Muray Sinclair - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Muray Sinclair

Computers in Industry, 2020

Augmented reality (AR) has been proposed as a disruptive and enabling technology within the Indus... more Augmented reality (AR) has been proposed as a disruptive and enabling technology within the Industry 4.0 manufacturing paradigm. The complexity of the AR content creation process results in an inability for Small Enterprise (SE) to create bespoke, flexible AR training support "in-house" and is a potential barrier to industrial adoption of AR. Presently, AR content creation requires a range of specialist knowledge (e.g. 3D modelling, interface design, programming and spatial tracking) and may involve infrastructure changes (e.g. fiducial markers, cameras) and disruption to workflow. The research reported in this paper concerns the development and deployment of an Augmented Repair Training Application (ARTA); a templatebased interface to support end user (shop floor) AR content creation. The proposed methodology and implementation are discussed and evaluated in a real-world industrial case study in collaboration with a Small Enterprise (SE) in the Used and Waste Electronic and Electrical Equipment sector (UEEE/WEEE). The need for end user friendly templates is presented in the conclusion alongside further related work.

IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, 1989

Ergonomics, 2007

The paper starts by discussing some of the historical background to the design of systems and the... more The paper starts by discussing some of the historical background to the design of systems and the development of systems thinking, from the perspective of Ergonomics. This is followed by an attempt to describe the likely future for systems design and operation; critical points being that these systems will interoperate with other systems; they will be long-lived; and we cannot afford for them to fail. This leads on to a discussion of complexity and its effects. The paper then goes on to discuss how and why Ergonomics practitioners should be interested in these effects. This includes dealing with intrinsic complexity (inherent in the purposes of the system) and induced complexity (introduced by the the organization, process design and operation of the system), the significance of trust, shared situation awareness and sense-making, the need for excellent communications, the importance of knowledge, experience and governance. Finally, a brief section, pointing to other sources, outlines possible approaches for designing these future systems.

International Journal of System of Systems Engineering, 2014

The developing discipline of Systems of Systems Engineering (SoSE) is gaining attention in an inc... more The developing discipline of Systems of Systems Engineering (SoSE) is gaining attention in an increasingly broad range of domains; however, each domain comes with its own set of terms and concepts so that there may be confusion between different domains ostensibly engaged in similar challenges. SoSE is faced with concept multiplicity (one term, more than one concept) and term multiplicity (one concept, more than one term). It is unrealistic to expect long-established domains to simply change ontology to match with other domains, but a means of recognising related concepts and terms across domains and across industrial sectors will enable more rapid progress to be made in the development of SoSE. The approach taken to generating a thesaurus, through which such relationships can be documented, is presented. The approach is essentially consultative among SoSE experts and the current version of the thesaurus is available online. A combination of problem statement definition and logical decomposition has been used; the method is described and application is illustrated using well-known terms.

INCOSE International Symposium, 2007

An enterprise system consists of a number of components or building blocks. It is common to use v... more An enterprise system consists of a number of components or building blocks. It is common to use views or models of the enterprise that contain a selection of these components (dependent on the intended usage of the model). The premise is that if these views are considered systems in their own right then the total enterprise system is actually a system-of-systems. Difficulty arises however when the boundaries between the systems overlap-it is therefore necessary to have an integrated model of the total enterprise that can cope with these overlaps and hence interactions between the systems. Within this paper there will be two main areas of work described; firstly the development of models/tools of "soft" enterprise characteristics; and secondly how these characteristics may be included in an integrated model of an enterprise system. Case studies of UK organisations (primarily within the defence industry) were undertaken to provide context to the results.

2013 8th International Conference on System of Systems Engineering, 2013

This paper presents the work undertaken so far in the formulation of a Strategic Research Agenda ... more This paper presents the work undertaken so far in the formulation of a Strategic Research Agenda (SRA) for research in Systems of Systems Engineering in the EU. The T-AREA-SoS project is introduced to provide a context, together with a section on Drivers for Change which the SRA needs to take into account. The strategy and process for the generation of the SRA is described, followed by details of outputs to date and the potential benefits it is believed would accrue from the implementation of the SRA.

