AREA: Digital Lifecycle Management
Sub-area: Digital factory modelling
Dr Kobby A Kodua, Asst Professor of Digital Manufacturing
(k.agyapong-kodua@warwick.ac.uk, Tel: +44 (0)24 7657 4259)
PhD Research topic: Rapid, cost effective and efficient manufacturing systems design
DESCRIPTION:
A PhD research opportunity exist for a highly motivated student who is interested in
exploring current challenges in digital factory modelling as an integral part of the life cycle
management of high value products, processes and resources. The student will have
opportunity to work on real industrial (automotive and aerospace) cases and conduct
experiments to establish best configurations of products-processes-resources for optimal
and cost effective factory performance. As a result, the student will learn and develop
integrated product-process-resource modelling techniques to capture key industrial
requirements. Dynamic systems modelling techniques would also be applied to support the
3D simulation of manufacturing system components and production lines.
The outcome of the research will:
1) Improve existing factory modelling methodologies and enhance visibility in the
virtual manufacture and assembly of parts thereby allowing alternative
configurations of systems to be conceived, tested and improved;
2) Develop integrated factory models of products, processes and resources which can
be used for assessing causality, life cycle cost, and rendering process improvements.
3) Support the development of feedback mechanisms which will ensure that knowledge
acquired during the life phases of a product can be captured, distributed and most
importantly applied to the redesign of similar products and their associated
production systems.
Requirements:


Candidates must have a very good degree in one of the following fields: Mechanical,
Production, Manufacturing, Industrial or Systems Engineering; Operations
Management; Decision Sciences; Computer Science/Engineering.
Candidates must be self-motivated, possess excellent communication skills, an
ability to work in teams and adhere to project deadlines.


The candidate is expected to develop analytical, visual and computational skills and
submit results of work for publications in academic journals. An original contribution
to knowledge in the field is expected.
Candidates with some knowledge or experience in any of these tools are encouraged
to apply: Factory simulations (Delmia, FactoryCAD, Discrete Event Simulations, Visual
Components, etc.), Programming languages (C++, Java, MATLAB, Visual Basic)