Gamification in Human-Centric Operations : Method for Manufacturing Execution Systems

Manual labor tasks can be repetitive and lack feedback, but what if we could add game-like elements to them, or enable gameful experiences? However, gamification, the addition of gamelike elements or gameful experiences, can address this issue. Gamification is a growing area of research that has gained attention and yielded results, particularly in education and general business processes. This thesis presents research on how gamification could be applied to a Manufacturing Execution System (MES). The research question is “How should a gamified MES be designed?” The research is commissioned by a company in the manufacturing sector, in cooperation with an international manufacturing company as part of their joint Industry 5.0 initiative. To begin, research establishes a theoretical background of gamification and its applications in similar manufacturing environments. This thesis presents practices, methods, recommendations, and features for gamification in general, as well as context-specific knowledge. The design science research methodology is used to achieve important outcomes, such as setting the knowledge base, designing and developing the gamification artifact, and demonstrating it through mock-ups. The design and development process is informed by qualitative data gathered through observation and interviews. The data is analyzed to gain knowledge about the context and users. The analysis resulted in nine dimensions of context, a player persona, and emerging knowledge. All these factors inform the design of the artifact, which provides recommendations for how gamification should be designed for MES. The main result of the research is the method artifact, which consists of actionable guidelines that companies can use to guide their future implementation of a gamified MES. Six design principles summarize the guidelines. The research yielded design principles for feedback on work, competence development, among others. Eleven wireframe mock-ups demonstrate the design principles and illustrate which gamification elements are appropriate for use in a gamified MES. The research only considers the employee's perspective and does not consider the business needs necessary for further implementation of a gamified MES. Therefore, future research should focus on aligning business needs with identified user needs, evaluating the artifact further, and implementing a gamified MES based on the artifact. Additionally, research should explore how the wider organization, including management, could benefit from a gamified MES. Another area for future research is the integration of a gamified MES with other systems, such as ERP, CRM, HR, or quality assurance systems, to improve feedback.Pelillistäminen eli pelielementtien tai pelimäisten kokemusten lisääminen voi tehdä manuaalisista työtehtävistä mielenkiintoisempia. Pelillistäminen on kasvava tutkimusalue, jota hyödynnetään erityisesti koulutuksessa ja liiketoimintakäytössä. Tässä pro gradu -tutkielma käsittelee pelillistämisen soveltamista MES-tuotannonohjausjärjestelmiin tutkimuskysymyksellä “Miten pelillistetty MES-järjestelmä pitäisi suunnitella?” Tutkimuksen toimeksiantajana on valmistusteollisuuden alalla toimiva yritys yhteistyössä alan kansainvälisen yrityksen kanssa. Tutkimus on osa heidän Teollisuus 5.0 -hankettaan. Tutkimus koostuu kirjallisuuskatsauksesta, jossa analysoidaan pelillistämistä ja sen sovelluksia vastaavissa tuotantoympäristöissä sekä suunnittelutieteellisen metodin mukaisesta tutkimuksesta. Työssä esitellään pelillistämisen käytäntöjä, menetelmiä, suosituksia sekä kontekstikohtaista tietoa. Suunnittelu- ja kehittämisprosessin perustana on kirjallisuuskatsauksen lisäksi tutkimusaineisto, joka kerättiin haastatteluilla ja havainnoinnin avulla. Tutkimusaineistosta tunnistettiin tietoa kontekstista ja käyttäjistä. Tutkimuksen päätuloksena on metodiartefakti, joka koostuu suosituksista, joita yritykset voivat käyttää ohjaamaan pelillistetyn MES-järjestelmän käyttöönottoa tulevaisuudessa. Suositukset muodostavat kuusi suunnitteluperiaatetta muun muassa palautteenantoon työhön ja osaamisen kehittämiseen liittyen. Yksitoista käyttöliittymäluonnosta havainnollistavat suunnitteluperiaatteita ja kuvittavat, mitkä pelillistämisen elementit soveltuvat käytettäväksi pelillistetyssä MES-järjestelmässä. Tutkimuksessa huomioidaan vain työntekijän näkökulma eikä liiketoiminnallisia tarpeita, jotka ovat välttämättömiä pelillistetyn MES-järjestelmän toteuttamiseksi. Siksi jatkotutkimuksessa tulisi keskittyä liiketoiminnan tarpeiden ja tunnistettujen käyttäjien tarpeiden yhteensovittamiseen, artefaktin tarkempaan arviointiin ja artefaktiin perustuvan pelillistetyn MES-järjestelmän toteuttamiseen. Lisäksi tulevaisuudessa voitaisiin tutkia, miten organisaatiossa voitaisiin hyötyä laajemmin pelillistetystä MES-järjestelmästä. Toinen tulevaisuuden tutkimusalue voisi olla pelillistetyn MES-järjestelmän integrointi muihin järjestelmiin, kuten ERP-, CRM-, HR- tai laadunvarmistusjärjestelmiin, palautteen parantamiseksi

