Modelling residual value risk through ontology to address vulnerability of PPP project system

For facilitating the management of Residual Value Risk (RVR) in Public Private Partnership (PPP) projects, an ontology-based model is established to describe the generation process and complex relationships of RVR. An ontology-based approach is proposed to analyze the RVR in PPPs, which is a framework addressing the vulnerability and a knowledge-based modeling for RVR management. The RVR ontology model is composed of class of Project, Risk, and Vulnerability, as well as taxonomy of risk factors for risk sources (RS), risk events (RE), risk consequences (RC), exposure (V1), resilience (V2) and sensitivity (V3). Meanwhile, different relationships among taxonomies, classes and individuals are expressed in model. Moreover, the object properties for class project and the object properties of inherited/non-inherited relationships are defined. Meanwhile, project-based, risk-based, and vulnerability-based datatype property are further described. Then a real individual is established by using the ontology editing software Protégé. The proposed RVR ontology model can be used to visualize and manipulate various representations in RVR management as well as to implement the work of risk reasoning and analyzing. The proposed RVR ontology framework provides a useful framework to systematize different knowledge of RVRs in PPP projects, in which the related knowledge can be described clearly and effectively. Moreover, the proposed framework can enhance data process function and improve the analysis of RVR probability and vulnerability in PPP projects through sharedness and transferability of RVR knowledge provided by ontology-based RVR model for different stakeholders in PPP projects.     

Knowledge integration and sharing for collaborative molding product design and process development

This study presents a systematic approach to developing a knowledge integration and sharing mechanism for collaborative molding product design and process development. The proposed approach includes the steps of (i) collaborative molding product design and process development process modeling, (ii) an ontology-based knowledge model establishment, (iii) knowledge integration and sharing system framework design, (iv) ontology-based knowledge integration and sharing methods development, and (v) ontology-based knowledge integration and sharing mechanism implementation. The mechanism can support collaborative molding product design and process development by providing functions of knowledge integration and sharing. Results of this study facilitate the knowledge integration and sharing of collaborative molding product design and process development to satisfy the product knowledge demands of participants, and thus increase molding product development capability, reduce molding product development cycle time and cost, and ultimately increase molding product marketability.     

Association rule hiding in risk management for retail supply chain collaboration

Association rule hiding is an efficient solution that helps enterprises avoid the risk caused by sensitive knowledge leakage when sharing data in their collaborations. This study examines how data sharing has the potential to create risk for enterprises in retail supply chain collaboration and proposes a new algorithm to remove sensitive knowledge from the released database based on the intersection lattice of frequent itemsets. The proposed algorithm specifies the victim item such that the modification of this item causes the least impact on frequent itemsets and the non-sensitive association rule. In the experiment described in this paper, this algorithm is used in risk avoidance for a retailer sharing data in retail supply chain collaboration. The results indicate that our approach is applicable in a real context and outperforms previous mechanisms.     

An ontology-based support for product conceptual design

The research presented in this paper is a follow-up of our prior work involving the development of a graphical modeling tool to support designers at the conceptual design stage. To close the loop for supporting designers in generating design concepts flexibly, fast, and easily, an ontology-based approach for knowledge management that works along with the graphical modeling tool is discussed. Ontology and databases for the tool are developed to promote the systematic capture of design knowledge and efficient reuse of the design knowledge selection. In order to locate the proper information and query the data from the databases, the relationship between the ontology and databases, the data analysis process, ontology enrichment, and the ontology-based query engine are built to offer users multiple design results according to users’ requirements. A tire design example is presented to demonstrate the proposed approach. The ontology-based method described in this paper can help retrieve and save the complex relations, support the reasoning, integrate heterogeneous data resources and offer users more accurate, proper and comprehensive data.     

Reusability and multi-product development policies: a comparison of approaches in the automotive, motorcycle and earthmoving machinery industries

In many industries, the compelling pressure on the replacement of existing products and the expansion of the breadth of product lines, are forcing firms to undertake a growing number of new product development (NPD) projects. The effectiveness of those efforts depends on how well the firm can exploit synergy in innovation. This entails to managing the sharing and transfer of knowledge to projects over time to maximise reusability of technological solutions. The paper investigates how firms have reshaped their NPD process to deal with the challenge of reusability and knowledge transfer in three related industries. Starting from a resource-based view of the innovation process it compares the multi-product development project practices diffused in these industries and identifies the factors which affect the choice of a given approach to reusability and knowledge transfer.     

