20th edition of ASIM dedicated conference “Simulation in Production and Logistics”

20th edition of ASIM dedicated conference “Simulation in Production and Logistics"

Every two years, the largest European Simulation conference for production and logistics is organized by ASIM (the Association Simulation in German-speaking countries: “Arbeitsgemeinschaft Simulation im deutschsprachigen Raum”). During this conference innovations, trends, developments, scientific work, and interesting industry applications are presented. This year the conference takes place at the Technische Universität Ilmenau in Germany from the 13th until the 15th of September.

In addition to the traditional topics of the conference, this year’s theme is simulation applications to design and evaluate sustainable production and logistics systems. The topics of the conference range from discrete-event simulation, which is traditionally the focus of the conference, to hybrid methods and the combination with machine learning.

The conference program contains workshops and tutorials, an evening event, and an exhibition with software vendors and service providers from the simulation industry. The program enables opportunities for visitors to gain more knowledge about trending simulation topics, service offerings and feedback on all your questions.

Award Ceremony 2021: Christina Gschwendtner accepting here price virtually 

Call for papers

Additionally, during the conference the Simulation Working Group of ASIM will honor two outstanding theses (Master/Bachelor/Dissertation) in the field of event-discrete simulation in production and logistics. The prize of €1,000 each is awarded every two years and is sponsored by InControl, SimPlan, and Siemens. The thesis can be submitted until the 30th of April by the responsible academic supervisor or by a member of the ASIM working group (“ASIM-Fachgruppe”). Find all the information about the submission here.  

As an active ASIM-member and sponsor InControl will be present at the conference, and we are happy to meet you at the Technische Universität Ilmenau in Germany from the 13th until the 15th of September.

For more information about the conference program, visit the ASIM website.

For more information about the ASIM sponsors please visit:

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Simulation Excursion of The Netherlands Defense Academy, NLDA

Simulation Workshop and Presentation of The Netherlands Defense Academy, NLDA

For over 30 years, InControl has been working in close cooperation with many leading global Universities, Applied Sciences, and R&D Institutes. InControl’s cooperation is related to solving complex issues for so-called crowded places or supply chains such as last-mile delivery, human behavior, or specific domains like Defense.

A good example is the usage of our discrete-event software Enterprise Dynamics® during courses at the Netherlands Defense Academy, NLDA. As of this year, NLDA started using our Crowd Management simulation application as well. Both applications are very relevant for military planning, strategy, and operations.  The simulation software of InControl has become an integral part of the Master Military Technology, Processes & Systems (MTPS) curriculum. In this Master’s Program, much attention is paid to modeling and simulation. During the MTPS Master’s Program, students learn to identify, analyze and solve complex technical-operational challenges, related to military missions and systems.

Simulation software has proved to be an important tool to prepare and optimize military infrastructures, and operations, train staff, and predict incidents that threaten (inter)national safety and security. How can we effectively prepare soldiers and security personnel to succeed in their work during peace and mission-critical settings? Our Simulation Software can support the introduction of new operating procedures for tactical and operational army logistics.

Two weeks ago a group of students, professors, and lecturers of the NLDA visited our office in Woerden for a Simulation Workshop & Presentation. Our CCO, Frank van Poeteren, kicked off with a presentation about InControl and our experiences and contribution to the defense domain. Followed by a presentation by Douwe, Crowd Management Simulation Engineer at InControl. He explained the validation and technical features of our software application Pedestrian Dynamics®. Our CTO, Fred Jansma explained how our software contributes to the safety and security of complex infrastructures.

Student Presentation

Student presentation NLDA

As part of the program, four students from the Master Degree MTPS from the faculty of Military Science presented their assignments using Pedestrian Dynamics®. All students are Navy, Land, and Air Force officers and follow the Master’s program, besides their daily operations and assignments, part-time. InControl’s Pedestrian Dynamics® is used to understand the behavior of agents in specific settings and is tested if the results of their simulation models sync with the theory and vice versa. A very successful Workshop & Presentation with compliments to the well-prepared students and good cooperation with the lecturers of the NLDA.  

“We enjoyed our visit to InControl: from the enthousiastic welcome, and the interesting case studies to the in-depth discussions during the day. We learned a lot while having fun. In particular, talking with the Crowd Simulation Engineers was very fruitful: we discussed Pedestrian Dynamics and how we could use it for our applications. We shared many ideas and started collaborating on new projects. 

We look forward to visiting again with our next batch of master students.” 

– Ir. Sander van Oers, Assistant professor NLDA 

Consider starting a simulation course with our simulation software at your University, Applied Sciences, or R&D Institute.

Feel free to contact us to receive more information about our educational program and become part of our Educational Community to discuss and share your knowledge with other lecturers.

