Lower Echelon Research Articles

Türk Ordusunda Ast Kademe Komuta İhtiyacı: Küçük Zabitlikten Astsubaylığa

Bu makalede, modern orduların alt düzey komuta ve eğitim ihtiyacını karşılayan astsubay muadili kadroların, Türk ordusundaki tarihî seyri tetkik edilecektir. Modern ordu teşkilatları kapsamında ele alındığında, ilk defa 1826 yılında kurulan “Asâkir-i Mansûre-i Muhammediyye” ordusundan itibaren farklı isimlerle birliklerde görev yapmaya başlayan bu kadrolar, resmî olarak 1951 yılında astsubay olarak nitelendirilmiş ve bu yıla kadar dönemin paradigma orduları olan Fransız, Alman ve Amerikan ordularının etkisinde kalarak bir dizi değişime uğramıştır. 1826-1951 yılları arasındaki bu değişim, Türkiye’ye özgü şartların da hâkim olmasıyla diğer dünya ordularından farklı bir şekle bürünerek ilerlemiştir. Daha ziyade döneme ait birincil kaynaklar üzerinden ele alınan konu kapsamında, astsubay muadili olan ve “küçük zabit “olarak da adlandırılan kadroların seçim, eğitim, istihdam, statü, terfi süreçleri ve görev sahaları incelenerek bunlardaki değişim ortaya konulmak istenmiştir. Bu çalışma, akademik araştırmalara çok fazla konu edilmeyen astsubay muadili ast kademe kadrolarındaki göz ardı edilen/ertelenen ya da çözülmeyen sorunların orta ve uzun vadede daha büyük sorunlara yol açabileceğini; ortaya çıkan sonuçlar itibariyle de konunun sadece askerî teşkilat tarihi açısından değil harp tarihi, askerî eğitim tarihi ve askerî sosyoloji gibi diğer bilim alanları tarafından da incelenmesi gerektiğini göstermektedir.

Smart and sustainable city logistics: Design, consolidation, and regulation

Growing e-commerce delivery increases traffic congestion and demands for smart last-mile city distribution systems. In this context, municipalities and logistics service providers aim towards sustainable and profitable city logistics, which are often conflicting goals. Whether to use single-echelon or two-echelon systems with micro-depots and city freighters as well as quantifying the benefits of shipment consolidation between independent providers under different system designs are unanswered questions in academia and practice.We provide a general methodological framework based on continuous approximation theory to study the design of city logistics networks with multiple logistics service providers that choose transportation strategies, each defined by a network structure and specific transportation modes. We provide analytical results on the comparison of different transportation strategies. By providing thresholds on the benefit of consolidated systems, we analytically quantify shipment consolidation effects in city centers. We then embed this continuous approximation into a mixed-integer non-linear program and study parameter sensitivities for a real-world case study.Our results show that higher customer density and longer distances between depots and distribution areas promote 2-tier transportation strategies. Consolidation between logistics service providers allows for emission reductions independent of the transportation strategy and correlate with cost reductions up to 50% on the lower echelon. Outsourcing promotes 2-tier last-mile deliveries with city freighters and in a city with heterogeneous districts, it is beneficial to use a hybrid network that includes both single- and two-echelon strategies using multiple transportation modes for different demand classes.

Preclinical feasibility of robot-assisted sentinel lymph node biopsy using multi-modality magnetic and fluorescence guidance in the head and neck.

Sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) is a staging procedure dependent on accurate mapping of draining lymphatics via tracers. Robot-assisted SLNB enables access to multiple neck levels with a single incision and intraoperative fluorescence guidance to the SLN. Lymphatic mapping in swine was done using a magnetic tracer and fluorescent dye, injected into the tongue. MRI preoperatively mapped lymphatic spread of the magnetic tracer. Dissection was performed using a da Vinci Xi robot guided by fluorescence-imaging of the dye. Robot-assisted SLNB was successfully performed in all animals (n=5). A novel MRI protocol differentiated SLNs (n=6) from lower echelon nodes (n=11) based on flow progression. Fluorescence imaging provided valuable intraoperative guidance and correlated with magnetic-positive nodes. This study demonstrates preclinical feasibility of a robot-assisted approach to SLNB using magnetic and fluorescent tracers in the head and neck, enabling both preoperative mapping and intraoperative guidance.

