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Human-robot collaboration (HRC) is becoming increasingly widespread in today's production systems, as it can contribute to achieving more efficient and flexible production systems. Given the growing importance of HRC, this paper addresses the significance of human workload in HRC. To study workers workload an experiment was conducted using NASA-TLX questionnaire. The experiment featured two scenarios involving the same operation but varying robot motion parameters. Recognizing that individual differences contribute to success of collaboration, the experiment considered worker utilization in relation to robot motion parameters. To ensure the credibility of the experimental results, the robot motion parameters were adjusted to each individual in order to achieve the same conditions and utilization at all participants. Results revealed that worker utilization, in conjunction with robot motion parameters significantly influenced worker workload. The results highlight the need for personalized guidelines in collaborative workplaces that emphasize individual differences in abilities, skills and personalities to increase overall well-being and robot and worker productivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presented paper investigates the application of digital twins for the optimisation of intelligent manufacturing systems and focuses on the comparison between simulation modelling results and real-world production conditions. A digital twin was created in the Simio software environment using a data-driven simulation model derived from a real-world production system. Running the digital twin in real time, which was displayed graphically, facilitated the analysis of key parameters, including the number of finished products, average flow time, workstation utilization and product quality. The discrepancies were attributed to the use of random distributions of input data in the dynamic digital twin, as opposed to the long-term measurements and averages in the realworld system. Despite the limitations in the case study, the results underline the financial justification and predictive capabilities of digital twins for optimising production systems. Real-time operation enables continuous evaluation and tracking of parameters and offers high benefits for intelligent production systems. The study emphasises the importance of accurate selection of input data and warns that even small deviations can lead to inaccurate results. Finally, the paper highlights the role of digital twins in optimising production systems and argues for careful consideration of input data. It highlights the importance of analysing real-world production systems and creating efficient simulation models as a basis for digital twin solutions. The results encourage extending the research to different types of production, from job shop to mass production, in order to obtain a comprehensive optimisation perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent technological advances have created perfect conditions for the appearance of artificial intelligence (AI) and its application to real world problems for both the public and industry. The newest iteration of European manufacturing survey has enabled us to gather data on the usage of AI in manufacturing companies. Results are based on a subsample of 141 manufacturing companies located in Slovenia and are presented with the use of descriptive statistics. Results show that the use of AI depends on company size and the role of the company in the supply chain. Common barriers to the implementation of AI are also provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As part of our research, we have produced an overview of various aspects and challenges related to the ageing population. Ergonomics plays a crucial role in addressing the needs and challenges associated with an ageing workforce. As people age, their physical abilities and sensory functions tend to change, which can affect their comfort, safety and productivity in different work environments. A case study is presented that aims to test available new technologies, the Xsens suit and Process Simulate software, during a process of ergonomic workplace design that is also suitable for older people. Applying ergonomic principles to meet the needs of older workers can help maintain their well-being and keep them engaged in the workplace. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The focus of our study was to research the benefits of motion capture technology, also known as mocap, in ergonomic workplace analysis and design. It is well known that with proper ergonomic design, we can achieve shorter production throughput time, higher productivity, and lower costs with fewer human errors and injuries. In addition to all other environmental factors such as noise, lighting, temperature, humidity, and air velocity, worker movement should also be considered and evaluated. A motion capture technology is used to record and track human or objects movements and translate them into a digital format, saving time and effort needed for animation process. The data obtained can later be easily used for ergonomic analysis and evaluation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A production system can be viewed as a network through which jobs flow, wait in buffers, and are processed by workstations. One of the main problems in job shops is how to handle the variety of products. The resources used in production are limited, so scheduling becomes a very important concept for management decision making. This importance draws the attention of both practitioners and academicians to scheduling. Scheduling is a complex and difficult problem. Scheduling the production of multiple products is a classic problem in production planning research. Long lead times, unacceptable work-in-process (WIP) inventories, failure to meet due dates, and other barriers to profitability are