Tariq Masood

University of Strathclyde

This study investigates the sustainability and supply chain challenges in the African renewable energy sector, offering solutions rooted in green supply chain management principles and Industry 4.0 technologies. Employing an interpretive research strategy, the study gathers insights from mini-grid companies, regulatory authorities, and a global fin...

This paper presents an innovative approach to knowledge management in the energy sector through the development of the Advanced Agent Architecture (AAA). AAA integrates Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) techniques with a tailored local knowledge base (LKM) and web search functionalities, aiming to enhance the accuracy, robustness, and flexibilit...

Technological evolution in the field of robotics is emerging with major breakthroughs in recent years. This was especially fostered by revolutionary new software applications leading to humanoid robots. Humanoids are being envisioned for manufacturing applications to form human-robot teams. However, their implication in manufacturing practices, esp...

The paper examines the promotional factors of collaborative resource sharing (CRS) in the pharmaceutical industry during disruption. The pharmaceutical industry remains the backbone of the health sector as it supports activities of hospitals and care-homes in terms of drug manufacturing and production of health care facilities. Based on the signifi...

Demonstration Environments (DEs) are essential tools for testing and demonstrating new technologies, products, and services, and reducing uncertainties and risks in the innovation process. However, the terminology used to describe these environments is inconsistent, leading to heterogeneity in defining and characterizing them. This makes it difficu...

This paper is aimed at systematically reviewing the literature on the interface of Green Supply Chain Management (GSCM), Industry 4.0 and renewable energy. The aims of this review are to ascertain current state of the art in GSCM practices, to critically examine the role of industry 4.0 technologies in GSCM adoption, to examine sustainability and s...

Our research, titled "Industry 4.0: Enhancing the Performance of Energy Organizations through the Implementation of Knowledge Management and Advanced Technologies," investigates how digitalization, automation, IoT, and AI, when integrated with effective knowledge management (KM), can transform energy organizations. Utilizing a mixed-methods approac...

Technological evolution in the field of robotics is emerging with major breakthroughs in recent years. This was especially fostered by revolutionary new software applications leading to humanoid robots. Humanoids are being envisioned for manufacturing applications to form human-robot teams. But their implication in manufacturing practices especiall...

Energy systems are transforming due to the incorporation of multiple distributed energy resources, such as renewable energy and battery storage systems. This transformation has triggered a need to shift power distribution from a low efficiency centralized model with high coordination costs to a decentralized distribution system comprising smart gri...

p>The COVID-19 crisis has attracted attention worldwide to the supply chain disruptions and resilience. Several supply chain risk management approaches have been revisited or reapplied such as collaborative resource sharing. This study aimed to investigate the current academic state of art and advances in using collaborative resources sharing as a...

p>The COVID-19 crisis has attracted attention worldwide to the supply chain disruptions and resilience. Several supply chain risk management approaches have been revisited or reapplied such as collaborative resource sharing. This study aimed to investigate the current academic state of art and advances in using collaborative resources sharing as a...

everse supply chains (RSC) activities are gaining popularity in the literature and practice due to their contribution to achieving the organizations' sustainable goals and financial indicators. The concept of RSC is forked and representative of many activities. The tasks of RSCs are not limited to recycling waste. Industry 4.0 is a widely used conc...

Due to the rapid increase in environmental degradation and depletion of natural resources, the focus of researchers is shifted from economic to socio-environmental problems. Blockchain is a disruptive technology that has the potential to restructure the entire supply chain for sustainable practices. Blockchain is a distributed ledger that provides...

The impact of disasters in terms of the loss of human lives, infrastructure, and economy has been increasing over time. Planning and management strategies for disaster relief operations (DROs) have got the attention of researchers and policymakers, particularly on how to achieve resilience in such operations. This research aims to investigate the u...

Industry 4.0 (or 4^th industrial revolution) facilitates horizontal and vertical digital information flow along value chains up to the end-customer and is highly relevant in a broad variety of industries. Augmented reality (AR) is a key technology in Industry 4.0, which connects the virtual and real-world environments using such digital i...

