Single Numerical Index Research Articles

Estimating soil health in urban allotments: Integrated two-way soil quality index and free-living amoebae in nitrogen recycling

Nitrogen deficiency and contamination by potentially toxic elements (PTEs) adversely impact soil health and ecosystem services. Existing tools for assessing contaminated soils, necessary for sustainable management, remain limited. In this study, we introduce an integrated approach using geochemical constituents and biological factors to construct a comprehensive index to evaluate contaminant impacts on soil health. We collected samples in triplicate from six plots within an urban allotment with a history of PTE contamination. Selected biological and chemical characteristics of the samples were quantified to derive impact scores, with a single numerical index representing overall soil quality for each plot. Multivariate, T-statistics and Pearson Correlation analysis were used to identify relationships and differences between selected soil parameters between plots. The role of the free-living amoeba Acanthamoeba in nitrogen recycling was assessed with feeding experiments, enzymatic assays and bioinformatics analysis. The plot with the highest index value, indicative of good health, exhibited higher pH, significantly high microbial load, and a high nitrate to ammonium (NO3−:NH4+) ratio of 5.3. This turnover was associated with Acanthamoeba uptake of exogenous nitrates and secretion of ammonium, through the assimilatory/dissimilatory nitrate reduction pathway. In contrast, the lower index plot with the low nitrogen turnover of 0.69, showed elevated aluminium, low pH activity and a significantly reduced microbial load, dominated by aluminium resistant microorganisms. Our findings highlight the importance of a comprehensive soil quality index by integrating multiple characteristics to assess soil health and contamination. The approach addresses the need for improved tools to identify the direct impact of contaminants on soil biological activity, supporting more sustainable land management.

Assessing the Impacts of Tourism Climate Index and Holiday Climate Index on Tourism Demand in Malaysia

This study aims to investigate the impacts of climate change on tourism demand in Malaysia. To date, this is the first study to employ the tourism climate index (TCI) and the holiday climate index (HCI) to examine the linkage between climate variables and tourism demand in Malaysia. Both the TCI and the HCI were constructed by integrating several climatic variables – temperature, humidity, precipitation, cloud cover, duration of sunshine, and wind speed into a single numerical index. The climate indexes were theoretically based on the biometeorological literature to reflect human thermal comfort. This paper utilized the effective temperature to measure human thermal comfort based on the ASHRAE-55 standard and employed monthly data from 2010 through 2020. The weather data were gathered from The Weather Online. Meanwhile, the number of international tourist arrivals to Malaysia was collected from the Ministry of Tourism Malaysia. The empirical outcomes of this study show that both the TCI and the HCI illustrated similar trends with the tourist visitation pattern in Malaysia. These results indicate that the climatic conditions potentially affect demand in Malaysia’s tourism industry. Therefore, both the TCI and HCI provide valuable insights to the Malaysian government and key industry players to design tourism policies and products. Lastly, this study also contributes to the literature related to tourism studies.

A Graph-Theoretic Approach to Evaluate the Intensity of Barriers in the Implementation of Industry 4.0

Industry 4.0 is seen as a relatively new concept with regard to developing nations like India. It is, however, recognized as an innovative approach for ensuring competitiveness and sustainability in manufacturing according to the Triple Bottom Line (TBL) perspective. But the practitioners are not endorsing the concept with much enthusiasm due to numerous barriers across the different segments of the manufacturing sector. Therefore, determining the essence and impact of these barriers is essential so that practitioners can devise appropriate mitigation strategies. In this direction, an attempt has been made to evaluate the intensity of barriers in the implementation of Industry 4.0 by using a graph-theoretic approach (GTA). Based on this methodology, a single numerical index value (i.e. I4.0BII) (Industry 4.0 Barrier Intensity Index) has been calculated to evaluate the intensity (or overall impact) of the barriers with respect to the considered case company. The GTA results revealed that the case company is most significantly impacted by organization-related barriers, strategic barriers, and technology-oriented barriers. In contrast, it is least affected by ethical and regulatory barriers and socio-cultural barriers. Furthermore, the scenario analysis was conducted to develop a scale that would assist practitioners in evaluating and benchmarking the implementation of Industry 4.0. It was observed from the developed scale that the case company was placed under the category “partially ready to meet the expectations of Industry 4.0” with a normalized I4.0BII value proportional to 0.78. The case company practitioners need to concentrate on those barriers which have a high I4.0BII value, and accordingly, strategies can be developed to mitigate their hindering impacts.

