Search Results (64)

Sustainable building practices face various problematic areas in the European region, such as climate change, high initial costs for sustainable materials and technologies, regulation, sourcing sustainable materials, performance, staff competencies, energy efficiency, waste management, environmental quality and impact, community perception and awareness, integration with existing infrastructure, and others. In order to address these problems, it is essential to adopt appropriate methods and techniques that facilitate informed decision-making and the creation of sustainable strategies for developing building practices. One of the methods for analyzing and developing sustainable building practices is multi-criteria assessment methods that allow for the consideration of multiple criteria simultaneously, providing a more holistic view of the alternatives being assessed. These methods enhance the transparency of the decision-making process by clearly defining the criteria and weights used in the evaluation, and they can be adapted to various building practices. In this study, the COPRAS (Complex Proportional Assessment) method was chosen which is a multi-criteria decision-making method that provides a systematic and quantitative approach for evaluating and ranking alternatives based on multiple criteria and ensures a more objective and data-driven decision-making process. This study aims to analyze the development peculiarities of sustainable building practices in the European region by applying the COPRAS approach and method. In this study, a scientific literature review, the COPRAS method, and expert evaluation were applied. The results of the expert evaluation showed that confidence in the quality and structural properties of secondary materials (traceability) criteria received the highest weight among other criteria. Applying the comprehensive COPRAS method highlighted that assessing the set of criteria is vital for the construction and manufacturing sectors. These findings could be significant for policymakers in developing sustainable building practices. Full article

Thin-walled structures are extensively utilized in construction because of their lightweight nature and excellent energy absorption efficiency, especially under dynamic loads. Improving the energy-absorbing performance of thin-walled structures by inspiring natural multi-cell designs is a sufficient approach. This paper investigates the energy-absorbing characteristics of variable novel cross-section designs of thin-walled structures subjected to oblique impact loading. Straight and tapered types with seven cross-sectional designs of novel thin-walled structures were studied. The nonlinear ABAQUS/Explicit software 6.13 version was implemented to analyze the crashworthiness behaviors for the proposed variable cross-section designs under different loading angles. The crushing behaviors of the proposed thin-walled structures were examined for various wall thicknesses of 0.5 mm, 1.5 mm, and 2.5 mm and impact loading angles of 0°, 15°, 30°, and 45°. It was determined that the energy-absorbing characteristics of novel thin-walled structures can be efficiently controlled by varying two geometries and seven cross-section designs. A multi-criteria decision-making method (MCDM) using a complex proportional assessment method (COPRAS) was performed to select the optimum thin-walled structures with cross-section designs. It was shown that a tapered square thin-walled structure with 2.5 mm thickness had the best crashworthiness performances with energy absorption (EA) of 11.01 kJ and specific energy absorption (SEA) of 20.32 kJ/kg under a 30° impact angle. Moreover, the results indicated that the EA of the thin-walled structure decreased with the increase in the impact loading angle. In addition, with the increase in the impact loading angle, the peak crushing force (PCF) decreased and reflected the reduction in energy absorbed at a larger angle. The MCDM method in conjunction with the COPRAS method is proposed, it provides valuable insights for safer and more resilient building construction. Full article

The process of energy transformation is one of the crucial elements of the process of improvement of the quality of consumed energy. The aim of the research is to assess the European Union countries in terms of the quality of their consumed energy and the speed of adaptation of this aspect of the energy transformation process. We assess the quality of consumed energy by means of the synthetic measure obtained by means of the dynamic version of the COmplex PRoportional ASsessment (COPRAS) method. We compare the countries with the dynamics of the energy transformation process by means of the dynamic time warping method and the hierarchical clustering. Obtained results indicate the best countries with respect to the quality of consumed energy were Malta, Austria, and Germany, and the worst ones—Poland, Czechia, and Slovakia. The process of energy transformation was evolving in the right direction—the quality of consumed energy increased. This increase was the fastest in Malta, Luxembourg, and Poland. The direction for future research is extending the set of variables to also consider other aspects of the energy transformation. Full article

