International Journal of Industrial Engineering & Production Research

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  The problem of lot sizing, sequencing and scheduling multiple products in flow line production systems has been studied by several authors. Almost all of the researches in this area assumed that setup times and costs are sequence –independent even though sequence dependent setups are common in practice. In this paper we present a new mixed integer non linear program (MINLP) and a heuristic method to solve the problem in sequence dependent case. Furthermore, a genetic algorithm has been developed which applies this constructive heuristic to generate initial population. These two proposed solution methods are compared on randomly generated problems. Computational results show a clear superiority of our proposed GA for majority of the test problems.

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  In this paper, we consider a flow shop scheduling problem with bypass consideration for minimizing the sum of earliness and tardiness costs. We propose a new mathematical modeling to formulate this problem. There are several constraints which are involved in our modeling such as the due date of jobs, the job ready times, the earliness and the tardiness cost of jobs, and so on. We apply adapted genetic algorithm based on bypass consideration to solve the problem. The basic parameters of this meta-heuristic are briefly discussed in this paper. Also a computational experiment is conducted to evaluate the performance of the implemented methods. The implemented algorithm can be used to solve large scale flow shop scheduling problem with bypass effectively .

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  In this paper an Ant Colony (ACO) algorithm is developed to solve aircraft recovery while considering disrupted passengers as part of objective function cost. By defining the recovery scope, the solution always guarantees a return to the original aircraft schedule as soon as possible which means least changes to the initial schedule and ensures that all downline affects of the disruption are reflected. Defining visibility function based on both current and future disruptions is one of our contributions in ACO which aims to recover current disruptions in a way that cause less consequent disruptions. Using a real data set, the computational results indicate that the ACO can be successfully used to solve the airline recovery problem .

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  In this paper flexible job-shop scheduling problem (FJSP) is studied in the case of optimizing different contradictory objectives consisting of: (1) minimizing makespan, (2) minimizing total workload, and (3) minimizing workload of the most loaded machine. As the problem belongs to the class of NP-Hard problems, a new hybrid genetic algorithm is proposed to obtain a large set of Pareto-optimal solutions in a reasonable run time. The algorithm utilizes from a local search heuristic for improving the chance of obtaining more number of global Pareto-optimal solutions. The solution method uses from a perturbed global criterion function for guiding the search direction of the hybrid algorithm. Computational experiences show that the hybrid algorithm has superior performance in contrast to previous studies .

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Hub covering location problem, Network design,   Single machine scheduling, Genetic algorithm,   Shuffled frog leaping algorithm

Hub location problems (HLP) are synthetic optimization problems that appears in telecommunication and transportation networks where nodes send and receive commodities (i.e., data transmissions, passengers transportation, express packages, postal deliveries, etc.) through special facilities or transshipment points called hubs. In this paper, we consider a central mine and a number of hubs (e.g., factories) connected to a number of nodes (e.g., shops or customers) in a network. First, the hub network is designed, then, a raw materials transportation from a central mine to the hubs (i.e., factories) is scheduled. In this case, we consider only one transportation system regarded as single machine scheduling. Furthermore, we use this hub network to solve the scheduling model. In this paper, we consider the capacitated single allocation hub covering location problem (CSAHCLP) and then present the mixed-integer programming (MIP) model. Due to the computational complexity of the resulted models, we also propose two improved meta-heuristic algorithms, namely a genetic algorithm and a shuffled frog leaping algorithm in order to find a near-optimal solution of the given problem. The performance of the solutions found by the foregoing proposed algorithms is compared with exact solutions of the mathematical programming model .

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Project scheduling   Net present value

We consider a project scheduling problem with permitted tardiness and discrete time/resource trade-offs under maximum net present value objective. In this problem, a project consists of a set of sequential phases such that each phase contains one or more sub-projects including activities interrelated by finish-start-type precedence relations with a time lag of zero, which require one or more renewable resources. There is also a set of unconstrained renewable resources. For each activity, instead of a fixed duration and known resource requirements, a total work content respect to each renewable resource is given which essentially indicates how much work has to be performed on it. This work content can be performed in different modes, i.e. with different durations and resource requirements as long as the required work content is met. Based on the cost of resources units and resource requirements of each activity, there is a corresponding cash flow for the activity. Each phase is ended with a milestone that corresponds to the phase income. We prove that the mode corresponding to the minimum possible duration of each activity is the optimal mode in this problem. We also present a simple optima scheduling procedure to determine the finish time of each activity .

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The problem of staff scheduling at a truck hub for loading and stripping of the trucks is an important and difficult problem to optimize the labor efficiency and cost. The trucks enter the hub at different hours a day, in different known time schedules and operating hours. In this paper, we propose a goal programming to maximize the labor efficiency via minimizing the allocation cost. The proposed model of this paper is implemented for a real-world of a case study and the results are analyzed.