found in every manufacturing facility. There are job sequencing methods, resource allocation rules, and mathematical and heuristic algorithms. Conventional optimization methods are insufficient for large problems in terms of solution time. In this paper, an overview of scheduling methods for a job shop and a discussion about their applicability are given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main purpose of this manuscript is to map the adoption of selected innovative organizational concepts in manufacturing companies. A further objective of our research is to find out how different organizational concepts are represented in different manufacturing company's types. Based on a sample of 118 Slovenian manufacturing companies collected through the 2018-19 European Manufacturing Survey edition, results give information about the most used organizational concepts, their utilization degree, planned use and average year of implementation. The use of organizational innovation concepts is also heavily dependent on the company characteristics in terms of size, technological intensity, supplier or OEM status etc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Generally, noise is a considerable stress factor in several workplaces and living environments. Despite legal regulations and recommendations, there are still many problems resulting from noise exposure, especially extra-aural effects. We studied the influence of noise on workers in two different environments: A Technical High School and a manufacturing company. Measurements of noise levels were performed, together with corresponding noise frequency analysis. In both cases, working places were found where the noise levels exceeded the upper exposure level of 85 dB (A). In comparison to measurements, personal noise perceptions of workers were assessed by an extended research survey. Correlating the survey's results and experimentally determined noise levels gave us new insights into the occupational health risks of noise in two very different working environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Work is one of the basic factors of human life. It is well known that appropriate workplace design can contribute to healthy and satisfied worker and this fact is even more important when we talk about workers with disabilities. In the field of ergonomics workplace design there is rarely any expert knowledge regarding workers with disabilities. Those workers are also more sensitive for stress at work and possible injuries that are usually connected with non-adequate workplace design. On the other hand, companies face the problem of identifying suitable workplaces for workers with disabilities, and supplying the needed requirements to integrate them with other healthy workers. The purpose of our research was to present an approach of ergonomically designed workplace for workers with disabilities. Manual and computer aided OWAS analyses were performed to assess present indicator light assembly workplace in a large sized production company. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The workplace as we know it and production systems as a whole will not be recognizable in a decade's time. In this chapter an overview of expected future changes in manufacturing systems is given. Artificial intelligence (AI) is the key driver in this change and it is critical to prepare us for a future dominated by AI. Robots and AI will prove far more disruptive than anything we have seen before. The most effective AI systems will be designed around the concept of intelligent augmentation. They will handle the math and basic analysis, relieving skilled operators of a tedious burden, absorb data, classify and prioritize information, conduct simulations and ultimately leave it to the human operator to decide the course of action. In the AI future, jobs requiring human creativity and management expertise will enjoy the greatest job security. This is our competitive advantage as humans. Those who understand the collaboration with other humans while working with AI tools to enhance their organization's effectiveness will create maximum value. An energy- and resourcefriendly production is an important key performance indicator for industrial companies to work economically and remain competitive. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nitrogen removal from wastewaters is highly important for environmental protection and human health. Recent findings about positive effect of a relatively weak magnetic field on microbial and enzymatic activity are opening new research fields, also on amelioration of wastewater biodegradation processes. Different models of magnetic devices were simulated with OPERA 17R1 Vector Fields Software and constructed with adjustable magnetic field strength, for laboratory tests on wastewater biodegradation to find an efficient treatment regime. Total nitrogen removal in lab-bioreactor was enhanced by direct exposure of synthetic wastewater (inoculated with active sludge) to a static magnetic field at strength (30 to 50) mT, indicating positive impact onto ammonium oxidizing bacteria. Similar effect was observed by inducing the recirculation of wastewater through the alternating magnetic field with peak strength 50 mT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This manuscript deals with analysing value adding and outsourcing activities in Slovenian manufacturing companies. Our research is based on the data from the largest European manufacturing survey and it includes data from Slovenia. We have analysed manufacturing companies based on their decision to fully outsource part of their activities in terms of R&D and manufacturing, partly outsource these activities or keep them in-house. Based on that we have studied the decisions on outsourcing R&D, production activities in regards to different company characteristics: competitive criteria, innovation activities, company performance etc. Our results show