Operations Research, Systems Engineering and Industrial Engineering Commons^™

Scheduling Strategies For Construction Project Managers Toward On Time Delivery, Paul Shamp

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Construction management projects involve complex, dynamic environments resulting in uncertainty and risk, compounded by demanding time constraints. Research indicated project managers have struggled to identify best practices for scheduling construction projects via critical path methodologies while searching for tools to increase timely job completions and budget profits. The purpose of this single case study was to explore the strategies that construction project managers used to manage scheduled construction project delivery on time. The constructivist philosophical worldview was used as the framework for this study. Data were collected from semistructured interviews from 7 project managers from 5 different construction companies selected …

A Method For Key Performance Indicator Assessment In Manufacturing Organizations, Patrick Hester, Barry Ezell, Andrew Collins, John Horst, Kaleen Lawsure

VMASC Publications

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) are an essential element of an organization’s ability to monitor its strategic health, helping to ensure the strategic goals of the organization are achieved. However, KPI assessment and improvement is often an ad hoc and consultant-driven process rather than one undertaken using scientific principles. This paper outlines the development and subsequent deployment of a method for KPI assessment founded in scholarly literature and balancing practitioner concerns for ease of use. The proposed method draws heavily on organizational stakeholder involvement at varying levels throughout the KPI assessment process, improving current methods by introducing a mathematical foundation based …

Programming Problems On Time Scales: Theory And Computation, Rasheed Basheer Al-Salih

Doctoral Dissertations

"In this dissertation, novel formulations for several classes of programming problems are derived and proved using the time scales technique. The new formulations unify the discrete and continuous programming models and extend them to other cases "in between." Moreover, the new formulations yield the exact optimal solution for the programming problems on arbitrary isolated time scales, which solve an important open problem. Throughout this dissertation, six distinct classes of programming problems are presented as follows. First, the primal as well as the dual time scales linear programming models on arbitrary time scales are formulated. Second, separated linear programming primal and …

Attitudes Towards Face-To-Face Meetings In Virtual Engineering Teams: Perceptions From A Survey Of Defense Projects, Lawrence R. Blenke, Abhijit Gosavi, William Daughton

Engineering Management and Systems Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Modes of communication used in virtual defense projects have changed dramatically over the years with tools such as email and video-conferencing dominating face-to-face (FTF) meetings. We conducted a survey at a defense firm with an aim to test current attitudes towards FTF meetings – with respect to significant problems faced, project success, transfer of technical requirements, preference for FTF vis-à-vis virtual meetings, differences between virtual and co-located environments, criticality of various forms of communication, and whether FTF meetings were scheduled as often as desired. Our survey participants, about one hundred in number, were experienced engineers, technicians, and program managers – …

A Practical Approach To Evaluating The Economic And Technical Feasibility Of Led Luminaires, Sean M. Schmidt, Suzanna Long

Engineering Management and Systems Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

LED roadway luminaires are currently under consideration for widespread implementation with departments of transportation, facilities managers, and city planners. This research focuses on a case study in Missouri and presents relevant research findings calculated by the authors as part of a project funded by the Missouri Department of Transportation. Although high-pressure sodium (HPS) luminaires have been the standard product for roadway illumination, advances in LED technologies have led many departments of transportation to consider them as viable options along state routes. For this case study, pilot sites were developed across the state of Missouri in sites assessed as moderately busy, …

Cognition-Based Approaches For High-Precision Text Mining, George John Shannon

Doctoral Dissertations

"This research improves the precision of information extraction from free-form text via the use of cognitive-based approaches to natural language processing (NLP). Cognitive-based approaches are an important, and relatively new, area of research in NLP and search, as well as linguistics. Cognitive approaches enable significant improvements in both the breadth and depth of knowledge extracted from text. This research has made contributions in the areas of a cognitive approach to automated concept recognition in.

Cognitive approaches to search, also called concept-based search, have been shown to improve search precision. Given the tremendous amount of electronic text generated in our digital …

การพัฒนาโปรแกรมการจัดการซ่อมบำรุงรักษาบนมือถือสำหรับโรงงานผลิตภัณฑ์เคมี, จารุวรรณ แต้มศรี

