Application of MCDM Methods in Sustainability Engineering: A Literature Review 2008–2018
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paper_title: A multicriteria model for the selection of the transport service provider: A single valued neutrosophic DEMATEL multicriteria model

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The decision-making process requires, a priori, defining and considering certain factors, especially when it comes to complex areas such as transport management in companies. One of the most important items in the initial phase of the transport process that significantly influences its further flow is decision-making about the choice of the most favorable transport provider. In this paper a model for evaluating and selecting a transport service provider based on a single valued neutrosophic number (SVNN) is presented. The neutrosophic set concept represents a general platform that extends the concepts of classical sets, fuzzy sets, intuitionistic fuzzy sets, and an interval valued intuitionistic fuzzy sets. The application of the SVNN concept made a modification of the DEMATEL method (Decision-making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory Method) and proposed a model for ranking alternative solutions. The SVNN-DEMATEL model defines the mutual effects of the provider's evaluation criteria, while, in the second phase of the model, alternative providers are evaluated and ranked. The SVNN-DEMATEL model was tested on a hypothetical example of evaluation of five providers of transport services.
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paper_title: Sustainable and Renewable Energy: An Overview of the Application of Multiple Criteria Decision Making Techniques and Approaches

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The main purpose of this paper is to present a systematic review of MCDM techniques and approaches in sustainable and renewable energy systems problems. This study reviewed a total of 54 papers published from 2003–2015 in more than 20 high-ranking journals, most related to sustainable and renewable energies, and which were extracted from the Web of Science database. In the category of application areas, papers were classified into two main groups: (1) sustainable energy and (2) renewable energy. Furthermore, in the classification of techniques and approaches, the papers were categorized into six groups: (1) AHP and F-AHP; (2) ANP and VIKOR; (3) TOPSIS and F-TOPSIS; (4) PROMETHEE; (5) integrated methods and (6) other methods. In addition, papers were reviewed based on the authors’ nationalities, the publication date, techniques and approaches, the name of journal and studies criteria. The results of this study indicated that, in 2015, scholars have published more papers than in other years. Furthermore, AHP/fuzzy AHP and integrated methods were ranked as the first rank, with 14 papers. Additionally, Journal of Renewable Energy is the first journal, with 16 publications, and this was the most significant journal in this study. Findings of this review paper confirm that MCDM techniques can assist stakeholders and decision makers in unravelling some of the uncertainties inherent in environmental decision making, and these techniques demonstrate a growing interest of previous scholars to apply these techniques for solving different stages of sustainable and renewable energy systems.
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paper_title: A novel integrated decision-making approach for the evaluation and selection of renewable energy technologies

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The decision-making in energy sector involves finding a set of energy sources and conversion devices to meet the energy demands in an optimal way. Making an energy planning decision involves the balancing of diverse ecological, social, technical and economic aspects across space and time. Usually, technical and environmental aspects are represented in the form of multiple criteria and indicators that are often expressed as conflicting objectives. In order to attain higher efficiency in the implementation of renewable energy (RE) systems, the developers and investors have to deploy multi-criteria decision-making techniques. In this paper, a novel hybrid Decision Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory and analytic network process (DEMATEL-ANP) model is proposed in order to stress the importance of the evaluation criteria when selecting alternative REs and the causal relationships between the criteria. Finally, complex proportional assessment and weighted aggregated sum product assessment methods are used to assess the performances of the REs with respect to different evaluating criteria. An illustrative example from Costs assessment of sustainable energy systems (CASES) project, financed by European Commission Framework 6 programme (EU FM 6) for EU member states is presented in order to demonstrate the application feasibility of the proposed model for the comparative assessment and ranking of RE technologies. Sensitivity analysis, result validation and critical outcomes are provided as well to offer guidelines for the policy makers in the selection of the best alternative RE with the maximum effectiveness.
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paper_title: Evaluating construction projects of hotels based on environmental sustainability with MCDM framework

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Abstract Environmental issues have got incredible attention among daily life activities. Sustainability penetrated in all society practices specially construction industry due to its substantial impact on the environment. Monitoring and controlling architectural project contains a decision problem with multi-varieties analysis. This study aimed to evaluate construction projects of hotels regarding environmental sustainability. To this end, a hybrid Multiple Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) model is proposed. Step‐wise Weight Assessment Ratio Analysis (SWARA) and Complex proportional assessment (COPRAS) compose a unified framework. A private construction project is supposed as a case study. The project is based on establishing a five star hotel in Tehran, Iran. In this research SWARA produces criteria weights and COPRAS will rank decision alternatives. This study can be a strategic route for other similar researches in other fields.
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paper_title: An exploration of measures of social sustainability and their application to supply chain decisions

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Abstract Sustainability recognizes the interdependence of ecological, social, and economic systems – the three pillars of sustainability. The definition of corporate social responsibility (CSR) often advocates ethical behavior with respect to these systems. As more corporations commit to sustainability and CSR policies, there is increasing pressure to consider social impacts throughout the supply chain. This paper reviews metrics, indicators, and frameworks of social impacts and initiatives relative to their ability to evaluate the social sustainability of supply chains. Then, the relationship between business decision-making and social sustainability is explored with attention initially focused on directly impacting national level measures. A general strategy for considering measures of social sustainability is proposed, and a variety of indicators of CSR are described. Several of these indicators are then employed in an example to demonstrate how they may be applied to supply chain decision-making.
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paper_title: A review of multi-criteria decision-making applications to solve energy management problems: Two decades from 1995 to 2015

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Energy management problems associated with rapid institutional, political, technical, ecological, social and economic development have been of critical concern to both national and local governments worldwide for many decades; thus, addressing such issues is a global priority. The main of objective of this study is to provide a review on the application and use of decision making approaches in regard to energy management problems. This paper selected and reviewed 196 published papers, from 1995 to 2015 in 72 important journals related to energy management, which chosen from the “Web of Science” database and in this regard, the systematic and meta-analysis method which called “PRISMA” has been proposed. All published papers were categorized into 13 different fields: environmental impact assessment, waste management, sustainability assessment, renewable energy, energy sustainability, land management, green management topics, water resources management, climate change, strategic environmental assessment, construction and environmental management and other energy management areas. Furthermore, papers were categorized based on the authors, publication year, nationality of authors, region, technique and application, number of criteria, research purpose, gap and contribution, solution and modeling, results and findings. Hybrid MCDM and fuzzy MCDM in the integrated methods were ranked as the first methods in use. The Journal of Renewable and Sustainable Energy Review was the important journal in this paper, with 32 published papers. Finally, environmental impact assessment was ranked as the first area that applied decision making approaches. Results of this study acknowledge that decision making approaches can help decision makers and stakeholders in solving some problems under uncertainties situations in environmental decision making and these approaches have seen increasing interest among previous researchers to use these approaches in various steps of environmental decision making process.
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paper_title: Principal sustainability components: empirical analysis of synergies between the three pillars of sustainability

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Starting from the concept of three fundamental sustainability dimensions (environmental, social, and economic), this study investigated professional contributions to sustainability by means of principal component analysis (PCA). Graduates from the Environmental Sciences program (N = 542) at ETH Zurich described their best professional contributions to sustainable development. Next, they evaluated whether their best practice example contributed to achieving any of the five environmental, social, and economic objectives of the Swiss national sustainability strategy. These judgments served as the basis for a PCA aiming to identify principal sustainability components (PSCs) covering typical synergies between sustainability objectives within and transcending the three fundamental dimensions. Three PSCs capturing important synergies were identified. PSC 1 Product and Process Development reflects how ecological innovation and modernization can generate social and economic benefits and at the same time facilitate...
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paper_title: A NOVEL HYBRID METHOD FOR NON-TRADITIONAL MACHINING PROCESS SELECTION USING FACTOR RELATIONSHIP AND MULTI-ATTRIBUTIVE BORDER APPROXIMATION METHOD

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Selection of the most appropriate non-traditional machining process (NTMP) for a definite machining requirement can be observed as a multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) problem with conflicting criteria. This paper proposes a novel hybrid method encompassing factor relationship (FARE) and multi-attributive border approximation area comparison (MABAC) methods for selection and evaluation of NTMPs. The application of FARE method is pioneered in NTMP assessment domain to estimate criteria weights. It significantly condenses the problem of pairwise comparisons for estimating criteria weights in MCDM environment. In order to analyze and rank different NTMPs in accordance with their performance and technical properties, MABAC method is applied. Computational procedure of FARE-MABAC hybrid model is demonstrated while solving an NTMP selection problem for drilling cylindrical through holes on non-conductive ceramic materials. The results achieved by FARE-MABAC method exactly corroborate with those obtained by the past researchers which validate the usefulness of this method while solving complex NTMP selection problems.
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paper_title: SUSTAINABLE DECISION MAKING IN CIVIL ENGINEERING

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The paper deals with the intergenerational aspects of decision making in regard to lifecycle benefit-based design and maintenance planning for civil engineering facilities. Firstly, the concept of the Life Quality Index as a measure for assessing the feasiblity of live saving activities as well as for including the societal cost consequences of fatalities into engineering decision making is introduced. Thereafter a general framework is outlined facilitating the quantification of sustainable decision making in an intergenerational perspective. Thereafter some basic results from renewal theory are provided and suggested as a framework for lifecycle benefit-based design and maintenance planning. The aspects of discounting in the context of sustainability are subsequently addressed including the problem of intergenerational discounting and overlapping generations. Finally, an example considering optimal design is given.
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paper_title: A comprehensive review of data envelopment analysis (DEA) approach in energy efficiency

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The main aim of this review article is to review of DEA models in regarding to energy efficiency. This paper reviewed and summarized the different models of DEA that have been applied around the world to development of energy efficiency problems. Consequently, a review of 144 published scholarly papers appearing in 45 high-ranking journals between 2006 and 2015 have been obtained to achieve a comprehensive review of DEA application in energy efficiency. Accordingly, the selected articles have been categorized based on year of publication; author (s) nationalities, scope of study, time duration, application area, study purpose, results and outcomes. Results of this review paper indicated that DEA showed great promise to be a good evaluative tool for future analysis on energy efficiency issues, where the production function between the inputs and outputs was virtually absent or extremely difficult to acquire.
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paper_title: Evaluating the performance of suppliers based on using the R'AMATEL-MAIRCA method for green supply chain implementation in electronics industry

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Abstract Green supply chain management (GSCM) practitioners striving to create a healthier environment should first identify the key criteria pertinent to the process of implementing the appropriate sustainable policies, particularly in the most rapidly growing electronics sector. Since the decision to adopt GSCM in electronics industry is associated with the use of a multi-dimensional approach involving a number of qualitative criteria, the paper examines GSCM based on fifteen criteria expressed in five dimensions and proposes a multi-criteria evaluation framework for selecting suitable green suppliers. In real life, the assessment of this decision is based on vague information or imprecise data of the expert's subjective judgements, including the feedback from the criteria and their interdependence. Thus to treat this uncertainty in multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) process, rough number (RN) is applied here using only the internal knowledge in the operative data available to the decision-makers. In this way objective imprecisions and uncertainties are used and there is no need to rely on models of assumptions. Instead of different external parameters in the application of RN, the structure of the given data is used. Therefore, the identified components are incorporated into a rough DEMATEL-ANP (R'AMATEL) method, combining the Decision Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory Model (DEMATEL) and the Analytical Network Process (ANP) in a rough context. In group decision making, a rough number-based approach aggregates individual judgements and handles imprecision. The structure of the relationships between the criteria expressed in different dimensions is determined by using the rough DEMATEL (R'DAMETEL) method and building an influential network relation mapping, based on which the rough ANP (R'ANP) method is implemented to obtain the respective criteria weights. Then, the rough multi-attribute Ideal-Real Comparative Analysis (R'MAIRCA) is used to evaluate the environmental performance of suppliers for each evaluation criterion. Sensitivity analysis is performed to determine the impact of the weights of criteria and the influence of the decision maker's preferences on the final evaluation results. Applying the Spearman's rank correlation coefficient and other ranking methods, the stability of the alternative rankings based on the variation in the criteria weights is checked. The results obtained in the study show that the proposed method significantly increases the objectivity of supplier assessment in a subjective environment.
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paper_title: Multi-criteria decision making approaches for green supply chains: a review

