How it all Began
In this issue Student Articles Crossword Puzzle Do you know Student Feedback
Volume 08, Issue 02, February 2019.
Feedback at octaphi@jgu.edu.in
Reach us at
Without data, you’re just another person with an opinion. ~ W. Edwards Deming
Using Digital Twins to optimize the Supply Chain A Digital twin is a concept where virtual imitation of real-world objects, processes and systems is created for an organization. Digital twin utilise Internet of Things (IoT) to analyze various circumstances so that a proactive decision-making approach is charted. Access to real-time data helps to create planning systems with lesser response time. A company can use this concept for launching new products into the market. By merging IoT technology with digital twin concept, an organization can revamp its structure to satisfy the customer needs in an efficient manner. Digital twins can be used to analyse customer demand, forecast manufacturing capabilities and plan logistics for a company. Digitizing an entire supply chain network and creating a digital twin is very time-consuming. The following steps should be followed: Create a visualization for a 3D model Use IoT connectivity for information sharing among business processes Instill advanced analytics techniques Consider an example of an assembly line at a manufacturing facility. The information required to improve the assembly time of components is number of sub-assemblies required, number of spare parts per product, amount of spare parts required in a day, number of people working at an assembly point, number of pneumatic guns required and so on. If this information is digitized, it will be easy to plan inventory and manufacture as per the forecasted demand. The digital twin captures physical changes and reflects in digital form to provide fast decisions, thereby forming a physical to digital to physical loop. Integrating digital twins in a supply chain provides benefits such as: Agility: An organization using digital twin can take quick decisions in case of any
unexpected changes. Lower operating cost: Removal of bottlenecks in the network, brings down the operating cost. New business opportunities: A significant improvement in the existing products and services provides a new opportunity. More transparency: Digitization of the supply chain network provides easy and continuous access to all activities and processes carried out at any moment. Holistic vision: A digital network provides a holistic view across various business functions for adopting a better decisionmaking approach. Source: Howells, R. (2018) How Digital Twins Can Ensure Your Best-Laid Supply Chain Plans Never Go Awry.
~ Udit Bhardwaj (17 JGBS)
Digital Fabrication Additive Manufacturing or 3D printing has emerged as the topmost disruptive innovation to impact the supply chain and logistics industry globally. While some experts believe it to enhances the production process, others contend that this technology shall reform and replace existing manufacturing technologies. Digital fabrication processes are software-defined additive technology used for making three dimensional solid objects up in layers from a digital file without the need for a mould or cutting tool. In contrast to the huge capital costs of setting up a traditional assembly line, 3D printers can be reprogrammed to produce a different object with near zero cost exactly at a keystroke. Also, its flexibility which reduces the cost associated with production changeover and customizations facilitate an increase in the variety of products a unit of capital can produce and hence overall cost.
Well-established traditional industries are accepting Additive Manufacturing (AM) as a viable and potentially advantageous manufacturing solution in terms of time, treasure, and the very future of the organization. Today, Aerospace and Defence players are utilizing AM from mission-critical turbine fuel nozzles to titanium alloyed parts far beyond prototyping and tooling only. The impact of AM technologies on the manufacturing and supply chains can be very disruptive. AM can possibly wipe out the requirement for both high volume production facilities and low-level assembly workers, reducing supply chain cost drastically. As that disintegrates the supply chain down to its simplest parts, same-time adding new efficiencies to the system while reducing scrap, maximizing customization and improving overall lead times. In addition, 3D printing affects after sales services by making it easier to obtain spare parts for repair and maintenance. AM has the potential to shift traditional manufacturing to a business model that will dominate the digital age. However, as every innovation faces challenge so is AM. The digital file will store “value” of a product in digital age and manufacturers will try to secure their licensed innovation by inserting copyright protections and assigning licensing rights. Quality assurance, consistency and performance of the printed parts, repeatability of the process, and material variability need to be overcome to get widespread acceptance in manufacturing. We are at the starting point of a change in manufacturing and supply chains brought by digital fabrication. Source: Holdwosky, J and Wilcyznski, J (2018). 3D Opportunity for Supply Chain Readiness,