5.H. Skills building seminar: Methodological choices in burden of disease studies: a literature review of European studies

Abstract Since the first Global Burden of Disease (GBD), the burden of disease (BoD) concept has been widely used to understand patterns of health and the causes of loss of health in populations. In particular, the use of Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) has become popular as a single numerical index representative of both morbidity and mortality. Over the years, the original GBD methodology has undergone numerous updates, and various weighting and discounting schemes have been used in the reporting of the result. In addition to the GBD estimates (produced by the World Health Organization and the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation), many other independent studies have been conducted with considerable variation in the use of discounting, age weighting, disability weights, reference life tables, incidence or prevalence measures, and in the use of methods handling missing or poorly coded mortality data. The European BoD network (COST Action CA18218) strives to integrate and strengthen the capacity and knowledge in BoD assessment across Europe and beyond. Within this context, a series of systematic literature reviews (SLR) was performed to explore key methodological choices and differences of European BoD studies. The reviews aimed to i) identify existing BoD studies; ii) provide an overview of the specific methodological choices for calculating disease burden; and iii) synthesize the current scope and quality of BoD assessments across Europe. The ultimate aim of the literature summary is to develop a checklist for BoD studies that used DALYs. Since the review has been a continuing collaboration with a large group of members who are part of the European BoD network (burden-eu), this workshop represents an opportunity to enlarge that collaboration. Within the workshop, we will first present our aims and objectives and SLR procedures. After having presented some preliminary results, we will offer some starting points for a discussion on the implications of our findings. In particular, the presentations will be structured as follows: Methods and preliminary results of the SLR focusing on non-communicable diseases, communicable diseases, and injuries; Methods and preliminary results of the SLR focusing risk factors; Discussion on the implications for researchers. The workshop is meant to be an occasion to share experiences on computational variations within BoD studies and to collect input for the quality and scope evaluation of the studies. Key messages Shedding light on methodological approaches and data sources that have been used over the years across European countries should help to evaluate effectively the comparability of the results. The development and use of key standardized guidelines for reporting BoD methodological choices may help decision-makers to draw national-level strategies based on more accessible BoD estimates.

Using Entropy Weight and Over All Evaluation Criteria Optimize the Parameters in EDM of Al–20 Wt. % SICP MMC

The paper has been described one of the recent effective optimization technique i.e. Over all Evaluation Criteria (OEC) to controlling the process parameter during Electrical discharge machining (EDM) of Al – 20 wt.% SiCP metal matrix composite (MMC). The MMC is one of the advance material in compare to the conventional material. To exploit the industrial application of this material with EDM it needs to optimize the process parameter for reliable and economical production of this process. For that the experiment is carried out by Central composite design (CCD) method by considering the input process parameters like peak current, pulse on time and flushing pressure and the output are material removal rate, tool wear rate, radial over cut and surface roughness (Ra). In order to optimize the process parameter a combine effect of Entropy weight measurement method and Over all Evaluation Criteria (OEC) is used to get a single numerical index. Finally, the present work.is is carried out by confirmation test to analyse the desirable approach of the selected model.

Preparing for invasion: Assessing risk of infection by chytrid fungi in southeastern plethodontid salamanders.

