Cecilia Temponi

House of quality: A fuzzy logic-based requirements analysis

House Of Quality (HOQ) is one of the matrices of an iterative process called Quality Function Deployment (QFD). The foundation of the HOQ is the belief that products should be designed to reflect customers’ desires and taste. HOQ is performed by a multidisciplinary team representing marketing, design engineering, manufacturing engineering, and any other functions considered critical by the company. In general, it provides a framework in which all participants can communicate their thoughts about a product. More specifically, HOQ is often used to identify the relationships between requirements based on diAerent viewpoints. There are two issues in analyzing these requirements using HOQ. First, requirements are often described informally using vague terms. However, lack of formal way in interpreting the semantics of these requirements makes it diAcult to determine if a realization of the system meets its customer’s needs. Second, identifying relationships between requirements is often time consuming. Sometimes, it is diAcult to arrive at a group consensus on a particular relationship between requirements. To address these issues, we have developed a fuzzy logic-based extension to HOQ for capturing imprecise requirements to both facilitate communication of team members and have a formal representation of requirements. Based on this representation, we developed a heuristic inference scheme to reason about the implicit relationships between requirements. We illustrate our approach using a textile mill supply business application. ” 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

Continuous improvement framework: implications for academia

Purpose – To analyze the main elements of continuous improvement (CI) in higher education and the concerns of academias stakeholders in the implementation of such an approach. Suggests guidelines for the development of a culture more receptive to the implementation and maintenance of a CI approach in higher education.Design/methodology/approach – A review of published literature (1982‐2004) facilitates identification of elements of CI, and concerns of academias stakeholders for the adoption of a CI approach in higher education. The reviewed sources are grouped into three major sections: the CI approach, implications of CI, and an illustrative example – EQUIS.Findings – The adoption of a CI approach in higher education requires not only upper administration commitment, but also uncovering the current underlying culture and examining the appropriateness of the objectives to adopt CI. A culture of a long‐term commitment to CI implies engaging the administrative and academic systems and all the stakeholders...

A scenario-based stochastic model for supplier selection in global context with multiple buyers, currency fluctuation uncertainties, and price discounts

Suppliers network in the global context under price discounts and uncertain fluctuations of currency exchange rates have become critical in today’s world economy. We study the problem of suppliers’ selection in the presence of uncertain fluctuations of currency exchange rates and price discounts. We specifically consider a buyer with multiple sites sourcing a product from heterogeneous suppliers and address both the supplier selection and purchased quantity decision. Suppliers are located worldwide and pricing is offered in suppliers’ local currencies. Exchange rates from the local currencies of suppliers to the standard currency of the buyer are subject to uncertain fluctuations overtime. In addition, suppliers offer discounts as a function of the total quantity bought by the different customer’ sites over the time horizon irrespective of the quantity purchased by each site.

Defining the most desirable outsourcing contract between customer and vendor

Purpose – The purpose of this work is to identify commonalities that exist within the contracts between customer and vendor companies, the nature of the problems commonly associated with these contracts, and to provide a theoretical model that exists between customer and vendor companies.Design/methodology/approach – This research uses multiple sources of previous research to isolate the key elements and form a theoretical model for the ideal outsourcing contract. The common problems identified were also derived from previous research.Findings – The paper finds that there is a common set of key contractual elements that exist between most outsourcing contracts. The nature of the particular industry the companies exist within and the specific needs within each customer‐vendor relationship can be accommodated within the contract by tailoring these key elements to fit each scenario. A set of common problems may arise when any of the key elements are not sufficiently addressed. These problems can greatly deva...

A fuzzy decision model for color reproduction

Color quality appraisal refers to a visual evaluation of an original color image and an assessment of the degree to which that image is matched in photomechanical or electronic reproduction. The evaluation of reproduction quality is quite subjective since it relies on the individual judgments of color technicians who have different perceptions of color and its component qualities. To reduce the amount of rework due to subjective evaluation of color reproduction, an objective model is proposed here. In this model, a fuzzy set of quality factors is introduced and a numerical quality value calculated. This measure is then compared with an acceptable quality value experimentally established for particular customers and printing processes. Finally, the installed model is tested in actual production, and compared with the conventional evaluation method in a cost analysis.

A Genetic Algorithm and Fuzzy Approach (GAFA) for Constrained Nonlinear Optimization in Design

Constrained nonlinear optimization (CNLO) problems often involve imprecise objectives and constraints. The application of conventional nonlinear optimization techniques does not seem the best approach for CNLO. A multi-objective multi-constraint algorithm is proposed in this paper to find an approximation of the so-called pareto-optimal solution, which is searched by a genetic algorithm that uses constraints and objective functions defined via fuzzy sets. The proposed algorithm is illustrated by two classic examples in the field of engineering design. Results indicate that the proposed algorithm is effective in terms of finding a solution that is within acceptable proximity of the so-called pareto-optimal front. Moreover, a comparative analysis of the performance of the proposed approach with those reported in the literature reveals the computational efficiency of the modified algorithm; the population evolves towards the Pareto-optimal set.

