Operations Research, Systems Engineering and Industrial Engineering Commons^™

A Macro-Level Sustainability Assessment Framework For Optimal Distribution Of Alternative Passenger Vehicles, Nuri Onat

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Although there are many studies focusing on the environmental impacts of alternative vehicle options, social and economic dimensions and trade-off relationships among all of these impacts were not investigated sufficiently. Moreover, most economic analyses are limited to life cycle cost analyses and do not consider macro-level economic impacts. Therefore, this thesis aims to advance the Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment literature and electric vehicle sustainability research by presenting a novel combined application of Multi Criteria Decision Making techniques with Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment for decision analysis. With this motivation in mind, this research will construct a compromise-programming model (multi-objective optimization method) …

An Agile Roadmap For Live, Virtual And Constructive-Integrating Training Architecture (Lvc-Ita): A Case Study Using A Component Based Integrated Simulation Engine, Tae Woong Park

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Conducting seamless Live Virtual Constructive (LVC) simulation remains the most challenging issue of Modeling and Simulation (M&S). There is a lack of interoperability, limited reuse and loose integration between the Live, Virtual and/or Constructive assets across multiple Standard Simulation Architectures (SSAs). There have been various theoretical research endeavors about solving these problems but their solutions resulted in complex and inflexible integration, long user-usage time and high cost for LVC simulation. The goal of this research is to provide an Agile Roadmap for the Live Virtual Constructive-Integrating Training Architecture (LVC-ITA) that will address the above problems and introduce interoperable LVC simulation. …

Propagation Of Unit Location Uncertainty In Dense Storage Environments, Patrick Reilly

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Effective space utilization is an important consideration in logistics systems and is especially important in dense storage environments. Dense storage systems provide high-space utilization; however, because not all items are immediately accessible, storage and retrieval operations often require shifting of other stored items in order to access the desired item, which results in item location uncertainty when asset tracking is insufficient. Given an initial certainty in item location, we use Markovian principles to quantify the growth of uncertainty as a function of retrieval requests and discover that the steady state probability distribution for any communicating class of storage locations approaches …

A Framework For Safety Training Using Virtual Reality Software, Rana Riad

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Safety training is a vital component to the well-being of individuals in all industries. With technology advancing at the current pace, conventional training methods are no longer the most effective way to communicate information. There is a strong need for safety training that incorporates new methods and forms of communication to obtain higher levels of comprehension. Virtual reality systems offer a highly customizable and interactive form of delivering information to users. This research addresses major gaps in the field of safety training using virtual reality systems and provides a design framework for creating a virtual safety-training system. A model for …

A Comparison Of Combined Overlap Block Fuzzy Cognitive Maps (Cobfcm) And Combined Overlap Block Neutrosophic Cognitive Map (Cobncm) In Finding The Hidden Patterns And Indeterminacies In Psychological Causal Models: Case Study Of Adhd, Hojjatollah Farahani, Florentin Smarandache, Lihshing Leigh Wang

Branch Mathematics and Statistics Faculty and Staff Publications

In spite of researchers’ concerns to find causalities, reviewing the literature of psychological studies one may argue that the classical statistical methods applied in order to find causalities are unable to find uncertainty and indeterminacies of the relationships between concepts.

In this paper, we introduce two methods to find effective solutions by identifying “hidden” patterns in the patients’ cognitive maps. Combined Overlap Block Fuzzy Cognitive Map (COBFCM) and Combined Overlap Block Neutrosophic Map (COBNCM) are effective when the number of concepts can be grouped and are large in numbers. In the first section, we introduce COBFCM, COBNCM, their applications, and …

A Study On The Analyzing Priority Of Limiting Factors In Live, Virtual, And Constructive (Lvc) Simulation Interoperability Using Analytic Hierarchy Process (Ahp) Method, Youngkun Yoo

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Each Live, Virtual, and Constructive (LVC) simulation model has been developed and used with many benefits. When system developers created each simulation model, focused on specific standards to fit to their own respective purposes. Consequently, there have been interoperability issues among simulation models that have many limitations. To be specific, despite various efforts to achieve and maintain complete interoperability in LVC simulation environment, substantial limiting factors have remained in technical and managerial fields. Thus, analyzing and prioritizing limiting factors in LVC simulation is the effective way to solve interoperability problems while saving budget and time. The purpose of this research …

A Simulation-Based Approach To Risk Assessment And Mitigation In Supply Chain Networks, Mamadou Seck, Ghaith Rabadi, Christian Koestler

