Maurizio Bevilacqua

Marche Polytechnic University | Università degli Studi di Ancona · Department of Industrial Engineering and Mathematical Sciences (DIISM)

Lean thinking and Industry 4.0 have been broadly investigated in recent years in intelligent manufacturing. Lean Production is still one of the most efficient industrial solutions in business and research, despite being implemented for a long time. On the other hand, Industry 4.0 has been introduced referring to the fourth industrial revolution. Th...

An essential step in the implementation of predictive maintenance involves the health state analysis of productive equipment in order to provide company managers with performance and degradation indicators which help to predict component condition. In this paper, a supervised approach for health indicator calculation is provided combining the Grey...

In systems with many components that are required to be constantly active, such as refineries, predicting the components that will break in a time interval after a stoppage may significantly increase their reliability. However, predicting the set of components to be repaired is a challenging task, especially when several conditions (e.g. breakage p...

The application of churn prevention represents an important step for mobile communication companies aiming at increasing customer loyalty. In a machine learning perspective, Customer Value Management departments require automated methods and processes to create marketing campaigns able to identify the most appropriate churn prevention approach. Mov...

The Green Supply Chain has proposed to innovate industrial production by implementing a radical perspective change: reconcile economy and ecology. This study aims to contribute to the realisation of a new idea of eco-sustainable industrialisation. Anyone making decisions within any dynamic system faces serious difficulties. For this reason, the pro...

Data analytics represents an important step for manufacturing companies aiming at optimizing warehouse management. Moreover, in a Decision Support System perspective, companies require automated methods and processes for warehouse activities planning able to identify the most appropriate inventory management policy. Moving towards a data-driven env...

This paper discusses how to integrate Risk-Based Maintenance (RBM) methods into the Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) approach. The research approach outlined in this study is based on the description of a working procedure that learns from historical data and plans not only predictive but also proactive maintenance activities. Many researchers an...

The life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology was used to evaluate the environmental impact of friction stir welding (FSW) of AA5754-H114 aluminium alloy sheets. FSW was performed under different values of rotational and welding speeds to analyse the influence of the process parameters on midpoint category impacts. Pin tool wear and mechanical proper...

One of the most important challenges of high-risk industries regards environmental risk management. In all sectors characterized by high-risk processes, failure can lead to catastrophic environmental events, so it is necessary to have a model capable of extracting useful information from the data collected and able to provide company managers with...

In a complex and unpredictable world, nowadays classic risk management techniques are often nor sufficient neither adequate to face the occurring disruptive events. When black swans events (low probability—high impact events) take place, many supply chains are not qualified to tackle those happenings in an efficient way. A resilient approach can fi...

Supply Chain Resilience has been broadly studied during the last decades, especially within the academic community. Therefore, the present research article aims to provide a broad view of the scientific literature about Resilience within Supply Chain research. First, a trend analysis of these topics research and publications is presented. Then, a m...

This work aims at developing a method for analysing the domino effect among concepts affecting Supply Chain Resilience. The proposed method allows connecting concepts at many different levels (e.g. sources of risk, disruptions, supply chain management practices and other aspects). A case study for an electrical appliance supply chain has been used...

Despite companies’ efforts to develop lean thinking in their industrial context, the implementation of many lean projects has not been consistently successful, often resulting in delay, failure, abandonment or rejection. Whereas some authors emphasised that company characteristics, like the product demand profile, are significant factors in lean pr...

Companies recognise lean practices to be a useful methodology for the reaching of more efficient performances in manufacturing processes. Moreover, there is growing attention by customers towards methods aiming at the improvement of the environmental sustainability. The method proposed in the current study aims at improving process performance and...

This paper presents an analysis of the management of spontaneous volunteers, mainly led by a local non-profit organisation, during the flood emergency that occurred in Central Italy in May 2014. The purpose of the study is to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the aforementioned management, in order to elaborate on a model that may be develop...

The aim of this study is to evaluate, from an environmental point of view, the performance of various technologies applied to the treatment of municipal landfill leachate. The study has been led in an Italian wastewater treatment plant and it applies the principles of the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) technique, using ReCiPe as the assessment method....

