Solving flexible job-shop scheduling problem with transfer batches, setup times and multiple resources in apparel industry

Apparel industry is characterized by the presence of flexible job-shop systems that have been structured to manufacture a wide range of customized products. However, Flexible Job-shop Scheduling is really chal-lenging and even more complex when setup times, transfer batches and multiple resources are added. In this paper, we present an application of dispatching algorithm for the Flexible Job-shop Scheduling Problem (FJSP) presented in this industry. Days of delay, throughput, earlier date and monthly demand are used as rules of operation selection. A case study in apparel industry is shown to prove the validity of the proposed framework. Results evidence that this approach outperforms the company solution and other algorithms (PGDHS and HHS/LNS) upon reducing average tardiness by 61.1%, 2.63% and 1.77% respectively. The inclusion of throughput in the model resulted in low tardiness for orders with high speed to make money. Promising directions for future research are also proposed

Diagnosis of innovation and technological development in the hotel industry of the Colombian Caribbean Region

El objetivo del trabajo presentado, fue describir el comportamiento del sector hotelero de Cartagena de Indias, analizando la importancia del tamaño de los hoteles frente a cada tipo de innovación entre los años 2008- 2014. Para el desarrollo del estudio, se hace uso de una metodología descriptiva de carácter correlacional. Se encuentra un vínculo de dependencia entre la innovación y su campo de gestión. Esto es la identificación de acciones formativas sobre actividades innovadoras como variable dependiente del tamaño de las organizaciones. Dentro de los resultados del estudio, se evidencia que la variable tamaño no se constituye como determinante cuando los hoteles objeto de estudio incorporen procesos de innovación tecnológica, de producto, de procesos, o de mercado de forma interna. Sin embargo, en el caso de los procesos de innovación externa, los pequeños hoteles, tienen una baja participación con relación a los medianos y a los grandes hoteles.The objective of this paper was to describe the behavior of the hotel sector in Cartagena de Indias, analyzing the importance of the size of hotels in relation to each type of innovation between the years 2008-2014. For the development of the study, a descriptive methodology of correlation is used. A dependency link between innovation and its management field is formed, that is the identification of training actions on innovative activities as a variable dependent on the size of the organizations. Within the results of the study, it is evident that the variable size does not constitute a determinant when the hotels under study incorporate processes of technological innovation, product, process, or market in an internal way, However, in the case of external innovation processes, small hotels have a low share in relation to medium and large hotels

Using discrete-event-simulation for improving operational efficiency in laboratories: a case study in pharmaceutical industry

Just-in-time delivery has become a key aspect of pharmaceutical industry when loyalizing customers and competing internationally. Additionally, prolonged lead times may lead to increased work-in-process inventory, penalties for non-compliance and cost overrun. The problem is more complex upon considering a wide variety of products as often noted in pharmaceutical companies. It is then relevant to design strategies focusing on improving the delivery performance. Therefore, this paper proposes the use of Discrete-event simulation (DES) to identify inefficiencies and define solutions for the delivery problem. First, input data were gathered and analyzed. Then, a DES model was developed and validated. Finally, potential improvement scenarios were simulated and analyzed regarding productivity rate and proportion of tardy jobs. A case study in a pharmaceutical laboratory is presented to validate the proposed methodology. The results evidenced that, by implementing the best scenario, the productivity may be augmented by 44.83% which would generate zero tardy jobs. © 2018, Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Natur

Open-access tool of linked electricity market models: Deliverable D4.8

Project TradeRES - New Markets Design & Models for 100% Renewable Power Systems: https://traderes.eu/about/ABSTRACT: For a holistic understanding and simulation of the energy markets, many different aspects need to modelled properly. Often no single modelling tool offers the whole picture, but a combination of methods needs to be used. A model linkage platform has been chosen previously and this deliverable describes the integration of the modelling tools used in TradeRES to the linking application, Spine Toolbox. Spine Toolbox was used to build data processing and execution workflows around the energy system modelling tools Backbone, AMIRIS, EMLab, COMPETES, RESTrade and MASCEM. The aim is to integrate selected tools together for answering the research questions in the TradeRES project. The integrations of individual tools and some combinations are described in this document. Mostly, the work is still in progress. Also, a common database to serve the case studies has been created, but populating the database with scenario data is still in progress. A common data model to serve all the modelling tools has been created and the database is implemented using Spine Toolbox.N/

A Linear Criterion to sort Color Components in Images

The color and its representation play a basic role in Image Analysis process. Several methods can be beneficial whenever they have a correct representation of wave-length variations used to represent scenes with a camera. A wide variety of spaces and color representations is founded in specialized literature. Each one is useful in concrete circumstances and others may offer redundant color information (for instance, all RGB components are high correlated). This work deals with the task of identifying and sorting which component from several color representations offers the majority of information about the scene. This approach is based on analyzing linear dependences among each color component, by the implementation of a new sorting algorithm based on entropy. The proposal is tested in several outdoor/indoor scenes with different light conditions. Repeatability and stability are tested in order to guarantee its use in several image analysis applications. Finally, the results of this work have been used to enhance an external algorithm to compensate the camera random vibrations.El color y su representación juegan un papel fundamental en el proceso de análisis de imagen. Varios métodos pueden ser beneficiosos siempre que tengan una representación correcta de las variaciones de longitud de onda usadas para representar la escena. Una amplia variedad de espacios y representaciones de color se basa en la literatura especializada. Cada uno de ellos es útil en circunstancias concretas y puede ofrecer información de color redundante (por ejemplo, todos los componentes RGB están altamente correlacionados). En este trabajo se identifica y clasifica cuál componente ofrece la mayor cantidad de información acerca de la escena, a partir de varias representaciones de color. Este enfoque se basa en el análisis de las dependencias lineales entre cada canal y la implementación de un nuevo algoritmo para clasificar los componentes en base a la entropía. La propuesta se pone a prueba en varias escenas al aire libre y en interiores con diferentes condiciones de luz. La repetitividad y la estabilidad son probadas para garantizar su uso en aplicaciones de análisis de imágenes. Finalmente, los resultados de este trabajo son usados para mejorar un algoritmo externo para la compensación de vibraciones

