Humes Company: Engineering Innovation and Ethics Perspective - Essay Example

Humes Company Name Institution Tutor Date Executive Summary Humes Company operates in the concrete and engineering industry. The company produces products that are used in construction of bridges, pipeline systems and traffic management. Humes Company continues to develop engineering innovations through an ethical perspectives. Some of the engineering innovations include; reduction of energy consumption, traffic management solutions, reduction of emission, research and sustainable performance. The company aims at creating a sustainable environment which can facilitate innovation and provision the needs of their customers. A key challenge of the company’s innovative agenda is the lack of adequate scientific knowledge to propel its projects. There is therefore need for the company to invest more in knowledge development. In addition, the report identified the need for integration of people from diverse cultural backgrounds into the organization. This in some way can advance the knowledge base of the company. TABLE OF CONTENTS Executive summery……………………………………………………………..2 Table of contents……………………………………………………………..…..3 Introduction………………………………………………………………….…..4 2.0 Engineering Innovation ………………………………………………………5 2.1 Reduction of Energy Consumption…………………………………….5 2.2 Traffic Management Solutions …………………………………….. 6 2.3 CO2 Emissions …………………………………………………….…...7 2.4 Sustainable Performance………………………………………………...7 2.5 Research and Development…………………………………………..…8 3.0. Engineering innovation by the company………………………………….……..8 4. Cross cultural engagement policies………………………………………….…...11 5. Role of senior engineer as an innovator……………………………….………….12 6. Factors hindering and promoting innovation in the company.................................13 7. Diagrammatic model summarizing the innovation process adopted by the company...14 8. Conclusion…………………………………………………………………………15 9. References…………………………………………………………………………16 10. Appendixes ……………………………………………………………………… 18 1.0 Introduction Humes has been in the precast concrete and engineering solutions sector for many years. The company continues to improve the products and customer based services based on the requirements of the clients (Humes Australia, 2012). The solutions produced are for traffic management, detention, and reuse, water treatment, pipeline systems, retaining walls, shafts and tunnels, rail and road infrastructure, platforms and bridges (Humes Company, 2016). Humes’ strategy is factoring the construction factors, design requirements and accommodating the variables of site conditions into customizing the products and services. Humes’ services and products capitalize on reliability and quality to increase efficiency and revenue generation (Skako Group, 2012). The company currently employs more than 640 people and is among the largest precast concrete companies in Australia (The Australian, 2015). The success of the company is also based on engineering innovation and ethics perspective. The engineering innovation incorporates the design of the services and products, and also the design of the infrastructures that supports the processes (Humes Australia, 2012). The ethics perspective incorporates the treatment of employees fairly, strategic direction, and environmental sustainability among others. The paper discusses Humes Company in engineering innovation and issues such as how the organization caters for all indigenous groups in Australia and ethics perspective. 2.0 Engineering Innovation Engineering innovation is integral to the operations of Humes Company (Humes Company, 2016). The company has instituted various engineering innovations that aim at providing better services and products while at the same time resolving challenges in society. Some of the areas that Humes Company targets in innovation include; s, reduction of energy consumption, traffic management solutions, CO emissions, and sustainable performance (Skako Group, 2012). 2.2 Reduction of Energy Consumption Humes Company acknowledges that becoming more energy efficient is the fastest and the cheapest way to reduce their energy bills and limit their carbon emission creating a sustainable environment. The company has deployed various innovative techniques in ensuring the energy consumed is reduced (The Australian, 2015). Such techniques have been efficient in improving the entire operations of the organization and lowering electricity bills incurred by the organization. Moreover, the innovations have also been beneficial to the society by enabling the reduction of energy consumption. The company has implemented the reduction energy consumption by designing structures in an energy efficient way through the use of alternative energy, such as solar energy (Humes Company, 2016). A case in point is the new developments in irrigation and rural solutions. The company came up with the Mann irrigation pits that were designed to host electromagnetic meters that supervise the flowing of water during irrigation. The doors of the irrigation meters are powered by solar panels which permits multiple systems to be run from a central position. Through the use of solar energy, the amount of energy used in greatly minimized. Figure 3.0 Show the Mann Irrigation Pits that are powered by solar energy. Source (Humes Company, 2016). The company also harnesses solar energy for various uses which encompasses providing lighting, generating electricity and heating water for industrial use. Solar energy is considered a flexible source of energy that can help the organization to advance and reduce its energy cost (Humes Australia, 2012). 