Socrates thematic network to enhance European teaching of operations and supply chain management: goals, tasks and preliminary results

145 SOCRATES THEMATIC NETWORK TO ENHANCE EUROPEAN TEACHING OF OPERATIONS AND SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT: GOALS, TASKS AND PRELIMINARY RESULTS José An onio Domínguez Machuca Ra aela Al alla Luque Maca ena Sac is án Díaz ABSTRACT The Eu OMA-sponso ed THENEXOM ne wo k has been app o ed by he Eu opean Commission h ough i s Soc a es communi y ac ion p og amme. THENEXOM’s sho - e m goal is o analyse he p esen s a e o Ope a ions and Supply Chain Managemen in Eu opean uni e si ies and o iden i y s eng hs and weaknesses in o de o ins iga e he use o be e p ac ices. A census is being d awn up o OM eache s h oughou he 24 coun ies (and 27 uni e si ies) making up he ne wo k. A su ey can hen be aken o he eaching-s a , con en and me hods employed. The ne wo k’s medium- e m aim is o igh en links be ween eaching, esea ch and business p ac ice by educing imbalances. In compliance wi h EU ecommenda ions, s a egic connec ions a e being sough wi h Ame ica and Asia o expand a o esaid objec i es and ac ions h oughou he wo ld. KEY WORDS: Thema ic ne wo ks; P oduc ion/Ope a ions Managemen ; POM; Supply Chain, Se ice Ope a ions Managemen . RESUMEN La ed THENEXOM, p omo ida po Eu OMA, ha sido ap obada po la Comisión Eu opea (p og ama de acción comuni a ia Sóc a es). Su obje i o a co o plazo es es udia la si uación de la Di ección de Ope aciones y la Ges ión de Cadenas de Suminis o en las uni e sidades eu opeas, buscando iden i ica o alezas y de iciencias y p omo e el empleo de las mejo es p ác icas. Pa a ello se es á elabo ando un censo de docen es de DO en los 24 países ep esen ados en la ed (po 27 ins i uciones uni e si a ias); és e pe mi i á el desa ollo de una encues a sob e p o eso ado, con enidos y me odología docen e. A medio plazo, la ed ha de se i pa a es echa ínculos en e enseñanza, in es igación y p ác ica emp esa ial, limando los posibles des ases. Siguiendo las ecomendaciones de la UE, se es án ealizando conexiones es a égicas con Amé ica y Asia pa a ex ende los obje i os y ac uaciones mencionados. PALABRAS CLAVE: Redes emá icas; Di ección de P oducción/Ope aciones; Cadena de Suminis o; Di ección de Ope aciones en emp esas de se icios. CITIES IN COMPETITION 146 1. INTRODUCTION: OPERATIONS , SUPPLY CHAIN AND SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT THENEXOM (Eu opean Thema ic Ne wo k o he Excellence in Ope a ions and Supply Chain Managemen Educa ion, Resea ch and P ac ice) is a hema ic ne wo k sponso ed by Eu OMA (Eu opean Ope a ions Managemen Associa ion) and was es ablished in Oc obe 2003 h ough he Eu opean Commission’s Soc a es communi y ac ion p og amme. Expe assessmen has desc ibed he subjec a ea and he esea ch p ojec as e y impo an o he whole Eu opean Union. The well-balanced expe ience and abili ies o he pa ne s bo h a an academic and a business le el we e also highligh ed. The THENEXOM ne wo k akes a b oad iew o he de ini ion o Ope a ions Managemen and includes mains eam Ope a ions Managemen , Supply Chain Managemen , and Se ice Ope a ions Managemen . Ope a ions Managemen (OM) is conce ned wi h how o ganisa ions p oduce goods and se ices, and in pa icula wi h he asks, issues and decisions o ope a ions manage s who a e in cha ge o making su e ha he design, p oduc ion, and deli e y o p oduc s is aking place e ec i ely. Common opics s udies in he OM ield include Ope a ions S a egy, P oduc & P ocess Design and De elopmen , Capaci y Managemen , Loca ion and Layou , Quali y Managemen and Con inuous Imp o emen , P oduc ion Planning, MRP/ERP Sys ems, Jus -in- ime / Lean P oduc ion, P ojec Managemen , P ocess Managemen , In en o y Sys ems, Global Ope a ions, Managemen o Ad ance Manu ac u ing Technologies, Se ice Ope a ions Managemen , Pu chasing and Ma e ials Managemen , Logis ics, Supply Chain managemen , Pe o mance measu emen , In e ne -enabled ope a ions, En i onmen al Ope a ions Managemen , among many