Business process models are an important means to design, analyze, implement, and control business processes. As with every type of conceptual model, a business process model has to meet certain syntactic, semantic, and pragmatic quality requirements to be of value. For many years, such quality aspects were investigated by centering on the properties of the model artifact itself. Only recently, the process of model creation is considered as a factor that influences the resulting model's quality. Our work contributes to this stream of research and presents an explorative analysis of the process of process modeling (PPM). We report on two large-scale modeling sessions involving 115 students. In these sessions, the act of model creation, i.e., the PPM, was automatically recorded. We conducted a cluster analysis on this data and identified three distinct styles of modeling. Further, we investigated how both task- and modeler-specific factors influence particular aspects of those modeling styles. Based thereupon, we propose a model that captures our insights. It lays the foundations for future research that may unveil how high-quality process models can be established through better modeling support and modeling instruction. (authors' abstract)

The cell is a highly ordered and intricate machine within which a wide variety of chemical processes take place. The full scientific understanding of cellular physiology requires accurate mathematical models that depict the temporal dynamics of these chemical processes. Modelers build mathematical models of chemical processes primarily from systems of differential equations. Although developing new biological ideas is more of an art than a science, constructing a mathematical model from a biological idea is largely mechanical and automatable. This dissertation describes the practices and processes that biological modelers use for modeling and simulation. Computational biologists struggle with existing tools for creating models of complex eukaryotic cells. This dissertation develops new processes for biological modeling that make model creation, verification, validation, and testing less of a struggle. This dissertation introduces computational software that automates parts of the biological modeling process, including model building, transformation, execution, analysis, and evaluation. User and methodological requirements heavily affect the suitability of software for biological modeling. This dissertation examines the modeling software in terms of these requirements. Intelligent, automated model evaluation shows a tremendous potential to enable the rapid, repeatable, and cost-effective development of accurate models. This dissertation presents a case study that indicates that automated model evaluation can reduce the evaluation time for a budding yeast model from several hours to a few seconds, representing a more than 1000-fold improvement. Although constructing an automated model evaluation procedure requires considerable domain expertise and skill in modeling and simulation, applying an existing automated model evaluation procedure does not. With this automated model evaluation procedure, the computer can then search for and potentially discover models superior to those that the biological modelers developed previously. / Ph. D.

The lack of a consistent, rigorous testing methodology has contributed to system dynamics often not being well received in traditional modeling application areas or within the broader research community. With a foundation in taxonomy classification techniques, this research developed a modeling process risk-based framework focused on the objectives of the system dynamics methodology. This approach assists modelers in prioritizing the modeling process risk management requirements — and resources — for a project by employing a modeling process risk dictionary, a modeling process risk management methods database, and an algorithm for selecting methods based on a modeling process risk assessment. System dynamics benefits from the modeling process risk management approach include more efficient use of risk management resources and more effective management of modeling process risks. In addition, the approach includes qualities that support the achievement of verification, validation, and accreditation (VV&A) principles. A system dynamics model was developed as the apparatus for assessing the impacts of various modeling process risk management policies, including those found in the traditional system dynamics method, the more commonly practiced method, and the method as modified by the integration of the modeling risk management framework. These policies are defined by common parameters within the model, allowing comparison of system behavior as affected by the policy parameters. The system dynamics model enabled the testing of the potential value of the system dynamics modeling process framework. Results from a fractional factorial designed experiment identified the sensitive parameters that affect the key result measures established to assess model behavior, focusing on timeliness, effectiveness, and quality. The experimental process highlighted the capabilities of system dynamics modeling to provide insight from the model structure, in addition to the system results. These insights supported assessment of the policies that were tested. The proposed modeling process risk management policy delivered results that were substantially better than those of the baseline policy. The simulated project was delivered 26% faster, with 49% fewer rework discovery resources, and 1% higher actual work content in the project. The proposed policy also delivered superior results when compared to other common approaches to system dynamics modeling process risk management. / Ph. D.

