| 1. |
- Abubakar, Awwal Sanusi, et al.
(författare)
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The role of People and Digitalization as an Enabler of Resource Efficiency in Manufacturing
- 2022
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Ingår i: CEUR Workshop Proceedings. - 1613-0073. ; 3239, s. 111-120
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Global sustainability challenges have been escalating in recent times, resulting in climate change, pollution, and resource scarcity. Reducing the amount of resources being used can help to mitigate these challenges by lowering our carbon footprint, reducing waste and improving our economic resilience. To achieve these benefits, researchers and industries have begun looking into Industry 4.0 technologies as a tool to drive resource efficiency gains. In this paper, the research question explores the challenges that hinder companies from adopting digital technologies. Other topics discussed include how digital technologies can support resource efficiency, and how people can support resource efficiency. Data for this study was collected from a face-to-face workshop event which included expert participants from industry, academia, and the UK Government. This workshop aimed to gain insights into the adoption barriers and opportunities for digital technology to target environmental performance. The main adoption barrier identified was lack of knowledge. Other barriers include lack of trust, lack of finance and lack of expertise. Environmental performance is usually not targeted because it is not a priority for many organizations. Nevertheless, external stakeholders are putting pressure on companies to incentivize sustainable change. This paper identifies the challenges that hinder companies from adopting digital technologies and gives insights into how digital technologies can support people for resource efficiency.
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| 2. |
- Chen, Xiaoxia, 1983, et al.
(författare)
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Enabling the twin transitions : Digital technologies support environmental sustainability through lean principles
- 2023
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Ingår i: Sustainable Production and Consumption. - : Elsevier B.V.. - 2352-5509. ; 38, s. 13-27
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Manufacturing companies seek innovative approaches to achieve successful Green and Digital transitions, where adopting lean production is one alternative. However, further investigation is required to formulate the strategy with practical inputs and identify what digital technologies could be applied with which lean principles for environmental benefits. Therefore, this study first conducted a case study in three companies to collect practice-based data. A complementary literature review was then carried out, investigating the existing frameworks and complementing practices of digitalized lean implementations and the resulting environmental impact. Consequently, the Internet of Things and related connection-level technologies were identified as the key facilitators in lean implementations, specifically in visualization, communication, and poka-yoke, leading to environmental benefits. Furthermore, a framework of DIgitalization Supports Environmental sustainability through Lean principles (DISEL) was proposed to help manufacturing companies identify the opportunities of digitalizing lean principles for Environmental sustainability, thus enabling the twin transitions and being resilient. © 2023 The Authors
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| 3. |
- Chen, Xiaoxia, 1983, et al.
(författare)
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Environmental Sustainability of Digitalization in Manufacturing: A Review
- 2020
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Ingår i: Sustainability. - : MDPI AG. - 2071-1050. ; 12:24, s. 1-33
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- The rapid development and implementation of digitalization in manufacturing has enormous impact on the environment. It is still unclear whether digitalization has positive or negative environmental impact from applications in manufacturing. Therefore, this study aims to discuss the overall implications of digitalization on environmental sustainability through a literature study, within the scope of manufacturing (product design, production, transportation, and customer service). The analysis and categorization of selected articles resulted in two main findings: (1) Digitalization in manufacturing contributes positively to environmental sustainability by increasing resource and information efficiency as a result of applying Industry 4.0 technologies throughout the product lifecycle; (2) the negative environmental burden of digitalization is primarily due to increased resource and energy use, as well as waste and emissions from manufacturing, use, and disposal of the hardware (the technology lifecycle). Based on these findings, a lifecycle perspective is proposed, considering the environmental impacts from both the product and technology lifecycles. This study identified key implications of digitalization on environmental sustainability in manufacturing to increase awareness of both the positive and negative impacts of digitalization and thereby support decision making to invest in new digital technologies.