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

We present in this paper a simulation-based approach to evaluate the risk associated with supply chain disruptions caused by failures in some supply chains nodes and measure the impact of such disruptions on supply chain key performance measures (KPIs) of interest. The proposed framework enables analysts and managers to repeatedly assess the risk to their supply chains based on various simulated scenarios and identify the most critical nodes whose disruption will have the highest impact on the KPIs of interest. As a result, companies can focus on the most critical supply chain assets and develop targeted mitigation plans that minimize …

A Cell Formation Algorithm For Sequential Processes With Alternative Machine Selection In The Automotive Lighting Industry, Victor Manuel Loya Garnica

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

At the present time, there are more than 12 big companies dedicated to design and produce OEM lighting systems for cars and trucks. The manufacturing processes for headlamps, tail lamps and any other exterior vehicle lighting are very common in the auto industry. Still, every automotive lamp assembly is different from brand to brand and even between the different vehicle models. Indeed, there are car headlamps with less than 30 sub-components and others with up to 300 elements. This implies creating diverse part numbers which share or hold varying manufacturing methods within a specific facility. Management of the plant resources …

Relationship Between Product Quality And Customer Satisfaction, Albert Vitales Cruz

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The National Safety Council (NSC) estimated that over 35,000 people died in U.S. traffic accidents. About 3.8 million traffic crash injuries requiring medical attention occurred in 2013, and the number of deaths was about the same over the last 5 years. The NSC found that product recalls, car repairs, injuries, and deaths were due to unsafe product designs or inferior product quality. These statistics underscore the challenge of producing quality vehicles while satisfying customers. The purpose of this nonexperimental study was to examine relationships among product (vehicle) quality, product cost, product safety, and consumer satisfaction. The hypotheses inquired the extent …

A Framework To Improve A Nation's Competitiveness Through Quality Awards And Performance Improvement Tools, Amr Alamri

Wayne State University Dissertations

Each country, represented by its government, aims to serve its citizens better. This is achieved by better utilization of resources and higher productivity. The ability to do so will lead to a competitive nation. Recently, countries were able to compare themselves in terms of competitiveness using international indexes and references. These references gave countries a benchmark to know where they exist compared to other nations. They help governments to understand their strengths and weaknesses within the competitiveness components. However, nations differ in the actions which are to be taken in order to improve their competitiveness. Governments establish and regulate many …

Chemical Storage Of Wind Energy By Renewable Methanol Production: Feasibility Analysis Using A Multi-Criteria Decision Matrix, Michael J. Matzen, Mahdi H. Alhajji, Yaşar Demirel

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Faculty Publications

This study is for the technoeconomic analysis of an integral facility consisting of wind energy-based electrolytic hydrogen production, bioethanol-based carbon dioxide capture and compression, and direct methanol synthesis. ASPEN Plus was used to simulate the facility producing 97.01 mt (metric tons) methanol/day using 138.37 mt CO₂/day and 18.56 mt H₂/day. A discounted cash flow diagram for the integral facility is used for the economic analysis at various hydrogen production costs and methanol selling prices. The feasibility analysis is based on a multi-criteria decision matrix consisting of economic and sustainability indicators comparing renewable and non-renewable methanol productions. …

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, …

Modeling And Analysis Of Automated Storage And Retrievals System With Multiple In-The-Aisle Pick Positions, Faraz Ramtin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation focuses on developing analytical models for automated storage and retrieval system with multiple in-the-aisle pick positions (MIAPP-AS/RS). Specifically, our first contribution develops an expected travel time model for different pick positions and different physical configurations for a random storage policy. This contribution has been accepted for publication in IIE Transactions (Ramtin & Pazour, 2014) and was the featured article in the IE Magazine (Askin & Nussbaum, 2014). The second contribution addresses an important design question associated with MIAPP-AS/RS, which is the assignment of items to pick positions in an MIAPP-AS/RS. This contribution has been accepted for publication in …

Machining Strategies Exploring Reduction In Energy Consumption, Abdullah Al Mamun

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

The main aim of this thesis is to explore machining strategies, analyzing energy consumption using Design of Experiments (DOE) at the material removal rate (MRR), compare to cutting geometrical trajectories according to CNC parameters such as spindle RPM, feed rate, depth of cut per pass and total depth of cut. Spindle RPM, depth of cut per pass, and feed rate are selected as the main three factors and each factor has two levels: low-level (-) and high-level (+). These experiments have been performed at an end-milling machine by using a concept of a constant volume of material removal processes in …

Color Removal From Pulp Mill Effluent Using Coal Ash Produced From Georgia Power Coal Combustion Plants, Christopher B. Willett