In recent years, shared e-scooters have become increasingly popular as a mode of transportation in urban areas. Shared e-scooters have emerged as a convenient and sustainable transportation option in urban areas, providing users with a flexible and efficient way to travel short distances within a city. Many service providers and local municipalities are interested in implementing shared e-scooter operational models. However, determining which operating model to prefer and what the service areas will be is a significant problem. We aimed to solve the implementation of three different operational models, the site selection problem of station locations, and service areas for Erzurum, the metropolitan city in this study. As shared e-scooter is quite a new transportation mode; information collected to assess the operational models’ sustainability performance may be indeterminate and vague. In this study, the Geographic Information System (GIS)-based hybrid multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) method is proposed for the solution of implementation, site selection, and service areas problems of three different shared e-scooter operational models. To this end, a four-step scientific and strategic solution approach is developed: (i) the identification and detailed explanation of 5 main and 24 sub-criteria, (ii) the weighting of criteria through the Analytical Hierarchical Process (AHP), Multi-Influencing Factor (MIF), and Best–Worst Method (BWM) in order to increase the sensitivity and robustness of the study, (iii) obtaining a suitability map for the solution of implementation, site selection, and service areas problems of operational models, and (iv) assigning shared e-scooter stations and analyzing their performance levels with COmplex PRoportional ASsessment (COPRAS). The results show that, in Erzurum, the central three districts are the most suitable for service areas. The paper’s solution methodology can help service providers and policymakers invest in sustainable shared e-scooter operational models, even in situations of high uncertainty. Full article

The ageing of societies is one of the biggest challenges of the modern world. The response to this new reality is the development of the silver economy. It is a multidimensional concept that is an extremely important factor in sustainable development. The aim of this article is to compare EU countries according to selected aspects of the development of the silver economy. This study covered the years 2009–2021. It was conducted on the basis of data from the Eurostat database. This study used multivariate statistical analysis methods: k-means, COmplex PRoportional ASsessment (COPRAS) in a dynamic approach, Dynamic Time Warping (DTW) and hierarchical clustering. EU countries differ in terms of the studied aspects of the silver economy in a north–south direction. In the period under study, there were significant changes in the country rankings and these changes were not the same for the EU countries. Also, most EU countries indicated improvements in terms of analyzed aspects of the silver economy. An innovative approach is the use of the COPRAS method in a dynamic approach, thanks to which it is possible to develop not only country rankings, but also to analyze the dynamics of changes. Full article

In order to further investigate the level of online medical services in China and improve the medical experience of patients, this study aims to establish an online review-driven picture fuzzy multi-criteria group decision-making (MCGDM) approach for the online medical service evaluation of doctors. First, based on the Aczel–Alsina t-norm and t-conorm, the normal picture fuzzy Aczel–Alsina operations involving a variable parameter are defined to make the corresponding operations more flexible than other operations. Second, two picture fuzzy Aczel–Alsina aggregation operators are developed, and the corresponding properties are discussed as well. Third, combined with the online review information of China’s medical platform Haodaifu, the online review-driven evaluation attributes and their corresponding weights are obtained, which can make the evaluation model more objective. Fourth, an extended normal picture fuzzy complex proportional assessment (COPRAS) decision-making method for the service quality evaluation of online medical services is proposed. Finally, an empirical example is presented to verify the feasibility and validity of the proposed method. A sensitivity analysis and a comparison analysis are also conducted to demonstrate the effectiveness and flexibility of the proposed approach. Full article

To reduce the negative impact on the environment, architects, designers, and construction companies need to find and apply eco-friendly and sustainable building solutions. Due to its renewable nature and numerous advantages, timber has become an attractive substitute for steel and concrete in both residential and non-residential construction projects. However, timber application in the construction of grocery stores is a relatively new concept. The purpose of this research is to propose three alternative timber-based structural systems for a grocery store in Lithuania and to select the most efficient option based on multi-criteria decision-making methods. Three alternative glued laminated timber (glulam) structural systems—the glulam column and truss system, the glulam three-hinge frame system, and the glulam column and double-tapered beam system—were designed. The systems were evaluated against ten criteria, reflecting structural properties, cost efficiency, assembling complexity, and aesthetics. Multiple-criteria assessments by the COmplex PRoportional ASsessment (COPRAS) method and simple additive weighting (SAW) method revealed that the best-performing alternative is the glulam column and double-tapered beam system due to the lower cost of load-bearing structures, the smaller quantity of required steel details and fittings, and the highest maximum utility ratio according to serviceability limit states compared to other alternatives. Full article

