Showing papers on "Knowledge sharing published in 1998"

If Only We Knew What We Know: Identification and Transfer of Internal Best Practices

Abstract: One of the most effective avenues toward improvement is the process of internal benchmarking—identifying, sharing, and using the knowledge and "best practices" inside one's organization. But the process can be tricky and time consuming because of obstacles such as ignorance about resources or others' needs, a culture that values personal expertise more than knowledge sharing, and a lack of resources for implementation of best practices. This article explores how organizations conduct successful internal benchmarking, relating details ranging from requirements for successful transfer to lessons learned.

Procedural justice, strategic decision making, and the knowledge economy

Abstract: Collective knowledge building is a key strategic task for firms' success today. But creating and sharing knowledge are intangible activities that can neither be supervised nor forced out of people. They happen only when individuals cooperate voluntarily. A key challenge facing strategic management is obtaining the voluntary cooperation of individuals as firms formulate and implement their strategic decisions. This essay draws on the rich body of procedural justice research to address this critical issue. We argue that when people feel their strategic decision-making processes are fair, they display a high level of voluntary cooperation based on their attitudes of trust and commitment. Conversely, when people feel that the processes are unfair, they refuse to cooperate by hoarding ideas and dragging their feet in conceiving and executing strategic decisions. We further develop this argument into team performance wherein the attitudinal and behavioral effects of procedural justice are corroborated with theory and initial evidence of their bottom-line performance consequences. We then build a theory, which we call intellectual and emotional recognition theory, that can explain why procedural justice invokes the side of human behavior that goes beyond outcome-driven self-interests and that is so critical in the knowledge economy. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Quality information and knowledge

Abstract: 1. Why Quality Information and Knowledge? Two Propositions. Create Knowledge with Quality Information. Book Organization. 2. Manage Information as a Product. Social and Business Impacts. Social Impacts. Business Impacts. Customer Service. Management Support. Bottom Line. Fundamental Concepts. Information versus Data. From Product to Information Manufacturing. Information Manufacturing Systems. The Information System Development Cycle. The Total Data Quality Management (TDQM) Cycle. Dimensions of Information Quality. The Information Product Manager. Managing Information as a Product-The Four Principles. Managing Information as a Byproduct Will Not Work. What Is Managed? How Is It Managed? Why Is It Managed? What Is Success? Who Manages It? Appoint the Information Product Manager. The De Facto Information Product Manager. Information Product Manager's Responsibilities. Establish an Information Quality Program. Conclusion. 3.Define Information Quality. The Information System Perspective. Data Deficiency. Design Deficiencies. Operation Deficiencies. Some Implications of Information Systems Design. The Information Consumer Perspective. Fitness for Use. Dimensions of IQ. Define IQ in Organizational Context. Method. Intrinsic IQ Pattern. Problem Analysis and Solutions. Accessibility IQ Pattern. Contextual IQ Pattern. Implications for IS Professionals. Conclusion. 4. Measure, Analyze, and Improve IQ. Measure IQ. Subjective IQ Metrics. Dimensional IQ Assessment. IQ Knowledge Assessment. Objective, Application-Independent Metrics. Application-Dependent IQ Metrics. Analyze IQ. IQ Assessment (IQA). Survey Results Analysis: A Case Study. Integrity Analyzera. Data Integrity. Frequency Checks. Improve IQ. Conclusion. Appendix: IQA Survey. 5. Create Organizational Knowledge. Organizational Alzheimer's Disease. Information and Experience Are Knowledge Sources. Information Contains Knowledge. Experience Manifests Knowledge. What Is Organizational Knowledge? Organizational Knowledge in Three Modes. Assess Organizational Knowledge. Why Create Organizational Knowledge? How to Create Organizational Knowledge. Eyewear Company Revisited. Conclusion. Appendix: IQK Survey. 6. Manage Knowledge as Assets. Power of Collective Knowledge. What Is Knowledge Management? Why Knowledge Management? How to Manage Knowledge Assets. Platform for Knowledge Management. Ten Strategies for Knowledge Management. Competency Networks. Conclusion. 7. Create Customized Solutions. Defining Intellectual Capital, Intellectual Asset, and Solution. Intellectual Capital. Intellectual Asset and Solution. Harvesting and Hardening Assets for Reuse. Knowledge Asset Reuse Process. Intellectual Capital from Project Information. Customized Solutions from Customer Knowledge. Knowledge Asset Development Process. Competency Leader. Asset Manager. Knowledge Architect. Asset Publisher. Asset Broker. Enterprise Knowledge Structure. Requirements for Asset Identification. Selection Criteria for Asset Hunting. Life Cycle Management. Quality of Intellectual Capital. Levels of Life Cycle. From Data to Knowledge. Data and Knowledge Mining. Knowledge Cockpit. Customer Information. Market Information. Business Experiences. Data Warehouses. Network Agents as Knowledge Intermediaries. Network Agents in Electronic Commerce. Verification Driven Agent. Discovery-Driven Agent. Text Mining. Information Filtering. Collaborative Filtering. Conclusion. 8. Network Knowledge Infrastructure. Corporate Knowledge Infrastructure. Knowledge Architecture for the Extended Enterprise. Design Requirements. The Internet, Intranets, and Extranets. Intranets for Knowledge Sharing and Collaboration. ICM AssetWeb. Competency Networks. Best Practice. Navigator. Idea Generation and Team Collaboration. Issue-Based Structured Collaboration. Shared Central Repository. Capture Team Dialog and Issue Resolution. Managing Team's Knowledge. Extranets for Customer Care Management. Net Car Dealerships. Groupware for Collaboration. The Internet and Intranets for Networked Communication. Security. Conclusion. 9. Prosper in the Digital Economy. Knowledge-based Economy. Competitive Drivers. Innovation. Responsiveness. Productivity. Competency. Competing for Intellectual Influence. Helping Customers to Win. Empowering Knowledge Workers to Execute. Configuring Business Partners to Team. A Web-based Advisor. Transforming the Future of Life. Networked Life. Knowledge Sharing and Mining. Being Virtual rather than Physical. Conclusion. Information Quality Bibliography. Knowledge Management Bibliography. Glossary. Index.