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

งานวิจัยนี้ได้พัฒนาระบบการจัดการซ่อมบำรุงรักษา ด้วยระบบปฏิบัติการแอนดรอยด์บนมือถือ ซึ่งระบบที่พัฒนาขึ้นได้นำไปประยุกต์ใช้กับระบบซ่อมบำรุงรักษาของท่อส่งเคมีภัณฑ์ โดยปัจจุบันการนำระบบการจัดการซ่อมบำรุงรักษาด้วยเครือข่ายคอมพิวเตอร์ที่ใช้ในการจัดการข้อมูลยังไม่สามารถตอบสนองต่อความต้องการได้ ดังนั้นโปรแกรมที่พัฒนาขึ้นจะมีระบบการแจ้งซ่อมบำรุงและสามารถรายงานผลการซ่อมบำรุงได้แบบทันท่วงที เพื่อให้ผู้ปฏิบัติงานสามารถตอบสนองและตรวจสอบเหตุขัดข้องได้ในทันที นอกจากนี้โปรแกรมที่พัฒนาขึ้นยังสามารถช่วยวางแผนการจัดการจัดตารางเวลาซ่อมบำรุงรักษาในอนาคต จากการทดลองโปรแกรมที่พัฒนาขึ้นเพื่อช่วยในการลดความสูญเสียทางด้านเวลาในการดำเนินการส่งเอกสารทางอีเมลตั้งแต่ต้นจนจบกระทวนการ และทำการบันทึกข้อมูลลงในระบบฐานข้อมูล เมื่อนำระบบแอพพลิเคชั่นมาใช้ในการจัดการระบบซ่อมบำรุงรักษามีความเป็นระบบมากขึ้น โดยมีความสะดวกในการบันทึกข้อมูลในขั้นตอนต่างๆ ในการดำเนินงาน พบว่า ระยะเวลาเฉลี่ยก่อนเสียหายแต่ละครั้งเพิ่มขึ้น 11% ระยะเวลาเฉลี่ยตั้งแต่เสียหายจนใช้งานได้แต่ละครั้งลดลง 5%

Space Utilisation Strategy For Thailand Underground Transit Station. A Case Study Of Thailand Cultural Centre Underground Station, Wirasinee Tongsoo

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

The ridership of Thailand underground station continuously increases every year. On the other hand, space management of terminal of underground station does not success as expected. The main reason is space does not have strategy to handle. majority of renter rarely stay until the completion of the rental contract, and they prefer to break the contract, pay the fine and move business elsewhere. According to research, there is no research study about this for Thailand underground station. In order to create appreciate plan for Thailand underground station in 2022. The strategy is core to integrate plan. Passengers would be attracted …

Developing Restoration Schemes For A Road Transportation Network In The Event Of A Disaster, Ebin Antony

Masters Theses

"Transportation systems such as rail, road, and waterways are key component of critical infrastructure systems, providing connectivity between other components to enable the production and distribution of goods and services. During large scale disasters such as earth quakes and floods, this connectivity is disrupted, restricting or completely halting the flow of goods and services. To ensure that the connectivity between the different modes of transportation are restored in an aftermath of these disruptions, the interdependence between them and the importance of individual elements to the overall connectivity have to be studied and formulated to develop a system-level restoration plan. This …

Effect Of Local Magnetic Field Disturbances On Inertial Measurement Units Accuracy, Xavier Robert-Lachaine, Hakim Mecheri, Christian Larue, André Plamondon

Études primaires

Inertial measurement units (IMUs), a practical motion analysis technology for field acquisition, have magnetometers to improve segment orientation estimation. However, sensitivity to magnetic disturbances can affect their accuracy. The objective of this study was to determine the joint angles accuracy of IMUs under different timing of magnetic disturbances of various durations and to evaluate a few correction methods. Kinematics from 12 individuals were obtained simultaneously with an Xsens system where an Optotrak cluster acting as the reference system was affixed to each IMU. A handling task was executed under normal laboratory conditions and imposed magnetic disturbances. Joint angle RMSE was …

Development Of Post-Pareto Optimality Methods For Multiple Objective Optimization, Juan Valentin Fernandez

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

In the past years, multiple objective optimization has been considered, as an important research area since in many real life problems there exists multiple criteria that need to be optimized simultaneously. The use of evolutionary algorithms or metaheuristic methods as solution methodologies lead to a large number of Pareto solutions rather than a single unique optimum. This Pareto-optimal set most of the time tends to be very large and the decision maker now faces the challenge of reducing its size to analyze a feasible number of solutions, thus deciding the best possible solution. In this work, two methods will be …

A Cubesat Communication System Development For Gto Mission, Ashiqur Rahman

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Tracking, telemetry and command (TT&C) systems on traditional small satellites have advanced significantly in last few decades. The capabilities, requirements and expectations of the communication system have been increased significantly for the smaller satellites. Small satellites are now performing the tasks near to the bigger satellites which increases the dependency on the communication system in terms of reliability and data management. This Thesis paper will focus on development of the communication system of a 1U cube Satellite named Orbital Factory II (OFII). The satellite will be launched into a geostationary transfer orbit (GTO) onboard a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas …

Sensitivity Analysis Method To Address User Disparities In The Analytic Hierarchy Process, Marie Ivanco, Gene Hou, Jennifer Michaeli

