This paper discusses the expected benefits of using linked data for the tasks of gathering, managing and understanding the data of smart factories. It has the further specific focus of using this data to maintaining a Digital Twin for the purposes of analysis and optimisation of such factories. The proposals are motivated by the use of an industrial example looking at the types of information required, the variation in data which is available and the requirements of an analysis platform to provide parameters for seamless, automated simulation and optimisation. 

Discrete Event Simulation is a comprehensive tool for the analysis and design of manufacturing systems. Over the years, considerable efforts to improve simulation processes have been made. One step in these efforts is the standardisation of the output data through the development of an appropriate system which presents the results in a standardised way. This paper presents the results of a survey based on simulation projects undertaken in the automotive industry. In addition, it presents the implementation of an automated output data-handling system which aims to simplify the project’s documentation task for the simulation engineers and make the results more accessible for other stakeholders.

Saving and managing virtual models’ provenance information (models’ history) can increase the level of reusability of those models. This paper describes a provenance management system (PMS) that has been developed based on an industrial case study.

The product lifecycle management (PLM) system, as a main data management system, is responsible for receiving virtual models and their related data from Computer-Aided technologies (CAx) and providing this information for the PMS. In this paper, the management of discrete event simulation data with the PLM system will be demonstrated as the first link of provenance data management chain (CAx-PLM-PMS).

Discrete Event Simulation (DES) project data management is a complex and important engineering activity which impacts on an organization’s efficiency. This efficiency could be decreased by the lack of provenance information or the unreliability of existing information regarding previous simulation projects, all of which complicates the reusability of the existing data. This study presents an analysis of the management of simulation projects and their provenance data, according to the different types of scenarios usually found at a manufacturing plant. A survey based on simulation projects at an automotive manufacturing plant was conducted, in order to categorize the information regarding the studied projects, map the available provenance data and standardize its management. This study also introduces an approach that demonstrates how a structured framework based on the specific data involved in the different types of scenarios could allow an improvement of the management of DES projects.

Reuse of virtual engineering models and simulations improves engineering efficiency. Reuse requires preserving the information provenance. This paper suggests a framework based on the 7W data provenance model to be part of simulation data management implemented in product lifecycle management systems. The resulting provenance framework is based on a case study in which a product was re-engineered using finite element analysis.

Lean and simulation analysis are driven by the same objective, how to better design and improve processes making the companies more competitive. The adoption of lean has been widely spread in companies from public to private sectors and simulation is nowadays becoming more and more popular. Several authors have pointed out the benefits of combining simulation and lean, however, they are still rarely used together in practice. Optimization as an additional technique to this combination is even a more powerful approach especially when designing and improving complex processes with multiple conflicting objectives. This paper presents the mutual benefits that are gained when combining lean, simulation and optimization and how they overcome each other´s limitations. A framework including the three concepts, some of the barriers for its implementation and a real-world industrial example are also described.

Shortening of the product development process time is one of the main approaches for all enterprises to offer their products to the market. Virtual manufacturing tools can help companies to reduce their time to market, by reduction of the engineering lead time. Extensive use of virtual engineering models results in a need for verification of the model’s accuracy. This virtual engineering usability and assessment have been named virtual confidence. The two main factors of the achievement of this confidence are the accuracy of the virtual models and the virtual engineering results.

For controlling of both above factors, a complete virtual model and related virtual model knowledge are needed. These knowledges can be tacit or explicit. For exploring explicit knowledge, a data and information collection from different disciplines in the organization is needed.

In this paper, a data map with focus on the manufacturing engineering scope will be presented. This data map is generated from different data sources at a manufacturing plant, and gives an overview of different data that exist at different data sources, in the area of manufacturing. Combining real world data from different sources with virtual engineering model data supports, amongst others, establishment of virtual confidence.

Product lifecycle management (PLM) systems maintain amongst others the specifications and designs of product, process and resource artefacts and thus serve as the basis for realizing the concept of Virtual Manufacturing, and play a vital role in shortening the leadtimes for the engineering processes. Design of new products requires numerous experiments and test-runs of new facilities that delays the product release and causes high costs if performed in the real world. Virtualization promises to reduce these costs by simulating the reality. However, the results of the simulation must predict the real results to be useful. This is called virtual confidence. We propose a knowledge base approach to capture and maintain the virtual confidence in simulation results. To do so, the provenance of results of real, experimental and simulated processes are recorded and linked via confirmation objects.

The paper describes manufacturing simulation with a focus on discrete event simulation and computer aided robotics. Some generic good practices, problems, and pitfalls in the use of simulation are described. Some advanced applications of manufacturing simulation are described and elucidated on the hand of a system for simulation-based service & maintenance. Simulation-based decision support and information fusion are closely related, and plans for novel synergistic research in these area are presented

Previous research has highlighted the role of virtual engineering tools in the development of manufacturing machinery systems. Simulation models created for this purpose can potentially be used to provide support for other tasks, such as operational planning and service and maintenance. This requires that the simulation models can be fed with historic data as well as with snapshot data. Furthermore, the models must be able to communicate with other business software. The paper describes how simulation models can be used for operational production planning and for service and maintenance support. Benefits include a better possibility to verify production plans and the possibility to monitor and service manufacturing machinery from remote locations. Furthermore, the expanded and continuously updated models provide a good tool to study the effect of, for instance, planned new product introduction in existing manufacturing systems. The paper also presents directions for future research. One ambition is to add AI tools to the system so as to develop a semi-autonomous system for decision support