Assessment of customer's and technical requirements through a fuzzy logic-based method

The foundation of the house of quality (HOQ) is the belief that products should be designed to reflect customers desires. It is often used to identify the relationships between requirements based on different viewpoints. There are two issues in analyzing these requirements using HOQ. First, requirements are often described informally using vague terms, which makes it difficult to meet customers needs. Second, identifying relationships between requirements is often time consuming. To address these issues, we have developed a fuzzy logic-based extension to HOQ for capturing imprecise requirements to both facilitate communication of team members and have a formal representation of requirements. Based on this representation, we developed a heuristic inference scheme to reason about the implicit relationships between requirements. We illustrate our approach using a textile mill supply business application.

Fuzzy set underpinnings of oligopoly markets

This paper describes the natural links between fuzzy sets and oligopolistic markets. Fuzzy sets are used as a tool to define and describe oligopoly markets and to demonstrate quantitatively the uncertainty intrinsic to oligopolistic industries. The values of oligopolistic uncertainty are calculated by utilizing a fuzzy entropy measure. Significant distinctions between fuzzy results and the crisp number calculus are emphasized.<<ETX>>

Critical Variables in the Decision-Making Process for AMHS Technology Selection in Semiconductor Wafer Size Transitions: Exploratory Study

This paper presents a decision-making model describing the automated material handling system (AMHS) variables that should be incorporated in the strategic planning process associated with the upcoming wafer size transitions. A literature review on AMHS technology facilitated the selection of critical variables, such as cycle time improvement, wafer transition costs, paying the bill, return on investment, productivity, equipment, and material. Several hypotheses were postulated and analyzed based on data gathered from an industry survey. Some of the findings include: companies involved in the transition of next wafer size should share the cost of development and implementation, and the next-generation AMHS technology will satisfy performance requirements of 450 mm fabs. This paper provides conclusions and recommendations that might assist managers in the strategic planning process.

Special issue on sustainability trends: metrics and approaches

Today’s organizations should account for sustainability concepts, metrics, and approaches that target the development of successful and profitable global supply chain networks. This important tenet in the academic and industrial environment was the motivation for this special issue of Supply Chain Forum: An International Journal. The objective of this special issue is to present the most up-to-date research in sustainability trends by identifying suitable metrics and approaches in supply chain environments from a variety of industries – services and manufacturing – that concern academic and industrial communities. The international conference on Information Systems, Logistics and Supply Chain (ILS), organized on June 1–4, 2016 at The Kedge Business School in Bordeaux, France, addressed a broad range of topics related to supply chain networks, logistics operations management, supply chain management and optimization, and information systems. All of these topics considered sustainability impacts. Participants at the ILS 2016 conference had the opportunity to (1) discuss emerging research and industrial issues, (2) share common practices and recent research development in academia and industry, and (3) identify research opportunities in a variety of areas in Supply Chain Management. Five of seven papers published in this issue of the Supply Chain Forum: An International Journal were selected among the best contributions in the topic of Sustainability Trends: Metrics and Approaches. The papers were discussed at the ILS 2016 conference, then these papers were revised and extended, as well as subjected to the peer review process prescribed by the journal in its review process. Papers contents are promising and present substantial advances on a variety of topics in supply chain by providing design approaches of sustainable supply chains, impacts analysis of transportation approaches to supply-chain performance, as well as methods to overcome bias across country borders to maintain sustainable systems or to analyze supply-chain risks in disrupting environment. Each selected topic is introduced next. The first paper by Novoa, et al., ‘A Zero Carbon Supply Chain Model: Minimizing Levelized Cost of Onsite Renewable Generation,’ presents the major issues being addressed in sustainable supply chains (SSC) and the complexities of metrics design in SSC regarding environmental aspects with an integrated production-transportation system. The authors developed a linear optimization model to operate a netzero carbon supply chain network via 100 percent of onsite wind and solar generation. The model shows the feasibility and economical viable of a zero-carbon supply chain operation. The importance of supply chain performance in a sustainable system is next addressed by Figliozzi and Tipagornwong in the second paper ‘Impact of Last Mile Parking Availability on Commercial Vehicle Costs and Operations.’ This research combines logistics, queuing, and optimization models to study the impact of last mile parking availability on commercial vehicle costs and operations. A scenario approach is conducted to study the impact of parking availability on typical less-than-truckload (LTL) and courier service costs. Elasticity values indicate that a few variables have a significant impact on commercial vehicle parking behavior. Parking availability levels do affect commercial vehicle costs and operations significantly. The magnitude of the impacts is a function of customer and route characteristics. The third paper is a case study ‘Impact of Cargo Railway Transportation Service Quality on Enterprises in Piauí, Brazil’ that links the transportation network (railway) and the service level. Mendes dos Reis, et al. made the case of the criticality of the railway transportation to the flow of goods, primarily those with low added value and high cargo volume. This international case study on a developing country validates the critical importance of logistics (transportation) infrastructure in a sustainable supply chain. The lack of adequate routes increases lead times and limits the ability to export goods. The contribution of environmental performance assessment of products for the improvement of sustainability in supply chains is addressed by Aymard et al. in the fourth paper ‘Normalization in Life-Cycle Assessment: consequences of new European factors on decision-making.’ The authors studied the most recent International reference Life-Cycle Data system