Towards Sustainable Production Processes Reengineering: Case Study at INCOM Egypt

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

The paper demonstrates that operational aspects of the manufacturing system can be modelled and improved, including the information flow models as being part of environmental sustainability. 

（1）What is novelty of this work？

（2）Basically, you should enhance your findings, limitations, underscore the scientific value added of your paper, and/or the applicability of your contributions/shortages and future study in this session.

Author Response

Response to Reviewer 1 Comments

 

Point 1: 

The paper demonstrates that operational aspects of the manufacturing system can be modelled and improved, including the information flow models as being part of environmental sustainability. 

（1）What is novelty of this work？

Response 1:

Line 15-39

Abstract: INCOM Egypt has undergone an automation in some processes where critical aspects of its operations are transformed and automated. This paper presents an overview of INCOM Egypt processes using Ould Riva and analyzes the process of ‘handling a product’. It aims to demonstrate effective automation of the production of wires and cables process accompanied to Industry 4.0 while considering environmental and economic sustainability goals that were inhibited by Covid-19 restrictions. Ould’s Riva method is used to analyse the production process of wires and cables to propose improvements for automating the process. Business process modelling is utilized to study the processes for clearer understating. The flow of information within the process is also analysed to integrate the production process with other processes and supply chains, which helps to identify which production activities can be automated and mainstreamed into the information flow to achieve environmental and economic sustainability. The context of INCOM Egypt, as a case study, is presented along with the Riva model of its operations. The paper identifies the before, i.e., As-Is process, and after, i.e., To-Be Process, automation of the 'handle a product' process using the Role Activity Diagram (RAD). The process involved redesigning and improving different activities to increase resource-use efficiency to participate in achieving the goals of sustainability. The focus of this paper is to investigate the negative impact of Covid-19 on sustainability and to examine the accomplishments of process automation of wire production towards environmental and economic sustainability. The results of the research reveal a relationship between business process modelling and sustainability. Moreover, automation of processes (Industry 4.0) is found to reduce the negative effect of Covid-19 on production. A triangulation between process modelling, process automation (Industry 4.0), and sustainability was determined. Each one is reinforcing and impacting one another. The RAD model demonstrates that automation of the activities in the process reduces waste, time, cost, and redundant processes as factors of sustainability, which may also help to lessen the unfavorable effects of the pandemic. The results proved generalization on other organisations in the same line of business.

Line 641-647

Table 4: Information Processing in 'Handle Product' at INCOM Egypt after automation.

Activity in the Production department	Action	Reason of action	Impact of action on sustainability
Send P.P. of an order (current)	Dropped	P.P. is already created on the system and is shared by the intended departments.	Improve time management as time is factor of sustainability [58], Improve accuracy and accessibility of data [59]
Request materials (current)	Dropped	The request includes quantities, time, and date of production according to the plan. Reduce corruption and time delay by accessing precise data on the system.	Improve time management as time is factor of sustainability [58] Improve accuracy and accessibility of data [59]
Record collected materials by production	Added	Apply barcode scanning at the production department while materials are collected from inventory to track work-in-process materials.	Improve accuracy and accessibility of data for decision making concerning inventory levels. [59] Control materials, thus costs and inventory turnover.
Move collected materials to workshop (current)	No change	Materials are physical products that require human intervention to carry them from one place to another, and automation of this activity can be expensive, and in some cases, automation is not out yet.	No action taken.
Scan materials used in production to update the system using scanning devices, (proposed)	Added	Information about materials needs to be entered into the system to be tracked and analysed easily. This activity requires a scale to weigh copper, PVC, and empty spools also a bar code scanner to capture the batch number and send it to the system/cloud for record-keeping and analysis.	Accurate, timely, and precise data improves decision taken towards sustainability [60]
Wire drawing record weight of wire and scrap (proposed)	Modified	Use built-in vernier caliper to record length, and diameter of a wire, also use a digital mass scale to measure the mass of wire and scrap. All data will be recorded on the system.	Data integration between planned and actual materials consumed in production. This supports cost effectiveness as a criterion of economic sustainability.
Enter semi-finished product information before annealing on the system use thermometer to record initial temperature (proposed)	Added	Read data from the machine about the length and diameter of wire drawn in addition to temperature reading and send it to the cloud via an Internet connection.	Enhances the quality of the product, accordingly, reduces defective products thence, enhancing both environmental and economic sustainability.
Annealing (current)	No change	Machine process	No action taken.
Enter product data for twisting and stranding on the system, use thermometer to record final temperature (proposed)	Added	Read data from the machine about length and diameter of wire drawn in addition to temperature reading and send it to the system/cloud via Internet connection.	Enhances the quality of the product, accordingly, reduces defective products thence, enhancing both environmental and economic sustainability.
Twisting and Stranding (current)	No change	Machine process	No action taken.
Enter data of twisted wire on spools to the system using mass scale (proposed)	Added	Use a mass scale to read the mass of each spool and record data per spool while counting the number of data entries as equivalent to the number of spools.	Data of work-in-process materials can be tracked to control inventory. No direct impact on sustainability, however, traceability of materials could be attained.
Cabling: enter weight of solid PVC to the system (proposed)	No change	Machine process	No action taken.
Enter mass of coated cable/wire using a digital scale proposed)	Added	This process will allow the weight of twisted wires and coating PVC to be recorded for further calculations to be compared to initial figures of materials for quality control and monitoring waste of resources.	Data integration between planned and actual materials consumed in production. This supports cost effectiveness as a criterion of economic sustainability.
Extrusion (current)	No change	Machine process	No action taken.
Enter weight of extruded cable and the excess PVC after extrusion (proposed)	Added	The weight of the final product is recorded to the system using a digital mass scale. The same is to be done to the excess PVC after extrusion. The total weight should be compared to the initial figures of materials used for quality and sustainability purposes.	Data integration between planned and actual materials consumed in production. This supports cost effectiveness as a criterion of economic sustainability.
Request order inspection and send order number to Q.C. (current)	Dropped	Accurate information about the finished product and order number is already on the system, no need to request and inform Q.C. for inspection.	Saves time, improves safety, and saves cost that positively affects environmental and economic sustainability.
Q.C. department sends inspection report and scrap report to production department (current)	Dropped	All reports are filled online.	Saves time and cost that positively affects environmental and economic sustainability.
Review minimal defects and fix it (current)	No change	Human and machine process	No action taken.
Deliver Q.C. report to inventory (current)	Dropped	QC report is located on the system.	Saves time and cost that positively affects economic sustainability.
Deliver finished product and scrap to inventory	No change	Physical product and scrap need to be delivered physically to inventory.	No action taken.
Send QC report and order number to the planning department (current)	Dropped	The planning department can view the QC report on the system.	Saves time and cost that positively affects environmental and economic sustainability.
Discuss order and take corrective action (current)	Modified	Production and planning departments need to virtually meet and discuss how the plan worked out.	Virtual meetings are convenient for employees to join remotely which saves time and can be recorded for future review. No direct impact on sustainability.