~Tuhin Banerjee (18 JGBS)
1
OCTANE -The Octaphi Newsletter Blockchain’s Stumbling Blocks “Blockchain” a distributed public ledger concept is believed to holds the key to make business transactions smoother, quicker and transparent by decentralising data, removing intermediaries & immutable storage. While it gave hope to be an all-panacea of business world problems the real picture looks little bleak as even after ten years of its launch the technology is still in its emerging implementation phase. Till today, full-scale blockchain implementation for any industry is a treacherous path due to its applicability limitations. Major obstacles of Blockchain are security, complexity, regulation, privacy, scalability, energy consumption etc. The security concern of blockchain is associated with the concept of 51% node problem. If any organisation gets the access of more than 51% of nodes or mining hashrate (computing power), then it can get autonomy over complete associated blockchain system. So, Blockchain with a smaller number of nodes or having one party dominance is vulnerable to such kind of risk. The Bitcoin community is facing similar concern over China domination as it controls nearly 50% of hash-power. The other hurdle in blockchain adoption is high energy consumption. It works on the concept of POW (Proof of work) as a consensus algorithm also called mining which needs a lot of computational equation solving consuming a lot of electricity. It’s been estimated that presently blockchain alone consumes 0.2% of total world energy & if the miner keeps on growing at the same rate then by 2020 the world power alone would not be able to provide the needed energy. Another concern is its scalability issue leading slow speed. It works great in a small number of users but as the number increases it gets slow. The transaction speed of blockchain is inversely proportional to network growth, i.e. the bigger network grows, the slower it gets. So, imagine how frustrating it would be if it takes an hour to pay for your restaurant bill. It can still work for big transactions where time is not a major concern. Even today, Bitcoin & Etherium have the highest number of users and are facing scalability problem. The privacy of the system is also an area of concern. It is a public distributed ledger, so the data is publicly visible. So, any organisation that needs privacy will be
For previous issues visit: http://issuu.com/octaphi/docs
reluctant in adopting it. Also, keeping sensitive information in a public ledger will not work. The Blockchain is acting as an intermediary in any transactions between two or more parties. But it does not have any clearly defined regulation, specific rules or guidelines to follow. This makes the resolution of disputes very complicated. Jurisdiction issue will be more complex as the decentralized nodes are situated in a different country so they will be subjected to law & order of that country creating chaos in any judgement. Like the Bitcoin is illegal in India & legal in Japan so if any issue occurs in nodes owned by the organisation of this country, then it will be tough to give a judicial verdict. The disruption of the existing middle man is also an obstacle. The current business world has many intermediaries like banks, consultants, credit agencies, etc. They not only provide service but also act as a trusted advisor. The Blockchain has the potential of removing all intermediaries. So, it may find hard competition of adoption by these intermediaries. Instead of all these obstacles, it has shown some very positive results in the supply chain, Identity verification, public records sharing etc. But still, many hurdles have to be crossed to become a successful technology of the future. Source: Blockchain by Bernard Marr (2019), McKinsey.
~ Vikrant Kumar (MBA 2017)
Floor Markings also help facilities to Indicate where inventory should be stored Define loading and unloading areas for inventory Mark aisles, pathways, and hazardous areas Help visitors find their way around unfamiliar areas Direct flow of traffic within the facility
Clues Across 3.Mechanical handling equipment to move materials. 5.Prediction of how much product be purchased by customer procurement. 7.Grouping resources to minimize risk & attain maximum advantage. 8.Standard and conformity assessment system for products and service in US. 9.Record keeping technology using cryptograph. Down 1.Method of cost lot tracking where items are valued & sold in order they were purchased. 2.Method to launch new process where no other previously existed. 4.Procedure to deliver products to customer with no handling storage time. 5.Innovation which reduces complexity & cost of production. 6. A reporting tool to track supply chain KPI’s & metrics in single display.
Student’s Feedback Corner Octane is an insightful source enlightening the us on the first-hand things happening in this industry. I truly recommend all management professionals to read this newsletter. ~ Ashray Choubey (18 SIMS)
Editorial Board: Purva Sikri, Aiswarya Martin Faculty Mentor: Saroj Koul Contact Us: octaphi@jgu.edu.in