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Dynamic changes and increasing competition in global markets have caused changes in the management of small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Due to this fact, many SME companies try to implement different methods for strategy and operation management, quality and improvement management, risk management, etc. But the problem is the efficiency and implementation of these methods in the SME company. One way to achieve higher efficiency is the integration of management methods, meaning the combination of performance management with quality, process and risk management. This approach is also recommended in the ISO standards for quality. It was reflected in a new revision of the ISO 9001 standards in the year 2015. Performance can be described by the financial and non-financial key performance indicators (KPI), covering the cost, quality and time indicators that have been implemented in the balanced scorecard framework (BSC). The aim of this chapter is to present a methodological framework, which leads to the integration of the key performance indicators (KPI) in relation to the key risk indicators (KRI), which may affect the KPIs and overall SME performance. This framework combines a process analysis and modelling with risk and qualitative or quantitative risk assessment techniques. The case study describes its practical implementation and the verification of the designed framework. The results of this research will help to build an effective management system for performance and risk management and quality management for the business processes of SMEs.

This paper evaluates the effect of stress-relieving heat treatment on the AlSi10Mg alloy prepared by additive manufacturing using the Laser Powder Bed Fusion (L-PBF) with print parameters: 370 W, 1400 m/s, and 50 μm. The as-built state and four different annealing modes (240 °C/2 h, 240 °C/6 h, 300 °C/2 h, and 300 °C/2 h/water-quenched) are investigated. To determine the effect of the annealing mode on the mechanical properties of the L-PBF AlSi10Mg alloy, heat-treated samples were compared with the as-built state and with each other. The mechanical properties of the samples were determined by tensile and hardness tests. The strength in the as-built state is 488 MPa, depending on the method of heat treatment, the strength values range from 296 MPa to 417 MPa, and the HV10 hardness values are in accordance with the measured strength values. Furthermore, the microstructure of the samples was investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis, which was then linked to the measured mechanical properties. The composition of the microstructure of the alloy and its influence on the mechanical properties were determined by energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) analysis. Furthermore, the differences between the individual heat treatments in comparison with the as-built state were analyzed and the phenomenon of decomposition of the silicon network after reaching specific temperatures was discussed and confirmed. The paper evaluates the effect of dwelling time on stress relief annealing. It was found that if annealing at intermediate temperatures of 240 and 300 °C is applied, changes in structure and mechanical properties are more temperature- than dwell-time-dependent.

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The purpose of this study was to find and optimize the process parameters of producing tool steel 1.2709 at a layer thickness of 100 μm by DMLS (Direct Metal Laser Sintering). HPDC (High Pressure Die Casting) tools are printed from this material. To date, only layer thicknesses of 20–50 μm are used, and parameters for 100 µm were an undescribed area, according to the state of the art. Increasing the layer thickness could lead to time reduction and higher economic efficiency. The study methodology was divided into several steps. The first step was the research of the single-track 3D printing parameters for the subsequent development of a more accurate description of process parameters. Then, in the second step, volume samples were produced in two campaigns, whose porosity was evaluated by metallographic and CT (computed tomography) analysis. The main requirement for the process parameters was a relative density of the printed material of at least 99.9%, which was achieved and confirmed using the parameters for the production of the samples for the tensile test. Therefore, the results of this article could serve as a methodological procedure for optimizing the parameters to streamline the 3D printing process, and the developed parameters may be used for the productive and quality 3D printing of 1.2709 tool steel.