Industry 4.0 (or 4^th industrial revolution) facilitates horizontal and vertical digital information flow along value chains up to the end-customer and is highly relevant in a broad variety of industries. Augmented reality (AR) is a key technology in Industry 4.0, which connects the virtual and real-world environments using such digital i...

Airports have taken centre stage in the fight against the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, and adoption of technologies has been instrumental in helping airport operators to mitigate operational and health concerns relating to the pandemic. A novel framework for the adoption of Industry 4.0 technologies was developed based on the insights gathered from a...

The COVID-19 crisis has attracted attention worldwide to the supply chain disruptions and resilience. Several supply chain risk management approaches have been revisited or reapplied such as collaborative resource sharing. This study aimed to investigate the current academic state of art and advances in using collaborative resources sharing as a re...

With the advent of Industry 4.0 technologies in the last decade, airports have undergone digitalisation to capitalise on the purported benefits of these technologies such as improved operational efficiency and passenger experience. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic with emergence of its variants (e.g. Delta, Omicron) has exacerbated the need for airpor...

Airports have been constantly evolving and adopting digital technologies to improve operational efficiency, enhance passenger experience, generate ancillary revenues and boost capacity from existing infrastructure. The COVID-19 pandemic has also challenged airports and aviation stakeholders alike to adapt and manage new operational challenges such...

The COVID-19 pandemic has halted economic activities and made business dynamics much more challenging by introducing several additional operational, structural, and managerial constraints. The problem has affected global supply chains in many ways, and has questioned their long-term continuity. On the other hand, Industry 4.0 is an emerging phenome...

Industry 4.0 (or 4th industrial revolution) facilitates horizontal and vertical digital information flow along value chains up to the end-customer and is highly relevant in a broad variety of industries. Augmented reality (AR) is a key technology in Industry 4.0, which connects the virtual and real-world environments using such digital information...

The digital revolution is underway, and it has the potential to positively affect the UK’s economy and productivity. Innovation Hubs have become an increasingly prevalent innovation policy tool for the roll out of industrial digitalisation. In this context, this report was produced to help navigate the complexity of the Innovation Hubs’ landscape b...

Pandemics cause chaotic situations in supply chains (SC) around the globe, which can lead towards survivability challenges. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented humanitarian crisis that has severely affected global business dynamics. Similar vulnerabilities have been caused by other outbreaks in the past. In these terms, prevention str...

As the energy systems transform and power distribution moves towards smart grids comprised of multiple distributed energy resources (DERs) such as renewable energy and battery storage, there is a major need to develop platforms that can decentralise energy distribution due to the shortcomings of a centralised distribution system such as high coordi...

Purpose The increasing risk of natural disasters is challenging humanitarian actors to create resilient disaster management systems. However, the role of the private sector in disaster management operations (DMOs) is not as prominent as the role played by (inter)governmental agencies. This article aims to investigate the relationship of collaborati...

As the COVID-19 pandemic expands, the shortening of medical equipment is swelling. A key piece of equipment getting far-out attention has been ventilators. The difference between supply and demand is substantial to be handled with normal production techniques, especially under social distancing measures in place. The study explores the rationale of...

Future industrial systems have been popularised in recent years through buzzwords such as Industry 4.0, the Internet of Things (IoT), and Cyber Physical Systems (CPS). Whilst the technologies of Industry 4.0 and likes have many conceivable benefits to manufacturing, the majority of these technologies are developed for, or by, large firms. Much of t...

Engineering changes (ECs) are inevitable for businesses due to increasing innovation, shorter lifecycles, technology and process improvements and cost reduction initiatives. The ECs could propagate and cause further changes due to existing system dependencies, which can be challenging. Hence, change management (CM) is a relevant discipline, which a...

Can collaborative robots ramp up the production of medical ventilators?

As the COVID-19 pandemic expands, the shortening of medical equipment is swelling. A key piece of equipment getting far-out attention has been ventilators. The difference between supply and demand is substantial to be handled with normal production techniques, especially under social distancing measures in place. The study explores the rationale of...