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| 4. |
- Chen, Xiaoxia, 1983
(författare)
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Impact of Digitalisation on Environmental Sustainability in Manufacturing Systems
- 2021
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Licentiatavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Manufacturing companies are striving to improve productivity and reduce the environmental impacts of their activities. Meanwhile, digitalisation plays an important role in increasing productivity and has a profound impact on the environment of manufacturing systems. It is unclear whether digitalisation affects this impact positively or negatively; this information is crucial if manufacturing companies are to better harness digital technologies in an environmentally friendly manner. This thesis aims to explore the potential for digitalisation to reduce the environmental impact of manufacturing systems by revealing its extent. With the vision of an environmentally “harm-free” manufacturing system, this thesis intends to provide practitioners with insights into the use of digital technologies to benefit our living environment. This study adopts a qualitative methodology to investigate theoretical and empirical data through literature reviews and case studies. The results show that the impact of digitalisation on environmental sustainability may be viewed through a multiple-lifecycle perspective, including product and technology lifecycles. Digitalisation applications throughout the product lifecycle contribute positively to environmental sustainability by increasing resource and information efficiency, dematerialisation, virtualisation/monitoring impacts and reduced transport. The negative environmental impact is primarily due to increased resource and energy use, plus emissions and waste from manufacturing and the use and disposal of digital hardware in the technology lifecycle. The multiple-lifecycle perspective helps practitioners in manufacturing companies to consider the environmental impact of both product and technology lifecycles when adopting digital technologies. The summary of positive impacts provides companies with implementation practices as to where and how to implement digital technologies. They may thus reduce environmental impact, especially in the production stage of a product’s lifecycle and at the 5C architecture connection level. This study provides a holistic view of the environmental impact of digitalising manufacturing systems and supports practitioners in applying digital technologies in an environmentally “harm-free” manner, thus achieving sustainable manufacturing systems.
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| 5. |
- Chen, Xiaoxia, 1983, et al.
(författare)
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Implications of Virtual Reality on Environmental Sustainability in Manufacturing Industry: A Case Study
- 2021
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Ingår i: Procedia CIRP. - : Elsevier BV. - 2212-8271. ; 104, s. 464-469
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Research on Virtual Reality (VR) in manufacturing is rarely driven by environmental sustainability. This paper explores the feasibility of developing VR technologies to reduce environmental impact, drawing from a case study in an automotive company. We developed a VR demo to support the communication for design review between the technology centre in Sweden and the manufacturing site in China, thus reducing travel frequencies. This reduction was verified through user experience and feedback from focus group discussion and questionnaire. The results show a reduction of travel frequencies for design review, therefore contributing to environmental sustainability.
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| 6. |
- Chen, Xiaoxia, 1983
(författare)
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Strengthening the Environmental Sustainability of Production Systems through Digitalization
- 2023
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Industrial companies are facing incremental pressure to strive for environmentally sustainable development. This can be attributed to their increased contribution to energy consumption and carbon emissions and the growing international attention focused on global warming. Meanwhile, digitalization has been a promising approach to improving overall operational performance and has profoundly impacted the environment of production systems. However, digitalization has been prioritized for its economic opportunities over environmental benefits and needs to be studied to expand upon its implications for environmental sustainability. Hence, this thesis aims to reveal the potential of digital technologies for production systems’ environmental sustainability by focusing on: 1) identifying the potential environmental benefits of using digital technologies and 2) identifying the mechanisms for using digital technologies to generate environmental benefits. These aims were achieved by adopting a practical manner and conducting four studies that mixed qualitative and quantitative methods and involved industrial partners. The data collection methods included interviews, onsite observation, questionnaires, focus groups and literature reviews. The results consist of two parts. First, the main benefit shows that the application of digital technologies can generate environmental benefits primarily through greater resource and information efficiency in the production stage of a product life cycle. Furthermore, the IoT-related connection-level technologies have a relatively high degree of application throughout the manufacturing value chain. The application of VR is also identified as enhancing remote technical communication, thus reducing physical meetings and travel. Moreover, digitalized lean implementations can lead to reduced environmental impact, mainly through integrating IoT and related technologies with lean principles by improving visualization and communication, reducing deviations and monitoring waste generation. Secondly, the mechanisms by which digital technologies generate the benefits consist of three elements, technological functions, enabled operations and impact pathways. Specifically, the technological functions include tracking and monitoring status, increased efficiency (production and communication), dematerialization and reduced transport (with reduced transport as a subordinate function compared to the first three). Enabled operations involve context-based examples which could be linked to the operational performance factors and be environmentally performance-driven. The impact pathways comprise prevention, reduction, optimization, reuse and substitution. From the observations in this research, the generation of environmental benefits using digital technologies usually starts with technological functions, which enable operations to reduce environmental impact through impact pathways. Taken as a whole, this thesis deepens the understanding of using digital technologies to improve the environmental performance of production systems, thus contributing to sustainable manufacturing.
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| 7. |
- Chen, Xiaoxia, 1983, et al.
