This paper proposes an innovative procedure for designing efficient biomass-biofuel logistics networks(BBLNs).This procedure is based on the two-stage network data envelopment analysis(TSN-DEA)models that have been de...This paper proposes an innovative procedure for designing efficient biomass-biofuel logistics networks(BBLNs).This procedure is based on the two-stage network data envelopment analysis(TSN-DEA)models that have been developed to provide specific process guidance for the managers to improve the efficiency of the decision-making unit(DMU)with the TSN process.The crucial issue of the TSN-DEA is that the overall efficiency score depends on the DMUs under evaluation.Thus,the rankings for the DMUs generated by the TSN-DEA model are inconsistent.As a result,the TSN-DEA-based ranking methods are limited.The TSN-DEA’s inconsistency frequently makes it difficult for decision-makers to select the top-rated DMUs.We develop the transformed TSN(T-TSN)DEA method by applying the multi-criteria DEA model to overcome this issue.The proposed method transforms the DMUs with any number of inputs,intermediate measures,and outputs in the TSN process,through the multi-objective programming model with a minimax objective approach,into the DMUs with two inputs and one output in the single-stage network(SSN)process.Then,the well-known DEA methods for the SSN,such as the cross-efficiency and super-efficiency DEA methods,can be applied to evaluate and rank the transformed DMUs more consistently.We exhibit the applicability of the proposed approach for the BBLN design problem.A case study of South Carolina in the USA demonstrates that the proposed method performs well in identifying efficient BBLN schemes more consistently than the traditional TSN-DEA.展开更多
This paper considers a humanitarian logistics network(HTLN)design problem,including the emergency relief facilities(ERFs)location-allocation decision for the efficient distribution of emergency supplies from the ERFs ...This paper considers a humanitarian logistics network(HTLN)design problem,including the emergency relief facilities(ERFs)location-allocation decision for the efficient distribution of emergency supplies from the ERFs to the affected areas.A goal programming(GP)approach is applied to consider the multiple objectives simultaneously.Solving the GP model with a given weight assigned to each goal yields a single HTLN scheme,so there will be various schemes available by solving the GP with multiple values of the weights.For evaluating these schemes and identifying the most efficient one,we apply the data envelopment analysis(DEA)methods considering each scheme as a decision-making unit(DMU).Since the classical DEA(C-DEA)intrinsically aims to identify efficient DMUs and the efficient frontier,the use of C-DEA may not lead to a full ranking in many situations.There are several independent evaluation approaches to increasing discriminating power.Among them,this study integrates the multiple criteria DEA(MC-DEA)with the following three DEA methods,(i)stratification DEA(S^DEA),(ii)cross-efficiency DEA(CE-DEA),and(iii)super-efficiency DEA(SE-DEA),to make the most use of each method's strengths.Through a case study of designing the HTLN system for South Carolina,the procedure of implementing the integrated multiple criteria DEA(IMC-DEA)method is demonstrated.It is observed that the IMCDEA method performs well in terms of designing the HTLN system and would help the decision-makers consider more efficient options and make a final decision.展开更多
文摘This paper proposes an innovative procedure for designing efficient biomass-biofuel logistics networks(BBLNs).This procedure is based on the two-stage network data envelopment analysis(TSN-DEA)models that have been developed to provide specific process guidance for the managers to improve the efficiency of the decision-making unit(DMU)with the TSN process.The crucial issue of the TSN-DEA is that the overall efficiency score depends on the DMUs under evaluation.Thus,the rankings for the DMUs generated by the TSN-DEA model are inconsistent.As a result,the TSN-DEA-based ranking methods are limited.The TSN-DEA’s inconsistency frequently makes it difficult for decision-makers to select the top-rated DMUs.We develop the transformed TSN(T-TSN)DEA method by applying the multi-criteria DEA model to overcome this issue.The proposed method transforms the DMUs with any number of inputs,intermediate measures,and outputs in the TSN process,through the multi-objective programming model with a minimax objective approach,into the DMUs with two inputs and one output in the single-stage network(SSN)process.Then,the well-known DEA methods for the SSN,such as the cross-efficiency and super-efficiency DEA methods,can be applied to evaluate and rank the transformed DMUs more consistently.We exhibit the applicability of the proposed approach for the BBLN design problem.A case study of South Carolina in the USA demonstrates that the proposed method performs well in identifying efficient BBLN schemes more consistently than the traditional TSN-DEA.
基金the National Institute of Food and Agriculture,US Department of Agriculture,Evans-Alien project number SCX-313-04-18.
文摘This paper considers a humanitarian logistics network(HTLN)design problem,including the emergency relief facilities(ERFs)location-allocation decision for the efficient distribution of emergency supplies from the ERFs to the affected areas.A goal programming(GP)approach is applied to consider the multiple objectives simultaneously.Solving the GP model with a given weight assigned to each goal yields a single HTLN scheme,so there will be various schemes available by solving the GP with multiple values of the weights.For evaluating these schemes and identifying the most efficient one,we apply the data envelopment analysis(DEA)methods considering each scheme as a decision-making unit(DMU).Since the classical DEA(C-DEA)intrinsically aims to identify efficient DMUs and the efficient frontier,the use of C-DEA may not lead to a full ranking in many situations.There are several independent evaluation approaches to increasing discriminating power.Among them,this study integrates the multiple criteria DEA(MC-DEA)with the following three DEA methods,(i)stratification DEA(S^DEA),(ii)cross-efficiency DEA(CE-DEA),and(iii)super-efficiency DEA(SE-DEA),to make the most use of each method's strengths.Through a case study of designing the HTLN system for South Carolina,the procedure of implementing the integrated multiple criteria DEA(IMC-DEA)method is demonstrated.It is observed that the IMCDEA method performs well in terms of designing the HTLN system and would help the decision-makers consider more efficient options and make a final decision.
