Operations Research, Systems Engineering and Industrial Engineering Commons^™

Frontiers In Operations Research For Overcoming Barriers To Vehicle Electrification, Mahyar Movahed Nejad

Wayne State University Dissertations

Electric vehicles (EVs) hold many promises including diversification of the transportation energy feedstock and reduction of greenhouse gas and other emissions. However, achieving large-scale adoption of EVs presents a number of challenges resulting from a current lack of supporting infrastructure and difficulties in overcoming technological barriers. This dissertation addresses some of these challenges by contributing to the advancement of theories in the areas of network optimization and mechanism design.

To increase the electric driving range of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), we propose a powertrain energy management control system that exploits energy efficiency dif- ferences of the electric machine and …

Multi-Period Cell Loading And Job Sequencing In A Cellular Manufacturing System, Gokhan Egilmez, Gürsel A. Süer

Mechanical and Industrial Engineering Faculty Publications

In this paper, a multi-period cell loading problem is addressed, where the objectives are to minimise the number of tardy jobs (n_T) in a multi-period planning horizon and optimise the scheduling of tardy jobs. Three cell loading and job scheduling strategies are proposed and tested with two newly developed mixed integer programming models. Additionally, three types of due dates (tight, medium and loose) and three different demand levels were considered. Finally, two tardy job assignment methods were proposed to observe the impact on n_T. Case problems were solved based on minimising n_T, T_{max …}

Lean Thinking For Lead-Time Reduction And Efficient Knowledge Creation In Product Development, Satish Kumar Tyagi

Wayne State University Dissertations

There are many distinct differences between manufacturing process and Product Development (PD) process, so lean tools have to be customized to deliver results in the later domain. The main focus of this dissertation is to extend them to manage and improve the PD process in order to develop the product faster while improving or at least maintaining the level of performance and quality. For aforesaid purpose, value stream mapping (VSM) method is used to explore the wastes, inefficiencies, non-valued added steps in a single, definable process out of complete PD process. Besides numerous intangible benefits, VSM framework will help the …

Modeling And Optimization Of Non-Profit Hospital Call Centers With Service Blending, Yanli Zhao

Wayne State University Dissertations

This dissertation focuses on the operations problems in non-profit hospital call centers with inbound and outbound calls service blending.

First, the routing policy for inbound and outbound calls is considered. The objective is to improve the system utilization under constraints of service quality and operators' quantity. A collection of practical staffing assignment methods, separating and mixing staffing policy are evaluated. Erlang C queuing model is used to decide the minimum number of operators required by inbound calls. Theoretical analysis and numerical experiments illustrate that through dynamically assigning the inbound and outbound calls to operators under optimal threshold policy, mixing staffing …

Long-Term Functionality Of Rural Water Services In Developing Countries: A System Dynamics Approach To Understanding The Dynamic Interaction Of Causal Factors, Jeffrey P. Walters, Amy N. Javernick-Will

Faculty Publications - Biomedical, Mechanical, and Civil Engineering

Research has shown that sustainability of rural water infrastructure in developing countries is largely affected by the dynamic and systemic interactions of technical, social, financial, institutional, and environmental factors that can lead to premature water system failure. This research employs systems dynamic modeling, which uses feedback mechanisms to understand how these factors interact dynamically to influence long-term rural water system functionality. To do this, the research first identified and aggregated key factors from literature, then asked water sector experts to indicate the polarity and strength between factors through Delphi and cross impact survey questionnaires, and finally used system dynamics modeling …

Formal Design Concept And Participant Behavior Analysis For Crowdsourcing Design, Jihoon Kim

Wayne State University Dissertations

Crowdsourcing has emerged as a new design resource for conceptual design process and multiple crowdsourcing services provide an opportunity for design idea collection and concept generation by crowds. However, few formal methods are available to extract and evaluate design concepts from the activities of the design crowd. Scarcity of information and non-guaranteed quality of contributions are often challenges to be tackled. To overcome the challenges, the research aims to answer how a system systematically extracts and represents the explicit or implicit hidden design concepts from crowdsourcing design activities and how crowdsourcing design activities of participants are captured as design information …

