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Social manufacturing has emerged. It aims to integrate the manufacturing resources of micro- and small-scale manufacturing enterprises (MSMEs) and help MSMEs cope with the dynamic, service-oriented and personalized market demands. In social manufacturing, MSMEs cooperate with each other through manufacturing resource sharing. However, because MSMEs are distributed and decentralized, the efficiency of establishing reliable cooperation between MSMEs is relatively low. Therefore, this paper presents a blockchain-driven cyber-credit evaluation system (BCCES) to implement distributed cyber-credit evaluation. BCCES can provide reliable cyber-credit for distributed MSMEs without the trusted third party. This can improve the efficiency of establishing reliable cooperation among unauthentic MSMEs.

The paper proposes a BCCES to evaluate MSMEs' cyber-credit in decentralized environment. In BCCES, a cyber-credit evaluation model is proposed by improving set pair analysis (SPA) method, and cyber-credit smart contract and distributed consensus mechanism are designed according to the runtime logic of distributed cyber-credit evaluation.

The results confirmed that BCCES is feasible and effective to implement cyber-credit evaluation without the trusted third party. With the advantages of blockchain, BCCES can automatically realize cyber-credit evaluation through smart contract and distributed consensus. At the same time, BCCES can evaluate the real-time cyber-credit of MSMEs based on their latest service evaluation. In addition, we can design corresponding smart contracts according to actual requirements, which makes blockchain applicable to different distributed scenarios.

The paper combines blockchain and SPA to implement cyber-credit evaluation in social manufacturing and provides a new feasible idea for cyber-credit evaluation without the trusted third party. This can also provide MSMEs a reference of applying blockchain to other distributed scenarios through combining smart contract and different algorithms.

The purpose of this research is to develop a kind of new service‐driven MEMS “top‐down” design method and implement the correspondent web‐based software prototype as verification.

Bond graphs are used as the output of conceptual design. Feature modeling technology is just a bridge to perform the feature mapping from the conceptual model to the structure and geometric model of micro‐components. To support design evaluations, a 3D whiteboard collaborative mechanism powered with networked VR service functions is put forward to visualize and operate small micro‐components in a macro world. In addition, service‐driven MEMS “top‐down” design flow is modeled as a formalized “AND/OR” graph with which the design service scheduling is finished with the priority‐in‐depth searching algorithm.

Traditional MEMS CAD systems were developed on the basis of “bottom‐up” design method mainly used in laboratory practice. Different from the above, this research presents a solution, which can outline a new service‐driven MEMS CAD model and decrease designers' dependency to manufacturing knowledge.

It is still necessary to study further how to create a much more efficient feature modeling mechanism to enable design evaluation for micro manufacturing.

The new design method and the correspondent software prototyping would potentially help industry to promote the development of new MEMS CAD systems.

The value is to identify a kind of new MEMS CAD implementation mode, which is suitable for general design uses on network.

The purpose of this study is to develop an environment where participants share a virtual workspace, which allows the participants to collaborate on a physical model as well as a digital model in a natural manner as if they were in a face‐to‐face meeting.

The idea of this study was designed and implemented as BOCOLLA system based on CELAVIS system. BOCOLLA system enables users to manipulate computer software on a conventional whiteboard using a marker pen during video conference with CELAVIS system.

BOCOLLA system shows the feasibility of the non‐IT interface with a conventional whiteboard as an IT‐based interface which enables telematic operation for video conferences.

Digital models plays a critical role in e‐manufacturing, but their physical models would enhance the collaboration in e‐manufacturing if it could be shared among the collaboration members over the network.

The study identifies the potential of conventional tools as an interface to the innovative technologies.

Using a physical model sharing example, this paper shows the feasibility of BOCOLLA to the application of e‐manufacturing.

This paper is mainly concerned with studying the e‐manufacturing scheduling issue based on the bills of materials (BOM) flows of products. On the basis of e‐manufacturing philosophy, a genetic algorithm (GA)‐based scheduling model for physical e‐manufacturing cells is put forward. By means of building the mapping relationship and dynamic task association among physical e‐manufacturing cells, logic e‐manufacturing cells, e‐manufacturing systems and e‐manufacturing environment, high‐level scheduling issues can be transformed as an inductive procedure concerning the scheduling results to corresponding physical e‐manufacturing cells. As verification, finally, a case study is given to demonstrate the method mentioned above.

Extends the concept of e‐service to the whole phase of manufacturing. Develops an e‐service platform prototype based on this concept with Java Web solution including the mobile agent broking technologies and application service provider (ASP) principle. The key point to implement the platform is to enable an open Web information service infrastructure for the whole product manufacturing chain. Inside this infrastructure, product‐specific online manufacturing system can be created by means of using a kind of bidding model. All users participating in the manufacturing process are able to cooperatively finish manufacturing tasks in real time through sharing the same platform. With the help of BOM flow, the global information service flow can be controlled easily. In addition, the legacy hardware/software can also be encapsulated with aglets that are Java mobile agents. As to new ASP software packages, they can be configured simply via the plug and play mode to the e‐service platform. In this way, the on‐line networked manufacturing can be tested.

