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Keynote Speakers
Monday 6th July: 9.00am - 10.15am
Keynote1 - Engineering for Sustainability
Graham Hillier, BMet, PhD, MBA, FIMMM, FRSA, Director of Low Carbon Energy, Centre for Process Innovation
Chair: Professor Simon Hodgson
Abstract
There have always been three main principles behind successful business. They are:
- Economic factors - that create the wealth to do things and continue to do them
- Environmental, or natural resource factors - the impact we have on the resources available to us on the Earth
- And Societal factors - that people have healthy, happy and full lives.
The world is facing ever-increasing pressures on its natural resources. Population in 2003 was 6 billion and the UN forecasts that there will be over 8 billion people by 2030. All of these people need homes and services and many aspire to a developed world standard of living. In addition to the rapid growth in population and basic need, energy prices are rising and security of supply is becoming a major issue. There is also an increasing belief that humans are causing severe damage to the global environment.
Monday 6th July: 1.30pm - 2.25pm
Keynote 2 - Successful Continuous Improvement - How to make and sustain improvements
Keith Copeland MBE, Senior Engineer NMW and V-UP Office, Nissan Motor Manufacturing (UK) Limited
Chair: Professor Jalal Ashayeri
Abstract
As the global economy continues to free fall at a staggering rate manufacturers are facing ever increasing pressures not just to remain competitive but to survive. Realising the urgent need for increased productivity whilst reducing costs, many have been forced to adopt numerous Improvement Methodologies. Research has found that 72% of these methodologies are failing to deliver expected improvements with companies failing to align improvement strategies with their actual business needs; whilst other issues included a failure to sustain improvements beyond a 12 month period.
Tuesday 6th July: 9.00am - 10.00am
Keynote 3 - RFID-Enabled Wireless Manufacturing Execution Platform
George Q. Huang - Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Systems Engineering, The University of Hong Kong
Chair : Professor Stephen T. Newman
Abstract
This talk discusses how RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) technology is used to develop real-time and easy to use information platform for reconfigurable manufacturing enterprises. RFID devices are deployed at the shop-floor for collecting real-time manufacturing data from manufacturing facilities, cells and lines. The platform interacts and interoperates seamlessly with enterprise information systems such as ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) and WMS (Warehouse Management Systems). The adoption of the platform improves productivity and product quality while reducing costs and reworks through real-time information traceability and visibility.
The enterprise competitiveness is ultimately improved through better market and engineering responsiveness. The talk is divided into three parts. The first part is mainly concerned with how RFID devices are deployed to value-adding manufacturing objects and facilities such as machine tools, pallets, materials, tools, operators and Work In Progress (WIP) items. The second part of the talk will deal with how smart objects are combined with production processes and operations in order to achieve the seamless integration between shop-floor and enterprise information systems. Finally, visibility and traceability facilities are presented for different types of users such as shop-floor supervisors, process planners, production planner and schedulers, equipment maintenance engineers, and line operators. These facilities will allow them to visualize and monitor the status and provide real-time decision supports.
Tuesday 6th July: 1.30pm - 2.25pm
Keynote 4 - Bringing economic success through productivity and engagement
Stan Higgins - CEO, North East Process Industry Cluster
Chair: Professor Munir Ahmad
Abstract
Dr Higgins will put the Process Industry is put into its economic context in both the United Kingdom and the North East Region. He will explain how economic clusters work strategically today and can become the economic powerhouse for a region. How areas for public and private sector collaboration can be identified to bring about transformational performance of a sector and for participating companies. Key is a focus on the whole supply chain, productivity and resource efficiency as components of competitive advantage for a region, the cluster as a whole and for individual businesses. Dr Higgins will identify key success factors that must be acted upon by the industry and its stakeholders to bring success.
Wednesday 8th July: 8.30am - 9.20am
Keynote 5 - Where lies the Factory of the Future?
David W Russell, PhD FBCS, FIET, FIMechE, Penn State Great Valley, Philadelphia, USA
Chair: Professor Bill Gaughran
Abstract
The Factory of the Future will regretfully evolve slowly as the number of new manufacturing facilities declines in the Western hemisphere and increases in Asia. The call for sustainability often falls on ears defeaned by short term commercial advantage. Undeveloped and developing nations are stiving to reach a par with the so-called developed nations - largely in the west -at whose door, along with power stations, much of the environmental problems can be laid.
