Search results

1 – 10 of 504
Article
Publication date: 27 October 2023

Murat Gunduz, Khalid Naji and Omar Maki

This paper aims to present the development of a holistic campus facility management (CFM) performance assessment framework that incorporates a fuzzy logic approach and integrates…

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to present the development of a holistic campus facility management (CFM) performance assessment framework that incorporates a fuzzy logic approach and integrates a comprehensive set of key factors for successful management of campus facilities. The devised framework aims to cater to the needs of campus facilities management firms and departments for the purpose of gauging and assessing their performance across different management domains. Through this approach, facility management organizations can detect potential areas of enhancement and adopt preemptive steps to evade issues, foster progress and ensure success.

Design/methodology/approach

After a comprehensive analysis of the literature, conducting in-depth interviews with industry experts and employing the Delphi technique in two rounds, a total of 45 indicators critical to CFM success were identified and subsequently sorted into seven distinct groups. Through an online questionnaire, 402 subject-matter experts proficiently assessed the significance of the critical success indicators and their groups. A fuzzy logic framework was developed to evaluate and quantify a firm's compliance with the critical success indicators and groups of indicators. The framework was subsequently weighted using computations of the relative importance index (RII) based on the responses received from the questionnaire participants. The initial section of the framework involved a comprehensive analysis of the firm's performance vis-à-vis the indicators, while the latter part sought to evaluate the impact of the indicators groups on the overall firm's performance.

Findings

The utilization of fuzzy logic has uncovered the significant effects each effective CFM key indicator on indicators groups, as well as the distinct effects of each CFM indicators group on the overall performance of CFM. The results reveal that financial management, communications management, sustainability and environment management and workforce management are the most impactful indicators groups on the CFM performance. This suggests that it is imperative for management to allocate increased attention to these specific areas.

Originality/value

This study contributes to the advancement of current knowledge by revealing vital indicators of effective CFM and utilizing them to construct a thorough fuzzy logic framework that can assist in evaluating the effectiveness of CFM firms worldwide. This has the potential to provide crucial assistance to facility management organizations, facility managers and policymakers in their quest for informed decision-making.

Details

Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0969-9988

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 25 September 2023

José Félix Yagüe, Ignacio Huitzil, Carlos Bobed and Fernando Bobillo

There is an increasing interest in the use of knowledge graphs to represent real-world knowledge and a common need to manage imprecise knowledge in many real-world applications…

Abstract

Purpose

There is an increasing interest in the use of knowledge graphs to represent real-world knowledge and a common need to manage imprecise knowledge in many real-world applications. This paper aims to study approaches to solve flexible queries over knowledge graphs.

Design/methodology/approach

By introducing fuzzy logic in the query answering process, the authors are able to obtain a novel algorithm to solve flexible queries over knowledge graphs. This approach is implemented in the FUzzy Knowledge Graphs system, a software tool with an intuitive user-graphical interface.

Findings

This approach makes it possible to reuse semantic web standards (RDF, SPARQL and OWL 2) and builds a fuzzy layer on top of them. The application to a use case shows that the system can aggregate information in different ways by selecting different fusion operators and adapting to different user needs.

Originality/value

This approach is more general than similar previous works in the literature and provides a specific way to represent the flexible restrictions (using fuzzy OWL 2 datatypes).

Details

The Electronic Library , vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0264-0473

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 May 2020

Suneetha Ch, Srinivasa Rao S and K.S. Ramesh

Electronic devices aid communication during new communication phases and the scope of cognitive radio networks has changed communication paradigms through efficient use of…

Abstract

Purpose

Electronic devices aid communication during new communication phases and the scope of cognitive radio networks has changed communication paradigms through efficient use of spectrums. The communication prototype of cognitive radio networks defines user roles as primary user and secondary user in the context of the spectrum allocation and use. The users who have licensed authority of the spectrum are denoted as primary users, while other eligible users who access the corresponding spectrum are secondary users.

Design/methodology/approach

The multiple factors of transmission service quality can have a negative influence due to improper scheduling of spectrum bands between primary users and secondary users. There are considerable contributions in contemporary literature concerning spectrum band scheduling under spectrum sensing. However, the majority of the scheduling models are intended to manage a limited number of transmission service quality factors. Moreover, these service quality factors are functional and derived algorithmically from the current corresponding spectrum. However, there is evidence of credible performance deficiency regarding contemporary spectrum sensing methods

Findings

This article intends to portray a fuzzy guided integrated factors-based spectrum band sharing within the spectrum used by secondary users. This study attempts to explain the significance of this proposal compared to other contemporary models.

Originality/value

This article intends to portray a fuzzy guided integrated factors-based spectrum band sharing within the spectrum used by secondary users. This study attempts to explain the significance of this proposal compared to other contemporary models.

