Contact Professor Miying Yang
Background
Miying joined Cranfield University in August 2021 as Reader in Sustainability. Prior to this, she obtained her PhD degree at the Department of Engineering at the University of Cambridge, worked as Research Fellow in Sustainable Manufacturing at Cranfield University (2016), and at the University of Exeter as a Lecturer in Engineering Management (2017-2021) and subsequently Senior Lecturer (2021). Miying was a visiting scholar at Stanford University (2018). She has been the external examiner for Master programmes for Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (2022-2025) and Bath University (2019-2023), and PhD external examiner for the University of Cambridge (four times) and University De Technologie Troyes (2022).
Research opportunities
As an academic, Miying is passionate about research in Sustainability Innovation. Her work focuses on how to make manufacturing and supply chain more sustainable and circular through digitalisation and business model innovation. Miying has received research grants from EPSRC, ESRC, STFC, Royal Society and EU COST, and have published paper in leeading journals, including Nature Reviews Clean Technology. She has received three Most Cited/Downloaded Paper Awards and two Best Paper Awards at international conferences.
Currently, Miying is leading the Circular Economy Theme of £1.8m EPSRC Robotriage project and serves as Chair of Early-Career Researchers Committee for the EU COST MultiViewLCAS project.
Miying is looking for highly motivated PhD students to join in one or more of the following areas:
- Digital Innovation for Energy and Resource Efficiency
- Digital Technologies for Circular Economy
- Circular Business Model Innovation
- Industrial Decarbonisation through Efficiency
As a teacher, Miying enjoys working with highly motivated students and love to see her students making progress. She initiated and led the Sustainable Manufacturing module at University of Exeter and is currently leading the Leading Sustainable Business module on MBA and EMBA programmes at Cranfield University.
Current activities
As a trained engineer transitioning to a management school, Miying likes to explore the synergies between engineering and management studies. She enjoys working with industries and is enthusiastic about developing new methods from my research to solve real problems faced in companies. She developed a Sustainable Value Analysis Tool to help over 100 firms identify their sustainable value opportunities.
Publications
Articles In Journals
- Cullen E, Yang M, Pexas G & Sule MN. (2026). Hidden in plain sight – using a scoping review to reveal the neglected sachet economy crisis. Cleaner and Responsible Consumption, 20
- Yang M & Evans S. (2025). Rapid decarbonization requires industrial efficiency. Nature Reviews Clean Technology, 1(1)
- Li T, You J, Aktas E, Dong Y & Yang M. (2025). Risk assessment for digital transformation projects in construction Enterprises: an enhanced FMEA model. Expert Systems with Applications, 274
- Li H, Liu G, Wang H, Wen X, Xie G, .... (2024). Mechanical movement data acquisition method based on the multilayer neural networks and machine vision in a digital twin environment. Digital Twin, 1(4)
- Liu W, Liu X, Liu Y, Wang J, Evans S, .... (2023). Unpacking additive manufacturing challenges and opportunities in moving towards sustainability: an exploratory study. Sustainability, 15(4)
- Liu H-C, Liu R, Gu X & Yang M. (2023). From total quality management to Quality 4.0: a systematic literature review and future research agenda. Frontiers of Engineering Management, 10(2)
- Liu Q & Yang M. (2023). Sustainable Value Co-creation in the Circular Economy through Digitalization. Academy of Management Proceedings, 2023(1)
- Liu Y, Yang M & Guo Z. (2022). Reinforcement learning based optimal decision making towards product lifecycle sustainability. International Journal of Computer Integrated Manufacturing, 35(10-11)
- Liu Q, Hofmann Trevisan A, Yang M & Mascarenhas J. (2022). A framework of digital technologies for the circular economy: digital functions and mechanisms. Business Strategy and the Environment, 31(5)
- Bleischwitz R, Yang M, Huang B, Xu X, Zhou J, .... (2022). The circular economy in China: achievements, challenges and potential implications for decarbonisation. Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 183(August)
- Qin W, Zhuang Z, Sun Y, Liu Y & Yang M. (2022). An available-to-promise stochastic model for order promising based on dynamic resource reservation policy. International Journal of Production Research, 61(16)
- Li H, Ma W, Wang H, Liu G, Wen X, .... (2022). A framework and method for Human-Robot cooperative safe control based on digital twin. Advanced Engineering Informatics, 53