(författare)
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The Environmental Implications of Digitalization in Manufacturing: A Case Study
- 2021
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Ingår i: Sustainable Production, Life Cycle Engineering and Management. - Singapore : Springer Singapore. - 2194-055X .- 2194-0541. ; , s. 249-263
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Bokkapitel (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The potential of digital technologies is widely discussed and recognized, mainly focusing on process automation, efficiency improvements and quality control. The implications on environmental sustainability is mostly considered from a theoretical perspective rather than operational. This study aims to reveal the potential of digital technologies to reduce the environmental impact in industrial practice. A case study was carried out at two manufacturing sites of an international manufacturing company producing mechanical components for the global markets. Data and insights were collected through interviews and observations. This paper presents the findings in terms of real life implementations and potentials to reduce the environmental impact using digital technologies along the manufacturing value chain, which can serve as input and guideline for the manufacturing industry.
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| 8. |
- Despeisse, Mélanie, 1985, et al.
(författare)
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Achieving Circular and Efficient Production Systems : Emerging Challenges from Industrial Cases
- 2021
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Ingår i: Advances in Production Management Systems. Artificial Intelligence for Sustainable and Resilient Production Systems. - Cham : Springer. - 1868-4238 .- 1868-422X. - 9783030859091 - 9783030859121 - 9783030859107 ; , s. 523-533
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- As the need for more responsible production and consumption grows quickly, so does the interest in the concepts of eco-efficiency and circularity. To make swift progress towards sustainability, solutions must be developed and deployed at scale. It is therefore critical to understand the challenges faced by industry to accelerate the uptake of best practices for circular and efficient production systems. This paper presents the emerging issues from three industrial pilots in an on-going collaborative project. We discuss and suggest further work around crucial questions such as: How to deploy circular solutions from lab to industrial scale? How can digitalization support efficient circular processes?.
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| 9. |
- Despeisse, Mélanie, 1985, et al.
(författare)
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Battery Production Systems: State of the Art and Future Developments
- 2023
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Ingår i: IFIP Advances in Information and Communication Technology. - 1868-4238 .- 1868-422X. ; 692, s. 521-535
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- This paper discusses the state of the art in battery production research, focusing on high-importance topics to address industrial needs and sustainability goals in this rapidly growing field. We first present current research around three themes: human-centred production, smart production management, and sustainable manufacturing value chains. For each theme, key subtopics are explored to potentially transform battery value chains and shift to more sustainable production models. Such systemic transformations are supported by technological advances to enable superior manufacturing performance through: skills and competence development, improved production ergonomics and human factors, automation and human-robot collaboration, smart production planning and control, smart maintenance, data-driven solutions for production quality and its impact on battery performance (operational efficiency and durability), circular battery systems supported by service-based business models, more integrated and digitalized value chains, and increased industrial resilience. Each subtopic is discussed to suggest directions for further research to realise the full potential of digitalization for sustainable battery production.
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| 10. |
- Fang, Qi, 1994, et al.
(författare)
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Environmental impact assessment of boatbuilding process with ocean plastic
- 2020
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Ingår i: Procedia CIRP. - : Elsevier BV. - 2212-8271. ; 90, s. 274-279
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Ocean ecosystems are suffering from plastic pollution. To prevent further damage, the 3Rs approach suggests reducing, reusing, and recycling waste. Current solutions include developing waste management systems, public awareness, and waste collection projects to reduce and recycle. However, reuse of reclaimed plastic is limited. This study is as part of an ocean-cleaning campaign. The manufacturing process to produce optimists using ocean plastic was evaluated and compared with conventional boat building as baseline. The environmental impact is higher than the baseline due to more material- and energy-intensive processes. However, adapting processes and integrating recycled materials is necessary for more sustainable and circular production systems.
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| 11. |
- Gong, Liang, 1985, et al.
(författare)
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Interaction design for multi-user virtual reality systems: An automotive case study
- 2020
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Ingår i: Procedia CIRP. - : Elsevier BV. - 2212-8271. ; 93, s. 1259-1264
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Virtual reality (VR) technology have become ever matured today. Various research and practice have demonstrated the potential benefits of using VR in different application area of manufacturing, such as in factory layout planning, product design, training, etc. However, along with the new possibilities brought by VR, comes with the new ways for users to communicate with the computer system. The human computer interaction design for these VR systems becomes pivotal to the smooth integration. In this paper, it reports the study that investigates interaction design strategies for the multi-user VR system used in manufacturing context though an automotive case study.
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