As explained above, few activities have been added, modified, or dropped based on the early-proposed model. Hence, we conclude that Riva method proved to be effective when applied on the production of wires and cables at INCOM Egypt to identify anomalies and inefficiencies in the production line system. The analysis is beneficial to indicate areas of automation and applicable technologies for improvements to achieve sustainability goals in terms of energy and time [43] [58].

Line 672-740

Research Question 1: How can Process modelling and automation (Industry 4.0) impact environmental and economic sustainability?

Identifying the readability of automation for processes and activities assesses the success of utilisation of new technological improvements within the context of the process. Technological are useful but not necessarily feasible when implemented to some activities. Hence, examining business processes prior process automation, steers adopted technology. Business processes inevitably require data and produce processed information, where both are essential for the functionality of a process. As economic sustainability aims at reducing cost, accurate and precise information are key for cost saving and efficiency in production. Process automation (Industry 4.0) may arrive at undesirable results because of poorly defined data and information.  Therefore, analysing business processes elutriates the flow of information and thus information, as a crucial component of a process, will be carefully examined. Quantities of required materials in production of wires and cables can be accurately calculated and measured, defective products will be precisely counted, human intervention in data entry can be eliminated, and accordingly precise data will be customized. Moreover, importance of data and information lies in feeding big data [61]and predictive analysis that are two key components to improve social and economic sustainability, hence proved, data and information imported from Physical Cyber Systems, Real Location Trackers and other data capturing devices, are essential to IoT, AI, and data analytics applications. This finding positively impacts accession and development of sustainability.

 Research Question 2: Which business processes in the production of wires and cables can be adjusted towards sustainability during the technology disruption era?

Based on the above analysis in table 1 and 2, status and proposed improvements are drawn out of the RAD models. Modelling the production process of wires illustrates many details of the process’s procedures, while it also keeps track of information flow and materials/product flow with reference to the responsible actor. Anomalies in some activities were detected, for instance activities dropped include sending documents and reports that carry information from one role to another, where applications like ERP systems can share information among intended parties once entered to the system. Activities added are proposed to ensure accuracy in data and timely data flow, thus reducing anomalies in the performance and delays could be eliminated by automating data entry to the system either by a worker (semi-automated not efficient) or automatically scanned by a device to ensure availability of accurate and timely data/information. Two modifications were proposed one for recording the weight of wire and scrap and the other for conducting virtual meetings, hence related data will be available on the system while virtual meetings provide more flexibility for the undertaken activities. Unchanged activities are almost done by machine where there is no modification to happen on them or are activities done physically like carrying products or materials so the automation of those activity may incur Hight cost or might require customization using AI.

Here by explaining that amended or dropped activities as shown above proved that process modelling technique such as Riva method demonstrates sufficient analysis for wire production process to remove some anomalies and inefficient/unnecessary activities for improvement.

The previous analysis and the proposed improvements were introduced to key persons in managerial levels at INCOM Egypt to get feedback about how satisfactory the changes are to solve some problems at INCOM Egypt in wire production. Their feedback was endorsement of the improvements which were seen as a great advancement that could be implemented on phases due to the high cost of technology and the readiness of workers to the change.