Architectural Engineering and Design Management, 2008

Complexity thinking may have both modelling and metaphorical applications in the through-life man... more Complexity thinking may have both modelling and metaphorical applications in the through-life management of the built environment. These two distinct approaches are examined and compared. In the first instance, some of the sources of complexity in the design, construction and maintenance of the built environment are identified. The metaphorical use of complexity in management thinking and its application in the built environment are briefly examined. This is followed by an exploration of modelling techniques relevant to built environment concerns. Non-linear and complex mathematical techniques such as fuzzy logic, cellular automata and attractors, may be applicable to their analysis. Existing software tools are identified and examples of successful built environment applications of complexity modelling are given. Some issues that arise include the definition of phenomena in a mathematically usable way, the functionality of available software and the possibility of going beyond representational modelling. Further questions arising from the application of complexity thinking are discussed, including the possibilities for confusion that arise from the use of metaphor. The metaphor of a 'commentary machine' is suggested as a possible way forward and it is suggested 1/26 Models and Metaphors 2008 Rooke, Molloy, Sinclair, Koskela, Siriwardena, Kagioglou, Siemieniuch that an appropriate linguistic analysis can in certain situations reduce perceived complexity.

The paper reports on work carried out for the UK Ministry of Defence in the area of the control a... more The paper reports on work carried out for the UK Ministry of Defence in the area of the control and operation of Semi/Autonomous Systems). Increasing use will be made of ‘uninhabited ’ systems in all types of military operations but the degree of decision making autonomy and the position of the control interface will vary according to context. Given the increase in coalition force groups, OOTW, collaboration with NGOs etc, C2 systems must deal with a range of organisational systems which come from and operate within different cultural contexts and hence exhibit a range of cultural attributes. These not only impact on decision making / decision execution processes but also increase the capacity for conflict and misunderstandings in communicating and implementing ‘Commander’s intent’. The paper begins with some background rationale for the work and is followed by a brief description of the aims and objectives of the research and descriptions of two prototype tools: a Cultural Values M...

International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics, 1995

Systems Engineering

The paper reports some training, education, and operational findings from an EU Horizon 2020 proj... more The paper reports some training, education, and operational findings from an EU Horizon 2020 project that included the production of technology road-maps for the domain of cyber-physical systems (CPS). The project reviewed Deliverables from 72 CPS projects, all within Framework Programme 7 and Horizon 2020, including 18 from the ARTEMIS and ECSEL subprograms. This analysis led to the production of a "Knowledge Map" containing 75 technologies identified within the 72 projects as nodes in this map, connected by interoperability links. Filtering this map for each node, in turn, has led, in combination with other parts of the project, to some 48 recommendations for future focus and funding of developments in these technologies to assist in the rapid adoption of CPS in all domains. While the focus has been limited to European Union research and innovation, it is believed that the recommendations are transferable to other regions of the world.

International Journal of Operations & Production Management, 2004

The aim of this paper is to introduce the CLEVER process framework for knowledge lifecycle manage... more The aim of this paper is to introduce the CLEVER process framework for knowledge lifecycle management (KLM), which was developed to help organisations in the manufacturing and construction domains tackle ill-defined knowledge management problems. Focussing on organisational and cultural issues, rather than technological ones, the framework aids the user organisation to translate vague KLM problems into a set of specific knowledge management issues, to identify preferred solutions for these, and then to identify the appropriate KLM processes to achieve these solutions. In this respect, the paper is an extension of the work of Boisot, and Davenport and Prusak although the origins are different. The paper begins with the background and aims of the project on which this research is based and moves on to a discussion on the importance of knowledge management and its relevance to the CLEVER framework. An overview of the framework, describing its four-stage structure is provided which details examples of how to apply each of the separate stages. The final section summarises the limits of the tool and proposes new areas where further research is required.

2010 International Conference on Emerging Security Technologies, 2010

The focus of this paper is how to design legal and ethical behaviour into Semi/Autonomous Systems... more The focus of this paper is how to design legal and ethical behaviour into Semi/Autonomous Systems (S/AS) that work within a System-of-Systems (SoS) context, in either a military or civilian environment. Its intention is to explore the problem domain, question the comprehensiveness of current work in this area and postulate a series of issues that the authors feel need to be addressed if serious progress is to be made in an area of considerable interest to governments, manufacturers and users of theses systems and indeed the general public. It should be read as a discussion document.

