Developing Prototype of Piping Design Knowledge Management Systems in the Oil and Gas Industry

Abstract

The limited acceptance of existing knowledge management systems within organizations necessitates enhancements to improve their effectiveness. This study addresses this issue by developing and evaluating a prototype of a piping design knowledge management system in the oil and gas industry. Utilizing a Design Science Research (DSR) methodology, the research identified key system requirements through theoretical analysis and structured interviews with representative users across various functional roles. Based on these insights, a prototype emphasizing knowledge retrieval and creation functionalities was developed and empirically tested against the existing system. The results indicate significant improvements, including increased success rates, enhanced system usability (with average system usability scale scores rising from 36.10 to 78.20), and high technology acceptance (81%). Furthermore, the new system eliminated lostness, reduced average knowledge retrieval time from 52.68 to 46.51 seconds, and significantly decreased knowledge creation time from 229.81 to 93.68 seconds. These findings demonstrate the potential of the proposed system to enhance organizational performance, suggesting broader applicability across engineering departments.