Особенности отбывания наказания лиц духовного звания в Нерчинском Успенском монастыре-пенитенциарии XVIII в. (к истории Нерчинской Успенской церкви)

The proposed article continues the thematic cycle of author’s publications, revealing the peculiarities of the penitentiary activities of the Nerchinsky Assumption monastery. Acquaintance with unknown pages of history Nerchinsky Assumption monastery relevant on the eve of the 315th anniversary her foundations, which will celebrate this year. The article substantiates, that throughout its history the Nerchinsky Assumption monastery was actively used as a place of exile, imprisonment and punishment for both laity and clergy of various ranks (from the lower echelon of the clergy to the arch pesters of church government of the Russian Orthodox Church). The next group of prisoners is considered, represented by the governors of this monastery, who at different times were involved in the bishop’s investigation for illegal acts. Research result historical-religious-legal problem can be called identifying features prison imprisonment influential persons of clergy and coverage of forensic activities in respect of some of them. The appeal to the principle of historicism made it possible to seek and subject to a comprehensive analysis of a significant amount of previously unpublished handwritten historical documents from the archives of the city of Chita and city of Irkutsk, with the subsequent introduction into scientific circulation. The principle of objectivity helped to trace the relationship and interdependence of the specifics of monastic punishment on the political-ideological and spiritualmoral priorities of specific historical periods, manifested in the gradual abandonment of the penitential and corrective component of monastic punishment and the acquisition of punitive and intimidating practices. The topic considered in the article deserves further research insofar as Nerchinsky Assumption monastery throughout all 18th was one element in the chain of penitentiary monasteries in the Russian empire.

A New Multi Echelon Repair Network Model with Multiple Upstream Locations for Level of Repair Analysis Problem

Level of repair analysis (LORA) determines (1) the best decision during a malfunction of each product component; (2) the location in the repair network to perform the decision and (3) the quantity of required resources in each facility. Capital goods have long life cycles and their total life cycle costs are extremely high. LORA, which can be done repeatedly during the life cycle of the product, both at design and product support phase, plays an important role in minimising the total life cycle costs of capital goods. It is mostly applied to systems that operate in different geographical areas and deployed in different regions, which include different subsystems with special technology and expertise, and have a complex product structure. In this study, we propose a new mathematical model to the LORA problem, which is more comprehensive and flexible than the other pure LORA models in the literature. The proposed model uses the multiple upstream approach that allows the transfer of the components from a location in the lower echelon to the predefined locations in the upper echelon and determines the material movement paths between each facility, defining the facilities’ locations in the repair network. The performance of the proposed model is tested on benchmark instances and the results are compared with the single upstream model. Computational experiments show that the proposed model is more effective than the single upstream model and reduces the total life cycle costs by 4.85% on average, which is an enormous cost saving when total life cycle costs of capital goods are considered.

On the question of extradition verification conducted by the prosecutors of territorial and specialized prosecutor's offices of the lower echelon of the prosecutorial system of the Russian Federation, and on certain flaws of the snap poll of a person on the international wanted list

The subject of this research is the materials of prosecutorial and judicial practice, as well as the norms of the current legislation of the Russian Federation, including international treaties of the Russian Federation. The object of this research is the extradition verification as the established by legislation legal means of the prosecutor aimed at detecting violations of the Constitution of the Russian Federation and laws effective in the territory of the Russian Federation, including international treaties of the Russian Federation and generally accepted principles of international law, human and civil  rights and freedoms, factors and conditions that contribute to such violations, and responsible parties in the context of resolving the question of extradition of foreign citizens and stateless persons from the Russian Federation or establishing the absence of indicated violations. Special attention is given to the concept, peculiarities, structure and content of extradition prosecutorial verification. The author supports the opinion of some scholars on the need to adopt foreign experience (namely of the Republic of Kazakhstan and Ukraine), as well as specify in the Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation the normative definition of the term “extradition check verification” and particular procedural actions of the prosecutor that constitute such verifications. The conclusion is made that the snap poll procedure for the detainee should be considered the initial (organizational and preparatory) stage of the extradition verification; there are gaps in normative regulation of the snap poll procedure, which may cause difficulties in practice of the prosecutors of the lower echelon of prosecutorial system of the Russian Federation, who are entrusted to take part in international  cooperation. The author underlines the need for mandatory correction of all the flaws, and offers the original perspective on their elimination.