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Designing Green Supply Chains (GSCs) requires complex decision-support models that can deal with multiple dimensions of sustainability while taking into account specific characteristics of products and their supply chain. Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) approaches can be used to quantify trade-offs between economic, social, and environmental criteria i.e. to identify green production options. The aim of this paper is to review the use of MCDM approaches for designing efficient and effective GSCs. We develop a conceptual framework to find relevant publications and to categorise papers with respect to decision problems, indicators, and MCDM approaches. The analysis shows that (1) the use of MCDM approaches for designing GSCs is a rather new but emerging research field, (2) most of the publications focus on production and distribution problems, and there are only a few inventory models with environmental considerations, (3) the majority of papers assume all data to be deterministic, (4) little attention has been given to minimisation of waste, (5) numerous indicators are used to account for eco-efficiency, indicating the lack of standards. This study, therefore, identifies the need for more multi-criteria models for real-life GSCs, especially with inclusion of uncertainty in parameters that are associated with GSCs.
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paper_title: Envisioning sustainability three-dimensionally

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Abstract Sustainability has arisen as an alternative to the dominant socio-economic paradigm (DSP). However, it is still a difficult concept for many to fully understand. To help to communicate it and make it more tangible visual representations have been used. Three of the most used, and critiqued, sustainability representations are: (1) a Venn diagram, i.e. three circles that inter-connect, where the resulting overlap that represents sustainability can be misleading; (2) three concentric circles, the inner circle representing economic aspects, the middle social aspects, and the outer environmental aspects; and (3) the Planning Hexagon, showing the relationships among economy, environment, the individual, group norms, technical skills, and legal and planning systems. Each has been useful in helping to engage the general public and raising sustainability awareness. However, they all suffer from being highly anthropocentric, compartmentalised, and lacking completeness and continuity. These drawbacks have reduced their acceptance and use by more advanced sustainability scholars, researchers and practitioners. This paper presents an innovative attempt to represent sustainability in three dimensions which show the complex and dynamic equilibria among economic, environmental and social aspects, and the short-, long- and longer-term perspectives.
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paper_title: A Review of Multi-Criteria Assessment of the Social Sustainability of Infrastructures

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Abstract Nowadays multi-criteria methods enable non-monetary aspects to be incorporated into the assessment of infrastructure sustainability. Yet evaluation of the social aspects is still neglected and the multi-criteria assessment of these social aspects is still an emerging topic. Therefore, the aim of this article is to review the current state of multi-criteria infrastructure assessment studies that include social aspects. The review includes an analysis of the social criteria, participation and assessment methods. The results identify mobility and access, safety and local development among the most frequent criteria. The Analytic Hierarchy Process and Simple Additive Weighting methods are the most frequently used. Treatments of equity, uncertainty, learning and consideration of the context, however, are not properly analyzed yet. Anyway, the methods for implementing the evaluation must guarantee the social effect on the result, improvement of the representation of the social context and techniques to facilitate the evaluation in the absence of information.
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paper_title: Using fuzzy multiple criteria decision making approaches for evaluating energy saving technologies and solutions in five star hotels: A new hierarchical framework

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The purpose of this study is to present a hierarchical framework for evaluating and ranking the important key energy-saving technologies and solutions in the 10 biggest Iranian hotels through integrating fuzzy set theory, as well as qualitative and quantitative approaches. The important key energy factors for the evaluation of energy saving technologies and solutions are gathered through a literature survey. This paper proposes a framework based on the fuzzy Delphi method, fuzzy multiple criteria decision-making, including fuzzy analytic hierarchy process and fuzzy techniques for order performance by similarity to ideal solution. In the fuzzy Delphi method step of the study, 17 key energy factors were selected from among a total of 40 energy factors and categorised into five groups. Fuzzy analytic hierarchy process was used for the ranking of 17 key energy factors, and fuzzy techniques for order performance by similarity to ideal solution employed for ranking of the 10 biggest Iranian hotels in different provinces. The results of this study revealed that the first rank of main groups was equipment efficiency (0.403), system efficiency (0.225) had the second rank, third rank was related to reduction of heating and cooling demands (0.151) and energy management (0.091) and renewable energy (0.083) had the fourth and fifth ranks respectively. In the ranking weights of 17 sub-groups of energy saving technologies and solutions, the results of fuzzy analytic hierarchy process showed that efficient solutions for active space cooling (0.662) was as first rank, building insulation had the second rank with score (0.541) and third rank was European Eco-label for tourist accommodation service (0.532).
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paper_title: A supplier selection life cycle approach integrating traditional and environmental criteria using the best worst method

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Abstract Supplier selection is a strategic decision that significantly influences a firm's competitive advantage. The importance of this decision is amplified when a firm seeks new markets and potentially a new supplier base. Recognizing the importance of these decisions, an innovative three-phase supplier selection methodology including pre-selection, selection, and aggregation is proposed. Conjunctive screening is used for pre-selection, the best worst method (BWM), a novel multiple criteria decision-making method is introduced for the selection phase. Material price and annual quantity are integrated with the decision at the aggregation phase. Qualitative, quantitative, traditional business, and environmental criteria are incorporated. The proposed methodology is applied within a food supply chain context, the edible oils industry. In this illustration the focal organization faces a global entry decision in a new international market. An extensive search is completed to identify the potential suppliers. Through initial screening a sub-set of qualified suppliers is identified. BWM is then used to find the best suppliers from among the qualified suppliers. Eventually the significance of the supplies in the aggregation phase is determined. The outcome is a relatively meaningful ranking of suppliers. The paper provides insights into the methodology, decision, and managerial implications. Study and model limitations, along with future research directions are described.
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paper_title: The Multi-Aspect Criterion in the PMADM Outline and Its Possible Application to Sustainability Assessment

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Over the past few centuries, the process of decision-making has become more complicated in different respects. Since the initial phase of Multiple Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) around fifty years ago, Multiple Attribute Decision Making (MADM) has continued developing over the years as a sub-concept of MCDM. Noticeably, the importance of the decision-making process is increasingly expanding to such an extent that it necessarily blends into the undeniable processes of MADM actual models. Novel methods with different perspectives have been introduced considering the dynamic MADM concepts of time and future in classical frameworks; however, they do not overcome challenges in practice. Recently, Prospective MADM (PMADM) as a specific approach has presented future-oriented models using already known approaches of MCDM, and it has innovative items which show barriers of classic model of MADM. However, PMADM practically needs more conceptual bases to illustrate and plan the future of real decision-making problems. The Multi-Aspect Criterion is a new concept in mapping the future of the PMADM outline. In this regard, two examples of sustainability will be analyzed, and different requirements and aspects associated with PMADM will be discussed in this study. This new approach can support the PMADM outline in more detail and deal with a decision-making structure that can be considered as novel to industry experts.
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paper_title: Application of Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) to solve environmental sustainability problems: a comprehensive review and meta-analysis

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Most methodological areas assume common serious reflections to certify difficult study and publication practices, and, therefore, approval in their area. Interestingly, relatively little attention has been paid to reviewing the application of Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) in environmental sustainability problems despite the growing number of publications in the past two decades. Therefore, the main objective of this study is to fill this gap by conducting a wide search in two main databases including Web of Science and Scopus to identify the studies which used SEM techniques in the period from 2005 to 2016. A critical analysis of these articles addresses some important key issues. On the basis of our results, we present comprehensive guidelines to help researchers avoid general pitfalls in using SEM. The results of this review are important and will help researchers to better develop research models based on SEM in the area of environmental sustainability.
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paper_title: NORMALIZED WEIGHTED GEOMETRIC BONFERRONI MEAN OPERATOR OF INTERVAL ROUGH NUMBERS – APPLICATION IN INTERVAL ROUGH DEMATEL-COPRAS

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This paper presents a new approach to the treatment of uncertainty and imprecision in multi-criteria decision-making based on interval rough numbers (IRN). The IRN-based approach provides decision-making using only internal knowledge for the data and operational information of a decision-maker. A new normalized weighted geometric Bonferroni mean operator is developed on the basis of the IRN for the aggregation of the IRN (IRNWGBM). Testing of the IRNWGBM operator is performed through the application in a hybrid IR-DEMATEL-COPRAS multi-criteria model which is tested on real case of selection of optimal direction for the creation of a temporary military route. The first part of hybrid model is the IRN DEMATEL model, which provides objective expert evaluation of criteria under the conditions of uncertainty and imprecision. In the second part of the model, the evaluation is carried out using the new interval rough COPRAS technique.
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paper_title: An Overview of Multi-Criteria Decision-Making Methods in Dealing with Sustainable Energy Development Issues

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The measurement of sustainability is actively used today as one of the main preventative instruments in order to reduce the decline of the environment. Sustainable decision-making in solving energy issues can be supported and contradictory effects can be evaluated by scientific achievements of multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) techniques. The main goal of this paper is to overview the application of decision-making methods in dealing with sustainable energy development issues. In this study, 105 published papers from the Web of Science Core Collection (WSCC) database are selected and reviewed, from 2004 to 2017, related to energy sustainability issues and MCDM methods. All the selected papers were categorized into 9 fields by the application area and into 10 fields by the used method. After the categorization of the scientific articles and detailed analysis, SWOT analysis of MCDM approaches in dealing with sustainable energy development issues is provided. The widespread application and use of MCDM methods confirm that MCDM methods can help decision-makers in solving energy sustainability problems and are highly popular and used in practice.
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paper_title: Factors influencing consumers' intention to return the end of life electronic products through reverse supply chain management for reuse, repair and recycling

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Resource depletion, population growth and environmental problems force companies to collect their end of life (EOL) products for reuse, recycle and refurbishment through reverse supply chain management (RSCM). Success in collecting the EOL products through RSCM depends on the customers’ participation intention. The objectives of this study are: (1) To examine the important factors influencing customers’ attitude to participate in RSCM; (2) To examine the important factors influencing customers’ subjective norm to participate in RSCM; (3) To examine the main factors influencing customers’ perceived behavioral control to participate in RSCM; (4) To examine the influence of attitude, subjective norms and perceived behavioral control on customers’ participation intention in RSCM. The Decomposed Theory of Planned Behaviour (DTPB) has been chosen as the underpinning theory for this research. The research conducted employed the quantitative approach. Non-probability (convenience sampling) method was used to determine the sample and data was collected using questionnaires. Partial Least Squares-Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) technique was employed. A total of 800 questionnaires were distributed among customers of electronic products in Malaysia. Finally, the questionnaire was distributed among the customers in electronic retailer companies based on convenience sampling method. The empirical results confirm that consumers perception about the risk associated with EOL electronic products, consumers’ ecological knowledge and relative advantages associated with reuse, repair and recycling can influence the attitude of consumers to return the EOL products for reuse, repair and recycling to producer.
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paper_title: How to understand and measure environmental sustainability: Indicators and targets