 Research Question 3:  How can process improvement and automation positively affect environmental and economic sustainability in the production of cables and wires post Covid-19 pandemic?

Improvements in wire production are based on Industry 4.0 technologies that are proposed to limit or eliminate human intervention. The use of technology supports two areas in production; the flow of papers/documents that will be replaced by systems that maintain digital flow of information and the physical activities that require presence of workers to handle them including data entry in some cases. The later could be supported by digital devices like scanners, sensors, and AI. Digital flow of information will eliminate the use of papers, provide timely and precise information that could be shared among departments and enhance decision making. Accordingly, this saves money achieving economic sustainability. While automation of physical activities results in minimising the number of employees/workers intervention ending up in efficient and effective processes. Consequently, reduction of waste could be achieved as a goal of economic sustainability.

To summarise, the above analysis shows the importance of process modelling using a technique like Riva to explore the activities undertaken in the process, define anomalies and propose improvements (technological and non-technological) that assist in achieving sustainability goals. This research focuses on technological improvements in the production process of wires and cables relying on Industry 4.0.

Point 2: Basically, you should enhance your findings, limitations, underscore the scientific value added of your paper, and/or the applicability of your contributions/shortages and future study in this session.

Response 2: 

Line 751-820

 Industry 4.0 and process automation positively reflect on production quality and materials control, resulting in cost savings since defective products are controlled and precise quantities are utilized. Consequently, environmental and economical sustainability can be achieved. Based on the proved relationship between Industry 4.0 and sustainability as reviewed in the literature section, the automation of production processes positively affects sustainability. Considering recent events due to Covid-19 pandemic, economies worldwide had deteriorated including Egypt. In order to overcome the negative effects of the pandemic, it is evident that production needs to be handled innovatively via remote operations by utilizing Industry 4.0 and automating processes.

According to [55], process modelling reinforces process automation in the production of wires and cables. Furthermore, Industry 4.0 reinforces sustainability, and based on the previous analysis of the production process of wires and cables that explored the areas where automation is feasible, it can be concluded that process automation is key principle to achieve sustainability. Thus, the three approaches reinforce each other and accordingly there is a triangulation between process modelling, process automation (Industry 4.0), and sustainability as depicted in figure 4.

There is a diagram below

Reinforce

Reinforce

Sustainability

Process automation of production of wires and cables

Process modelling of production of wires and cables

Reinforce

Figure 4: relationship between process modelling and sustainability

As automation of production process in wires and cables industry positively affects sustainability, there is a need to move towards automation in production. Yet some proposed improvements were found to have no direct impact on sustainability, the automation of these activities is essential to integrate the information system and the flow of information electronically. Excluding automation of these activities will distort the functionality of the information system leading to defected results. While production processes need to be investigated to understand the flow of information and the activities done by each role, business process analysis/modelling is vital to detail business processes for improvements using Industry 4.0 technologies serving as a platform for automation.  as a result, this will support sustainability. Lessons could be learned from this approach and drawn with respect to other manufacturers. Based on [38], organisations in the same line of business should have the same processes. Accordingly, improvements in one organisation should also apply to others in the same line of business.

The severe restrictions imposed by the governments after Covid-19 pandemic, call for utilisation of Industry 4.0 technologies in production of wires. Table 4 analysed areas where technological improvements are found to be effective and applicable. Automation of production leads to better sustainability, however, not all processes/activities support technology as well some activities still cannot be automated, and therefore, process analysis is required to examine the applicability of technology in the process for reengineering.

The current research explored the activities, roles, and information flow in the production process of wires and cables. Each activity in the process was examined to map technological improvements to the activities of the process and to elucidate information pertained to each process. However, the research did not tackle statistics of time and cost savings due to limitation of time. One more limitation faced the researchers is to calculate the cost of technological advancements and compare it to the benefits of sustainability. Therefore, financial sustainability can be completed in the future work. Moreover, it was hard to collect data from employees due to time constraints while they are at work and their limited understanding of the purpose of the research, especially sustainability.

The future work will examine time, preciseness of data and cost effectiveness in terms of numbers in relation to the analysed activities and data. The research will compare the measurements of the process before and after automation so that the findings will serve as KPIs to measure the relationship between automation (Industry 4.0) and environmental economic sustainability.

 

Reviewer 2 Report

Please provide some details about RAD modelling. Please provide the references or/and arguments for implementing such model.

 

Methodology) – The authors should underline the strong research gap based on adequate references.

 

As interviews, observation, and analysis of documents were the main three methods of data collection, please explain more detailed the research process (chapter: Data Collection):

1. How many interviews have been conducted?
2. Who/what was observed by the authors?
3. What kind of documents were analyzed?

 

The authors should also provide some fields of  future research regarding to identified research gap.

 

Conclusions) What are the limitations of the research?

 

Additional remarks:

• It is common in the literature to use: Industry 4.0, not industry 4.0
• Line 657: Research Question 2, not 1

Author Response

Point 1: Please provide some details about RAD modelling. Please provide the references or/and arguments for implementing such model.

Response 1:

Line 484-499

Ould adapted an earlier notation called RAD to represent the internal structure of a process in terms of roles, actions, and interactions.

