Energy Efficient Production Planning - A Joint Cognitive Systems Approach

The introduction of energy efficiency as a new goal into already complex production plans is a difficult challenge. Decision support systems can help with this problem but these systems are often resisted by end users who ultimately bear the responsibility for production outputs. This paper describes the design of a decision support tool that aims to increase the interpretability of decision support outputs. The concept of ‘grey box’ optimisation is introduced, where aspects of the optimisation engine are communicated to, and configurable by, the end user. A multi-objective optimisation algorithm is combined with an interactive visualisation to improve system observability and increase trust.