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Abstract The concept of sustainable development from 1980 to the present has evolved into definitions of the three pillars of sustainability (social, economic and environmental). The recent economic and financial crisis has helped to newly define economic sustainability. It has brought into focus the economic pillar and cast a question mark over the sustainability of development based on economic progress. This means fully addressing the economic issues on their own merits with no apparent connection to the environmental aspects. Environmental sustainability is correctly defined by focusing on its biogeophysical aspects. This means maintaining or improving the integrity of the Earth's life supporting systems. The concept of sustainable development and its three pillars has evolved from a rather vague and mostly qualitative notion to more precise specifications defined many times over in quantitative terms. Hence the need for a wide array of indicators is very clear. The paper analyses the different approaches and types of indicators developed which are used for the assessment of environmental sustainability. One important aspect here is setting targets and then “measuring” the distance to a target to get the appropriate information on the current state or trend.
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paper_title: Preparing future engineers for challenges of the 21st century: Sustainable engineering

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Abstract The field of engineering is changing rapidly as the growing global population puts added demands on the earth's resources: engineering decisions must now account for limitations in materials and energy as well as the need to reduce discharges of wastes. This means educators must revise courses and curricula so engineering graduates are prepared for the new challenges as practicing engineers. The Center for Sustainable Engineering has been established to help faculty members accommodate such changes through workshops and new educational materials, including a free access website with peer-reviewed materials.
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paper_title: A supplier selection life cycle approach integrating traditional and environmental criteria using the best worst method

paper_content:

Abstract Supplier selection is a strategic decision that significantly influences a firm's competitive advantage. The importance of this decision is amplified when a firm seeks new markets and potentially a new supplier base. Recognizing the importance of these decisions, an innovative three-phase supplier selection methodology including pre-selection, selection, and aggregation is proposed. Conjunctive screening is used for pre-selection, the best worst method (BWM), a novel multiple criteria decision-making method is introduced for the selection phase. Material price and annual quantity are integrated with the decision at the aggregation phase. Qualitative, quantitative, traditional business, and environmental criteria are incorporated. The proposed methodology is applied within a food supply chain context, the edible oils industry. In this illustration the focal organization faces a global entry decision in a new international market. An extensive search is completed to identify the potential suppliers. Through initial screening a sub-set of qualified suppliers is identified. BWM is then used to find the best suppliers from among the qualified suppliers. Eventually the significance of the supplies in the aggregation phase is determined. The outcome is a relatively meaningful ranking of suppliers. The paper provides insights into the methodology, decision, and managerial implications. Study and model limitations, along with future research directions are described.
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paper_title: Uncertainty analysis in the sustainable design of concrete structures: A probabilistic method

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Abstract This paper presents a sustainability assessment model based on requirement trees, value analysis, the Analytic Hierarchy Process, and the Monte Carlo simulation technique. It embraces the approach for assessing sustainability taken by the Spanish Structural Concrete Code. Nevertheless, the deterministic model of the Spanish Code can cause significant problems in terms of adequately managing a project’s structural sustainability objective. Thus, a method not only has to assess the potential sustainability index at the end of the project. It also has to evaluate the degree of uncertainty that may make it difficult to achieve the sustainability objective established by the client or promoter.
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paper_title: The Location Selection for Roundabout Construction Using Rough BWM-Rough WASPAS Approach Based on a New Rough Hamy Aggregator

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An adequately functionally located traffic infrastructure is an important factor in the mobility of people because it affects the quality of traffic, safety and efficiency of carrying out transportation activities. Locating a roundabout on an urban network is an imperative for road engineering to address traffic problems such as reduction of traffic congestion, enhancement of security and sustainability, etc. Therefore, this paper evaluates potential locations for roundabout construction using Rough BWM (Best Worst Method) and Rough WASPAS (Weighted Aggregated Sum Product Assessment) models. Determination of relative criterion weights on the basis of which the potential locations were evaluated was carried out using the Rough BWM method. In this paper, in order to enable the most precise consensus for group decision-making, a Rough Hamy aggregator has been developed. The main advantage of the Hamy mean (HM) operator is that it can capture the interrelationships among multi-input arguments and can provide DMs more options. Until now, there is no research based on HM operator for aggregating imprecise and uncertain information. The obtained indicators are described through eight alternatives. The results show that the fifth and sixth alternatives are the locations that should have a priority in the construction of roundabouts from the perspective of sustainable development, which is confirmed throughout changes of parameter k and with comparing to other methods in the sensitivity analysis.
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paper_title: Rank of green building material criteria based on the three pillars of sustainability using the hybrid multi criteria decision making method

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Abstract A green building material (GBM) is an ecological, health-promoting, recycled, or high-performance building material that impacts the material selection to cover all three pillars (3Ps) of sustainability. The absence of clear instructions for GBMs and the difficulty of precision adjustments of GBM criteria with 3Ps sustainability make GBM selection a challenge. In addition, the consideration of all sustainability factors in GBM selection is a multi-criteria decision problem that requires mathematical techniques such as the multi criteria decision making (MCDM) method. This study applies a hybrid MCDM methodology to resolve multiple incompatible and conflicting GBM criteria to align with 3Ps sustainability. The Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL) was used to analyze the efficacy of and interrelationship between GBM criteria. This tool is a hybrid model using fuzzy analytic network process (FANP) for aligning and ranking GBM criteria based on 3Ps sustainability. Additionally, the study inspects four groups of professionals in Malaysia who involved in GBM selection and modified one of the oldest GBM criteria models considering the criteria identified from a comprehensive literature review. The results show that the relationship between GBMs and sustainability criteria are different based on the separate 3Ps of sustainability. The evaluation and results provide a valuable reference for building professionals to enhance sustainable construction through green materials.
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paper_title: Integrated sustainability assessment method applied to structural concrete columns

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Abstract This research paper presents a general model for integral sustainability analysis of columns. This assessment tool has been obtained by using MIVES, a Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) model which considers the sustainability main plans (economic, environmental and social) and incorporates a value function concept in order to homogenize the indicators and consider the degree of satisfaction. This tool is general and could be applied to assess other structural components within the building sector after introducing minor changes. Nevertheless, for this research project, it has been designed to assess reinforced concrete columns in buildings in situ. Therefore, the influence of determining variables such as concrete compressive strength, cross-section geometry and building process have been studied based on this defined model.
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paper_title: Life cycle sustainability assessment (LCSA) for selection of sewer pipe materials

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Sewer systems, over their life cycle, suffer deterioration due to aging, aggressive environmental factors, increased demand, inadequate design, third party intervention, and improper operation and maintenance activities. As a result, their state and overall long-term performance can be affected, which often requires costly and extensive maintenance, repair, and rehabilitation. Furthermore, these pressures can enhance the risk of failures (e.g., sewer leakage) which in turn can have serious impacts on the environment, public safety and health, economics, and the remaining service life of these assets. Effective asset management plans must be implemented to address long-term sustainability principles, i.e., economic growth, human health and safety, and environmental protection, simultaneously. The aim of this paper is to evaluate and compare four typical sewer pipe materials [i.e., concrete, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), vitrified clay, and ductile iron] and identify sustainable solutions. Two comprehensive life cycle sustainability assessment (LCSA) frameworks were applied. The first LCSA framework was based on the integration of emergy synthesis, life cycle assessment (LCA), and life cycle costing (LCC). In this framework, emergy synthesis has been applied to integrate the results from environmental analysis (i.e., LCA) and economic analysis (i.e., LCC) to an equivalent form of solar energy: a solar emergy joule. The second LCSA framework was based on a conventional, multi-criteria decision-making technique, i.e., the analytical hierarchy process, to integrate the results from environmental analysis (i.e., LCA) and economic analysis (i.e., LCC) and find the most sustainable solution over the sewer pipe life cycle. The results demonstrate that PVC pipe is the most sustainable option from both environmental and economic view points and can ensure a more sustainable sewer system.
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paper_title: Analyzing procurement route selection for electric power plants projects using SMART

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AbstractThe decision of selecting the appropriate procurement/delivery system for large investment construction projects is a critical and challenging task for clients, and therefore a significant factor for the project's success. Complex projects as electric power plants can involve managing multiple contracts or subcontracts simultaneously or in sequence. The aim of this paper is to develop, and analyze a decision support tool to select the most efficient procurement/delivery system for multiple contracts Combined Cycle Power Plants (CCPP) constructed in Egypt and funded by the publicsector. This process involved the identification of various procurement routes, followed by the utilization of quantitative values developed in accordance with the requirements of the multi-criteria decision analysis technique known as simple multi-attribute rating technique (SMART). Results revealed that the procurement/delivery system with the highest score, for all contractual packages, is the integrated project delivery...
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paper_title: A multi-objective decision-support model for selecting environmentally conscious highway construction methods

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AbstractThe construction industry has a considerable share in overall resource and energy consumption. Consequently, decision-makers try to achieve environmentally conscious construction by integrating environmental objectives into the selection of construction elements. Due to the complexity of construction projects, it is a known challenge to provide an effective mechanism to select the most feasible construction methods. Thus, it is crucial to learn the interdependency between various resource alternatives, such as material and equipment type, under various project conditions like unavailability of resources. An analytic network process (ANP) was used in this study to construct a decision model for selecting the most feasible construction method. Data collected via interviews with highway construction experts were used to model the dependency between decision parameters, such as project conditions and resource performance indicators. The proposed ANP model output the relative importance weights of deci...
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paper_title: MIVES multi-criteria approach for the evaluation, prioritization, and selection of public investment projects. A case study in the city of Barcelona

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A meaningful contribution to the evaluation of heterogeneous public investments is described in this article. The proposed methodology provides a step towards sustainable urban planning in which decisions are taken according to clear, consistent and transparent criteria assisted by the MIVES multi-criteria analysis framework. The MIVES methodology combines multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) and multi-attribute utility theory (MAUT), incorporating the value function (VF) concept and assigning weights through the analytic hierarchy process (AHP). First, a homogenization coefficient is calculated to develop the Prioritization Index for Heterogeneous Urban Investments (PIHUI), so that non-homogenous alternatives may be comparable. This coefficient measures the need of society to invest in each public project through the consideration of its contribution to the regional balance, the scope of its investment, the evaluation of the current situation and the values of the city. Then, the MIVES multi-criteria framework is used to evaluate the degree to which each investment would contribute to sustainable development. Different economic, environmental and social aspects were considered through a decision framework, constructed with the three aforementioned requirements, five criteria and eight indicators. The case study conducted for the Ecology, Urban Planning and Mobility Area of Barcelona municipal council is presented in this article, showing how this method performs accurate, consistent, and repeatable evaluations.
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paper_title: Sustainability Evaluation Framework of Urban Stormwater Drainage Options for Arid Environments Using Hydraulic Modeling and Multicriteria Decision-Making

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Stormwater drainage systems in urban areas located in arid environmental regions generally consist of storm-sewer networks and man-made ponds for the collection and disposal of runoff, respectively. Due to expansion in cities’ boundaries as a result of population growth, the capacity of existing drainage systems has been exhausted. Therefore, such systems overflow even during the smaller (than the design) return period floods. At the same time, changing rainfall patterns and flash floods due to climate change are other phenomena that need appropriate attention. Consequently, the municipalities in arid environmental regions are facing challenges for effective decision-making concerning (i) improvement needs for drainage networks for safe collection of stormwater, (ii) selection of most feasible locations for additional ponds, and (iii) evaluation of other suitable options, such as micro-tunneling. In this research, a framework has been developed to evaluate different stormwater drainage options for urban areas of arid regions. Rainfall-runoff modeling was performed with the help of Hydrological-Engineering-Centre, Hydrological-Modelling-System (HEC-HMS). To evaluate the efficacy of each option for handling a given design flood, hydraulic-modeling was performed using SewerGEMS. Meteorological and topographical data was gathered from the Municipality of Buraydah and processed to generate different inputs required for hydraulic modeling. Finally, multicriteria decision-making (MCDM) was performed to evaluate all the options on the basis of four sustainability criteria, i.e., flood risk, economic viability, environmental impacts, and technical constraints. Criteria weights were established through group decision-making using the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). Preference-Ranking-Organization-Method for Enrichment-Evaluation (PROMETHEE II) was used for final ranking of stormwater drainage options. The proposed framework has been implemented on a case of Buraydah City, Qassim, Saudi Arabia, to evaluate its pragmatism. Micro-tunnelling was found to be the most sustainable option.
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paper_title: Experimental and analytical selection of sustainable recycled concrete with ceramic waste aggregate