o he s. Supply Chain Managemen (SCM) is conce ned wi h he managemen o logis ical lows and wi h he se o managemen p ac ices used o design, plan, and con ol hese lows in o de o achie e seamless in eg a ion o he ne wo k o supplie s eeding an ope a ions sys em. Tipical SCM opics a e Supply Chain Design (logis ics ne wo k con igu a ion, low design, in eg a ion,…), coo dina ed p oduc and supply chain design ( a ie y managemen , modula i y, pos ponemen ,…), p ocu emen , supplie managemen , in o ma ion managemen , e e se logis ics o en i onmen al issues. Se ice ope a ions managemen (SOM) is simila o Ope a ions Managemen bu ocuses exclusi ely on he se ice indus y and on he di icul y o designing, planning, and con olling ope a ions when an ope a ions sys em ou pu is in angible, co-p oduced, and in ol es emo ions and expe iences. Common opics s udies in SOM ield a e, among o he s, se ice ope a ions s a egy, design and managemen quali y, in e na ionaliza ion and globaliza ion o se ice company and wo ld class se ice companies, selec ion and design o se ice, selec ion and design o se ice deli e y sys em, echnology in se ices and new echnologies, layou in se ice companies planning, scheduling and con ol o se ice ope a ions, managemen o demand and medium and sho - e m capaci y, ope a ions queue managemen , yield managemen , human esou ce planning and scheduling o measu e o cus ome sa is ac ion. 2. IMPORTANCE OF THE THEMATIC NETWORK Du ing he las 20 yea s he inc easing need o companies o sha pen hei compe i i eness in in e na ional ma ke s has con e ed he Ope a ions unc ion, and p oduc i i y in gene al, in o a key compe i i e weapon. INNOVATIONS AND TECHNOLOGY PROJECTS AND OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT IN THE CITY DEVELOPMENT 147 Du ing his pe iod, Ope a ions Managemen has assumed a g ea e ocus in business and academic communi ies, and he ole o he OM unc ion in achie ing business success has con inued o g ow. I is acknowledged as a key o success o many manu ac u ing and se ice companies. A s udy on compu e and elec onics companies (Lau, 1997) analysed he e ec o implemen ing a a ie y o OM app oaches, me hods and echniques, on he esul s ob ained by hese companies. The s udy showed ha hose companies classi ied as highly compe i i e sco ed highe alues in OM cha ac e is ics, han he less compe i i e companies. Indi idual companies need o be s udied using a c oss unc ional app oach, which has o ake in o accoun he in e connec ions be ween he di e en business a eas/ unc ions. Besides, he e olu ion o new In o ma ion and Communica ions Technology, and he apidly expanding globalisa ion is acili a ing he de elopmen o mul iple ne wo ks o companies wi h many a ied speciali ies. Inc easingly bo h company s eng hs and compe i i eness is esiding in ne wo ks /Supply Chains wi h s ong in e connec ions. Empi ical s udies (F ohlich and Wes b ook, 2001) show ha he mos success ul Supply Chains a e hose ha ha e been able o in eg a e hei p ocesses wi h hei supplie s and cus ome s. Adequa e aining in he de elopmen and managemen o supply chains is also a necessi y, bo h in he academic and business en i onmen , and in pa icula he Small and Medium En e p ises en i onmen . Wi h ega d o he se ices ha a e o e ed, hese a e o an e e g ea e c ucial impo ance. The OECD’s la es s a is ical da a ega ding he pe cen age o he GDB (OECD, 2004a) and employmen (OECD, 2004b) is p oo o his. This da a shows a pe cen age o he GDP o o e 70% o 2002 in he main coun ies (e.g. 75% in he USA (in 2001), 73.2% in F ance and he UK and 70% in Japan, Ge many, I aly and Spain. Dependen employmen in 2003 is o e 60% (e.g. 76.5% in he USA (2002) and he UK, 74.5% in F ance and Canada, 65.2% in Ge many and 64.6% in Spain). To his mus be added he g owing in ol emen o se ice ac i i ies in manu ac u ing companies, calcula ed a be ween 30% - 70% o a manu ac u e (Rosen, 1998). I he e o e comes as no su p ise ha a clea awa eness has exis ed o he impo ance o Se ice Ope a ions Managemen o o e wen y yea s, and o he ole i can