Understanding the responses of naïve communities to the invasion of multihost pathogens requires accurate estimates of susceptibility across taxa. In the Americas, the likely emergence of a second amphibian pathogenic fungus (Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans, Bsal) calls for new ways of prioritizing disease mitigation among species due to the high diversity of naïve hosts with prior B. dendrobatidis (Bd) infections. Here, we applied the concept of pathogenic potential to quantify the virulence of chytrid fungi on naïve amphibians and evaluate species for conservation efforts in the event of an outbreak. The benefit of this measure is that it combines and summarizes the variation in disease effects into a single numerical index, allowing for comparisons across species, populations or groups of individuals that may inherently exhibit differences in susceptibility. As a proof of concept, we obtained standardized responses of disease severity by performing experimental infections with Bsal on five plethodontid salamanders from southeastern United States. Four out of five species carried natural infections of Bd at the start of the experiments. We showed that Bsal exhibited its highest value of pathogenic potential in a species that is already declining (Desmognathus auriculatus). We find that this index provides additional information beyond the standard measures of disease prevalence, intensity, and mortality, because it leveraged these disease parameters within each categorical group. Scientists and practitioners could use this measure to justify research, funding, trade, or conservation measures.

Development and Validation of a Pediatric Comorbidity Index.

Comorbidity scores are widely used to help address confounding bias in nonrandomized studies conducted within health-care databases, but existing scores were developed to predict all-cause mortality in adults and might not be appropriate for use in pediatric studies. We developed and validated a pediatric comorbidity index, using health-care utilization data from the tenth revision of the International Classification of Diseases. Within the MarketScan database of US commercial claims data, pediatric patients (aged ≤18 years) continuously enrolled between October 1, 2015, and September 30, 2017, were identified. Logistic regression was used to predict the 1-year risk of hospitalization based on 27 predefined conditions and empirically identified conditions derived from the most prevalent diagnoses among patients with the outcome. A single numerical index was created by assigning weights to each condition based on its β coefficient. We conducted internal validation of the index and compared its performance with existing adult scores. The pediatric comorbidity index consisted of 24 conditions and achieved a C statistic of 0.718 (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.714, 0.723). The index outperformed existing adult scores in a pediatric population (C statistics ranging from 0.522 to 0.640). The pediatric comorbidity index provides a summary measure of disease burden and can be used for risk adjustment in epidemiologic studies of pediatric patients.

Clinical Decision-Making: Developing a 4 C Model Using Graph Theoretic Approach

The purpose of this paper is to propose a graph-theoretic mathematical model to measure how conducive the environment of a hospital is for decision-making. We propose a 4-C model, developed from four interacting factors: confidence, complexity, capability, and customer. In this graph-theoretic model, abstract information regarding the system is represented by the directed edges of a graph (or digraph), which together depict how one factor affects another. The digraph yields a matrix model useful for computer processing. The net effect of different factors and their interdependencies on the hospital's decision-making environment is quantified and a single numerical index is generated. This paper categorizes all the major factors that influence clinical decision-making and attempts to provide a tool to study and measure their interactions with each other. Each factor and each interaction among factors are to be quantified by healthcare experts according to their best judgment of the magnitude of its effect in a local hospital environment.A hospital case study is used to demonstrate how the 4-C model works. The graph-theoretic approach allows for the inclusion of new factors and generation of alternative environments by a combination of both qualitative and quantitative modeling. The 4-C model can be used to create both a database and a simple numerical scale that help a hospital set customized guidelines, ranging from patient admittance procedures to diagnostic and treatment processes, according to its specific situation. Implementing this methodology systematically can allow a hospital to identify factors that will lead to improved decision-making as well as identifying operational factors that present roadblocks.

Abstract P2-12-06: The clinical benefit index: A pilot study integrating treatment efficacy and quality of life in oncology clinical trials