A New Concept of Digital Twin Supporting Optimization and Resilience of Factories of the Future

In the context of Industry 4.0, a growing use is being made of simulation-based decision-support tools commonly named Digital Twins. Digital Twins are replicas of the physical manufacturing assets, providing means for the monitoring and control of individual assets. Although extensive research on Digital Twins and their applications has been carried out, the majority of existing approaches are asset specific. Little consideration is made of human factors and interdependencies between different production assets are commonly ignored. In this paper, we address those limitations and propose innovations for cognitive modeling and co-simulation which may unleash novel uses of Digital Twins in Factories of the Future. We introduce a holistic Digital Twin approach, in which the factory is not represented by a set of separated Digital Twins but by a comprehensive modeling and simulation capacity embracing the full manufacturing process including external network dependencies. Furthermore, we introduce novel approaches for integrating models of human behavior and capacities for security testing with Digital Twins and show how the holistic Digital Twin can enable new services for the optimization and resilience of Factories of the Future. To illustrate this approach, we introduce a specific use-case implemented in field of Aerospace System Manufacturing.The present work was developed under the EUREKA–ITEA3 Project CyberFactory#1 (ITEA-17032), co-funded by Project CyberFactory#1PT (ANI|P2020 40124), from FEDER Funds through NORTE2020 program and from National Funds through FCT under the project UID/EEA/00760/2019 and by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF, Germany, funding No. 01IS18061C).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Gamification of the work floor: A literature review of gamifying production and logistics operations

We review the current body of academic literature concerning gamification of production and logistics. The findings indicate that production execution and control has been addressed most often in the current body of literature, which consists mostly of design research. Objectives and goals, points, achievements, multimedial feedback, metaphorical/fictional representations, and levels and progress are currently most often employed gamification affordances on this field. The research has focused on examining or considering motivation, enjoyment and flow as the main psychological outcomes of gamification in the given context, while individual performance and efficiency are the most commonly examined or suggested behavioral/organizational impacts. Future studies should employ more rigorous study designs and firmly ground the discussions in organization theory

Learning in a Mixed Reality System in the Context of ‚Industrie 4.0‘

This contribution in the field of innovative approaches to training and education in technical subjects focuses on the potential of modern teaching and learning environments. The contribution is based on a theoretical introduction to Mixed Reality Systems and virtual teaching and learning systems, and as such provides an overview of current research regarding modern learning environments. In particular, it takes a close look at motivational effects in the context of web-based learning structures, human-object interactions, gamification and immersion. The article discusses both technical, user-relevant and pedagogical aspects as well as suggestions for further research in the context of Ausbildung 4.0.Keywords: Industry 4.0, Vocational Training 4.0, Mixed Reality System, virtual learning AcknowledgementThe author would like to thank the ChinaScholarshipCouncil(CSC) for the financial support (No. 201406030091)

Digital Twins of Business Processes as Enablers for IT / OT Integration

The vision of Industry 4.0 introduces new requirements to Operational Technology (OT) systems. Solutions for these requirements already exist in the Information Technology (IT) world, however, due to the different characteristics of both worlds, these solutions often cannot be directly used in the world of OT. We therefore propose an Industrial Business Process Twin (IBPT), allowing to apply methods of one world to another not directly but, instead, to a representation, that is in bidirectional exchange with the other world. The proposed IBPT entity acts as an intermediary, decoupling the worlds of IT and OT, thus allowing for an integration of IT and OT components of different manufacturers and platforms. Using this approach, we demonstrate the four essential Industry 4.0 design principles information transparency, technical assistance, interconnection and decentralized decisions based on the gamified Industry 4.0 scenario of playing the game of Nine Men's Morris. This scenario serves well for agent based Artificial Intelligence (AI)-research and education. We develop an Open Platform Communications Unified Architecture (OPC UA) information and communication model and then evaluate the IBPT component with respect to the different views of the Reference Architecture Model Industry 4.0 (RAMI4.0).Comment: Submitted to INDIN2023 conferenc

Activity-based shop floor management – A concept to enhance flexibility

Volatile markets, an increasing shortage of skilled workers and individual customer requirements as well as the growing desire for a fulfilling work-life balance among employees are influencing the production environment. Flexibility and adaptability are possible key factors to enable companies to meet these challenges. A concept for an activity-based shop floor management has been developed to make work organization more flexible in the area of production. In this concept, first of all activity packages are defined and evaluated, for example with regard to their requirements. Furthermore, it is necessary to define competence levels into which the employees are clustered according to their abilities. Thus, a competence-oriented matching of activity packages and employees is possible. The employee can choose tasks from the pre-grouped activity packages. The result is a generally valid concept for flexible staff deployment planning, which is evaluated in the automotive industry. This concept allows a change from role-based to activity-based task assignment with gamified incentive system, whereby specialists can be deployed more efficiently according to their qualifications