and should play in imp o ing managemen and compe i i e abili y in his domain. Gi en ha e ec i e managemen o he h ee s eam o Ope a ions (OM, SCM and SOM) is e y impo an o building a compe i i e ad an age, i ollows ha he le el and quali y o aining in hese a eas has a c i ical in luence on his. Academics play a key ole in his si ua ion, as u u e g adua es will be he main sou ce o managemen skills and capabili ies needed by companies o main ain and inc ease hei compe i i eness. Ins i u ions and academics need o be awa e ha he supply o well- ained g adua es in OM and SCM should ma ch, in quan i y, quali y and ime, he g owing needs o companies. Cu en ly he e is a need o b ing academics oge he o c oss- e ilise ideas on OM, SCM and SOM, because wi hin Eu opean ins i u ions he e is a lack o knowledge ega ding indi idual coun y unde s anding o OM. SCM and SOM and i s sub-disciplines. In addi ion, gi en ha people wi h knowledge in OM, SCM and SOM mus sa is y he needs o a as numbe o companies in many geog aphical loca ions, he use ulness o his ype o in o ma ion will inc ease i compa a i e da a be ween coun ies/ egions is gene a ed o gi e a wide pe spec i e o his subjec . The e ec i eness o hese compa isons will also be enhanced i deepe aspec s a e explo ed in de ail. Fo example, whe e di e ences a e highligh ed, in o ma ion on hei possible causes is needed, as well as in o ma ion on how hese di e ences can be co ec ed. CITIES IN COMPETITION 148 The cu en si ua ion wi h ega d o OM, SCM and SOM eaching in Eu opean Uni e si ies is also unclea . Teaching is unde aken in Poly echnics, Uni e si ies, Enginee ing Schools, Managemen Depa men s, Business Schools, e c. The classi ica ion o wo k done in hese en i onmen s as OM, SCM and SOM is based on he na u e o he opics add essed and on he backg ound/p o ile o he pe son doing he wo k. A e iew o he cha ac e is ics o jou nals whe e academics publish hei wo k and he lis o equi ed eadings in doc o al p og ams shows he same di e si y (Vas ag and Mon abon, 2002). A simila b oad scope occu s in cou ses, esea ch me hodologies and eaching echniques used a di e en le els. An ex ensi e e iew o he bibliog aphy by he Uni e si y o Se ille has highligh ed e y ew s udies o hese opics. Many o hose ound e e o he USA and only ouch on some aspec s o OM eaching. This in-dep h s udy o OM eaching needs o be unde aken a he Eu opean le el (Al alla and Machuca, 2003). The e is hus an u gen need o such s udies o disco e whe he he e is adequa e capaci y a he Eu opean le el o mee an inc easing demand o well- ained p o essionals in he ield. These Thema ic Ne wo k will unde ake in-dep h s udies, in o de o build a ue pic u e o he si ua ion o OM, SCM and SOM educa ion in Eu ope. I will use his in o ma ion o s udy collabo a i e means o imp o emen , and begin he p ocess o achie ing global excellence in he ield a Eu opean uni e si ies. The c ea ion o his ne wo k o map and sha e his a ied knowledge can se e eache s and esea che s o be e unde s and hei posi ions, disco e a eas whe e wo k is done which could complemen hei s and c ea e new in e na ional eaching and esea ch ne wo ks in he ield. Only wi h adequa e da a can i be de e mined whe he Eu opean uni e si ies a e esponding adequa ely o companies’ aining needs in his impo an managemen ield. Only in his way can possible de iciencies in he educa ional sys ems be highligh ed, which should acili a e he implemen a ion o he necessa y co ec i e measu es. Fo his eason links wi h companies will be sea ched and u u e su eys will y o map hei needs in OM, SCM and SOM ields. This Ne wo k p oposes o build upon a p elimina y wo k unde aken in Spain which shows he OM si ua ion in his coun y in 1997 (Machuca and Al alla, 2003). In 1997-1998 Al alla and Machuca (2003) conduc ed a su ey o OM acul ies and iden i ied almos 250 academics ac i ely eaching a o al o almos 300 OM cou ses. Analysis o he census iden i ied a geog aphical imbalance, wi h almos 70% o academics loca ed in 6 au onomous egions (ou o a o al o 17). Also, he s udy shows ha