Details

International Journal of Intelligent Unmanned Systems, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2049-6427

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 22 January 2024

Heba Al Kailani, Ghaleb J. Sweis, Farouq Sammour, Wasan Omar Maaitah, Rateb J. Sweis and Mohammad Alkailani

The process of predicting construction costs and forecasting price fluctuations is a significant and challenging undertaking for project managers. This study aims to develop a…

Abstract

Purpose

The process of predicting construction costs and forecasting price fluctuations is a significant and challenging undertaking for project managers. This study aims to develop a construction cost index (CCI) for Jordan’s construction industry using fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (FAHP) and predict future CCI values using traditional and machine learning (ML) techniques.

Design/methodology/approach

The most influential cost items were selected by conducting a literature review and confirmatory expert interviews. The cost items’ weights were calculated using FAHP to develop the CCI formula.

Findings

The results showed that the random forest model had the lowest mean absolute percentage error (MAPE) of 1.09%, followed by Extreme Gradient Boosting and K-nearest neighbours with MAPEs of 1.41% and 1.46%, respectively.

Originality/value

The novelty of this study lies within the use of FAHP to address the ambiguity of the impact of various cost items on CCI. The developed CCI equation and ML models are expected to significantly benefit construction managers, investors and policymakers in making informed decisions by enhancing their understanding of cost trends in the construction industry.

Details

Construction Innovation , vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1471-4175

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 20 December 2023

Indira Damarla, Venmathi M., Krishnakumar V. and Anbarasan P.

In this paper, a new front end converter (FEC) topology has been proposed for the switched reluctance (SR) motor drive. This study aims to present the performance analysis of…

Abstract

Purpose

In this paper, a new front end converter (FEC) topology has been proposed for the switched reluctance (SR) motor drive. This study aims to present the performance analysis of FEC-based SR motor drive using various types of control schemes like conventional proportional integral (PI) controller, fuzzy logic controller (FLC) and fuzzy-tuned proportional integral controller (Fuzzy-PI).

Design/methodology/approach

The proposed FEC-based SR motor drive with various control strategies is derived for the torque ripple minimization and speed control.

Findings

The steady state and the dynamic response of the FEC-based SR motor drive are analyzed using three different controllers under change in speed and loading conditions. The Fuzzy-PI-based control scheme improves the dynamic response of the system when compared with the FLC and the conventional PI controller.

Originality/value

The hardware prototype has been implemented for the FEC-based SR motor drive by using the Xilinx SPARTAN 6 FPGA processor. The experimental verification has been conducted and the results have been measured under steady state and dynamic conditions.

Details

Circuit World, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0305-6120

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 17 April 2023

Ashlyn Maria Mathai and Mahesh Kumar

In this paper, a mixture of exponential and Rayleigh distributions in the proportions α and 1 − α and all the parameters in the mixture distribution are estimated based on fuzzy…

Abstract

Purpose

In this paper, a mixture of exponential and Rayleigh distributions in the proportions α and 1 − α and all the parameters in the mixture distribution are estimated based on fuzzy data.

Design/methodology/approach

The methods such as maximum likelihood estimation (MLE) and method of moments (MOM) are applied for estimation. Fuzzy data of triangular fuzzy numbers and Gaussian fuzzy numbers for different sample sizes are considered to illustrate the resulting estimation and to compare these methods. In addition to this, the obtained results are compared with existing results for crisp data in the literature.

Findings

The application of fuzziness in the data will be very useful to obtain precise results in the presence of vagueness in data. Mean square errors (MSEs) of the resulting estimators are computed using crisp data and fuzzy data. On comparison, in terms of MSEs, it is observed that maximum likelihood estimators perform better than moment estimators.

Originality/value

Classical methods of obtaining estimators of unknown parameters fail to give realistic estimators since these methods assume the data collected to be crisp or exact. Normally, such case of precise data is not always feasible and realistic in practice. Most of them will be incomplete and sometimes expressed in linguistic variables. Such data can be handled by generalizing the classical inference methods using fuzzy set theory.

Details

International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0265-671X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 12 June 2023

Srinivas Naik Lonavath and Hadya Boda

This Friction stir welding study aims to weld thick AA8011 aluminium plates, and the interface joints created with a variety of tool pin profiles were examined for their effects…

Abstract

Purpose

This Friction stir welding study aims to weld thick AA8011 aluminium plates, and the interface joints created with a variety of tool pin profiles were examined for their effects on the welding process.

Design/methodology/approach

Scanning electron microscopy and optical microscopy and X-ray diffraction were used to examine the macro and micro-structural characteristics, as well as the fracture surfaces, of tensile specimens. The mechanical properties (tensile, hardness tests) of the base metal and the welded specimens under a variety of situations being tested. Additionally, a fracture toughness test was used to analyse the resilience of the base metal and the best weldments to crack formation. Using a response surface methodology with a Box–Behnken design, the optimum values for the three key parameters (rotational speed, welding speed and tool pin profile) positively affecting the weld quality were established.

Findings

The results demonstrate that a defect-free junction can be obtained by using a cylindrical tool pin profile, increasing the rotational speed while decreasing the welding speeds. The high temperature and compressive residual stress generated during welding leads to the increase in grain size. The grain size of the welded zone for optimal conditions is significantly smaller and the hardness of the stir zone is higher than the other experimental run parameters.

