Petri Net modelling for enhanced IT asset recycling solutions

From preliminary design through product sustainment to end of life removal, optimal performance through the entire life cycle, is one of the most important design considerations in engineering systems. There are a number of mathematical modelling techniques available to determine the performance of any system, or process, design. This paper focuses on the Petri Net technique for the representation and simulation of complex cases with the ultimate aim of automatically generating a model from the system, or process, description. If the model can be automatically generated changes can be investigated easily, enabling different designs to be investigated. Within this research, a Petri Net model is developed for a process of recycling IT assets. This model is simulated and programmed in Matlab©. The model enables the simulation of various flow paths through the recycling process, giving an understanding of the current process limiting factors. These can then be used to identify possible ways of improving the efficiency of the recycling process and enhancing the current IT asset management strategy. The future aim of this research is the automatic generation of a system model for complex industrial systems and processes by converting the SysML – based specifications into Petri Nets.