he 64,4% o all he deg ees o e ed only one OM cou se, no o men ion hose o he BA and IE deg ees in which OM is no augh a all. The e ec o his si ua ion is ha a la ge numbe o g adua es a e ecei ing ela i ely li le o no OM aining, pe haps based on only one cou se o 45 o 60 hou s. This lack o ime o ces he eache o concen a e on a e y limi ed se o opics selec ed om he wide ange encompassed by ou discipline, o else o pass supe icially o e a la ge numbe o opics, o he de imen o su icien dep h o ea men . In ou opinion, he esul can only be an inadequa e aining in he OM discipline o many s uden s. Aspec s o his esea ch will be eplica ed by he Ne wo k a he Eu opean le el in he ques o imp o emen in OM aining, aking ad an age o he adap a ion o he Spanish uni e si y sys em o he Eu opean Highe Educa ional A ea. Fo his eason, o us i is an impo an conside a ion ha ou esea ch come unde he Tuning P ojec amewo k and ha he esul s o he esea ch migh be o some help in he con e gence p ocess. The THENEXOM ne wo k is he e o e one o he o icial mechanisms h ough which he Eu opean Commission is implemen ing i s TUNING p ojec . INNOVATIONS AND TECHNOLOGY PROJECTS AND OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT IN THE CITY DEVELOPMENT 149 3. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES OF THE THEMATIC NETWORK The i s aim o he Thema ic Ne wo k is o b ing oge he academics in Eu opean highe educa ion ins i u es o iden i y he Eu opean map o OM, SCM and SOM uni e si y educa ion. The ne wo k will y o ind de iciencies and o y o ind hei causes as well as o ind and o p omo e bes p ac ice con en , eaching and assessmen me hods in OM, SCM and SOM cou ses, o enhance and de elop a Eu opean dimension in he ield. The ne wo k will assess inno a ion in OM, SCM and SOM eaching me hods and ma e ials and dissemina e he wide applica ion o good p ac ice ac oss Eu ope and beyond in bo h he academic and comme cial en i onmen . A medium- e m addi ional aim o he ne wo k is o es ablish links be ween educa ion, esea ch and p ac ice (i.e. companies) in he ield in o de o educe imbalances be ween hese h ee pilla s o companies compe i i eness. Speci ically he objec i es o he Ne wo k o e he i s 12 mon hs, a e o: 1. Unde ake a census o OM, SCM and SOM eache s in pa icipa ing coun ies o de e mine he “capaci y” o he “p oduc ion” o g adua es wi h knowledge in OM, SCM and SOM. This will cap u e which ins i u ions a e eaching OM, SCM and SOM cou ses, which academics a e eaching g adua es, wha le el and ype o aining do hese academics ha e and wha is hei expe ience and backg ound. Gi en he dep h and scope ha his s udy equi ed ( o he easons ou lined in he p eceding sec ion), he iden i ica ion o hese eache s is a majo objec i e equi ing conside able e o , since no o icial sou ce exis s. 2. Design a su ey o OM, SCM and SOM eaching in he pa icipan coun ies o cap u e da a on he quan i y and quali y o knowledge gi en o OM, SCM and SOM s uden s, how he eaching o OM and SCM is planned and de eloped and how he quali y o OM, SCM and SOM lea ning is moni o ed. 3. Enla ge he ne wo k. New membe s will be sea ched among ep esen a i es om o he uni e si ies, companies, esea ch cen es, go e nmen al and en ep eneu ial ins i u ions o inc ease he Eu opean dimension and make he ne wo k mo e ele an o he needs o companies. In compliance wi h E.U. ecommenda ion s a egic connec ions a e being sough wi h Ame ica and Asia o expand a o esaid objec i es and ac ions h oughou he wo ld. 4. Unde ake a ne wo k design imp o emen p ocess, se ing up a co e membe ship o 8 pa ne s o manage his p ocess. This is o ensu e ha he ne wo k e ol es o e ime. The co e membe s will wo k o imp o e he design o he ne wo k. 5. S a o c ea e and popula e an elec onic knowledge da abase which when comple ed, will include da a on Eu opean ins i u ions and indi iduals in ol ed in he ields o OM, SCM and SOM, a lis ing and desc ip ion o he opics co e ed in OM, SCM and SOM cou ses, a desc ip ion o he eaching and me hodologies echniques used as well as ela ed esea ch lines. CITIES