Operations Research, Systems Engineering and Industrial Engineering Commons^™

Application Of Theory Of Constraints (Toc) In Managing Project Information Constraints, Ferdinand Z. Prantl

EMSE Doctoral Projects

The scope of this doctoral project is the non-traditional application of Drum-Buffer-Rope (DBR) from the area of Theory of Constraints (ToC) in mitigating disruption in distribution facilities during phased upgrades caused by information constraint. The relevance of this project is that industrial equipment upgrades pose a significant risk of disrupting the operation of automated distribution facilities. It is partly due to a very high expected availability rate, as well as tight coupling with other upstream and downstream elements of the larger supply chain network. As a consequence of disruption in this scenario, losses incurred not only within the facility being …

Parklets San Luis, Owen Kenny, Preston Jag Stebel, Leonidas Goodman, Lukas Braun

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

Downtown San Luis Obispo has been a popular destination for tourists, students, families, and roadtrippers. However, according to Ryan Betz, Interim Assistant to the City Manager, foot traffic and retail business revenue has been decreasing. Downtown SLO does not have enough free public spaces. Recent projects such as sidewalk bump outs and lighted crosswalks have aimed at making SLO more pedestrian accessible, but they have not actually made downtown more pleasurable. These projects have not seemed to drive any more business or traffic downtown. There are a myriad of ways to rectify this; studies show that having a free place …

Investigating Lifecycle Costs Of Optimized Battery-Photovoltaic Systems On A Forward Operating Base, Neal S. Fennell

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to investigate the total life-cycle cost of using utility-scale battery systems to increase the energy efficiency of forward operating bases, thereby reducing the burden of diesel fuel logistics. Specifically, this thesis answered three research questions addressing optimal sizing for various battery types connected with photovoltaic grids, logistical parameters directly impacting total cost, and the cost of increasing the energy resilience of the network. The research questions were answered through a review of literature, modeling, and data analysis. The model determines an optimal size and area for a Vanadium redox flow, Lithium-ion, or Lead-acid battery …

Preliminary Study Of Communication Network Characterization Towards Improved Organizational Behavior, Taylor F. Flaxington

Theses and Dissertations

Nearly one third of the Air Force acquisition system’s large programs are over cost and half are over budget; performance must improve. This research applies a systems perspective to this challenge and frames the acquisition system as a complex system of systems. It is a system composed of people in multiple organizations; organizations interacting with one another to develop, acquire and sustain weapon programs. The system’s performance is an emergent behavior of its components (people), structure and processes. Communication networks are a view of a system’s structure, revealing the flows and interactions between components (people) as the system accomplishes its …

A Comparison Of Sbir Investment Methods: Afwerx Vs Legacy, Evan A. Gist

Theses and Dissertations

The AFWERX Open Topic (AOT) program uses funding from the United States Air Force’s (USAF) Small Business Innovation and Research (SBIR) budget to adapt commercial technology to USAF needs. The AOT approach to small business investment is markedly different from that of legacy SBIR investment methods. This research is a comparison of processes and outcomes for AOT and legacy SBIR. The first axis of comparison is on commercialization rates. Applying a legacy definition of commercialization on a sample of AOT contracts, we found AOT’s commercialization to be 37% (compared to an 8.8% for legacy SBIR). We caveat this finding by …

Recognizing Potential Cyberspace Warriors Through The Use Of Suspicion Propensity Index, Meghan G. Strang

Theses and Dissertations

The Air Force currently suffers from excessively high attrition rates in the cyberspace career. The field is currently aiming to develop an entrance examination for the career, striving to improve personnel selection and decrease these high attrition rates. The attribute of suspicion is a key focus of the preliminary examination development, theorizing that it is a potential indicator present among competent cyber operators. This research makes use of the Suspicion Propensity Index (SPI), a reliable measure of one’s tendency to be suspicious, along with the highly cited Mayer’s trust questionnaire in order to compare the attributes that appear in successful …

When The Bank Comes To You: Branch Network And Customer Omnichannel Banking Behavior, Mi Zhou, Dan Geng, Vibhanshu Abhishek, Beibei Li

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Banks today have been increasingly reducing their physical presence and redirecting customers to digital channels, and yet, the consequences of this strategy are not well studied. This paper investigates the effects of banks' branch network changes (i.e., branch openings and branch closures) on customer omnichannel banking behavior. Using approximately 0.85 million (33 months') anonymized individual-level banking transactions from a large commercial bank in the United States, this paper shows the asymmetric effects of branch openings and branch closures on customer omnichannel banking behavior. In particular, we find that branch openings increase customers' branch transactions; however, the first branch opening leads …

