Framework for collaborative knowledge management in organizations

Nowadays organizations have been pushed to speed up the rate of industrial transformation to high value products and services. The capability to agilely respond to new market demands became a strategic pillar for innovation, and knowledge management could support organizations to achieve that goal. However, current knowledge management approaches tend to be over complex or too academic, with interfaces difficult to manage, even more if cooperative handling is required. Nevertheless, in an ideal framework, both tacit and explicit knowledge management should be addressed to achieve knowledge handling with precise and semantically meaningful definitions. Moreover, with the increase of Internet usage, the amount of available information explodes. It leads to the observed progress in the creation of mechanisms to retrieve useful knowledge from the huge existent amount of information sources. However, a same knowledge representation of a thing could mean differently to different people and applications. Contributing towards this direction, this thesis proposes a framework capable of gathering the knowledge held by domain experts and domain sources through a knowledge management system and transform it into explicit ontologies. This enables to build tools with advanced reasoning capacities with the aim to support enterprises decision-making processes. The author also intends to address the problem of knowledge transference within an among organizations. This will be done through a module (part of the proposed framework) for domain’s lexicon establishment which purpose is to represent and unify the understanding of the domain’s used semantic

Digital Twins: A Meta-Review on Their Conceptualization, Application, and Reference Architecture

The concept of digital twins (DTs) is receiving increasing attention in research and management practice. However, various facets around the concept are blurry, including conceptualization, application areas, and reference architectures for DTs. A review of preliminary results regarding the emerging research output on DTs is required to promote further research and implementation in organizations. To do so, this paper asks four research questions: (1) How is the concept of DTs defined? (2) Which application areas are relevant for the implementation of DTs? (3) How is a reference architecture for DTs conceptualized? and (4) Which directions are relevant for further research on DTs? With regard to research methods, we conduct a meta-review of 14 systematic literature reviews on DTs. The results yield important insights for the current state of conceptualization, application areas, reference architecture, and future research directions on DTs

Systematic specification of requirements for assembly process control system in the pharmaceutical industry

Abstract. Pharmaceutical manufacturing is one of the most strictly regulated fields in the world. Manufacturers of pharmaceutical products are juridically obliged to monitor the safety and quality of products. Any defects and manufacturing errors affecting the product are demanded to be traceable due to patient safety. Regulative bodies have set strict demands for data integrity in manufacturing records. The main objective of this thesis is to evaluate whether the proposed supervisory control and data acquisition software can adhere to current prevailing regulatory framework. The evaluation of the proposed supervisory control and data acquisition software focuses on handling of electronic records and electronic signatures. Features like user management, alarm and event management, reporting, and locally set requirements in the target company are investigated and reflected to the prevailing regulations concerning data integrity. The results showed that the proposed software is, when properly configured, compliant to prevailing regulations regarding electronic records and electronic signatures. In addition, the proposed software is capable of the requirements set by the target company.Systemaattinen vaatimusmäärittely kokoonpanoprosessin ohjausjärjestelmälle lääketeollisuudessa. Tiivistelmä. Valmistava lääketeollisuus on yksi maailman eniten säädellyin teollisuuden ala. Lääkinnällisten tuotteiden valmistaja on lainmukaisesti vastuussa tuotteidensa laadusta ja valmistuksen valvomisesta. Tuotteiden laatu- ja valmistusvirheiden vaaditaan olevan jäljitettävissä potilasturvallisuuden vuoksi. Sääntelyviranomaiset ovat asettaneet tiukat vaatimukset tuotantokoneiden elektronisille tallenteille. Tämän diplomityön tavoitteena on arvioida noudattaako ehdotettu ohjausjärjestelmä nykyisiä säädöksiä. Ohjausjärjestelmän arviointi keskittyy eletronisten tallenteiden ja elektronisten allekirjoitusten toteutukseen ohjelmassa. Arvioinnin perustana käytetään sääntelyviranomaisten viimeisimpiä säädöksiä. Arviointi kohdistuu ohjelmiston käyttähallintaan, hälytys- ja tapahtumahallintaan, raportointiin ja paikallisesti asetettuihin vaatimuksiin tiedon eheyden näkökulmasta. Arviointi osoitti, että oikein konfiguroituna ehdotettu ohjausjärjestelmä noudattaa nykyisiä säännöksiä elektronisten tallenteiden ja elektronisten allekirjoitusten osalta. Ohjelmisto pystyy myös vastaamaan yrityksen paikallisesti asetettuihin vaatimuksiin. Ohjelmistoa voi kuitenkin käyttää vastoin nykyisiä sääntelyviranomaisten laatimia säädöksiä ilman riittävää asiantuntevuutta

