A game-theoretic multi-stakeholder model for cost allocation in urban consolidation centres

Recently, many European local authorities have set up Urban Consolidation Centres (UCC) for dealing with challenges arising from the environmental and social impacts of logistical activities in urban contexts through shipment synchronisation and carrier coordination policies. However, the number of successful UCC projects led by local authorities in Europe is low, with most of the UCCs failing to achieve financial sustainability after the initial experimental phase, which is often heavily supported by public funds. In order to propose mechanisms that could favour the economic and financial sustainability of UCC systems, this research develops an adaptation of game-theoretic approaches to the problems of responsibility and cost allocation among stakeholders participating in a UCC delivery network. A solution based on the Shapley Value concept is employed to derive cost allocations; applications of the model to a real-world scenario are evaluated. An extensive sensitivity analysis shows that the proposed cost allocation rules can provide alternative arrangements, based on extended responsibility concepts, which can alleviate the burden on local authorities for the set up of UCCs. As such, results provide useful policy and practice implications on how to safeguard UCCs’ viability under different scenarios, including the outsourcing of the last-mile deliveries

Urban main road capacity reduction: Adaptations, effects and consequences

To support sustainable urban mobility strategies, reallocating road space from private vehicles to other uses may be a relevant intervention. Novel empirical knowledge could reduce barriers for implementing such interventions. A planned, 14-month capacity reduction of a main road tunnel in Oslo, Norway, carrying 70,000 vehicles a day, offered an excellent opportunity to document how commuters adapted, and what effects and consequences they experienced. Analyses of traffic data were combined with surveys and interviews with commuters. Congestion increased in the tunnel and on adjacent road-links, although road users adapted in ways resulting in significant traffic reduction through the tunnel. Some employees in an area near the tunnel experienced increased time-usage on their commute, and some adapted by changing transport mode, route, or trip-timing. However, results showed that they did not experience major negative consequences. Few commuters reported a need to shift routines in the household, and commuter satisfaction remained high.publishedVersio

Understanding European Regional Diversity - Lessons learned from Case Studies

The content of this report is a deliverable to the FP 7 project RUFUS (Rural future Networks) concerning the case studies made within the project. As a deliverable in a EU framework project it reports extensively on the methods and empirical data collected in the project’s case studies. The work has as an overarching motive to translate research findings into implications that are relevant for policy makers in the EU. The conclusions from the case studies are therefore of two types – the findings made and the implications they might give for policy making within the field of rural development

Proposals for the short-term and long-term upgrading and modernizing of the Greek maritime educational system

Greece has a long and honourable tradition in merchant shipping and its economy vitally depends on shipping. Therefore, a strong and efficient Greek merchant marine will be a prime factor in the strategy of economic prosperity and prestige. At the same time it is well known that our Maritime Education and Training (MET) is faltering. Today\u27s technological advances with substantial reductions in manning levels have led to a considerable reorganization of shipboard operations. In close connection, private enterprises are in favour of fully automated vessels with low running costs and efficient master and officers to run the ship smoomthly, safely and profitably. This calls for training to be more realistic and more relevant than it has been traditionally. However, to succeed in such a scheme the modernization of MET is highly desirable to keep pace with this rapid technological and social evolution of the marine industry. In view of the above, the aim of the present thesis is to examine the structure of maritime education in Greece with a view to bringing about the necessary changes in the short and long run. This study should be compared with the existing conditions of the Greek seafaring community. Its target is a competitive, effective and safety-orientated merchant marine for the benefit of all parties concerned. The study is a personal reflection “status quo” without the influence of any emotional or traditional inhibitions on the part of the government or shipowners. Its main aim is to approach from a different point of view the currently known problems with respect to the upgrading of the qualititive standards of the Greek seafarers and those related to the marine industry

Implementation of Sustainable Aviation Fuel. A PESTEL-analysis

Global climate changes are one of the greatest global threats affecting society. All sectors, from the largest ventures to the single individual, must aid in addressing and affecting these changes, resulting in a more sustainable and green future for the generations to come. Aviation currently stands for approximately 2.5% of global total anthropogenic CO2-emissions, which is rapidly climbing towards 24% by 2050, not even mentioning NOx, CO, other non-CO2 effects etc. The industry thereby also faces immense challenges to reach sustainability goals as set out by organizations, unions, and nations throughout the world. These considerable developments call for radical progresses in technology, innovation and development in all aspects of the industry. This thesis focuses on perhaps the most substantial means of developing the industry – replacing the means of propulsion. This thesis identifies the major component being transitioning to Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) as a replacement to conventional kerosene Jet-A1. This study will analyze how SAF can reduce aviation’s overall emission footprint. This task will be undertaken using the PESTEL-analysis tool as a framework for uncovering barriers and challenges. Through an extensive literature review together with multiple expert interviews from various experts in the field, several conflicts from actors in the field has been identified and solutions presented under the different subparts of the PESTEL-analysis. Finally, an overview on the interaction between the different subparts will be discussed. This study identifies, among others, the lack of international legislation, vast production cost and supply of feedstock as major barriers needing a solution. It is evident that international cooperation and further political and economic incentives are necessary to drive an industry as complex and governed as aviation towards fulfilling the sustainability ambitions set out