A role is a set of actions that a person performs (or a group; or a machine). Within a process, roles interact with one another. In the notation, a role is represented by a large, rounded box within which actions are drawn. In the process, small black boxes connected by vertical lines represent actions. The lines represent the role's states as it moves from one action to the next.

Special notations are used to depict conditional and parallel paths through various areas of a role's activities. Interaction between two or more roles is represented by horizontal lines connecting white boxes within the roles. A stripe can be drawn on the box at the beginning of the interaction. The trigger symbol records an external event that causes a state change.

Riva process models serve as a foundation for process analysis and improvement. Process enhancements can be incremental or radical. Incremental improvements are more likely at the detailed process level (RAD), whereas radical improvements are more likely at the higher architectural level.

Point 2: Methodology) – The authors should underline the strong research gap based on adequate references.

Response 2:

More references are added to support the methodology, references numbers are: 11, 12,13, 58, 59, 60. The references are used in lines 114-123, and in table 4.

Point 3: As interviews, observation, and analysis of documents were the main three methods of data collection, please explain more detailed the research process (chapter: Data Collection):

1. How many interviews have been conducted?
2. Who/what was observed by the authors?
3. What kind of documents were analyzed?

Response 3:

Line 501-505

This section presents descriptions of the business processes of INCOM Egypt, based on the interviews conducted with the Chief Executive Officer, production department, planning department, sales department, inventory department and quality control department at the factory of wires and cables. The researcher was granted access to these departments, so that the research could be carried out.

Line 510-552

The main function of the production department is to receive customer orders and production plans, request materials from the warehouse, start production according to the plans, and follow quality control instructions after inspection. These activities are complex compared to other activities due to quality standards, customer satisfaction, and safety requirements. To understand what the production process looks like, open interviews were conducted as a generous method to gather information about the case study. Researchers can talk to key interviewees and hear more about how the production works; challenges they face in addition to more details outside the scope of the questions. Access to the facility also enables us to collect relevant supplemental documents and extend the interview data. The goal of the information series is to collect facts for the advent of manner models, one for the contemporary manufacturing manner and one for the manufacturing manner after proposed improvements. Several interviews were conducted in the departments surveyed. Interviews were first conducted in the production department followed by other relevant departments to integrate the activities of the process. The interview was only partially structured, and more questions were raised as the interview progresses. The purpose was to discover detailed business activities in the production process. At the beginning of the interview, general questions were asked to learn about the process, followed by different lines depending on the answers. Additional data about the activities in the production process was collected from the documents provided by the interviewees like sales order, work order, inventory records, and QC report. The process was also observed by the head researcher of this paper through attending the production process. One order was tracked from the time it arrived at the sales department followed by planning department, production department, materials handling, and QC inspection. The next section provides a schedule of interviews in the departments mentioned above and a list of questions asked during the interview.

It was noticed that data collected from employees and labourers indicates poor quality of data, including flow of data, accuracy of data, timely data, and preciseness of data. One challenge in data collection was in the time needed to organise it and relate it to the process.

Table 1 shows the interviews that were conducted for the production department at INCOM Egyptpt, listed in number order by date.

Table 1: List of interviews for the Production Department at INCOM Egyptpt

Number	Date	Interviewee
1	23/9/2020	Chief Executive Officer
2	24/9/2020	Head of Production Department
3	1/10/2020	Head of Planning Department
4	20/10/2020	Head of Sales Department
5	5/11/2020	Head of Quality Control Department
6	15/11/2020	Head of Inventory Department

 

Table 2 lists the interview questions in numerical order and links to the interviews at which they were asked. The questions ask about the workflow in a production environment, including the relevant departments of the process. Several questions are used to clarify the flow of information between departments. Other questions identify the activities of the departments that are interrelated and influential. A general prompt for use between departments has been created to provide a framework for the nature of the business within a department in terms of the activities and processes that each department performs, as well describes the department's activities and responsibilities, and the participating role in processing orders and products.

Table 2: Interviews questions for the Production Department at INCOM Egyptpt

Question number	Question	Interview number
1	What is the nature of the company’s business?	1
2	Which sectors does the company serve?	1
3	What organisation size does the company serve?	1
4	Is the company working towards sustainability development?	1
5	What are the planned or follow-up steps required to make this development?	1
6	Does the company face any challenges/limitations while working on this achievement?	1
7	Explain the process of receiving materials from inventory after PP is received.	2
8	Explain the activities and responsibilities of the production department to fulfil an order.	2
9	Explain the activities and responsibilities of the Planning Department and the role of the department in producing the production plan?	3
10	How do you receive the sales order?	4
11	What happens to the sales order after it is received?	4
12	How is the quality control department informed to inspect semi-finished/finished products?	5
13	Explain the procedure of handling the QC report to related departments.	5
14	Explain the procedures of updating inventory levels.	6
15	Mention any information systems used to exchange data and information among departments.	2, 3, 4,5 6
16	Are there any plans towards achieving sustainability?	2, 3, 4,5, 6

Point 4: The authors should also provide some fields of  future research regarding to identified research gap. Conclusions) What are the limitations of the research?