Computer-aided systems and communities: mechanisms for organizational learning in distributed environments

Abstract: This paper examines the role of computer-aided systems (CAS) for enhancing organizational learning in distributed environments. The basic research questions are: how do features of CAS enhance organizational learning, and how does organizational context influence the role of CAS in organizational learning?The theoretical framework focuses on the decision to contribute and adopt knowledge in distributed environments. Specifically, we investigate the intersections between the features of CAS and inhibitors to contributing or adopting knowledge, in the light of different organizational context variables.Two cases of information environments for knowledge sharing are examined: a formal electronic library system and an informal community that uses a variety of communication technologies. The cases are used to illustrate how the intersection between CAS features and the decisions to adopt and contribute enhance or inhibit knowledge sharing.

Enterprise knowledge management

Abstract: Many enterprises downsize to adapt to more competitive environments, but unless they have captured the knowledge of their employees, downsizing can result in a loss of critical information. Similarly, as employees leave, organizations are likely to lose access to large quantities of critical knowledge. As companies expand internationally, geographic barriers can affect knowledge exchange and prevent easy access to information. These and other forces are pushing enterprises to explore better methods for knowledge management. Enterprise knowledge management entails formally managing knowledge resources, typically by using advanced information technology. KM is formal in that knowledge is classified and categorized according to a prespecified, but evolving, ontology into structured and semistructured data and knowledge bases. The overriding purpose of enterprise KM is to make knowledge accessible and reusable to the enterprise. The business world is becoming so concerned about knowledge management that, according to one report, over 40 percent of the Fortune 1000 now have a chief knowledge officer, a senior-level executive responsible for creating an infrastructure and cultural environment for knowledge sharing. This article surveys some components of this young field.

A Socio‐Technical View of Knowledge Sharing at Buckman Laboratories

Abstract: This empirical study reports a unique implementation process of knowledge sharing from Buckman Laboratories. Through a socio‐technical perspective on Knowledge Management, this paper highlights the interplay between Knowledge Management systems and the organizational context.

World development report 1998/1999 : knowledge for development

Abstract: This is the twenty-first in the annual series assessing major development issues. This report acknowledges that knowledge, not capital, is the key to sustained economic growth and improvements in human well-being. It distinguishes between two sorts of knowledge: knowledge about technology, called technical knowledge or simply know-how, and knowledge about attributes, that is, knowledge about products, processes, or institutions. The report focuses on the relationship between the unequal distribution in know-how (knowledge gaps) across and within countries and the difficulties posed by having incomplete knowledge of attributes (information problems). In the first of three parts, the report discusses the importance of knowledge to development, and the risks and opportunities that the information revolution poses for developing countries. It then examines three critical steps that developing countries must take to narrow knowledge gaps: acquiring knowledge, absorbing knowledge, and communicating knowledge. Part 2 discusses the nature and extent of information problems, specific information problems, and three areas where information problems are most severe, namely in financial information, in environmental research, and in listening to the poor. Part 3 summarizes what knowledge and information requirements mean for developing government and international institution policies.