Vehicle Routing Problem For Multi-Product Cross-Docking, Aldy Gunawan, Audrey Tedja Widjaja, Benjamin Gan, Vincent F. Yu, Panca Jodiawan

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Cross-docking is a logistic technique that can reduce costs occurred in a supply chain network while increasing the flow of goods, thus shortening the shipping cycle. Inside a cross-dock facility, the goods are directly transferred from incoming vehicles to outgoing vehicles without storing them in-between. Our research extends and combines this cross-docking technique with a well-known logistic problem, the vehicle routing problem (VRP), for delivering multiple products and addresses it as the VRP for multi-product cross-docking (VRP-MPCD). We developed a mixed integer programming model and generated two sets of VRP-MPCD instances, which are based on VRPCD instances. The instances are …

Dual-Axis Solar Tracker, Bryan Kennedy

All Undergraduate Projects

Renewable energies, and fuels that are not fossil fuel-based, are one of the prolific topics of debate in modern society. With climate change now becoming a primary focus for scientists and innovators of today, one of the areas for the largest amount of potential and growth is that of the capturing and utilization of Solar Energy. This method involves using a mechanical system to track the progression of the sun as it traverses the sky throughout the day. A dual-axis solar tracker such as the one designed and built for this project, can follow the sun both azimuthally and in …

A Review Of A Collaborative Online International Learning, Philip Appiah-Kubi, Ebenezer Annan

Engineering Management and Systems Faculty Publications

Globalization has exacerbated the need for engineers who are capable of working in a cross-cultural environment. Multinational companies continuously seek for engineers who are interculturally competent and capable of conducting business successfully in a cross-cultural environment. However, the skills required to be successful in a multicultural environment are difficult to be taught in the traditional classroom. One of the most effective approaches to acquiring intercultural competency skills is through experiential learning. It is, therefore, not surprising that most colleges all over the world are devoting resources towards the internationalization of their classrooms and the campus community. This ensures that students …

Short-Term Truckload Spot Rates' Prediction In Consideration Of Temporal And Between-Route Correlations, Wei Xiao, Chuan Xu, Hongling Liu, Hong Yang, Xiaobo Liu

Computational Modeling & Simulation Engineering Faculty Publications

Truckload spot rate (TSR), defined as a price offered on the spot to transport a certain cargo by using an entire truck on a target transportation line, usually price per kilometer-ton, is a key factor in shaping the freight market. In particular, the prediction of short-term TSR is of great importance to the daily operations of the trucking industry. However, existing predictive practices have been limited largely by the availability of multilateral information, such as detailed intraday TSR information. Fortunately, the emerging online freight exchange (OFEX) platforms provide unique opportunities to access and fuse more data for probing the trucking …

Customer Choice Modeling For Retail Category Assortment Planning And Product-Line Extension, Elham Nosratmirshekarlou

Wayne State University Dissertations

Growing competitiveness and increasing availability of data is generating great interest in data-driven analytics across industries. One of the areas that has gained a lot of attention is Customer choice modeling, which aims to explain the choices individual customers make in choosing from a set of products based on their preferences. While effective customer choice modeling is essential to a wide variety of application domains, including retail, it is challenging in practice due to limitations around the quality of the data available for modeling and potentially complex choice behaviors. This dissertation presents a hybrid modeling approach that relies on both …

Multilevel Reorder Strategy-Based Supply Chain Model, Hesamoddin Tahami, Hengameh Fakhravar

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

We investigate the stochastic integrated inventory model wherein the buyer's lead time demand follows the mixture of normal distributions. Due to the high acquisition cost of land, we assume that buyer's maximum permissible storage space is limited and therefore adds a space constraint to the respective inventory system. Besides, it is assumed that the manufacturing process is imperfect and produces defective units, and hence each lot received by the buyer contains percentage defectives. The paper also considers controllable lead time components and ordering cost for the system. Based on lead-time components, a multilevel reorder strategy-based supply chain model is developed …

A Framework Of International Competencies For Systems Engineers, Annlizé L. Marnewick, Holly A.H. Handley

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

In the course of their career, many systems engineers are likely to interact with engineers of other nationalities as they collaborate on large, complex projects and system of system problems. These partnerships are necessary to support international goals, such as those for sustainable development. System engineers may even work onsite in other countries where they must adapt to different styles of doing business. This requires a set of global skill sets for cooperating and decision making, as well as basic social skills for interacting with the local community. These global skills can be included in a graduate level system engineering …

Business Continuity Planning For A Medium-Sized Hotel Under Covid-19 Outbreak, Arunlak Tangtanapaiboon