Industrial augmented reality (IAR) is one of the key pillars of the industrial digitalisation concepts, which connects workers with the physical world through overlaying digital information. Augmented reality (AR) market is increasing but still its adoption levels are low in industry. While companies strive to learn and adopt AR, there are chances...

In this age of globalisation and digitalisation, industry is evolving from a physical space information flow towards a two-way communication between virtual and physical space. The challenge that this research aims to resolve is: ‘how can a virtual system adjust itself to the constantly changing conditions of the physical space of information that...

Industry increasingly moves towards digitally enabled ‘smart factories’ that utilise the internet of things (IoT) to realise intelligent manufacturing concepts like predictive maintenance or extensive machine to machine communication. A core technology to facilitate human integration in such a system is augmented reality (AR), which provides people...

Over the past years, the concept of human-centered automation has received a lot of attention to achieve hybrid automation. A form of hybrid automation is taking benefit from the synergistic effect of human-robot collaboration. When used in the assembly, the requirement of flexibility, adaptability, and safety makes the design and redesign of human...

Industrial augmented reality (AR) is an integral part of Industry 4.0 concepts, as it enables workers to access digital information and overlay that information with the physical world. While not being broadly adopted in some applications, the compound annual growth rate of the industrial AR market is projected to grow rapidly. Hence, it is importa...

Future-proofing through-life engineering service systems (TESS) is crucial for ensuring their reliable, long and economical whole lives. The TESS are typically composed of high value industrial products and engineering services organised around them. Future-proofing can broadly be achieved by enabling disruption and change management capabilities....

The research aims to investigate business value critical success factors (CSFs) of enterprise systems (ES) through their life cycle in pursuit of resilient smart factory for emerging aircraft industry. This article provides an extensive literature analysis of past 22 years based on conscientious criteria of authors: (i) who have published strategic...

Ensuring long-term performance from key infrastructure is essential to enable it to serve society and to maintain a sustainable economy. The future-proofing of key infrastructure involves addressing two broad issues: (i) resilience to unexpected or uncontrollable events (e.g., extreme weather events); (ii) adaptability to required changes in struct...

Ensuring long-term performance from key infrastructure is essential to enable it to serve society and to maintain a sustainable economy. The future-proofing of key infrastructure involves addressing two broad issues: (i) resilience to unexpected or uncontrollable events (e.g., extreme weather events); (ii) adaptability to required changes in struct...

The amount of information created and used during lives of infrastructure assets is huge and diverse by nature such as in the form of architectural and structural drawings, structural calculation plans, and operation and maintenance manuals. Such information is typically created by various stakeholders involved in the supply chain. The aim of this...

The delivery of integrated product and service solutions is growing in the aerospace industry, driven by the potential of increasing profits. Such solutions require a life cycle view at the design phase in order to support the delivery of the equipment. The influence of uncertainty associated with design for services is increasingly a challenge due...

Even though knowledge management has been a subject of research for a long time, management of through-life engineering service knowledge (SK) has started getting more attention quite recently. With the help of literature review and analysis, this paper identifies possible drivers to extend the product life cycle, presents definitions of ‘knowledge...

BIM is helping to specify what data is needed longer term BUT not how to ensure it is available. Service Information Model could be extended to form an alternative model to include information futureproofing elements. . First of all, a plan/strategy is required to address issues of information loss in longer-term. Then, information futureproofing s...

There are challenges of maintaining, refurbishing and modernising infrastructure assets under limited investments available for such purposes. Potential technological and operational challenges exist as a barrier to long-term information retention, which also plays a crucial role, amongst other factors, to futureproof major infrastructure. These is...

To sustain competitive performance in dynamic business, technical, economic and social environments, change capability is an essential characteristic property of any small- to medium-sized enterprise (SME). It follows that the business, engineering and production systems deployed by SMEs must be transformable, reconfigurable and interoperable. Like...

