An Analysis of the Impact of Industry 4.0 on the Motor Industry in the Eastern Cape
- Authors: Dorothy, Liesel
- Date: 2020
- Subjects: Motor vehicle industry -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape.
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/47721 , vital:40329
- Description: Over the past decade we have noted the accelerated development in information technology which has resulted in the internet moving from merely connecting people via computers to its connections now being extended to connect virtually everything. It has changed the daily lives of humans, from how we communicate with each other and drive our vehicles to how we work as well. These advancements in technology have created smart technologies which give organisations and countries a competitive advantage when implemented. Developed countries in Europe and North America have invested significant sums of money in order to speed up the implementation of industry 4.0 given the benefits that can be derived from it. Literature on industry 4.0 is on the rise, however not many studies have been conducted in Africa or South Africa. The purpose of this research is to analyse the impact that industry 4.0 technologies have on the operational performance of an organisation in the automotive industry in the Eastern Cape in South Africa. The effects of these technologies on the operational performance of an organisation will be assessed on the key performance measures of: speed, flexibility, quality, delivery dependability and cost. The study also seeks to define a guideline for organisations to use who wish to implement these technologies into their operations. A literature review on the subject was conducted as well as an empirical investigation. The results from both the literature review and the empirical investigation found that the operational performance of an organisation improves with the implementation of technology.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2020
- Authors: Dorothy, Liesel
- Date: 2020
- Subjects: Motor vehicle industry -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape.
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/47721 , vital:40329
- Description: Over the past decade we have noted the accelerated development in information technology which has resulted in the internet moving from merely connecting people via computers to its connections now being extended to connect virtually everything. It has changed the daily lives of humans, from how we communicate with each other and drive our vehicles to how we work as well. These advancements in technology have created smart technologies which give organisations and countries a competitive advantage when implemented. Developed countries in Europe and North America have invested significant sums of money in order to speed up the implementation of industry 4.0 given the benefits that can be derived from it. Literature on industry 4.0 is on the rise, however not many studies have been conducted in Africa or South Africa. The purpose of this research is to analyse the impact that industry 4.0 technologies have on the operational performance of an organisation in the automotive industry in the Eastern Cape in South Africa. The effects of these technologies on the operational performance of an organisation will be assessed on the key performance measures of: speed, flexibility, quality, delivery dependability and cost. The study also seeks to define a guideline for organisations to use who wish to implement these technologies into their operations. A literature review on the subject was conducted as well as an empirical investigation. The results from both the literature review and the empirical investigation found that the operational performance of an organisation improves with the implementation of technology.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2020
The impact of the construction regulations 2014 on a water utility’s projects’ health and safety performance in South Africa
- Authors: Malindi, Rajandree Mandy
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Construction industry -- Safety regulations -- South Africa , Construction industry -- Standards -- South Africa Construction industry -- Law and legislation -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/31655 , vital:31645
- Description: The construction industry plays a major role in South Africa’s economic development. Since promulgation of the Construction Regulations, the expectation is that project stakeholders are placing more emphasis on H&S to contribute to project success. The study aimed to assess the impact of the involvement of clients and other project stakeholders on the overall project H&S performance on projects undertaken by a large water utility. The scope was limited to the organisation’s engineering and operations division and its internal project stakeholders, namely the designers, quantity surveyors, project managers, and construction H&S professionals. Local literature pointed out that poor construction H&S performance is attributable to a lack of management commitment, inadequate supervision, inadequate or lack of H&S training, lack of worker involvement, personal risk appreciation and work pressures (cidb, 2009: 37). International literature indicated that the total CoA exceeds the cost of H&S (cidb, 2009: 9). Quantitative methods were utilised in two phases to gather and analyse data. In Phase 1, a questionnaire was developed and distributed to a target population, and in Phase 2, data was obtained from existing records of historic and completed project files for projects undertaken by the water utility. A total of 67 responses were used to analyse data. All stakeholders somehow contributed to H&S however, most respondents regarded CHS professionals, contractors and PMs as the primary stakeholders. The study found that stakeholders perceived H&S to be influenced during the later rather than the initial stages of projects and that H&S actions were significantly undertaken during stage 5. The frequency of H&S actions varied with each stakeholder dependent on the stage in which they were involved in. Recommendations were for H&S to be integrated in the initial stages of projects and for a follow up research to be conducted to investigate if there are improvements during the six project stages after full implementation of the Construction Regulations 2014. This requirement will force industry to comply and most importantly to drive joint efforts by the various stakeholders.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Malindi, Rajandree Mandy
- Date: 2018
- Subjects: Construction industry -- Safety regulations -- South Africa , Construction industry -- Standards -- South Africa Construction industry -- Law and legislation -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/31655 , vital:31645