IN COMPETITION 150 6. O ganise and unde ake 3 Ne wo k mee ings, in ol ing 30 academics om he pa icipan coun ies, as well as in i ed obse e s om o he ins i u ions and coun ies. 7. O ganise and unde ake 4 mee ings o he Co e g oup o discuss amongs o he s, ne wo k issues such as scien i ic aspec s, e alua ion aspec s, ne wo k e olu ion aspec s, e c. 4. BENEFICIARIES The di ec bene icia ies o he Ne wo k will be: • All academics in he ield o OM, SCM and SOM wo king in Eu opean uni e si ies. They will di ec ly bene i om inc eased knowledge o who is eaching which kinds o subjec (and which me hods / echniques) and unde aking wha ype o esea ch. Use s o he knowledge eposi o y will ha e a aluable sou ce o in o ma ion. In addi ion, many o he pa ne s ha e links wi h companies, which should also acili a e inc eased awa eness o bes p ac ice wi hin he companies and a di ec ans e o knowledge. The ne wo k will p o ide eaching p o essional wi h inc eased awa eness and unde s anding o bes p ac ice in eaching OM so hey can be e in eg a e hei esea ch and eaching o bene i hei s uden s. • Academic in he less de eloped coun ies o Eas e n Eu ope will be di ec bene icia ies, as hei eaching and assessmen me hods could be ou da ed, will bene i di ec ly om inc eased unde s anding o he impac o eaching echniques such as case s udies and ICT simula ions. They will also bene i om inc eased con e ence p esen a ions and jou nal publica ions as he dissemina ion po en ial o he ne wo k de elops u he . As he ne wo k membe ship inc eases o include o he o ganisa ions, i is an icipa ed ha all in ol ed will di ec ly bene i om he dialogue unde aken. • Companies and employe s o ganisa ions in he u u e design o he ne wo k (Yea 2 onwa ds) will p o ide aluable eedback on he impac o he aining echniques and on he ele ance o academic esea ch o hei needs. Thei in ol emen in he ne wo k will lead o collabo a ion, whe e hey will become ins umen al in ensu ing ha esea ch is ele an and aining and assessmen is app op ia e o hei needs. • Go e nmen al o ganisa ions will be able o base hei policy on ele an esea ch and knowledge and in collabo a ion wi h companies wo k oge he o achie e ac ual business imp o emen . The e will be indi ec bene icia ies o he ne wo ks ac i i ies. This includes: • PhD s uden s om uni e si ies ac oss Eu ope who di ec ly bene i om sha ing expe iences and ne wo king wi h academics. • Companies and hei employees who unde ake MBA p og ammes, in which OM and SCM subjec s a e augh , will indi ec ly bene i om be e awa eness o bes p ac ice echniques. INNOVATIONS AND TECHNOLOGY PROJECTS AND OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT IN THE CITY DEVELOPMENT 151 • S uden s o OM bo h a unde g adua e and pos g adua e le el will indi ec ly bene i om he inc eased awa eness o bes p ac ice echniques, which will be mains eamed in o exis ing cou ses. 5. PARTNERSHIP OF THE NETWORK Du ing i s i s yea , 27 uni e si y ins i u ions in 24 Eu opean coun ies ha e belonged o he THENEXOM ne wo k. Wi h ega d o he make-up o he ne wo k, expe s who assessed he p oposal highligh ed he ac ha he pa ne ship includes no only g ea expe ise bu also pa ne s ha could de i e g ea bene i s. They simila ly poin ed ou ha a mu ual complemen o ac i i ies has been iden i ied and ha coope a ion and communica ion be ween pa ne s seems o be gua an eed. The Uni e si y o Se ille is he coo dina ing ins i u ion, bu coo dina ion also in ol es se en o he co e membe s o he ne wo k. Table 1 shows cu en pa ne s and hei co esponding websi e add esses (ins i u ions shaded in Table 1 a e membe s o he Co e G oup). As indica ed in sec ion 3, he ne wo k mus g ow in he nea u u e h ough he inclusion o new uni e si ies, ins i u ions and companies. Ne e heless, all new membe s mus p o ide some added alue wi h ega d o he ne wo k’s objec i es and ac i i ies in he sho -, medium- and/o long- e m. Ne wo k design is con inually being imp o ed, and one o he p ojec s a p esen being examined is he se ing up o domes ic ne wo ks in he 30 Eu opean coun ies connec ed h