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Two environmental concerns currently face Georgia: coal fly ash (CFA) waste from coal power plants, and the effluent generated by pulp mills. Pulp mill effluent discolors surface waters into which it is discharged, and has been proven to negatively impact the dissolved oxygen and carbon necessary for aquatic life. The proposed solution is a cost-effective adsorption treatment using an inexpensive but abundantly available waste material: CFA. CFA possesses beneficial properties that allow it to effectively remove contaminants, and is available at significantly reduced cost. The primary research objective was to define treatment parameters that would result in the maximum removal …

Bus Rapid Transit (Brt) Toolbox: Brt Person Throughput-Vehicle Congestion Tradeoffs, Li Jingquan, H.-S. Jacob Tsao, Ching-Yao Chan, Kun Zhou, Wei-Bin Zhang

Faculty Publications

This report documents a research effort to understand the current practice and issues associated with Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) planning and deployment. It reviewed the design options incorporated into existing BRT deployments across California and the nation. The project team interviewed practitioners of California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) Districts and transit agencies to understand the BRT project approval decision-making process, the impacts of BRT implementation and the Measures of Effectiveness (MOEs) for transit and non-transit system performance. The studies revealed that though Caltrans and transit agencies do use a similar set of MOEs for the evaluation of BRT projects, the …

A General Intuitive Design Pattern For Optimally Sequencing Treatment Combinations In 2k Factorial Experiment And A Simple Estimation Algorithm, H.-S. Jacob Tsao, Minnie Patel

Faculty Publications

The number of model parameters of a 2k factorial design grows exponentially. When the number of factors is large, numerous higher-order interactions constitute a vast majority of the model parameters while many of them do not exist or are insignificant. The classic methods of fractional factorial designs, Plackett–Burman designs, Taguchi designs, etc. seek an already developed and often cataloged design that fits exactly the problem being tackled or select a design that fits it the most. Most, if not all, of these designs were developed in absence of convenient computation tools and enjoy computational simplicity. The necessary number of treatment …

Enhancing Safety Management System In An Offshore Aviation Company, Nazmus Saqib

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

The main aim of the research is to enhance the safety management system through the introduction and tracking of safety performance indicator “non-compliance per flight hour”. All the non-compliances related to the main operational departments were gathered from the data base of the case study company for the year 2014. It was found that the non-compliances per flight hour were highest from the Aircraft Maintenance Department with the exact number being 3.30 non-compliances per flight hour. The scope of this research was therefore focused on the Aircraft Maintenance Department. Aircraft maintenance is a large department so the next step in …

Improvement Of Flat Concrete Roof Tile Manufacturing Process, Korkiat Wiratkapan

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

The objective of this research is to improve the manufacturing process of a concrete roof tile manufacturing company to solve its problems of low labour productivity, rising labour costs and scarcity of labour. Initial analysis established that press forming was a bottleneck in the overall process and used the most manpower. Process activity mapping and Work study were used as tools to analyse the problems to identify non-value-added activities. The seven wastes technique was then applied to define the wastes in the manufacturing process. Improvement alternatives were identified with the aid of the ECRS technique and Lean tools, and these …

Size Effects In Human Visual Inspection For Micro/Meso Scale Parts, Sri Harsha Kavuri

Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Visual inspection has been a major method of quality control in conventional manufacturing processes for the last fifty years. Utilizing trained human inspectors to perform this visual inspection has been the most effective means of maintaining quality control. Extensive research has been performed to understand the factors that influence the human inspection process.

In the recent years, there has been a significant emphasis on manufacturing at the smaller end of the size-spectrum such as Micro and Meso scale manufacturing. Quality control at becomes a challenging task due to the extremely small sizes. Several automated visual inspection techniques have been proposed …

Preliminary Investigation Into The Cause Of Pinhole Porosity In Aluminum Metal Castings From Serpentine Impurities In Olivine Sand, Brodie J. Biersner

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The problem addressed in this study is how contaminates in the foundry molding aggregate olivine, affect aluminum castings during the casting process. This research will concentrate on hydrated contaminates, specifically the mineral serpentine. The purpose of this research is to better understand how hydrated minerals contribute to the generation of pinhole porosity defects during the casting process. Understanding how impurities in foundry aggregates affect the casting process would aid in the reduction of scrap caused by core and molding sands, ultimately providing savings to the casting manufacturer.

