Browsing by Author "Greyling, Berno Theo"

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    The application of business process mining to improving a physical asset management process : a case study
    (Southern African Institute for Industrial Engineering, 2017) Greyling, Berno Theo; Jooste, Wyhan
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Business process planning and control is important for effectively managing and improving processes relating to the management of physical assets. This is especially true when processes affect the uptime and value creation by physical assets. This article presents a case study where an asset management process is analysed using a technique called ‘process mining’, with which it is possible to investigate the process as it is being performed in the real world. By applying process mining instead of a traditional mathematical approach, real-world issues can be identified and corrected to improve the effectiveness of the given process. A process model is first constructed to investigate process execution patterns, after which dotted charts are used to identify problem areas within the process and to propose possible areas for improvement.
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    Applying process mining to analyse business process performance in the Physical Asset Management environment
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2015-12) Greyling, Berno Theo; Jooste, J. L.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Engineering. Dept. of Mechanical and Mechatronic Engineering.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Physical Asset Management (PAM) has become a vital part of asset intensive organisations in recent years. The rise of standards associated with Asset Management (AM) and the competitive nature of large organisations has resulted in a demand for performance improvements in terms of the value created by physical assets. This thesis addresses this need by calling on an interdisciplinary approach to help improve the processes that support these physical assets within an organisation’s PAM strategy execution environment. Improvement is facilitated by the use of Business Process Management (BPM) and Workflow Management (WfM) principles in conjunction with process mining. While BPM and WfM provide the tools, process mining generates the metrics and models to be improved. This thesis starts by examining the literature of PAM and how processes form part of the enablers that support execution functions of a PAM strategy. Linkage between these enablers and physical assets creating value is then examined. The review finds that there is a lack of structured and mathematical analysis involved with PAM processes as they are executed in the real world. This lack results from the inability to monitor exactly how work is being done in relation to how it was planned. BPM and WfM are discussed to construct a theoretical basis on which process improvement can occur while process mining addresses the lack of being able to monitor real world activity. This thesis continues to develop a methodology that aims to construct a framework by which process mining can first be applied to a practical environment, followed by principles inherent in BPM and WfM. As BPM, WfM and process mining entail numerous different analytical tools, the most applicable of these techniques are chosen for the PAM environment. The developed methodology is applied to a case study where a maintenance process is investigated to determine the validity of the methodology. By applying the process mining methodology, important performance attributes of PAM process are identified and highlighted. Ultimately, application of the methodology is deemed a viable option to incorporate within a PAM environment to improve supporting processes. Future iterations based on this research can investigate improvements to this thesis and build on the results to improve PAM processes and incorporate on-going process mining within the PAM strategy.