Determine planning method in the storage area

ABSTRACT Ji Yuan Hai Wan Shi Ye AB started in the December of 2011, is co-funded by the Xiamen Hai Wan AB and Luo Yang Shi Hua. It has integrated business such as scientific research, production and trade together. The company locates in the industrial manufactory area at Ji Yuan, Henan Province. The main products are verity of unsaturated polyester resin. Their products are widely used in the fields like industry, agricultural, transportation and construction. This shows its wide coverage status quo and broad future (Company´s website). Inventory is the network-node among goods flow, information flow and cash flow, and is of great importance to economic development nowadays. The rational management in transportation, packaging, loading/unloading, processing, delivery, can efficiently alleviate working strength, damage ratio, Inventory turnover and distribution costs. The storage area is not only the most important but also the most difficult part to plan. According to the statistics, unloading, picking, sorting and loading take 40% time of the whole process, and the rest are consumed by staff’s patrolling. As a result, a cost effective design in storage area can effectively lower down internal transportation cost, and highly improve the performance of the whole inventory. In order to increase the efficiency inside storage area, and create a best possible environment for material handlers in the inventory; this article intended to generate a directive description by studying the design inside storage area of the inventory. Based on the case study, author has raised a recommendation to the inventory´s equipment and slot planning. MATLAB is the main programming tool in the slot planning and it contains aspects below: 1, A brief introduction to company and their main activities. 2, Storage area planning and design theories: The definition, types, functions of storage area were introduced in the beginning. Then storage area and several ways of storage were briefly described. At last, author described the classical EIQ analysis and its applications in the logistics system. Page IV 3, Selection of equipment in storage area Author elaborated basic principles of the equipment choice; and introduced types, choice methods in storing and material handling equipment. Finally the EIQ analysis was applied and its influence in equipment choice was proved. 4, Planning and design of slots in the storage area This part mainly included following contents A. Coding The article began with methodology introduction for the coding of both location and goods, and the principles of choice methodology for different goods. B. Spacing plan and corresponding information Principles and concepts of location planning as well as corresponding benefits were introduced, which are the reasons of location planning. C. Modeling The author has presented the aim of the location planning; and according to that, a model has been introduced. There are two things has to be concerned, one is the total transporting distance for the goods and the other one is the stability of the racking. The aim of the location planning is to increase picking efficiency by storing the fastest-moving goods in the most convenient positions which is gate in this case. To increase racking ´s stability, lighter goods have to put in higher than heavier things. D. The algorithm Location planning is a multi-objective optimization problem. Author has analyzed and compared several algorithms; finally genetic algorithm was chosen to solve the problem. Author introduced the principles of the methodology about using genetic algorithm to solve a multi-objective optimization problem. After that, according to the model introduced in the previously step, author has decided to use parallel selection method, multi-Gender evolutionary method and constraint method. To get an optimal solution of location planning, MATLAB has been used as the tool. Page V 5, Applied and analyzed the methods and programs, mentioned in the article, to the design of inventory´s storage area. 6, Summary and prospect Author has summarized the article’s result and raised future research topics. This article has given some new points in the following aspect： 1．By thinking of velocity of goods circulation and goods weigh, a multi-objective optimization model for location planning has been made. Model has been solved, via using Genetic Algorithm’s paratactic selection, multi-gender evolution and constraint methods. 2．By using MATLAB, author programmed the location plan which generates solutions to optimization problems using techniques inspired by natural evolution. Programming has been used crossover, mutation methods and the algorithm terminated when the 500 generations has been produced, then a satisfactory fitness solution has been reached for the location

The effects of parking accessibility on work commuting - Considering parking policies as a mobility management tool for Lund

