The Adoption of Robotic Process Automation Technology to Ensure Business Processes during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Intelligent Process Automation and Business Continuity: Areas for Future Research

Robotic process automation and intelligent process automation have gained a foothold in the automation of business processes, using blocks of software (bots). These agents interact with systems through interfaces, replacing human intervention with the aim of improving efficiency, reducing costs and mitigating risks by ensuring and enforcing compliance measures. However, there are aspects of the incorporation of this new reality within the business continuity lifecycle that are still unclear, and which need to be evaluated. This study provides a multivocal literature review of robotic process automation and intelligent process automation correlated with business continuity, to identify the level of awareness of these two emerging forms of automation within the business continuity management lifecycle. Based on the reviewed literature, the study develops a discussion of the main research areas for investigation, identifying what is attracting the attention of practitioners and researchers and which areas they highlight as promising for future research. Numerous sources from relevant backgrounds reveal an interest in these interrelated topics but there as yet is little or no information available on the direct connection between them.

Systemic analysis of a manufacturing process based on a small scale bakery

The main aim of the article is to present two new innovative concepts of reliability of a functioning manufacturing system in the process of making bread in small-scale bakeries. Reliability is understood as one of the representations of an operator acting on specific streams in time t_o to t. One of these represents the global reliability of a system as a function of parallel action of all the streams of the system in time t_o to t and is denoted as P_g ^(t). The second representation of reliability is a scalar value, P_ss It shows a new function of global reliability of a manufacturing process as a product of system stream reliability. In order to plot the flow of the manufacturing process's global reliability function, we need to perform detailed calculations, computations, and analysis of the differences of individual values in real time, as well as plan an algorithm of the flow of system streams. This needs a lot of effort, translating however, to a detailed picture of the process. In the analysed example, measurements and research revealed an important increase of the value of reliability in a transition from a traditional to a robotised bakery. The article also presents a new concept of the reliability of a technological process, based on the analysis of relations of elements of the following streams: energy, matter, information, time, and finances. It shows the method of specifying streams and the method for defining the reliability of important and supportive relations. Important relations between stream elements are defined as having the reliability value of one in time. Supportive relations bear the reliability within a continuum between zero and one. Important relations are designated based on research, experience, and knowledge. Stream systemic reliability P_ss is a scalar value, i.e. a number from the continuum between zero and one. The P_ss value characterises failure-free operation of the whole system. Its average value in the normative time t_n expresses the efficiency of the manufacturing system. The value P_ss is a quotient of the number of important relation and the sum of important and supportive relations. The formula for P_ss shows the method of optimising the process through the increasing of the number of important relations between the input stream components. The concept has been applied to study the efficiency of operation of a small-scale bakery. Systemic analysis of a bakery allows for important increase in the reliability of baking bread if robotisation has been implemented. The concept of systemic-stream reliability P_ss may be applied to analyse the efficiency of any technological process and optimisation of any manufacturing process.

PLS-SEM assessment of the impediments of robotics and automation deployment for effective construction health and safety

Purpose

The importance of robotics and automation (R&A) in delivering a safe built environment cannot be overemphasised. This is because R&A systems can execute a hazardous job function that the construction workforce may not execute. Based on this knowledge, this study aims to present the result of an assessment of the impediments to the deployment of R&A for a safe and healthy construction environment.

Design/methodology/approach

This study adopted a post-positivist philosophical stance, using a quantitative research approach and a questionnaire administered to construction professionals in South Africa. The data gathered were analysed using frequency, percentage, mean item score, Kruskal–Wallis H-test, exploratory factor analysis and partial least square structural equation modelling (SEM).

Findings

This study revealed that the impediments to the deployment of R&A could be grouped into: industry, technology, human and cost-related factors. However, SEM assessment showed that only the industry, human and cost-related factors would significantly impact attaining specific health and safety-related outcomes.

Practical implications

The findings offer valuable benefits to construction organisations as the careful understanding of the identified impeding factors can help lead to better deployment of R&A and the attainment of its inherent safety benefits.

Originality/value

This study attempts to fill the gap in the shortage of literature exploring the deployment of R&A for a safe construction environment, particularly in developing countries like South Africa, where such studies are non-existent. This paper, therefore, offers a theoretical backdrop for future works on R&A deployment, particularly in developing countries where such a study has not been explored.

Ensuring the business continuity of production companies in conditions of COVID-19 pandemic in Poland - Applied measures analysis

The purpose of the paper is to present the results of the study of solutions implemented in Polish manufacturing companies to ensure their business continuity under COVID-19 pandemic conditions. A questionnaire survey was conducted using the mixed-model CAWI/CATI (Computer Assisted Web Interview/Computer Assisted Telephone Interview) on a representative group of 600 manufacturing companies in Poland. The research was conducted in March 2021, more than a year after the first lockdown. The study included cases of companies in most industries and companies of different sizes. The subject of the survey was to identify legal, technical, and organisational protection measures implemented in manufacturing enterprises in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in manufacturing companies in Poland. The COVID-19 pandemic has forced companies to look for solutions to work safely. Some of the identified work and production organisation solutions are innovative and can serve as models of good practice for other companies. They can also be the basis for learning lessons and preparing for future critical incidents. It is a great economic and social importance to ensure the continuity of the activities of manufacturing enterprises during the pandemic.

Applications of Robotic Process Automation in Smart Governance to Empower COVID-19 Prevention

This paper explores how the robotic process automation (RPA) can benefit financial applications. To fully exploit RPA technologies potential will empower higher education and finance, which makes a better future together. The mechanism of RPA to mimic the process of human thinking in solving financial problems was discussed. Important technologies, challenges from cooperativeness, responsiveness and interconnectedness were explored. Exploration of automation technologies for COVID-19 prevention will reduce virus transmission, which empowers society governance, higher education and finance.

Candidate Digital Tasks Selection Methodology for Automation with Robotic Process Automation

Today’s business environments face rapid digital transformation, engendering the continuous emerging of new technologies. Robotic Process Automation (RPA) is one of the new technologies rapidly and increasingly grabbing the attention of businesses. RPA tools allow mimicking human tasks by providing a virtual workforce, or digital workers in the form of software bots, for automating manual, high-volume, repetitive, and routine tasks. The goal is to allow human workers to delegate their tedious routine tasks to a software bot, thus allowing them to focus on more difficult tasks. RPA tools are simple and very powerful, according to cost-saving and other performance metrics. However, the main challenge of RPA implementation is to effectively determine the business tasks suitable for automation. This paper provides a methodology for selecting candidate tasks for robotic process automation based on user interface logs and process mining techniques.