Impact on bullwhip effect in food industry due to food delivery apps

Every supply chain whether services, durable goods or customer goods, is drifting more and more towards E-supply chain using Internet Technology (IT).Such supply chains make use of internet for selecting items, placing their orders and making payments too. Now days the E-supply chain for serving food items is getting very popular because of ease and facilities provided by Food Delivery Apps (FDAs) like Swiggy, Zomato and Uber Eats etc. Use of FDAs has caused variation in demand of food items and subsequently has caused an impact on bullwhip effect. Bullwhip effect is a supply chain phenomenon, which is defined as amplification of demand, as information in form of orders moves from lower echelon to higher echelon of supply chain. This paper attempts to explore the influence of E-supply chain on demand of food items and hence on the bullwhip effect, in food industry, in Indian context. In practice, E-supply chain causes price variations and results in poor forecasts and hence enhances bullwhip effect. But in present scenario, it has been demonstrated that the application of IT will contribute to the reduction of bullwhip effect in long run. Through qualitative and quantitative analysis, it has been proved that due to better information sharing the bullwhip effect has been reduced which generally increases in case of E-supply chain.

Decomposition-based 2-echelon multi-objective evolutionary algorithm with energy-efficient local search strategies for shop floor multi-crane scheduling problems

Since the environment-friendly production has attracted extensive attention of many manufacturing enterprises, the energy consumption has become one of the core indices to evaluate production processes. Under this circumstance, the main purpose of this paper is to propose an efficient scheduling method for multi-objective shop floor multi-crane scheduling problems. In this research, the objectives of minimizing total weighted tardiness and total energy consumption are considered simultaneously. Owing to the NP-hard nature of the investigated problem, an improved decomposition-based 2-echelon multi-objective evolutionary algorithm with energy-efficient local search strategies (2-echelon iMOEA/D) is developed to solve the problem. The upper echelon optimizer of the proposed algorithm extends the advantages of computing resources allocation and adaptive neighborhood adjustment to accelerate the convergence speed, while the lower echelon optimizer utilizes energy-efficient local search strategies to realize deep optimization of the algorithm. The performance of the proposed method is compared with two other high-efficient multi-objective optimization algorithms. The computation results indicate that the proposed 2-echelon iMOEA/D achieves better performance both on solutions’ quality and diversity.

Integrated Inventory-Transportation Problem in Vendor-Managed Inventory System

The paper presents a two-echelon inventory-transportation problem in Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI) system. We consider a distribution system composed with single supplier, single distribution center and multiple retailers. Single kind of products are required to deliver from the manufacturer through distribution center to the retailers within soft time window. The objective of the problem is to minimize total logistics cost in the distribution network, including inventory cost, distribution cost, and time penalty cost. The upper echelon model focuses on minimizing inventory cost while the lower echelon model on vehicle routing problem. A mixed algorithm is designed to solve the problem with simulated annealing and ant colony with local search. The solution of upper and lower echelon model are substituted into each other based on the mixed algorithm step by step to get the optimization solutions. Computational experiments are executed to compare the performance of independent and integrated inventory-transportation optimization from the dimension of to verify the effectiveness of the model and the algorithms.

Using Taylorism to make work easier: A work procedure perspective

Background: Complexities generally are conundrums that inhibit efficiency and effectiveness in research and practice; one of the symptoms of this is nebulous obstruction to task completion in the workplace. Complexities in work procedures create complications in the application of procedures for completing tasks. Recent trends in the Auditor General’s report have demonstrated the metastasising culture of non-compliance to work procedures in municipalities in South Africa. Research, as well as the audit outcomes for the Eastern Cape in particular, is a testament to this assertion. Therefore, there is no need to make work more complex. Aim: To ascertain whether the application of Taylorism in the workplace could improve performance and to access the utilisation of work procedure in municipalities in the Eastern Cape. Setting: This study was carried out using quantitative data collected from a District Municipality and its five local municipalities at the Transkei area of the Eastern Cape, South Africa. Method: A survey completed by 593 municipality workers (junior workers) was collected and analysed using statistical methods and triangulation. Results: Findings from the article reveals that work procedures in the organisation might be old and archaic. It may be relevant to workers who have little or no interference from externalities with regard to their job commitments. It recommends that those officials that perform routinised functions in municipalities should use a work procedure manual when completing their task. Based on the notion that work procedures engender compliance, increase outcome and output, increase productivity, save time, reduce stress and organisational friction or conflict in organisations. Conclusion: It concludes that procedures that are comprehensible (simple), accessible (organically inputted and communicated) and accurate (effectively designed) will improve the daily functionality of lower echelon staff in the municipalities, especially those requiring little or no external influence on the completion of a task.

