What is Business Systems Engineering?

Business systems engineering is a detailed approach to identifying and implementing the business processes, tasks, and transactions that are required to successfully operate a business. The main component of this approach is business process engineering, which consists of a review of the business process, a detailed work flow map, and data analysis. Business systems engineering is usually undertaken during an expansion or in response to sky-rocketing operating costs. The goal is to find a cost-effective and efficient way to run a business.

A business process review is one part of business systems engineering. It involves identifying a series of elements within the business, including the objectives and activities of the business, with the goal of re-working the way the company does business. The specific processes used to produce a product and deliver it to the customer, as well as the support elements such as the materials, labor, and infrastructure, must be evaluated.

Another aspect of business systems engineering is work flow mapping. This is a graphical tool used by companies to illustrate the flow of materials and information required to complete an objective. It outlines the data in a sequential fashion to show how a specific job is completed from the initial concept to the finished product or service. The actual graph diagrams the work flow with specific symbols and may represent an entire process or just a portion of it. A work flow diagram can be adapted to different units within the company.

Business systems engineering also involves metrics, which are a standard measure against which performance is measured. Usually, these involve identifying key business indicators in specific areas such as marketing, manufacturing, and sales. Customer base and customer base growth rate are two indicators of progress in marketing. To evaluate manufacturing, the rate of production and volume of production are usually measured. Sales volume and percentage of returns are usually analyzed to evaluate how the sales department is doing.

A company usually conducts an evaluation of its business process when the economy slows down. As orders for the product or service decrease, the company generally looks for ways to reduce costs. This could including combining different units within the company or temporary halting production of a particular product.

During times of economic growth, a company may also evaluate its business process to expand and grow. This could include adding additional production lines or introducing new services. Also, the implementation of new systems generally requires the information obtained through business systems engineering.

 

 

Texts for mining engineers

What is mining engineering?

Mining engineering is an engineering discipline that involves the practice, the theory, the science, the technology, and application of extracting and processing minerals from a naturally occurring environment. However, mining engineering is associated with many other sister department within like geology, mineral processing and metallurgy, geotechnical engineering, surveying. A mining engineer manages all phases of mining operations – from exploration and discovery of the mineral resource, through feasibility study, mine design, development of plans, production and operations to mine closure.

With the process of Mineral extraction, some amount of waste and uneconomic material are generated which are the primary source of pollution in the vicinity of mines. Mining activities by their nature cause a disturbance of the natural environment in and around which the minerals are located. Mining engineers must therefore be concerned not only with the production and processing of mineral commodities, but also with the mitigation of damage to the environment both during and after mining as a result of the change in the mining area.

From prehistoric times to the present, mining has played a significant role in the existence of human race. Since the beginning of civilization people have used stone and ceramics and, later, metals found on or close to the Earth's surface. These were used to manufacture early tools and weapons. For example, high quality flint found in northern France and southern England were used to set fire and break rock.

Flint mines have been found in chalk areas where seams of the stone were followed underground by shafts and galleries. The oldest known mine on archaeological record is the "Lion Cave" in Swaziland. At this site, which radiocarbon dating indicates to be about 43,000 years old, paleolithic humans mined mineral hematite, which contained iron and was ground to produce the red pigment ochre.

The ancient Romans were innovators of mining engineering. They developed large scale mining methods, perhaps most notably the use of large volumes of water brought to the mine head by numerous aqueducts for hydraulic mining. The exposed rock was then attacked by fire-setting where fires were used to heat the rock, which would be quenched with a stream of water. The thermal shock cracked the rock, enabling it to be removed. In some mines the Romans utilized water-powered machinery such as reverse overshot water-wheels. These were used extensively in the copper mines at Rio Tinto in Spain, where one sequence comprised 16 such wheels arranged in pairs, lifting water about 80 feet (24 m).

Black powder was first used in mining in Banská Štiavnica, Kingdom of Hungary (present-day Slovakia) in 1627. This allowed blasting of rock and earth to loosen and reveal ore veins, which was much faster than fire-setting. The Industrial Revolution saw further advances in mining technologies, including improved explosives and steam-powered pumps, lifts, and drills as long as they remained safe.