The Resource Constrained Scheduling Project (RCSP) is one of the most complex tasks in the sector of project management. Many researchers devoted effort during the last years to solve this criticality. Moreover, interesting studies analyse the problem regarding mathematical formulation. In so doing, the exact and/or heuristic solutions tools allow...

This paper examines the preliminary performance analysis outcomes of the New Product Devolpment (NPD) process drawing attention to the human behavioural factors. It aims at evaluating a possible solution to improve the NPD process focusing the attention on the team combination. Timed Coloured Petri Nets (TCPNs) have been used to model the NPD proce...

In the last decade, increasing interest has been paid to human factor for systems analysis and decision-making process. In particular, researchers have directed their attention to the human reasoning understanding and the individual perception of a specific problem. Several applications allow users to model decision-making support system starting f...

The economic world is in constant evolution and companies are struggling to adapt and, in the meantime, tackle disturbances. To address these challenges has emerged the need to develop resilient Supply Chains. This study offers a modularization of the Supply Chain Resilience Triangle, an intuitive tool for assessing the performance of a Supply Chai...

Traditional techniques for project modelling do not incorporate some factors that are essential for resource planning and management. This research aims at underlining the benefits of timed coloured Petri nets in the project management area and assist managers during the resource allocation activity in projects under constraints, commonly encounter...

This paper focuses on the study of a new product development process in business-to-business setting. By adopting a case study research strategy, the main findings show how the evolution of a business relationship influences the whole product development process. The research also clearly shows how business relationships initiated from pre-existing...

In this work, a framework is developed to integrate IoT-based energy management and company's existing information systems. This framework is a multi-layer model that includes three layers: 1) data collection layer, 2) data management layer and 3) data analytics layer. In order to test the proposed approach and assess its impact on improving energy...

In this work, a new procedure called Human Factor Risk Management (HFRM) was developed in order to integrate Human Factor in a Refinery Risk Management System. Taking into consideration historical data regarding Environmental Accidents, Near miss, Injuries and Operating accidents occurred in a refinery over the last years a panel of experts defined...

The environmental impact of friction stir welding (FSW) was evaluated. To this purpose, butt joints in AA5754 aluminum alloy sheets were obtained using different process parameters. All input and output data of the FSW, in terms of materials, energies and emissions, were collected and analyzed using a life cycle assessment (LCA) software in order t...

Purpose This study analyzes relationships between operational characteristics and business growth in Italian Manufacturing companies comparing High Lean Performers (HLPs) that are companies with a high degree of application of lean practices and Low Lean Performers (LLPs). This analysis aims at highlighting the effect of the implementation level of...

In recent years, an increased emphasis on the use of operations management (OM) models and theories has emerged, due to the strict links between firm competitive and supply chain strategies. Companies have thus to choose the appropriate and specific responses so that to face the market challenges. In this paper, an optimisation process for the foot...

Project activity scheduling is one of the most important steps in numerous industrial processes, from building construction to manufacturing. The proposed paper aims at defining a multi-criteria priority indicator integrating the principles of critical chain project management (CCPM), which considers the human factor for delay in task completion, a...

This chapter describes the relevant steps for the design of a preventive maintenance program in an oil refinery plant and its application. The method was developed during a period of 3 years in one of the main Italian refinery.

Although many firms report large benefits from lean implementation, a lot of scepticism still remains regarding attainable results and the possibility to apply Lean approach outside high-volume manufacturing and stable context. In this work, combining field interviews with literature review, theoretical connections have been developed among Lean ma...

Purpose: This work aims at providing insights to optimise healthcare logistic of the drug management, in order to deal with the healthcare expenditure cut. In this paper the effects of different drug supply chain configurations, on the resulting average stock, service level and Bullwhip effect, of the studied supply chain, is quantitatively assesse...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the influence of technical and management practices of a new product development (NPD) project on the project success in terms of observed value-added time. The authors address the research questions: “How do the product innovation aspects, information process, suppliers integration and project...

This work aims at developing a new procedure, based on RFID technology, in order to reduce clinical risk and to streamline surgical instruments sterilization processes. An automatic identification and data storage will allowthe hospital to minimize problems connected with bacterial infection, loss of surgical instruments and waste of time due to in...

This paper aims at assessing the environmental impact of a household product such as a domestic plate, comparing, through the use of the life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology, three different materials in which it can be made: plastic (polypropylene), ceramics and mater-bi (biodegradable plastic). To better understand all stages of the life cycle...