Abstract This thesis addresses the effects of parking accessibility on work commuting and the potential to use parking policies as a tool to support mobility management and enhance sustainable commuting in Lund. The structure rests on two folds: first, it provides a theoretical background on different parking policies and factors influencing work commuting; second, it provides an analysis of Lund as an empirical case study. The main factors affecting parking accessibility consist of the pricing, the parking distance to reach the destination and the parking supply. Three working areas with different levels of parking accessibility and practices are analysed: the Centre, the Lund University Hospital, and the Science Park. The main component observed is the relation between the modal split and the type of pricing. Emphasis is made on the site located on the outer part of Lund. It was found from the theories and empirical analysis that the accessibility factors have an influence on the modal split for commuting. A shift reducing car-use up to 30% can occur through parking levies, which could potentially result in a CO2 reduction of around 2,000 tonnes for the Science Park, contributing to attain approximately 15% of the LundaMaTs goals in this matter. A key finding is that parking measures and pricing instruments need to be implemented further in the outer part of the city. The main recommendations are addressed to the City of Lund and consist of enhancing the collaboration with neighbouring cities on parking standard settlements. On their side, private companies are encouraged to improve design regarding the location sites and parking facilities in order to support alternative modes of transportation

EURO-AFRICA SPACE. EXPLORING THE POTENTIALS, OVERCOMING CHALLENGES IN EU-AFRICA SPACE ECONOMY.

openLe tecnologie e le applicazioni spaziali svolgono un ruolo essenziale nella nostra vita e nell’economia globale, anche se il loro ruolo, molto importante, non viene spesso riconosciuto. Con la crescente domanda di servizi spaziali in vari settori, Europa e Africa hanno riconosciuto l’importanza di promuovere la cooperazione e la collaborazione nell’industria spaziale. La tesi esplora questa partnership, il potenziale e le sfide nell'economia spaziale UE-Africa. Esamina lo stato attuale dell’economia spaziale UE-Africa, identificando le sfide che ne ostacolano la crescita ed esplorando il potenziale non sfruttato per lo sviluppo reciproco. Inoltre, esamina le capacità tecnologiche e le infrastrutture esistenti in Africa, evidenziando le aree che possono trarre vantaggio dal trasferimento di conoscenze e dalle iniziative di rafforzamento delle capacità. La cooperazione UE-Africa, che esiste da oltre mezzo secolo, può svolgere un ruolo significativo nel contribuire ad affrontare queste sfide. Il partenariato può facilitare l’accesso alle risorse finanziarie e tecnologiche, il trasferimento di tecnologia e la promozione di opportunità commerciali e di investimento. Pertanto, la cooperazione UE-Africa può sbloccare il potenziale dell’economia spaziale in Africa, creando crescita economica e opportunità per la popolazione del continente. Attraverso un'ampia revisione della letteratura, studi di casi, analisi specifiche per paese e un'analisi SWOT, le domande di ricerca ruotano attorno a questi problemi, con l'intenzione di identificare le lacune nella conoscenza e le priorità di ricerca per studi futuri. Per affrontare le sfide identificate, la tesi propone raccomandazioni e strategie per promuovere la collaborazione UE-Africa nell’economia spaziale. Sottolinea la necessità di maggiori investimenti nelle infrastrutture e nel capitale umano e nella creazione di piattaforme per il dialogo e la cooperazione per promuovere lo sviluppo sostenibile e socioeconomico in entrambe le regioni.Space technologies and applications play an essential role in our daily lives and the global economy, even though their important role often goes unseen. With the growing demand for space-based services in various sectors, Europe and Africa have recognized the importance of fostering cooperation and collaboration in the space industry. The dissertation explores this partnership, the potential, and the challenges in the EU-Africa space economy. It examines the current state of the EU-Africa space economy, identifying the challenges that hinder its growth and exploring the untapped potential for mutual development. Additionally, it investigates the existing technological capabilities and infrastructure in Africa, highlighting areas that can benefit from knowledge transfer and capacity-building initiatives. EU-Africa cooperation, which has existed for over half a century, can play a significant role in helping to address these challenges. The partnership can facilitate access to financial and technical resources, the transfer of technology, and the promotion of trade and investment opportunities. Thus, EU-Africa cooperation can unlock the potential of the Space Economy in Africa, creating economic growth and opportunities for the continent's people. Through an extensive literature review, case studies, country-specific analysis, and a SWOT analysis, research questions revolve around these issues, intending to identify gaps in knowledge and research priorities for future studies. To address the identified challenges, the dissertation proposes policy recommendations and strategies to foster EU-Africa collaboration in the space economy. It emphasizes the need for increased investment in infrastructure and human capital and establishing platforms for dialogue and cooperation to promote sustainable and socio–economic development in both regions