A comparative study of three tool replacement/operation sequencing strategies in a flexible manufacturing system

This paper studies three tool replacement/operation sequencing strategies for a flexible manufacturing system over a finite time horizon: (1) failure replacement—replace the tool only upon failure, (2) optimal preventive tool replacement for a fixed sequence of operations, and (3) joint scheduling of the optimal preventive tool replacement times and the optimal sequence of operations. Stochastic dynamic decision models are used for strategies 2 and 3. The optimization criterion for strategies 2 and 3 is the minimization of the total expected cost over the finite time horizon. We will show through numerical studies that, with the same amount of information, the total expected costs can be reduced considerably by choosing an optimal strategy. Our conclusion is that in flexible manufacturing, optimal tool replacement and optimal operations sequencing are not separate issues. They should be considered jointly to minimize the expected total cost. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Naval Research Logistics 47: 479–499, 2000     

Is human trafficking the dark side of economic freedom?

Economic freedom has increased living standards worldwide. Concurrent with such gains are rising concerns about potential human costs associated with free markets. This paper uses data on human trafficking and anti-trafficking policies, in conjunction with a measure of economic freedom, to examine whether free markets exacerbate or attenuate the incidence of human trafficking and policies designed to combat it. We do not find evidence suggesting that economic freedom is associated with human trafficking. In addition, our results suggest that economically free countries are more likely to enact and enforce policies to fight human trafficking.     

Optimizing the US Navy's combat logistics force

We study how changes to the composition and employment of the US Navy combat logistic force (CLF) influence our ability to supply our navy worldwide. The CLF consists of about 30 special transport ships that carry ship and aircraft fuel, ordnance, dry stores, and food, and deliver these to client combatant ships underway, making it possible for our naval forces to operate at sea for extended periods. We have modeled CLF operations to evaluate a number of transforming initiatives that simplify its operation while supporting an even larger number of client ships for a greater variety of missions. Our input is an employment schedule for navy battle groups of ships operating worldwide, extending over a planning horizon of 90–180 days. We show how we use optimization to advise how to sustain these ships. We have used this model to evaluate new CLF ship designs, advise what number of ships in a new ship class would be needed, test concepts for forward at‐sea logistics bases in lieu of conventional ports, demonstrate the effects of changes to operating policy, and generally try to show whether and how the CLF can support planned naval operations. Published 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics 2008     

Probability inequalities via negative dependence for random variables conditioned on order statistics

Distributions are studied which arise by considering independent and identically distributed random variables conditioned on events involving order statistics. It is shown that these distributions are negatively dependent in a very strong sense. Furthermore, bounds are found on the distribution functions. The conditioning events considered occur naturally in reliability theory as the time to system failure for k-out-of-n systems. An application to systems formed with “second-hand” components is given.     

A heuristic method for facility planning in telecommunications networks with multiple alternate routes

Given point-to-point demand forecasts of transmission facilities for services such as voice or data transmission in each period of a finite planning horizon, a decision has to be made as to which types of transmission facilities—together with the amounts of transmission circuits—are to be installed, if any, on each link of the telecommunications network, in each period of the planning horizon. The availability of alternative transmission systems with significantly different costs and circuit capacities necessitates the determination of a minimum (discounted) cost facility installation scheme. This combinatoric choice problem is complicated by the availability of switching equipments enabling the transmission of some of the traffic through intermediary points. This possibility of alternately routing the traffic or the facility requirements of certain point pairs further complicates the problem while creating the opportunity to benefit from economies of scale. We present here a heuristic method for finding a good solution for the general problem; namely, we consider multiple transmission systems and multiple alternate routes. Numerical examples are given and computational experience is reported.     

Modeling the performance of a scanning radio communications sensor

A model which allows the prediction of long-term average report rates against an array of radio emitters by a scanning sensor is presented. The model is based on Markov renewal theory.     

Can Limited Intervention Work? Lessons from Britain’s Success Story in Sierra Leone

ABSTRACT

Following frustrating campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan, Western interventions are becoming more limited, with troops being deployed for short bursts and residual peace-building tasks being left to others. Although this approach limits exposure for the intervening government, it struggles to achieve meaningful political change. Examining the comparatively successful British intervention in Sierra Leone (2000–02), this article identifies the conditions for effectiveness in these campaigns. It challenges the historiography of the case by framing armed confrontations and raids as enablers of politics rather than ends in themselves; indeed, in both the conduct and study of intervention, politics must reign supreme.     

An extensible modeling framework for dynamic reassignment and rerouting in cooperative airborne operations

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), increasingly vital to the success of military operations, operate in a complex and dynamic environment, sometimes in concert with manned aircraft. We present an extensible modeling framework for the solution to the dynamic resource management (DRM) problem, where airborne resources must be reassigned to time‐sensitive tasks in response to changes in battlespace conditions. The DRM problem is characterized by diverse tasks with time windows, heterogeneous resources with fuel‐ and payload‐capacity limitations, and multiple competing objectives. We propose an integer linear programing formulation for this problem, where mathematical feasibility is guaranteed. Although motivated by airborne military operations, the proposed general modeling framework is applicable to a wide array of settings, such as disaster relief operations. Additionally, land‐ or water‐based operations may be modeled within this framework, as well as any combination of manned and unmanned vehicles. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 2010     

An optimal critical level policy for inventory systems with two demand classes

Traditional inventory systems treat all demands of a given item equally. This approach is optimal if the penalty costs of all customers are the same, but it is not optimal if the penalty costs are different for different customer classes. Then, demands of customers with high penalty costs must be filled before demands of customers with low penalty costs. A commonly used inventory policy for dealing with demands with different penalty costs is the critical level inventory policy. Under this policy demands with low penalty costs are filled as long as inventory is above a certain critical level. If the inventory reaches the critical level, only demands with high penalty costs are filled and demands with low penalty costs are backordered. In this article, we consider a critical level policy for a periodic review inventory system with two demand classes. Because traditional approaches cannot be used to find the optimal parameters of the policy, we use a multidimensional Markov chain to model the inventory system. We use a sample path approach to prove several properties of this inventory system. Although the cost function is not convex, we can build on these properties to develop an optimization approach that finds the optimal solution. We also present some numerical results. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 2008