A Dynamic Knowledge Management Framework for the High Value Manufacturing Industry

Dynamic Knowledge Management (KM) is a combination of cultural and technological factors, including the cultural factors of people and their motivations, technological factors of content and infrastructure and, where these both come together, interface factors. In this paper a Dynamic KM framework is described in the context of employees being motivated to create profit for their company through product development in high value manufacturing. It is reported how the framework was discussed during a meeting of the collaborating company’s (BAE Systems) project stakeholders. Participants agreed the framework would have most benefit at the start of the product lifecycle before key decisions were made. The framework has been designed to support organisational learning and to reward employees that improve the position of the company in the market place

Non-Standard Errors

In statistics, samples are drawn from a population in a data-generating process (DGP). Standard errors measure the uncertainty in estimates of population parameters. In science, evidence is generated to test hypotheses in an evidence-generating process (EGP). We claim that EGP variation across researchers adds uncertainty: Non-standard errors (NSEs). We study NSEs by letting 164 teams test the same hypotheses on the same data. NSEs turn out to be sizable, but smaller for better reproducible or higher rated research. Adding peer-review stages reduces NSEs. We further find that this type of uncertainty is underestimated by participants

Measurement of CP asymmetries and branching fraction ratios of B− decays to two charm mesons

The $CP$ asymmetries of seven $B^-$ decays to two charm mesons are measured using data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of $9\text{fb}^{-1}$ of proton-proton collisions collected by the LHCb experiment. Decays involving a $D^{*0}$ or $D^{*-}_s$ meson are analysed by reconstructing only the $D^0$ or $D^-_s$ decay products. This paper presents the first measurement of $\mathcal{A}^{CP}(B^- \rightarrow D^{*-}_s D^0)$ and $\mathcal{A}^{CP}(B^- \rightarrow D^{-}_s D^{*0})$, and the most precise measurement of the other five $CP$ asymmetries. There is no evidence of $CP$ violation in any of the analysed decays. Additionally, two ratios between branching fractions of selected decays are measured.The CP asymmetries of seven B$^{−}$ decays to two charm mesons are measured using data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 9 fb$^{−1}$ of proton-proton collisions collected by the LHCb experiment. Decays involving a D$^{*0}$ or ${D}_s^{\ast -}$ meson are analysed by reconstructing only the D$^{0}$ or ${D}_s^{-}$ decay products. This paper presents the first measurement of $\mathcal{A} ^{CP}$(B$^{−}$→${D}_s^{\ast -}$D$^{0}$) and $\mathcal{A} ^{CP}$(B$^{−}$→${D}_s^{-}$D$^{∗0}$), and the most precise measurement of the other five CP asymmetries. There is no evidence of CP violation in any of the analysed decays. Additionally, two ratios between branching fractions of selected decays are measured.[graphic not available: see fulltext]The $CP$ asymmetries of seven $B^-$ decays to two charm mesons are measured using data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of $9\text{ fb}^{-1}$ of proton-proton collisions collected by the LHCb experiment. Decays involving a $D^{*0}$ or $D^{*-}_s$ meson are analysed by reconstructing only the $D^0$ or $D^-_s$ decay products. This paper presents the first measurement of $\mathcal{A}^{CP}(B^- \rightarrow D^{*-}_s D^0)$ and $\mathcal{A}^{CP}(B^- \rightarrow D^{-}_s D^{*0})$, and the most precise measurement of the other five $CP$ asymmetries. There is no evidence of $CP$ violation in any of the analysed decays. Additionally, two ratios between branching fractions of selected decays are measured

A Method for Engineering Design Change Analysis Using System Modelling and Knowledge Management Techniques

International audienceEngineering design change management is very important to the success of engineering product development. It has been recognised that the earlier change issues are addressed, the greater product lifecycle costs can be saved. However, in practice most engineering changes happen in the manufacturing phase, the later phase of product development. Change issues happening in the design phase, especially between the functional and the structural domains, have been a research focus in recent years, and thus there is significant research work that has been carried out to solve early engineering change issues from different perspectives. This paper presents a novel methodology that has been developed to help designers trace, analyse and evaluate engineering changes occurring in the product design phase. A modelling method is employed to enhance the traceability of potential design changes occurred between the functional and structural domains of design. Based on functional and physical models, a matrix based method is developed to analyse change propagations between components and help to find out design conflicts arising from design changes. A knowledge based method has been proposed to solve design conflicts by reusing previous design change knowledge. An industrial example about changes of a wind turbine cooling system has been used to help to understand the methodology and prove its usefulness

Integrating Social Knowledge and Collaboration Tools into Dispersed Product Development

Employee collaboration and knowledge sharing is vital for manufacturing organisations wishing to be successful in an ever-changing global market place; Product Development (PD) teams, in particular, rely heavily on these activities to generate innovative designs and enhancements to existing product ranges. To this end, the purpose of this paper is to present the results of a validation study carried out during an Engineering Education Scheme project to confirm the benefits of using bespoke Web 2.0-based groupware to improve employee collaboration and knowledge sharing between dispersed PD teams. The results of a cross-sectional survey concluded that employees would welcome greater usage of social computing technologies. The study confirmed that groupware offers the potential to deliver a more effective collaborative and knowledge sharing environment with additional communication channels on offer. Furthermore, a series of recommended guidelines are presented to show how PD teams, operating in globally-dispersed organisations, may use Web 2.0 tools to improve employee collaboration and knowledge sharing

An investigation into collaboration and knowledge management during product development in the aerospace and defence industry

Organisations need to overcome a number of challenges, including improving knowledge management, to ensure competitiveness in today’s global business environment. Product development and engineering design decisions are typically based on the knowledge available within enterprises. An ability to quickly discover and capture this knowledge and communicate with colleagues is required to enable effective outputs. An in-depth industry investigation, conducted within a leading manufacturing organisation in the Aerospace and Defence Industry (ADI), confirmed that knowledge management is only average. Employees would welcome the introduction of new technology to improve knowledge sharing and feel competent to use Web 2.0 and social media technologies. Based on the investigation, an interactive groupware prototype employing collaborative Web 2.0 technologies has been proposed. The prototype will be introduced as a case study to engineers within the collaborating company during product development projects with benefits in productivity and collaborative practices being assessed

Development of a Face-to-Face Meeting Capture and Indexing Process

Abstract-A face-to-face (F2F) meeting capture and indexing process could provide an internal feedback mechanism so that results can be monitored against change interventions decided at product lifecycle management (PLM) or performance development review (PDR) meetings. It could also assist people who do not currently have the knowledge or authority to act on what was discussed to share and reflect on the F2F meeting content after the event. In this paper a prototype is described in use with the continuous improvement Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) cycle as a proof-of-concept in BAE Systems. More work should be completed to make the captioning of the F2F meeting content automatic or semi automatic. The presentation of the content in the groupware webpage may also be developed so that there is easier navigation. It would also be useful to have the variables that influence the profitability of the products to be displayed on the webpage so that changes can be tracked against business performance