Browsing by Author "Litos, Lampros"

Now showing 1 - 10 of 10
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    A conceptual assessment framework for sustainability in the foundation industries
    (Elsevier, 2024) Litos, Lampros; Paddea, Sanjooram; Salonitis, Konstantinos; Jolly, Mark R.
    Foundation industries in the UK are in constant pursuit of better technological solutions to enhance materials conversion efficiency and supply chain economies of scale. However, sustainable materials and strategies to conserve resources and better utilize waste streams tend to be ever more challenging to achieve when technological advances fall short in being widely adoptable by companies. Knowledge and technology transfer across multiple companies within the same sector (for example, construction materials production) or across seemingly common core processes (such as size reduction or furnaces) must be achieved for sustainability efforts to achieve economies of scale. Part of the reason why this is a difficult endeavor is the lack of visibility of the steps and drivers involved in a circular economy context with a view to achieve scale. Materials and technologies that could help foundation industries become more sustainable are being examined through the introduction of a novel framework that could help companies and policy makers understand where the opportunities exist. In this paper, the authors describe the design and development of the framework and offer examples drawn from an ongoing research and innovation project in foundation industries.
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    A collection of tools for factory eco-efficiency
    (Elsevier, 2016-02-19) Despeisse, Melanie; Davé, Aanand; Litos, Lampros; Roberts, Simon; Ball, Peter D.; Evans, Stephen
    co-efficiency is generally defined as doing more with less, aiming to decouple environmental impact from economic and social value creation. This paper presents three tools to guide the implementation of eco-efficiency in factories: (1) definition and patterns of good practices for sustainable manufacturing, (2) a self-assessment tool and maturity grid, and (3) a factory modelling framework.
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    Developing a carbon accounting tool for SMEs in the agri-food sector
    (Elsevier, 2023-04-18) Alromaizan, Malak; Afy-Shararah, Mohamed; Jagtap, Sandeep; Litos, Lampros; Salonitis, Konstantinos
    The global agri-food system accounts for about 37% of total annual greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and the agri-food Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) share is quite significant. Therefore, it has created an urgency for GHG reporting and management improvements. However, most tools available for GHG accounting are complex to utilize and expensive for SMEs to access. The methodology adopted in this study consists of a literature review of GHG emissions and measurement methods, an evaluation of the GHG Protocol and tool development of a GHG emission calculation tool. The literature review reveals that there has not been much research on the accuracy and position of emissions in agri-food systems, particularly in the value chain. Therefore, this paper reviews the existing GHG calculation tools focusing on the GHG Protocol. This work establishes a sector-specific calculation tool for the agri-food sector. The tool was designed following the most widely used standard, the GHG Protocol, alongside evaluating a local agri-food business to ensure a sector-specific assessment. The tool will not only support businesses in reducing GHG emissions in the environment and contribute to their emissions reduction plans and monitoring progress over time.
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    Ensuring food security and sustainability in the face of crises
    (Wiley, 2023-08-11) Jagtap, Sandeep; Litos, Lampros; Raut, Rakesh; Gupta, Sumit; Grover, Abhay
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    From manufacturing to public service organisations: lean as an effective approach to achieve sustainable environmental performance
    (IOS Press, 2023-09-08) Aljuwaied, Maha; Litos, Lampros; Salonitis, Konstantinos
    The increasing global focus on sustainability developed the need to integrate sustainable practices among all sectors of the economy, including the public sector, which faces pressure from the governments to improve their organisational performance. This study explores the opportunities of Lean implementation as an effective approach to achieving sustainability in public service organisations in the context of environmentally sustainable development goals (SDGs). Through a literature review, the authors explored how Lean applications and practices could be borrowed from the manufacturing industry and implemented in the service sector. They examined the various practices employed by service organisations to integrate sustainability into their operations to enhance their environmental performance. Initial findings indicate that Lean methodologies can potentially enhance environmental performance in public service organisations by reducing non-value-added activities, waste, and environmental impact. This implementation requires adapting and customising Lean methodology to align with the unique characteristics of these organisations.
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    Improving the curing cycle time through the numerical modeling of air flow in industrial continuous convection ovens
    (Elsevier, 2017-07-11) Yi, Yuan; Salonitis, Konstantinos; Tsoutsanis, Panagiotis; Litos, Lampros; Patsavellas, John
    Drying, curing, baking are few of the manufacturing processes that require the use of impingement ovens. For the manufacturing of large batches typically continuous flow ovens are used that are part of an automated conveyor processing line. The retention time for a product to be treated in the oven usually drives the production efficiencies (i.e. energy usage or lead times). In many processing lines though, the ovens are not designed and run in the most efficient way, and as a result become the “bottleneck” process phase. In such ovens, usually the hot air is ejected from rows of nozzles perpendicularly to the moving product. In the most advanced designs the ovens are divided in zones, with each zone having different targeted operating temperature. The optimization of the manufacturing process is difficult to be experimentally determined due to several reasons: the length of the ovens and the complexity of the movement of the product in and out of the oven are the most challenging ones. The main objective of this paper thus is the development of a Computer Fluid Dynamics model for simulating the thermal - transfer efficiency of an existing hot-air convection oven used to produce continuous products. The model is used for the estimation of the maximum speed that the conveyor belt can be run, and further investigate possible improvements on the design of the oven for the reduction of the cycle time. The results can be useful during the overview of the actual production and manufacturing rules.