Additive Manufacturing (AM) has demonstrated great potential to advance product design and manufacturing, and has showed higher flexibility than conventional manufacturing techniques for the production of small volume, complex and customised components. In an economy focused on the need to develop customised and hi-tech products, there is increasing interest in establishing AM technologies as a more efficient production approach for high value products such as aerospace and biomedical products. Nevertheless, the use of AM processes, for even small to medium volume production faces a number of issues in the current state of the technology. AM production is normally used for making parts with complex geometry which implicates the assessment of numerous processing options or choices; the wrong choice of process parameters can result in poor surface quality, onerous manufacturing time and energy waste, and thus increased production costs and resources. A few commonly used AM processes require the presence of cellular support structures for the production of overhanging parts. Depending on the object complexity their removal can be impossible or very time (and resources) consuming. Currently, there is a lack of tools to advise the AM operator on the optimal choice of process parameters. This prevents the diffusion of AM as an efficient production process for enterprises, and as affordable access to democratic product development for individual users. Research in literature has focused mainly on the optimisation of single criteria for AM production. An integrated predictive modelling and optimisation technique has not yet been well established for identifying an efficient process set up for complicated products which often involve critical building requirements. For instance, there are no robust methods for the optimal design of complex cellular support structures, and most of the software commercially available today does not provide adequate guidance on how to optimally orientate the part into the machine bed, or which particular combination of cellular structures need to be used as support. The choice of wrong support and orientation can degenerate into structure collapse during an AM process such as Selective Laser Melting (SLM), due to the high thermal stress in the junctions between fillets of different cells. Another issue of AM production is the limited parts’ surface quality typically generated by the discrete deposition and fusion of material. This research has focused on the formation of surface morphology of AM parts. Analysis of SLM parts showed that roughness measured was different from that predicted through a classic model based on pure geometrical consideration on the stair step profile. Experiments also revealed the presence of partially bonded particles on the surface; an explanation of this phenomenon has been proposed. Results have been integrated into a novel mathematical model for the prediction of surface roughness of SLM parts. The model formulated correctly describes the observed trend of the experimental data, and thus provides an accurate prediction of surface roughness. This thesis aims to deliver an effective computational methodology for the multi- objective optimisation of the main building conditions that affect process efficiency of AM production. For this purpose, mathematical models have been formulated for the determination of parts’ surface quality, manufacturing time and energy consumption, and for the design of optimal cellular support structures. All the predictive models have been used to evaluate multiple performance and costs objectives; all the objectives are typically contrasting; and all greatly affected by the part’s build orientation. A multi-objective optimisation technique has been developed to visualise and identify optimal trade-offs between all the contrastive objectives for the most efficient AM production. Hence, this thesis has delivered a decision support system to assist the operator in the "process planning" stage, in order to achieve optimal efficiency and sustainability in AM production through maximum material, time and energy savings.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-12T15:53:59Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 arquivo1951_1.pdf: 1805853 bytes, checksum: c425d960f08d287b2bae99ff5827acd4 (MD5) license.txt: 1748 bytes, checksum: 8a4605be74aa9ea9d79846c1fba20a33 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2008 / As pressões econômicas e sociais sobre as empresas estão exigindo cada vez mais das organizações uma maior capacidade de responder rapidamente às necessidades e requisitos das diversas partes interessadas, sejam acionistas, colaboradores, parceiros, comunidade e principalmente o Cliente. Há muito tempo as empresas são organizadas e geridas baseadas num modelo funcional, com estruturas verticalizadas correspondentes às funções organizacionais, nas quais as pessoas têm a noção da responsabilidade pelos resultados limitada ao universo dos seus departamentos. Essa estruturação não atende mais as expectativas e necessidades atuais do mercado, pois agrega pouco valor às novas relações exigidas pelos clientes. Nesses últimos vinte anos, vem tomando espaço nos meios acadêmicos e empresariais, uma nova abordagem para estruturar a gestão das empresas, denominada de orientação a processos . Uma empresa orientada por processos, possui características diferenciadas, a exemplo de equipes trabalhando com processos multifuncionais, de forma colaborativa, visão sistêmica, redução dos níveis hierárquicos, agilidade nas decisões e foco no cliente. Dentre as metodologias baseadas na abordagem de processos a mais recente é BPM (Business Process Management), que surgiu no final da década passada. BPM aplica métodos e técnicas para planejar, modelar, implantar, monitorar e melhorar continuamente os processos, visando alcançar agilidade operacional, maior confiabilidade, redução dos custos, maior capacidade de resposta às mudanças requisitadas pelos clientes e, principalmente, alinhamento aos objetivos empresariais. O cerne deste trabalho é contribuir com o tema, propondo um modelo para orientar a migração de uma organização orientada a funções para uma organização baseada em processos, usando BPM