Response 4:

Line 767-822

Industry 4.0 and process automation positively reflect on production quality and materials control, resulting in cost savings since defective products are controlled and precise quantities are utilized. Consequently, environmental and economical sustainability can be achieved. Based on the proved relationship between Industry 4.0 and sustainability as reviewed in the literature section, the automation of production processes positively affects sustainability. Considering recent events due to Covid-19 pandemic, economies worldwide had deteriorated including Egypt. In order to overcome the negative effects of the pandemic, it is evident that production needs to be handled innovatively via remote operations by utilizing Industry 4.0 and automating processes.

According to [55], process modelling reinforces process automation in the production of wires and cables. Furthermore, Industry 4.0 reinforces sustainability, and based on the previous analysis of the production process of wires and cables that explored the areas where automation is feasible, it can be concluded that process automation is key principle to achieve sustainability. Thus, the three approaches reinforce each other and accordingly there is a triangulation between process modelling, process automation (Industry 4.0), and sustainability as depicted in figure 4.

A diagram is added below

Reinforce

Reinforce

Sustainability

Process automation of production of wires and cables

Process modelling of production of wires and cables

Reinforce

Figure 4: relationship between process modelling and sustainability

As automation of production process in wires and cables industry positively affects sustainability, there is a need to move towards automation in production. Yet some proposed improvements were found to have no direct impact on sustainability, the automation of these activities is essential to integrate the information system and the flow of information electronically. Excluding automation of these activities will distort the functionality of the information system leading to defected results. While production processes need to be investigated to understand the flow of information and the activities done by each role, business process analysis/modelling is vital to detail business processes for improvements using Industry 4.0 technologies serving as a platform for automation.  as a result, this will support sustainability. Lessons could be learned from this approach and drawn with respect to other manufacturers. Based on [38], organisations in the same line of business should have the same processes. Accordingly, improvements in one organisation should also apply to others in the same line of business.

The severe restrictions imposed by the governments after Covid-19 pandemic, call for utilisation of Industry 4.0 technologies in production of wires. Table 4 analysed areas where technological improvements are found to be effective and applicable. Automation of production leads to better sustainability, however, not all processes/activities support technology as well some activities still cannot be automated, and therefore, process analysis is required to examine the applicability of technology in the process for reengineering.

Conclusion section was added that includes limitations and future work.

Line 823-837

5. Conclusion

The current research explored the activities, roles, and information flow in the production process of wires and cables. Each activity in the process was examined to map technological improvements to the activities of the process and to elucidate information pertained to each process. However, the research did not tackle statistics of time and cost savings due to limitation of time. One more limitation faced the researchers is to calculate the cost of technological advancements and compare it to the benefits of sustainability. Therefore, financial sustainability can be completed in the future work. Moreover, it was hard to collect data from employees due to time constraints while they are at work and their limited understanding of the purpose of the research, especially sustainability.

The future work will examine time, preciseness of data and cost effectiveness in terms of numbers in relation to the analysed activities and data. The research will compare the measurements of the process before and after automation so that the findings will serve as KPIs to measure the relationship between automation (Industry 4.0) and environmental economic sustainability.  

Point 5: Additional remarks:

• It is common in the literature to use: Industry 4.0, not industry 4.0
• Line 657: Research Question 2, not 1

Response 5:

Industry 4.0 is fixed and the questions numbers are fixed.

 

Reviewer 3 Report

Dear authors,

I have read your manuscript with attention and interests.

Your article "Towards Sustainable Production Processes Reengineering: Case Study at INCOM Egypt"  is about a very important and interesting case, but as it stands it is not suitable for a scientific journal.

I would like to propose some significant changes that may help improve the  text to the level expected for re-submission.

1. The research questions (1 and 2) seem to be too obviously and the correct answers can be posed without the need to carry out the research. I propose to refine the question and formulate it in a way that requires an in-depth analysis
2. The description of the problem is very general, and the relationship between the problems under consideration has not been precisely described. It is hard to call it a scientific activity that should be based on statistically reliable data.
3. The discussion is very general as is the rest of the text. There are no clear conclusions based on the obtained research results.

Regards

Author Response

Point 1: The research questions (1 and 2) seem to be too obviously and the correct answers can be posed without the need to carry out the research. I propose to refine the question and formulate it in a way that requires an in-depth analysis.

Response 1:

Line 171-177

Research Question 1: How can Process modelling and automation (Industry 4.0) impact environmental and economic sustainability?

Research Question 2: Which business processes in the production of wires and cables can be adjusted towards sustainability during the technology disruption era? 

Research Question 3:  How can process improvement and automation positively affect environmental and economic sustainability in the production of cables and wires post Covid-19 pandemic?

Point 2: The description of the problem is very general, and the relationship between the problems under consideration has not been precisely described. It is hard to call it a scientific activity that should be based on statistically reliable data.