Augmented Go & See: An approach for improved bottleneck identification in production lines

Bottlenecks in production lines are often shifting and thus hard to identify. They lead to decreased output, longer throughput times and higher work in progress. Go & See is a well-established Lean practice where managers go to the shop floor to see the problems first hand. Mixed reality is a promising technology to improve transparency in complex production environments. Until recently, mixed reality applications have been very demanding in terms of computing power requiring high performance hardware. This paper presents an approach for real-time KPI visualization using mixed reality for bottleneck identification in production lines relying on the bring-your-own device principle. The developed application uses image recognition to identify work stations and visualizes cycle times and work in progress in augmented reality. With this additional information, it is possible to discern different root causes for bottlenecks, for example systematically higher or varying cycle times due to breakdowns. This solution can be classified according to the acatech industry 4.0 maturity model as a level 3 - transparency - application. It could be shown that the identification of bottlenecks and underlying reasons has been improved compared to standard Go & See

Energy management structure and behaviour and motivation analysis within each sector

The understanding of the organizational aspects of achieving increased energy efficiency in In-dustrial Water Circuits (IWC) over the course of the WaterWatt project has benefitted from two parallel processes. On the one hand, conducting case studies in a variety of countries and sec-tors has helped to identify and to distinguish what might be referred to as ‘universal’ and ‘local’ factors that influence the degree of energy efficiency in IWC. On the other hand, discussions within the WaterWatt consortium, partly informed by insights established during the case study research, about the direction and focus of the organizational aspects of the project have moved forward. The aim of conducting the case studies as part of WaterWatt Project is to understand how indus-trial water circuits work in practice and in particular contexts. For our technical colleagues, the case study approach has been important to help them in their efforts to incorporate the modelling of water circuits into the E3 Platform. From our sociological perspective, the case study ap-proach has proved to be an excellent method to develop our understanding of the organizational dimensions of achieving greater energy efficiency. The case studies have helped us to formulate organizational factors, as well as produce a list of relevant contextual factors, which essentially represent the conclusions of this work (see D3.3). The following sets of case studies have been conducted - A steelwork in Germany in June 2016 - A steel plant and a non-ferrous metal plant in Norway in October 2016 - A paper & cardboard and a sugar plant in Portugal in November 2016 - A steel plant in the United Kingdom in May 201

Crossing the chasm between industrial and software companies

Very few of the enterprise resource programme implementations put into action manage to meet their requirements satisfyingly yet the critical failure factors as well as critical success factors have been studied very narrowly. The role and the point of view of the employees who use the software has not been studied extensively throughout this operation and possibly holds some answers. To discover whether there is a gap in understanding from the software developers to the final users of the programme, a thorough inspection into the past research was required to gather a holistic picture. The objective was to define this gap in understanding and define what it would mean if it was there. The numbers of the failed and struggling implementations of different ERPs are too high to be accountable by the previously claimed issues such as cultural differences, top management support and ERP vendor support. These factors play a big role between complete failures and successful implementations by the vendors’ standards but are still far from the desired benefits desired within the procuring companies. A possible solution to the issue of implementing and operating an ERP better might lie on the software side of things instead of on the procuring companies. Gamification is a rising topic in many software fields and has already begun to show in the ERPs as well. Future studies are needed to test the real potential this newish field of software promises

Advances in Production Management Systems: Issues, Trends, and Vision Towards 2030

Since its inception in 1978, the IFIP Working Group (WG) 5.7 on Advances in Production Management Systems (APMS) has played an active role in the fields of production and production management. The Working Group has focused on the conception, development, strategies, frameworks, architectures, processes, methods, and tools needed for the advancement of both fields. The associated standards created by the IFIP WG5.7 have always been impacted by the latest developments of scientific rigour, academic research, and industrial practices. The most recent of those developments involves the Fourth Industrial Revolution, which is having remarkable (r)evolutionary and disruptive changes in both the fields and the standards. These changes are triggered by the fusion of advanced operational and informational technologies, innovative operating and business models, as well as social and environmental pressures for more sustainable production systems. This chapter reviews past, current, and future issues and trends to establish a coherent vision and research agenda for the IFIP WG5.7 and its international community. The chapter covers a wide range of production aspects and resources required to design, engineer, and manage the next generation of sustainable and smart production systems.acceptedVersio