With the rapid development of the economy, data have become a new production factor and strategic asset, enhancing efficiency and energy for technological innovation and industrial upgrading in enterprises. The evaluation of enterprise digital asset value (EDAV) is a typical multi-attribute decision-making (MADM) problem. Generalized hesitant fuzzy numbers (GHFNs) can better express the uncertainty and fuzziness of evaluation indexes, thus finding wide applications in MADM problems. In this paper, we first propose the Kullback–Leibler (K-L) divergence distance of GHFNs and prove its mathematical properties. Second, recognizing that decision-makers often have finite rationality in practical problems, we combine the cumulative prospect theory (CPT) with the Complex Proportional Assessment (COPRAS) method to propose the GHF-CPT-COPRAS model for solving MADM problems. Simultaneously, we extend the distance correlation-based Criteria Importance Through Intercriteria Correlation (D-CRITIC) method to the GHF environment to rationally calculate the weights of attributes in the EDAV evaluation problem. Finally, we apply the proposed GHF-CPT-COPRAS model to the EDAV evaluation problem and compare it with existing GHF decision-making methods to verify its effectiveness and feasibility. This study provides an important reference for addressing the EDAV assessment problem within an uncertain fuzzy environment and extends its application methods in the decision-making field. Full article

The growth of Internet of Things (IoT) systems is driven by their potential to improve efficiency, enhance decision-making, and create new business opportunities across various domains. In this paper, the main selection problems in IoT-type systems, criteria used in multi-criteria evaluation, and multi-criteria methods used for solving IoT selection problems are identified. Then, a Hybrid Group Multi-Criteria Approach for solving selection problems in IoT-type systems is proposed. The approach contains the Best Worst Method (BWM) weighting method, multi-criteria Simple Additive Weighting (SAW), Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to an Ideal Solution (TOPSIS), VIseKriterijumska Optimizacija I Kompromisno Resenje (VIKOR), and Complex Proportional Assessment Method (COPRAS), and a method that combines the solutions obtained using the four considered multi-criteria methods to obtain a single solution. The SAW, TOPSIS, VIKOR, and COPRAS methods were analyzed in relation to their advantages, disadvantages, inputs, outputs, measurement scale, type of normalization, aggregation method, parameters, complexity of implementation, and interactivity. An application of the Hybrid Group Multi-Criteria Approach for IoT platform selection and a comparison between the SAW, TOPSIS, VIKOR, and COPRAS solutions and the solution of the proposed approach is realized. A Spearman correlation analysis is presented. Full article

Micro-electrical discharge machining (μ-EDM) has come up as an effective material removal process for the manufacturing of miniaturized components in modern industries. The performance and quality of the μ-EDM process mainly depend on the combination of process parameters selected. This paper attempts to demonstrate the applicability of three well-known multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) techniques, including the Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS), multi-attributive border approximation area comparison (MABAC), and complex proportional assessment (COPRAS) methods, separately hybridized with the grey wolf optimization (GWO) algorithm. The proposed hybrid optimization approaches are applied to find the optimal parametric setting of a μ-EDM process during machining on a stainless steel shim as the work material. Feed rate, capacitance, and voltage were selected as the machining control parameters, while material removal rate, surface roughness, and tool wear ratio were selected as the responses. The polynomial regression (PR) meta-models are observed as the inputs to these hybrid optimizers. The results obtained are further compared to the traditional weighted sum multi-objective optimization (WSMO) approach, which suggests that all the considered MCDM-PR-GWO approaches outperform traditional PR-WSMO-GWO approaches in obtaining better machining performance measures. Full article

Rockburst is a major disaster in deep mining engineering, which can cause serious injury, death and economic losses. This study aims to solve rockburst hazard evaluation problems and determine the hazard levels of mines under uncertain circumstances. To this end, a novel multicriteria decision-making (MCDM) method was proposed in an interval-valued fuzzy context. The main contributions are three-fold. First, considering the heterogeneity of rock masses and the complexity of mining engineering, interval-valued fuzzy numbers (IVFNs) were adopted to express initial indicator information. Second, accounting for the uncertainty of indicator weights, the decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) and entropy methods were extended with IVFNs to determine fuzzy indicator weights comprehensively. Third, the complex proportional assessment (COPRAS) approach was extended with IVFNs to determine the rockburst hazard level. Finally, the proposed method was applied to evaluate rockburst hazards in the Jiaojia gold mine, and the ranking results were consistent with field status. Meanwhile, sensitivity and comparison analyses were performed to reveal the stability and effectiveness of the proposed method. The results indicated that the extended COPRAS method was reliable for rockburst hazard evaluation in deep mining engineering. Full article

