Considering the acceleration in the development of alternative energy sources due to climate change and the net zero carbon commitments made in this direction, there are different assessments of how the capacity of the refining industry will change in the next two decades. Refinery companies are trying to adapt to altering conditions while also trying to determine their investment strategies. Project portfolio selection problem is one of the relevant issues to be considered in line with these changes. In this article, research has been undertaken to determine which criteria refinery companies take into consideration while selecting their project portfolios. Based on the identified criteria, it is also aimed to carry out a study that will guide sector practitioners in project selection. For this purpose, interviews were conducted with industry experts. The criteria were accredited by applying categorical content analysis to the data obtained and their importance weights were identified accordingly. The most deterministic criteria were abstracted from the findings and applied to a multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) framework, namely fuzzy MULTIMOORA to suggest a decision support tool that ranks the projects against themselves. Some of the prominent outcomes of the study are also discussed, along with the previous studies and comparative results of the proposed decision support tool.

The adoption of technology in Indonesian construction is still developing at a slower pace than in other sectors, particularly in materials management. Among the automation technologies that can be developed for precast material management, is integrated RFID technology with the Internet of Things (IoT). This study therefore aims to analyze the correlation between factors influencing the implementation of integrated RFID technology with IoT for precast material management in Indonesia and to examine the development model of the integrated RFID technology system with IoT. The research methods include a questionnaire survey with PLS-SEM and the development of technology systems validated by experts. The results demonstrate that factors, such as resource availability, implementation cost, stakeholder involvement, implementation risk, and project conditions have a significant direct and indirect impact on the implementation of integrated RFID technology with IoT for precast material management. Among these factors, the implementation of risk factors has the most significant influence. Furthermore, the development of the integrated RFID technology system with IoT has proven to be beneficial, especially as an automation technology for data recording and visibility in precast material management.

The construction industry faces challenges, such as schedule overruns, cost overruns, poor quality, and safety issues. Lean construction is a valuable concept for waste reduction and improving project performance. This study explored the impact of lean construction principles on contractors' project performance in Ethiopia. Using a quantitative method and simple random sampling technique, 159 respondents from construction companies were selected. This study introduced partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) in the study area. The results showed that process/technology lean principles, people/culture lean principles, and integrated project delivery variables had a direct positive impact on contractor performance. There was also a significant indirect relationship between process/technology-lean construction principles and project performance with a complementary partial mediation effect. However, no significant indirect associations were found between people/culture-lean construction principles and project performance through mediation of onsite construction waste management. The study used FIMIX-PLS to test robustness and detect hidden heterogeneity at non-critical levels. The findings provide researchers and practitioners to identify the influences that are critical for contractors’ projects performance improvement, and that results in the best possible outcome.

Patient punctuality significantly impacts resource utilization and patient waiting times, among other quality indicators, within psychiatry clinics. In pursuit of service improvement, this study endeavors to develop effective appointment scheduling systems that optimally distribute patients' needs during clinical sessions, thereby enhancing resource utilization and patient satisfaction. In developing these scheduling rules, three patient-related uncertainties are considered: preference, availability, and punctuality. Various scheduling rules are evaluated based on their average total cost under different scenarios. The HSBGDM rules have emerged as a balanced approach for clinic operations, effectively managing physician time but occasionally leading to overtime variations. Increased patient delays often exacerbate physician idle times, particularly under IBVST and VBVST rules. Hybrid rules, such as the HSBGDM series, adapt well, improving patient wait times and managing unscheduled patients. However, scheduling systems like REPDM may prolong waits, potentially impacting patient satisfaction. Systems prioritizing new appointments can increase physician idle times due to unpredictability. While accommodating unscheduled patients enhances service quality, it may also cause disruptions. This study provides valuable insights into scheduling dynamics, assisting administrators in balancing efficiency, cost, and patient satisfaction.

This paper deals with free vibrations of the axially functionally graded (AFG) horseshoe arch. The modulus of elasticity and the mass density of AFG material of arch are chosen as a univariate quadratic function. The differential equations with the boundary conditions that govern the free vibration of such arch are derived and numerically solved to calculate natural frequencies and mode shapes. Natural frequencies of this study agree well with those of the finite element ADINA. Parametric studies of the geometrical and mechanical properties of the arch on frequencies and mode shapes are performed and extensively discussed.

