Title: Conceptual Modeling of Inventory Management Processes as a Thinging Machine,
Abstract: A control model is typically classified into three forms: conceptual,
mathematical and simulation (computer). This paper analyzes a conceptual
modeling application with respect to an inventory management system. Today,
most organizations utilize computer systems for inventory control that provide
protection when interruptions or breakdowns occur within work processes.
Modeling the inventory processes is an active area of research that utilizes
many diagrammatic techniques, including data flow diagrams, Universal Modeling
Language (UML) diagrams and Integration DEFinition (IDEF). We claim that
current conceptual modeling frameworks lack uniform notions and have inability
to appeal to designers and analysts. We propose modeling an inventory system as
an abstract machine, called a Thinging Machine (TM), with five operations:
creation, processing, receiving, releasing and transferring. The paper provides
side-by-side contrasts of some existing examples of conceptual modeling
methodologies that apply to TM. Additionally, TM is applied in a case study of
an actual inventory system that uses IBM Maximo. The resulting conceptual
depictions point to the viability of FM as a valuable tool for developing a
high-level representation of inventory processes.