The present research used the stir-casting method to develop an Al-based composite. The developed composite exhibited challenges while being processed on conventional machining. Thus, a non-traditional machining process was opted to process the composite. The machining variables selected for the current research were the pulse off time (Toff), pulse on time (Ton), servo voltage (SV), current (I), and tool electrode. Three tool electrodes (SS-304, copper, and brass) were used to process the developed composite (Al/SiC/Gr). The experimental plan was designed using response surface methodology (RSM). The output responses recorded for the analysis were the material removal rate (MRR) and tool wear rate (TWR). The obtained data was optimized using complex proportional assessment (COPRAS) and machine learning methods. The optimized settings predicted by the RSM–COPRAS method were Ton: 60 µs; Toff: 60 µs; SV: 7 V; I: 12 A; and tool: brass. The maximum MRR and TWR at the suggested settings were 1.11 g/s and 0.0114 g/s, respectively. A morphological investigation of the machined surface and tool surface was conducted with scanning electron microscopy. The morphological examination of the surface (machined) presented the presence of cracks, lumps, etc. Full article

Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) are key contributors to Indonesia’s economy. E-commerce can assist SMEs in gaining a competitive edge and is expected to be the largest contributor to the country’s digital economy by 2030. However, only 22% of SMEs in Indonesia have adopted E-commerce. Hence this study aims to investigate the criteria that influence E-commerce adoption by Indonesian retail SMEs and select the best strategy using the Decision-Makers, Technological, Organizational, and Environmental (DTOE) Framework and the Diffusion of Innovation (DOI) theory. This study aims to fill the research gap by examining the essential factors in E-commerce adoption by Indonesian SMEs in the retail industry and their key strategy to increase utilization. The influence and priorities between criteria were calculated using the Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL) based Analytic Network Process (ANP) method. Furthermore, an E-commerce adoption strategy was selected using Complex Proportional Assessment (COPRAS) method. This research showed critical criteria for adopting E-commerce technology in retail SMEs, Decision Maker’s IT Knowledge, Innovativeness, and Complexity. In addition, developing or training Information Technology (IT) and E-commerce skills were identified as the best strategy to increase E-commerce adoption. This study can help raise the understanding of policymakers, E-commerce service providers, and retail SME decision-makers on influencing criteria in adopting the best strategy to be applied to increase this technology adoption. Full article

To select a biomass crop type of the highest sustainability for the purpose of producing biofuel is recognized as a problem of the multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) type, as it comprises different conflicting criteria. To effectively address this problem, the present paper introduces a novel integrated approach using the complex proportional assessment (COPRAS) method under the intuitionistic fuzzy sets (IFSs). The proposed approach works based on the IFSs operators as well as an innovative process utilized in evaluating the attributes’ weights. To evaluate these weights, the subjective weights using the step-wise weight assessment ratio analysis (SWARA) model are integrated with the objective weights achieved using an entropy-based approach in order to attain more realistic weights. As MCDA problems inevitably suffer from different degrees of uncertainty, the proposed approach could be of great help to those who are required to make decisions in uncertain settings. The paper took into consideration a sustainable biomass crop selection problem to exemplify the effectiveness of the presented approach in handling real MCDA problems. Moreover, a sensitivity analysis with respect to the diverse values of the attributes is presented in order to assess the stability of the introduced model. This study reveals that the combination of the objective and subjective weights enhances the stability of the introduced approach with diverse attribute weights. Finally, the results of the introduced model are compared to some existing intuitionistic fuzzy information-based methods. The findings of the comparison confirm the efficiency of the present approach in performing the defined tasks under uncertain environments. Full article

Site selection for an institute or a university is a challenging task. The selection of sites for setting up a new university depends on multiple criteria. In backward, under privileged area people’s perception towards the co-educational universities and women universities are different. Poor families with their conservative mentality possess inhibitions while sending their girl child to co-educational universities as they have concerns about safety, security and family honor. Hence many attributes which are not so important for co-educational universities are more pertinent for women university. In this research paper, we have considered a model for selecting women’s university sites in different backward locations in the state of West Bengal, India. This model incorporated different types of uncertainty related to site selection. Ten important criteria are chosen for the selection of sites. To capture the uncertainty of the problem, trapezoidal neutrosophic numbers are used along with the Multi-criteria Decision Making tool Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) for obtaining criteria weights. Finally, the Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) and COmplex PRoportional ASsessment (COPRAS) are applied for ranking of the sites. Comparative and sensitivity analyses are conducted to check the steadiness of the techniques used. Full article