A foundry grade olivine was compared to a new source of olivine to …

Assessment Of Quality Stability Of Composite Flours Produced By Dar Es Salaam Smes, Leonard Rweyemamu

Tanzania Journal of Engineering and Technology (TJET)

A study was conducted to assess quality stability of cereal flours processed by food processing SMEs in Dar es Salaam. This product is obtained by mixing various cereal grains and is considered as of higher nutritional values in Tanzania. The shelf-life was predicted by determining water activity (aw) and moisture content (MC) levels and plotting the water sorption isotherms (MSI). Ninety per cent of investigated samples (N=78) were found packaged in the materials of various quality conditions. It was found that the packaging materials mostly used is plastic films (63%), paper packets/bags (26%), hard papers (3%), plastic jars (1%) and …

Properties Of Boards Made From Rice Husk And Portland Cement As Binders And Reinforced With Sisal Fibres, Alex Mrema

Tanzania Journal of Engineering and Technology (TJET)

A research study demonstrated that rice husks can be used to manufacture boards which can be used in low cost housing if bound by Portland limestone cement (CEM II/A-L/ 32.5R) and reinforced with sisal fibers to cater for their brittle behavior and that such boards can provide a substitute for wood panels. Boards made of rice husks and cement in the ratios of 1/3.3, 1/ 3.6 and 1/4 and with sisal fiber reinforcement contents of 0%, 0.4%, 0.5% and 0.8% were prepared and tested for their physical and mechanical properties. The results were compared with standard requirements for boards made …

An Investigation Of The Factors Contributing To Measurement Uncertaintly Using A Coordinate Measurement Machine, Jayson S. Minix

Morehead State Theses and Dissertations

A thesis presented to the faculty of the College of Science and Technology at Morehead State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Engineering & Technology Management by Jayson S. Minix on December 3, 2014.

Process Improvements Of Cilantro Harvesting With Ergonomic Considerations, Eric Penningroth, Branden Shimamoto

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

The problems presented by Talley Farms to the team were a lower than desired cilantro harvesting capacity and work health pertaining to lower back problems. The project objectives were to address and improve upon both of these objectives. To increase harvesting capacity, a simulation model was created using standard times from time studies. The simulation model helped to compare the different harvesting methods as well as the effect of the utilization of the on-site manager. The throughputs between each of the models were analyzed. To address ergonomic concerns, a work sampling study was conducted and it was determined that kneeling …

Bikeshare Business Model For Cal Poly- San Luis Obispo, Justin Benson, Andrew Neil Gatchalian

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

With the increasing admittance of students into colleges and universities across the nation, the need for alternate modes of transportation is becoming more pressing. College and university campuses, as well as small cities, in which there is a college or university, are being overloaded with student cars. In San Luis Obispo specifically, parking on campus as well as downtown can be extremely difficult to find. Traffic is also getting progressively worse, especially at the hour when class begins/ends and student arrive to or leave campus. Financial reasons are yet another deterrent for students at Cal Poly. Parking permits, gas, and …

Effects Of Patient Factors On Implantation Rates In In Vitro Fertilization, Heidi Richardson, Sofia Soto

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

The purpose of this report is to evaluate the effects of patient factors and embryo quality on the implantation rate in In Vitro Fertilization (IVF). For this report, statistical methods are used to test the significance of several patient and embryo characteristics on embryo implantation rate. This project is an analysis of data collected from over 36,000 patients.

The analysis concluded several findings. There was enough statistical evidence to conclude that age was significant in regards to implantation rate and FSH levels. As the patient ages, the amount of FSH levels found in their blood increases. A patient with high …

Redesign Of Talley Farm's "Fresh Harvest" Produce Program, Nicole Bordwell, John Rivera, Jared Toboni

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

Fresh Harvest, a Central Coast Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program run by Talley Farms located in Arroyo Grande, CA, has a rapidly growing customer base. They harvest, package, and deliver boxes of fresh quality produce to almost 3000 subscribers. However, Talley Farms’ space for production and processing is limited and at times required for other aspects of business. This results in a problem where Talley Farms current processing system of produce for the Fresh Harvest program is not suitable for the forecasted growing demand. This report addresses the need to prepare for continued significant growth to the demand for Fresh …

Analysis And Improvement Of The Security Building At Pg&E Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant, Alyssa Carter, Natalie Christa, Phuong Anh Pham Dinh

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

A new Security building was recently designed and built at the Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) Diablo Canyon Power Plant (DCPP).This building’s staff and equipment are responsible for performing routine inspections on all personnel entering the facility in order to prevent security-related incidents from occurring at the nuclear power plant. Similar to airport security procedures, the DCPP security building routine inspections include the use of x-ray machines, metal detectors, and explosive detectors.

The Power Plant periodically experiences pre-planned, preventive maintenance outages, that last 4-6 weeks. During an outage, a power plant reactor is shut down for maintenance, repair, and re-fueling. …