A DIGITAL TWIN BASED APPROACH FOR ENSURING BUSINESS CONTINUITY PLAN AND SAFE RETURN TO WORKPLACE

Organizations are struggling to ensure business continuity without compromising on delivery excellence in the face of Covid19 pandemic related uncertainties. The uncertainty exists along multiple dimensions such as virus mutations, infectivity and severity of new mutants, efficacy of vaccines against new mutants, waning of vaccine induced immunity over time, and lockdown/opening-up policies effected by city authorities. Moreover, this uncertainty plays out in a non-uniform manner across nations, states, cities, and even within the cities thus leading to highly heterogeneous evolution of pandemic. While Work From Home (WFH) strategy has served well to meet ever-increasing business demands without compromising on individual health safety, there has been an undeniable reduction in social capital. With Covid19 pandemic showing definite waning trends, organizations are considering the possibility of safe transition from WFH to Work From Office (WFO) or a hybrid mode of operation. An effective strategy needs to score equally well on possibly interfering dimensions such as risk of infection, project delivery, and employee wellness. As large organizations will typically have a large number of offices spread across a geography, the problem of arriving at office-specific strategies becomes non-trivial. Moreover, the strategies need to adapt over time to changes that cannot be deduced upfront. This calls for an approach that is amenable to quick and easy adaptation. Our contribution in this regard is constructing a Digital Twin by leveraging various modelling techniques to realistically represent the above mentioned aspects of interest that can be subjected to what-if scenario analysis. We further demonstrate its efficacy using a case study from a large organization. © 2022 Society for Modeling & Simulation International (SCS)

A Digital Twin Based Approach For Ensuring Business Continuity Plan And Safe Return To Workplace

Organizations are struggling to ensure business continuity without compromising on delivery excellence in the face of Covid19 pandemic related uncertainties. The uncertainty exists along multiple dimensions such as virus mutations, infectivity and severity of new mutants, efficacy of vaccines against new mutants, waning of vaccine induced immunity over time, and lockdown / opening-up policies effected by city authorities. Moreover, this uncertainty plays out in a non-uniform manner across nations, states, cities, and even within the cities thus leading to highly heterogeneous evolution of pandemic. While Work From Home (WFH) strategy has served well to meet ever-increasing business demands without compromising on individual health safety, there has been an undeniable reduction in social capital. With Covid19 pandemic showing definite waning trends, organizations are considering the possibility of safe transition from WFH to Work From Office (WFO) or a hybrid mode of operation. An effective strategy needs to score equally well on possibly interfering dimensions such as risk of infection, project delivery, and employee wellness. As large organizations will typically have a large number of offices spread across a geography, the problem of arriving at office-specific strategies becomes non-trivial. Moreover, the strategies need to adapt over time to changes that cannot be deduced upfront. This calls for an approach that is amenable to quick and easy adaptation. Our contribution in this regard is constructing a Digital Twin by leveraging various modelling techniques to realistically represent the above mentioned aspects of interest that can be subjected to what-if scenario analysis. We further demonstrate its efficacy using a case study from a large organization. © 2022 SCS.

Hybrid manufacturing-remanufacturing system of essential commodity in the context of COVID-19

Purpose: This paper aims to assess the feasibility of a hybrid manufacturing and remanufacturing system (HMRS) for essential commodities in the context of COVID-19. Specifically, it emphasises using HMRS based on costs associated with various manufacturing activities. Design/methodology/approach: The combination of mathematical model and system dynamics is used to model the HMRS system. The model was tried on sanitiser bottle manufacturing to generalise the result. Findings: The remanufacturing cost is higher because of reverse logistics, inspection and holding costs. Ultimately remanufacturing costs turn out to be lesser than the original manufacturing the moment system attains stability. Practical implications: The study put forth the reason to encourage remanufacturing towards sustainability through government incentives. Originality/value: The study put forth the feasibility of the HMRS system for an essential commodity in the context of a covid pandemic. The research implemented system dynamics for modelling and validation. © 2022, Emerald Publishing Limited.

Expression map of entry receptors and infectivity factors for pan-coronaviruses in preimplantation and implantation stage human embryos.

PURPOSE: To predict if developing human embryos are permissive to multiple coronaviruses. METHOD: We analyzed publicly available single-cell RNA-seq datasets of human embryos for the known canonical and non-canonical receptors and spike protein cleavage enzymes for multiple coronaviruses like SARS-CoV, SARS-CoV-2, MERS-CoV, hCoV-229E, and hCoV-NL63. We also analyzed the expression of host genes involved in viral replication, host proteins involved in viral endosomal sorting complexes required for transport (ESCRT), genes of host proteins that physically interact with proteins of SARS-CoV-2, and the host genes essential for coronavirus infectivity. RESULTS: Of the known receptors of SARS viruses, ACE2, BSG, GOLGA7, and ZDHHC5 were expressed in different proportions in the zygote, 4-cell, 8-cell, morula, and blastocysts including the trophectoderm. The MERS-CoV receptor, DPP4, and hCoV-229E receptor, ANPEP, were expressed mainly from the compact morula to the blastocyst stages. Transcripts of the MERS-CoV alternate receptor LGALS1 were detected in most cells at all stages of development. TMPRSS2 transcripts were detected in the epiblast, primitive endoderm, and trophectoderm, while transcripts of the endosomal proteases CTSL, CTSB, and FURIN were expressed in most cells at all stages of development. ACE2 and TMPRSS2 were co-expressed in a proportion of epiblast and trophectoderm cells. The embryonic cells expressed genes involved in ESCRT, viral replication, SARS-CoV-2 interactions, and coronavirus infectivity. The ACE2 and TMPRSS2 co-expressing cells were enriched in genes associated with lipid metabolism, lysosome, peroxisome, and oxidative phosphorylation pathways. CONCLUSION: Preimplantation and implantation stage human embryos could be permissive to multiple hCoVs.