Response 2:

Line 15-39

Abstract: INCOM Egypt has undergone an automation in some processes where critical aspects of its operations are transformed and automated. This paper presents an overview of INCOM Egypt processes using Ould Riva and analyzes the process of ‘handling a product’. It aims to demonstrate effective automation of the production of wires and cables process accompanied to Industry 4.0 while considering environmental and economic sustainability goals that were inhibited by Covid-19 restrictions. Ould’s Riva method is used to analyse the production process of wires and cables to propose improvements for automating the process. Business process modelling is utilized to study the processes for clearer understating. The flow of information within the process is also analysed to integrate the production process with other processes and supply chains, which helps to identify which production activities can be automated and mainstreamed into the information flow to achieve environmental and economic sustainability. The context of INCOM Egypt, as a case study, is presented along with the Riva model of its operations. The paper identifies the before, i.e., As-Is process, and after, i.e., To-Be Process, automation of the 'handle a product' process using the Role Activity Diagram (RAD). The process involved redesigning and improving different activities to increase resource-use efficiency to participate in achieving the goals of sustainability. The focus of this paper is to investigate the negative impact of Covid-19 on sustainability and to examine the accomplishments of process automation of wire production towards environmental and economic sustainability. The results of the research reveal a relationship between business process modelling and sustainability. Moreover, automation of processes (Industry 4.0) is found to reduce the negative effect of Covid-19 on production. A triangulation between process modelling, process automation (Industry 4.0), and sustainability was determined. Each one is reinforcing and impacting one another. The RAD model demonstrates that automation of the activities in the process reduces waste, time, cost, and redundant processes as factors of sustainability, which may also help to lessen the unfavorable effects of the pandemic. The results proved generalization on other organisations in the same line of business.

Line 114-123

Process modelling is key to attain sustainability, according to [11], which focuses on enhancing sustainability in the production of bioplastics. Furthermore, other studies such as [12] were carried out to measure the relationship between process modelling and general business performance. This extends to the construction engineering industry as [13] studies structural sustainability based on the Building Information Modelling (BIM). Up to date, none of the previous studies focused on the business process in the industry of cables and wires production in relation to sustainability, hence, this paper attempts to explore the production process of cables and wires by analysing the activities, information flow, and the roles of the process to investigate the activities that can be automated to achieve sustainability.

Point 3: The discussion is very general as is the rest of the text. There are no clear conclusions based on the obtained research results.

Response 4:

Line 758-837

The process of 'Handle a product' is simple if the company has the machines needed for production. INCOM Egypt is facing lots of problems in finance and production caused by inaccurate information. The planning of production has had several challenges, including inaccurate estimates, defected products, and scrap quantities exceeding the allowed percentage because of corruption and lack of appropriate information system.

The use of Riva has helped in identifying the key challenges, namely data entry, sharing of data among departments to control the financial situation, and data accuracy. The preceding scenario has caused mismatch and inaccuracy in financial analysis, planning analysis, inventory analysis, and providing accurate delivery time.

 Industry 4.0 and process automation positively reflect on production quality and materials control, resulting in cost savings since defective products are controlled and precise quantities are utilized. Consequently, environmental and economical sustainability can be achieved. Based on the proved relationship between Industry 4.0 and sustainability as reviewed in the literature section, the automation of production processes positively affects sustainability. Considering recent events due to Covid-19 pandemic, economies worldwide had deteriorated including Egypt. In order to overcome the negative effects of the pandemic, it is evident that production needs to be handled innovatively via remote operations by utilizing Industry 4.0 and automating processes.

According to [55], process modelling reinforces process automation in the production of wires and cables. Furthermore, Industry 4.0 reinforces sustainability, and based on the previous analysis of the production process of wires and cables that explored the areas where automation is feasible, it can be concluded that process automation is key principle to achieve sustainability. Thus, the three approaches reinforce each other and accordingly there is a triangulation between process modelling, process automation (Industry 4.0), and sustainability as depicted in figure 4.

A diagram is added below

Reinforce

Reinforce

Sustainability

Process automation of production of wires and cables

Process modelling of production of wires and cables

Reinforce

Figure 4: relationship between process modelling and sustainability

As automation of production process in wires and cables industry positively affects sustainability, there is a need to move towards automation in production. Yet some proposed improvements were found to have no direct impact on sustainability, the automation of these activities is essential to integrate the information system and the flow of information electronically. Excluding automation of these activities will distort the functionality of the information system leading to defected results. While production processes need to be investigated to understand the flow of information and the activities done by each role, business process analysis/modelling is vital to detail business processes for improvements using Industry 4.0 technologies serving as a platform for automation.  as a result, this will support sustainability. Lessons could be learned from this approach and drawn with respect to other manufacturers. Based on [38], organisations in the same line of business should have the same processes. Accordingly, improvements in one organisation should also apply to others in the same line of business.

The severe restrictions imposed by the governments after Covid-19 pandemic, call for utilisation of Industry 4.0 technologies in production of wires. Table 4 analysed areas where technological improvements are found to be effective and applicable. Automation of production leads to better sustainability, however, not all processes/activities support technology as well some activities still cannot be automated, and therefore, process analysis is required to examine the applicability of technology in the process for reengineering.

