Analysing the Impact of Universities on Regional Development: A Case Study Using Fuzzy Cognitive Maps

World Congress on Engineering (WCE 2011) -- JUL 06-08, 2011 -- Imperial Coll, London, UNITED KINGDOMWOS: 000393012800033The impact of innovation in industrial development is continuously increasing. Universities have the major roles in innovation. The positive influence of high education in regional development is required and recognized by the authorities. Researchers continue to investigate the subject using a variety of methods. This paper analyses the contribution of universities to the regional development by using the Fuzzy Cognitive Mapping (FCM) technique. FCM is used in modelling the critical factors and the relations between them. In this paper several factors are detected from literature. A model is designed on the detected criteria on which interviews with experts of economy are conducted. As a result seventeen criteria are used to construct FCM. Most important factors are detected and accordingly some suggestions are presented to improve University contribution in regional development.Int Assoc Engineers, IAENG, Soc Artificial Intelligence, IAENG, Soc Bioinformat, IAENG, Soc Computer Sci, IAENG, Soc Data Min, IAENG, Soc Elect Engn, IAENG, Soc Imagl Engn, IAENG, Soc Ind Engn, IAENG, Soc Informat Syst Engn, IAENG, Soc Internet Comput & Web Serv, IAENG, Soc Mech Engn, IAENG, Soc Operat Res, IAENG, Soc Sci Comput, IAENG, Soc Software Engn, IAENG, Soc Wireless Eng

Levers of logistics service providers’ efficiency in urban distribution

This paper identifies the most important factors that influence the productivity of the urban fleet of a Logistics Service Provider (LSP). Through a regression analysis on a dataset from distribution warehouses of a single LSP, three main levers are shown to have significant impacts on productivity, namely the network design, the vehicle loading strategy, and the business environment wherein the operations are carried out. This paper contributes to bridge the gap about the lack of works addressing the efficiency of LSPs operating in urban areas, by performing a detailed empirical analysis instead of taking an aggregated company perspective