some of them: Note: EDTLM - Executive Diploma in Transportation Logistics Management BEng IEEM - BEng Industrial Engineering & Engineering Management BEng IETM - BEng Industrial Engineering & Engineering Management (Transportation Logistics Management) *The title of this program is revised as BEng in Logistics Management with effect from 2003-04. MSc IEEM - MSc in Industrial Engineering & Engineering Management Chan Hong Chit Henry (BEng IEEM 99) Analyst Programmer 2 GoTrade.com Ltd

Chan Tom (BEng IEEM 02) Kerry Logistics

Cheung Alan (BEng IETM* 01) Assistant Distribution Officer Kerry Logistics

Chong Tsz Sum Keith (BEng IEEM 02) Logistics Trainee Panalpina China Ltd.

Choy Chiu Kwan Peter (EDTLM 01) Project Manager HK Int'l Terminals

Hong Chun Man Ringo (EDTLM 01) UPS Supply Chain Solutions

Kwan Chen Ho Thomas (BEng IEEM 02) Management Trainee Lik Shing (Shui Wah) IND. CO. LTD

Kwan Hoi Luk Chris (EDTLM 01) Head of international Logistics, Asia TESCO

Lai Wai Keung Alfred (EDTLM 01) Assistant Freight Projects Manager Kowloon Canton Railway Corporation

Law Luen Po Celia (EDTLM 02) APL Logistics Co. Ltd.

Lee Yat Chun Eric (EDTLM 02) Senior Account Executive Fedex

Leung Kwok Kee Charles (EDTLM 02) Manager, Business Application Delivery APL Logistics Co. Ltd.

Lau Wai Kwong Thomas (EDTLM 01) Deputy General Manager - Airfreight Schenker International (HK) Ltd. Message to Alumni: Keep Up - Get ready for Challenge

Man Hei Keung (EDTLM 00) Business Development Manager Exel Hong Kong

Ng Ming Fai Johnny (EDTLM 00) Project Manager - Lead Logistics Provider UPS Supply Chain Solutions

Sung Wing Yin David (EDTLM 00) Country Manager Kalitta Air

Tsang Chi Tat Peter (EDTLM 00) Regional Warehousing & Distribution Project Manager Jardine Logistics Services (HKG) Limited

Tsang Kwong Nap (EDTLM 01) Head, Web based Service Division Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority

Wan Jason (EDTLM 02) Manager - Global Sales Centre International Cargo Division Nippon Express Co., Ltd.

Wong Edmond (MSc IEEM 02) Assistant to Directors Yue Po Engineering Co., Ltd.

Yeung Michelle (BEng IETM* 01 ) Supervisor DHL (Hong Kong) International Ltd

Please send your comments and contributions to us: Tel: (852) 2358-71 02 Email: ieug@ust.hk