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Simulation Software contributes to the warehouse of the future

smart warehousing

Simulation Software contributes to the warehouse of the future

Warehouses and distribution centers are facing major challenges. During the pandemic, consumer demands increased exponentially, consumers expected short lead times, high product availability, flexibility, and variation in delivery and return options. Companies started to build up more stocks to meet those expectations during this period. Now there are large stocks, but demand is falling as a result of the high inflation.

The global supply chain has been forced to adapt quickly to changes in demand, automation can help to build safer, more productive operations and boost the ability to respond to rapid changes in demand. Warehouses turned out as crucial breaking points in the supply chain. Therefore, optimization and efficiency in this industry are very important.

To meet these expectations, warehouses need to become smarter, faster, and more flexible, but how to prepare your warehouse for the future? Promises of superfast fulfillment are leading organizations with warehouses to explore digital twin technology, enabling them to mirror the operational setting and run experiments to experience and understand how it can be optimized, and how new technologies can be rolled into play.

By 2025, 50% of the work activities could be replaced by next-level process optimization and visualization. Applications will be impacted by e.g., Robotization: Robots, Cobots (collaborative robots) and RPA (Robotic Process Automation), and Process Virtualization by Digital Twins and AI (McKinsey & Company report: Top Trends in Tech, 2020). We see simulation as an inseparable part of AI, combining visions, (historical)data, algorithms, and assumptions to get insight and therefore grip on supply chain processes.

warehouse simulation

Simulation modeling is a powerful method for designing, planning, and optimizing warehouse operations. By creating a digital twin of a warehouse, companies can design, simulate, and test within current and new warehouse operations, including (semi) automatic order picking, batching algorithms, stock allocation, (empty) tote management, tracking and tracing temporary storage, and shelving virtually.

The challenge is to achieve the most efficient warehouse operation. Simulation modeling can contribute to the selection of the best order-picking module, conveyor and sorting systems, or automated storage and retrieval systems (ASRS). Using simulation software, warehouse managers can easily plan during peak days and determine when these peak moments are. By integrating the Warehouse Management System (WMS) with the simulation model, data from the inventory can be used for accurate simulation studies.

Questions that can be easily answered using Simulation Software are:

  • How to deal with capacity shortages both in operation and in design?
  • How many extra Shifts and/or resources are required?
  • How much surplus capacity do you accept during the rest of the year to handle your peak day? E.g. Do you leave an entire floor empty for a whole year, which you then only use during your peak period? How and when to fill up this floor. What measures to take to ensure sufficient stock?
  • What do you do if a part of your system breaks down (contingency)?
  • What are the lead times and are they short and stable enough to ensure product safety in case of, e.g., chilled foods?
  • What is the reason to implement a shuttle system and robots.
  • How to optimize your and 3rd Party equipment, staff and logistics?

From an emulation perspective, managers can get insight into the operation. How is the performance on a peak day/period? What extra dynamics do peak days provide? For example, during special offers on black Friday, there might be flows that would normally never be seen. How to cope with these challenges?

Enterprise Dynamics® is a powerful and robust simulation platform that provides a digital environment where you can safely explore a solution without impacting day-to-day operations. By using a virtual model to validate and visualize current and future operations, optimizations and innovations will demand less costs, risks, effort and time. So, supporting maximal operational performance.

Simulation software can give insight in:

  • Overall performance
  • Steering optimization, innovation and control
  • Bottleneck detection
  • The stability of the warehouse design under different loads
  • The impact of failures on the warehouse
  • Batching algorithms
  • Stock allocation
  • Empty Tote Management
  • Implementation and scale up a shuttle system and robots
  • Required and right seize capacities.

Curious how our simulation software can help to prepare your warehouse for the future? Download our free trial or contact us, we are happy to tell you about the capabilities of our software and expertise.

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InControl erhält ISO 9001 Zertifizierung

InControl erhält ISO 9001 Zertifizierung

Wir freuen uns bekannt zu geben, dass InControl Enterprise Dynamics offiziell mit der ISO 9001 Zertifizierung ausgezeichnet wurde. Dieser Meilenstein zeigt unsere Verpflichtung zu Qualität und kontinuierlicher Verbesserung.

Warum ISO-Zertifizierung?

Die ISO 9001 Zertifizierung verdeutlicht unser Engagement zur kontinuierlichen Bereitstellung von Produkten und Dienstleistungen, die die Kundenanforderungen nicht nur erfüllen, sondern übertreffen. Diese Anerkennung erfolgt nun auch offiziell durch TÜV Nord, ein weltweit anerkanntes Unternehmen für ISO-Zertifizierung. Es unterstreicht unsere Qualität in Bezug auf unsere Digital Twin Software und Dienstleistungen, setzt einen hohen Standard für Professionalität und legt eine solide Grundlage für zukünftiges Wachstum.

