December 1997 • Volume 7 • Number 12
APICS Report
New Workshop for '98 Features Computer Simulation
MRP II/ERP: Closed-Loop Business Systems, set for Feb. 23-25 in San Antonio, is a new APICS workshop with a twist. Instead of a traditional instructor-led discussion, the workshop features a computer simulation of a company that manufactures golf clubs. Through this simulation, participants will learn to understand and define material requirements planning and enterprise resource planning concepts from the same perspective. By doing so, they will be able to use methods for integrating disparate business functions into one, homogenous support group and to coordinate those functions to fully utilize their company software.
For more information, call APICS Customer Service and request the 1998 Educational Programs Calendar (item #04076). The calendar also can be ordered directly from the APICS Web Site.
APICS Body of Knowledge: At a Mouse-Click
Responding to the demands of the high-tech communications environment, APICS has released its first CD-ROM. The CD — which premiered at APICS '97 in October in Washington, D.C. — is highlighted by articles from the 1995-97 APICS International Conference Proceedings and more than 2,500 definitions from the eighth edition of the APICS Dictionary. The CD also contains these items:
•About APICS — An automatically timed or self-paced color slideshow about APICS' products and services.
•FAQs — The top 10 most frequently asked questions (FAQs) from the Rochester Institute of Technology's Industrial Inquiry Service, a service available to APICS members.
"APICS recognized that our conference proceedings are a major source of up-to-date information about current trends in resource management," said Mary King, senior manager of publications. "In fact, more than 70 percent of APICS members surveyed at the '96 conference requested that the proceedings be made available in an electronic format and we responded accordingly."
Available in both PC and Macintosh formats, the CD offers a search mechanism that allows the user to conduct global text searches by author, subject, title and keyword.
Priced at $39.95 for APICS members and $45 for nonmembers, the CD (item #01604) is available through APICS Customer Service.
APICS Hits the Air Waves
On Sunday, Oct. 26 (incidentally, the opening day of APICS '97), APICS was featured on the television show "Building America" on the local CBS affiliate in Washington, D.C.
The 6 1/2-minute segment showed how APICS education helps businesses run more efficiently and profitably.
The show featured a number of companies that have successfully implemented APICS education including West Tape and Label Inc., GAF Building Materials Corp. and Westvaco Corp. The broadcast also included a visit to APICS Headquarters highlighting APICS Customer Service in action, taking calls and helping customers.
APICS spokespersons featured on the show included Gregory L. Schlegel, CPIM, CSP, 1997 APICS president; Carol Ptak, CFPIM, CIRM, vice president education development — SIGs; Jeffrey W. Raynes, CAE, APICS executive director and chief operating officer; and Michael Clark, CPIM, APICS senior director, customer service.
In addition, Ricardo Ernst, Ph.D., a professor at Georgetown University who is affiliated with the APICS Educational and Research (E&R) Foundation, discussed the value of workplace education and the important role APICS plays in that area.
Copies of the "Building America" video can be purchased by calling APICS Customer Service and requesting item #01222.
CIRM Module Revisions:
What Should You Know?
Editor's note: In last month's issue of APICS—The Performance Advantage, APICS announced that on January 1, 1998, revisions to three of the five modules of the Certified in Integrated Resource Management (CIRM) program will take effect. The revisions to these modules follow the change to the Support Functions module which was expanded and renamed Enterprise Concepts and Fundamentals earlier this year. APICS has received a number of inquiries about the effects of these changes. Here are answers to some of the most frequently asked questions.
Where can I take CIRM courses?
Candidates can participate in CIRM courses through their
local chapters. Contact your local chapter directly or call
APICS Customer Service to request the Chapter Certification
Review Course Schedule (item #09026).
You may also consider attending an APICS national workshop. The 1998 workshop schedule appears below.