Evaluating the quality of a set of modelling languages used in combination: A method and a tool

[EN] Modelling languages have proved to be an effective tool to specify and analyse various perspectives of enterprises and information systems. In addition to modelling language designs, works on model quality and modelling language quality evaluation have contributed to the maturity of the model-driven engineering (MDE) field. Although consolidated knowledge on quality evaluation is still relevant to this scenario, in previous works, we have identified misalignments between the topics that academia is addressing and the needs of industry in applying MDE, thus identifying some remaining challenges. In this paper, we focus on the need for a method to evaluate the quality of a set of modelling languages used in combination within a MDE environment. This paper presents MMQEF (Multiple Modelling language Quality Evaluation Framework), describing its foundations, presenting its method components and discussing its trade-offs. (C) 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.This work was supported by COLCIENCIAS (Colombia) (grant 512, 2010); the European Commision FP7 Project CaaS (611351).Giraldo-Velásquez, FD.; España Cubillo, S.; Giraldo, WJ.; Pastor López, O. (2018). Evaluating the quality of a set of modelling languages used in combination: A method and a tool. Information Systems. 77:48-70. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.is.2018.06.002S48707

AGILE Paradigm: The next generation collaborative MDO for the development of aeronautical systems

The research and innovation EU funded AGILE project has developed the next generation of aircraft Multidisciplinary Design and Optimization (MDO) processes, which target significant reductions in aircraft development costs and time to market, leading to more cost-effective and greener aircraft solutions. 19 industry, research and academia partners from Europe, Canada and Russia have developed solutions to cope with the challenges of collaborative design and optimization of complex aeronautical products. In order to accelerate the deployment of large-scale, collaborative multidisciplinary design and optimization, a novel approach, the so-called “AGILE Paradigm”, has been conceived. The AGILE Paradigm is defined as a “blueprint for MDO”, accelerating the deployment and the operations of collaborative “MDO systems” and enabling the development of complex products practiced by multi-site and cross-organizational design teams, having heterogeneous expertise. A set of technologies has been developed by the AGILE consortium to enable the implementation of the AGILE Paradigm principles, thus delivering not only an abstract formalization of the approach, but also an applicable framework. The collection of all the technologies constitutes the so-called “AGILE Framework”, which has been applied for the design and the optimization of multiple aircraft configurations. The ambition of the AGILE Paradigm was set to reduce the lead time of 40% with respect to the current state-of-the-art. This work reviews the evolution of the MDO systems, underlines the open challenges tackled by the AGILE project, and introduces the main architectural concepts behind the AGILE Paradigm. Thereafter, an overview of the application design cases is presented, focusing of the main challenges and achievements. The AGILE technologies enabled the consortium to formulate and to solve in 15 months 7 MDO applications in parallel for the development of 7 novel aircraft configurations, demonstrating time savings beyond the 40% goal

Comparison of Blockchain technology in various segments of supply chain management