Abstract Background: Breast cancer remains the most frequently diagnosed cancer among women worldwide, accounting for a quarter of all diagnoses. Despite advances in treatment and symptom management, the majority of women will experience some form of drug-related toxicity, psychosocial distress, and subsequent impairments in their quality of life (QoL). Distress and impairments in QoL can interfere with treatment adherence, while engagement in health promoting behaviors and effective management of symptoms has been associated with improved QoL, adherence and increased survival. The utilization of QoL or other Patient Reported Outcome (PRO) measures in clinical trials remains inconsistent, and no uniformly accepted measure exists to integrate QoL data into the assessment of therapeutic agents. There are two goals of the I-SPY 2 QoL Pilot Study: 1) To demonstrate the reporting of an integrated utility-based QOL score, the PROPr, within a novel longitudinal approach that provides a single numerical index of QoL; 2) Generate a Clinical Benefit Index (CBI), a single composite score that integrates the longitudinal PROPr score with a clinical efficacy score, RCB index, to provide a measure that could go beyond clinical efficacy in the evaluation of therapeutic agents in the I-SPY 2 TRIAL. Methods: Study participants were part of the I-SPY 2 TRIAL assessing novel neoadjuvant therapies added to standard chemotherapy in the treatment of Stage 2/3 breast cancer. Participants completed a validated QoL measure at three time points: baseline, prior to surgery, and 1-month post-surgery. QoL was assessed using the NIH PROMIS measure (physical function (four items), anxiety (eight items), depression (eight items), fatigue (eight items), applied cognition (eight items) and social roles (four items)) and results at each time point used to calculate the PROPr, a single utility-based index score to assess overall quality of life. PROPr index utility scores were used to generate a single longitudinal QoL score based on area under the curve modeling. Clinical efficacy was assessed based on the residual cancer burden (RCB) observed at the time of surgery. The CBI was generated by plotting RCB index against the longitudinal PROPr index for each participant and study arm. Results: Only a fraction (n=107) of all patients had complete data across study timepoints and were included in our analyses, and thus our data represent a proof of concept. Patients on the control arm were treated with Paclitaxel followed by anthracycline (AC). Patients in the pilot were assigned either the control arm or six experimental drug arms. The longitudinal PROPr utility index demonstrated a range of outcomes, with some arms more challenging to tolerate, and others much better, ranging from 0.67 to 1.16. The RCB index of the seven study arms ranged from 0.49 to 1.99. The CBI, an integration of the longitudinal PROPr and RCB indexes, also demonstrated a range from 0.43 to 1.60. Conclusion: We are reporting the development of a novel, valid and standardized QoL assessment that should be a routine part of clinical trials in oncology. This proof of concept study suggests that that calculation of the CBI is feasible and can reveal differences in the clinical profiles of therapeutic agents, both in terms of QoL and overall integration of clinical efficacy and QoL. The CBI represents a novel approach to providing summary data that can be easily interpreted as part of clinical trial outcome data. Ideally, these integrated assessments would provide a more comprehensive evaluation of investigational therapies, and ultimately help inform treatment decision discussions between patients and providers. Moving forward, electronic PRO data will be collected as part of routine care in the I-SPY 2 TRIAL, thus enabling the longitudinal PROPr and CBI scores to be generated for every agent evaluated. Citation Format: Amrita Basu, Errol J. Philip, Barry Dewitt, Janel Hanmer, Aheli Chattopadhyay, Christina Yau, Smita Asare, Karyn Digiorgio, Ruby Singhrao, Adam Asare, Jane Perlmutter, I-SPY 2 Consortium, Michelle Melisko, Laura Esserman. The clinical benefit index: A pilot study integrating treatment efficacy and quality of life in oncology clinical trials [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2019 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2019 Dec 10-14; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2020;80(4 Suppl):Abstract nr P2-12-06.

Methodological aspects of assessment and forecast of technical condion of the main installed equipment of power plants

The methodology is presented for assessment of the technical condition of an object, which is a separate unit of power equipment from a group of the same type of equipment of power plants. It is demonstrated that technical condition is a characteristic of quality of an object under investigation, which, for practical purposes, should be calculated as a deviation from an established value. The assessment of technical condition is fulfilled with uniform criteria based on a limited amount of initial data on each of the basic properties of the object. The assessment can be fulfilled at the level of the object performance indicator, at the level of the object individual property and at the level of a set of the object properties. The top level assessment is a function of the loss of quality by the object, which is calculated through convolution of low level values. The assessment of technical condition of an object is accompanied by calculation of uncertainty of quality loss functions by means of transformation of uncertainties of initial data into uncertainties of output values. The evaluation of the technical condition can be expressed either in relative units - the percentage of quality loss relative to the maximum possible quality of the object, or in absolute units - the monetary equivalent of a loss of quality by the object. Evaluation in relative units enables to determine the residual gamma resource of the object, but this requires the participation of an expert to assign the weight of performance indicators. Evaluation in absolute units makes it possible to identify objects whose improvement in technical condition is appropriate from the economic point of view. To track the reasons for deviations in the technical condition from the set values, a structured list of performance indicators and factors affecting them is used. It is shown that the possibilities of evaluating the technical condition in relative units are limited: an attempt to perform assessment and analysis of the technical condition by convolving values of indicators and characteristics of properties into a single numerical index gives incorrect results. Neglect of these restrictions leads to emergence of inadequate, unsubstantiated scientifically methodological requirements for assessment of the technical condition of power equipment.