Corporate Memory: Strategies For Knowledge Management

Abstract: From the Publisher: Corporate Memory: Strategies for Knowledge Management shows the innovative manager how to explore his company's intangible asset, identify knowledge within his organization culture and look towards knowledge sharing. This book will help you identify whether your company is a 'knowledge-based company'; understand the context for knowledge management within your organization; determine the culture of your organization and determine to what extent it will support knowledge sharing; understand the ways your company generates knowledge, thus determining whether you are using it to its potential or losing it; survey, elicit and capture knowledge; design and mount a campaign to identify critical knowledge functions; design a collaborative knowledge generating venture; and put together an action plan to build the right infrastructure to support knowledge sharing in your organization.

Cooperative ERP Life-cycle Knowledge Management

Abstract: Strategic alliances between ERP software vendors, their implementation partners and clients, for knowledge sharing and integrated knowledge management across the ERP life-cycle, hold promise for leveraging scarce expertise and human resources, thereby streamlining implementation and promoting growth of the market. SAP's significant market presence offers a unique opportunity to encourage such a tripartite ERP knowledge management framework. This industry-academe collaborative study will account for existing knowledge management facilities, approaches and technology; explore alternative responsibility and role sharing scenarios; define a broad system architecture; and propose strategies to promote the framework across SAP, its clients and partners.

The Toyota Group and the Aisin Fire

Abstract: The collaborative response of Toyota's suppliers to a devastating crisis holds lessons for businesses adopting the Japanese model of long-term supplier partnerships and for businesses moving away from that model. The cooperation and trust that develop in a supplier network promote flexible and coordinated responses to crises. They also foster long-term competitiveness through groupwide efforts to solve daily problems and improve performance. On February 1, 1997, a fire erupted at one of Aisin Seiki's plants. Aisin was the sole supplier of proportioning valves, a brake-related part used in all Toyota vehicles. Because Toyota and Aisin operated in a just-in-time environment, only a small supply of stock was on hand, and a costly shutdown of Toyota-group plants seemed unavoidable. Yet, through a self-organized effort by firms inside and outside the Toyota group to establish alternative P-valve production sites, assembly plants were reopened after only two days of shutdown. The effort was orchestrated with only limited direct control from Toyota and with no conflict over technical proprietary rights or financial compensation. The episode demonstrates the benefits of clustered firm networks. In a JIT environment, workers and managers acquire capabilities for effective problem solving. Several practices within the Toyota group, including knowledge sharing and regular transfers of employees among group firms, support efforts to develop these capabilities. These practices facilitate learning, encourage teamwork, and foster common understandings of operations among group members. Cooperation is also promoted by Toyota, which disseminates general approaches, giving firms the tools to self-organize and deal autonomously with emerging problems. Emulating Toyota's model is not easy. Nevertheless, by investing in supplier capabilities and promoting knowledge sharing among suppliers, firms can reap substantial gains in long-term competitive performance.

Knowledge sharing at buckman labs

Abstract: The specialty chemical maker's CEO explains how his firm became a leader in managing knowledge.

The Social Embeddedness of Knowledge Problems of Knowledge Sharing and Organisational Learning in International High-Technology Ventures

Abstract: The growing importance of knowledge-based competition has prompted many firms to build international cooperative ventures for skills acquisition and knowledge building. Based on an empirical study of a close collaboration in the knowledge intensive area between a British and a Japanese high-technology firm, the paper examines how the socially embedded nature of knowledge can impede cross-national collaborative work and knowledge sharing. The paper uses Michael Polanyi's concept of 'tacit knowledge' in a much wider societal context. It develops a conceptual model for analysing the main differences and 'points of friction' between the British 'professional' and the Japanese 'organisational' models of organisation of knowledge in high-level technical work. It shows how the dominant form of knowledge held in organisations, its degree of tacitness, and the way in which it is structured, utilised and transmitted can vary considerably between firms in different societal settings. The study demonstrates a strong presence of 'societal effects' on the knowledge base of the firm and how this might impose a limit on knowledge sharing and organisational learning across national boundaries.