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Faculty Publications

Decision makers often face complex problems, which can seldom be addressed well without the use of structured analytical models. Mathematical models have been developed to streamline and facilitate decision making activities, and among these, the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) constitutes one of the most utilized multi-criteria decision analysis methods. While AHP has been thoroughly researched and applied, the method still shows limitations in terms of addressing user profile disparities. A novel sensitivity analysis method based on local partial derivatives is presented here to address these limitations. This new methodology informs AHP users of which pairwise comparisons most impact the derived …

Phased Helical Antenna Array For Cubesat Application, Kameron Lacalli

Undergraduate Honors Theses

CubeSats communication links are typically slow due to their power and size restrictions. However, a low power, high speed down link connection can allow for greater data collection and relaying, pushing the capability of 1U CubeSats beyond what is traditionally thought possible. Investigated here is the feasibility of a 11 Mb/s down link connection on a 1U CubeSat, accomplished via 2x2 helical antenna phased array operating on the 802.11 standard. Using a phased array also allows for beam steering to secure connection with the ground station when the on board ADCS may not provide precise pointing capability of the CubeSat, …

Process Development For High Powered Amplifier Au/Sn Eutectic Die Attach Via Vacuum Furnace, Zachary F. Blanden

Graduate Dissertations and Theses

This research was conducted to develop and qualify a vacuum GaAs semiconductor monolithic microwave integrated circuit die attach process. Research was done to understand the causes and effects of voiding levels on device performance and reliability. Simultaneous investigation was done to qualify vacuum-attach as a successful methodology by which minimal voiding levels were achieved. After an initial vacuum-attach trial was completed to verify the methodology, internal accept/reject criteria were developed to qualify die attach interfaces. A dual phase attachment methodology was created to minimize tolerance stacking resulting in more consistent component placement. MATLAB image processing code was developed to quantify …

Energy-Climate-Manufacturing Nexus: New Insights From The Regional And Global Supply Chains Of Manufacturing Industries, Murat Kucukvar, Bunyamin Canseva, Gokhan Egilmez, Nuri C. Onat, Hamidreza Samadi

Mechanical and Industrial Engineering Faculty Publications

The main objectives of this research are to improve our understanding of energy-climate-manufacturing nexus within the context of regional and global manufacturing supply chains as well as show the significance of full coverage of entire supply chain tiers in order to prevent significant underestimations, which might lead to invalid policy conclusions. With this motivation, a multi region input–output (MRIO) sustainability assessment model is developed by using the World Input–Output Database, which is a dynamic MRIO framework on the world’s 40 largest economies covering 1440 economic sectors. The method presented in this study is the first environmentally-extended MRIO model that harmonizes …

Design And Implementation Of A Fixture For Robotic Welding, Isaac Nathaniel Williams

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

The Cal Poly IME department recently purchased a robotic welder. The faculty would like to see this robot incorporated into the welding class. The robot was capable of moving, but was not able to perform a weld prior to this project. This problem is addressed by creating a demonstration part for the welding class. The objectives that need to be complete for this to be possible is designing a part, designing a fixture, analyzing the cost of robotic welding, and implement welding the part in the class. The part is designed with specific requirements in mind. The fixture is designed …

Application Of Gearbox Drivetrains For Commuting Bicycles, Loren Sunding

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

People all over the world are beginning to ride their bicycles more often to destinations which include work, school, and local markets. Most bicycles being used for these activities have an external drivetrain exposed to the elements of the road including water, mud, dirt, and debris. External drivetrains are very fragile and when damaged, pedaling efficiency is greatly reduced and the overall riding experience diminishes.

One solution to this issue is a gearbox specifically designed for a bicycle frame. A gearbox has several mechanical mechanisms operating inside a protective housing. Since the housing is fully sealed, outside elements are not …

Assembly Line Kitting: Foam Mold Material Substitute, Samer Samy Saleh

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

Kitting is considered an incredibly innovative and effective solution intended to aid operators within a mixed model assembly line. However, it is a non-value added procedure and one that customers may not be willing to pay for. With this project, the goal is to examine opportunities to employ lean principles and provide a solution that further eliminates non-value added procedures, while also producing the potential for a flexible, mixed model assembly line.

To achieve the aforementioned purpose, the production of foam molds, located within industrial totes and sent to the assembly line, was found to be a major waste within …

Mri Upgrades At Radiology Associates, Patrick Cheung, Charlene Donlon

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

Problem Statement: The MRI machines at Radiology Associates are limiting the company’s ability to expand and compete within the local market. After discussing with technicians and managers at Radiology Associates, we decided to focus on hardware and software upgrades for the MRI machines. With 2 of the 3 locations purchasing new machines in the near future, our focus was on upgrades at the Santa Maria facility. The two machines at this location needed hardware and/or software upgrades to remain on par competitively both within the company and with local scanning options. Flexible coils are beneficial in terms of size, weight, …