- Email: [email protected]
Concurrent engineering for competitive advantage
412
J PROD INNOV 1996;13:465473
MANAG
of the works cited, for example those by my colleague, Farok Contractor, are analytical and helpful for strategic thinking, but most appear to be surveys of the fields covered. The remaining subjects covered in The Law of Domestic and International Strategic Alliances treat the considerations applicable to cross-border transfers of technology and direct investment (chapter 7), licensing arrangements (chapter S), R&D projects (chapter 9), manufacturing and distribution arrangements (chapter lo), joint ventures (chapter 1l), “investment corporate partnering relationships” (an equity investment” by a larger, more mature business . . in a smaller business with a limited amount of experience and/or financial resource?) (chapter 12), and negotiated acquisitions (chapter 13). These subjects are dealt with on a rudimentary level, furnishing the reader with a general idea of the topic. The chapter on equity-investment SBRs, for example, briefly explains the characteristics of common stock, convertible preferred, convertible debt, etc., and how each might be used in structuring the investment. The section dealing with pricing the deal includes statements such as “The pricing of the investment depends on the valuation of the junior partner agreed on by the parties.” (p. 330) At the same time, there are more useful observations, such as ‘ ‘Corporate partners may be willing to pay a somewhat higher price in making the investment [than in the typical venture capital situation] . . . because the corporate investors expect to receive additional returns from the various functional agreements with the company.” In sum, this book provides a general, easily understood survey of factors to consider when entering into a deal with another company in another country or at home. It is not exhaustive in either the scope of its coverage or in its treatment of any specific topic. For the business person, it would be a handy one-volume reference to have in the hotel room to be read the night before the initial negotiation with a potential business partner. After that first meeting, however, I’d want to have something more substantial than is provided by this book. Allan Roth Rutgers Faculty of Management
Brief Notes Flexible Innovation: Technological Alliances in Canadian Industry, by Jorge Niosi, Montreal: McGill-
BOOK
REVIEWS
Queen’s University Press, 1995. 142 + xi pages. $22.95 (paper). This is a valuable reference book on strategic alliances. Niosi, a professor of administrative science at the University of Quebec in Montreal, reports on the results of a collaborative set of personal interviews on the use of technical collaboration by over 130 Canadian firms (including foreign-owned firms located in Canada). Separate results are given for biotechnology, electronics, advanced materials, and the manufacturing of transportation equipment. The bibliography is outstanding! L. W. Murray, P.h.D. University of San Francisco by James G. Bralla. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1996. 326 + xi pages. $49.00.
Designfor
Excellence,
This is a good, basic book on design for excellence (DFX) for those who are involved in mechanical design. This book separates DFX into two components: management of the process and technical. For management of the process, the book gives the basics of concurrent engineering, introducing cultural change, and training and indoctrination. Although other works cover these issues in more depth, the book really shines in covering the technical components of DFX. Sections such as designing for maintainability, environment, user-friendliness, safety, reliability, and low quantity production give good grounding in the essentials of DFX, and the numerous examples will illustrate the various principles involved. In short, this is an excellent book for those who are involved in some aspect of mechanical product development. Give it to the inexperienced product designers joining your team as they stand the most to gain from it. Derrel Fincher Schlumberger Dowel1 Concurrent
Engineering
for Competitive
Advantage,
by Michael G. Bell. New Orleans, LA: Engineering Publishing Company, 1995. 155 + xiii pages. 69.95. The book is largely a simplistic overview of concurrent engineering practices used in new product development. However, it includes a Concurrent Engineering Assessment Checklist, which can offer some value in determining the degree of concurrent engineering practices that have been implemented or required. Marygrace Stevens Apex Microtechnology
J PROD INNOV 1996;13:465473
MANAG
of the works cited, for example those by my colleague, Farok Contractor, are analytical and helpful for strategic thinking, but most appear to be surveys of the fields covered. The remaining subjects covered in The Law of Domestic and International Strategic Alliances treat the considerations applicable to cross-border transfers of technology and direct investment (chapter 7), licensing arrangements (chapter S), R&D projects (chapter 9), manufacturing and distribution arrangements (chapter lo), joint ventures (chapter 1l), “investment corporate partnering relationships” (an equity investment” by a larger, more mature business . . in a smaller business with a limited amount of experience and/or financial resource?) (chapter 12), and negotiated acquisitions (chapter 13). These subjects are dealt with on a rudimentary level, furnishing the reader with a general idea of the topic. The chapter on equity-investment SBRs, for example, briefly explains the characteristics of common stock, convertible preferred, convertible debt, etc., and how each might be used in structuring the investment. The section dealing with pricing the deal includes statements such as “The pricing of the investment depends on the valuation of the junior partner agreed on by the parties.” (p. 330) At the same time, there are more useful observations, such as ‘ ‘Corporate partners may be willing to pay a somewhat higher price in making the investment [than in the typical venture capital situation] . . . because the corporate investors expect to receive additional returns from the various functional agreements with the company.” In sum, this book provides a general, easily understood survey of factors to consider when entering into a deal with another company in another country or at home. It is not exhaustive in either the scope of its coverage or in its treatment of any specific topic. For the business person, it would be a handy one-volume reference to have in the hotel room to be read the night before the initial negotiation with a potential business partner. After that first meeting, however, I’d want to have something more substantial than is provided by this book. Allan Roth Rutgers Faculty of Management
Brief Notes Flexible Innovation: Technological Alliances in Canadian Industry, by Jorge Niosi, Montreal: McGill-
BOOK
REVIEWS
Queen’s University Press, 1995. 142 + xi pages. $22.95 (paper). This is a valuable reference book on strategic alliances. Niosi, a professor of administrative science at the University of Quebec in Montreal, reports on the results of a collaborative set of personal interviews on the use of technical collaboration by over 130 Canadian firms (including foreign-owned firms located in Canada). Separate results are given for biotechnology, electronics, advanced materials, and the manufacturing of transportation equipment. The bibliography is outstanding! L. W. Murray, P.h.D. University of San Francisco by James G. Bralla. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1996. 326 + xi pages. $49.00.
Designfor
Excellence,
This is a good, basic book on design for excellence (DFX) for those who are involved in mechanical design. This book separates DFX into two components: management of the process and technical. For management of the process, the book gives the basics of concurrent engineering, introducing cultural change, and training and indoctrination. Although other works cover these issues in more depth, the book really shines in covering the technical components of DFX. Sections such as designing for maintainability, environment, user-friendliness, safety, reliability, and low quantity production give good grounding in the essentials of DFX, and the numerous examples will illustrate the various principles involved. In short, this is an excellent book for those who are involved in some aspect of mechanical product development. Give it to the inexperienced product designers joining your team as they stand the most to gain from it. Derrel Fincher Schlumberger Dowel1 Concurrent
Engineering
for Competitive
Advantage,
by Michael G. Bell. New Orleans, LA: Engineering Publishing Company, 1995. 155 + xiii pages. 69.95. The book is largely a simplistic overview of concurrent engineering practices used in new product development. However, it includes a Concurrent Engineering Assessment Checklist, which can offer some value in determining the degree of concurrent engineering practices that have been implemented or required. Marygrace Stevens Apex Microtechnology