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Abstract This experimental and analytical investigation is conducted to develop a sustainable recycled concrete by incorporating ceramic waste as coarse aggregate. In order to achieve the designed goal, conventional aggregate is replaced by different amounts of ceramic waste aggregate. Fresh and hardened properties of conventional as well as ceramic waste aggregate concrete are assessed. Environmental impacts are also considered in terms of CO 2 footprints and consumption of volume of raw materials by concrete. Interfacial model is proposed at micro level to evaluate the behavior of ceramic waste and conventional aggregate with hydrated cement paste. Finally, sustainable concrete is selected which has the best performance with respect to compressive strength and environmental impacts. It is concluded that 30% partial replacement of ceramic waste aggregate with conventional aggregate provides the highest compressive strength, less environmental impacts and is selected as sustainable concrete, which is also verified by analytical hierarchy process (AHP) and technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS)
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paper_title: Industrial building design stage based on a system approach to their environmental sustainability

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Abstract It is well known how the construction sector wields an enormous influence over economic activity, employment and growth rates. Further consideration still needs to be given to sustainability. Accordingly, an Integrated Value Model for Sustainable Assessment is presented in this article that applies a set of six study scopes to define the sustainability criteria of industrial buildings. Assignment of value functions to the sustainability criteria is then described in the context of a case study of a printing works, which demonstrates the effectiveness of this model at unifying both qualitative and quantitative indicators, in order to arrive at a specific “environmental sustainability index” for the industrial building.
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paper_title: Sustainability based-approach to determine the concrete type and reinforcement configuration of TBM tunnels linings. Case study: Extension line to Barcelona Airport T1

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Fibre-reinforced concrete (FRC) is a suitable alternative to the traditional reinforced concrete used in the manufacture of precast segments used to line tunnels excavated with a tunnel boring machine (TBM). Moreover, its use as a structural material has been approved by several national codes and by the current fib Model Code (2010). The use of FRC in segmental linings confers several technical and economic advantages, evidenced by the fact that structural fibres have been used to partially or entirely replace reinforcing bars in many TBM tunnels built over the past 20 years or currently under construction. FRC could also have been used in other tunnels, which are currently in the planning stage or under construction. However, despite its technical suitability and approval in current codes, the use of FRC was not possible in some cases. The impediment has sometimes been an incomplete understanding of the structural behaviour of the material, but a more general motive has been that comparisons of materials have taken into account only direct material costs and have not considered indirect costs or social and environmental factors. The aim of the present research is to develop a method for analysing the sustainability of different concrete and reinforcement configurations for segmental linings of TBM tunnels using the MIVES method (a multi-criteria decision making approach for assessing sustainability). This MCDM method allows minimising subjectivity in decision making while integrating economic, environmental and social factors. The model has been used to assess the sustainability of different alternatives proposed for manufacturing the segmental tunnel lining for the extension of the rail line of Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya (FGC) to Terminal 1 of El Prat Airport in Barcelona.
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paper_title: Multi-criteria evaluation model for the selection of sustainable materials for building projects

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Sustainable material selection represents an important strategy in building design. Current building materials selection methods fail to provide adequate solutions for two major issues: assessment based on sustainability principles, and the process of prioritizing and assigning weights to relevant assessment criteria. This paper proposes a building material selection model based on the fuzzy extended analytical hierarchy process (FEAHP) techniques, with a view to providing solutions for these two issues. Assessment criteria are identified based on sustainable triple bottom line (TBL) approach and the need of building stakeholders. A questionnaire survey of building experts is conducted to assess the relative importance of the criteria and aggregate them into six independent assessment factors. The FEAHP is used to prioritize and assign important weightings for the identified criteria. A numerical example, illustrating the implementation of the model is given. The proposed model provides guidance to building designers in selecting sustainable building materials.
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paper_title: Multiple Criteria Decision Support System for Assessment of Projects Managers in Construction

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Construction processes planning and effective management are extremely important for success in construction business. Head of a design must be well experienced in initiating, planning, and executing of construction projects. Therefore, proper assessment of design projects' managers is a vital part of construction process. The paper deals with an effective methodology that might serve as a decision support aid in assessing project managers. Project managers' different characteristics are considered to be more or less important for the effective management of the project. Qualifying of managers is based on laws in force and sustainability of project management involving determination of attributes value and weights by applying analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and expert judgement methods. For managers' assessment and decision supporting is used additive ratio assessment method (ARAS). The model, presented in this study, shows that the three different methods combined (ARAS method aggregated together with the AHP method and the expert judgement method) is an effective tool for multiple criteria decision aiding. As a tool for the assessment of the developed model, was developed multiple criteria decision support system (MCDSS) weighting and assessment of ratios (WEAR) software. The solution results show that the created model, selected methods and MCDSS WEAR can be applied in practice as an effective decision aid.
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paper_title: Construction method selection for green building projects to improve environmental sustainability by using an MCDM approach

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Environmental pollution is a challenge being faced by construction companies. They attempt to solve these problems in order to improve the environmental sustainability of their green building projects by using different construction methods. However, the selection of the construction method for building projects involves a complex decision-making process. To solve this problem of construction method selection, this investigation presents a Multiple Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) approach. The study yields a comprehensive and systematic structure that employs quantitative assessments for priority construction method selection for each green building project and also aids construction companies with regard to their practical application.
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paper_title: Remedial Modelling of Steel Bridges through Application of Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP)

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The deterioration and failure of steel bridges around the world is of growing concern for asset managers and bridge engineers due to aging, increasing volume of traffic and introduction of heavier vehicles. Hence, a model that considers these heuristics can be employed to validate or challenge the practical engineering decisions. Moreover, in a time of increased litigation and economic unrest, engineers require a means of accountability to support their decisions. Maintenance, Repair and Rehabilitation (MR&R) of deteriorating bridge structures are considered as expensive actions for transportation agencies and the cost of error in decision making may aggravate problems related to infrastructure funding system. The subjective nature of decision making in this field could be replaced by the application of a Decision Support System (DSS) that supports asset managers through balanced consideration of multiple criteria. The main aim of this paper is to present the developed decision support system for asset management of steel bridges within acceptable limits of safety, functionality and sustainability. The Simplified Analytical Hierarchy Process S-AHP is applied as a multi criteria decision making technique. The model can serve as an integrated learning tool for novice engineers, or as an accountability tool for assurance to project stakeholders.
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paper_title: Evaluation of the requirement for passenger car parking spaces using multi-criteria methods

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Abstract The present situation shows that the parking infrastructure in residential areas of Vilnius does not satisfy the existing level of motorization. Every evening people come home from work and end up parking cars on lawns, cycle and pedestrian paths, playgrounds, fire accesses and etc. In Lithuania, this problem emerged with the growing number of cars. There have been attempts to address parking shortage issues 20–30 years ago by building metal above-ground garages and underground car parks; but such solutions focused on existing burning needs alone. As a result, the current parking situation in residential areas is chaotic. This problem stems from the ineffectiveness of responsible institutions, which maintain the status quo. Consequently – as no car parking development projects are planned and implemented as well as no required statistical data is collected regarding conditions of car parking and etc. – people are forced to look for a solution by themselves, thus end up parking on lawns or playgro...
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paper_title: On the selection by MCDM methods of the optimal system for seismic retrofitting and vertical addition of existing buildings

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Seismic retrofitting and vertical addition of existing buildings have been investigated.Different alternatives have been proposed for the two structural modification interventions.The TOPSIS MCDM method has been used for selecting the best alternative.Sensitivity analyses have proved the objectivity of the solutions found. In the current paper a novel procedure to select the optimal solution both for seismic retrofitting of existing RC buildings and for super-elevation of existing masonry constructions has been implemented by using three different Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) (TOPSIS, ELECTRE and VIKOR) methods.The procedure application has been faced with reference to two case studies.The first intervention has been studied on a real full-scale 3D RC structure retrofitted with different seismic protection devices mainly based on metal materials, whose performances were experimentally evaluated in a previous research project. All the applied MCDM methods have provided the same result, that is the dominating role exerted by aluminium shear panels for seismic retrofitting of the analysed structure.On the other hand, different innovative and traditional constructive systems have been examined to increase the number of floors of existing masonry buildings. The effectiveness of these interventions in improving the base building behaviour has been proved on a typical building of the South Italy. The study results, achieved by using the three MCDM methods inspected, have provided as an optimal solution the cold-formed steel systems thanks to their prerequisites of lightness, economy and sustainability.
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paper_title: Sustainability assessment for recreational buildings

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ABSTRACTA large amount of natural resources and energy is wasted during and after the building construction process which might cause environmental problems such as climate changes. In order to achieve higher standards of environmental protection a range of building assessment systems has been established. However, they are mostly connected with the efficiency of an environmental protection and consumption of resources. Only few of them have limited possibilities to assess social and economic sustainability. A sustainable building includes aspects of environment, economy and society and therefore requirements to its assessment systems should be complex. We suggest that sustainability principles, that is, environmental, social and economic sustainability, should be estimated in the same equal weightings. The authors of this article created a model for assessing the sustainability for recreational buildings. Our model was created, in collaboration with experts, using breakdown, compensation and the analytic...
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paper_title: Upgrading the old vernacular building to contemporary norms: multiple criteria approach

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AbstractSustainable development is emphasized in the process of construction or modernization of buildings at present. Old vernacular architecture does not satisfy contemporary building norms such as daylighting and/or thermal performance parameters. These parameters are important for sustainability due to their relation with energy savings. It is obvious that seeking to improve these parameters, old buildings should be upgraded. The main problem is how to reach contemporary building norms without a negative impact to architectural heritage in a process of modernisation. The aim of the research is to find the best compromise solution for effective vernacular architecture's change. The Authors suggest using multiple criteria approach that enables to evaluate possible alternative solutions in several controversial aspects and to find rational building's modernisation type. Also, suitability of combination of usual MCDM (Multiple Criteria Decision Making) methods with grey systems theory due to possibility o...
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paper_title: Cold-formed thin-walled steel structures as vertical addition and energetic retrofitting systems of existing masonry buildings

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According to the current trend for sustainable constructions in urban areas, the present paper deals with the analysis of vertical addition systems for energetic retrofitting of existing masonry buildings. Starting from the current European (EN 1998-3:2005) and Italian (NTC 08) technical codes for the seismic assessment of existing structures, first a FEM model has been implemented to investigate the structural performances of masonry units with variable storeys (1, 2 and 3) and material strength (fk = 1, 3 and 6 MPa). Later on, traditional (reinforced concrete, masonry and steel) and innovative (glued laminated timber and cold-formed thin-walled steel) technologies have been proposed as a solution for vertical addition of the studied buildings. Therefore, a numerical campaign of linear dynamic analyses has been undertaken on the examined structures aiming at selecting the best vertical addition solution. The achieved numerical analysis results have provided cold-formed steel systems as the dominant solut...
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paper_title: Improving organizational learning by sharing information through innovative supply chain in agro-food companies from Bosnia and Herzegovina