- Yang M, Fu M & Zhang Z. (2021). The adoption of digital technologies in supply chains: Drivers, process and impact. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 169
- Liu Q, Yang L & Yang M. (2021). Digitalisation for water sustainability: Barriers to implementing circular economy in smart water management. Sustainability, 13(21)
- Wang N, Ren S, Liu Y, Yang M, Wang J, .... (2020). An active preventive maintenance approach of complex equipment based on a novel product-service system operation mode. Journal of Cleaner Production, 277
- Liu Y, Zhang Y, Ren S, Yang M, Wang Y, .... (2020). How can smart technologies contribute to sustainable product lifecycle management?. Journal of Cleaner Production, 249
- Liu H-C, Yang M, Zhou M & Tian G. (2019). An Integrated Multi-Criteria Decision Making Approach to Location Planning of Electric Vehicle Charging Stations. IEEE Transactions on Intelligent Transportation Systems, 20(1)
- Li H, Yang M & Evans S. (2019). Classifying different types of modularity for technical system. International Journal of Technology Management, 81(1-2)
- Yang M & Evans S. (2019). Product-service system business model archetypes and sustainability. Journal of Cleaner Production, 220(J. Clean. Prod. 141 2017)
- Evans S, Li H & Yang M. (2019). Classifying different types of modularity for technical system. International Journal of Technology Management, 81(1/2)
- Yang M, Smart P, Kumar M, Jolly MR & Evans S. (2018). Product-service systems business models for circular supply chains. Production Planning & Control, 29(6)
- Zhang W, Shi Y, Yang M, Gu X, Tang R, .... (2017). Ecosystem evolution mechanism of manufacturing service system driven by service providers. International Journal of Production Research, 55(12)
- Yang M, Vladimirova D & Evans S. (2017). Creating and Capturing Value Through Sustainability. Research-Technology Management, 60(3)
- Evans S, Vladimirova D, Holgado M, Van Fossen K, Yang M, .... (2017). Business Model Innovation for Sustainability: Towards a Unified Perspective for Creation of Sustainable Business Models. Business Strategy and the Environment, 26(5)
- Yang M, Evans S, Vladimirova D & Rana P. (2017). Value uncaptured perspective for sustainable business model innovation. Journal of Cleaner Production, 140
- Yang M, Vladimirova D, Rana P & Evans S. (2014). Sustainable value analysis tool for value creation. Asian J. of Management Science and Applications, 1(4)
Conference Papers
- Despeisse M, Acerbi F, Arioli V, Childe S, Colombo B, .... (2024). Research challenges for eco-efficient and circular industrial systems
- Trevisan AH, Zacharias IS, Liu Q, Yang M & Mascarenhas J. (2021). CIRCULAR ECONOMY AND DIGITAL TECHNOLOGIES: A REVIEW OF THE CURRENT RESEARCH STREAMS
- Yang M, Luis M, Hermawan D, Herlina L, Nayak R, .... (2021). Designing a research tool for sustainable aquaculture project
- Lobo A, Hofmann Trevisan A, Liu Q, Yang M & Mascarenhas J. (2021). Barriers to transitioning towards smart circular economy: A systematic literature review
- Li H, Ji Y, Li Q, Yang M & Evens S. (2018). A methodology for module portfolio planning within the service solution layer of a product–service system
- Despeisse M, Yang M, Evans S, Ford S & Minshall T. (2017). Sustainable Value Roadmapping Framework for Additive Manufacturing
- Ruan X, Ochieng E, Zuofa T & Yang M. (2016). An appraisal of lean construction project delivery application of lean construction
- Holgado M, Evans S, Vladimirova D & Yang M. (2015). An Internal Perspective of Business Model Innovation in Manufacturing Companies
Books
- Yang M. (2024). Enhancing the integration between teaching and research in sustainability subjects In Handbook on Teaching and Learning in Operations Management. Edward Elgar Publishing.
- Kuang X, Yang M & Evans S. (2021). Re-envisioning sustainability: circular economy and flourishing as promising paths In Gupta K & Salonitis K (eds), Sustainable Manufacturing. Elsevier.
- Kuang X, Yang M & Evans S. (2021). Re-envisioning sustainability: Circular economy and flourishing as promising paths In Sustainable Manufacturing.
- Yang M. (2020). Product-service system business models and circular economy In The Routledge Handbook of Waste, Resources and the Circular Economy. Routledge.
- Yang M, Rana P & Evans S. (2018). Engineering for Sustainable Value In Value Creation through Engineering Excellence. Springer International Publishing.
- Evans S, Fernando L & Yang M. (2017). Sustainable Value Creation—From Concept Towards Implementation In Sustainable Production, Life Cycle Engineering and Management. Springer International Publishing.