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In this paper, we consider scheduling of project networks under minimization of total weighted resource tardiness penalty costs. In this problem, we assume constrained resources are renewable and limited to very costly machines and tools which are also used in other projects and are not accessible in all periods of time of a project. In other words, there is a dictated ready date as well as a due date for each resource such that no resource can be available before its ready date but the resources are allowed to be used after their due dates by paying penalty cost depending on the resource type. We also assume, there is only one unit of each resource type available and no activity needs more than it for execution. The goal is to find a schedule with minimal total weighted resource tardiness penalty costs. For this purpose, we present a hybrid metaheuristic procedure based on the greedy randomized adaptive search algorithm and path-relinking algorithm. We develop reactive and non-reactive versions of the algorithm. Also, we use different bias probability functions to make our solution procedure more efficient. The computational experiments show the reactive version of the algorithm outperforms the non-reactive version. Moreover, the bias probability functions defined based on the duration and precedence relation characteristics give better results than other bias probability functions.

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Increasing competition in the air transport market has intensified active airlines’ efforts to keep their market share by attaching due importance to cost management aimed at reduced final prices. Crew costs are second only to fuel costs on the cost list of airline companies. So, this paper attempts to investigate the cockpit crew pairing problem. The set partitioning problem has been used for modelling the problem at hand and, because it is classified in large scale problems, the column generation approach has been used to solve LP relaxation of the set partitioning model. Our focus will be on solving the column generation sub-problem. For this purpose, two algorithms, named SPRCF and SPRCD, have been developed based on the shortest path with resource constraint algorithms. Their efficiency in solving some problem instances has been tested and the results have been compared with those of an algorithm for crew pairing problem reported in the literature. Results indicate the high efficiency of the proposed algorithms in solving problem instances with up to 632 flight legs in a reasonable time.

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In this paper the problem of serial batch scheduling in a two-stage hybrid flow shop environment with minimizing Makesapn is studied. In serial batching it is assumed that jobs in a batch are processed serially, and their completion time is defined to be equal to the finishing time of the last job in the batch. The analysis and implementation of the prohibited transference of jobs among the machines of stage one in serial batch is the main contribution of this study. Machine set-up and ready time for all jobs are assumed to be zero and no Preemption is allowed. Machines may not breakdown but at times they may be idle. As the problem is NP-hard, a genetic algorithm is developed to give near optimal solutions. Since this problem has not been studied previously, therefore, a lower bound is developed for evaluating the performance of the proposed GA. Many test problems have been solved using GA and results compared with lower bound. Results showed GA can obtain a near optimal solution for small, median and large size problems in reasonable time.

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A three stage production system is considered in this paper. There are two stages to fabricate and ready the parts and an assembly stage to assembly the parts and complete the products in this system. Suppose that a number of products of different kinds are ordered. Each product is assembled with a set of several parts. At first the parts are produced in the first stage with parallel machines and then they are controlled and ready in the second stage and finally the parts are assembled in an assembly stage to produce the products. Two objective functions are considered that are: (1) to minimizing the completion time of all products (makespan), and (2) minimizing the sum of earliness and tardiness of all products (∑_i▒(E_i∕T_i ) . Since this type of problem is NP-hard, a new multi-objective algorithm is designed for searching locally Pareto-optimal frontier for the problem. To validate the performance of the proposed algorithm, in terms of solution quality and diversity level, various test problems are made and the reliability of the proposed algorithm, based on some comparison metrics, is compared with two prominent multi-objective genetic algorithms, i.e. NSGA-II and SPEA-II. The computational results show that performance of the proposed algorithms is good in both efficiency and effectiveness criterions.

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In today's competitive market, quality has an important role in manufacturing system. The manufacturers attempt to maintain their production system in a proper condition to produce high quality products. One of the key factors to achieve this goal is maintenance policy. Most studies on maintenance focused on machines and less attention has been paid to human resources as the most important factor in manufacturing system. In this paper we propose a mixed integer nonlinear model to schedule the maintenance of machines and rest of human resources based on reliability factor. This model aims to minimize the cost of machines and human resources idleness and products quality cost. The performance of proposed model was examined by two instances and the obtained results indicated this model can provide efficient and effectiveness work and rest schedule for machines and human resources in manufacturing systems.

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This paper considers identical parallel machines scheduling problem with past-sequence-dependent setup times, deteriorating jobs and learning effects, in which the actual processing time of a job on each machine is given as a function of the processing times of the jobs already processed and its scheduled position on the corresponding machine. In addition, the setup time of a job on each machine is proportional to the actual processing time of the already processed jobs on the corresponding machine, i.e., the setup time of a job is past- sequence-dependent (p-s-d). The objective is to determine jointly the jobs assigned to each machine and the order of jobs such that the total completion time (called TC) is minimized. Since that the problem is NP-hard, optimal solution for the instances of realistic size cannot be obtained within a reasonable amount of computational time using exact solution approaches. Hence, an efficient method based on ant colony optimization algorithm (ACO) is proposed to solve the given problem. The performance of the presented model and the proposed algorithm is verified by a number of numerical experiments. The related results show that ant colony optimization algorithm is effective and viable approache to generate optimal⁄near optimal solutions within a reasonable amount of computational time.

