Smart Lean & Sustainable Manufacturing
The research area “Smart Lean & Sustainable Manufacturing” aims to understand how the methodologies of traditional Lean (that is, lean management) can contribute to the definition of a sustainable manufacturing system, both in terms of resources employed and the enhancement of human capital, within contexts characterized by an increasing degree of technological and digital development (typical of Industry 4.0). Through the analysis of real case studies, carried out with the help of digital and simulative tools, this area aims to develop optimization models characterized by the combination of man-technology, aimed at improving production performance in a sustainable perspective.
Contact Person Paolo Gaiardelli
Service Lifecycle Management & Engineering Operations
Using methodologies related to the mapping and analysis of processes, simulation (discrete, agents, system dynamics and hybrid) and data analysis (machine learning, optimization, Natural Language Processing)this thematic area has the objective to support the companies in the engineering or re-engineering of the services and the processes of service in order to create added value for the supplying company and the customers. All this is part of the phenomenon of servitization of manufacturing companies that has the aim of enhancing their offer of services to create more stable and long-term relationships with customers. This thematic area also focuses on analysing and supporting the digitisation process of companies, helping to understand which technologies, data, and processes can be implemented (internally or in products) and used to better support the offer to customers.
Contact Person Giuditta Pezzotta
Human-Centered Manufacturing and Logistics
The research sector “Human-Centered Manufacturing and Logistics” focuses on issues related to Industry and Logistics 4.0 and the digital transformation of manufacturing systems, with particular attention to the impact of the introduction of new technologies on the work of operators. Through the development of case studies with local manufacturing companies and through collaboration with international research groups, the research objective is to identify the implications of digital technology adoption in manufacturing and logistics in relation to human and organisational factors, with the aim of identifying new roles and new skills required by the digital transition, as well as promoting models of human-technology integration.
Contact Person Chiara Cimini
Asset Management & Maintenance
The research area related to industrial asset management deals with the development of projects related to industrial maintenance and the consequent improvement of the reliability and availability of productive assets. Specifically, the research topics addressed concern the development of advanced maintenance policies, such as condition based maintenance and predictive maintenance, with a particular focus on the digitalization of maintenance processes and the use of technologies and paradigms typical of Industry 4.0 applied to this corporate function. The activities carried out are based on the classical methodologies typical of maintenance engineering with those that are the most advanced techniques of analysis and processing of signals and alarms coming from machines and production plants.
Contact Person Emanuele Dovere
Supply Chain & Logistics
The research area “Supply Chain and Logistics” has as its objective the analysis and the optimization of the main internal and external logistic processes to the company, from the planning up to the execution and control of the local and global supply chains.
The activities range from the macro level (for example, configuration of the logistic network) to the micro level (for example, management of the internal logistic processes) passing for the intermediate level (for example, management of the distribution last mile in urban area). Moreover, following the advent and diffusion of innovative technological solutions implemented in logistics on the basis of the Industry 4.0 model, A research strand related to the analysis of human factors in logistics and the relationship between logistics operator and 4.0 technologies is developed.
Depending on the type of problem to be addressed, the research methodologies adopted vary from optimization to simulation, from surveys to the development of single or multiple case studies, always having as a common denominator processes and sustainable development.
Contact Person Roberto Pinto
Healthcare Operations
The healthcare operations research area focuses on the analysis of the main processes and the management of operations in the healthcare sector. A particular attention is given to the strategies of improvement of the management of the processes of the activities through the implementation of strategies of Lean Manufacturing applied to the sanitary field and through the identification of the main factors of appraisal of performance (KPIs). The research activity is mainly developed through the application of methods of mapping and analysis of processes and simulation tools (e.g. Discrete Event Simulation, Agent Simulation, System Dynamics and Hybrid Simulation).
Contact Person Fabiana Pirola