Blockchain technology promises to disrupt existing business processes by replacing existing centralized systems. Blockchain technology has gotten plenty of attention in the past few years. The interest in the new technology has reached logistics and supply chain management. When blockchain technology is implemented successfully it can bring benefits such as cost savings, better visibility, and better efficiency. Businesses could greatly benefit from these matters and get competitive advantage if they succeed to implement blockchain technology successfully before their competitors. There are various blockchain platforms available and new platforms are created continuously. These platforms can differ greatly from each other in terms of performance, scalability, and privacy. When considering implementing blockchain technology to supply chains it is key to choose a platform which has the best match to the particular use case. There is earlier research done about different blockchain platforms in different applications, but it is hard to get a bigger picture difference of blockchain platforms in supply chain applications from single studies. This research combines earlier research of the topic using qualitative meta-synthesis. The aim of the study is to find out the differences between Hyperledger Fabric, Ethereum, Corda, Multichain, and Bitcoin platforms. Study found big differences in the suitability to supply chain applications between the platforms. It is key to understand comprehensively the needs for the platform before any decisions between platforms are made, because choosing between these platforms is a tradeoff. The result of the study was that Hyperledger Fabric shoved the best results in most use cases. The biggest challenge in this thesis was to find relevant information because the technology is relatively new.Blockchain teknologialla on mahdollisuus häiritä olevia liiketoimintaprosesseja korvaamalla nykyiset keskitetyt järjestelmät. Lohkoketju teknologia on saanut yhä enemmissä määrin huomiota viime vuosina. Kiinnostus uutta teknologiaa kohtaan on saavuttanut logistiikan ja toimitusketjun hallinnan. Jos lohkoketju teknologia pystytään implementoimaan onnistuneesti, se voi tuoda etuja, kuten kustannussäästöjä ja parempaa tehokkuutta. Tämä voisi suuresti hyödyttää yrityksiä, jos ne onnistuvat ottamaan lohkoketju teknologian käyttöön onnistuneesti ennen kilpailijoitaan. Jo nykyisin saatavilla on erilaisia lohkoketju alustoja ja uusia alustoja luodaan jatkuvasti. Nämä alustat voivat erota suuresti toisistaan muun muassa suorituskyvyn, skaalautuvuuden ja yksityisyyden suhteen. Kun harkitaan lohkoketju teknologian käyttöönottoa toimitusketjuissa, on tärkeää valita alusta, joka sopii parhaiten omaan käyttötarkoitukseen. Eri sovelluksissa eri lohkoketju alustoista on tehty aiemminkin tutkimuksia, mutta yksittäisistä tutkimuksista on vaikea saada suurempaa kuvaa lohkoketju alustojen eroista toimitusketju sovelluksissa. Tämän tutkimuksen tarkoituksena on tutkia metasynteesi tutkimusmenetelmää hyödyntäen Hyperledger Fabric-, Ethereum-, Corda-, Multichain- ja Bitcoin- alustojen eroavaisuuksia. Tutkimuksessa havaittiin suuria eroja alustojen välillä soveltuvuudessa toimitusketju sovelluksiin. On tärkeää ymmärtää kokonaisvaltaisesti omat tarpeet alustalle ennen päätöksiä alustojen välillä, sillä valinta on kompromissi alustojen eroavaisuuksista johtuen. Tutkimuksen tuloksena havaittiin, että Hyperledger Fabric saavutti parhaat tulokset useimmissa käyttötapauksissa. Suurin haaste tässä opinnäytetyössä oli olennaisen tiedon löytäminen, koska tekniikka on suhteellisen uutta

A tale of three systems : case studies on the application of architectural tactics for cyber-foraging

Cyber-foraging is a technique to enable mobile devices to extend their computing power and storage by offloading computation or data to more powerful servers located in the cloud or in single-hop proximity. In previous work, we developed a set of reusable architectural tactics for cyber-foraging systems. We define architectural tactics as design decisions that influence the achievement of a system quality. In this article we present the results of three case studies to validate the application of the tactics to promote their intended functional and non-functional requirements. The first two case studies focus on the identification of architectural tactics in existing cyber-foraging systems. The third case study focuses on the development of a new cyber-foraging system using the architectural tactics. The results of the case studies are an initial demonstration of the validity of the tactics, and the potential for taking a tactics-driven approach to fulfill functional and non-functional requirements for cyber-foraging systems. (C) 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved