This paper aims to improve understanding of the drivers and barriers to digital transformation in asset management. Accordingly, this paper contributes to the literature by conducting a qualitative Delphi study with 15 experts (including academia, consultancy and industry) to identify, validate, and classify the drivers and barriers affecting digital transformation in asset management. As a result of the experts’ interactions, 20 barriers were identified. The main barriers to digital transformation in asset management are the following: Misunderstanding of the strategic importance of asset management, no clear vision/strategy, existing mindset and culture, inadequate asset management system, lack of understanding of digital trends, and lack of employee knowledge and skills. The study also highlights 12 drivers that are critical to the digital transformation of asset management. These include cost reductions, opportunities in condition monitoring of assets, expected benefits in asset management processes, expected benefits in risk management and others.

The rapid development of digital technologies have created unprecedented opportunities for the industrial world. Enterprises, especially small and medium sized companies, struggle to successfully implement these technologies, and there is scant literature to support this endeavor. The authors hypothesize that ERP (Enterprise Resource Management) implementation, being a mature field, can guide digital technology implementation, taking into considerations the similarities. A systematic literature review was conducted to determine the critical success factors (CSF) of ERP implementation in SMEs that were used to derive guidelines for digital technology implementation case study. The results of the case study is another list of CSF that more correctly mirror the digital technology implementation needs. They are: “digitalization strategic plan”; “project sponsor/leader”; “commitment to the workplace”; “involvement of top management”; “reasonable project scope”; “compatibility with existing processes/systems”; “progressing with small steps”; “use of correct competencies”; and “involving the users”.

Nondestructive and contactless online approaches for detecting defects in polymer films are of significant interest in manufacturing. This paper develops vision-based quality metrics for detecting the defects of width consistency, film edge straightness, and specks in a polymeric film production process. The three metrics are calculated from an online low-cost grayscale camera positioned over the moving film before the final collection roller and can be implemented in real-time to monitor the film manufacturing for process and quality control. The objective metrics are calibrated to correlate with an expert ranking of test samples, and results show that they can be used to detect defects and measure the quality of polymer films with satisfactory accuracy.

Appropriate product categorization in distribution centres is important for business success because of the possibility of intuitive product finding by the picker and increased product movement. Both of these factors result in the operational efficiency of the distribution centre. The goal of this paper is to explore a model of shelf space dimensioning of storage location on a rack with vertical and horizontal product categorization in a distribution centre, where the aim is to increase total product movement/profit from all shelves of the rack. This is controlled by a packer who must complete orders by getting the goods from shelves and picking them to the container. In this problem, we develop two heuristics and compare the archived results to the CPLEX solver. The average profit ratios of both heuristics are high and approximately equal to 99%. In 10 cases, optimal solutions have been found by heuristics.

The purpose of this article is to present a proposal for an expert’s model of managerial competencies in the era of the fourth industrial revolution, called Industry 4.0. This revolution results in the emergence of new competency requirements for employees at every organizational level. In the article, we focused on the requirements for Engineers 4.0, in connection with managerial competencies expected from them. In order to answer the research questions, we conducted expert research by referring to our previous studies. Findings: The conducted research allowed to develop an expert’s model of managerial competencies for Engineer 4.0 (EMMCE). The results of the study allowed to determine the scope of managerial competencies for an engineer in the age of Industry 4.0, thus contributing, in a practical scope, to the creation of requirements for candidates applying for a managerial position in manufacturing enterprises. The model makes it possible for educational and training entities to adapt their teaching programmes and training offer to the modern requirements of the industry.

Value stream mapping (VSM) is a well-known lean analytical tool in identifying wastes, value, value stream, and flow of materials and information. However, process variability is a waste that traditional VSM cannot define or measure since it is considered as a static tool. For that, a new model named Variable Value Stream Mapping (V-VSM) was developed in this study to integrate VSM with risk management (RM) using Monte Carlo simulation. This model is capable of generating performance statistics to define, analyze, and show the impact of variability within VSM. The platform of this integration is under Deming’s Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) cycle to systematically implement and conduct V-VSM model. The model has been developed and designed through literature investigation and reports that lead in defining the main four concepts named as; Continuous Improvement, Data Variability, Decision-Making, and Data Estimation. These concepts can be considered as connecting points between VSM, RM and PDCA.

New ways of calculating narrow microparticle size distributions based on using the Tikhonov and the modified Twomey methods for the laser diffraction technique are presented. These allow to have reduced the broadening (over-smoothing) of the result occurring in these methods for narrow distributions both singular and their sum. The calculated singular distributions and their distribution sum were then approximated by a Gaussian function and a bimodal Gaussian function, respectively, using the Levenberg-Marquardt method. The angular distribution of scattering power was measured for polystyrene particles with radii of 0.676 µm and 1.573 µm, and for their sum. The tests were carried out for linearly polarized He-Ne laser light scattered by a dilute aqueous suspension of these particles. The results obtained were compared with those obtained with the nanoDS instrument (CILAS). It turned out that using the way based on the Twomey method, the parameters of the narrow distribution sought could be determined quite well.

Optical waveguides (WGs) are widely used as interconnects in integrated optical circuits both for telecommunication and sensing applications. There are different kind of optical WG designs that offers different guiding parameters, opening a vast number of possibilities. A silica-titania (SiO2:TiO2) rib WG is discussed and examined by a numerical analysis in this article with a great emphasis on the analysis of bending losses and optimization. A modal analysis for different basic parameters of the WG is presented with a detailed wavelength-based modal analysis. Various potential fabrication methods are discussed, however, a sol-gel method and dip-coating deposition technique are proposed for the low-cost development of such WGs. Moreover, an approach towards minimizing the bending losses by adding an upper cladding layer on the rib WG is presented and described.