A proposed decision support tool for prioritising conservation planning of Southeast Asian seagrass meadows: combined approaches based on ecosystem services and vulnerability analyses

AbstractSeagrass habitats provide a range of goods and benefits to coastal communities by supporting ecosystem functioning, food provisioning, and cultural values. However, they are at risk worldwide from anthropogenic activities, climate change impacts and limited resources, which hamper efforts to protect them. Effective conservation planning requires prioritisation of sites based on multiple factors, including their relative value and vulnerability (VU). The current study examines the efficacy of combining two well-established approaches – ecosystem service assessments and habitat VU analyses – to test a method for determining conservation priority for selected seagrass meadows in Southeast Asia. Seven seagrass meadows around Southeast Asia were selected and scored by the authors based on (1) the cumulative contribution of 12 ecosystem services (ES) and the condition of the meadows, (2) VU from 16 anthropogenic threats, which were each ranked against five factors (spatial scale, frequency, functional impact, resistance and recovery time) and (3) the combination of the two approaches to create a single numerical index. Prioritisation of sites differed when meadows were scored solely for the ES they provide, compared to how vulnerable they are to anthropogenic threats. The new combined analysis brought the two metrics together to give conservation priority to sites where management intervention will yield maximum conservation benefits from conservation effort, and resulted in the prioritisation of three sites: Barrang Lompo (Indonesia), Cape Bolinao (Philippines) and Beting Tanjung Kupang (Malaysia). This method is easy to use and does not require great technical expertise. It is also auditable, allowing for clear and transparent understanding of decision-making process.

An integrated interpretive structural modeling and a graph-theoretic approach for measuring the supply chain complexity in the Indian automotive industry

PurposeEasily employable quantitative supply chain complexity (SCC) measures considering the significant dimensions of complexity as well as the drivers that represent those dimensions are limited in the literature. The purpose of this paper is to propose an integrated interpretive structural modeling (ISM) and a graph-theoretic approach to quantify SCC by a single numerical index considering the interdependence and the inheritance of the SCC drivers.Design/methodology/approachIn total, 18 SCC drivers identified from the literature are clustered according to the significant dimensions of complexity. The interdependencies established through ISM and inheritance values of SCC drivers are mapped into a Variable Permanent Matrix (VPM). The permanent function of this VPM is then computed and the resulting single numerical index is the measure of SCC.FindingsA scale is proposed by computing the minimum and maximum threshold values of SCC with the help of expert opinions of the Indian automotive industry. The complexity of commercial and passenger vehicle sectors within the automotive industry is measured and compared using the proposed scale. From the results, it is identified that the number of suppliers, increase in spare-parts due to shortened product life-cycle and demand uncertainties increase the SCC of the passenger vehicle sector, while number of parts, products and processes, variety of products and process and unreliability of suppliers increase the complexity of the commercial vehicle sector. The result indicates that various SCC drivers have a different impact on determining the SCC level of these two sectors.Originality/valueThe authors propose an integrated method that can be readily applied to measure and quantify SCC considering the significant dimensions of complexity as well as the interdependence and the inheritance of the SCC drivers that contribute to those dimensions. This index further helps to compare the complexity of the supply chain which varies between industries.