Optimal allocation of spares to maximize the window fill rate in a two-echelon exchangeable-item repair system

We solve the spares allocation problem in a two-echelon, exchangeable-item repair system in which the lower echelon comprises multiple locations and the higher echelon is a single depot. We assume that customers tolerate a certain wait and therefore the optimization criterion is the window fill rate, i.e., the expected portion of customers who are served within the tolerable wait. We develop two algorithms to solve this problem. The first algorithm (FTEA) is formula-based and is suboptimal. The second algorithm (HTEA) combines simulations into the first algorithm and obtains a higher degree of accuracy at the cost of extra running time. We characterize the near-optimal solution by its degree of pooling and concentration. Pooling happens when spares are allocated to the depot and are therefore shared by all the lower-echelon locations. Concentration takes place when spares are allocated to only a few lower-echelon locations whereas the other lower-echelon locations receive no spares. We use numerical examples to compare the algorithms and to illustrate how the budget, shipment time, local repair and customer patience affect the optimal solution and degree of pooling in varying ways. Using the numerical results, we propose a third algorithm (ETEA) that obtains HTEA’s output in 30% of the time.

Analysis of Two-Echelon Inventory System with Two Demand Classes with Partial Backlogging

This paper deals with a continuous review two-echelon inventory system with two demand classes. Two echelon inventory systems consist of one retailer (lower echelon) and one distributor (upper echelon) handling a single finished product. The demand at retailer is of two types. The First type of demand is usual single unit and the second type is of bulk or packet demand. The arrival distribution for single and packet demands are assumed to be independent Poisson with rates λ1(>0) and λd (>0) respectively. The operating policy at the lower echelon for the (s, S) that is whenever the inventory level drops to ‘s’ on order for Q = (S-s) items is placed, the ordered items are received after a random time which is distributed as exponential with rate µ>0. We assume that the demands occurring during the stock-out period are lost. The retailer replenishes the stock from the distributor which adopts (0, M) policy. The objective is to minimize the anticipated total cost rate by simultaneously optimizing the inventory level. The joint probability disruption of the inventory levels at retailer and the distributor are obtained in the steady state case. Various system performance measures are derived and the long run total expected inventory cost rate is calculated. Several instances of numerical examples, which provide insight into the behavior of the system, are presented.

Continuous Review Two-Echelon (s,S) Inventory System with Partial Backlogging

Inventories exist throughout the supply chain in various forms for various reasons. This paper presents a continuous review two echelon inventory system. The operating policy at the lower echelon is (s, S) that is whenever the inventory level traps to s on order for Q = (S-s) items is placed, the ordered items are received after a random time which is distributed as exponential. We assume that the demands accruing during the stock-out period are partially backlogged. The retailer replenishes their stock from the regular supplier which adopts (0,M) policy, M = n1Q. When the regular supplier stock is empty the replacement of retailer stock made by the outside supplier who adopts (0,N) policy N = n2Q. The joint probability disruption of the inventory levels of retailer, regular supplier and the outside supplier are obtained in the steady state case. Various system performance measures are derived and the long run total expected inventory cost rate is calculated. Several instances of numerical examples, which provide insight into the behavior of the system are presented.

A Two Echelon Subsutable Inventory Model for Deteriorating Items

This paper presents continuous review two-echelon inventory systems with two different substitutable items in stock. The demand for the products follows independent Poisson with rates λ1 and λ2 respectively for product and A and B. The operating policy at the lower echelon for the products are (si , Si) that is whenever the inventory level drops to ‘si’ on order for Qi = (Si-si) items is placed, the ordered items are received after a random time which is distributed as exponential. We assume that the demands accruing during the stock-out period are lost. The retailer replenishes the stock of products from the supplier which adopts (0,Mi) policy. The joint probability disruption of the inventory levels of the products, at retailer and the products at supplier are obtained in the steady state case. Various system performance measures are derived and the long run total expected inventory cost rate is calculated. Several instances of numerical examples, which provide insight into the behavior of the system, are presented.

Modelling and Analysis of Compliment Inventory System in Supply Chain with Partial Backlogging

This paper presents a continuous review two echelon inventory systems with two different items in stock, one is main product and other one is complement item for the main product. The operating policy at the lower echelon for the main product is (s, S) that is whenever the inventory level drops to ‘s’ on order for Q = (S-s) items is placed, the ordered items are received after a random time which is distributed as exponential. We assume that the demands accruing during the stock-out period are partially backlogged. The retailer replenishes the stock of main product from the supplier which adopts (0,M) policy. The complement product is replenished instantaneously from local supplier. The joint probability disruption of the inventory levels of main product, complement item at retailer and the main product at supplier are obtained in the steady state case. Various system performance measures are derived and the long run total expected inventory cost rate is calculated. Several instances of numerical examples, which provide insight into the behavior of the system, are presented.