This paper explores some of the characteristics of systems of systems (SoS) as they impact on the... more This paper explores some of the characteristics of systems of systems (SoS) as they impact on the organisational systems that deliver, and/ or work within such systems. A conclusion is that there is no single solution for the design and operation of organisational systems in the SoS domain, and, therefore, it is for organisations to find a fitness solution for

Reliability Engineering & System Safety, 2007

... Team A has also recently funded the development of two techniques, the Technique for Human Er... more ... Team A has also recently funded the development of two techniques, the Technique for Human Error Assessment (THEA) [5] and CHLOE [6], these two techniques have been used to analyse their case studies. A brief overview of THEA and CHLOE are given in Section 4.2.3. ...

European Journal of Purchasing & Supply Management, 2001

There is growing interest in the adoption of concurrent engineering (CE) in the construction indu... more There is growing interest in the adoption of concurrent engineering (CE) in the construction industry. While concurrent engineering (CE) is gaining acceptance, some implementation e!orts have not realised their full potential for reducing costs, reducing time, and increasing e$ciency, e!ectiveness and performance for product development e!orts. This is due in part to insu$cient planning to support the implementation. One approach that has been used successfully to improve CE implementation planning is to conduct &readiness assessment' of an organisation and its supply chain participants prior to the introduction of CE. This helps to investigate the extent to which they are ready to adopt concurrent engineering practices. CE readiness assessment tools and models have been developed and used in other industries such as the manufacturing and software engineering industries. This paper discusses CE and its application to the construction, reviews and compares the existing tools and methods for CE readiness assessment, discusses supply chains generally and construction supply chain speci"cally, and stresses the need to assess the readiness of the construction supply chain for the adoption of CE. The paper also presents a new readiness assessment model for the construction industry supply chain, and gives examples of its use to assess construction organisations.

International Journal of Project Management, 2006

The paper outlines the role matrix technique (RMT)-a paper-based method for resourcing processes ... more The paper outlines the role matrix technique (RMT)-a paper-based method for resourcing processes with identified human roles. It was developed in a number of field projects, where the aim was to explore alternative configurations of roles, responsibilities, interactions, activities etc. All stakeholders in a given process can generate a common understanding of roles, responsibilities, and interactions between roles. The visualisation is generated by means of a rule-based, bottom-up approach. The paper uses a case-study approach to illustrate the method and the three main stages involved: modelling the process of interest; identification and allocation of the roles required to process activities; and the representation of these roles within the role matrix-this is where the key innovation lies. The paper finishes with an evaluation of the RMT.

International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics, 1995

This paper discusses some of the ergonomics issues involved in Simultaneous Engineering from the ... more This paper discusses some of the ergonomics issues involved in Simultaneous Engineering from the perspective of supply chains. To be competitive in future markets, manufacturing companies must make greater use of the expertise and knowledge that is available from outside the company. This paper discusses some of the ergonomics issues involved in Simultaneous Engineering from the perspective of supply chains. It outlines some of the generic attributes of supply chains, and discusses some concepts of federated control systems as applied to supply chains. The implications of these for information flows and the management of distributed knowledge are then discussed. Most of this knowledge is human knowledge; consequently, the structure of supply chain teams is then discussed. Finally, some of the support requirements for such teams are listed, making the link to current ergonomics knowledge. Relevance to industry The paper discusses some of the deeper issues in the use and operation of supply chains for product introduction, looking particularly at the control and information-handling aspects from an ergonomics viewpoint. It also discusses the organisational aspects of operating such supply chains, discussing the infrastuctural issues of expertise, training, and job support necessary for efficient, effective control of these supply chains.

International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, 1999

... Abstract. This paper takes as its starting point that knowledge is not a unitary thing, and t... more ... Abstract. This paper takes as its starting point that knowledge is not a unitary thing, and that in a competitive environment it has a lifecycle. ... 5. D. BEEVIS and P. ESSENS, State-of-the-art report: improving function allocation for integrated systems design. ...