Community computing : collaboration over global information networks

Abstract: CommunityWare - concept and practice bridging humans via agent networks freeWalk - supporting casual meetings in a network market-based QoS control for incorporating human preferences the knowledgeable community - knowledge sharing among humans agent augmented reality - agents integrate the real world with cyberspace ICMAS '96 mobile assistance project - massive mobile computing for communities.

Knowledge as a Public Good: Efficient Sharing and Incentives for Development Effort

Abstract: We consider Research-Development joint ventures where adverse selection arises in knowledge sharing, while there is moral hazard involved in the choice of private development efforts aimed at translating privately acquired and/or shared knowledge into valuable marketable innovations. We extend earlier work by Bhattacharya et al. [Bhattacharya, S., Glazer, J., Sappington, D., 1992. Licensing and the Sharing of Knowledge in Research Joint Ventures, J. Econ. Theory, Vol. 56, pp. 43–69.] to situations where one cannot identify a `most knowledgeable' partner, by giving conditions under which there exist transfers implementing both efficient first best knowledge sharing and subsequent development efforts.

Libraries of reusable models : Theory and application

Abstract: Setting up a simulation model is more than writing down state equations and running them on a computer. A lot of conceptual information about the physics and engineering aspects of the system must ...

Knowledge logistics in business contexts: analyzing and diagnosing knowledge sharing by logistics concepts

Abstract: Knowledge sharing is regarded by many management scientists as a main factor to evaluate organizational learning and knowledge management performance in organizations. Therefore, it is important to develop instruments for the analysis and diagnosis of knowledge sharing. Unfortunately, management practice and science lack instruments to evaluate the effectiveness of knowledge sharing within and between organizational units. This paper explores the possibilities of logistic concepts in analyzing and diagnosing knowledge sharing. Because the logistics concepts have been developed in physical/material elements sharing, it might be impractical or misdirecting in the virtual/knowledge area. Consequently, each concept has been evaluated to its practicability for knowledge-sharing analysis and diagnosis, leading to the KNOWLOG instrument and further understandings of the nature of knowledge sharing. These insights and the instrument are applied to three cases: a knowledge logistics coordinator, a high-tech equipment manufacturer and an IT consultancy/software company. The author concludes with pros and cons for the knowledge logistics approach to the effective management of knowledge sharing.

Knowledge Sharing Agents Over the World Wide Web

Abstract: Large and increasing amounts of information are now available both on the Internet and on corporate intranets. With the availability of these vast networked information resources comes a requirement for tools to manage the information and provide users with the information they want, when they want it. This paper describes a system which facilitates and encourages the sharing of knowledge between groups of users within (or perhaps across) organisations. KSE (knowledge sharing environment) is a system of information agents for organising, summarising and sharing knowledge from a number of sources, including the World Wide Web, an organisation's internal intranet or from other users. Users are organised into closed user groups or communities of interest with related or overlapping interests. Such groups could be members of a project team, students studying the same subject (perhaps at different institutions), members of an organisational department, and so on. As well as sharing explicit (codified) knowledge, the sharing of tacit knowledge is encouraged via the automatic suggestion of, and support for, contact between people with mutual concerns or interests.

Learning in organisational memory systems: an intelligent decision support perspective

Abstract: In this paper we discuss organisational memory systems in a modern organisation. In such an environment work activity assumes not only task performance, but also the review and re-assessment of the work done in order to understand and learn from the experience. These latter aspects represent 'knowledge work'. From the point of view of knowledge work, an enhanced decision support systems approach can be applied to accommodate tasks that have an organisational dimension, involve a range of knowledge processes, address multiple use in recurring situations, and involve many users. We term such an approach Intelligent Decision Support (IDS) with an OMS as an integral component. In the IDS approach, organisational effectiveness is addressed by facilitating learning in the organisation, which is supported by access to the organisational knowledge stored in the OMS. We propose a schema to facilitate such learning processes by building and preserving instances and episodes of individual work as Specific Domain Models. In IDS, these models can also serve other purposes, in particular, as mechanisms for knowledge sharing and reuse, further enhancing organisational effectiveness.