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

Business Continuity Planning is a subjective conceptual framework prominently used in operations related to supply chain, information technology, or governmental organizations. In this research, we have applied the concept of business continuity planning to a service business during the COVID–19 outbreaks, whose aim is to determine the business continuity objective with the maximum operational tolerable period. The proposed framework has been evaluated based on the ANOVA Test of a guest's service questionnaire of a hotel in Rayong, Thailand. We find that, by reducing business operating cost via staff working hours reduction and limiting service functions of the hotel to the …

Cyber-Assets At Risk (Car): The Cost Of Personally Identifiable Information Data Breaches, Omer Ilker Poyraz, Sarah Bouazzaoui, Omer Keskin, Michael Mcshane, Ariel Pinto

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

Severe financial consequences of data breaches enforce organizations to reconsider their cybersecurity investment. Although attack frequency and trends seem similar per industry, the impact of a data breach may exponentially increase depending on the type of information and the amount of the stolen data. Also, governments develop and improve laws and regulations to protect the privacy of individuals. Therefore, a failure of data security may yield severe penalties and class-action lawsuits, which can significantly increase the expenses than before. The monetary impact of a data breach is a new field of study that requires more sophisticated research and analysis. There …

Determinants Of Startup Funding: The Interaction Between Web Attention And Culture, Jie Ren, Viju Raghupathi, Wullianallur Raghupathi

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

Technology empowers entrepreneurs to pursue alternative funding through platforms like crowdfunding. This research explores significant startup funding factors using Crunchbase. Controlling for common factors (acquisition/funding-rounds/IPO), the research uniquely focuses on web attention - the visibility on social media - and its impact on funding. It also examines the moderating influence of startup’s home country culture (individualism/collectivism). Findings show stronger positive impact of web attention on startup funding for collectivist countries. While individualistic investors value personal goals, collectivists value collaborative goals - inclinations that align with crowdfunding behavior. Therefore while increasing web attention, crowdfunding efforts can be targeted towards collectivist countries.

Evaluating Students Information System Success Using Delone And Mclean’S Model: Student’S Perspective, Majaliwa Mkinga, Herman Mandari

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

System success is considered to be an important element in accomplishing the goals of the organization; therefore evaluation of system success needs to be done in order to ensure that investment in Information System is successful. Most of Higher Learning Institutions (HLIs) in Tanzania have adopted the use of IS in providing service to their customers. Nevertheless, there is less evidence that system success evaluation has been done in order to identify the desired characteristics which could make IS more effective. Due to that, this study evaluates the effectiveness of Student Information System (SIS) used at the Institute of Finance …

Enabling Flexibility Through Strategic Management Of Complex Engineering Systems, Walter Louis Barnes Ii

Doctoral Dissertations

”Flexibility is a highly desired attribute of many systems operating in changing or uncertain conditions. It is a common theme in complex systems to identify where flexibility is generated within a system and how to model the processes needed to maintain and sustain flexibility. The key research question that is addressed is: how do we create a new definition of workforce flexibility within a human-technology-artificial intelligence environment?

Workforce flexibility is the management of organizational labor capacities and capabilities in operational environments using a broad and diffuse set of tools and approaches to mitigate system imbalances caused by uncertainties or changes. …

3d Printing Technology On Spare Parts Business Supply Chain Management: A Case Study In Appliance Industry, Salih Boysan

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

This study investigates the effects of using Additive Manufacturing (AM), also known as 3D printing, to produce spare parts within the supply chain of an appliance manufacturing company.

This research is based on an analysis of the operation of a spare parts business of an appliance manufacturing company. This research study used real data to investigate the feasibility of using 3D printing to reduce complexity in the spare parts division in terms of supplier rationalization, inventory reduction, and total cost of ownership. The research method used two scenarios: one where manufacturing spare parts traditionally was the baseline model and the …

Efficiency Analysis Of A Congested Brazilian Airport Applying Slots Optimization Control: Congonhas Airport Case, Mariana Franco B. Mendes, Rafael Roco De Araujo, Ana Paula Beck Da Silva Etges, Massoud Bazargan

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

The current slot allocation mechanism in Brazil, based on the International Air Transport Association (IATA) rules, and its supplementary local regulation The National Civil Aviation Agency (ANAC), displays a few issues and limitations (e.g. slot misuse, allocation inefficiencies). Such issues are particularly present in the case of busy airports that works near their maximum capacity for major parts of the day. This inefficiency problem is generated because of the complexity of slot allocation added to the limited decision support available for the Brazilian system. This study focuses on the implementation of an optimal slot model, based on IATA regulations with …