ough THENEXOM by he c ea ion o one o mo e ep esen a i es in each coun y on he basis hei size and o he ac o s. CITIES IN COMPETITION 152 UNIVERSITY COUNTRY WEBSITE Uni e sidad de Se illa (coo dina ing ins i u ion) Spain www.us.es Vienna Uni e si y o Economics and Business Adminis a ion Aus ia www.p odman.wu-wien.ac.a Uni e si y o An we pen Belgium www.ua.ac.be Uni e si y o Cyp us Cyp us www.pba.ucy.ac.cy Aalbo g Uni e si y Denma k www.cip.auc.dk Es onian Business School G oup L d. Es onia www.ebs.ee Helsinki Uni e si y o Technology Finland www. u a.hu . i HEC School o Managemen Pa is F ance www.hec. In e na ional Uni e si y in Ge many, B uchsal Ge many www.i-u.de A hens Labo a o y o Business Adminis a ion G eece www.alba.edu.g Eindho en Uni e si y o Technology Holland www. m. ue.nl Co einus Uni e si y o Budapes Hunga y www.bkae.hu Uni e si y o Dublin-T ini y College I eland www. cd.ie Uni e si y o Pado a I aly www.unipd.i Riga In e na ional School o Economics and Business Adminis a ion La ia www. iceba.l Uni e si y o Mal a Mal a www.um.edu.m Uni e si y o S a ange No way www.his.no The Ka ol Adamiecki Uni e si y o Economics in Ka owice Poland www.ae.ka owice.pl Uni e si y o A ei o Po ugal www.ua.p Uni e si y Poli echnic o Bucha es Romania www.pub. o Uni e si y o Economics in B a isla a Slo akia www.euba.sk Uni e si y o Ma ibo Slo enia www.uni-mb.si IESE-Uni e sidad de Na a a Spain www.iese.es Chalme s Uni e si y Sweden www.mo .chalme s.se As on Uni e si y U.K. www.as on.ac.uk C an ield Uni e si y U.K. www.c an ield.ac.uk Uni e si y o Wa wick U.K. www.wbs.ac.uk Table 1. THENEXOM Pa ne ship INNOVATIONS AND TECHNOLOGY PROJECTS AND OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT IN THE CITY DEVELOPMENT 153 6. TASKS AND PRELIMINARY RESULTS Du ing i s i s yea , he THENEXOM ne wo k has seen i s di e en objec i es achie ed. These a e se ou in Sec ion 3. We a e he e o e going o b ie ly ake s ock o he main ac i i ies ha ha e allowed us o achie e hese goals. THENEXOM has es ablished a census and p epa ed a su ey, in o de o build a comple e pic u e o he si ua ion o OM, SCM, and SOM educa ion in Eu ope. I will use his In o ma ion o s udy collabo a i e means o imp o emen , and begin he p ocess o achie ing global excellence in he ield a Eu opean uni e si ies. The c ea ion o his ne wo k o map and sha e his a ied knowledge can se e ins uc o s and esea che s o be e unde s and hei posi ions, disco e a eas whe e wo k is done which could complemen hei s and c ea e new in e na ional eaching and esea ch ne wo ks in he ield. Only wi h adequa e da a can i be de e mined whe he Eu opean uni e si ies a e esponding adequa ely o companies’ aining needs in his impo an managemen ield. Only in his way can possible de iciencies in he educa ional sys ems be highligh ed. Fo his eason links wi h companies a e ac i ely sough and u u e su eys will map hei needs in OM, SCM, and SOM. Taking in o accoun he Bologna ag eemen , hese ac i i ies will acili a e he ha monisa ion o OM, SOM and SCM s udies in Eu ope. The main con ibu ion o da e has been he conduc ing o he i s pan-Eu opean su ey o OM, SCM and SOM eache s and esea che s. This was done ia he In e ne which mean ha some p e ious con ac wi h he subjec ’s eache s/ esea che s was equi ed in o de o hem o egis e . This equi ed a huge e o on he pa o all he ne wo k membe s, bu hei e o is beginning o show esul s. An illus a ion o his is he ac ha , as his documen is being w i en, he census is made up o 929 OM, SCM and SOM eache s/ esea che s. Pe - coun y dis ibu ion o hese is shown in Table 2. Despi e he ac ha ou o ecas s lead us o expec his numbe o ise e en highe , we belie e ha a he p esen ime he igu es a e no ably signi ican . By way o compa ison, he numbe o membe s egis e ed wi h he EuROMA associa ion, which is he only poin -o - e e ence we ha e on a Eu opean scale, is 318 in Eu opean coun ies in 2002 EuROMA membe ship. Coun y Sum Spain 231 Romania 74 Uni ed Kingdom 72 F ance 64 No way 61 I aly 58 Finland 41 Holland 37 Hunga y 33 Ge many 30 Denma k 29