Energizing the nexus of corporate knowledge: a portal toward the virtual organization

Abstract: In the age of virtual organizations, managers and experts cease to be lone custodians of the corporate knowledge base. Knowledge must be shared across cultural and time-space boundaries to create strategic frontiers in global and virtual enterprises. However, we believe that organizations have barely scratched the surface of the “knowledge sharing game” played across virtual environments. In technology-based organizations, for example, technical knowledge must be meticulously captured and conveyed in a highly cognitive manner to have substantive benefits in raising the competence and productivity of globally-dispersed workers. In this light, we contend that richer forms of knowledge/media representations, such as virtual reality (VR) and 3D imagery, could be creatively utilized to enable improvements in knowledge management, especially within virtual workspace. We further argue that organizational learning evolves to a higher level only when knowledge management is radically improved and effectively exploits “organizational memory” with the aid of IT (Stein and Zwass 1995). This paper explores how a technology-based firm, APV Anhydro, has extracted technical knowledge from its experts and creatively presented such knowledge in rich media representations using VR/3D technologies. This enabled APV to share rich technical knowledge across its global marketing operations, and as a consequence, accelerated its organizational learning process.

Synergy Effects of Sharing Knowledge During Cooperative Product Design

Abstract: Individual designers have a limited range of knowledge, but the scope of such knowledge can be enlarged by sharing informa tion, either among separate groups of designers or among individual designers within one group The possibilities for generating new design solutions which cannot be obtained by an isolated designer, or by the simple addition of knowledge from other independent designers, are first discussed with reference to knowledge sharing in cooperative projects. Possibilities for creating new knowledge come into existence when designers in different fields share what they know. But cooperative work is feasible only when each partner can mutually benefit from sharing their knowledge. Second, a numerical measure for determining the viability of such cooperative work is proposed and practical pro cedures for determining the viability of cooperative work with designers are constructed. In the proposed decision-making method, synergy effects can be quantitatively evaluated by viewing changes in the Pa...

A system for visualizing the viewpoints of information and its application to intelligent activity support

Abstract: The authors have built and evaluated several systems to assist creative concept formation by professional engineers and scientists. Through experiments, it has become clear that a system that can reveal different viewpoints automatically is strongly needed by many users to support their creative activities. We are all surrounded by an almost infinite amount of information. If we can elicit different viewpoints from large information sources, we can arrive at new understandings that could not have been possible through discussions with other persons alone. This paper presents a system that automatically elicits and visualizes different viewpoints of authors concerning certain topics from a text database of journal and conference papers. Users can review different viewpoints of a topic of interest by looking at a space configured by the system. Through interaction with the system, users are expected to build their own concepts creatively. The effect of promoting creative concept formation and other benefits, such as enhanced information retrieval and knowledge sharing, have been validated by several experiments.

Knowledge sharing and reuse for engineering design integration

Abstract: Completion of complex engineering designs (e.g. the design of offshore oil platforms, ships, etc.) often involves a number of agents who have to share or reuse design models within a distributed environment. This article presents a knowledge sharing workbench which enables agents to share common domain knowledge, based on the problems which emerge in the design process. The workbench includes Application Programming Interfaces provided by expert system shells, an Object Request Broker, and a number of ontologies to facilitate the construction of new knowledge-based systems. In addition, the distributed knowledge acquisition tools generated by the workbench can maintain model consistency between agents when specification changes occur in any of the agents. A case study from the petrochemical industry is used to illustrate the use of workbench for the integration of a number of agents. This case study demonstrates that a process flow knowledge model in an offshore petrochemical plant, designed for operational purposes (e.g. fault diagnosis), can be reused to form part of a new knowledge-based system which generates the data for plant layout design.

Information and Knowledge Sharing for Distributed Design Agents

Abstract: Today, engineering organisations place much emphasis on ensuring that the design phase of a project is carried out as thoroughly as possible. Emerging computing technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) are increasingly being adopted to aid in the expertise needed for successful design. Similarly, emerging standards for Electronic Data Interchange (EDI), such as ISO 10303 (STEP), are enabling better communication in engineering through the standardisation of information. By combining technologies such as these it is possible to develop computerised systems which allow both information and knowledge to be shared more efficiently.

Personalizing Museum Exhibition by Mediating Agents

Abstract: We have proposed Meta-Museum as a new knowledge sharing environment where experts and novices can communicate with each other with agent support. Museum exhibitions are thought to be well organized representations of the expert knowledge of curators, but they are just one example of structures of knowledge among many possibilities, given to museum visitors in a one-sided way. Therefore, traditional museum exhibitions can hardly meet the vast requirements of general visitors who possess a variety of interests. In this paper, we propose agents to mediate between curators and visitors, so that both sides can convey their interests and knowledge to one another and gain a better understanding. These mediating agents visualize the semantic relations of displays as a two-dimensional spatial structure based on the viewpoints of the curators and visitors separately, and then together. The structures reflect the interests of the visitors, while maintaining the knowledge of the curators.