2.2 Traffic Management Solutions Humes’ has devised various precast initiatives that aim at managing traffic in local authorities. Such initiatives have proactively resolved the problem of traffic. One of the prolific innovations is the development of concrete barrier systems that are supplied with tapered ends (Figure, 1). Humes has also come up with wheels stops that are a durable and economical solution for the management of traffic in parking areas (Figure, 2). The wheel stop innovation are safeguarded with two steel spikes without concrete in order to ensure easier transfer when needed. The standard unit are 125mm high and 2 m long with allowances in order facilitate easy drainage (Humes Company, 2016). Figure, 1: Barriers Source (Humes Company, 2016). Figure, 2: Wheel Stops Source (Humes Company, 2016). 2.2 CO2 Emissions Continuous innovation processes have resulted in the reduction of carbon dioxide emissions (Smith, 2014). There are several ways in which the organization minimizes the emission of carbon dioxide. The products of the company are mainly dependent on quarrying. This simply implies that the manufacture of cement needs a substantial amount of energy. In most cases, the energy used in most manufacturing processes greatly contributes to carbon emission. In order to lower the level of Co2 during the production process, the company efficiently utilizes natural sources of energy with the bid to reduce Co2 emission. The organization has conducted a massive innovation of the transport and supply chains to improve efficiency while reducing emissions (Humes Australia, 2012). When constructing transport infrastructure such as roads, the company has chosen to use precast concrete products that aim at the significant reduction of Co2 emission. The company also ensures that its supply chain does not involve activities that lead to increasing the level of Co2 emission (Humes Capability Statement, 2016). 2.3 Sustainable Performance Humes is a member of the Infrastructure Sustainability Council of Australia (ISCA) which is the highest ranked infrastructure sustainability bodies in Australia. As an affiliate of the ISCA, Humes has taken up an active role in devising sustainable activities across the operation of infrastructure, construction and design. In order to advance infrastructure sustainability, the company assists its customers to attain infrastructure sustainability ratings by smart design and selection of precast products. Most of the materials used by the company will frequently reduce energy input, waste, environmental impacts and safety hazards (Humes Australia, 2015). Humes Group continues to develop energy saving and recycling strategies (Humes Company, 2016). The organization aims at creating a sustainable environment. The company has instituted renewable sources of energy as a substitute to their hydropower energy; this limits emissions of harmful gases into the atmosphere. The company also engages with different stakeholders in advancing sustainable performance measures and guides the investors/stakeholders in sustainability structures and processes (Humes Australia, 2012). Through these constant engagements, the organization is able to evaluate their operation in the environment and realize various activities which are not ethical within the environment. 2.4 Research and Development The needs and requirements of clients keep changing. In addtion, competition is growing in the concentrate industry. Companies also need appropriate strategies in creating competitive products (Humes Company, 2016). Humes Company aims at providing their customers with ample products which are of high quality. Their main focus is to have a large customer base and to gain competitive advantage over their competitors. Humes Company has created a strong research and development department, which continuously improves the quality and reliability of the processes, products, and services. Through this, the organization produces quality products which are able to satisfy the needs of its customers (Humes Australia, 2016). 3.0. Engineering Innovations by the Company Humes Company has been on the forefront in establishing various engineering innovations. The organization has won Australia’s Engineering award due to their incorporation of various engineering process within their premises and various production processes. It is regarded as the leading manufacturer of concrete, aggregate and reinforced precast and pipe products. The company is also the main producer of civil precast concrete in Australia. The company has a long history of engineering innovation on prestressed and precast concrete solutions, for the last one hundred years of manufacturing; the company product range has not been more competitive, more diverse and more in-tune with the needs of their clients that it is today (Humes Company, 2016). The organization has instituted new engineering innovation for production of steel reinforced hollow concrete poles. The technology has replaced the old and outdated technology that had been used for the last 95 years. The company has developed a new