Doctoral theses

Various companies implement lean production systems to realize hidden technological and economical potentials. Due to the extensive and long-lasting acquisition of production system knowledge, the implementation of an individualized production system requires comprehensive human and financial resources. In contrary to huge enterprises, respective means are not at the disposal of small and medium sized companies e. g. of the die and mold making industry. This article presents an innovative approach to formalize production system knowledge in an expert system. The system is designed to fit the needs of the die and mold making industry and consists of an ontology for knowledge representation as well as an industry-sector-specific knowledge base. Furthermore, rules for automated knowledge base adaptation are derived using data mining algorithms. Case studies show that the expert system is applicable for systematic and company specific lean-method identification and implementation.

production system, lean production, expert system, knowledge management, data mining

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