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This paper addresses a production and outbound distribution scheduling problem in which a set of jobs have to be process on a single machine for delivery to customers or to other machines for further processing. We assume that there is a sufficient number of vehicles and the delivery costs is independent of batch size but it is dependent on each trip. In this paper, we present an Artificial Immune System (AIS) for this problem. The objective is to minimize the sum of the total weighted number of tardy jobs and the batch delivery costs. A batch setup time has to be added before processing the first job in each batch. Using computational test, we compare our method with an existing method for the mentioned problem in literature namely Simulated Annealing (SA). Computational tests show the significant improvement of AIS over the SA.

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The locomotive assignment and the freight train scheduling are important problems in railway transportation. Freight cars are coupled to form a freight rake. The freight rake becomes a train when a locomotive is coupled to it. The locomotive assignment problem assigns locomotives to a set of freight rakes in a way that, with minimum locomotive deadheading time, rake coupling delay and locomotive coupling delay all freight rakes are hauled to their destinations. Scheduling freight trains consists of sequencing and ordering freight trains during the non-usage time between passenger trains but with no interference and with minimum delay times. Solving these two problems simultaneously is of high importance and can be highly effective in decreasing costs for rail transportation. In this paper, we aim to minimize the operational costs for the locomotive assignment and the freight train scheduling by solving these two problems concurrently. To meet this objective, an efficient and effective algorithm based on the ant colony system is proposed. To evaluate the performance of the proposed solution method, twenty-five test problems, which are based on the conditions of Iran Railways, are solved and the computational results are reported.

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Today, many companies after achieving improvements in manufacturing operations are focused on the improvement of distribution systems and have long been a strong tendency to optimize the distribution network in order to reduce logistics costs that the debate has become challenging. Improve the flow of materials, an activity considered essential to increase customer satisfaction. In this study, we benefit cross docking method for effective control of cargo flow to reduce inventory and improve customer satisfaction. Also every supply chain is faced with risks that threaten its ability to work effectively. Many of these risks are not in control but can cause great disruption and costs for the supply chain process. In this study we are looking for a model to collect and deliver the demands for the limited capacity vehicle in terms of disruption risk finally presented a compromised planning process. In fact, we propose a framework which can consider all the problems on the crisis situation for decision-making in these conditions, by preparing a mathematical model and software gams for the following situation in a case study. In the first step, the results presented in mode of a two-level planning then the problem expressed in form of a multi-objective optimization model and the results was explained.

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Public transportation has been one of the most important research fields in the two last decades. The purpose of this paper is to create a schedule for public transport fleets such as buses and metro trains with the goal of minimizing the total transfer waiting time. We extend previous research works in the field of transit schedule with considering headways of each route as decision variables. In this paper, we formulate the problem as a mixed integer linear programming model and solve it using ILOG CPLEX solver. For large-scale test instances, we develop a metaheuristic based on the scatter search algorithm to obtain good solutions in a reasonable CPU run times. Finally, in the computational section, the efficiency of the proposed model and developed algorithm are compared with the existing results in the literature on a real railway network.

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This paper addresses the Tardy/Lost penalty minimization on a single machine. According to this penalty criterion, if the tardiness of a job exceeds a predefined value, the job will be lost and penalized by a fixed value. Besides its application in real world problems, Tardy/Lost measure is a general form for popular objective functions like weighted tardiness, late work and tardiness with rejection and hence, the results of this study are applicable for them. Initially, we present two approximation algorithms. Then, two special cases of the main problem are considered. In the first case, all jobs have the same tardiness weights where an FPTAS is developed using the technique of “structuring the execution of an algorithm". The second special case occurs when none of the jobs can be early. For this case, a 2-approximation algorithm is developed as well as a dynamic programming algorithm which is converted to an FPTAS.

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In last decades, mobile factories have been used due to their high production capability, carrying their equipment and covering rough and uneven routes. Nowadays, more companies use mobile factories with the aim of reducing the transportation and manufacturing costs. The mobile factory must travel between the suppliers, visit all of them in each time period and return to the initial location of the mobile factory. In this paper, we present an integer nonlinear programming model for production scheduling and routing of mobile factory with the aim of maximization of profit. This problem is similar to the well-known Traveling Salesman Problem (TSP) which is an NP-hard problem. Also at each supplier, the scheduling problem for production is NP-hard. After linearization, we proposed a heuristic greedy algorithm. The efficiency of this heuristic algorithm is analyzed using the computational studies on 540 randomly generated test instances. Finally, the sensitivity analysis of the production cost, transportation cost and relocation cost was conducted.

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In this paper a novel modelling and solving method has been developed to address the so-called resource constrained project scheduling problem (RCPSP) where project tasks have multiple modes and also the preemption of activities are allowed. To solve this NP-hard problem, a new general optimization via simulation (OvS) approach has been developed which is the main contribution of the current research. In this approach, the mathematical model of the main problem is relaxed and solved then the optimum solutions were used in the corresponding simulation model to produce several random feasible solutions for the main problem. Finally, the most promising solutions were selected as the initial population of a genetic Algorithm (GA). To test the efficiency of the problem, several test problems were solved by the proposed approach and according to the results, the proposed concept has a very good performance to solve such a complex combinatoral problem. Also, the concept could be easily applied for other similar combinatorics.