that strategic decision on outsourcing part of companies' activities has an important impact on different companies' characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concept of product lifecycle is one of the tools of strategic management and gives a company the guidelines for marketing their product. It is very important that companies know in which lifecycle stage their product is. When conceiving a product platform, companies rely on the researches of socio-economic parameters. These parameters are called influence parameters, because by changing through time they influence the sales of the product and consequently the lifecycle curve, and require the company to change its business model, business strategy or their product. The changes of influence parameters reflect the changes of consumer needs, which is why in most cases the product needs to be adapted to the new parameters. In order for companies to know in which lifecycle stage the product is or will be, they often use forecasting methods. In this process, all the socio-economic parameters are projected that were valid in that specific period. The purpose of the article is to develop a model that takes into account the changing of influence parameters and gives reliable medium-term forecasts of the sales of a given product (attached is an example of a built-in oven lifecycle). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Improvement of product development process is crucial for all competitive companies. One of the possible steps is the implementation of the supporting system based on neural networks. Development of the product lasts from the first idea about the product till the end of production. In that time a lot of activities take place in order to achieve the success on the market. Too much resources applied in the development phase mean high product's price. If there is too less resources assigned, it could happen the product is qualitatively not sufficient and therefore market rejects it. Optimum development requires minimal resources necessary with preserving quality of the end product. In this chapter we suggest a method for helping the appliance developers, which is based on existing knowledge and foresees potential solutions. The data were collected from various beverage appliances. With neural networks the acquired data were set as a base for creating supporting neural networks. The system was tested with the data that were previously not included into learning patterns. Results show that the method is suitable for new appliance development. System itself predicted expected solutions well enough to confirm usability for development purposes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thermal manikins are used for testing the thermal insulation of different types of protective clothing. Data about thermal insulation is required when new protective clothes are designed or for the optimization of the existing ones. Thermal insulation usually plays an important role when researching or developing optimal protective clothing used in hot environmental conditions. The aim is to develop protective clothing that will ensure the lowest possible thermal load for the user. To get accurate information about thermal insulation, the measuring system for its determination should be stable. One of the possibilities is to use a thermal manikin presenting the anatomic shape of the human body. The measurement accuracy and stability of the measuring system based on the thermal manikin are investigated and assessed on the basis of statistical analysis. Accurate measurements can be ensured with statistics. Only accurate data has an application value for the industrial development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Paper presents the results of testing firefighter protective equipment. During interventions, firefighters are exposed to strain and stress and above all they are exposed to high temperatures and working in extreme thermal conditions. Since clothes protect firefighter and actually presents the barrier for heat exchange, it is very important to know their characteristics (e.g. thermal insulation) when creating and designing suitable clothes that will offer also normal movement and comfort during work. For testing different protective clothes, thermal manikins are usually used. Thermal manikins represent the anatomical shape of human body and in this way represent a measuring tool. During our research, data on nineteen segments of thermal manikin was observed and thermal insulation was calculated. Thermal insulation usually plays an important role when researching or developing optimal protective clothes used in hot environmental conditions. For studying suitability of firefighters movements' two ergonomics methods were used: OWAS and RULA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main objective of this manuscript is to map the adoption of technologies for energy reduction and resources consumption in production. The aim is also to contribute to the identification of the characteristics of the manufacturing firms that use this kind of energy and material saving technologies. Another goal was to determine reasons for and against implementation of specific energy and material saving technologies in these firms. Our research is based on the data from the largest European manufacturing survey and it includes data from Slovenia. The results show that the use of specific energy saving technologies and material saving technologies in Slovenian manufacturing firms is still modest. Dividing manufacturing firms based on technology intensity sectors and based on the relative energy efficiency we have concluded that firms in high technology industries focus less on energy efficiency than low technology firms. We also found out that firms with more implemented energy and material saving technologies are more likely to be more energy efficient. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]