Feasibility Study Of Business Expansion By The Exploitation Through Existhing Strength In A Construction Company, Gornekhun Jarupornpanich

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

A construction company that is called Company-A in this paper has been facing financial difficulty due to irregular cash flow which makes huge risks to the company. To reduce the risks, this study aims to expand the business to real estate to earn regular inflows in return by the exploitation through existing strength as a construction company to increase a competitive advantage to the extended business. This study is conducted by different sources of literature and data collection including academic papers, and the needed data to do a business strategy of a chosen real estate project, and to run a …

Project Management Assignment Tool Using R And Shiny, Ben Stewart, Hoseok Jung, Moses Rawar

Engineering and Technology Management Student Projects

Linear programs such as the R markdown language play an important role in helping to find an optimized solution in various fields of society. This area extends from the optimal distribution channels of coffee shops, which are closely related to our lives, to very important areas such as the deployment of military forces. Through this paper, we will try to find ways to maximize the efficiency and performance of a company by properly allocating project managers suitable for the projects performed by each company according to their capabilities and the requirements of the projects.

Employee Engagement And Job Satisfaction’S Impact On Productivity In The Distribution Industry, Jessica Copeland

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Productivity deficiencies in distribution services are detrimental to profitability, annually causing billions of dollars in reporting losses industry-wide. Understanding employees’ motivating factors in meeting metric-based expectations is essential to enhancing overall performance. Grounded in the motivation-hygiene theory, the purpose of this correlational study was to examine the relationships among employee engagement, job satisfaction, and productivity within the distribution industry. Electronic survey data were analyzed for 47 participants who completed the Mensah Employee Engagement Survey, Mensah Job Satisfaction Survey, and Utrecht Work Employee Engagement Survey. The results of the multiple linear regression were significant, F(2, 44) = 36.84, p = .001, …

The Impact Of E-Commerce On The Development Of Entrepreneurship In Saudi Arabia, Khulood Al-Mani

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

This paper is based on a Ph.D. study investigating the critical challenges facing e-commerce adoption by entrepreneurs in Saudi Arabia, identifying the major driving factors, barriers, motivations, perceived advantages, potential problems and some practical solutions as well as future expectations from entrepreneurs’ perspectives. From the study findings, a set of practical recommendations were derived for the government, entrepreneurs and investors in Saudi Arabia to consider, to promote ecommerce entrepreneurship in the county.

The research was undertaken using a qualitative approach. Data collection techniques involved in-depth, semi-structured interviews, with (1) e-commerce entrepreneurs, and (2) government authorities, educational initiatives and private support …

Blockchain Adoption Model For The Global Banking Industry, Zaina Kawasmi, Evans Akwasi Gyasi, Deneise Dadd

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

Blockchain has become the new hype term in the business world for the last decade. Due to the new technology’s characteristics and innovative applications, it is being adopted globally in a wide number of industries including the banking industry, yet no adoption model is provided to guide this process. This research aims to contribute to facilitating the successful adoption and implementation of the blockchain new technology in the banking industry. Building on the assumption that the blockchain’s adoption in banking will be directed by the regulations and best practices guidelines of the global banking regulatory bodies and practitioner, this research …

Assessment Of The Needs Of Ict Skills On Employability In Smes: A Vft Approach, Renatus Michael Mushi

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

the globalised economy comes with extra demand of ICT skills among the graduates. This is due to the demand if ICT technicalities in performing a number of basic activities in the workplaces. Majority of studies which concentrate with ICT skills on employability deals with technical enterprises. In non-technical companies such as construction, manufacturing and agriculture, ICT is studied as among the basic skill-set of graduates. However, recently, there has been special demand of graduates with basic ICT knowledge on recruitment processes. This indicates the growing demand of basic ICT skills among a broad range of professions. However, the type of …

Table Of Contents Jitim Vol 29 Issue 1, 2020

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

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Table Of Contents Jitim Vol 29 Issue 3, 2020

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

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Understanding And Measuring Net Positive Business Strategies, Luke Ruffner Robinson

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Despite their attempts to mitigate ecological impacts through sustainability initiatives, businesses are a major cause of the world's ecological problems. Some progressive businesses are attempting to move beyond “net zero” in terms of achieving neutral environmental impacts and instead are now pursuing a goal of net positive. Net positive refers to the idea that business activities could contribute value-added benefits to earth’s ecological systems, for example, by using technologies that sequester and store carbon. However, except for a handful of high-profile corporate case studies, little is known about how companies are developing their strategies to become net positive and …