International Journal of Computer Integrated Manufacturing, 1999

Computers in Industry, 2020

Augmented reality (AR) has been proposed as a disruptive and enabling technology within the Indus... more Augmented reality (AR) has been proposed as a disruptive and enabling technology within the Industry 4.0 manufacturing paradigm. The complexity of the AR content creation process results in an inability for Small Enterprise (SE) to create bespoke, flexible AR training support "in-house" and is a potential barrier to industrial adoption of AR. Presently, AR content creation requires a range of specialist knowledge (e.g. 3D modelling, interface design, programming and spatial tracking) and may involve infrastructure changes (e.g. fiducial markers, cameras) and disruption to workflow. The research reported in this paper concerns the development and deployment of an Augmented Repair Training Application (ARTA); a templatebased interface to support end user (shop floor) AR content creation. The proposed methodology and implementation are discussed and evaluated in a real-world industrial case study in collaboration with a Small Enterprise (SE) in the Used and Waste Electronic and Electrical Equipment sector (UEEE/WEEE). The need for end user friendly templates is presented in the conclusion alongside further related work.

IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, 1989

Ergonomics, 2007

The paper starts by discussing some of the historical background to the design of systems and the... more The paper starts by discussing some of the historical background to the design of systems and the development of systems thinking, from the perspective of Ergonomics. This is followed by an attempt to describe the likely future for systems design and operation; critical points being that these systems will interoperate with other systems; they will be long-lived; and we cannot afford for them to fail. This leads on to a discussion of complexity and its effects. The paper then goes on to discuss how and why Ergonomics practitioners should be interested in these effects. This includes dealing with intrinsic complexity (inherent in the purposes of the system) and induced complexity (introduced by the the organization, process design and operation of the system), the significance of trust, shared situation awareness and sense-making, the need for excellent communications, the importance of knowledge, experience and governance. Finally, a brief section, pointing to other sources, outlines possible approaches for designing these future systems.

International Journal of System of Systems Engineering, 2014

The developing discipline of Systems of Systems Engineering (SoSE) is gaining attention in an inc... more The developing discipline of Systems of Systems Engineering (SoSE) is gaining attention in an increasingly broad range of domains; however, each domain comes with its own set of terms and concepts so that there may be confusion between different domains ostensibly engaged in similar challenges. SoSE is faced with concept multiplicity (one term, more than one concept) and term multiplicity (one concept, more than one term). It is unrealistic to expect long-established domains to simply change ontology to match with other domains, but a means of recognising related concepts and terms across domains and across industrial sectors will enable more rapid progress to be made in the development of SoSE. The approach taken to generating a thesaurus, through which such relationships can be documented, is presented. The approach is essentially consultative among SoSE experts and the current version of the thesaurus is available online. A combination of problem statement definition and logical decomposition has been used; the method is described and application is illustrated using well-known terms.

INCOSE International Symposium, 2007

An enterprise system consists of a number of components or building blocks. It is common to use v... more An enterprise system consists of a number of components or building blocks. It is common to use views or models of the enterprise that contain a selection of these components (dependent on the intended usage of the model). The premise is that if these views are considered systems in their own right then the total enterprise system is actually a system-of-systems. Difficulty arises however when the boundaries between the systems overlap-it is therefore necessary to have an integrated model of the total enterprise that can cope with these overlaps and hence interactions between the systems. Within this paper there will be two main areas of work described; firstly the development of models/tools of "soft" enterprise characteristics; and secondly how these characteristics may be included in an integrated model of an enterprise system. Case studies of UK organisations (primarily within the defence industry) were undertaken to provide context to the results.

2013 8th International Conference on System of Systems Engineering, 2013

This paper presents the work undertaken so far in the formulation of a Strategic Research Agenda ... more This paper presents the work undertaken so far in the formulation of a Strategic Research Agenda (SRA) for research in Systems of Systems Engineering in the EU. The T-AREA-SoS project is introduced to provide a context, together with a section on Drivers for Change which the SRA needs to take into account. The strategy and process for the generation of the SRA is described, followed by details of outputs to date and the potential benefits it is believed would accrue from the implementation of the SRA.