vertical casting and patented process which provides immensely advanced manufacturing method which is more effective and efficient. The process was instituted to help in the production of concrete poles up to fourteen meters for power distribution. This patented pole manufacturing process does not turn the mould, or rather, there exist an outer and an inner mould which when assembled forms a pole shaped chamber for suspending reinforcing cage. Concrete is then pumped into the compartment and squeezed to extract free water. The core and the mould as removed immediately. The process is concluded by steam curing the pole, the process last for thirty minutes (Humes Company, 2016). The implications of the new engineering innovation in Humes Company around the world are substantial. The process is labor intensive and provided immense benefits in all production areas ranging from space and plant requirements, environmental, OH&S, manufacturing speed and the eventual quality of the final product. The brilliance of new engineering innovation by Humes Company casting process is its involuntary simplicity and instant savings in every aspect of manufacturing from space to time and manpower, from various operational costs to substantial advantages in occupational safety and health. Consequently, the fact that the final product is advanced and superior is a bonus the new technology. Moreover, the organization has also developed various TransHume engineering technologies and innovations like portable plant which can be established quickly on the site and production of various pre-stressed poles which is an innovation which had not existed before in the company (Humes Company, 2016). The process developed by the company is environmental friendly and appreciates the importance of ethics. Companies across the world appreciate the importance of ethics in operational and management processes (Humes Australia, 2012). Numerous ethical perspectives have been integrated into the operations of Humes Company, and some of the ethical perspectives include; procurement structures, environmental sustainability, and occupational health and safety (Humes Company, 2016). The new innovation after for occupational safety and health, as a measure of the company, the working conditions of the employees and the health/safety concerns of the employees are considered (Humes Australia, 2012). The employees are provided with protective equipment and risk management strategies. This makes the process more effective and efficient. Additionally, through new innovation, the organization is capable of creating community inclusion and engagements. In any environment or context that Humes Company operates, the community plays an integral role to its operational and management successes (Humes Company, 2016). Humes Company advances community inclusions and engagement in operations and management practices of various processes within the organization (Skako Group, 2012). The aim of this community engagement and inclusion is to satisfy the requirements of the community and ensure the ethical requirements of the community are integrated into the processes (Humes Australia, 2012). Finally, the process is environmental friendly since most of the raw materials used by Humes Company originate from the environment, the organization attempts to create a sustainable environment. Therefore, Humes Company understands the lack of environmental sustainability affects the entire operations of the company, and the solution is championing environmental sustainability. Aspects of diffusion and entrepreneurship associated with the innovation, emphasising as appropriate in the international perspective. The innovation’s adopted by Humes Company exhibit aspects of diffusion and entrepreneurship even within the content of the international viewpoint. One aspects that can be noted in most of the innovations is that comparability does exit in the innovations adopted by the company. Comparability basically entails the degree to which the innovation is viewed to be consistent with the existing experience, values and potential adopters. In most of the innovations at Humes the concept of comparability exists. For instance; the reduction of carbon emission by companies is a leading perspective and requirements for organizations internationally. Humes ascertains that this requirement is meet by most of its innovations. It can also be stated that entrepreneurship is actually a driving force in most of the innovations undertaken by the company. The company takes the risks of coming up with innovations that can meet the needs of the market. The objective is also to serve the community while at the same time increase the revenue of the company. A case in point is an innovation such as the Mann irrigation pits that were designed to host electromagnetic meters that supervise the flowing of water during irrigation. This innovation does not only serve community needs but also it has been useful in increasing the revenue of the company. Humes has also implemented a clear system of transfer on innovation where the innovations of the company can be transferred. The transfer does to only entail the transfer of scientific knowledge but rather it also involves the transfer of technical knowledge and the values and skills associated with coming up with the innovations. 