Practical experiences in modelling software engineering practices: The project patterns approach

Software process improvement in software development organisations is a complex task that can be solved using knowledge management strategies. In this area, the definition and use of process patterns are a proven approach to apply knowledge management strategies in software engineering organisations. One of the main problems for the effective application of process patterns in the software industry is the difficulty of formalising the knowledge about the development process using these approaches. This study presents a framework to manage software project patterns. This framework (which is composed of a metamodel and a platform for patterns modelling and reuse) is able to formalise the knowledge on software development projects including software engineers’ previous experience, development methodologies, references frameworks and lessons learnt. The authors carried out an empirical study at Carlos III University of Madrid, where junior software engineers used the project patterns defined in this research work. The evidences and findings obtained during the empirical study execution indicates that correctness of the pattern depends on relevance of the bibliographic references used to create it, implementation of a knowledge sharing strategy among the personnel involved and previous experience in the business areas related to the information systems being developed. The results obtained from the empirical study also envisage that the usefulness of an sdPP (Software Development Project Pattern) depends on the ease of identifying when and how to apply a specific sdPP in a software project.     

Development of a mechanism for ontology-based product lifecycle knowledge integration

Compared with relying on the efforts of various enterprises collaborating on product lifecycle activities, such as coordination, communication and control, the ability to effectively share product information and knowledge is more important. Therefore, how to best integrate such heterogeneous product knowledge distributed among various cooperating enterprises has become an extremely important knowledge management subjects associated with collaborative product lifecycle.This study develops a novel mechanism for integrating ontology-based product lifecycle knowledge to effectively integrate the heterogeneous product knowledge distributed among different enterprises during a product’s lifecycle, thereby facilitating sharing of this product knowledge. This study: (i) designed an integration and sharing process for collaborative product lifecycle knowledge, (ii) developed techniques associated with integration of ontology-based product lifecycle knowledge, and (iii) implemented an integration and sharing mechanism for ontology-based product lifecycle knowledge. In developing techniques associated with integration of ontology-based product lifecycle knowledge, which involves establishing a product lifecycle ontology, designing local ontology schema, designing an integration algorithm for ontology-based product lifecycle knowledge, and designing a searching method for ontology-based product lifecycle knowledge.     

Reuse of knowledge assets from repositories: A mixed methods study

Reuse of information retrieved from an electronic knowledge repository and how this complements person-to-person interactions are poorly understood. I developed a research model that examined factors influencing how individuals benefit from reuse of knowledge assets. Using a mixed method approach, two empirical studies were conducted to test the model. The results showed that two key factors helped users to overcome difficulties in reusing knowledge assets: seeking assistance from and sharing a common perspective with the author of the asset. The study explains when and how individuals receive benefits from knowledge reuse. When individuals reuse complex knowledge assets in domains with which they are unfamiliar, they apparently gain more benefit by contacting the author; sharing a common perspective with the author also facilitates asset reuse. Thus both electronic repositories and person-to-person interaction mechanisms complement one another in facilitating knowledge sharing.     

软件工程知识的显著复用影响因素识别方法

软件工程领域的知识复用,有助于改进软件过程整体实施的质量。选用高适用度的软件工程知识,能够为软件项目开发构造坚实的实施基础。情形是软件工程知识得以共享和复用的重要基础。然而,一方面,当前软件工程知识复用涉及众多实际情形因素;另一方面软件工程知识已经呈现出丰富、多样化的事态。选用高适用的软件工程知识的一个复杂性问题是如何确定影响其复用效果的显著情形要素。为缓解此问题,研究了一种基于统计学的软件工程知识的显著复用影响因素识别方法,用以识别软件工程知识适用性的关键情形因素。首先归纳了相关的数学概念,提出了复用影响显著性系数判定的两种指标;然后提出了利用统计数据度量两种指标的度量计算方法以及在此基础上求解显著情形要素权重的计算方法;最后将这种方法应用在原型法知识复用影响因素的识别问题上,应用结果表明这种方法具有较好的可操作性及实用性。     

Dynamic mobile RFID-based supply chain control and management system in construction