In the last years Customer Experience (CX) has become a novel approach to obtain a competitive advantage for numerous companies. The complexity of interactions among the customer, the physical environment, the company’s employees, the product and/or related services requires transdisciplinary methods and tools from marketing, engineering, human res...

In today's uncertain and complex business environment, where an high variability of production is requested, supply chain strategy is playing an important role in the success of a firm's product and market growth strategy. Once considered the meanings of supply chain adaptability, it is easy to understand how much is important to provide a supply-c...

The purpose of this paper is to automate a manual assembly line following a structured framework, in a motorcyclist industry. Process re-engineering is implemented in order to improve and automate the assembly process of a manufacturing company. The transition from the manual process to the new semi-automated assembly line is composed of 4 main ste...

In this chapter we consider a real-life problem which consists in scheduling the activities of a project subject to precedence and resource constraints so as to optimize several conflicting goals. The durations of the activities cannot be specified precisely in advance. Rather, we assume that based on the experience with previous projects, the mean...

Worldwide modern organisation is continuously crossed by a great number of information but frequently information is not accurate, the needed information is not generated or it cannot be easily identified and, more, the information cannot flow through the whole organisation. This paper proposes the application of lean thinking in the field of infor...

The aim of this paper is to define the blancher-freezer combination best fitting with the preservation treatment of a specific food. The proposed approach in decision making is based on the data envelopment analysis (DEA). Through the Cross efficiency evaluation, each decision making unit (DMU) is both self-evaluated and also evaluated via the othe...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to uncover the significance of quick changeovers in the packaging line of a pharmaceutical company. Using an integration of different lean practices, the study aims to reduce the batch change and changeover time up to 50 per cent, increasing overall equipment effectiveness by 25 per cent. Design/methodology/a...

In the context of healthcare organisations, this paper develops a systemic approach able to detect waste and errors and to suggest organisational and/or technological solutions for continuous improvement. The framework proposed implies the integration between the IDEF0 and the FMEA methods. The developed methodology is applied to the pharmacy depar...

The implementation of a RFID system is discussed in this study, for the division of the offices and furniture of an Italian company that is a leader in the furniture industry. This system allowed for a type of "electronic identity card" to ensure the authenticity of products and their traceability. Through Business Process Re-Engineering (BPR) meth...

Product development projects, like many other types of projects, often can exceed their planned schedule by 50% to 100%. Often this is attributed to uncertainty or the unforeseen. To compensate for this age-old dilemma, managers and project personnel have learned to compensate by adding additional time to their schedule estimates. Yet even when the...

This works reports on the application of business process reengineering (BPR) methods to drugs management and distribution in an Italian province. The aim of the study was to analyse the process as it was always implemented up until the year 2012, identifying any related problems and inconsistencies, and then describe the reengineering of this proc...

A proper maintenance plan is directly related to the definition of critical indexes for ensuring a high level of safety and high level in service quality for all equipments in the plants. The traditional approach, according to risk-based inspection and maintenance (RBI&M), requires that each parameter considered in the definition of critical indexe...

Today, different sectors are using Life Cycle Assessment methods to manage risk, create regulation and well-considered policy ad to protect the brand and redesign processes, products and services. Despite their prevalence, Life Cycle Assessment concepts are still not well known in many academic and industrial contexts. In the past, the inability to...

This study compares the environmental impacts related to the production of cotton yarn from cultivation to washing and drying, when cotton is supplied by four companies located in four different countries (Egypt, China, India and the USA). Interesting results have been obtained from cultivation scenarios where the productivity influences the value...

Purpose: This work investigates the influence of project managers’ personality on the success of a project in a Multinational Corporation. The methodology proposed for analyzing the project managers’ personality is based on the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator.

This work aims at developing a Business Process Re-Engineering (BPR) method for analysing and overcoming the impact of business growth in the operation activities. A framework based on Delphi method, IDEF3 methodology, discrete event simulation and Design of Experiment is presented for predicting future scenarios and analysing the consequences. The...