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    An investigation between the links of sustainable manufacturing practices and innovation
    (Elsevier, 2023-04-18) Litos, Lampros; Patsavellas, John; Afy-Shararah, Mohamed; Salonitis, Konstantinos
    Without a clear sustainability agenda in place, manufacturing companies would typically aim for products with incremental improved performance for their customers or introducing novel and innovative products and services that appeal to their target audience. However, mounting pressures to improve environmental performance indicators (carbon emissions, waste) require companies to think about step change improvements in how they operate and manage energy and resources. Companies trying to make their products with less energy and materials (doing more with less) are likely to face, or must address, operational and systemic changes in order to achieve better outcomes for the environment or ESG targets. Part of the issue at hand is the complexity and effort required to design effective changes with positive environmental outcomes and minimal disruption for on-going operations and manufacturing performance. In this article the authors aim to extend and explore the utility of a novel maturity model for eco-efficiency into innovation processes and practices and better understand the implications for theory and practice.
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    Lean thinking and resource efficiency in the design of public services
    (Elsevier, 2024-10-15) Aljuwaied, Maha; Almanei, Mohammed; Litos, Lampros; Salonitis, Konstantinos
    Efficiency in public service organisations is often driven by the need to reduce costs and increase productivity due to the economic and government pressure to make the best use of reduced resources. However, efficiency in public services can go beyond cost cutting, thinking about how organisations design and deliver their service offerings to achieve better outcomes while using the government fund more efficiently to turn public money into positive outcomes for both individuals and society. Through a combined method of literature review and interviews, the authors aim to systematically collect and analyse existing contributions on the current public services design and how Lean Thinking can promote resource efficiency in public service organisations, followed by validating the results through interviews in different public organisations focusing on the role of human resources in the services design. The findings suggest that implementing Lean Thinking allows public service organisations to streamline their resource allocation, eliminate waste, and improve productivity, resulting in more efficient service delivery, user satisfaction, and improved organisational performance. The authors took a panoramic view across different public organisation types, which can be extended through future research on specific organisation types or different regions to explore unique dimensions and find relevant conclusions.
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    Management tool design for eco-efficiency improvements in manufacturing - a case study
    (Elsevier, 2017-05-09) Litos, Lampros; Borzillo, Fiammetta; Patsavellas, John; Cockhead, David; Salonitis, Konstantinos
    As the worldwide GDP is forecasted to double by 2035, the energy demand globally is expected to increase by 34%. The industrial sector is also expected to account for more than 30% of the primary energy demand by 2040. These projections make manufacturing operations even more complicated when combined with predicted long-term inflation of raw material prices and increasingly stringent environmental regulations. Therefore, it has become increasingly more challenging for practitioners in manufacturing to improve their eco-efficiency or to “do more with less”. Traditional manufacturing management tools based on lean principles such as Value Stream Mapping have not been designed to facilitate eco-efficiency improvements. On the other hand, environmental management tools such as Life-Cycle Analysis focus more on improving environmental impacts rather than financial sustainability. This paper addresses the design gap between these tools and proposes an integrated toolkit for eco-efficiency improvements. The toolkit development process and design principles are described through a case study in the flooring industry. Results from each module are validated and the overall output is used to propose a range of applicable solutions to the manufacturer. Paper presented at: Complex Systems Engineering and Development Proceedings of the 27th CIRP Design Conference Cranfield University, UK 10th – 12th May 2017.
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    Modular model and simulation for process optimisation in advanced material recovery facilities (MRFs)
    (Elsevier, 2024) Liu, Milan; Grimes, Sue; Salonitis, Konstantinos; Litos, Lampros
    At a time when the supply of critical materials is threatened, waste recycling and reuse is an essential solution for human development. The role of Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs) to deliver efficiently high-purity material fractions as feedstock cannot be underestimated. However, MRF sorting processes need to remain adaptive with evolving smart technologies and systems that further enhance their effectiveness. For example, a re-designed MRF with AI-based robotics can improve the performance of waste recycling, leading to significant economic and environmental benefits. This study assesses the performance of potential optimisation methods for future proofing MRFs using modular simulation methods. The authors set out to review current robotics sorting technology and pointed out the challenge of efficiency analysis with multiple variables. The study develops a new conceptual model of efficiency analysis considering the identification and sorting limitations of robots, as well as the coordination requirements between robots and conveyor belts. A computational model is designed and developed by modularity program codes to help practitioners gain insight into the MRF performance by modifying the variables (composition of input waste, separation coefficients and configurations) and analysing the resulting assessment factors (purity and recovery). In the end, this study demonstrates the performance of the optimisation methods of MRF (two target materials for one robot and recirculation loops) through simulation.