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Full-Text Articles in Engineering

A Particle Swarm Optimization Using Random Keys For Flexible Flow Shop Scheduling Problem With Sequence Dependent Setup Times, Vinodh Sankaran Dec 2009

A Particle Swarm Optimization Using Random Keys For Flexible Flow Shop Scheduling Problem With Sequence Dependent Setup Times, Vinodh Sankaran

All Theses

In this research, a particle swarm optimization algorithm (PSO) using random keys is developed to schedule flexible flow lines with sequence dependent setup times to minimize makespan. The flexible flow line scheduling problem is a branch of production scheduling and is found in industries such as printed circuit board and automobile manufacturing. It is well known that this problem is NP-hard. For this reason, we approach the problem by implementing a particle swarm optimization (PSO), a metaheuristic which is inspired by the motion of a flock of birds or a school of fish searching for food. The proposed PSO has …


A Logistic Regression Model To Predict Incident Severity Using The Human Factors Analysis And Classification System, Hrishikesh Kavade Dec 2009

A Logistic Regression Model To Predict Incident Severity Using The Human Factors Analysis And Classification System, Hrishikesh Kavade

All Theses

The Human Factors Analysis and Classification System (HFACS) is used to help identify causal factors that lead to human error. The framework has been used in a variety of industries to identify leading contributing factors of unsafe events, such as accidents, incidents and near misses. While traditional application of the HFACS framework to safety outcomes has allowed evaluators to identify leading causal issues based on frequency, little has been done to gain a more comprehensive view of the system's total risk. This work utilizes the concept of event severity along with the HFACS framework to help better identify target areas …


Effectiveness Of Team-Building And Teamwork In Real And Virtual Worlds, Rachana Ranade Dec 2009

Effectiveness Of Team-Building And Teamwork In Real And Virtual Worlds, Rachana Ranade

All Theses

Given the increasing importance of globalization and collaboration, this research investigates the possibility of performing team-building training for globally dispersed teams using the capabilities of the virtual world Second Life. Three meeting conditions, the 3D virtual world Second Life, a combination of face-to-face and Second Life and face-to-face were evaluated. Thirty randomly assigned 3 person teams performed an ice-breaker session and then a team-building activity in each meeting condition. Four dependent variables were measured: task completion time; quality of task performance; the subjective satisfaction with the process based on group cohesiveness, perception of the process and satisfaction with the outcome; …


Thermoelastic Behavior Of A Small Bearing Cage, Eric Planting Dec 2009

Thermoelastic Behavior Of A Small Bearing Cage, Eric Planting

All Theses

The full field non contact measurement of objects undergoing testing is one of interest for manufacturers of parts which are graded on their longevity. Unfortunately, for homogenous small parts with irregular geometries, such as bearing cages, the solution for testing is typically to use only a FEA model and compliment the testing of the model with simply cyclically loading the sample until failure. To better understand the stresses and behavior of a small object Thermoelasticity can be employed in order to see in a full field technique what stress patterns exist and their correlation to a FEA model.
The FEA …


Effects Of Meeting Spaces On The Performance Of A Concept Selection Task By Engineering Design Teams, Necmettin Ozkan Aug 2009

Effects Of Meeting Spaces On The Performance Of A Concept Selection Task By Engineering Design Teams, Necmettin Ozkan

All Theses

Given the increasing importance of collaboration and the resulting use of virtual tools, this research investigates the performance of engineering design teams using a concept selection task in three meeting spaces, face-to-face, 2D online and 3D virtual. Cisco's WebEx and Sun Microsystems' Wonderland were used as the 2D online meeting space and the 3D virtual environment, respectively. Twenty-four two-person design teams were formed and randomly assigned to the meeting spaces. Eight teams performed a cell-phone concept selection task in each meeting space. Four dependent variables were measured: task completion time, team satisfaction, self-evaluated quality and expert-evaluated quality. Following data collection, …


Design Of A Multi-Echelon Global Supply Chain Network With Microsoftå¨ Excel Premium Solver Plataform, Wilder Ferreira May 2009

Design Of A Multi-Echelon Global Supply Chain Network With Microsoftå¨ Excel Premium Solver Plataform, Wilder Ferreira

All Theses

I designed a global supply chain distribution model of one single product, with the objective of minimizing the costs of transportation, handling materials, duties and tariffs, production, and fixed infrastructure. The distribution network has a combination of manufacturing facilities (fixed and to-be-determined), warehouses (to-be-determined), distribution centers (to-be-determined), and customer zones at fixed locations. This network design is similar to the mathematical mixed-integer linear model from Tsiakis, Shah and Pantelides (2001). This model has been implemented in Microsoft Excel, using the Standard Simplex method from Frontline, Inc. This model optimizes the number of facilities worldwide (multi-echelon) along with the flow of …