The objective of modern assembly processes is to produce high-quality and low-cost products. Understanding manufacturing costs in the system design phase is the first step to increasing profits. Throughput, utilization, and cycle time continue to be emphasized as key performance indicators for the planning of new assembly systems, but the cost issues need to be analysed as well. The authors are developing a novel analysis methodology that integrates component-based simulation, Overall Equipment Efficiency with Cost of Ownership, and other analysis methods to improve the design of flexible, modular reconfigurable assembly systems. The development of the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) analysis tool is based on selected industrial standards and the authors' own experience of assembly system design and simulation. The TCO method is useful in system-supplier and end-user communication, and helps in trade-off analyses of system concepts. A fictitious case study illustrates the use of the TCO method.

This paper introduces Augmented Reality (AR) system to support an astronaut's manual work, it has been developed in two phases. The first phase was developed in Europeans Space Agency's (ESA) project called "EdcAR-Augmented Reality for Assembly, Integration, Testing and Verification, and Operations" and the second phase was developed and evaluated within the Horizon 2020 project "WEKIT-Wearable Experience for Knowledge Intensive Training." The main aim is to create an AR based technological platform for high knowledge manual work support, in the aerospace industry with reasonable user experience. The AR system was designed for the Microsoft HoloLens mixed reality platform, and it was implemented based on a modular architecture. The purpose of the evaluation of the AR system is to prove that reasonable user experience of augmented reality can reduce performance errors while executing a procedure, increase memorability, and improve cost, and time efficiency of the training. The main purpose of the first phase evaluation was to observe and get feedback from the AR system, from user experience point-of-view for the future development. The use case was a filter change in International Space Station (ISS)-Columbus mock-up in the ESA's European Astronaut Centre (EAC). The test group of 14 subjects it included an experienced astronaut, EAC trainers, other EAC personnel, and a student group. The second phase the experiment consisted of an in-situ trial and evaluation process. The augmented reality system was tested at ALTEC facilities in Turin, Italy, where 39 participants were performing an actual real astronaut's procedure, the installation of Temporary Stowage Rack (TSR) on a physical mock-up of an ISS module. User experience evaluation was assessed using comprehensive questionnaires, and interviews, gathering an in-depth feedback on their experience with a platform. This focused on technology acceptance, system usability, smart glasses user satisfaction, user interaction satisfaction, and interviews, gathering an in-depth feedback on their experience with a platform. The analysis of the questionnaires and interviews showed that the scores obtained for user experience, usability, user satisfaction, and technology acceptance were near the desired average. Specifically, The System Usability Scale (SUS) score was 68 indicating that the system usability is already nearly acceptable in the augmented reality platform.

No abstract

PurposeTo present theories for total cost of ownership (TCO) methodology in assembly system trade‐off analysis and to show benefits of the methodology as a decision support in system selection.Design/methodology/approachThe developed TCO methodology is a combination of factory simulation, system performance and loss factor evaluation using overall equipment efficiency, system life cycle costing, and assembled unit cost analysis including cost of bad quality and rework.FindingsThe purchase price of equipment is just one cost element in the comparison. TCO shows how important it is to analyse all the cost, direct and indirect, incurred throughout the life cycle of an equipment, including acquisition and installation, operations and maintenance, and end‐of‐life management. TCO methodology pinpoints costs that could be easily underestimated, such as quality and rework as well as all the costs of running the system.Research limitations/implicationsThe methodology is partially based on semiconductor industry standards and other asset comparison methodology, which are now integrated and applied also for electromechanical final assembly. Development continues.Practical implicationsThe methodology is useful in system integrator and end‐user collaboration, where both can use similar formulae in system evaluation and trade‐off analysis. Integration to component‐based simulation adds system visualisation and simulation analysis and combines system configuration with cost analysis into a tool for the sales engineer.Originality/valueIntegration of different analysis methods improves the quality of decisions. The TCO methodology is a systematic way to analyse system cost and performance issues. With proper use of the TCO methodology it is possible to justify investments to automation and modular re‐configurable hardware.

The objective of this research project was to improve manual work tasks and workplace design with a new digital human model based design method. The idea of the method was to make the design and analyze of work and workplaces easy for floor level development case. It also should to be exploitable in the context of participatory design approach. The developed method was implemented on a production design simulation platform. It was designed to be used in design of human factors, performance and functionality of a production concurrently. The implemented tool includes basic human motions which exploit real human motion data, effective work design features to easily generate variational solutions, embedded ergonomic analyses and checklists to help analyzing different work environment solutions, and to document the design outcome. Four industrial case studies were completed with the tool. The results show that the tool is feasible for individual and group design work, and has positive impacts on the design process and on the way how individuals can influence on her or his future work in production system.