Heat waves in Africa 1981–2015, observations and reanalysis

Abstract. The purpose of this article is to show the extreme temperature regime of heat waves across Africa over recent years (1981–2015). Heat waves have been quantified using the Heat Wave Magnitude Index daily (HWMId), which merges the duration and the intensity of extreme temperature events into a single numerical index. The HWMId enables a comparison between heat waves with different timing and location, and it has been applied to maximum and minimum temperature records. The time series used in this study have been derived from (1) observations from the Global Summary of the Day (GSOD) and (2) reanalysis data from ERA-Interim. The analysis shows an increasing number of heat waves of both maxima and minima temperatures in the last decades. Results from heat wave analysis of maximum temperature (HWMIdtx) indicate an increase in intensity and frequency of extreme events. Specifically, from 1996 onwards it is possible to observe HWMIdtx spread with the maximum presence during 2006–2015. Between 2006 and 2015 the frequency (spatial coverage) of extreme heat waves had increased to 24.5 observations per year (60.1 % of land cover), as compared to 12.3 per year (37.3 % of land area) in the period from 1981 to 2005 for GSOD stations (reanalysis).

A Framework to Measure the Service Quality of Distributor with Fuzzy Graph Theoretic Approach

A combination of fuzzy logic and graph theoretic approach has been used to find the service quality of distributor in a manufacturing supply chain management. This combination is termed as the fuzzy graph theoretic (FGT) approach. Initially the identified factors were grouped by SPSS (statistical package for social science) software and then the digraph approach was applied. The interaction and inheritance values were calculated by fuzzy graph theory approach in terms of permanent function. Then a single numerical index was calculated by using permanent function which indicates the distributor service quality. This method can be used to compare the service quality of different distributors.

Concurrent design of nanofluid for x-abilities using MADM approach

Purpose – Multiple attribute decision making (MADM) is a conceptual agenda used for evaluation and selection of optimal nanofluid to assure best performance of heat exchanger. Most of the studies focus on nanofluids focus on individual ability at one time. Relatively, not even a single study is available for selection of nanofluid for heat exchanger using concurrent design and MADM approach. The purpose of this paper is to propose a concurrent design methodology using MADM approach to assist improved design of heat exchanger concurrently for all the x-abilities in an integrated manner. Design/methodology/approach – A combined methodology of applying MADM approach using concurrent design for x-abilities is called CE-MADM approach. Implementation of nanofluid to improve thermal performance of heat exchanger entails thorough evaluation of nanofluids in various x-abilities (performance, maintenance, thermophysical properties and modelisation) to make exhaustive management decision. Sensitivity analysis is also proposed to study the behaviour of height of variation of density, heat capacity, thermal expansion and thermal conductivity with varying particle volume fraction and variation of relative closeness of available alternates from ideally best possible solution. Findings – MADM approach considering various x-abilities concurrently provide an approach for relative ranking of available nanofluids for optimum performance. Fishbone diagrams of all x-abilities are constructed to identify all the attributes and converge large number of attributes into single numerical index that are concurrently responsible for the cause thus saving time for easy evaluation, comparison and ranking by decision makers. Sensitivity analysis to demonstration height of variation of pertinent attributes with varying particle volume fraction. A MATLAB programming is established to execute calculations involved in the procedure. Originality/value – This paper comprises a predictable and effective mathematical approach to improve design of heat exchanger with nanofluid bearing in mind all the required x-abilities concurrently. This combined approach of CE-MADM is never applied before in the field of nanofluid to predict best possible results in feasible conditions considering all the x-abilities. Sensitivity analysis is also presented from the assumed mathematical equations of thermophysical properties.

Quality concerns in Technical Education in India

Purpose – The paper aims to discuss current Technical Education scenarios in India. It proposes modelling the factors affecting quality in a technical institute and then applying a suitable technique for assessment, comparison and ranking. Design/methodology/approach – The paper chose graph theoretic approach for quantification of quality-enabled model. Further, the paper has validated the approach by taking examples of institutions and applying the methodology. Findings – The paper provides a systematic methodology to build a quality model for quantification of various factors in a technical institute. The qualitative effect represented in form of a single numerical index is a novel method for such representations. The illustrated methodology in the paper is equally useful for comparison and ranking of a set of institutes. Research limitations/implications – Because of the chosen factors in the approach, the methodology may not be equally suitable based on type and size of institute and the geographical location. Practical implications – The paper includes demonstration on application of methodology for comparing the quality in a quantitative manner. The dynamic model allows changing factors and/or their effects as per requirement. Social implications – In future, the methodology can be taken up by government/regulatory bodies and can convey the comparisons of institutions to stakeholders including students and parents. Originality/value – This paper attempts to develop a novel method for comparing quality that can be used by accreditation bodies.

