The purpose of this study is to propose an approach for assessing sustainability aspect of facility layouts. Activity relationship chart (ARC) is a widely used assistive tool for…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to propose an approach for assessing sustainability aspect of facility layouts. Activity relationship chart (ARC) is a widely used assistive tool for facility layout design which assesses closeness requirement among all pairs. In a typical ARC, there are six closeness ratings which may be assigned to each pair of departments. Ratings are evaluated by considering a single factor or an overall rating is provided. On the other hand, there may be more than one criterion which has to be evaluated separately and then a fair decision should be taken by considering the relative weight of factors. With this purpose in mind, ARC alternatives are evaluated on the basis of three factors which are environmental aspect, safety concerns and manufacturing efficiency factors by using TOPSIS (Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution) method.
Design/methodology/approach
In this paper, more than one ARC alternatives are evaluated by considering environmental, safety and manufacturing efficiency factors. Alternatives are then ranked via TOPSIS. An empirical case study is also presented to validate how effective the proposed model performs.
Findings
The TOPSIS method can be successfully used to choose the most sustainable ARC alternative appropriately by the help of experts. The proposed approach can be beneficial to researchers and practitioners for better understanding the ARC evaluation problem from the perspective of sustainability.
Practical implications
The obtained results confirm that the proposed model can assist practitioners in refining their decision processes, particularly in cases where there are many ARC alternatives to be considered.
Originality/value
This is the first time that this method is used in such a context. This study contributes to literature by presenting practical applications of TOPSIS in the ARC assessment field. It should be highlighted that there is no comparable research on the evaluation of ARCs using TOPSIS. Thus, this study fills the gap by providing an analytical approach in this area.
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Pinar Kocabey Ciftci and Zeynep Didem Unutmaz Durmusoglu
This article proposes a novel hybrid simulation model for understanding the complex tobacco use behavior.
Abstract
Purpose
This article proposes a novel hybrid simulation model for understanding the complex tobacco use behavior.
Design/methodology/approach
The model is developed by embedding the concept of the multistage learning-based fuzzy cognitive map (FCM) into the agent-based model (ABM) in order to benefit from advantageous of each methodology. The ABM is used to represent individual level behaviors while the FCM is used as a decision support mechanism for individuals. In this study, socio-demographic characteristics of individuals, tobacco control policies, and social network effect are taken into account to reflect the current tobacco use system of Turkey. The effects of plain package and COVID-19 on tobacco use behaviors of individuals are also searched under different scenarios.
Findings
The findings indicate that the proposed model provides promising results for representing the mental models of agents. Besides, the scenario analyses help to observe the possible reactions of people to new conditions according to characteristics.
Originality/value
The proposed method combined ABM and FCM with a multi-stage learning phases for modeling a complex and dynamic social problem as close as real life. It is expected to contribute for both ABM and tobacco use literature.
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Nimet Yapıcı Pehlivan and Zeynep Gürsoy
This study aims to determine the ranking of the 81 provinces at the NUTS-3 level in Turkey with respect to the personal satisfaction and public services satisfaction by applying…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to determine the ranking of the 81 provinces at the NUTS-3 level in Turkey with respect to the personal satisfaction and public services satisfaction by applying Fuzzy Multi-Criteria Decision-Making methods to the Life Satisfaction Survey Results.
Design/methodology/approach
Fuzzy TOPSIS, Fuzzy MULTIMOORA and Fuzzy ARAS are implemented to assess life satisfaction of the individuals who lived in provinces, based on Life Satisfaction Survey 2013 for Turkey’s national comparison. In the solution process, 14 indicators for personal satisfaction and 38 indicators for public services satisfaction were considered.
Findings
The results showed that personal health satisfaction, earnings from work satisfaction and monthly income satisfaction are the most important criteria in terms of personal satisfaction. Also, healthcare services satisfaction, judicial services satisfaction and education services satisfaction have the highest importance in terms of public services satisfaction. The final ranking of the 81 provinces is obtained by considered methods. According to the ranking results, there is no significant difference between the east and the west part of Turkey in terms of personal satisfaction, whereas there is a distinct difference between them in terms of satisfaction with public services.
Originality/value
This study is the first research for evaluating the ranking of the provinces at the NUTS-3 level in Turkey according to the Life Satisfaction Survey 2013 results considering 14 indicators for personal satisfaction and 38 indicators for public services satisfaction by using FMCDM approaches that have not been applied before.