Construction project control attempts to effectively obtain real-time information and enhance dynamic control and management via information sharing and analysis from involved participants of the projects to reduce construction conflicts and project delay. However, extending the construction project control system to job sites is considered inefficient since construction sites are unconventional practice. Integrating promising information technologies such as radio frequency identification (RFID) technology, mobile devices-PDA and web portals can help improve the effectiveness and convenience of information flow in construction supply chain control systems. Radio frequency identification is appropriate for various construction applications, and provides cost savings through increased speed and accuracy of data entry. This study demonstrates the effectiveness of a RFID-based supply chain management application called the mobile construction RFID-based dynamic supply chain management (M-ConRDSCM) system in construction projects, demonstrating that it responds efficiently and enhances the information flow among offices and sites in a construction supply chain environment. The M-ConRDSCM system is then applied to a selected case study involving a High-Tech factory building in Taiwan to verify the proposed methodology and demonstrate the effectiveness of information sharing of project control in the construction phase. The advantage of the M-ConRDSCM system lies not only in improving work efficiency for on-site engineers, but also in providing dynamic operation control and management to enable project participants to control the whole project. Moreover, this study presents a generic system architecture and its implementation.     

Knowledge Management Models within Information Technology Projects

The purpose of this study is to address the use of knowledge management (KM) in project management (PM) to improve the success of IT projects in achieving organizational goals. The conceptual framework included the project knowledge management (PKM) model, which helped identify the knowledge sharing in IT software projects for a local insurance company in Baltimore, Maryland. Interview data were collected from 26 IT project stakeholders. The analysis revealed four themes of managing knowledge in the requirement process, code development process, testing process, and the helpdesk process for the success of the IT project. Each of the four processes used different KM repositories and face-to-face tools.     

基于网络课程本体的语义查询推理系统

针对网络课程知识点相对孤立、共享性与重用性差、学习资源查找困难、不能提供个性化服务等问题,提出使用基于本体查询推理的解决方法,设计了检索、查询和推理的功能模块和工作流程,并综合运用了Jena和SPARQL实现了相应的原型系统。通过具体的课程本体进行测试,验证了该解决方法的有效性和可行性。该系统能够将网络课程知识内容有机组织到一起,达到共享、重用的效果,可以提供个性化的学习服务,为进一步开发智能化的网络课程平台提供了条件。     

浅谈信息系统项目的风险管理

随着信息技术的高速发展,各种信息系统项目发展迅速。然而,类似建设工程项目一样,信息系统项目也存在各种不确定因素。在项目实施过程中,随时都有可能出现风险,从而产生各种问题。所以,我们需要做好信息系统项目的风险管理。在经过风险管理计划的编制、风险识别、定性和定量风险分析之后,笔者认为项目实施中最主要的风险有:项目频繁变更、系统功能和质量达不到要求、团队效率低下等,需要对其进行重点管理,采取相应的应对措施。对于其他相对次要的风险,也要给予一定的关注。最后,做好风险监督与控制。鉴于风险管理的重要性,我们必须高度重视,做到理论与实际相结合,真正做好信息系统项目的风险管理。     

Toward an OSGi-based infrastructure for context-aware applications

Applications and services must adapt to changing contexts in dynamic environments. However, building context-aware applications is still complex and time-consuming due to inadequate infrastructure support. We propose a context-aware infrastructure for building and rapidly prototyping such applications in a smart-home environment. This OSGi-based infrastructure manages context-aware services reliably and securely and efficiently supports context acquisition, discovery, and reasoning. A formal, ontology-based context model enables semantic context representation, reasoning, and knowledge sharing. We propose an ontology-based context model that leverages Semantic Web technology and OWL (Web Ontology Language). OWL is an ontology markup language that enables context sharing and context reasoning. Based on our context model, we also propose a service-oriented context-aware middleware (SOCAM) architecture, including a set of independent services that perform context discovery, acquisition, and interpretation.     