Enterprise Concepts and Fundamentals
|
|
March 16-18 |
Orlando, Fla. |
|
|
June 1-3 |
St. Louis |
|
|
Sept. 23-25 |
Pittsburgh |
Identifying and Creating Demand
|
|
Feb. 23-25 |
San Antonio |
|
|
July 13-15 |
Baltimore |
|
|
Nov. 16-18 |
Pittsburgh |
Designing Products and Processes
|
|
March 2-4 |
Phoenix |
|
|
June 8-10 |
Baltimore |
|
|
Oct. 12-14 |
Pittsburgh |
Delivering Products and Services
|
|
March 2-4 |
Phoenix |
|
|
June 29-July 1 |
Pittsburgh |
|
|
Nov. 9-11 |
Pittsburgh |
Integrated Enterprise Management
|
|
May 4-6 |
Atlanta |
|
|
Oct. 12-14 |
Pittsburgh |
You may want to conduct an in-house program for a group of candidates in your company. Your company can arrange an in-house CIRM program with an instructor at the time and location of your choice. For more information about chapter programs, national workshop dates, or in-house training, contact APICS Customer Service.
If I've already passed an exam for a CIRM module, do I need to take the exam for the revised module?
No. Candidates who have passed an exam may progress to another module. It is highly recommended that candidates take the EC&F exam first. The IEM exam must be taken last.
If I prepared for an exam by taking a course before the module was revised, do I need to take the revised course before sitting for the exam?
Yes. If you have studied the materials under the module as it was formerly known but not taken the exam, you will need to obtain the 1998 CIRM Exam Content Manual (item #09015) to prepare for the new exam, which will focus on the new content.
What are the 1998 CIRM exam dates?
The first four exams will be offered during three separate four-week periods in 1998. The IEM exam will be offered during two separate two-day test periods. A candidate may register to take a CIRM exam at any of the more than 250 test centers in North America any time from 90 to two business days before the chosen exam date.
In 1998, CIRM exams will be offered on these dates:
Modules:
Enterprise Concepts and Fundamentals
Identifying and Creating Demand
Designing Products and Processes
Delivering Products and Services
Testing Dates:
March 7-April 4
July 11-Aug. 8
Oct. 31-Nov. 28
Module:
Integrated Enterprise Management
Testing Dates:
May 15-16
Oct. 23-24
For registration information for CIRM exams in the United States, Canada or Mexico, refer to the 1998 CIRM Certification Bulletin: CBT Registration Procedures (item #09016).
The test schedule for sites outside the United States, Mexico and Canada varies. For more information, request the 1998 CIRM International Certification Bulletin (item #09007).
How can I receive up-to-date CIRM information?
Information is continually updated on the APICS Web site
at http://www.apics.org
and in APICS—The Performance Advantage. The most
comprehensive sources for CIRM certification information are
the 1998 CIRM Certification Bulletin (item #09016)
and the 1998 CIRM Exam Content Manual (item #09015).
APICS Introduces New Service Initiative
At a press conference held at APICS '97 in October, the society introduced a new initiative that will apply successful manufacturing management techniques to service operations. Through the new Service (SVC) SIG, APICS will focus on the application of APICS education not only to the service sector (e.g., retail, utilities, finance, hospitals), but also to service functions and processes within manufacturing itself.
"Service industries and functions have inputs and outputs that are a clear market for APICS tools, techniques and overall body of knowledge," said Dick Crandall, Ph.D., CFPIM, CIRM. Crandall is chair of the Service (SVC) SIG, which will be instrumental in implementing the new service initiative.
According to Crandall, 30 to 70 percent of the typical costs of a manufacturing company are in service functions and, for many of them, their biggest revenue-producing units are in non-manufacturing areas. For example, General Motors' single biggest supplier is its health care provider, which has nothing to do with steel or glass. Conversely, one of GM's largest profit centers is its financial services unit.
"APICS' expertise with concepts such as planning and scheduling and flexible capacity can improve efficiencies and have a positive bottom-line impact in service industries and manufacturing alike," Crandall said. "Utilities, for example, need to streamline their spare parts inventories, and many hospitals need to manage multisite facilities. APICS can be instrumental in helping both improve operations."
For more information about the SVC SIG, contact APICS Customer Service and request item #01280.
Presentations for APICS '98 Roll In
As of late October, more than 400 educational session presentations have been received at APICS headquarters for APICS '98, the 1998 APICS International Conference and Exposition, set for Nov. 1-4, 1998, in Nashville, Tenn.