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Innovation is essential for long-term success in business and companies need to develop an innovative supply chain to respond to environmental and market challenges. It is necessary to develop knowledge through organizational learning in order to strengthen the ability of companies to innovate. An innovative supply chain is the basis for developing innovation in companies. To improve its market position companies should continuously receive high quality information from participants in the supply chain by sharing information. The complexity of relationships within supply chain affecting organizational learning is the subject of this study. We conducted an empirical study focusing our attention on agro-food companies in Bosnia and Herzegovina. A questionnaire was used as a data collection tool applying random systematic sampling and a total of 159 companies took part in this study. The empirical findings showed that sharing of information has a significant linkage with an innovative supply chain, but only in establishing partnerships with customers. We confirmed that an innovative supply chain is essential for development of organizational learning and agile supply chain. The findings could assist the managers of agro-food companies in Bosnia and Herzegovina to improve their business. This study provides guidance for improving business using supply chains.
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paper_title: A fuzzy multi criteria approach for measuring sustainability performance of a supplier based on triple bottom line approach

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Abstract Sustainable supply chain management has received much attention from practitioners and scholars over the past decade owing to the significant attention given by consumers, profit and not-for-profit organizations, local communities, legislation and regulation to environmental, social and corporate responsibility. Sustainable supply chain initiatives like supplier environmental and social collaboration can play a significant role in achieving the “triple bottom line” of social, environmental, and economic benefits. Supplier selection plays an important role in the management of a supply chain. Traditionally, organizations consider criteria such as price, quality, flexibility, etc. when evaluating supplier performance. While the articles on the selection and evaluation of suppliers are abundant, those that consider sustainability issues are rather limited. This paper explores sustainable supply chain initiatives and examines the problem of identifying an effective model based on the Triple Bottom Line (TBL) approach (economic, environmental, and social aspects) for supplier selection operations in supply chains by presenting a fuzzy multi criteria approach. We use triangular fuzzy numbers to express linguistic values of experts' subjective preferences. Qualitative performance evaluation is performed by using fuzzy numbers for finding criteria weights and then fuzzy TOPSIS (Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution) is proposed for finding the ranking of suppliers. The proposed approach is illustrated by an example.
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paper_title: Uncertain supply chain network design considering carbon footprint and social factors using two-stage approach

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Sustainable development has become one of the leading global issues over the period of time. Currently, implementation of sustainability in supply chain has been continuously in center of attention due to introducing stringent legislations regarding environmental pollution by various governments and increasing stakeholders’ concerns toward social injustice. Unfortunately, literature is still scarce on studies considering all three dimensions (economical, environmental and social) of sustainability for the supply chain. An effective supply chain network design (SCND) is very important to implement sustainability in supply chain. This study proposes an uncertain SCND model that minimizes the total supply chain-oriented cost and determines the opening of plants, warehouses and flow of materials across the supply chain network by considering various carbon emissions and social factors. In this study, a new AHP and fuzzy TOPSIS-based methodology is proposed to transform qualitative social factors into quantitative social index, which is subsequently used in chance-constrained SCND model with an aim at reducing negative social impact. Further, the carbon emission of supply chain is estimated by considering a composite emission that consists of raw material, production, transportation and handling emissions. In the model, a carbon emission cap is imposed on total supply chain to reduce the carbon footprint of supply chain. To solve the proposed model, a code is developed in AMPL software using a nonlinear solver SNOPT. The applicability of the proposed model is illustrated with a numerical example. The sensitivity analysis examines the effects of reducing carbon footprint cap, negative social impacts and varying probability on the total cost of the supply chain. It is observed that a stricter carbon cap over supply chain network leads to opening of more plants across the supply chain. In addition, carbon footprint of supply chain is found to be decreased in certain extent with the reduction in negative social impacts from suppliers. The carbon footprint of the supply chain is found to be reduced with increasing certainty of material supply from the suppliers. The total supply chain cost is observed to be augmented with increasing probability.
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paper_title: Sustainable Supplier Management – A Review of Models Supporting Sustainable Supplier Selection, Monitoring and Development

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In the last two decades, pressure from various stakeholders has forced many companies to establish environmental and social improvements both in their company and their supply chains. The growing number of journal publications and conference proceedings confirms this change also in academia. The aim of this paper is to analyse and review scientific literature on sustainable supplier management (SSM) with a focus on formal models supporting decision-making in sustainable supplier selection, monitoring and development. For this purpose, a framework on SSM is proposed and a comprehensive content analysis including a criteria analysis is carried out. Beyond this, in total 143 peer-reviewed publications between 1997 and 2014 have been analysed to identify both established and overlooked research fields. Major findings are the rapidly growing interest of this topic in academia in recent years, the predominance of Analytic Hierarchy Process, Analytic Network Process and fuzzy-based approaches, the focus on the f...
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paper_title: Developing a Green Supplier Selection Model by Using the DANP with VIKOR

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This study proposes a novel hybrid multiple-criteria decision-making (MCDM) method to evaluate green suppliers in an electronics company. Seventeen criteria in two dimensions concerning environmental and management systems were identified under the Code of Conduct of the Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition (EICC). Following this, the Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL) used the Analytic Network Process (ANP) method (known as DANP) to determine both the importance of evaluation criteria in selecting suppliers and the causal relationships between them. Finally, the VlseKriterijumska Optimizacija I Kompromisno Resenje (VIKOR) method was used to evaluate the environmental performances of suppliers and to obtain a solution under each evaluation criterion. An illustrative example of an electronics company was presented to demonstrate how to select green suppliers.
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paper_title: A decision support model for sustainable supplier selection in sustainable supply chain management

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Selecting the most suitable sustainability criteria using questionnaire.Applying various statistical tests to validate the developed criteria.Developing an integrated FPP-FTOPSIS model for sustainable supplier selection.Calculating weights using FPP and ranking suppliers using FTOPSIS.Explaining the model using the real case study based on the developed criteria. This study is aimed at developing the most important and applicable criteria and their corresponding sub-criteria for sustainable supplier selection through a questionnaire-based survey. In addition, a hybrid model is proposed to identify the most sustainable supplier with respect to the determined attributes using an Iranian textile manufacturing company as case study. The first contribution of the research is developing a comprehensive list of sustainability criteria and sub-criteria and incorporating them into a questionnaire and distributing the questionnaire to academics and practitioners for establishing the importance and applicability of these criteria and sub-criteria. In order to demonstrate the robustness of the data obtained from the questionnaire, different established statistical tests (Cronbachs alpha and Mann-Withney U-Test) were applied. The results show that economic aspect is still the most essential aspect, followed by environmental aspect and finally social aspect. The second contribution is the development of a new hybrid model by integrating fuzzy preference programing, as one of the newest and most accurate fuzzy modification of Analytical Hierarchy Process, with Fuzzy Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution. Fuzzy Preference Programming overcomes the shortcomings of the previous methods for obtaining the weight and Fuzzy Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution prioritizes the suppliers and finds the best one under uncertainty. Generally, the developed list provides a basis that is helpful in improving suppliers performance in terms of sustainability which leads to improvement in sustainable supply chain management performance. In addition, the developed hybrid model can deal with inconsistency, uncertainty and calculation complexity. Generally, the framework (including the first and second objectives) can be applied by managers to evaluate and determine their appropriate suppliers in the presence of uncertainty.
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paper_title: Evaluating the performance of suppliers based on using the R'AMATEL-MAIRCA method for green supply chain implementation in electronics industry

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Abstract Green supply chain management (GSCM) practitioners striving to create a healthier environment should first identify the key criteria pertinent to the process of implementing the appropriate sustainable policies, particularly in the most rapidly growing electronics sector. Since the decision to adopt GSCM in electronics industry is associated with the use of a multi-dimensional approach involving a number of qualitative criteria, the paper examines GSCM based on fifteen criteria expressed in five dimensions and proposes a multi-criteria evaluation framework for selecting suitable green suppliers. In real life, the assessment of this decision is based on vague information or imprecise data of the expert's subjective judgements, including the feedback from the criteria and their interdependence. Thus to treat this uncertainty in multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) process, rough number (RN) is applied here using only the internal knowledge in the operative data available to the decision-makers. In this way objective imprecisions and uncertainties are used and there is no need to rely on models of assumptions. Instead of different external parameters in the application of RN, the structure of the given data is used. Therefore, the identified components are incorporated into a rough DEMATEL-ANP (R'AMATEL) method, combining the Decision Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory Model (DEMATEL) and the Analytical Network Process (ANP) in a rough context. In group decision making, a rough number-based approach aggregates individual judgements and handles imprecision. The structure of the relationships between the criteria expressed in different dimensions is determined by using the rough DEMATEL (R'DAMETEL) method and building an influential network relation mapping, based on which the rough ANP (R'ANP) method is implemented to obtain the respective criteria weights. Then, the rough multi-attribute Ideal-Real Comparative Analysis (R'MAIRCA) is used to evaluate the environmental performance of suppliers for each evaluation criterion. Sensitivity analysis is performed to determine the impact of the weights of criteria and the influence of the decision maker's preferences on the final evaluation results. Applying the Spearman's rank correlation coefficient and other ranking methods, the stability of the alternative rankings based on the variation in the criteria weights is checked. The results obtained in the study show that the proposed method significantly increases the objectivity of supplier assessment in a subjective environment.
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paper_title: Framework for selecting sustainable supply chain processes and industries using an integrated approach

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Abstract This study introduces a process view of sustainable supply chain management and identifies 17 sustainable supply chain processes (SSCPs) from literature. Further, a framework is proposed to identify the significance of various SSCPs on firm performance using the theoretical lenses of stakeholder theory and resource based view. Through a semi-structured interview of stakeholders, critical SSCPs across eight industries were identified in the Indian context. The study identifies five important SSCPs, such as sustainable design and development, strategic sourcing and efficient technology and sustainable product returns and recycling. Among the selected industries, pharmaceutical, agricultural and chemical industries were identified to be the front-runners in SSCPs practice. Subsequently, these five processes and three industries were evaluated using strategic decision making approach by integrating group decision making and fuzzy multi-criteria decision making methods. To handle the uncertainties of strategic decision making, six Fuzzy Multi-Criteria Decision Making methods have been applied and compared to understand their relevance while evaluating the above industries, based on the above identified SSCPs. This study introduces an approach to enhance sustainability of supply chain that can be extended across industries through a process view of supply chain, in emerging economies like India.
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paper_title: A Novel Rough WASPAS Approach for Supplier Selection in a Company Manufacturing PVC Carpentry Products

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The decision-making process requires the prior definition and fulfillment of certain factors, especially when it comes to complex areas such as supply chain management. One of the most important items in the initial phase of the supply chain, which strongly influences its further flow, is to decide on the most favorable supplier. In this paper a selection of suppliers in a company producing polyvinyl chloride (PVC) carpentry was made based on the new approach developed in the field of multi-criteria decision making (MCDM). The relative values of the weight coefficients of the criteria are calculated using the rough analytical hierarchical process (AHP) method. The evaluation and ranking of suppliers is carried out using the new rough weighted aggregated sum product assessment (WASPAS) method. In order to determine the stability of the model and the ability to apply the developed rough WASPAS approach, the paper analyzes its sensitivity, which involves changing the value of the coefficient λ in the first part. The second part of the sensitivity analysis relates to the application of different multi-criteria decision-making methods in combination with rough numbers that have been developed in the very recent past. The model presented in the paper is solved by using the following methods: rough Simple Additive Weighting (SAW), rough Evaluation based on Distancefrom Average Solution (EDAS), rough MultiAttributive Border Approximation area Comparison (MABAC), rough Visekriterijumsko kompromisno rangiranje (VIKOR), rough MultiAttributiveIdeal-Real Comparative Analysis (MAIRCA) and rough Multi-objective optimization by ratio analysis plus the full multiplicative form (MULTIMOORA). In addition, in the third part of the sensitivity analysis, the Spearman correlation coefficient (SCC) of the ranks obtained was calculated which confirms the applicability of all the proposed approaches. The proposed rough model allows the evaluation of alternatives despite the imprecision and lack of quantitative information in the information-management process.
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paper_title: Multi-Criteria Indicator for Sustainability Rating in Suppliers of the Oil and Gas Industries in Brazil