A Prediction Modeling Framework For Noisy Welding Quality Data, Junheung Park

Wayne State University Dissertations

Numerous and various research projects have been conducted to utilize historical manufacturing process data in product design. These manufacturing process data often contain data inconsistencies, and it causes challenges in extracting useful information from the data. In resistance spot welding (RSW), data inconsistency is a well-known issue. In general, such inconsistent data are treated as noise data and removed from the original dataset before conducting analyses or constructing prediction models. This may not be desirable for every design and manufacturing applications since every data can contain important information to further explain the process. In this research, we propose a prediction …

Calculus For Decision Systems, Jorge Antonio Samayoa Ranero

Open Access Dissertations

The conceptualization of the term "system" has become highly dependent on the application domain. What a physicist means by the term system might be different than what a sociologist means by the same term. In 1956, Bertalanffy [1] defined a system as " a set of units with relationships among them". This and many other definitions of system share the idea of a system as a black box that has parts or elements interacting between each other. This means that at some level of abstraction all systems are similar, what eventually differentiates one system from another is the set of …

Two-Stage Stochastic Programming In Adaptive Interdisciplinary Pain Management, Na Wang

Industrial, Manufacturing, and Systems Engineering Dissertations - Archive

Chronic pain is a global health problem. About 100 million adult Americans suffering from chronic pain, which costs $560 - $635 billion per year. The Eugene McDermott Center for Pain Management at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas conducted a two-stage pain management program for patients who suffer from chronic pain. Data information such as patient’s parameter, past treatment, pain outcome at different evaluation point and so on has been collected by the McDermott Center. The University of Texas at Arlington is collaborating with the McDermott Center to find optimal treatment strategies for individual patients.A treatment strategy …

High-Dimensional Adaptive Dynamic Programming With Mixed Integer Linear Programming, Zirun Zhang

Industrial, Manufacturing, and Systems Engineering Dissertations - Archive

Dynamic programming (DP, Bellman 1957) is a classic mathematical programming approach to solve multistage decision problems. The “Bellman equation” uses a recursive concept that includes both the current contribution and future contribution in the objective function of an optimization. The method has potential to represent dynamic decision-making systems, but an exact DP solution algorithm is limited to small problems with restrictions, such as problems with linear transitions and problems without uncertainty. Approximate dynamic programming (ADP) is a modern branch of DP that seeks to achieve numerical solutions via approximation. It is can be applied to real-world DP problems, but there …

The Engagement Of Expert Opinions In The Modeling Of Multi-Attribute Decision Making For The Selection Of Project Delivery Methods In Building Construction, Issam H. Algraiw

Doctoral Dissertations

"Choosing the most appropriate project delivery method (PDM) available is acknowledged as a crucial issue in the construction industry. Both the choice and application of an unsuitable PDM can result in project failure. Likewise, the selection of a suitable PDM can increase the chance for project success. A method of selecting from among the seven PDMs recognized by the Construction Specifications Institute (CSI) was created in an attempt to address this issue.

This research was comprised of three objectives. The first objective was to determine the influential factors needed to select the appropriate PDMs available to the US construction industry. …

The Relationship Between Dna's Physical Properties And The Dna Molecule's Harmonic Signature, And Related Motion In Water--A Computational Investigation, Victor Boyer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research investigates through computational methods whether the physical properties of DNA contribute to its harmonic signature, the uniqueness of that signature if present, and motion of the DNA molecule in water. When DNA is solvated in water at normal 'room temperature', it experiences a natural vibration due to the Brownian motion of the particles in the water colliding with the DNA. The null hypothesis is that there is no evidence to suggest a relationship between DNA's motion and strand length, while the alternative hypothesis is that there is evidence to suggest a relationship between DNA's vibrational motion and strand …

An Investigation Of Physiological Measures In A Marketing Decision Task, Nelson Lerma

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The objective of the present study was to understand the use of physiological measures as an alternative to traditional market research tools, such as self-reporting measures and focus groups. For centuries, corporations and researchers have relied almost exclusively on traditional measures to gain insights into consumer behavior. Oftentimes, traditional methods have failed to accurately predict consumer demand, and this has prompted corporations to explore alternative methods that will accurately forecast future sales. One the most promising alternative methods currently being investigated is the use of physiological measures as an indication of consumer preference. This field, also referred to as neuromarketing, …

Build-To-Order Supply Chain Efficiency Using Stochastic Frontier Analysis, Maysaa M. Hamdan