5. Conclusion

The current research explored the activities, roles, and information flow in the production process of wires and cables. Each activity in the process was examined to map technological improvements to the activities of the process and to elucidate information pertained to each process. However, the research did not tackle statistics of time and cost savings due to limitation of time. One more limitation faced the researchers is to calculate the cost of technological advancements and compare it to the benefits of sustainability. Therefore, financial sustainability can be completed in the future work. Moreover, it was hard to collect data from employees due to time constraints while they are at work and their limited understanding of the purpose of the research, especially sustainability.

The future work will examine time, preciseness of data and cost effectiveness in terms of numbers in relation to the analysed activities and data. The research will compare the measurements of the process before and after automation so that the findings will serve as KPIs to measure the relationship between automation (Industry 4.0) and environmental economic sustainability.

Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Round 2

Reviewer 3 Report

Dear Authors,

My position in assessment is negative still. Described problems are to obvious, this not justify to publish material as results of scientific work. I am really sorry for any inconvenience.

Author Response

Response to Reviewer 3 Comments

Point 1:

My position in assessment is negative still. Described problems are to obvious, this not justify to publish material as results of scientific work. I am really sorry for any inconvenience.

Response 1:

1. Introduction

Nowadays, complex businesses are most likely interrelated across various levels and departments of an organisation. Thus, suggested improvements and changes to a given function are likely to impact other processes. Many businesses tend to examine the key processes for technological and non-technological improvements, and subsequently consider the impact these changes can have on other organisational processes. However, the COVID-19 pandemic necessitates immediate process replanning. In this regard, some organisations have already taken various initiatives in considering environmental sustainability as a major part of their proposed changes [1].

Automation has historically been used to help facilitate improvements that impact cost and/or quality, specifically with the introduction of Industry 4.0 which caused a dramatic change in production. It is also aligned with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs[1]), more specifically goal 9, i.e., build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization, and foster innovation. To achieve process success, it is key to model the business operations, break down units of work of the organisation into business processes, and explore each process in terms of actions and interactions between processes and activities [2]. In addition to process automation, business process modelling is essential to transform the current business and increase its efficiency. This is mainly due to the ability to use business process modelling in analysing detailed business activities for process reengineering and developing a generalised workflow out of a set of specific business processes [3].

There exists a relationship between sustainability and manufacturing [4]. Current studies focused mainly on developed and developing countries, but none of them, to the best of our knowledge, included a case study from any African country. According to Bello et al [11] manufacturing in African countries is characterised by high carbon emissions, resource duplication, and environmental degradation. This is also accompanied by high inventory, low workforce, and low operations capacity. It was also found that 63% of the companies included in the study showed the positive influence of sustainable operations on the overall performance of the company. Finally, there was a positive relationship between sustainability and economic, environmental, and social dimensions [4]. Moreover, Franciosi et al [5] revealed that analysing business processes to meet social and technological challenges is essential to driving sustainable competitive advantages for current businesses. In addition, the strategic alignment of social and technological factors played a crucial role in making a competitive advantage sustainable. There is a clear gap in the literature regarding the ability to develop businesses that are better aligned with sustainability goals based on a thorough analysis of business process models. This study provides directions to incorporate informed sustainable strategies that will give businesses a competitive edge and allow them to prosper and perform better.

Ejsmont et al [6] emphasise the relationship between sustainability and Industry 4.0, which reflects the ongoing effort to sustainably optimising current manufacturing processes. Nonetheless, researchers highlighted the need for further investigations to deal with the consequences of the continuously developing smart technologies which can cause additional environmental burdens. In addition, bridging the gap between expert knowledge, sustainability assessment methods, and the Industry 4.0 reference framework is a challenge. We claim that analysing business process models and architecture provides an authentic venue to bridge this gap.

To further investigate the impact of Industry 4.0 on the environmental sustainability in the production domain, analysts need to review production processes to understand their constituent activities and the information flow better. There is a variety of choices to model business processes, and researchers, over the last couple of decades, presented their views on the effectiveness of different modelling techniques. However, several models have stood the test of time by demonstrating their usability and ability to deliver strategic objectives for Information Technology project managers [7]. Thus, [8] argues that system analysts should have a clear overview of the organisational architecture processes before individual processes are broken down for reengineering. Furthermore, identifying interlinked processes and the potential impact of any proposed changes remains a significant challenge and adds another layer of complexity. Hence, we claim that using Riva as a business process architecture modelling method provides valuable insights related to the business operations of a certain firm and at the same time captures an abstract view of business activities. Since the introduction of Riva in 2005, it has been remarkably used to successfully model many businesses around the world, including INCOM Egypt [9].