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The necessity of sustainability evaluation is rapidly growing alongside the expansion of civilization. Likewise, the supply chain suitability improvement is a need that has arisen in the petroleum industry, especially as it is responsible for the most part of CO 2 emissions in the atmosphere. The modeling of this kind of problem deals with multiple criteria evaluations. This paper proposes an original multiple-criteria based approach to classifying the degree of organizational sustainability. This proposal was applied to evaluate a representative set of companies, which are suppliers of the Brazilian petroleum industry. The data collection was supported by a questionnaire. The results highlight that the studied companies have not yet reached an advanced level of maturity in the sustainability context. In a comprehensive vision of sustainability based on Triple Bottom Line (TBL), these companies are either in the initial stage or in the implementation phase of the sustainability practices.
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paper_title: Selecting Green Supplier of Thermal Power Equipment by Using a Hybrid MCDM Method for Sustainability

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With the growing worldwide awareness of environmental protection and sustainable development, green purchasing has become an important issue for companies to gain environmental and developmental sustainability. Thermal power is the main power generation form in China, and the green supplier selection is essential to the smooth and sustainable construction of thermal power plants. Therefore, selecting the proper green supplier of thermal power equipment is very important to the company’s sustainable development and the sustainability of China’s electric power industry. In this paper, a hybrid fuzzy multi-attribute decision making approach (fuzzy entropy-TOPSIS) is proposed for selecting the best green supplier. The fuzzy set theory is applied to translate the linguistic preferences into triangular fuzzy numbers. The subjective criteria weights are determined by using decision makers’ superiority linguistic ratings and the objective ones are determined by combining the superiority linguistic ratings and fuzzy-entropy weighting method. The fuzzy TOPSIS is employed to generate an overall performance score for each green supplier. An empirical green supplier selection is conducted to illustrate the effectiveness of this proposed fuzzy entropy-TOPSIS approach. This proposed fuzzy entropy-TOPSIS approach can select the proper green supplier of thermal power equipment, which contributes to promoting the company’s sustainable development and the sustainability of China’s electric power industry to some extent.
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paper_title: A case analysis of a sustainable food supply chain distribution system—A multi-objective approach

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Sustainable supply chain management is a topical area which is continuing to grow and evolve. Within supply chains, downstream distribution from producers to customers plays a significant role in the environmental performance of production supply chains. With consumer consciousness growing in the area of sustainable food supply, food distribution needs to embrace and adapt to improve its environmental performance, while still remaining economically competitive. With a particular focus on the dairy industry, a robust solution approach is presented for the design of a capacitated distribution network for a two-layer supply chain involved in the distribution of milk in Ireland. In particular the green multi-objective optimisation model minimises CO2 emissions from transportation and total costs in the distribution chain. These distribution channels are analysed to ensure the non-dominated solutions are distributed along the Pareto fronts. A multi-attribute decision-making approach, TOPSIS, has been used to rank the realistic feasible transportation routes resulting from the trade-offs between total costs and CO2 emissions. The refined realistic solution space allows the decision-makers to geographically locate the sustainable transportation routes. In addition to geographical mapping the decision maker is also presented with a number of alternative analysed scenarios which forcibly open closed distribution routes to build resiliency into the solution approach. In terms of model performance, three separate GA based optimisers have been evaluated and reported upon. In the case presented NSGA-II was found to outperform its counterparts of MOGA-II and HYBRID.
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paper_title: Improving sustainable supply chain management using a novel hierarchical grey-DEMATEL approach

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Abstract Sustainable supply chain management has been studied in the past. However, the previous studies lack proper justification for a multi-criteria decision-making structure of the hierarchical interrelationships in incomplete information. To fill this gap, this study proposes a hierarchical grey decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory method to identify and analyze criteria and alternatives in incomplete information. Traditionally, the decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory method does not address a hierarchical structure and involves incomplete information within its analytical method. However, the grey theory compensates for incomplete information. This study's purpose is to apply the proposed hierarchical structure to identify aspects of and criteria for supplier prioritization. This includes an original set of criteria for structuring the following: aspects as a sustainable plan, communities for sustainability, sustainable operational process control and sustainable certification and growth. The results present the recycle/reuse/reduce option as a tool to increase the material savings percentage, which is the top criterion for supplier selection. This study concluded that the hierarchical analytical method provides a strong basis for future academic and practitioner research.
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paper_title: A multi-objective model for multi-product multi-site aggregate production planning in a green supply chain: Considering collection and recycling centers

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Abstract The present study was designed to incorporate the profit and green principles in an aggregate production planning. It is difficult to ignore the key role of green principles in balancing environmental and economic performance for companies facing community, and competitive pressures. In this paper, a multi-objective multi-period multi-product multi-site aggregate production planning (APP) model is presented in a green supply chain considering a reverse logistic (RL) network. In the proposed model, products are scored in terms of environmental criteria such as recyclability, biodegradability, energy consumption and product risk, using analytical hierarchy process (AHP). Speaking in simple terms, the AHP concept is utilized to get one single indicator that describes environmental impact of various production alternatives. Some other green indicators including waste management, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions arising from production methods and transportation are embedded in the model. The limited number of potential collection and recycling centers can be opened in order to produce the second-class goods. The LP-metrics method is used to consider two conflicting objectives, i.e. minimizing total losses and maximizing total environmental scores of products, simultaneously. Further, the trade-off between objectives is demonstrated by a collection of Pareto-optimal solutions. The model shows how profit and green principles can be incorporated in an APP problem. Finally, the model validity is demonstrated by a numerical example. The sensitivity analysis is carried out for GHG emission level arising from production and transportation and industrial waste level to provide some useful managerial insights, then analysis of the cost and profit in collection and recycling system, is conducted to show its performance.
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paper_title: Evaluating the Drivers to Information and Communication Technology for Effective Sustainability Initiatives in Supply Chains

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Supply chain (SC) sustainability has become a global issue. To develop sustainability focused SC networks, the role of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) is of great significance. An effective information system and management can help not only in improving better customer service and in cost control, but also can assist planning to achieve the three pillars of sustainability (ecological, economic, and societal development), thereby enhancing business efficiency. This paper aims to identify and evaluate the drivers relevant to ICT for sustainability initiatives in SCs. The drivers are finalized through a literature survey and use of the Delphi technique. The finalized drivers are analyzed by a procedure using the fuzzy DEMATEL approach. The research findings suggest that “Government support systems and subsidies”, “Knowledge and awareness of ICT tools and techniques,” and “Information systems network design” drivers have the most significant influences in the implementation of ICT for incorporating sustainability in SCs. This work may help practitioners and researchers in strategic decision-making and in formulating effective plans for the implementation of ICT and for incorporating sustainable concepts in SCs.
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paper_title: A review of modeling approaches for sustainable supply chain management

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More than 300 papers have been published in the last 15years on the topic of green or sustainable (forward) supply chains. Looking at the research methodologies employed, only 36 papers apply quantitative models. This is in contrast to, for example, the neighboring field of reverse or closed-loop supply chains where several reviews on respective quantitative models have already been provided. The paper summarizes research on quantitative models for forward supply chains and thereby contributes to the further substantiation of the field. While different kinds of models are applied, it is evident that the social side of sustainability is not taken into account. On the environmental side, life-cycle assessment based approaches and impact criteria clearly dominate. On the modeling side there are three dominant approaches: equilibrium models, multi-criteria decision making and analytical hierarchy process. There has been only limited empirical research so far. The paper ends with suggestions for future research.
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paper_title: A new fuzzy multi-criteria framework for measuring sustainability performance of a supply chain

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Sustainable supply chain performance measurement is aimed at addressing environmental, social and economic aspects of sustainable supply chain management. It can be argued that it is not easy to reduce all dimensions of sustainable supply chain to a single unit. Then, the issue is that all valuations should somehow be reducible to a single one-dimensional standard. Multi-criteria evaluation introduces a framework to remedy this issue. As a consequence, multi-criteria evaluation seems to supply a proper and adequate assessment framework for sustainable supply chain assessment. In this study, a multi-criteria framework based on fuzzy entropy and fuzzy multi-attribute utility (FMAUT) is proposed in order to evaluate and compare the company performances in terms of sustainable supply chain. However, note that reducing all aspects of sustainable supply chain to a single unit using a multi-criteria framework may not be sufficient to satisfy all the needs of decision makers although it is used to evaluate sustainability performance of supply chains with respect to three aspects. Therefore, in this research, an alert management system is also developed to satisfy further requirements of users. The proposed frameworks are tested using data obtained from one of the middle sized Turkish grocery retailers.
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paper_title: A supplier selection life cycle approach integrating traditional and environmental criteria using the best worst method

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Abstract Supplier selection is a strategic decision that significantly influences a firm's competitive advantage. The importance of this decision is amplified when a firm seeks new markets and potentially a new supplier base. Recognizing the importance of these decisions, an innovative three-phase supplier selection methodology including pre-selection, selection, and aggregation is proposed. Conjunctive screening is used for pre-selection, the best worst method (BWM), a novel multiple criteria decision-making method is introduced for the selection phase. Material price and annual quantity are integrated with the decision at the aggregation phase. Qualitative, quantitative, traditional business, and environmental criteria are incorporated. The proposed methodology is applied within a food supply chain context, the edible oils industry. In this illustration the focal organization faces a global entry decision in a new international market. An extensive search is completed to identify the potential suppliers. Through initial screening a sub-set of qualified suppliers is identified. BWM is then used to find the best suppliers from among the qualified suppliers. Eventually the significance of the supplies in the aggregation phase is determined. The outcome is a relatively meaningful ranking of suppliers. The paper provides insights into the methodology, decision, and managerial implications. Study and model limitations, along with future research directions are described.
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paper_title: Novel Integrated Multi-Criteria Model for Supplier Selection: Case Study Construction Company

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Supply chain presents a very complex field involving a large number of participants. The aim of the complete supply chain is finding an optimum from the aspect of all participants, which is a rather complex task. In order to ensure optimum satisfaction for all participants, it is necessary that the beginning phase consists of correct evaluations and supplier selection. In this study, the supplier selection was performed in the construction company, on the basis of a new approach in the field of multi-criteria model. Weight coefficients were obtained by DEMATEL (Decision Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory) method, based on the rough numbers. Evaluation and the supplier selection were made on the basis of a new Rough EDAS (Evaluation based on Distance from Average Solution) method, which presents one of the latest methods in this field. In order to determine the stability of the model and the applicability of the proposed Rough EDAS method, an extension of the COPRAS and MULTIMOORA method by rough numbers was also performed in this study, and the findings of the comparative analysis were presented. Besides the new approaches based on the extension by rough numbers, the results are also compared with the Rough MABAC (MultiAttributive Border Approximation area Comparison) and Rough MAIRCA (MultiAttributive Ideal-Real Comparative Analysis). In addition, in the sensitivity analysis, 18 different scenarios were formed, the ones in which criteria change their original values. At the end of the sensitivity analysis, SCC (Spearman Correlation Coefficient) of the obtained ranges was carried out, confirming the applicability of the proposed approaches.
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paper_title: Low Carbon Supplier Selection in the Hotel Industry