The managing of complex business processes, which are changed due to globalization, calls for the development of powerful information systems that offer generic process modeling and process execution capabilities. Even though contemporary information systems are more and more utilized in enterprises, their actual impact in automatizing complex business process is still limited by the difficulties encountered in design phase. Actually this design phase is time consuming, often subjective and incomplete. In the scope of this study, a reverse approach is followed. Instead of starting with process design, the method of discovering interesting patterns from the navigation traces is taken as basis and a new data analysis methodology named &ldquo / From-to Chart Based Process Discovery&rdquo / is proposed. In this hybrid methodology &ldquo / from-to chart&rdquo / , which is fundamentally dedicated to material handling issues on production floor, is used as the front-end to monitor the transitions among activities of a realistic event log and convert these raw relations into optimum activity sequence. Then a revised version of process mining, which is the back-end of this methodology, upgrades optimum activity sequence into process model.

This Master Thesis develops the challenges of travel modeling during the Olympic and Paralympic Games, more specially for the Paris Olympics in 2024. This problem as been set by IDFM (Île-de-France Mobilités), the transport organisation authority of Paris and its region, that has therefore to deal with public travel during the Olympics. A very simplified model was already in use, but is no longer sufficient. The exceptional nature of this event, considered as a mega-event, requires a precise understanding of the subject as well as a different and adaptive modeling process. Thus, this work presents a detailed methodology for public transport travel modeling in Paris and its surroundings during the Olympics. This model will become more and more refined until the end of this mega-event, in order to present results or advert the multiple stakeholders around the topic of the Olympic Games transportation (event organizers, transport operators). The two significant parts of the model are distinguished and described: the Olympic Games related trips and the background demand, which require two very different approaches. The OG demand needs several assumptions which are often in constant evolution: the versatility of the parameters is a very important point to take into account. On the other side, the background demand prediction is a significant challenge because it differs from what is usually done. Both of these parts are adapted from the principle of the four-step transportation model and reuse parts of the IDFM model, ANTONIN 3, specifically calibrated for the Île-de-France region. It is also necessary to conceive with the will to adapt as much as possible the available transport data and the tools already in operation, such as the model already in use. Suggestions for further improvements are also mentioned to refine the results until the final day which will be possible thanks to enhancements of the input assumptions over time, such as ticketing data for instance.

La conception de produits a pour objectif de définir techniquement un produit en satisfaisant les besoins de l'ensemble des clients du cycle de vie du produit. Les enjeux industriels conduisent à développer des modèles et des outils d'aide à la conception afin de répondre aux besoins clients tout en optimisant le triptyque coût-qualité délais. L'objectif de cette thèse est de proposer une vision globale permettant d'appréhender les différents types de modélisation. Pour atteindre cet objectif, une analyse globale de ces notions est nécessaire afin d'obtenir une représentation commune du système pour les différentes activités de conception et de simulation. L'intérêt de cette approche est de pouvoir mettre en évidence les dépendances et les relations entre ces activités. Cette approche doit permettre d'appréhender les différents niveaux de détails (systémique) lors de la décomposition fonctionnelle et structurelle du produit. Elle doit également permettre de suivre l'élaboration des modèles physiques pour la simulation. Nous proposons une traçabilité du processus de conception et du processus de modélisation permettant de remettre en cause, le cas échéant, les choix de conception et les hypothèses de modélisation. Ce travail est fondé sur des concepts de GeoSpelling comme le " skin modèle ", les opérations et les propriétés. Ils sont enrichis d'autres concepts comme les modèles finis et infinis et les modèles primitif et de simulation. / Product design aims to technically define a product satisfying the needs of all customers during the product life cycle. Industrial issues lead to develop models and tools supporting design to meet customer needs and contributing to costs-quality-and time optimisation. The objective of this thesis is to propose an overall vision making it possible to apprehend the various types of modeling. To achieve this goal, a comprehensive analysis of these concepts is necessary in order to obtain a common representation of the system for the various activities of design and simulation. The advantage of this approach is to highlight the dependencies and relationships among those activities. This approach should allow to apprehend the various levels of detail (systemic) during the functional and structural decomposition activity. It should also enable to monitor the development of the physical models for the simulation. We propose a traceability of the design process and of the modeling process allowing to review as appropriate the design choices and the modeling assumptions. This work is based on concepts of GeoSpelling as the "skin model", the operations and the properties. They are complemented by other concepts as the finite and infinite models and the primitive and simulation models.