Performance Analysis of Substitutable Perishable Inventory System with Direct Demand in Supply Chain

This paper presents continuous review inventory systems in a simple chain with two different substitutable items in stock. The demand for the products follows independent Poisson with rates λ1 and λ2 respectively for product and A and B. The common demand for both products at distributor follows Poisson distribution with rate λd .The operating policy at the lower echelon for the products are (si, Si) that is whenever the inventory level drops to ‘si’ on order for Qi = (Si-si) items is placed, the ordered items are received after a random time which is distributed as exponential. We assume that the demands accruing during the stock-out period are lost. The retailer replenishes the stock of products from the supplier which adopts (0,M) policy. The joint probability disruption of the inventory levels of the products, at retailer and the products at supplier are obtained in the steady state case. Various system performance measures are derived and the long run total expected inventory cost rate is calculated.

ПІДХОДИ ДО ПОБУДОВИ МОБІЛЬНОЇ КОМПОНЕНТИ СИСТЕМИ ЗВ’ЯЗКУ НАЦІОНАЛЬНОЇ ГВАРДІЇ УКРАЇНИ З ВИКОРИСТАННЯМ ТЕХНОЛОГІЇ MANET

The current level of commercial data transmission systems development allows them to be used for military purposes without loss for functionality, level of reliability and security. Ready decisions allow these systems to be transferred into the military environment with minimal changes. This article highlights some new approaches to the building of the mobile component architecture of the NGU communication network, which can take into account the experience of the development of tactical communications systems in the USA, modern requirements to the process of troops command and the corresponding requirements for tactical level communication systems, as well as the current level development of wireless telecommunication technologies for civilian use. The possibilities and peculiarities of application technology of radio networks MANET are considered in more detail. It is a dynamic self-organizing network architecture, which does not include base stations and fixed routes for information transmission. Thus, a multi-link network is formed, which is characterized by a very high level of survivability, where each terminal is connected to a plurality of other terminals and has an alternative route to them. The mobile component of the NGU communication system is intended to provide an exchange of information in the interests of all troops operating in the tactical zone, regardless of their subordination and the tasks they perform. It is assumed that its architecture should be heterogeneous, hierarchical, which consists of three main levels: 1st - mobile radio networks of the lower echelon; 2nd- - the network of mobile base stations that create the backbone network; 3rd - air network, which can be implemented on the camera drones. An additional zero level can form sensory networks (telemetry networks). The creation of each level involves improving the performance indicators of the entire communication system. Each level of the mobile component uses its own sub-band frequencies.

A Study on ≪LiXueZhiNan-A Guidebook for officials in lower echelon≫

A Study on ≪LiXueZhiNan-A Guidebook for officials in lower echelon≫

Daily news and daily bread: Precarious employment in the newspaper distribution sector in Durban, South Africa

Orientation: The outsourcing of newspaper distribution seems to be one of the sources of precarious employment for newspaper distribution contractors and their employees. Research Purpose: In an attempt to contribute to the debate on outsourcing, this paper explored the effects of outsourcing newspaper distribution on the labour market experiences of newspaper distribution contractors and their employees in Durban. Motivation for the study: The labour market experiences of workers in precarious employment, especially those in the lower echelon of newspaper distribution, are rarely known. Research Design, approach and method: The study is a qualitative research which sought to explore the experiences of newspaper distributors in Durban. In identifying the respondents non-probability sampling was used to identify information-rich respondents for interview sections. Also, the research used participant observation to deepen data from interviews. Main Findings: The research finds that the respondents were exposed to precarious employment conditions irrespective of whether they were contracted or not, seemingly because of outsourcing of newspaper distribution in Durban. Practical/Managerial Implications: The practical implication suggests that Basic Employment Act is not guiding how the respondents are being treated. Contribution/Value-Add: The paper specifically highlights the exploitation of newspaper distributors on the streets, as they are denied any form of employment benefits or employment security despite executing their job within severe working conditions.

Two-echelon closed-loop supply chain deterministic inventory models in a batch production environment

This paper considers a two-echelon closed-loop supply chain consisting of a manufacturer and a remanufacturer at the upper echelon and a retailer at the lower echelon. The retailer faces a constant demand from customers, which is satisfied through recovered and new products received from the remanufacturer and the manufacturer, respectively. The manufacturer produces the product with finite rate, whereas the recovery of returned product is instantaneous at the remanufacturer. We develop three models to determine the optimal production-inventory policy of the players for minimizing the joint total cost of the system. In the first model, the retailer receives the product in batches from the manufacturer and the remanufacture simultaneously, whereas in the second and third models, the batches are received alternatively. In the third model, however, the procurement of raw material at the manufacturer is also considered. Numerical illustration is presented to examine the impact of certain key parameters.