This paper presents an insight into leather manufacturing processes, depicting peculiarities and challenges faced by leather industry. An analysis of this industry reveals the need for a new approach to optimize the productivity of leather processing operations, ensure consistent quality of leather, mitigate the adverse health effects in tannery wo...

Systematic model-driven decision-making is crucial to design, engineer, and transform manufacturing enterprises (MEs). Choosing and applying the best philosophies and techniques is challenging as most MEs deploy complex and unique configurations of process-resource systems and seek economies of scope and scale in respect of changing and distinctive...

The need for a new generation of more responsive manufacturing enterprises (MEs) has emerged where trading uncertainties have triggered complex causal impacts that necessitate faster, better and cheaper production. In today’s hostile market driven world, most MEs need to be reconfigurable by deploying flexible resources that are flexibly bound toge...

Presently, the automotive industry is facing enormous pressure due to global competition and ever changing legislative, economic and customer demands. Product and process development in the automotive manufacturing industry is a challenging task for many reasons. Current product life cycle management (PLM) systems tend to be product-focussed. Thoug...

Dynamism and uncertainty are real challenges for present day manufacturing enterprises (MEs). Choosing and applying the best philosophies and techniques is very difficult as most MEs deploy complex and unique configurations of processes and resource systems to cope with changing product flows. It follows that systematic methods of achieving model-d...

Computer modelling approaches have significant potential to enable decision-making about various aspects of responsive manufacturing. In order to understand the system prior to the selection of any responsiveness strategy, multiple process segments of organisations need to be modelled. The article presents a novel systematic approach for creating c...

This article reports a case study application of a systematic approach to modelling complex organisations, centred on simulation modelling (SM). The approach leads to populated instances of complementary model types, in ways that systematically capture, validate and facilitate various uses of organisational understandings, knowledge and data normal...

The aim of this research is to provide a unified modelling-based method to help with the evaluation of organization design and change decisions. Relevant literature regarding model-driven organization design and change is described. This helps identify the requirements for a new modelling methodology. Such a methodology is developed and described....

[Full PhD thesis is available for download from: https://dspace.lboro.ac.uk/2134/6371] A Doctoral Thesis. Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of Doctor of Philosophy of Loughborough University. Dynamism and uncertainty are real challenges for present day manufacturing enterprises (MEs). Reasons include: an increasin...

The increasing demand for customization, reduced time to market and globalization are the real challenges for today’s manufacturing enterprises (MEs). Therefore MEs can reduce these competitive pressures by becoming more and more change-capable. The agile and lean manufacturing philosophies must complement the application of reconfiguration techniq...

Simulation Modelling has a key role to play in enabling decision making in dynamic manufacturing organisations. However in general the complexity levels involved necessitate multiple simulation models to be systematically developed and deployed. This paper describes a new systematic approach to creating coherent sets of simulation models that can i...

Designing and manufacturing work on Material Handling Equipments specially material conveying system is being carried out in many heavy engineering companies. To overcome the time delay, in conventional design approach, for the design of belt conveyors by utilizing the CAD facilities is not only the need of time but is also necessary for the market...

Flexible Manufacturing System [FMS] is a totally automated manufacturing system and a key part of Computer Integrated Manufacturing [CIM] system. All manufacturing activities take place in FMS. For independent and unattended operation of an FMS, flexible control software is necessary. The main objective of supervisory control of FMS is to plan and...

The paper discusses the aspects taken into consideration for a generic manufacturing system problem and the analysis techniques used. MATLAB is used to finally simulate the system and find the results after comparisons and reports generated. The simulation revealed the savings in the form of manufacturing times, man hours, & investment in compariso...

Modern production concepts require new approaches. Therefore, flexible goals for the problems with alternative possibilities and strategies for specific solutions are important. This paper introduces the rising needs, working principles, research environment, pre-research and development, applied engineering, and international cooperation required...

The computer numerically controlled (CNC) machine is a state of the art technology that has revolutionized the manufacturing processes. The main objectives of the project described were to manufacture a basic study model having the capability of performing simple machining operations. A software-oriented machine was decided to be worked upon. The r...