Autor: Dirk Marrenbach

In the course of digitization, the complexity and instability of business networks are considerably increasing. This has also serious effects on intralogistics. Under VUCA conditions, intralogistic systems develop into open, decentralized and self-organization networks of information-processing units. They adapt to the dynamic changes of their environment, by increasing their inner and outer varieties in a preventive manner. Digital technologies are not in a position to adequately control non-deterministic logistic systems; this task is essentially left to the working man. In order to overcome the challenges, appropriate models and methods of preventive work design are developed in the PREVILOG project. The paper presents cybernetic basics and preventive work design principles.

Current changes in market situations may compel companies to adapt their products, manufacturing systems, as well as logistics systems. Required planning procedures are characterized by their complexity and their interdisciplinary nature: A system that has to fulfil future requirements is designed using models, methods, and the knowledge of all involved participants. Therefore, this article aims to discuss procedure models applied in different disciplines in order to assess their usability in logistics planning projects. Furthermore, certain aspects of planning procedures are identified that require formalization of applied knowledge. Thus, an approach to apply knowledge formalization is presented.