This book argues that smart schools, students and teachers learn to be discerning and strategic users of technologies. Smart schools are neither digitally obsessed nor technologically possessed. They have learned to say no to distractions, silly toys and untested innovations that might reduce their focus on education's bottom line.

This book reports the elements required for implementing Just in Time (JIT) technique in companies. The main reasons for low implementation processes and the main benefits from the successful implementation of them are highlighted in this book. Structural equation models are presented to help identify the essential elements in JIT.

The enduring repercussions of the Asian financial crisis in 1997, the worsening global economy following the burst of the dotcom bubbles in 2001, the financial tsunami in 2008, and the incessant rise in customer demand for better services have all contributed to shrinking profit margins for businesses around the world. To cope with these challenges, firms are discovering logistics as a competitive weapon when looking for ways to strengthen and preserve their market positions. One successful solution has been the adoption of Just-in-Time manufacturing systems, which involve many functional areas of a firm such as manufacturing, engineering, marketing, and purchasing, among others. Just-in-Time Logistics extends the JIT concept in manufacturing to business logistics, an area that has been observed to account for more than 30 per cent of sales revenue for some firms. It gives you an overview and an introduction of JIT logistics, and provides managerial insights on how to achieve improved logistics performance in terms of cost and service enhancements. A discussion of the quality, implementation, and performance measurement issues related to the application of JIT in business logistics is also presented.

Just In Time (JIT) systems in the context of the relations between Japanese manufacturers in Europe and European suppliers of parts and materials have so far received little attention. Yet Japanese involvement in local production is having an impact on European companies in this area. Whether in cooperation or competition with Japanese companies,

This book explains the implementation of just in time (JIT) production in an industrial context, while also highlighting the application of various, vital lean production tools. Shifting the trade-off between productivity and quality, the book discusses the preparation stages needed before implementing a JIT system. After an introduction to lean manufacturing and JIT, it introduces readers to the fundamentals and practice of Kaizen, paying special attention to lean manufacturing tools. The book demonstrates how to use the 5S approach (with the stages of Seiri, Seiton, Seiso, Seiketsu and Shitsuke), Standardized Work, Single Minute Exchange of Die (SMED) and the Kanban system. In brief, the book provides an understanding of the processes associated with the application of these tools and highlights the benefits attained by companies that have implemented JIT systems. Throughout the book, a real-world case study is used to deepen readers’ understanding of how lean manufacturing tools can be implemented. The book is ideally suited for executive courses in industrial engineering and management, but can also be used for upper undergraduate and graduate courses at universities.

This study investigates the relation of total quality management (TQM) and just-in-time purchasing (JITP) with respect to firms' performance, based on theories from operations management, organization theory, strategic management and marketing. U.S. companies have implemented TQM and JITP techniques to improve their global competitive position. The lack of empirical research on how these techniques effect firms performance makes it necessary to explain their strategic values as management innovations. In this study, a cross-sectional mail survey was used with the target population of firms in the continental United States that have implemented either technique, or both. The results indicate that the extent of TQM and JITP implementation positively correlates with a firm's performance. Furthermore, the relation between JITP and financial and market performance is more significant in those industries that face high as opposed to low foreign competition. In this study, the validity of findings was assessed in four parts: statistical conclusion, internal, construct, and external validity. Each validity type is defined and its threats are discussed. Based on the findings, a revised research model is offered. The author also notes likely avenues of future research for theorists and practitioners.

Since centuries foods have been preserved by heating, chilling, drying, salting, conserving, acidification, oxygen-removal, fermenting, adding various preservatives, etc., and often these methods were applied in combinations. More recently the underlying principles of these traditional methods have been defined (i.e., F, t, aw, pH, Eh, competitive flora, various preservatives), and effective limits of these factors for microbial growth, survival, and death were established. Food preservation and also food quality depends in most cases on the empirical and now more often on the deliberate and intelligent application of combined preservative factors, i.e. on so-called hurdle technology. It also became obvious that futuristic food preservation methods (e.g., high hydrostatic pressure, high-intensity pulsed electric fields, high-intensity pulsed light, oscillating magnetic fields as well as food irradiation) are most effective in combination with additional hurdles. Thus, hurdle technology is also the key of food preservation in the future. Furthermore, basic aspects of hurdle technology (i.e., homeostasis, metabolic exhaustion, and stress reactions of microorganisms as well as the multitarget preservation of foods) have been recognized to be of fundamental importance and are increasingly studied in relation to hurdle technology. Different aspects of improvements of traditional foods and in the development of novel foods via hurdle technology have been covered recently in numerous articles and book chapters. However, Hurdle Technologies: Combination Treatments for Food Stability, Safety and Quality is the first work on hurdle technology in which all aspects, the possibilities and limitations of hurdle technology, are comprehensively outlined and evaluated. World-renowned on the subject, Leistner and Gould were instrumental in the development of the hurdle technology concept and in the last decades have obtained much practical experience in the application of this successful approach in the food industry worldwide.