Vygotsky in a TeamRoom: an exploratory study on collective concept formation in electronic environments

Abstract: The effective use of distributed collaboration environments requires shared mental models that guide users in sense-making and categorization. In Lotus Notes-based collaboration systems, such shared models are usually implemented as views and document types. TeamRoom, developed at Lotus Institute, implements in its design a theory of effective social process that creates a set of team-specific categories, which can then be used as a basis for knowledge sharing collaboration, and team memory. The paper reports an exploratory study in collective concept formation in the TeamRoom environment. The study was run in an ecological setting, while the team members used the system for their everyday work. The author applies theory developed by Lev Vygotsky, and use a modified version of an experiment on concept formation, devised by Lev Sakharov, and discussed by Vygotsky (1986). Vygotsky emphasized the role of language, cognitive artifacts, and historical and social sources in the development of thought processes. Within the Vygotskian framework it becomes clear that development of thinking does not end in adolescence. In teams of adults, learning and knowledge creation are continuous processes. New concepts are created shared, and developed into systems. The question, then, becomes how spontaneous concepts are collectively generated in teams, how they become integrated as systems, and how computer mediated collaboration environments affect these processes.

The experience of technological collaborations by MERCOSUR companies

Abstract: This paper examines some of the experiences in information and knowledge sharing involving MERCOSUR firm. It finds that while technological collaborations by MERCOSUR firms are relatively few, located in low-tech sectors and taking place in an environment of little innovation, they are motivated by the need to ‘fuse’ their own knowledge with that of partner or to improve available information. Modes of governance vary accordingly, with equity or contractual forms being used for new developments and informal agreements for improvements. Govmments and business associations can be important facilitators of technological collaborations. The analysis of technological collaborations suggested that the better prepared a corporation entered an agreement the more successful it was likely to be. It also pointed out that where interactions were intense, well intended and transparent, included personnel exchanges, were properly assessed and involved receptive participants, learning progressed smoothly and partners we...

Collaborative value filtering on the Web

Abstract: Today''s Internet search engines help users locate information based on the textual similarity of a query and potential documents. Given the large number of documents available, the user often finds too many documents, and even if the textual similarity is high, in many cases the matching documents are not relevant or of interest. Our goal is to explore other ways to decide if documents are "of value" to the user, i.e., to perform what we call "value filtering." In particular, we would like to capture access information that may tell us-within limits of privacy concerns-which user groups are accessing what data, and how frequently. This information can then guide users, for example, helping identify information that is popular, or that may have helped others before. This is a type of collaborative filtering or community-based navigation. Access information can either be gathered by the servers that provide the information, or by the clients themselves. Tracing accesses at servers is simple, but often information providers are not willing to share this information. We therefore are exploring client-side gathering. Companies like Alexa are currently using client gathering in the large. We are studying client gathering at a much smaller scale, where a small community of users with shared interest collectively track their information accesses. For this, we have developed a proxy system called the Knowledge Sharing System (KSS) that monitors the behavior of a community of users. Through this system we hope to: 1. Develop mechanisms for sharing browsing expertise among a community of users; and 2. Better understand the access patterns of a group of people with common interests, and develop good schemes for sharing this information.

Representing scientific experiments: implications for ontology design and knowledge sharing

Abstract: As part of the development of knowledge sharing technology, it is necessary to consider a variety of domains and tasks in order to ensure that the shared framework is widely applicable This paper describes an ontology design project in experimental molecular biology, focusing on extensions to previous ontological models and frame-based formalisms that allow us to handle problems in the representation of experimental science knowledge We define object histories, which are used to track substances through a series of experimental processes, including those which transform their participants from one category to another We define object and process complexestemporary configurations with features of their own We present extensions to a frame-based formalism to support these features Additional features of our frame formalism include slot groups for identifying sets of relations with common properties, and partial filler restrictions that combine knowledge of the most likely slot values with the ability to handle unexpected values We demonstrate how these extensions enable the use of (relatively) domain independent inference rules, support intelligent information retrieval, and improve the quality of query interfaces; and we describe the translation of our formalism into Ontolingua