Architectural Engineering and Design Management, 2008

Complexity thinking may have both modelling and metaphorical applications in the through-life man... more Complexity thinking may have both modelling and metaphorical applications in the through-life management of the built environment. These two distinct approaches are examined and compared. In the first instance, some of the sources of complexity in the design, construction and maintenance of the built environment are identified. The metaphorical use of complexity in management thinking and its application in the built environment are briefly examined. This is followed by an exploration of modelling techniques relevant to built environment concerns. Non-linear and complex mathematical techniques such as fuzzy logic, cellular automata and attractors, may be applicable to their analysis. Existing software tools are identified and examples of successful built environment applications of complexity modelling are given. Some issues that arise include the definition of phenomena in a mathematically usable way, the functionality of available software and the possibility of going beyond representational modelling. Further questions arising from the application of complexity thinking are discussed, including the possibilities for confusion that arise from the use of metaphor. The metaphor of a 'commentary machine' is suggested as a possible way forward and it is suggested 1/26 Models and Metaphors 2008 Rooke, Molloy, Sinclair, Koskela, Siriwardena, Kagioglou, Siemieniuch that an appropriate linguistic analysis can in certain situations reduce perceived complexity.

The paper reports on work carried out for the UK Ministry of Defence in the area of the control a... more The paper reports on work carried out for the UK Ministry of Defence in the area of the control and operation of Semi/Autonomous Systems). Increasing use will be made of ‘uninhabited ’ systems in all types of military operations but the degree of decision making autonomy and the position of the control interface will vary according to context. Given the increase in coalition force groups, OOTW, collaboration with NGOs etc, C2 systems must deal with a range of organisational systems which come from and operate within different cultural contexts and hence exhibit a range of cultural attributes. These not only impact on decision making / decision execution processes but also increase the capacity for conflict and misunderstandings in communicating and implementing ‘Commander’s intent’. The paper begins with some background rationale for the work and is followed by a brief description of the aims and objectives of the research and descriptions of two prototype tools: a Cultural Values M...

International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics, 1995

Systems Engineering

The paper reports some training, education, and operational findings from an EU Horizon 2020 proj... more The paper reports some training, education, and operational findings from an EU Horizon 2020 project that included the production of technology road-maps for the domain of cyber-physical systems (CPS). The project reviewed Deliverables from 72 CPS projects, all within Framework Programme 7 and Horizon 2020, including 18 from the ARTEMIS and ECSEL subprograms. This analysis led to the production of a "Knowledge Map" containing 75 technologies identified within the 72 projects as nodes in this map, connected by interoperability links. Filtering this map for each node, in turn, has led, in combination with other parts of the project, to some 48 recommendations for future focus and funding of developments in these technologies to assist in the rapid adoption of CPS in all domains. While the focus has been limited to European Union research and innovation, it is believed that the recommendations are transferable to other regions of the world.

International Journal of Operations & Production Management, 2004

The aim of this paper is to introduce the CLEVER process framework for knowledge lifecycle manage... more The aim of this paper is to introduce the CLEVER process framework for knowledge lifecycle management (KLM), which was developed to help organisations in the manufacturing and construction domains tackle ill-defined knowledge management problems. Focussing on organisational and cultural issues, rather than technological ones, the framework aids the user organisation to translate vague KLM problems into a set of specific knowledge management issues, to identify preferred solutions for these, and then to identify the appropriate KLM processes to achieve these solutions. In this respect, the paper is an extension of the work of Boisot, and Davenport and Prusak although the origins are different. The paper begins with the background and aims of the project on which this research is based and moves on to a discussion on the importance of knowledge management and its relevance to the CLEVER framework. An overview of the framework, describing its four-stage structure is provided which details examples of how to apply each of the separate stages. The final section summarises the limits of the tool and proposes new areas where further research is required.

2010 International Conference on Emerging Security Technologies, 2010

The focus of this paper is how to design legal and ethical behaviour into Semi/Autonomous Systems... more The focus of this paper is how to design legal and ethical behaviour into Semi/Autonomous Systems (S/AS) that work within a System-of-Systems (SoS) context, in either a military or civilian environment. Its intention is to explore the problem domain, question the comprehensiveness of current work in this area and postulate a series of issues that the authors feel need to be addressed if serious progress is to be made in an area of considerable interest to governments, manufacturers and users of theses systems and indeed the general public. It should be read as a discussion document.