Estimating the global conservation status of more than 15,000 Amazonian tree species

Estimates of extinction risk for Amazonian plant and animal species are rare and not often incorporated into land-use policy and conservation planning. We overlay spatial distribution models with historical and projected deforestation to show that at least 36% and up to 57% of all Amazonian tree species are likely to qualify as globally threatened under International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List criteria. If confirmed, these results would increase the number of threatened plant species on Earth by 22%. We show that the trends observed in Amazonia apply to trees throughout the tropics, and we predict thatmost of the world’s >40,000 tropical tree species now qualify as globally threatened. A gap analysis suggests that existing Amazonian protected areas and indigenous territories will protect viable populations of most threatened species if these areas suffer no further degradation, highlighting the key roles that protected areas, indigenous peoples, and improved governance can play in preventing large-scale extinctions in the tropics in this century

CCNE1 and survival of patients with tubo-ovarian high-grade serous carcinoma: An Ovarian Tumor Tissue Analysis consortium study

BACKGROUND: Cyclin E1 (CCNE1) is a potential predictive marker and therapeutic target in tubo-ovarian high-grade serous carcinoma (HGSC). Smaller studies have revealed unfavorable associations for CCNE1 amplification and CCNE1 overexpression with survival, but to date no large-scale, histotype-specific validation has been performed. The hypothesis was that high-level amplification of CCNE1 and CCNE1 overexpression, as well as a combination of the two, are linked to shorter overall survival in HGSC. METHODS: Within the Ovarian Tumor Tissue Analysis consortium, amplification status and protein level in 3029 HGSC cases and mRNA expression in 2419 samples were investigated. RESULTS: High-level amplification (>8 copies by chromogenic in situ hybridization) was found in 8.6% of HGSC and overexpression (>60% with at least 5% demonstrating strong intensity by immunohistochemistry) was found in 22.4%. CCNE1 high-level amplification and overexpression both were linked to shorter overall survival in multivariate survival analysis adjusted for age and stage, with hazard stratification by study (hazard ratio [HR], 1.26; 95% CI, 1.08-1.47, p = .034, and HR, 1.18; 95% CI, 1.05-1.32, p = .015, respectively). This was also true for cases with combined high-level amplification/overexpression (HR, 1.26; 95% CI, 1.09-1.47, p = .033). CCNE1 mRNA expression was not associated with overall survival (HR, 1.00 per 1-SD increase; 95% CI, 0.94-1.06; p = .58). CCNE1 high-level amplification is mutually exclusive with the presence of germline BRCA1/2 pathogenic variants and shows an inverse association to RB1 loss. CONCLUSION: This study provides large-scale validation that CCNE1 high-level amplification is associated with shorter survival, supporting its utility as a prognostic biomarker in HGSC

Geographic patterns of tree dispersal modes in Amazonia and their ecological correlates

Aim: To investigate the geographic patterns and ecological correlates in the geographic distribution of the most common tree dispersal modes in Amazonia (endozoochory, synzoochory, anemochory and hydrochory). We examined if the proportional abundance of these dispersal modes could be explained by the availability of dispersal agents (disperser-availability hypothesis) and/or the availability of resources for constructing zoochorous fruits (resource-availability hypothesis). Time period: Tree-inventory plots established between 1934 and 2019. Major taxa studied: Trees with a diameter at breast height (DBH) ≥ 9.55 cm. Location: Amazonia, here defined as the lowland rain forests of the Amazon River basin and the Guiana Shield. Methods: We assigned dispersal modes to a total of 5433 species and morphospecies within 1877 tree-inventory plots across terra-firme, seasonally flooded, and permanently flooded forests. We investigated geographic patterns in the proportional abundance of dispersal modes. We performed an abundance-weighted mean pairwise distance (MPD) test and fit generalized linear models (GLMs) to explain the geographic distribution of dispersal modes. Results: Anemochory was significantly, positively associated with mean annual wind speed, and hydrochory was significantly higher in flooded forests. Dispersal modes did not consistently show significant associations with the availability of resources for constructing zoochorous fruits. A lower dissimilarity in dispersal modes, resulting from a higher dominance of endozoochory, occurred in terra-firme forests (excluding podzols) compared to flooded forests. Main conclusions: The disperser-availability hypothesis was well supported for abiotic dispersal modes (anemochory and hydrochory). The availability of resources for constructing zoochorous fruits seems an unlikely explanation for the distribution of dispersal modes in Amazonia. The association between frugivores and the proportional abundance of zoochory requires further research, as tree recruitment not only depends on dispersal vectors but also on conditions that favour or limit seedling recruitment across forest types