A Discrete Event Simulator for Modelling Support Services in an Engineering Environment

12个月后续资助期的主要成果将是一个可商业利用的工具--“模拟支助服务离散事件模拟器”。离散事件模拟通过将变化表示为单独的事件来对系统进行建模，因为它随着时间的推移而演变。在离散事件仿真中，系统的运行被表示为按时间顺序发生的事件。每个事件都在某个时刻发生，并标志着系统中状态的改变。在本提案的母公司EPSRC项目(EP/F038526/1,2008-09)中，调查人员使用离散事件模拟在基于工程的服务环境的背景下开发各种基本情景的模型。这项仿真工作为后续基金提案提供了重点和研究结果。拟议项目的目标是开发一个可商业开发的离散事件仿真工具，用于在各种基于工程的服务环境中对支持服务进行建模。拟议的模拟工具将有助于解决制造商缺乏建模工具的问题，这些制造商传统上制造工程产品，但现在正在提供支持这些产品的服务。这些公司目前无法使用定制建模功能来评估更改其支持服务策略的影响。目前用于服务模拟的工具似乎通常来自创新或业务发展方法，因此旨在组织内的高层决策，不能直接应用于支持服务的详细设计。离散事件模拟领域和可用的商业工具(如Lanner Group Limited的Witness、罗克韦尔自动化的Arena和Simul8 Corporation的Simul8)过去通常也侧重于对制造商的生产运营进行建模，而不是服务运营。因此，使用现有的模拟工具提供建模支助服务非常耗时，并且需要比通常所需的更高水平的建模技能和知识。该项目的愿景是开发一种可商业利用的离散事件模拟工具，可以将建模支助服务所需的时间从几个月减少到几天，并大大降低所需的建模技能和知识水平。拟议的后续项目将侧重于实现这一愿景所必需的技术和业务发展活动。建议的模拟工具的独特卖点是它能够在各种基于工程的服务环境中对支持服务进行建模。鉴于与服务相关的业务对英国工程部门的重要性与日俱增，该工具可能会对该行业产生很大影响。通过对工程环境中的物理要素(如实物资产、服务人员和备件)和信息流的综合影响进行建模，拟议的模拟工具将使公司能够分析不同级别的信息提供对不同合同类型的影响。通过这种方式，公司将能够使用建议的模拟工具轻松评估其客户群的潜在服务需求，以及如何最好地实现这些需求。他们还将能够确定提供支持服务的业务流程中的瓶颈。该工具还将允许进行“假设分析”，以辅助行业的决策过程。该工具的最终用户将能够检查其产品提供服务的成本效益影响。该工具可用来协助制定业务模式，以便采用信息技术(如综合车辆健康管理)开展服务业务。它还有助于确定从信息技术实施中获益最大的服务方案。

The key output of the 12-month follow-on funding period will be a commercially exploitable tool 'Discrete Event Simulator for Modelling Support Services'. Discrete event simulation involves the modelling of a system, as it evolves over time, by representing the changes as separate events. In discrete event simulation, the operation of a system is represented as a chronological sequence of events. Each event occurs at an instant in time and marks a change of state in the system. Within the parent EPSRC project of this proposal (EP/F038526/1, 2008-09), the investigators have used discrete event simulation to develop models of various basic scenarios in the context of an engineering-based service environment. This simulation work provides the focus and research results for this follow-on fund proposal.The aim of the proposed project is to develop a commercially exploitable discrete event simulation tool customised for modelling support services within various engineering-based service environments. The proposed simulation tool will help to address the lack of modelling tools experienced by manufacturers who traditionally manufactured engineering products but are now moving into the provision of services to support these products. These companies currently do not have access to customised modelling capabilities to assess the impact of changing their support service strategies. The current tools for service simulation appear to be generally taken from innovation or business development methodologies, and are therefore aimed at high level decision making within an organisation and cannot directly be applied to the detailed design of support services. The field of discrete event simulation and the commercial tools available (such as Witness from Lanner Group Limited, Arena from Rockwell Automation and Simul8 from Simul8 Corporation) have also typically focused in the past on modelling a manufacturer's production operations rather than service operations. The use of existing simulation tools for modelling support services is therefore very time consuming and requires a high level of modelling skills and knowledge beyond that normally required. The vision of this project is to develop a commercially exploitable discrete event simulation tool that can reduce the time required for modelling support services from months to days and significantly reduce the level of modelling skills and knowledge required. The proposed follow-on project will focus on technical and business development activities necessary for achieving this vision. The unique selling point of the proposed simulation tool is its ability to model support services within various engineering-based service environments. Given the increasing importance of service-related operations for the UK engineering sector, this tool is likely to have a high impact on the industry.By modelling the combined effects of physical elements (such as physical assets, service personnel and spare parts) and information flows within an engineering environment, the proposed simulation tool will allow companies to analyse the impact of different levels of information provision on different contract types. In this way, companies will be able to use the proposed simulation tool to assess, with ease, the potential service needs of their customer base and how these needs can be best achieved. They will also be able to determine bottlenecks in business processes that deliver the support services. The tool will also allow for 'what-if' analysis aiding the decision making process in industry. End users of the tool will be able to examine the cost-benefit effect of service provision with their products. The tool can be used as an aid to the development of business models for the adoption of information technology (such as Integrated Vehicle Health Management - IVHM) for service operations. It can also help in identifying service scenarios that benefit most from information technology implementation.