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Reinforcement learning and digital twin-driven optimization of production scheduling with the digital model playground
No full textThe significance of digital technologies in the context of digitizing production processes, such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Digital Twins, is on the rise. A promising avenue of research is the optimization of digital twins through Reinforcement Learning (RL). This necessitates a simulation environment that can be integrated with RL. One is introduced in this paper as the Digital Model Playground (DMPG). The paper outlines the implementation of the DMPG, followed by demonstrating its application in optimizing production scheduling through RL within a sample process. Although there is potential for further development, the DMPG already enables the modeling and optimization of production processes using RL and is comparable to commercial discrete event simulation software regarding the simulation-speed. Furthermore, it is highly flexible and adaptable, as shown by two projects, which distribute the DMPG to a high-performance cluster or generate 2D/3D-Visualization of the simulation model with Unreal. This establishes the DMPG as a valuable tool for advancing the digital transformation of manufacturing systems, affirming its potential impact on the future of production optimization. Currently, planned extensions include the integration of more optimization algorithms and Process Mining techniques, to further enhance the usability of the framework
Application of the Kano model for insights into business students' sustainability transformation expectations from higher educational institutions : A cross-country study
No full textWhile previous research focused on investigating students' perceptions, few studies have analyzed students' future-oriented normative sustainability expectations from their Higher Educational Institutions (HEIs) in various cultural contexts. The goal of this study is to (1) identify business students' sustainability transformation expectations from their HEIs, (2) uncover potential differences in expectations across cultural environments, and (3) explain how students' sustainability expectations impact their behaviors towards HEIs. A mixed qualitative-quantitative research design using a semi-standardized questionnaire based on a sample of 239 business students from the USA and Germany was applied. Sustainability topics at HEIs are derived both from a literature review and through interviews and were categorized using content analysis. Data for the study was collected from business students in Bachelor programs at two state universities in the USA and one public university in Germany and the Kano analysis was utilized to examine students' sustainability expectations. Our analysis uncovered 19 distinct topic areas of sustainability at HEIs. Across both countries, students considered the integration of sustainability in production and consumption, as well as gender equality and inclusion, as basic requirements for future sustainability transformations. Other attributes were evaluated as indifferent. Students from the USA considered staff and faculty development opportunities or institutional support as performance attributes, while students from Germany evaluated them as indifferent. Country variations in students' expectations of key sustainability attributes from their HEIs are significantly influenced by their level of involvement in sustainability. Finally, students' expectations significantly impact their behavioral intentions. We provide managerial implications suggesting a tailored focus on sustainability attributes based on Kano categories and the country context. Furthermore, we highlight the need for further research, including replication studies in diverse cultural settings using longitudinal study designs
Appreciation for Agriculture in Public Communication. A Content Analysis of the Influence of the First Lockdown on Reporting About Agriculture in the Mass Media
No full textThe call for greater societal appreciation of agriculture has been a recurring theme in recent years, both within and outside the sector. The following article examines the extent to which social value communication can be found in media articles compared to other evaluative statements about agriculture and the effects that occurred at the beginning of the Coronavirus crisis. Using quantitative analysis and based on a theoretical concept of recognition, statements of social esteem and disrespect are collected and contrasted with acceptable and critical statements in issues of the mainstream, regional and farming press in 2019 and 2020 and evaluated in terms of their authorship and references to agricultural issues. In this context, it can be shown that even before the Coronavirus crisis, the level of social esteem accorded to agriculture in public communication was higher than the level of disrespect. It then increased during the first pandemic lockdown, combined with a significantly higher number of references to the issue of security of supply. At the same time, it is clear that the type of statement most often published in the media is not a direct expression of social esteem or disrespect, but rather a perception of disrespect for agriculture. The sources of these statements most often come from the agricultural sector itself