4. Cross cultural engagement policies In the globalized society, business organizations and the customers need to communicate more frequently with individuals from various cultures and backgrounds. Through this, the organization can effectively bridge the cultural gap which is critical to the success of the organization. Human resource practices and policies should be designed in such a way they enable the employees from various cultures to realize their full potential. The key objective is providing every person with a platform to undertake their task at their peak potential, to work in a secure and safe environment and creative an innovative and sustainable environment. However, Humes Company lacks this engagement strategy within its operations. The organization has not incorporated sufficiently workers from diverse culture such as the Torres Strait Islander and Aboriginals in the functions of the organization. Hence, the organization fails to benefit from diverse knowledge and ideas from other cultures. The organization need to establish various cross cultural strategies which can create engagement with other cultures (Humes Company, 2016). There are different engagements drivers which the organization need to consider to effectively engage various individuals. The first drive is good leadership within the organization. The leader should be able to clearly communicate the vision for the organization in creating proper engagement. Individuals from various cultures need to know the purpose of the organization and their role in fulfilling the vision of the organization. The other driver is integrity. The organization need to be transparent in all their operations. Through this, the organization is able to win the trust of most individuals from diverse backgrounds and cultures. When there exist a gap between the organization and integrity, there exist high degree of mistrust hence poor engagement from employees and the society. 5. How an engineer functions as an Innovator at Humes A professional engineer needs to take various responsibilities in order to establish various engineering projects and programs is the most extensive sense. This encompasses reliable performance when using materials, technologies and various sub-systems. Moreover, they are responsible for interpreting various technological potentialities to the society, government and businesses and making sure that different policy decisions are adequately informed by such consequences and possibilities. In addition, they should ensure that the risks, cost and limitations are accurately understood. Consequently, innovative engineers brings knowledge to from several sources to develop various solutions to complex situations and issues and making sure that, non-technical and technical considerations are incorporated adequately. An innovative engineer is predominantly intellectual in nature. They are mainly concerned with advancing various technologies where they help in development of various technologies and the integration of such technologies in various creative and innovative changes. Innovative engineers may undertake various studies and research on how to advance project and develop various technologies and principles with a wide engineering discipline. Consequently, innovative engineers’ leads to continuous advancement of various practices of engineering and in updating and devising the standards and codes that governs the company. Professional engineers ensure that all aspects of the project are sound, clear and easily understandable. 6. Factors that affect the Promoting Innovation in the Company In its attempt to promote innovation, the company faces the challenge of lack of scientist views which decreases the possibility of the company enhancing new intellectual capital. Apparently, there is lack of availability of star scientists which lowers the possibility of the company’s creativity since the company relies on the existing knowledge to approach various technological problems instead of looking for new solutions and ideas (Humes Australia, 2012). . The organization took some steps towards improving their innovation through high level collaboration. This collaboration enabled free flow of ideas among people who need to work together to find new solutions to various problems. Despite the collaboration initiatives, the lack of high level scientist lowers both collaboration and innovation. Scientists have information that many advance the innovative initiatives of the company, lack of such knowledge sometimes hinders the progress of various projects within the organization (Humes Australia, 2012). There is therefore need for the company to invest more in knowledge development. 