- Description: The construction industry plays a major role in South Africa’s economic development. Since promulgation of the Construction Regulations, the expectation is that project stakeholders are placing more emphasis on H&S to contribute to project success. The study aimed to assess the impact of the involvement of clients and other project stakeholders on the overall project H&S performance on projects undertaken by a large water utility. The scope was limited to the organisation’s engineering and operations division and its internal project stakeholders, namely the designers, quantity surveyors, project managers, and construction H&S professionals. Local literature pointed out that poor construction H&S performance is attributable to a lack of management commitment, inadequate supervision, inadequate or lack of H&S training, lack of worker involvement, personal risk appreciation and work pressures (cidb, 2009: 37). International literature indicated that the total CoA exceeds the cost of H&S (cidb, 2009: 9). Quantitative methods were utilised in two phases to gather and analyse data. In Phase 1, a questionnaire was developed and distributed to a target population, and in Phase 2, data was obtained from existing records of historic and completed project files for projects undertaken by the water utility. A total of 67 responses were used to analyse data. All stakeholders somehow contributed to H&S however, most respondents regarded CHS professionals, contractors and PMs as the primary stakeholders. The study found that stakeholders perceived H&S to be influenced during the later rather than the initial stages of projects and that H&S actions were significantly undertaken during stage 5. The frequency of H&S actions varied with each stakeholder dependent on the stage in which they were involved in. Recommendations were for H&S to be integrated in the initial stages of projects and for a follow up research to be conducted to investigate if there are improvements during the six project stages after full implementation of the Construction Regulations 2014. This requirement will force industry to comply and most importantly to drive joint efforts by the various stakeholders.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
An assessment of public participation strategies: the case of Nyandeni Local Municipality
- Authors: Bambeni, Mbulelo
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Public administration -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape -- Citizen participation Local government -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MPA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/17470 , vital:28343
- Description: This study assessed the public participation strategies from the perspective of local government governance in encouraging community participation with specific reference to the Nyandeni Local Municipality (NLM). The research was based on the assumption that one of the biggest challenges facing most municipalities in South Africa is the lack of effective public participation strategies which results in service delivery protest actions. As a local municipality, the NLM has been entrusted with the responsibility to promote and encourage community participation.. . The purpose of the research study was to investigate and observe the public participation strategies with specific reference to the Nyandeni Local Municipality. The assessment of the public participation strategies of the NLM will therefore be fundamentally descriptive, but highly exploratory in nature. This research employed the quantitative method. An empirical survey was employed for purposes of the study and the research findings are described, interpreted, and analysed. Data was collected by way of a suitably constructed questionnaire which was administered to the ward committee members. The research has established that there is a good public participation approach in place but its functioning is inadequate, the ward committee members have little understanding of their roles and responsibilities in terms of the implementation of the public participation strategy, and they have failed to facilitate communication between the Municipality and the community. There was also an indication that the service delivery protest actions were fuelled by political motives and certain challenges and not solely by a lack of an effective public participation. In addition, the language used by the Municipality is mostly not understandable to the community as a whole. This research also identifies the strengths and the weaknesses of the public participation strategies as these are regarded as critical in promoting successful local democracy. It is envisaged that this research will assist the Nyandeni Municipality, and other municipalities country-wide to identify challenges with which they are faced and to deal with these accordingly in terms of the objectives identified in the public participation strategies. Furthermore, this research study envisages promoting effective public participation strategies within the Nyandeni Local Municipality as well as improving the efficiency and effectiveness of service delivery that will ensure communities of their well-being and dignity. Various recommendations are presented, based on the findings, primarily from the literature review and empirical survey, on how the existing status quo of the NLM can be changed to enhance public participation. If these recommendations are adopted, the Nyandeni LM will be able to develop and implement effective public participation strategies.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2017
- Authors: Bambeni, Mbulelo
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Public administration -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape -- Citizen participation Local government -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MPA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/17470 , vital:28343
- Description: This study assessed the public participation strategies from the perspective of local government governance in encouraging community participation with specific reference to the Nyandeni Local Municipality (NLM). The research was based on the assumption that one of the biggest challenges facing most municipalities in South Africa is the lack of effective public participation strategies which results in service delivery protest actions. As a local municipality, the NLM has been entrusted with the responsibility to promote and encourage community participation.. . The purpose of the research study was to investigate and observe the public participation strategies with specific reference to the Nyandeni Local Municipality. The assessment of the public participation strategies of the NLM will therefore be fundamentally descriptive, but highly exploratory in nature. This research employed the quantitative method. An empirical survey was employed for purposes of the study and the research findings are described, interpreted, and analysed. Data was collected by way of a suitably constructed questionnaire which was administered to the ward committee members. The research has established that there is a good public participation approach in place but its