Abstract:
"A four-fold research problem incorporating a lack of middle of life management for
assets, incorrect manufacturing life-cycle benchmark for assets, effects of cost
cutting practices and insufficient methods for sustainably retaining asset lifecycle
costs to a minimum were investigated. The study intended to understand the
relationship as well as the moderating effects between Manufacturing Asset Lifecycles
(MALC) management and inherent cost benefits. The literature review’s
confirmation of theoretical concerns to exist in asset life-cycle management
literature and various forms of articulating associated concepts, helped propel the
study forward to generate two hypotheses; H1 suggesting that MALC-m leads to
CB-real and H2 hypothesising that TCO-mr moderates CB-real from manufacturing
asset life-cycle management. After quantitatively collecting nominal and ordinal
data, inferential statistical tests were conducted to test the latter hypotheses using
Spearman’s rank order correlation on the ordinal data. Results that emerged
disproved the two hypotheses, with H2 findings confirming a new emergent
relationship to suggest that access to quality TCO asset data, moderates
creation of CB-real. Another contribution to theory were the two conceptual models
in chapter 5, figure 6-3 and 6-4, presenting a life-cycle stage and time
continuum-based model for viewing MALC-m input data as well as life-cycle
stage and time continuum-based model for viewing MALC-m application
outcomes. The two models work in synchrony with each other as they look at the
same principles, just from different views"
