Remote collaborative process optimization in research and design of industrial manufacturing

Abstract

In response to the impact of COVID-19, the manufacturing industry and academic industrial research have largely shifted to online or hybrid conference formats. The sudden change has posed challenges for researchers and teams to adapt. Based on the current state of online conferences, inadequate communication, disruptions during meetings, confusion and loss of meeting information, and difficulties in conducting online collaborations are observed. This paper presents a design of a real-time discussion board that combines online conferences and synchronous discussions to address the issues arising from remote collaborations in industrial research. The research demonstrates that synchronous discussions conducted within multi-team industrial collaboration teams with specific and diverse issues can better control the flow of meetings, enhance meeting efficiency, promote participant interaction and engagement, reduce information loss, and weaken the boundaries between online and offline collaboration.