The purpose of this research is to develop a distributed system with an innovative supplier selection approach within a mass customization (MC) environment. The aim is to help manufacturers to identify appropriate suppliers for the components, materials and services required within the procedure of product design and manufacture.

To identify the barriers for the supplier selection issues, current researches regarding the issues of supplier selection and MC have been reviewed. Based on the findings, the new supplier selection approach has been developed.

Within the global manufacturing environment, conventional way of appraising suppliers cannot enhance manufacturers' competitiveness advantage over their rivals. It is inevitable for manufacturers to identify appropriate competitive priorities for each of their potential market segments when designing products. Selecting appropriate suppliers is a fundamental issue to fulfill manufacturers' development strategy. The approach will enhance supplier selection efficiency and flexibility under the MC environment, enabling manufactures to avoid or minimize risks when external conditions change.

The case study is limited to selecting suppliers of two components for an ink cartridge, however, the general approach is applicable to other type of products.

The whole concept of this selection system is to provide a supplier selection approach for MC environment by utilizing the web‐based technologies to deliver a means which enables geographically dispersed functions making supplier selection more efficiently. Manufacturers can utilize this approach to evaluate and to find most appropriate suppliers based on various situations.

The supplier selection approach focuses on the general supplier selection issues incorporating with product market position and development directions issues for MC, which provides a more dynamic and robust method to select and evaluate potential suppliers according to a range of conditions.

The integration of e‐business and supply chain enables seamless information flow from suppliers to customer service network via the internet. It also enables better‐coordinated materials flow from customer order to production, storage, distribution and delivery. The purpose of this paper is to describe the work that leads to the realisation of a hierarchical model for e‐supply chain coordination and optimisation.

The model is based on an e‐business information flow network in order to respond rapidly to the dynamics of e‐supply chain and market. It can be used to realize management level strategies, and facilitate the planning and control of detailed operation schedules of supply chain units in an e‐supply chain environment. Three main modules are discussed. They are routing and sequence optimiser (RSO) with the aid of a GA and TS‐based multiple population search strategy (MPSS); supply chain virtual clustering (SCVC) based on fuzzy virtual clustering; and supply chain order scheduling (SCOS) using an agent‐based distributed scheduling system.

These modules enable: the generation of preferred routings, transportation modes and work order plan under such constraints as customer service level, cycle time and cost; the formation of supply chain's unit‐transportation‐work order families using a clustering approach to down‐size supply chain problems and increase computation efficiency; and the integration of scheduling with supply chain optimisation in order to facilitate the control of a supply chain with the aid of an agent‐based distributed scheduling approach.

This paper proposed a hierarchical model for e‐supply chain coordination and optimisation that is capable to solve large‐scale problems. A MPSS using GA and TS was depicted in detail to expedite the RSO.

In an e‐manufacturing environment, the acquisition of real time quality data and information is paramount for distributed collaborative manufacturers to make quick and correct actions towards quality problems in a manufacturing process. This paper attempts to assist manufacturers in obtaining such data and information and further to make decisions regarding quality control.

In this paper, an online quality information system (OQIS) for quality control in an e‐manufacturing environment is presented. The common object request broker architecture standards and client‐server technologies are applied to obtain real time data and information whenever required at different locations. In addition, several modules, responsible for product design, process planning, quality control and data input, are developed within a coherent OQIS information model.

Preliminary results show advantages of the OQIS for companies to obtain real time quality data and information. It can also suggest possible improvements pertaining to quality control towards e‐manufacturing.

The proposed OQIS can be further developed to solve such issues as explanation of complex quality information and deployment costs in the enterprise. Further research should be directed to the evolution of OQIS.

The OQIS can provide consistent quality data and information, based on which manufacturers can make timely and correct decisions in solving quality problems in an e‐manufacturing environment.

To propose and develop a cost‐effective approach to developing and implementing customized electronic business solutions in a do‐it‐yourself (DIY) fashion.

The proposed DIY approach is based on the concept of “portalets” that are used as building blocks to develop e‐business solutions with little or varying degree of customization efforts. Portalets form a platform for deriving the software (e‐business) product lines.

This paper not only discusses the necessity but also demonstrates the feasibility of the proposed DIY e‐business approach. New challenges associated with the approach are highlighted.

It is a critical and incremental task to develop portalets building blocks and identify their interfaces and standardize their customization points in terms of backend, middleware and client components.

The study identifies a suite of tools and techniques for building and implementing EBS in order for small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) to significantly reduce the time and effort to an affordable level while capturing the unique business logics into the solutions.

The DIY e‐business approach represents a unique alternative for SME companies to adopt and implement EBS to best suit their operational characteristics.