7. Diagrammatic model summarizing the innovation process adopted by the company Innovation at Humes can be summarized using the cyclic innovation model. What the company mainly does is to introduce various engineering innovations into the market by interacting with players from different sectors in a cyclic way. In most cases innovation is influenced by technological push and a market pull. Source : (Duin, 2007) 9.0 Conclusion Humes Company continues to improve engineering innovation and ethics perspective in accomplishing its goals and objectives. Humes Company targets environment sustainability and the role of the human capital and community inclusion in advancing the company objectives. The organization has since developed various engineering innovations. The organization needs to create engagement with other cultural groups and utilize professional engineers in their development plans. However, there are some hindrance to innovation which the organization needs to consider and find amicable solution for them to realize a success in all their operations. References Cumming, S. (2013, Sept. 7). Humes concrete plant to close after 50 years in Toowoomba. The Chronicle. Retrieved from http://www.thechronicle.com.au/news/Humes-concrete-plant-close-toowoomba/2012487/ Duin, V, (2007). The Cyclic Innovation Model: A New Challenge for innovation. CEPS. Humes Australia. (2012, Aug. 6). Product appraisal report 11/14. Retrieved from https://www.wsaa.asn.au/sites/default/files/appraisal/download/PA%201114%20Humes%20Steinzeug-Keramo%20Vitrified%20Clay%20Pipe%20and%20fittings.pdf Humes Company. (2016). Homepage. Retrieved from http://www.humes.com.au/about-us/holcim-group.html Humes. (2015). Irrigation and Rural Solutions powered solar http://www.humes.com.au/en/precast-concrete-solutions/irrigation-and-rural/mann-irrigation-pits.html http://www.humes.com.au/precast-concrete-solutions/traffic-management.html Humes. (2016). Capability Statement http://www.humes.com.au/fileadmin/templates/HUMES/doc/Brochures/Capability_statement_Humes.pdf Skako Group. (2012, May 1). Concrete Pipes for Humes Australia. Retrieved from http://www.skako.com/us/skako-group/news/singleview/article/concrete-pipes-for-humes-australia.html Smith, M. (2014, Mar. 10). Holcim investment in Australia to continue: CEO. Financial Review. Retrieved from http://www.afr.com/business/holcim-investment-in-australia-to-continueceo-20140310-ixm40 The Australian. (2015, Nov. 30). LafargeHolcim exit. The Australian Business Review. Retrieved from http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/dataroom/lafargeholcim-exit/news-story/e9dc0ada73b71e5d2eaf14fd88a1e943 APPENDIXES Letter to the Company Seeking Co-operation Name Postal Address Telephone TO The Branch Manager Humes Company Central Region REQUEST FOR CO- OPERATION I hereby submit my request for co-operation from the company. I am engineering student from Xxxxxxxx University. I wish to conduct research on the topic of engineering innovations in your Company. I intend to interview engineers in the department. I therefore request for co-operation in order to undertake the research which will also be beneficial to the organization. I am looking forward to working with you and your collaboration. Yours Sincerely Name Letter of gratitude Name Postal Address Telephone TO The Branch Manager Humes Company Central Region LETTER OF GRATITUDE I am writing to give appreciation to the level of co-operation that I was given during the Interview process I undertook in your organization. The engineers I interviewed were very helpful. They provided information that was adequate enough giving me an insight into the existing innovation in the company. I greatly appreciate your co-operation. Yours Sincerely Name Interview Questions 1. Your Name 2. What types innovations exist in your company 3. What are the recent innovation that the company has been involved in? 4. What are the major engineering innovation credited to the company 5. Do the initiatives meet the needs of both the local and international markets? 6. What aspects of diffusion and entrepreneurship associated with the innovation 7. What polices exist to cater for other cultural groups (in particular Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) 8. How does an engineer with senior status functions as an innovator in the company environment 9. What are the factors hindering and promoting innovation in the company? 10. What model of innovation has been adopted by the company? Challenges Faced and How I overcome them I faced a few phalanges at Humes Company. Foremost, it was the difficult to get the engineers for the interview. Indeed they agreed to participate, however, they were in most cases busy even until lunch hours. In order to overcome this challenge. I waited patiently until the work hours were done. Also the views of the engineers about innovation in the company were quite different. In addition their opinions about the policies of the organization towards varied cultures also differed. I however made a summary the major views presented by most of them. Recommendations and Lessons Learnt My perspective is that innovation should be undertaken to mostly meet the needs of the community. I noted that the innovation at Humes Company is geared towards this objective. One lesson I learnt is that technology is a significant aspect in steering innovation as a result it essential for organizations to invest in technology. In addition, it is vital to gain adequate scientific knowledge that is able to steer innovation in the engineering industry. Competencies Demonstrated During my research I demonstrated the following competencies as outlined by the Engineering Australia Stage 1 Competencies I also demonstrated that I had adequate knowledge concerning what goes on in the field of engineering innovation. It is important to ask question that one understands. I also showed that I had some level of discernment in the sense that I had an understanding of various engineering innovations which is evidently important when interviewing people in the Field. Read More