5G drives rapid digital transformation, process mining helps businesses manage greenhouse gas emissions

PEX Network’s weekly news bulletin rounds up the latest research, reports and publications in operational excellence (OPEX), digital transformation, artificial intelligence (AI) and automation, business process management (BPM), process mining and process intelligence and more.

This week includes:

• 5G driving rapid digital transformation in MEA region
• Process mining can help businesses manage greenhouse gas emissions
• BPM delivers performance improvement in public university digitalization
• Process mining supports digital twin development of industrial cyber-physical systems

5G driving rapid digital transformation in MEA region

New research from Nokia revealed that 60 percent of communications service providers (CSPs) in the Middle East & North Africa (MEA) region are adopting 5G to enhance their digital transformation. While 4G subscriptions are projected to stabilize by 2027, 5G adoption is anticipated to surge dramatically, signifying a pivotal shift in the region’s technological landscape, according to Nokia’s Mobile Broadband Index Report 2024.

Nokia estimates that, by 2029, the continued rapid adoption of 5G technology in the region will see subscriptions reach 519 million, with 48 percent of total data traffic expected to be driven by 5G. This accelerated adoption is particularly evident in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) sub-region, where 90 percent of all mobile subscriptions are projected to be 5G by 2029, Nokia said. Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) powered by 5G technology is also increasingly being adopted, growing from 11 percent in 2022 to 38 percent by 2029, driven by the need for faster internet speeds and lower latency, particularly in underserved or remote areas, the firm added.

“The adoption of 5G is increasingly important for countries across MEA to meet the rising demand for data services,” commented Mikko Lavanti, SVP for mobile networks, MEA at Nokia. “This transition accelerates digital transformation while allowing CSPs to unlock new revenue opportunities.”

Cherise Crenshaw-Holmes PhD, discusses the importance of inclusion in digital transformation strategies

Process mining can help businesses manage greenhouse gas emissions

Researchers published novel guidelines to help businesses use process mining to meet greenhouse gas emissions targets in production processes. “Despite the urgent need for becoming more sustainable and enhancing sustainability reporting induced by, e.g., the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive effective from January 2024, there exists a lack in research and industry efforts for integrating sustainability metrics into business processes,” wrote the authors. One particular reporting requirement entails that large EU companies must disclose their sustainability metrics for greenhouse gas emissions across their supply chains.

The guidance provides detailed steps for defining business and data requirements, analyzing inefficiencies and formulating recommendations to enhance sustainability reporting. A detailed demonstration was conducted using real-world data from a business case in the production process within the consumer goods industry, with evaluation revealing high approval for the guidelines’ usefulness and ease of use, according to the researchers.

Tony Benedict, Association of BPM Professionals International explores breaking down process management silos

BPM delivers performance improvement in public university digitalization

The digitalization of a public university through a structured BPM approach allows for a significant performance improvement, even in a bureaucratized context not inclined to process thinking. That’s according to a case study by academics from the University of Calabria, Italy. The authors first carried out a literature review to identify pertinent performance indicators suitable for assessing a BPM project within a public organization. Secondly, applying the BPM framework to the case study enabled significant improvements in the quality of the process. Third, the authors analyzed the impact on people and the organization and how to soothe the transition to a digitalized process.

The findings can contribute to the existing body of knowledge on BPM as a digitalization approach in the public sector, according to the researchers. They also provide value in highlighting the efficacy of using BPM as a guiding tool for making organizational and technical decisions during the implementation phase within the specific context of the paper, they added.

Ekaterina 'Katie' Curry, Millennial Specialty Insurance and Donald Kuk, formerly of BNY Mellon discuss automation and BPM

Process mining supports digital twin development of industrial cyber-physical systems

A new paper from The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) set out a framework for the digital twin development of industrial cyber-physical systems based on process mining. It connects data-driven and process-based analyses, implementing an offline phase that systematically identifies the most suitable process model to capture normal dynamics and simulates faulty dynamics for what-if analysis, the authors wrote.

“Digital twin development of industrial cyber-physical systems requires modeling, simulation and monitoring to provide accurate digital replicas mimicking system dynamics,” they stated. “To this aim, modern solutions employ data-driven approaches to capture normal system dynamics using historical data and anomaly detection using run-time data. However, these approaches are typically process-agnostic and have limited explainability, which negatively impacts trustworthiness.”

The proof-of-concept application of the proposed framework addresses a water distribution case study that allows physical fault injection, the paper detailed. Results highlight the importance of adopting high-quality process models to significantly improve anomaly detection and time performance.

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