Digitalisierung

In process engineering, one thinks of production operations that are controlled or regulated by sensors and actuators. And any realization of matter transformation is based on a physical substratum, which holds equally for living systems and their behaviour. The article distinguishes between three system levels: the functional level, the interface to the environment and the cognitive level of. Using these three levels, the learning cycle or the previous Cognitive Loop can be very well illustrated. If one compares with this way of distinction the Bio-Informatization of human intelligence with the technical development stages of mechanization, automation, regulation and deep learning, then the cybernetic-sociological term “operational closure” becomes understandable. It becomes obvious that in the context of a digitized culture of production and organization, we should be prepared for a new kind of cognitive loop based on silicon (SI), an intelligent system behavior via ...

The paper presents a method for the systematic selection of “Digital Twin” applications of products. Based on a product-independent search of implementations, potential use cases for the product’s ”Digital Twin” are specified and selected. This selection of applications forms the basis of the method, which allows a detailed modeling in two phases. The result of this modeling is an in-depth understanding of the use cases themselves and their requirements, especially information requirements, on the “Digital Twin” of the product. Furthermore, these findings enable an efficient conception and implementation of the virtual image of the product and can be the basis for optimizing the existing value chain.

Public discussions on the future of labour in the era of digitalization are dominated by notions of self-driving cars, factories without workers or fully automatic logistics. This creates fears of mass destruction of jobs and shrinking employment rates in the future. At the same time, it has led to intense debates on an unconditional basic income: While productivity would rise, a substantial drop in the number of jobs would question the income distribution mechanism our working societies are currently built on. This article argues that while replacement of existing jobs - or at least tasks - by technology will happen and has always happened, this is only one side of the coin. The future of labour markets will be more complex. This is discussed in a macroeconomic, firm and international dimension.

Media disruption interferes with consistent and universal digitalization. Data is easily lost, time and resources wasted. Heterogeneous and isolated applications produce partial relief; however they fail to integrate redundant information from separately operated systems into a homogeneously processible data mass. The employment of a centralized data hub proposes a strategy to effectively advance digitalization in process management, connecting scheduling of involved parties, defect tracking and progress processes. It also automatizes reportings on project progress.

Companies have always been in a constant state of change. This change is today closely linked to the buzzword’s “digitization” and “agility”. Agile methods, especially in complex projects, can pave the way for targeted digitization and, on the other hand, provide a more agile way of working for digital technologies. Through group discussions with managers from small and medium-sized IT companies, this article focuses on the question of whether agility is the precondition or consequence of targeted digitization. This article is aimed at decision-makers from SMEs who want to increase the degree of agility in the company in the context of increasing digitization.