"I'm really pleased at the overwhelming response we've gotten," said Arvil Sexton, APICS '98 conference committee chair. "The conference committee has a large pool of topics that will enable us to choose the best in education for next year's conference."
The theme of the conference is "Build Your Knowledge Chain for Success." Featured speakers include Lamar Alexander, former Tennessee governor and United States secretary of education; Lou Holtz, former Notre Dame football coach and now a television football analyst; and Joel Arthur Barker, an author and consultant.
Board Gives "Bonus" Period
for Certification Maintenance Points
To help give Certified in Production and Inventory Management (CPIM) and Certified Fellow in Production and Inventory Management (CFPIM) professionals a "jump start" on accumulating certification maintenance points, the APICS Board of Directors has approved a new start date for the accumulation of certification maintenance points — Aug. 18, 1997, the date of the board action.
The program's official launch is Jan. 1, 1998. Every five years after that date, CPIM and CFPIM professionals will be required to document professional development points earned for continuing education; presentations, publications and educational development; contributions to the profession; and professional memberships. The Aug. 18 point accumulation date means that 1997 APICS activities after that date (e.g., attendance at the 1997 APICS International Conference and Exhibition) will be included in the required point total (due in 2003) for professionals who attained CPIM and CFPIM certification in 1997 or before.
For more information, call APICS Customer Service, (800) 444-2742 and request item #09033; or select the Fax-on-Demand option and request item #50014.
APICS Noted in Major Magazine
APICS was recently cited in the 1998 edition of Time/The Princeton Review, one of the premier sources of information about graduate schools in the fields of law, medicine, business and engineering. APICS was recognized as a source of scholarship money for graduate and undergraduate students in business administration and management.
Published by Time Inc., this publication gives aspiring graduate students in these areas information they need on how to get in and pay for school. The publication also provides sample graduate entrance examination test questions and an analysis of the job outlook in each of the areas.
E&R Foundation Research Publications
Now Available From APICS
The APICS Educational and Research (E&R) Foundation has published a number of booklets based on research studies conducted over the past few years. These booklets are available from APICS Customer Service and include:
•Case Studies in Service Processes, Functions and Industries — Shows the application of the APICS body of knowledge to the areas of logistics, food service/restaurants, agriculture and financial management (item #08012).
•Activity-Based Costing in a Manufacturing Resource Planning Environment — Explores the degree of success and failure in firms that adopted both ABC and MRP II (item #07011).
•Value-Added Supply Chain Management — Presents the issues and challenges of developing value-added supply chain management systems in the production and distribution areas of a company that manufactures heavy-duty filtration systems worldwide (item #07012).
•Performance Measurement Systems: A Model and Seven Case Studies — Provides new information on how to develop, implement and change performance measurement systems so that systems are aligned with both competitive strategy and organizational environment. This study also presents a model that can be used by any manufacturing organization to help identify what measures should be used and how improvements in one area can produce improvement in other areas — improving the organization's overall competitive position (item #01015).
P&IM Journal Gives Award for Best Article
The Production and Inventory Management (P&IM) Journal, a scholarly journal published quarterly by APICS, has named Stephen M. Kenworthy, a quality manager at Taylor Business Products in West Branch, Mich., as the 1997 winner of the Romey Everdell Award. The award, named for a long-time APICS member, is given for the best article to appear in the previous year's (1996) issues.
Kenworthy's article, "Information Communication System and Planning Function Add Up to Total Customer Lead Time at Taylor Building Products," appeared in the P&IM Journal's Third Quarter, 1996 issue. Kenworthy will receive a recognition plaque and a $500 prize.
For information about submitting articles for the P&IM Journal, contact Ronita E. Woolsey, managing editor, at (303) 279-7658.
Copyright © 2020 by APICS — The Educational Society for Resource Management. All rights reserved.
Web Site © Copyright 2020 by Lionheart Publishing, Inc.All rights reserved.
Lionheart Publishing, Inc.
2555 Cumberland Parkway, Suite 299, Atlanta, GA 30339 USA
Phone: +44 23 8110 3411 | br> E-mail:
Web: www.lionheartpub.com
Web Design by Premier Web Designs
E-mail: [email protected]