The paper presents a from-cradle-to-grave LCA (Eco-Indicator 99, Egalitarian Approach) study for two domestic solar hot water systems (DSHWS): a traditional one with glazed panels and a system with unglazed solar collectors. Both systems are coupled with a 300-liters storage tank. The performed LCA returns an EI99 equal to 198.19 for the traditiona...

Every year, landslides and floods cause deaths, missing persons, injured people, evacuees, and homeless people. Serious damages to property and pollution are also produced. Lessons learn from landslides and flood disasters recently occurred show that flood and disaster management should be widely improved. This paper deals the problem of hydrogeolo...

This paper investigates a new methodology with which to analyse the concept of total quality control (TQC) through the use of a value stream map (VSM). The objective of this study is to analyse the conditions for carrying out inlet quality control activities on a supplied product, to create values and competitive advantages in the procurement proce...

This paper shows the parameterization activity of maintenance costs, in an Italian combined cycle plant for power generation, by defining a tool for the selection of maintenance packages for the plant. This tool, based on the use of a software program, provides indices and values that identify those packages and those maintenance activities that co...

Purpose ‐ The purpose of this paper is to investigate the perceptions toward issues and benefits of ISO 9000 certification in seven different productive firms of a company leader in the production and commercialization of heating systems for water and environment, for industrial and domestic use. Design/methodology/approach ‐ An innovative vertical...

To achieve important improvements of the process performance measures such as quality, speed, service, and cost, fundamental rethinking and redesign of the underlying process is required. Numerous corporations have been forced to change their processes in order to survive in a highly competitive market. In this paper, a framework based on the IDEF3...

The Fourth European working conditions survey revealed that, 20 % of workers from the EU-15 and 30 % from the 10 new Member States believed that their health is at risk because of work-related stress. Too often, the tendency to a continuous improvement focuses on efficiency and effectiveness and it lives down the importance of the global consequenc...

The management of drug therapy, like many medical processes, has a high complexity level. Many errors occur carrying out drug management activities since many decisions have to be taken by operators and many people are involved. These errors can occur at any stage of the drug management, from the entering into the health unit, up to the medication...

The successful implementation of any innovation requires an understanding of its benefits and costs. This study examines the changes in costs and benefits associated with technology process innovation adoption as the innovation diffuses across healthcare field. Using RFID as an exemplar technology, the study shows the importance of benefits and cos...

This paper is based on a discrete-event simulation model and reproduces the sewing department of a clothing company involved in the fashion industry. It aims to quantitatively assess the effects of different production configurations on flow time and production capacity. In particular, the production phases of men’s jackets are examined. Eight conf...

This paper describes a company reorganization plan developed using business process reengineering (bpr) in a major enterprise operating in the domotics sector, whose core business is the manufacture of cooker top extractor hoods. In the BPR process, our attention focused on two processes that, for reasons specific to the company in question, had be...

This study aims to show an approach to model and solve the airport congestion problem, through the use of a discrete event simulation software. After analyzing the operation of an airport, we modelled it in a discrete event system, in order to carry out, through simulation software Simul8, a prediction of the behaviour of such a system, varying con...

The aim of this work was to optimize and test a new type of experimental blancher designed to carry out a wide range of processes, with the possibility to also use a combination of water and steam. This new type of blancher was developed in order to overcome many drawbacks of conventional blanching and drying methods, including low energy efficienc...

An excellent supply chain management is not enough to achieve good performance in a today modern industrial organisation: the integration in supply chain between supplier, assemblers and customers is basic during the production planning and the product development. This paper presents the analysis of an integrated reengineering project for an autom...

This paper aims at developing a new methodology for designing and managing a supply chain (SC) and, at the same time, for evaluating the performance of every stakeholder involved in a production chain. The methodology proposed has been applied to a footwear supply chain and is based on coloured Petri nets (CPNs). The supply chain analysed in this p...

Issues related to health and safety at work, such as accidents at work, are one of the most important areas of action for global social policy. This paper presents a fuzzy cognitive map (FCM) approach to explore the importance of the relevant factors in industrial plants. For this purpose, industrial plants are described in terms of factors that af...

The production and storage of dangerous substances in an industrial establishment creates risks for man, environment and properties in the surrounding area. Safety regulations require the establishment of a preventive information campaign regarding industrial risks and self-defence measures to adopt in an emergency situation. In the case of a major...