e-Skills: The International dimension and the Impact of Globalisation - Final Report 2014

In today’s increasingly knowledge-based economies, new information and communication technologies are a key engine for growth fuelled by the innovative ideas of highly - skilled workers. However, obtaining adequate quantities of employees with the necessary e-skills is a challenge. This is a growing international problem with many countries having an insufficient numbers of workers with the right e-Skills. For example: Australia: “Even though there’s 10,000 jobs a year created in IT, there are only 4500 students studying IT at university, and not all of them graduate” (Talevski and Osman, 2013). Brazil: “Brazil’s ICT sector requires about 78,000 [new] people by 2014. But, according to Brasscom, there are only 33,000 youths studying ICT related courses in the country” (Ammachchi, 2012). Canada: “It is widely acknowledged that it is becoming inc reasingly difficult to recruit for a variety of critical ICT occupations –from entry level to seasoned” (Ticoll and Nordicity, 2012). Europe: It is estimated that there will be an e-skills gap within Europe of up to 900,000 (main forecast scenario) ICT pr actitioners by 2020” (Empirica, 2014). Japan: It is reported that 80% of IT and user companies report an e-skills shortage (IPA, IT HR White Paper, 2013) United States: “Unlike the fiscal cliff where we are still peering over the edge, we careened over the “IT Skills Cliff” some years ago as our economy digitalized, mobilized and further “technologized”, and our IT skilled labour supply failed to keep up” (Miano, 2013)

Wearables as Augmentation Means: Conceptual Definition, Pathways, and Research Framework

Wearables pervade many facets of human endeavor, thanks to their integration into everyday artifacts and activities. From fitness bands to medical patches, to augmented reality glasses, wearables have demonstrated immense potential for intelligence augmentation (IA) through human-machine symbiosis. To advance an understanding of how wearables engender IA and to provide a solid foundation for grounding IS research on wearables and IA, this study draws from Engelbart’s framework for augmenting human intellect to: (1) develop a conceptual definition of wearable technology as a digitally enhanced body-borne device that can augment a human or non-human capability by affording context sensitivity, mobility, hands-free interaction, and constancy of operation, (2) extend Engelbart’s framework to the sociomaterial domain to account for the emergence of augmented capabilities that are neither wholly social nor wholly material, and (3) propose and elaborate four augmentation pathways —complementation, supplementation, mediation, and mutual constitution—to facilitate IA research

IEOM Society International

IEOM Society Internationa

Systematic mapping of big data for development stakeholders with a focus on the ‘Global South’ : final report

Annex IV for IDL-56905Drawn from a larger database, the final mapping consists of 215 actors worldwide found to be most relevant or potentially relevant to big data and development (BD4D) at this time. The entries are coded based on region, organization type, actor, domain and gender. A broad view of activities related to BD4D are captured along with original sources and search terms. Though most of the domains developed in the research reflect sustainable development goals (SDGs), SDG is included as a separate domain, to include work that looks at uses of big data solely in light of the United Nations 17 SDGs

TCitySmartF: A comprehensive systematic framework for transforming cities into smart cities

A shared agreed-upon definition of "smart city" (SC) is not available and there is no "best formula" to follow in transforming each and every city into SC. In a broader inclusive definition, it can be described as an opportunistic concept that enhances harmony between the lives and the environment around those lives perpetually in a city by harnessing the smart technology enabling a comfortable and convenient living ecosystem paving the way towards smarter countries and the smarter planet. SCs are being implemented to combine governors, organisations, institutions, citizens, environment, and emerging technologies in a highly synergistic synchronised ecosystem in order to increase the quality of life (QoL) and enable a more sustainable future for urban life with increasing natural resource constraints. In this study, we analyse how to develop citizen- and resource-centric smarter cities based on the recent SC development initiatives with the successful use cases, future SC development plans, and many other particular SC development solutions. The main features of SC are presented in a framework fuelled by recent technological advancement, particular city requirements and dynamics. This framework - TCitySmartF 1) aims to aspire a platform that seamlessly forges engineering and technology solutions with social dynamics in a new philosophical city automation concept - socio-technical transitions, 2) incorporates many smart evolving components, best practices, and contemporary solutions into a coherent synergistic SC topology, 3) unfolds current and future opportunities in order to adopt smarter, safer and more sustainable urban environments, and 4) demonstrates a variety of insights and orchestrational directions for local governors and private sector about how to transform cities into smarter cities from the technological, social, economic and environmental point of view, particularly by both putting residents and urban dynamics at the forefront of the development with participatory planning and interaction for the robust community- and citizen-tailored services. The framework developed in this paper is aimed to be incorporated into the real-world SC development projects in Lancashire, UK

Predictive long-term asset maintenance strategy: development of a fuzzy logic condition-based control system