The presented article deals with the mathematical modeling of aircraft ground handling on the service apron to utilize ground personnel more efficiently in the case of existing substitutability of workers. This article proposes a supporting decision-making tool for effective planning of the aircraft ground handling. This tool will be used for a selected type of aircraft and using the minimum number of personnel participating in the aircraft ground handling procedure. The optimization is based on the original mathematical programming model and its solution. Computational experiments verifying the functionality of the proposed model were performed on current data from the Ostrava International Regional Airport in the Czech Republic. The originality of the proposed approach (apart from the original model) comes with introducing the substitutability of workers of individual qualifications and the decomposition of workgroups composed of workers of the same qualification down to the level of individual workers. Above-mentioned decomposition of workgroups enables the flexible and separate transfer of individual workers included in the same groups between activities in the event of downtime of the given group and the existence of an activity that is not covered by the required number of workers. The substitutability of workers and the decomposition of individual groups down to the level of individual workers will make it possible to lower the number of workers or verify that the number of workers is optimal and eliminate potential staff downtime.

Failure of composite materials due to poor anticipations of damages occur very frequently. Damages in composite materials may exist as visible or non-visible with different configurations and identities. Thus, investigation of damages existence in composite materials has to have prior attention to avoid the failure of structures. The current work investigates the damping response offered by a damaged fiber-reinforced polymer plate. The plate is put under three different conditions regarding the damage existence. The focus is to measure the loss factor in all cases and determine whether there is a difference among them to prove damage presence in the composite part. The loss factor is experimentally measured by measuring the reverberation time RT60. The resulting data of loss factors show a well-distinguished difference that might lead to predicted damages and to do a more expanded analysis of this issue.

In Australia, Bioenergy plays an important role in modern power systems, where many biomass resources provide greenhouse gas neutral and electricity at a variety of scales. By 2050, the Biomass energy is projected to have a 40-50 % share as an alternative source of energy. In addition to conversion of biomass, barriers and uncertainties in the production, supply may hinder biomass energy development. The sugarcane is an essential ingredient in the production of Bioenergy, across the whole spectrum ranging from the first generation to second generation, e.g., production of energy from the lignocellulosic component of the sugarcane initially regarded as waste (bagasse and cane residue). Sustainable recovery of the Lignocellulosic component of sugarcane from the field through a structured process is largely unknown and associated with high capital outlay that have stifled the growth of bioenergy sector. In this context, this paper develops a new scheduler to optimise the recovery of lignocellulosic component of sugarcane and cane, transport and harvest systems with reducing the associated costs and operational time. An Optimisation Algorithm called Limited Discrepancy Search has been adapted and integrated with the developed scheduling transport algorithms. The developed algorithms are formulated and coded by Optimization Programming Language (OPL) to obtain the optimised cane and cane residues transport schedules. Computational experiments demonstrate that high-quality solutions are obtainable for industry-scale instances. To provide insightful decisions, sensitivity analysis is conducted in terms of different scenarios and criteria.

All organizations and stakeholders would ideally like to see an information technology (IT) project managed successfully. Many researchers have strongly debated the importance of risk management in project management about the size of the project since it gives project managers a forward-looking view of risks and chances to increase the project's success. The main aim of the study is to determine how risk management parameters and their mediated effects impact the effectiveness of IT projects. Data was collected from 261 IT professionals involved in projects through a structured questionnaire and analyzed using regression and SEM to test their statistical significance and prove the hypothesis. The study arrived at some significant results which showed the relationship of Risk Identification and Risk Analysis on Risk Assessment, which impacts Project Success. It also showed that the success of the project depended on Stakeholders Tolerance and Risk Implementation. In addition to this, the study provides evidence that risk management does not influence the success of the project. The study's discovery of the intervening impact of risk management practices clarifies preconceived conceptions in the risk management sector.

The influence of loading type on tensile and tearing fracture resistance of ballast rock was assessed using edge-notched diametrically compressed disc (ENDC) and edge-notched disc bend (ENDB) test geometries. The geometry of these two specimens was similar; however, their loading type (i.e., three-point bend and diametral compressive) was different affecting the geometry factors. The obtained pure tensile fracture toughness (KIc) using the ENDB test was higher than the ENDC test. In contrast to tensile fracture toughness, the pure tearing fracture toughness (KIIIc) in the ENDC test was higher than the ENDB fracture test. The obtained experimental data were explained in terms of crack propagation path, since two distinct trajectories were observed for both configurations under tearing deformation.