Optimization the machining parameters by using VIKOR and Entropy Weight method during EDM process of Al–18% SiCp Metal matrix composite

Article history: Received June 25, 2015 Received in revised format: October 12, 2015 Accepted November 15, 2015 Available online November 16 2015 The objective of this paper is to optimize the process parameters by combined approach of VIKOR and Entropy weight measurement method during Electrical discharge machining (EDM) process of Al-18wt.%SiCp metal matrix composite (MMC). The central composite design (CCD) method is considered to evaluate the effect of three process parameters; namely pulse on time (Ton), peak current (Ip) and flushing pressure (Fp) on the responses like material removal rate (MRR), tool wear rate (TWR), Radial over cut (ROC) and surface roughness (Ra). The Entropy weight measurement method evaluates the individual weights of each response and, using VIKOR method, the multi-objective responses are optimized to get a single numerical index known as VIKOR Index. Then the Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) technique is used to determine the significance of the process parameters on the VIKOR Index. Finally, the result of the VIKOR Indexed is validated by conformation test using the liner mathematical model equation develop by responses surface methodology to identify the effectiveness of the proposed method. Growing Science Ltd. All rights reserved. 6 © 201

Barriers evaluation for agile manufacturing system with fuzzy performance importance index approach

In reaction to the necessity, the manufacturing processes evolved from mass production technique, through its implementation on agile manufacturing system (AMS). The most complicated part of AMS is an understanding of the barriers and evaluates the performance for each barrier. This article presents an intangible framework of various barriers associated with AMS along with their performance. Using fuzzy performance importance index (FPII) approach, the barriers of AMS presented in the form of a single numerical index value. The proposed model is relatively adaptable from the point of analysis that it provides a prospect to integrate new barriers which could impact on manufacturing processes. In the present work, an effort has been made to develop a mathematical model of these barriers using FPII approach. An index value for each of AMS barriers is proposed which calculate the inhibiting power of these barriers.

Technology Based Self Service Banking Service Quality Evaluation: a Graph Theoretic Approach

The technology based self service banking (TBSSB) refers to automated banking services that customer avail in self service mode using various electronic banking channels, without any interaction with bank employees. Researchers have used numerous methods to evaluate automated banking service quality. In this paper, a methodology to quantify the overall effect of key TBSSB service quality attributes is discussed. The TBSSB service quality index is calculated by using fuzzy along with graph theory and matrix methods. Broad attributes affecting TBSSB service quality are identified. The fuzzy numbers are used to convert intangible attributes to crisp scores and then graph theoretic approach has been applied to calculate the single numerical index. This study may help bank management to take various decisions pertaining to TBSSB service quality using TBSSB index. It will also assist academicians in better understanding of TBSSB services.

An approach for optimization the process parameter by using TOPSIS Method of Al–24%SiC metal matrix composite during EDM

Present investigation is optimized for the process parameters during electrical discharge machining (EDM) process of Al-SiC 24% metal matrix composite. In this study the process parameters are peak current, pulse on time and flushing pressure for each experiment on the responses like material removal rate (MRR), tool wear rate (TWR) and surface roughness (Ra). Box-Behnken Central composite design method is used for designing a three factor to construct a statistical model for accurate prediction of responses. In order to optimize the multiple responses problem Technique for order preference by similarity to an ideal solution (TOPSIS) methodology is used to get a single numerical index. The Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) technique is carried out to check the significance of the models and study the effect of process parameters. The second -order mathematical equitation is developed by using Response surface methodology (RSM) to get the predicted result. Finally conformity test is conducted to perform the desirable approach of present work.