Originality/value

The work focuses on the careful examination of microstructures behaviour under various tool pin profile responsible for the change in mechanical properties. The mathematical model generated using Taguchi approach and parameters was optimized by using multi-objectives response surface methodology techniques.

Details

World Journal of Engineering, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1708-5284

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 21 July 2023

Deepak Datta Nirmal, K. Nageswara Reddy and Sujeet Kumar Singh

The main purpose of this study is to provide a comprehensive review and critical insights of the application of fuzzy methods in modeling, assessing and understanding the various…

Abstract

Purpose

The main purpose of this study is to provide a comprehensive review and critical insights of the application of fuzzy methods in modeling, assessing and understanding the various aspects of green and sustainable supply chains (SSCs).

Design/methodology/approach

The present study conducts a systematic literature review (SLR) and bibliometric analysis of 252 research articles. This study employs various tools such as VOSviewer version 1.6.10, Publish or Perish, Mendeley and Excel that aid in descriptive analysis, bibliometric analysis and network visualization. These tools have been used for performing citation analysis, top authors' analysis, co-occurrence of keywords, cluster and content analysis.

Findings

The authors have divided the literature into seven application areas and discussed detailed insights. This study has observed that research in the social sustainability area, including various issues like health and safety, labor rights, discrimination, etc. is scarce. Integration of the Industry 4.0 technologies like blockchain, big data analytics, Internet of Things (IoT) with the sustainable and green supply chain (GSC) is a promising field for future research.

Originality/value

The authors' contribution primarily lies in providing the integrated framework which shows the changing trends in the use of fuzzy methods in the sustainability area classifying and consolidating green and sustainable supply chain management (SSCM) literature in seven major areas where fuzzy methods are predominantly applied. These areas have been obtained after the analysis of clusters and content analysis of the literature presenting key insights from the past and developing the conceptual framework for future research studies.

Details

Benchmarking: An International Journal, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1463-5771

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 20 December 2023

Umayal Palaniappan and L. Suganthi

The purpose of this research is to present an integrated methodological framework to aid in performance stewardship of management institutions according to their strategies based…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this research is to present an integrated methodological framework to aid in performance stewardship of management institutions according to their strategies based on a holistic evaluation encompassing social, economic and environmental dimensions.

Design/methodology/approach

A Mamdani fuzzy inference system (FIS) approach was adopted to design the quantitative models with respect to balanced scorecard (BSC) perspectives to demonstrate dynamic capability. Individual models were developed for each perspective of BSC using Mamdani FIS. Data was collected from subject matter experts in management education.

Findings

The proposed methodology is able to successfully compute the scores for each perspective. Effective placement, teaching learning process, faculty development and systematic feedback from the stakeholders were found to be the key drivers for revenue generation. The model is validated as the results were well accepted by the head of the institution after implementation.

Research limitations/implications

The model resulting from this study will assist the institution to cyclically assess its performance, thus enabling continuous improvement. The strategy map provides the causality of the objectives across the four perspectives to aid the practitioners to better strategize. Also this study contributes to the literature of BSC as well to the applications of multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) techniques.

Originality/value

Mamdani FIS integrated BSC model is a significant contribution to the academia of management education to quantitatively compute the performance of institutions. This quantified model reduces the ambiguity for practitioners to decide the performance levels for each metric and the priorities of metrics.

Details

International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1741-0401

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 11 October 2023

Chinthaka Niroshan Atapattu, Niluka Domingo and Monty Sutrisna

Cost overrun in infrastructure projects is a constant concern, with a need for a proper solution. The current estimation practice needs improvement to reduce cost overruns. This…

Abstract

Purpose

Cost overrun in infrastructure projects is a constant concern, with a need for a proper solution. The current estimation practice needs improvement to reduce cost overruns. This study aimed to find possible statistical modelling techniques that could be used to develop cost models to produce more reliable cost estimates.

Design/methodology/approach

A bibliographic literature review was conducted using a two-stage selection method to compile the relevant publications from Scopus. Then, Visualisation of Similarities (VOS)-Viewer was used to develop the visualisation maps for co-occurrence keyword analysis and yearly trends in research topics.

Findings

The study found seven primary techniques used as cost models in construction projects: regression analysis (RA), artificial neural network (ANN), case-based reasoning (CBR), fuzzy logic, Monte-Carlo simulation (MCS), support vector machine (SVM) and reference class forecasting (RCF). RA, ANN and CBR were the most researched techniques. Furthermore, it was observed that the model's performance could be improved by combining two or more techniques into one model.

Research limitations/implications

The research was limited to the findings from the bibliometric literature review.

Practical implications

The findings provided an assessment of statistical techniques that the industry can adopt to improve the traditional estimation practice of infrastructure projects.

Originality/value

This study mapped the research carried out on cost-modelling techniques and analysed the trends. It also reviewed the performance of the models developed for infrastructure projects. The findings could be used to further research to develop more reliable cost models using statistical modelling techniques with better performance.

Details

Smart and Sustainable Built Environment, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2046-6099

Keywords

1 – 10 of 504