XtreemOS aims to build and promote a Linux based operating system to provide native Virtual Organization (VO) support in the next generation Grids. XtreemOS takes a different approach from many existing Grid middleware by: first, recognizing the fundamental role of VO in Grid computing and hence taking VO support into account from the very beginning of our design; and, second, getting around th...

Promoting software reuse is probably the most promising approach to the cost-effective development and evolution of quality software. An example of reuse is the successful adoption of software product families in industry. In a product family context, software architects anticipate product variation and design architectures that support product derivation in both space (multiple contexts) and t...

Developments in the area of radio frequency identification (RFID) and sensor network technologies have created new possibilities for product lifecycle management (PLM). These technologies are enabling building blocks upon which various business applications for product management can be built. A significant aspect in the through-life management of products is the gathering and management of dat...

A building construction‘s lifecycle is a complex and integrated project; many factors influence its process. In order to put forward building construction‘s inception to completion to its success, these factors used properly at the project‘s stage become more important. This paper evaluates economics and legislative factors influence the design team and contractor throughout a building project‘...

This paper summarizes our experience with introducing feature modelling into several product lines within Siemens.
Feature models are used for solving various tasks in the product line lifecycle, starting with scoping the reusable asset base up to support for actual product configuration. Using feature models as primary artefacts for managing variability early in the lifecycle, we could improve...

We describe and evaluate a framework, the Medical Database Adaptor (MEIDA), for linking knowledge-based medical decision-support systems (MDSSs) to multiple clinical databases, using standard medical schemata and vocabularies. Our solution involves a set of tools for embedding standard terms and units within knowledge bases (KBs) of MDSSs; a set of methods and tools for mapping the local databa...

This thesis proposes a model for cost-benefit analysis for physical form selection of a decision support tool, primarily to support system acquisition decisions that need to be made early in the system life cycle. By bringing objective and subjective costs and benefits into the same model and prescribing a unique approach to determining system utility, this thesis demonstrates how the proposed ...

Product lifecycle management (PLM) is a concept that aims at integrating the various processes and stages involved during a typical product lifecycle for the extended enterprise. PLM technologies endeavor to offer a powerful collaborative platform to support distributed product development. In order to maintain the integrity of product definition data throughout the life of the product, and to ...

If an e-services approach to electronic commerce is to become widespread, standardisation of ontologies, message content and message protocols will be necessary. In this paper, we present a lifecycle of a business-to-business e-commerce interaction, and show how the Semantic Web can support a service description language that can be used throughout this lifecycle. DAML+OIL is a sufficiently exp...

The growing global competition is pushing for product lifecycle reduction, so that manufacturing system lifetime becomes much longer than the product lifecycle and, hence, flexibility is a strict necessity. Product and production system lifecycle co-design is hence a necessity for effective investments and, consequently, to make manufacturing attractive. To this aim, this paper presents a Life ...