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Das Gebiet der Serviceentwicklung im Rahmen serviceorientierter Architekturen, als auch der Bereich der Geschäfts­prozessmodellierung gewannen in den letzten Jahren zunehmend an Bedeutung. Aus fachlicher Sicht stellt die Analyse, Simulation und Optimierung aktueller und zukünftiger Geschäftsprozesse ein wertvolles Instrument zur Erkennung von Schwachstellen und der Verbesserung der Leistungsfähigkeit von Unternehmen dar. Aus IT-Sicht bietet die Service­orientierung die Möglichkeit, Unternehmensressourcen über öffentliche und private Schnittstellen verfügbar, und damit die Position des Unternehmens im Netzwerk von Lieferanten, Kunden und Geschäfts­partnern zu stärken. Den Kern dieser Arbeit bildet die Untersuchung des Spannungsfeldes zwischen fachlicher Geschäfts­­­prozess- und Servicemodellierung, sowie der Ausführung von Geschäftsprozessen auf techni­scher Ebene, die durch Services unterstützt werden. Im Fokus der Betrachtung liegt der unter­nehmens- bzw. organisations­übergreifende Bereich, insbesondere der Finanzdienst­leistungs­sektor. Zu Beginn der Arbeit wird ein allgemeines Begriffsverständnis zu Bereichen Service- und Prozess­modellierung geschaffen, die im Hauptteil der Arbeit verfeinert und ergänzt werden, um die Beson­der­heiten und Problemfelder für den überbetrieblichen Bereich verständlich zu machen. Dabei wird das RosettaNet-Frame­work als Rahmenwerk zur Gestaltung von elektronischen Geschäfts­prozessen beschrieben und im letzten Teil der Arbeit zur Implementierung eines konkreten Geschäfts­­prozesses im Vertriebsprozess heran­gezogen. Zu diesem Zweck wird der ORACLE WebLogic Application Server verwendet.:1 Einleitung 2 Grundlagen der Service- und Prozessmodellierung 2.1 Grundlagen der Servicemodellierung 2.2 Grundlagen der Geschäftsprozessmodellierung 2.3 Zusammenhänge zwischen Prozess- und Servicemodellierung 2.4 Zusammenfassung 3 Entwicklung organisationsübergreifender Prozesse und Services 3.1 Motivation und Zweck unternehmensübergreifender Prozesse 3.2 Grundlagen öffentlicher Prozesse 3.3 Grundlagen öffentlicher Services 3.4 Organisation und Architektur unternehmensübergreifender Prozesse und Services 3.5 Organisationsübergreifende Prozesse am Beispiel von RosettaNet 4 Unterstützung des Vertriebs im Finanzdienstleistungsbereich durch RosettaNet 4.1 Referenzprozess Vertrieb als Beispiel eines unternehmensübergreifenden Prozesses 4.2 Fallbeispiel Bestellung im Rahmen des Vertriebsprozesses 4.3 Implementierung des Fallbeispiels mit dem ORACLE WebLogic Server 4.4 Modellierung des Vertriebsprozesses mithilfe der Business Process Modeling Notation 5 Schluss