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This study presents a model for evaluating the carbon and energy management performance of suppliers by using multiple-criteria decision-making (MCDM). By conducting a literature review and gathering expert opinions, 10 criteria on carbon and energy performance were identified to evaluate low carbon suppliers using the Fuzzy Delphi Method (FDM). Subsequently, the decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) method was used to determine the importance of evaluation criteria in selecting suppliers and the causal relationships between them. The DEMATEL-based analytic network process (DANP) and VlseKriterijumska Optimizacija I Kompromisno Resenje (VIKOR) were adopted to evaluate the weights and performances of suppliers and to obtain a solution under each evaluation criterion. An illustrative example of a hotel company was presented to demonstrate how to select a low carbon supplier according to carbon and energy management. The proposed hybrid model can help firms become effective in facilitating low carbon supply chains in hotels.
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paper_title: An integrated framework for sustainable supplier selection and evaluation in supply chains

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Due to increased customer knowledge and ecological pressures from markets and various stakeholders, business organizations have emphasized the importance of greening and sustainability in their supply chain through supplier selection. Therefore, a systematic and sustainability-focused evaluation system for supplier selection is needed from an organizational supply chain perspective. This work proposes a framework to evaluate sustainable supplier selection by using an integrated Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP), ViseKriterijumska Optimizacija I Kompromisno Resenje (VIKOR), a multi-criteria optimization and compromise solution approach. Initially, 22 sustainable supplier selection criteria and three dimensions of criteria (economic, environmental, and social) have been identified through literature and experts' opinions. A real world example of an automobile company in India is discussed to demonstrate the proposed framework applicability. According to the findings, ‘Environmental costs,’ ‘Quality of product,’ ‘Price of product,’ ‘Occupational health and safety systems,’ and ‘Environmental competencies’ have been ranked as the top five sustainable supplier selection criteria. In addition, out of the five sustainable supplier's alternatives, supplier number ‘three’ got the highest rank. The work presented in this paper may help managers and business professionals not only to distinguish the important supplier selection criteria but also to evaluate the most efficient supplier for sustainability in supply chain, while remaining competitive in the market. Sensitivity analysis is also conducted to test the proposed framework robustness.
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paper_title: Operations and inspection Cost minimization for a reverse supply chain

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Reverse supply chain is a process dealing with the backward flows of used/damaged products or materials. Reverse supply chain includes activities such as collection, inspection, reprocess, disposal and redistribution. A well-organized reverse supply chain can provide important advantages such as economic and environmental ones. In this study, we propose a configuration in which quality assurance is a substantial operation to be fulfilled in the reverse chain so that to minimize the total costs of the reverse supply chain. A mathematical model is formulated for product return in reverse supply chain considering quality assurance. We consider a multilayer, multi-product for the model. Control charts with exponentially weighted moving average (EWMA) statistics (mean and variance) are used to jointly monitor the mean and variance of a process. An EWMA cost minimization model is presented to design the joint control scheme based on performance criteria. The main objective of the paper is minimizing the total costs of reverse supply chain with respect to inspection.
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paper_title: Sustainable supplier selection and order lot-sizing: An integrated multi-objective decision-making process

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Within supply chains activities, selecting appropriate suppliers based on the sustainability criteria (economic, environmental and social) can help companies move toward sustainable development. Although several studies have recently been accomplished to incorporate sustainability criteria into supplier selection problem, much less attention has been devoted to developing a comprehensive mathematical model that allocates the optimal quantities of orders to suppliers considering lot-sizing problems. In this research, we propose an integrated approach of rule-based weighted fuzzy method, fuzzy analytical hierarchy process and multi-objective mathematical programming for sustainable supplier selection and order allocation combined with multi-period multi-product lot-sizing problem. The mathematical programming model consists of four objective functions which are minimising total cost, maximising total social score, maximising total environmental score and maximising total economic qualitative score. The prop...
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paper_title: A four-phase AHP–QFD approach for supplier assessment: a sustainability perspective

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Recently, companies have become increasingly aware of the need to evaluate suppliers from a sustainability perspective. Introducing the triple bottom line (economic, social, and environmental performance) into supplier assessment and selection decisions embeds a new set of trade-offs, complicating the decision-making process. Although many tools have been developed to help purchasing managers make more effective decisions, decision support tools, and methodologies which integrate sustainability (triple bottom line) into supplier assessment and selection are still sparse in the literature. Moreover, most approaches have not taken into consideration the impact of business objectives and requirements of company stakeholders on the supplier evaluation criteria. To help advance this area of research and further integrate sustainability into the supplier selection modelling area, we develop an integrated analytical approach, combining Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) with Quality Function Deployment (QFD), to...
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paper_title: Sustainable third-party reverse logistic provider selection with fuzzy SWARA and fuzzy MOORA in plastic industry

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Third-party logistic provider (3PLP) companies play a major role in supply chain management (SCM) by carrying out specialized functions—namely, integrated operation, warehousing, and transportation services. Taking sustainability issues into consideration makes reverse logistics even more significant. In this paper, a combination of sustainability and risk factors was considered for third-party reverse logistic provider (3PRLP) evaluation. Initially, fuzzy step-wise weight assessment ratio analysis (Fuzzy SWARA) was applied for weighing the evaluation criteria; then, Fuzzy multi-objective optimization on the basis of ratio analysis (Fuzzy MOORA) was utilized for ranking the sustainable third-party reverse logistic providers in the plastic industry in the second step. Findings highlight that quality, recycling, health, and safety were the most important criteria in economic, environmental, and social dimensions of sustainability, respectively. Also, operational risk was found to have the highest weight among risk factors.
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paper_title: Using AHP and Dempster-Shafer theory for evaluating sustainable transport solutions

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In this paper, we present a hybrid approach based on the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) and Dempster-Shafer theory for evaluating the impact of environment-friendly transport measures like mode sharing, multi-modal transport solutions, intelligent transport solutions, etc. on city sustainability. The proposed approach is a mix of curiosity driven and client-driven research in the sense that the problem is guided by the client for practical applicability and the solution is motivated by technical or scientific contribution to research. The solution approach comprises multiple steps. In the first step, we identify the criteria for sustainability evaluation. AHP is used to structure and rate the criteria. In the second step, we test the transportation measure for sustainability and collect data from multiple information sources like human experts, questionnaire, sensors, models, etc on the selected criteria for evaluation purposes. The information from multiple data sources is combined using Dempster-Shafer theory. In the third step, we estimate the state of sustainability of the city using a Transport Sustainability Index (TSI). The Transport Sustainability Index is computed at two stages: pre- and post-test stages of the transportation measure. In the fourth step, we assess the impacts of the transportation measure on the city sustainability by observing the difference between the values at the pre- and the post-test stages. If an increase in the value of TSI is observed, then the impact of the transportation measure on city sustainability is judged as positive and it is recommended for adoption. We illustrate our approach by application on the transportation measure ''Carsharing''.
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paper_title: A hybrid approach integrating Affinity Diagram, AHP and fuzzy TOPSIS for sustainable city logistics planning

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Abstract City logistics initiatives are steps taken by municipal administrations to ameliorate the condition of goods transport in cities and reduce their negative impacts on city residents and their environment. Examples of city logistics initiatives are urban distribution centers, congestion pricing, delivery timing and access restrictions. In this paper, we present a hybrid approach based on Affinity Diagram, AHP and fuzzy TOPSIS for evaluating city logistics initiatives. Four initiatives namely vehicle sizing restrictions, congestion charging schemes, urban distribution center and access timing restrictions are considered. The proposed approach consists of four steps. The first step involves identification of criteria for assessing performance of city logistics initiatives using Affinity Diagram. The results are four categories of criteria namely technical, social, economical and environmental. In step 2, a decision making committee comprising of representatives of city logistics stakeholders is formed. These stakeholders are shippers, receivers, transport operators, end consumers and public administrators. The committee members weight the selected criteria using AHP. In step 3, the decision makers provide linguistic ratings to the alternatives (city logistics initiatives) to assess their performance against the selected criteria. These linguistic ratings are then aggregated using fuzzy TOPSIS to generate an overall performance score for each alternative. The alternative with the highest score is finally chosen as most suitable city logistics initiative for improving city sustainability. In the fourth step, we perform sensitivity analysis to evaluate the influence of criteria weights on the selection of the best alternative. The proposed approach is novel and can be practically applied for selecting sustainable city logistics initiatives for cities. Another advantage is its ability to generate solutions under limited quantitative information. An empirical application of the proposed approach is provided.
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paper_title: Multiple criteria decision-making techniques in transportation systems: a systematic review of the state of the art literature

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AbstractThe main goal of this review paper is to provide a systematic review of Multiple Criteria Decision-Making (MCDM) techniques in regard to transportation systems problems. This study reviewed a total of 89 papers, published from 1993 to 2015, from 39 high-ranking journals; most of which were related to transportation science and were extracted from the Web of Science and Scopus databases. Papers were classified into 10 main application areas and nine transport infrastructure. Furthermore, papers were categorized based on the author(s) and year, name of the journal in which they were published, technique and approach, author(s) nationality, application area and scope, study purpose, gap and research problem and results and outcome. The results of this study indicated that more papers on MCDM in 2013 than in any other year. AHP and Fuzzy-AHP methods in the individual methods and hybrid MCDM and fuzzy MCDM in the integrated methods were ranked as the first and second methods in use, respectively. The T...
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paper_title: One solution for cross-country transport-sustainability evaluation using a modified ELECTRE method

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Transport is an economic activity having complex interactions with the environment, and since the concept of sustainable development was identified as a global priority, there has been a growing interest in assessing the performance of transport systems with respect to sustainability issues. Although the Ecological Economics literature deals extensively with the strategy of sustainable development, far less attention has been paid to its application in the transport sector as of yet. The main purpose of this study was to introduce the noncompensatory analytical tool, which integrates multidimensional conditions present in the sustainability concept. The focus was on the potential of the outranking approach, namely the ELECTRE (ELimination Et Choix Traduisant la REalite; Elimination And Choice Corresponding to Reality) method for the evaluation of transport sustainability at the macro level, using the indicator set as a starting point. The method has been applied to selected European countries within a case study. As a result, according to transport-sustainability issues, pairwise relations between countries have been established. Based on these relations, and according to the chosen criteria, a set of countries with a better level of performance was selected as the core subset of the relation graph. To control and avoid the appearance of indifference relations between countries, as well as to reduce the subjectivity of decision makers, we propose a modification of ELECTRE I. Finally, we apply both the original and the modified methods, together with the sensitivity analysis. The results are presented in a convenient graph form and then compared.
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paper_title: Intermodal Transport Terminal Location Selection Using a Novel Hybrid MCDM Model

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Intermodal Transport (IT) allows savings in energy, time and costs, improves the quality of services and supports sustainable development of the transport system. In order to make IT more competitive it is necessary to support the development of intermodal transport terminal (ITT), whereby it is very important to make adequate decision on its location. This paper proposes a framework for the selection of the ITT location which would be most appropriate for the various stakeholders (investors, users, administration and residents). They often have conflicting goals and interests, so it is necessary to define a large number of criteria for the evaluation. A novel hybrid MCDM model that combines fuzzy Delphi, fuzzy Delphi based fuzzy ANP (fuzzy DANP) and fuzzy Delphi based fuzzy Visekriterijumska Optimizacija i kompromisno Resenje (fuzzy DVIKOR) methods is developed in this paper with the aim of providing support to decision makers. The model is developed in the fuzzy environment in order to overcome the ambiguity and uncertainty of the decision makers’ evaluations of the criteria, sub-criteria and alternatives. The validity and applicability of the model is demonstrated by successfully resolving the problem of selecting the location of the ITT in the City of Belgrade.
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paper_title: Evaluating Plan Alternatives for Transportation System Sustainability: Atlanta Metropolitan Region

