A web-based information system to support end-of-life product recovery

Increased public awareness towards global environmental problems has forced manufacturing companies to consider the negative impacts of their activities on the environment. In this context, the effective management of products at the end of their useful life has become of paramount importance due to the ever-increasing national and international legislation and directives aimed at making take-back and recovery of used products obligatory for the original equipment manufacturer. This highlights a need for a systematic approach for enhancement of information, business and production management systems to deal with additional activities and processes related to the recovery of products. The research reported in this paper has developed a five-stage methodology to support product end-of-life management within manufacturing companies. The modelling and design of appropriate product recovery information systems, which constitute the main core of this methodology, are also described. The paper concludes with the description of an application of this methodology and information system design for the recovery of cutting tools at the end of their useful life in metalworking applications

A computer integrated unified modelling approach to responsive manufacturing

Computer modelling approaches have significant potential to enable decision-making about various aspects of responsive manufacturing. In order to understand the system prior to the selection of any responsiveness strategy, multiple process segments of organisations need to be modelled. The article presents a novel systematic approach for creating coherent sets of unified enterprise, simulation and other supporting models that collectively facilitate responsiveness. In this approach, enterprise models are used to explicitly define relatively enduring relationships between (i) production planning and control (PPC) processes, that implement a particular strategy and (ii) process-oriented elements of production systems, that are work loaded by the PPC processes. Coherent simulation models, can in part be derived from the enterprise models, so that they computer execute production system behaviours. In this way, time-based performance outcomes can be simulated; so that the impacts of alternative PPC strategies on the planning and controlling historical or forecasted patterns of workflow, through (current and possible future) production system models, can be analysed. The article describes the unified modelling approach conceived and its application in a furniture industry case study small and medium enterprise (SME)

An integrated approach to support product supply and end-of-life recovery

EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

A computer executable modelling approach to engineering production planning and control systems in dynamic manufacturing organisations

Computer executable modelling approaches have significant roles to play in enabling decision making in dynamic manufacturing organisations especially in relation to engineer its Production Planning and Control (PPC) system. In order to understand the system prior to selection of any PPC strategy, multiple process segments of organisations need to be modelled. The paper outlines key PPC strategies and describes a novel systematic approach for creating coherent sets of unified models that facilitate engineering of PPC strategies. Information models can form a key element within Enterprise Models (EMs) to enable decision making in engineering of PPC strategies. Case study information models are presented to enable the PPC decision making process in support of complex organisation design and change (OD&C). The paper outlines key areas for future research including the need for research into unified modelling approaches and interoperation of partial models in support of complex OD&C