Industrial, Manufacturing, and Systems Engineering Dissertations - Archive

The Build-to-Order supply chain (BTO-SC) is one agile supply chain that has received great attention in research and industry. Flexibility and responsiveness in mass customization has become a major objective of many companies that lead to the development of BTO-SC. Knowing the efficiency of the BTO-SC and the decision making units responsible for controlling the production process and decision making at different managerial levels is important for resources utilization to stay competitive in such a global market. The main purpose of this study is to measure, compare and analyse the impact of BTO and traditional supply chain on the company's …

Reliability Analysis And Optimal Maintenance Planning For Repairable Multi-Component Systems Subject To Dependent Competing Risks, Nailong Zhang

Wayne State University Dissertations

Modern engineering systems generally consist of multiple components that interact in a complex manner. Reliability analysis of multi-component repairable systems plays a critical role for system safety and cost reduction. Establishing reliability models and scheduling optimal maintenance plans for multi-component repairable systems, however, is still a big challenge when considering the dependency of component failures. Existing models commonly make prior assumptions, without statistical verification, as to whether different component failures are independent or not. In this dissertation, data-driven systematic methodologies to characterize component failure dependency of complex systems are proposed. In CHAPTER 2, a parametric reliability model is proposed to …

Alternate Models For Natural Gas Transportation System Performance Optimization, Gnana Shekaran Arumugam

Theses and Dissertations--Manufacturing Systems Engineering

The Natural Gas market in the U.S is growing rapidly with evidence that the nation has enough shale reserves to power the country for the next century. To ensure continued economic benefits through the use of this environmentally desired energy source, it becomes important to optimize the transportation network system design. Transportation through pipelines is one of the most common methods used to distribute Natural Gas from source to destination. This transportation system, consisting of pipelines, compressors and other supporting equipment, must be optimized, considering all relevant parameters to minimize cost and increase profit. The research presented here improves on …

Assessing Values-Based Sourcing Strategies In Regional Food Supply Networks: An Agent-Based Approach, Caroline C. Krejci, Michael C. Dorneich, Richard T. Stone

Industrial, Manufacturing, and Systems Engineering Faculty Publications - Archive

The recent increase in demand for regionally produced food has resulted in a need for more efficient distribution methods. To connect regional food producers and consumers, intermediated regional food supply networks have developed. The intermediary, known as a regional food hub, serves as an aggregation point for products and information. It may also act as a filter to ensure that the requirements of both producers and consumers are consistently met. This paper describes an empirically based agent-based model of a regional food network in central Iowa that is intermediated by a food hub. The model was used to test a …

Embedding Integrated Rfid Sensors Into Fiber Reinforced Plastics During The Manufacturing Process, Billy Joe Gray

Industrial, Manufacturing, and Systems Engineering Dissertations - Archive

This research evaluates the impact of embedding a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tag into the structure of a fiber reinforced polymer (FRP). The first portion of the research evaluates the mechanical impacts of embedding the tag through simulation of the stresses that the polymer will be exposed to and then comparing with compression and shear testing of the polymer parts. The second portion of the research evaluates the impact of the reinforcement materials on the transmission of radio frequency to and from the tag. The last portion of the research looks at how the costs of RFID compare to the …

Understanding The Dynamic Behaviour Of Three Echelon Retail Supply Chain Disruptions, John Crowe, Mohammed Mesabbah, Amr Arisha

Conference papers

It is often taken for granted that the right products will be available to buy in retail outlets 7 days a week, 52 weeks a year. Challenges in achieving this continued on-shelf availability range from recession hit demand patterns to cost reduction driven strategies. Irish government initiatives to brand the country as a sustainable, reliable provider of food retail supply chains has resulted in increased importance on decision maker accuracy. The vulnerability of retail supply chain’s (RSC) to disruption is another catalyst in the complexity of the decision making process and a more robust understanding of disruption behavior is needed. …

A Probabilistic Fracture Assessment Of Vertebral Cortical Bone, Tarun Goswami, Isaac Mabe

Biomedical, Industrial & Human Factors Engineering Faculty Publications

Cortical bone is a material with a porous structure. The presence of pores creates local stress concentrations and the likelihood of premature failure. Assuming that pores are present in all bone, vertebral endplates, for example, can subside. Subsidence has taken place at rates as high as 77 percent. A computational probabilistic assessment of the pore size distribution and their contribution to the fracture toughness has been presented in this paper. A Monte Carlo simulation was used to develop and assign random pores. Also the model compared crack sizes to the thickness of the cortical bone present as a limiting case. …