functioning is inadequate, the ward committee members have little understanding of their roles and responsibilities in terms of the implementation of the public participation strategy, and they have failed to facilitate communication between the Municipality and the community. There was also an indication that the service delivery protest actions were fuelled by political motives and certain challenges and not solely by a lack of an effective public participation. In addition, the language used by the Municipality is mostly not understandable to the community as a whole. This research also identifies the strengths and the weaknesses of the public participation strategies as these are regarded as critical in promoting successful local democracy. It is envisaged that this research will assist the Nyandeni Municipality, and other municipalities country-wide to identify challenges with which they are faced and to deal with these accordingly in terms of the objectives identified in the public participation strategies. Furthermore, this research study envisages promoting effective public participation strategies within the Nyandeni Local Municipality as well as improving the efficiency and effectiveness of service delivery that will ensure communities of their well-being and dignity. Various recommendations are presented, based on the findings, primarily from the literature review and empirical survey, on how the existing status quo of the NLM can be changed to enhance public participation. If these recommendations are adopted, the Nyandeni LM will be able to develop and implement effective public participation strategies.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2017
An intelligent multimodal interface for in-car communication systems
- Authors: Sielinou, Patrick Tchankue
- Date: 2011
- Subjects: Automotive telematics , Automobiles -- Electronic equipment
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:10461 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/1495 , Automotive telematics , Automobiles -- Electronic equipment
- Description: In-car communication systems (ICCS) are becoming more frequently used by drivers. ICCS are used in order to minimise the driving distraction due to using a mobile phone while driving. Several usability studies of ICCS utilising speech user interfaces (SUIs) have identified usability issues that can affect the workload, performance, satisfaction and user experience of the driver. This is due to current speech technologies which can be a source of errors that may frustrate the driver and negatively affect the user experience. The aim of this research was to design a new multimodal interface that will manage the interaction between an ICCS and the driver. Unlike the current ICCS, it should make more voice input available, so as to support tasks (e.g. sending text messages; browsing the phone book, etc), which still require a cognitive workload from the driver. An adaptive multimodal interface was proposed in order to address current ICCS issues. The multimodal interface used both speech and manual input; however only the speech channel is used as output. This was done in order to minimise the visual distraction that graphical user interfaces or haptics devices can cause with current ICCS. The adaptive interface was designed to minimise the cognitive distraction of the driver. The adaptive interface ensures that whenever the distraction level of the driver is high, any information communication is postponed. After the design and the implementation of the first version of the prototype interface, called MIMI, a usability evaluation was conducted in order to identify any possible usability issues. Although voice dialling was found to be problematic, the results were encouraging in terms of performance, workload and user satisfaction. The suggestions received from the participants to improve the system usability were incorporated in the next implementation of MIMI. The adaptive module was then implemented to reduce driver distraction based on the driver‟s current context. The proposed architecture showed encouraging results in terms of usability and safety. The adaptive behaviour of MIMI significantly contributed to the reduction of cognitive distraction, because drivers received less information during difficult driving situations.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2011
- Authors: Sielinou, Patrick Tchankue
- Date: 2011
- Subjects: Automotive telematics , Automobiles -- Electronic equipment
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:10461 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/1495 , Automotive telematics , Automobiles -- Electronic equipment
- Description: In-car communication systems (ICCS) are becoming more frequently used by drivers. ICCS are used in order to minimise the driving distraction due to using a mobile phone while driving. Several usability studies of ICCS utilising speech user interfaces (SUIs) have identified usability issues that can affect the workload, performance, satisfaction and user experience of the driver. This is due to current speech technologies which can be a source of errors that may frustrate the driver and negatively affect the user experience. The aim of this research was to design a new multimodal interface that will manage the interaction between an ICCS and the driver. Unlike the current ICCS, it should make more voice input available, so as to support tasks (e.g. sending text messages; browsing the phone book, etc), which still require a cognitive workload from the driver. An adaptive multimodal interface was proposed in order to address current ICCS issues. The multimodal interface used both speech and manual input; however only the speech channel is used as output. This was done in order to minimise the visual distraction that graphical user interfaces or haptics devices can cause with current ICCS. The adaptive interface was designed to minimise the cognitive distraction of the driver. The adaptive interface ensures that whenever the distraction level of the driver is high, any information communication is postponed. After the design and the implementation of the first version of the prototype interface, called MIMI, a usability evaluation was conducted in order to identify any possible usability issues. Although voice dialling was found to be problematic, the results were encouraging in terms of performance, workload and user satisfaction. The suggestions received from the participants to improve the system usability were incorporated in the next implementation of MIMI. The adaptive module was then implemented to reduce driver distraction based on the driver‟s current context. The proposed architecture showed encouraging results in terms of usability and safety. The adaptive behaviour of MIMI significantly contributed to the reduction of cognitive distraction, because drivers received less information during difficult driving situations.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2011
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