A framework for collaboration moderator services to support knowledge based collaboration

Knowledge sharing is a major challenge for collaborative networks and is essential to improve the productivity and quality of decisions taken by both collaborative networks and their member organisations. A critical aspect of effective knowledge sharing within virtual organizations (VOs) is the identification of the most appropriate knowledge for reuse or exploitation in a particular context, as this requires efficient tools and mechanisms for its identification, sharing or transfer. Additionally, partners need to be aware of when knowledge needs to be shared, the implications of doing so and when their decisions are likely to affect other partners within the collaboration. Therefore, tools and methods are needed for identification, acquisition, maintenance and evolution of knowledge and to support effective knowledge sharing which includes awareness of possible consequences of actions and increased awareness of other partner’s needs during the collaboration. The Collaboration Moderator Services (CMS) are designed to address these issues relating to knowledge based collaboration by providing a set of functionalities to raise users’ awareness of opportunities, problem areas and lessons learnt from and during collaborations. This paper presents the system architecture and specifications of the CMS within the context of the SYNERGY system, whose purpose is to offer interoperable service utilities to help enterprises plan, setup and run complex knowledge collaborations. The CMS are designed to support both individual organizations and collaborations as a whole throughout the VO lifecycle and the different functionalities provided by CMS to achieve this are discussed in this paper.     

Dimensions of knowledge sharing and reuse.

Many workers in medical informatics are seeking to reuse knowledge in new applications and to share encoded knowledge across software environments. Knowledge reuse involves many dimensions, including the reapplication of lexicons, ontologies, inference syntax, tasks, and problem-solving methods. Principal obstacles to all current work in knowledge sharing involve the difficulties of achieving consensus regarding what knowledge representations mean, of enumerating the context features and background knowledge required to ascribe meaning to a particular knowledge representation, and of describing knowledge independent of specific interpreters or inference engines. Progress in the area of knowledge sharing will necessitate more practical experience with attempts to interchange knowledge as well as better tools for viewing and editing knowledge representations at appropriate levels of abstraction. The PROTEGE-II project is one attempt to provide a knowledge-base authoring environment in which developers can experiment with the reuse of knowledge-level problem-solving methods, task models, and domain ontologies.     

面向重用的产品设计过程知识建模与检索

针对传统的产品设计过程知识模型与知识检索方法在提高产品设计过程知识重用性上的不足,提出了多层次多粒度的知识模型以及基于语义的智能检索算法。首先通过分析产品设计过程知识重用的需求,将产品设计过程知识分为项目管理知识、领域知识、产品设计对象知识三类,并建立对应的多层次知识模型。然后在运用本体技术建立产品设计过程知识本体库的基础上,提出了一种基于语义的智能检索算法。最后给出了产品设计过程知识重用模型,并以柴油发动机方案设计为例,证明了该模型的有效性。     

Categorization of risk factors for distributed agile projects

ContextOrganizations combine agile approach and Distributed Software Development (DSD) in order to develop better quality software solutions in lesser time and cost. It helps to reap the benefits of both agile and distributed development but pose significant challenges and risks. Relatively scanty evidence of research on the risks prevailing in distributed agile development (DAD) has motivated this study.ObjectiveThis paper aims at creating a comprehensive set of risk factors that affect the performance of distributed agile development projects and identifies the risk management methods which are frequently used in practice for controlling those risks.MethodThe study is an exploration of practitioners’ experience using constant comparison method for analyzing in-depth interviews of thirteen practitioners and work documents of twenty-eight projects from thirteen different information technology (IT) organizations. The field experience was supported by extensive research literature on risk management in traditional, agile and distributed development.ResultsAnalysis of qualitative data from interviews and project work documents resulted into categorization of forty-five DAD risk factors grouped under five core risk categories. The risk categories were mapped to Leavitt’s model of organizational change for facilitating the implementation of results in real world. The risk factors could be attributed to the conflicting properties of DSD and agile development. Besides that, some new risk factors have been experienced by practitioners and need further exploration as their understanding will help the practitioners to act on time.ConclusionOrganizations are adopting DAD for developing solutions that caters to the changing business needs, while utilizing the global talent. Conflicting properties of DSD and agile approach pose several risks for DAD. This study gives a comprehensive categorization of the risks faced by the practitioners in managing DAD projects and presents frequently used methods to reduce their impact. The work fills the yawning research void in this field.     

基于本体的物流行业知识库的研究*

构建了基于本体的物流行业信息化知识库。应用语义Web和Web服务技术研究物流知识资源,设计了物流领域本体,实现了文本摘要、规则抽取、本体整合等关键功能,解决物流系统中语义和重用问题,提高了物流企业的知识共享和协作能力。这不仅为物流行业信息化奠定了坚实基础,而且为知识库的复用创造了条件。