Feedback TÜV NORD Nederland:

Neben der Anerkennung erhielt InControl positives Feedback vom Hauptprüfer:

„Was diese Überprüfung interessant machte, war die Kombination aus Technologie und ihrem Einfluss auf die Sicherheit und Nachhaltigkeit logistischer Prozesse sowie von Personenbewegungen. Es war inspirierend zu sehen, wie Kunden die Software nutzen, um Effizienz zu steigern, aber auch um Risiken zu reduzieren und eine sicherere Umgebung für Menschen zu schaffen.

Mir wurde erläutert, wie die Software verschiedene Szenarien simuliert, angefangen bei logistischen Prozessen in Verteilzentren, bis hin zur Planung des öffentlichen Verkehrs und großer Veranstaltungen. Die Mitarbeiter, mit denen ich sprach, waren sehr sachkundig und enthusiastisch. Sie waren begeistert von den Auswirkungen, die ihr Produkt auf die Sicherheit und Nachhaltigkeit entscheidender Infrastrukturen hat.

Darüber hinaus waren sie offen und bereit, ihr Wissen zu teilen. Während der Demonstration erklärten sie geduldig, wie die Software funktioniert, wie sie verschiedene Szenarien simuliert und wie sie Unternehmen dabei helfen kann, potenzielle Risiken zu identifizieren und zu verwalten. Die Offenheit des Teams, Einblicke zu teilen und bei kontinuierlichen Verbesserungen zusammenzuarbeiten, machte das Audit nicht nur informativ, sondern auch angenehm.

Alles in allem führte dies zu einer positiven Bewertung. Ein guter Anfang wurde gemacht, und nun gilt es, dies fortzusetzen. Ein effektives Managementsystem ist flexibel, um sich an veränderte Bedürfnisse und Rahmenbedingungen anzupassen und gleichzeitig die Konsistenz und Qualität in allen Aspekten der Geschäftstätigkeit zu wahren. Ich freue mich auf das nächste Audit zur kontinuierlichen Verbesserung.“

– Zitat von Stacey Martodikromo, Hauptprüfer, TÜV Nederland –

Für unsere bestehenden und zukünftigen Kunden stellt dieses Qualitätssiegel einen objektiven “Beweis des Vertrauens” in unsere Arbeitsweise dar. Zudem erweitert es unseren Markt, da wir nun auch Kunden bedienen können, die eine ISO-Zertifizierung verlangen.

Bei InControl glauben wir, dass Qualität der Grundstein für die Zufriedenheit von Kunden und Geschäftspartnern ist. Diese Zertifizierung ist eine offizielle und externe Bestätigung unserer operativen Exzellenz, die auf einem robusten Qualitätsmanagementsystem basiert.

Wir möchten unserem Team für ihre Professionalität und Einsatzbereitschaft während des Zertifizierungsprozesses danken. Nicht zuletzt möchten wir unseren Kunden und Geschäftspartnern für ihr fortwährendes Vertrauen und ihre Zusammenarbeit danken und freuen uns darauf, auch in Zukunft intensiver mit Ihnen zusammenzuarbeiten.

Marcia Konings von TÜV NORD Nederland überreicht offiziell das ISO 9001 Zertifikat.

ISO

ISO, die Internationale Organisation für Normung, ist eine weltweit anerkannte Organisation, die internationale Standards entwickelt und veröffentlicht. ISO 9001 bezieht sich speziell auf Qualitätsmanagementsysteme und legt Kriterien fest, anhand derer Organisationen ihre Verpflichtung zur Bereitstellung hochwertiger Produkte und Dienstleistungen nachweisen können.

www.iso.org

TÜV NORD Nederland

TÜV NORD ist ein technischer und betriebswirtschaftlicher Dienstleister, der sich auf unabhängige Bewertungen wie den Zertifizierungsprozess nach ISO 9001 spezialisiert hat. Seit 1981 fördern sie Sicherheit, Qualität, Zuverlässigkeit und Umweltbewusstsein für Organisationen, Regierungen und die Gesellschaft.

www.tuv.nl

Enterprise Dynamics® 10.4.1 released!

Enterprise Dynamics® 10.4.1 released!

Last February we released Enterprise Dynamics® 10.4. Since then, we’ve received many positive reactions from our business partners, clients and teachers who are working with our software. Nevertheless, we also received some feedback including advices and bug reports. Naturally we have been busy improving the software and we are therefore happy to announce the release of Enterprise Dynamics® 10.4.1!

With the latest version of Enterprise Dynamics® we have added the following three highly requested features:

  • Improved search options: “Text in atom” now also searches in cells of a table
  • Improved search options: “Atom in model” now also accepts wildcards
  • Label overview expanded, giving a clearer overview

Additionally we have solved some minor issues that came forward after the release of Enterprise Dynamics® 10.4. A detailed overview of the highlights can be found in the release highlights document.

Curious what Enterprise Dynamics® can do for you and your company?
Please contact us, or try the software for free.