Due to the significance of the "handling of products" process in the organisation, as being the largest consumer of materials and the most expensive process in production [10], this paper has selected this process for analysis and automation using the Role Activity Diagram model (RAD). Furthermore, this paper attempts to demonstrate the benefits of combining the Riva method with RAD modelling in building a comprehensive view of the business process model for technological innovation considering Industry 4.0 to achieve sustainability. More specifically, to (i) increase efficiency of resources utilisation as well as adopting advanced technologies and industrial processes, i.e., SDG 9 – Target 9.4, and (ii) facilitate sustainable development in developing countries through enhanced technological and technical support to African countries, i.e., target 9.a. This research focuses on analysing the manufacturing process of wire manufacturing at INCOM Egypt company. This paper is organised as follows, first, the background of the company will be presented, followed by the effect of Covid-19 restrictions on the industry in Egypt. Second, illustrations about manufacturing companies and Industry 4.0 will be detailed to explore the latest advancements in production. Third, Ould’s Riva method is explained as a technique for process modelling and analysis, and the importance of this technique will also be identified. Fourth, data collection methods and techniques are discussed, followed by modelling and analysis of the production processes. Finally, the findings of this paper are presented to emphasise the recommended changes and improvements in the process, which will impact environmental sustainability.

Response 2:

4. Discussion

 

The process of 'Handle a product' is simple if the company has the machines needed for production. INCOM Egypt is facing lots of problems in finance and production caused by inaccurate information. The planning of production has had several challenges, including inaccurate estimates, defective products, and scrap quantities exceeding the allowed percentage because of corruption and the lack of an appropriate information system.

The preceding scenario at Incom Egypt has caused mismatch and inaccuracy in financial analysis, planning analysis, inventory analysis, and providing inaccurate delivery time. The use of Riva has helped in identifying the key challenges, namely data entry, sharing of data among departments - to control the financial situation - and data accuracy. Despite process automation becoming common in most industries, there is always a need to analyse the readability of the process for automation. Moreover, the data and information need to flow through these systems without human intervention to evade errors that will lead to inaccurate decisions. The method used to analyse the production process of wires and cables in this research aims to evaluate the possibility of using electronic devices based on the latest technology to capture data automatically and send it to the cloud. These are then imported into decision-making software so that automated decisions can be made. Those devices should also be able to receive orders to adjust the machines while production is taking place. Moreover, devices need to be connected to the cloud to make the data available to everyone in production that will also be accessed via an application. Decision-makers and key persons will be able to monitor the production at any time and from anywhere using the application on their devices. They should be able to change the decision made by the system or accept it. The benefit of automation in Industry 4.0 lies in reducing cost, time, and effort, where the three-affect sustainability if they are managed correctly.

Based on the proven relationship between industry 4.0 and sustainability, as reviewed in the literature section, the automation of production processes positively affects sustainability. Considering recent events due to the Covid-19 pandemic, economies worldwide have deteriorated, including that of Egypt. Therefore, technological advancements in production need to be handled innovatively via remote operations by utilising Industry 4.0 and automating processes.

According to [55], process modelling reinforces process automation in the production of wires and cables. Furthermore, Industry 4.0 reinforces sustainability, and based on the previous analysis of the production process of wires and cables that explored the areas where automation is feasible, it can be concluded that process modelling is a key principle to achieving sustainability. In other words, automation of processes does not guarantee to support sustainability. In this case, the proven relationship between Industry 4.0 and sustainability by [56] needs to be integrated with process analysis. The relationship between process analysis and sustainability, as mentioned by [11], can also be generalised to other lines of industry. Thus, the three approaches reinforce each other, and accordingly, there is a triangulation between process modelling, process automation (Industry 4.0), and sustainability, as depicted in figure 4.

There is a figure here.

Figure 4: the relationship between process modelling and sustainability

As automation of the production process in the wires and cables industry positively affects sustainability, there is a need to move towards automation in production. Yet some proposed improvements were found to have no direct impact on sustainability. The automation of these activities is essential to integrate the information system and the flow of information electronically. Excluding automation of these activities will distort the functionality of the information system leading to defective production and unnecessary waste. While production processes need to be investigated to understand the flow of information and the activities done by each role, business process analysis/modelling is vital to detail business processes for improvements using Industry 4.0 technologies serving as a platform for automation.  As a result, this will support sustainability. Lessons could be learned from this approach and drawn concerning other manufacturers. Based on [38], organisations in the same line of business should have the same processes. Accordingly, improvements in one organisation should also apply to others in the same line of business.

The severe restrictions imposed by the governments after Covid-19 pandemic, call for utilisation of Industry 4.0 technologies in production of wires. Table 4 analysed areas where technological improvements are found to be effective and applicable. Automation of production leads to better sustainability. However, not all processes/activities support technology as well some activities still cannot be automated, and therefore, process analysis is required to examine the applicability of technology in the process for reengineering.

5. Conclusion

The current research explored the activities, roles, and information flow in the production process of wires and cables. Each activity in the process was examined to map technological improvements to the activities of the process and to elucidate information pertained to each process. However, the research did not tackle statistics of time and cost savings due to limitation of time. One more limitation faced the researchers is to calculate the cost of technological advancements and compare it to the benefits of sustainability. Therefore, financial sustainability can be completed in the future work. Moreover, it was hard to collect data from employees due to time constraints while they are at work and their limited understanding of the purpose of the research, especially sustainability.

The future work will examine time, preciseness of data and cost effectiveness in terms of numbers in relation to the analysed activities and data. The research will compare the measurements of the process before and after automation so that the findings will serve as KPIs to measure the relationship between automation (Industry 4.0) and environmental economic sustainability.

Author Response File: Author Response.docx