This paper explores some of the characteristics of systems of systems (SoS) as they impact on the... more This paper explores some of the characteristics of systems of systems (SoS) as they impact on the organisational systems that deliver, and/ or work within such systems. A conclusion is that there is no single solution for the design and operation of organisational systems in the SoS domain, and, therefore, it is for organisations to find a fitness solution for

Reliability Engineering & System Safety, 2007

... Team A has also recently funded the development of two techniques, the Technique for Human Er... more ... Team A has also recently funded the development of two techniques, the Technique for Human Error Assessment (THEA) [5] and CHLOE [6], these two techniques have been used to analyse their case studies. A brief overview of THEA and CHLOE are given in Section 4.2.3. ...

European Journal of Purchasing & Supply Management, 2001

There is growing interest in the adoption of concurrent engineering (CE) in the construction indu... more There is growing interest in the adoption of concurrent engineering (CE) in the construction industry. While concurrent engineering (CE) is gaining acceptance, some implementation e!orts have not realised their full potential for reducing costs, reducing time, and increasing e$ciency, e!ectiveness and performance for product development e!orts. This is due in part to insu$cient planning to support the implementation. One approach that has been used successfully to improve CE implementation planning is to conduct &readiness assessment' of an organisation and its supply chain participants prior to the introduction of CE. This helps to investigate the extent to which they are ready to adopt concurrent engineering practices. CE readiness assessment tools and models have been developed and used in other industries such as the manufacturing and software engineering industries. This paper discusses CE and its application to the construction, reviews and compares the existing tools and methods for CE readiness assessment, discusses supply chains generally and construction supply chain speci"cally, and stresses the need to assess the readiness of the construction supply chain for the adoption of CE. The paper also presents a new readiness assessment model for the construction industry supply chain, and gives examples of its use to assess construction organisations.

International Journal of Project Management, 2006

The paper outlines the role matrix technique (RMT)-a paper-based method for resourcing processes ... more The paper outlines the role matrix technique (RMT)-a paper-based method for resourcing processes with identified human roles. It was developed in a number of field projects, where the aim was to explore alternative configurations of roles, responsibilities, interactions, activities etc. All stakeholders in a given process can generate a common understanding of roles, responsibilities, and interactions between roles. The visualisation is generated by means of a rule-based, bottom-up approach. The paper uses a case-study approach to illustrate the method and the three main stages involved: modelling the process of interest; identification and allocation of the roles required to process activities; and the representation of these roles within the role matrix-this is where the key innovation lies. The paper finishes with an evaluation of the RMT.

International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics, 1995

This paper discusses some of the ergonomics issues involved in Simultaneous Engineering from the ... more This paper discusses some of the ergonomics issues involved in Simultaneous Engineering from the perspective of supply chains. To be competitive in future markets, manufacturing companies must make greater use of the expertise and knowledge that is available from outside the company. This paper discusses some of the ergonomics issues involved in Simultaneous Engineering from the perspective of supply chains. It outlines some of the generic attributes of supply chains, and discusses some concepts of federated control systems as applied to supply chains. The implications of these for information flows and the management of distributed knowledge are then discussed. Most of this knowledge is human knowledge; consequently, the structure of supply chain teams is then discussed. Finally, some of the support requirements for such teams are listed, making the link to current ergonomics knowledge. Relevance to industry The paper discusses some of the deeper issues in the use and operation of supply chains for product introduction, looking particularly at the control and information-handling aspects from an ergonomics viewpoint. It also discusses the organisational aspects of operating such supply chains, discussing the infrastuctural issues of expertise, training, and job support necessary for efficient, effective control of these supply chains.

International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, 1999

... Abstract. This paper takes as its starting point that knowledge is not a unitary thing, and t... more ... Abstract. This paper takes as its starting point that knowledge is not a unitary thing, and that in a competitive environment it has a lifecycle. ... 5. D. BEEVIS and P. ESSENS, State-of-the-art report: improving function allocation for integrated systems design. ...

International Journal of Computer Integrated Manufacturing, 1999