Dissertation presented as the partial requirement for obtaining a Master's degree in Information Management, specialization in Knowledge Management and Business IntelligenceTechnology has accelerated the growth of the Facility Management industry and its roles are broadening to encompass more responsibilities and skill sets. FM budgets and teams are becoming larger and more impactful as new technological trends are incorporated into data-driven strategies. This new scenario has motivated institutions such as the European Central Bank to initiate projects aimed at optimising the use of data to improve the monitoring, control and preservation of the assets that enable the continuity of the Bank's activities. Such projects make it possible to reduce costs, plan, manage and allocate resources, reinforce the control, and efficiency of safety and operational systems. To support the long-term maintenance strategy being developed by the Technical Facility Management section of the ECB, this thesis proposes a model to calculate the Left wear margin of the equipment. This is accomplished through the development of an algorithm based on a fuzzy logic system that uses Python language and presents the system's structure, its reliability, feasibility, potential, and limitations. For Facility Management, this project constitutes a cornerstone of the ongoing digital transformation program

The Application of Mixed Reality Within Civil Nuclear Manufacturing and Operational Environments

This thesis documents the design and application of Mixed Reality (MR) within a nuclear manufacturing cell through the creation of a Digitally Assisted Assembly Cell (DAAC). The DAAC is a proof of concept system, combining full body tracking within a room sized environment and bi-directional feedback mechanism to allow communication between users within the Virtual Environment (VE) and a manufacturing cell. This allows for training, remote assistance, delivery of work instructions, and data capture within a manufacturing cell. The research underpinning the DAAC encompasses four main areas; the nuclear industry, Virtual Reality (VR) and MR technology, MR within manufacturing, and finally the 4 th Industrial Revolution (IR4.0). Using an array of Kinect sensors, the DAAC was designed to capture user movements within a real manufacturing cell, which can be transferred in real time to a VE, creating a digital twin of the real cell. Users can interact with each other via digital assets and laser pointers projected into the cell, accompanied by a built-in Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) system. This allows for the capture of implicit knowledge from operators within the real manufacturing cell, as well as transfer of that knowledge to future operators. Additionally, users can connect to the VE from anywhere in the world. In this way, experts are able to communicate with the users in the real manufacturing cell and assist with their training. The human tracking data fills an identified gap in the IR4.0 network of Cyber Physical System (CPS), and could allow for future optimisations within manufacturing systems, Material Resource Planning (MRP) and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP). This project is a demonstration of how MR could prove valuable within nuclear manufacture. The DAAC is designed to be low cost. It is hoped this will allow for its use by groups who have traditionally been priced out of MR technology. This could help Small to Medium Enterprises (SMEs) close the double digital divide between themselves and larger global corporations. For larger corporations it offers the benefit of being low cost, and, is consequently, easier to roll out across the value chain. Skills developed in one area can also be transferred to others across the internet, as users from one manufacturing cell can watch and communicate with those in another. However, as a proof of concept, the DAAC is at Technology Readiness Level (TRL) five or six and, prior to its wider application, further testing is required to asses and improve the technology. The work was patented in both the UK (S. R EDDISH et al., 2017a), the US (S. R EDDISH et al., 2017b) and China (S. R EDDISH et al., 2017c). The patents are owned by Rolls-Royce and cover the methods of bi-directional feedback from which users can interact from the digital to the real and vice versa. Stephen Reddish Mixed Mode Realities in Nuclear Manufacturing Key words: Mixed Mode Reality, Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality, Nuclear, Manufacture, Digital Twin, Cyber Physical Syste

New-age technologies-driven social innovation : what, how, where, and why?

Social innovation (SI) offers a sustainable solution to prevalent social issues/problems and is typically developed and deployed by a varied set of people from the society adopting a top-down and/or bottom-up approach. The disruption of new-age technologies (NATs) is immensely impacting the space of SIs, providing a resource-efficient solution, and bringing multiple outcome benefits. In this study, we discuss the SIs driven by new-age technologies and attempt to address a few critical questions around such SIs to better understand the construct, such as – What is SI? How are NATs playing a role in providing an innovative offering for the social good? Where does it take place in society? How can SI be deployed in society to reach out to the populace? and, Why SI is required for society? By employing the triangulation approach, we provide a comprehensive framework recognizing the different contexts under which SI takes place in society, explaining the possible outcomes and suggesting the boundary conditions. We then provide the generalized propositions on the proposed relationship in the SI framework. Further, this study identifies directions for future research and provides implications for firms, policymakers, and social entrepreneurs

Identifying Gaps and Setting Priorities for Employment and Training Research

The report summarizes recent workforce and employment related research, to identify current gaps in employment and training research and makes recommendations for future research processes and priorities that could better inform policy makers, practitioners, job seekers and employers. The report reviews workforce and related research funded by several federal agencies, including the US Departments of Labor, Education, Agriculture, Health and Human Services, and Housing and Urban Development, the National Science Foundation and other federal entities, as well as research undertaken by regional, state and local workforce agencies and philanthrophic organizations