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A growing number of agencies have begun to define ‘‘sustainability’’ for transportation systems and are attempting to incorporate the concept into the regional transportation planning process. Still, very few metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs) capture the comprehensive impact of transportation system and land use changes on the economy, environment, and social quality of life, which are commonly considered the essential three dimensions of sustainable transportation systems. This paper demonstrates an application of the Multiple Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) approach for evaluating selected transportation and land use plans in the Atlanta region using multiple sustainability parameters. A composite sustainability index is introduced as a decision support tool for transportation policymaking, where the sustainability index considers multidimensional conflicting criteria in the transportation planning process. The proposed framework should help decision-makers with incorporating sustainability considerations into transportation planning as well as identifying the most sustainable (or least unsustainable) plan for predetermined objectives.
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paper_title: Strategic Transport Management Models—The Case Study of an Oil Industry

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The awareness of the need to preserve the environment and establish sustainable development evolved as the result of the development of the world economy and society. Transport plays a very important role in this process. It is recognized as one of the main factors in sustainable development strategy. Strategic transport management model is presented in this paper. It represents a comprehensive and complete strategic management process, beginning from the strategic analysis, then strategy formulation and its implementation to strategic control. What makes this model specific is the development of its phases using contemporary strategic management methods and MCDM (Multicriteria Decision Making) techniques. In this way, subjectivity is avoided and the decision-making process is impartial. To formulate sustainable transport strategy, the authors use a SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) and the fuzzy Delphi method as the basis to evaluate impact factors. Fuzzy SWOT analysis is applied to formulate strategic options and the selection of optimal option is realized through DEMATEL (Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory)-based ANP (Analytic Network Process). The strategic transport management model is applied to Serbian Oil Industry (NIS) as a company engaged in the production and transport of oil and oil derivatives. The results presented in this paper have shown that this model can be successfully implemented in profit organizations. It also can be used to formulate strategies on the basis of scientific principles and create conditions for successful sustainable strategies implementation.
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paper_title: Development of a multi-criteria assessment model for ranking of renewable and non-renewable transportation fuel vehicles

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Several factors, including economical, environmental, and social factors, are involved in selection of the best fuel-based vehicles for road transportation. This leads to a multi-criteria selection problem for multi-alternatives. In this study, a multi-criteria assessment model was developed to rank different road transportation fuel-based vehicles (both renewable and non-renewable) using a method called Preference Ranking Organization Method for Enrichment and Evaluations (PROMETHEE). This method combines qualitative and quantitative criteria to rank various alternatives. In this study, vehicles based on gasoline, gasoline–electric (hybrid), E85 ethanol, diesel, B100 biodiesel, and compressed natural gas (CNG) were considered as alternatives. These alternatives were ranked based on five criteria: vehicle cost, fuel cost, distance between refueling stations, number of vehicle options available to the consumer, and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions per unit distance traveled. In addition, sensitivity analyses were performed to study the impact of changes in various parameters on final ranking. Two base cases and several alternative scenarios were evaluated. In the base case scenario with higher weight on economical parameters, gasoline-based vehicle was ranked higher than other vehicles. In the base case scenario with higher weight on environmental parameters, hybrid vehicle was ranked first followed by biodiesel-based vehicle.
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paper_title: Integration of Sustainability Issues in Strategic Transportation Planning: A Multi-criteria Model for the Assessment of Transport Infrastructure Plans

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Past decades have witnessed significant advances in transportation planning methodologies, facilitated by the development of computational algorithms, technologies, and spatial modeling tools such as geographical information systems (GIS) and decision support systems (DSS). However, at strategic planning levels, a commonly accepted assessment model integrating the sustainability paradigm is still lacking. This work presents a novel contribution to this research line, with the proposal of a multi-criteria assessment model embedded in a GIS. The criteria have been designed covering the 3 dimensions of sustainability: economic, social, and environmental. This assessment model constitutes an interdisciplinary approach tightly linking network analysis, spatial geography, regional economic, and environmental issues in a GIS-based computer framework. The validity of the methodology is tested with its application in a case study: the extension of the high speed rail network included in the Spanish Transport and Infrastructure Plan 2005-2020.
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paper_title: Location selection of city logistics centers under sustainability

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City Logistics Centers (CLC) are an important part of the modern urban logistics system, and the selection of the location of a CLC has become a key problem in logistics and supply chain management. Integrating the economic, environmental, and social dimensions of sustainable development, this paper presents a new evaluation system for the location selection of a CLC from a sustainability perspective. A fuzzy multi-attribute group decision making (FMAGDM) technique based on a linguistic 2-tuple is used to evaluate potential alternative CLC locations. In this method, the linguistic evaluation values of all the evaluation criteria are transformed into linguistic 2-tuples. A new 2-tuple hybrid ordered weighted averaging (THOWA) operator is presented to aggregate the overall evaluation values of all experts into a collective evaluation value for each alternative, which is then used to rank and select alternative CLC locations. An application example is provided to validate the method developed and to highlight the implementation, practicality, and effectiveness by comparing with the fuzzy Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) method.
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paper_title: Application of fuzzy TOPSIS in evaluating sustainable transportation systems

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Sustainable transportation systems are the need of modern times. There has been an unexpected growth in the number of transportation activities over years and the trend is expected to continue in the coming years. This has obviously associated environmental costs like air pollution, noise, etc. which is degrading the quality of life in modern cities. To cope us this crisis, municipal administrations are investing in sustainable transportation systems that are not only efficient, robust and economical but also friendly towards environment. The challenge before the transportation decision makers is how to evaluate and select such sustainable transportation systems. In this paper, we present a multicriteria decision making approach for selecting sustainability transportation systems under partial or incomplete information (uncertainty). The proposed approach comprises of three steps. In step 1, we identify the criteria for sustainability assessment of transportation. In step 2, experts provide linguistic ratings to the potential alternatives against the selected criteria. Fuzzy TOPSIS is used to generate aggregate scores for sustainability assessment and selection of best alternative. In step 3, sensitivity analysis is performed to determine the influence of criteria weights on the decision making process. A numerical illustration is provided to demonstrate the applicability of the approach. The strength of the proposed work is its practical applicability and the ability to generate good quality solutions under uncertainty.
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paper_title: Proposed framework for sustainability screening of urban transport projects in developing countries: A case study of Accra, Ghana

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This paper documents a framework suggested for screening urban transport projects in developing countries to reflect local issues relevant to sustainability. The framework is based on the integration of indigenous and scientific knowledge to reflect the sustainability of candidate projects. This is achieved through a participatory approach to integrate inputs from system users and providers to produce a term defined as the Localized Sustainability Score (LSS). The LSS of the projects are then used to produce a relative ranking of potential projects, for use as a decision support for project screening and selection. Proof-of-concept development of the proposed LSS framework is presented via a preliminary case study in Accra–Ghana and the results indicate that the framework adequately represented local sustainable transport needs, priorities and perceptions. The LSS determined for some selected projects maintained the original relative rankings that were already derived using conventional methods. The LSS also has the added advantage of evaluating projects of different scales, which were not easy to evaluate together by conventional methods.
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paper_title: An analytic hierarchy process model to evaluate road section design

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AbstractThe traffic system is as essential to modern society as the circulatory system to the human body. Road section design is therefore a key infrastructure activity for economic development, and multi-criteria decision-making can provide an interdisciplinary approach that moves beyond purely economic optimisation to include technological, technical and ecological factors. The present work describes applying the multi-criteria Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) method to evaluate road section design in an urban environment through differential weighting of various criteria and sub-criteria. The model is tested on a stretch of National Road D8 in the municipality of Podstrana near the city of Split (Croatia), which serves as an important route for commuters and tourists. The proposed AHP model provided reliable results that were robust to sensitivity analysis. This approach involving differential criterion weighting may prove useful for evaluating and selecting appropriate road section designs for this ...
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paper_title: Multi‐criteria decision making support tool for freight integrators: Selecting the most sustainable alternative

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Sustainable development has turned into a daily concept by now. Similarly, sustainable transport also appears increasingly oft en, primarily in transport policy and strategic plans. However, it would be equally important if we could apply this aspect for certain activities such as haulage and forwarding that are a part of transport. Today, forwarders select an optimal alternative concerning only the criteria related to the economic effectiveness of the transport task. In many cases, shippers are not aware neither of the concept of sustainable transport nor of harmful effects they generate. Hence, although there is a concept of ‘freight integrator’, only very few are able to meet the requirements laid down for it. No widespread method has been developed yet to compare transportation options. A similar situation can be faced discussing a traditional, purely economic approach and a theoretical modern aspect that would be in accordance with the principles of sustainable transport. The model that was developed at the Department of Aircraft and Ships of Budapest University of Technology and Economics was designed specifically to compare various options in terms of sustainability. The indicators as the elements of decision-making criteria applied in the model were derived from the indicators used for assessing the transport sector but modified according to the requirements of the decisionmaking task for a freight integrator. Finally, such sustainable performance index of certain alternatives is determined by two fundamentally different aggregation methods as ‘fineness index’. This article presents the model structure and application using a concrete example.
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paper_title: A new fuzzy additive ratio assessment method (ARAS‐F). Case study: The analysis of fuzzy multiple criteria in order to select the logistic centers location

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Abstract The main approaches which are applied to select the logistic center are the methods of gravity center, analytic hierarchy process, similarity to ideal solution, fuzzy ranking, assessment, etc. Multiple Criteria Decision‐Making (MCDM) combines analytical and inductive knowledge, describing a domain problem, which can be fuzzy and/or incomplete. The fuzzy MCDM (FMCDM) approach can explain the problem more appropriately. The purpose of the paper is to select the most suitable site for logistic centre among a set of alternatives, to help the stakeholders with the performance evaluation in an uncertain environment, where the subjectivity and vagueness of criteria are described by triangular fuzzy numbers. The paper presents a newly‐developed ARAS‐F method to solve different problems in transport, construction, economics, technology and sustainable development.
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paper_title: New hybrid multi-criteria decision-making DEMATEL-MAIRCA model: sustainable selection of a location for the development of multimodal logistics centre

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AbstractThe paper describes the application of a new multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) model, MultiAtributive Ideal-Real Comparative Analysis (MAIRCA), used to select a location for the development of a multimodal logistics centre by the Danube River. The MAIRCA method is based on the comparison of theoretical and empirical alternative ratings. Relying on theoretical and empirical ratings the gap (distance) between the empirical and ideal alternative is defined. To determine the weight coefficients of the criteria, the DEMATEL method was applied. In this paper, through a sensitivity analysis, the results of MAIRCA and other MCDM methods – MOORA, TOPSIS, ELECTRE, COPRAS and PROMETHEE – were compared. The analysis showed that a smaller or bigger instability in alternative rankings appears in MOORA, TOPSIS, ELECTRE and COPRAS. On the other hand, the analysis showed that MAIRCA and PROMETHEE offer consistent solutions and have a stable and well-structured analytical framework for ranking the alternatives....
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paper_title: An integrated MCDM approach considering demands-matching for reverse logistics

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Abstract Reverse logistics (RL) has been regarded as a key driving force for remanufacturing. However, there are great uncertainties in terms of quality and quantity of used components for RL. There are also complexities in suppliers and operations. These make decision-making of RL very complex. In order to identify the best collection mode for used components, a demand-matching oriented Multiple Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) method is established. In this method, the damage level and remaining service life are firstly incorporated into the evaluation criteria of reuse modes, then a hybrid method (AHP-EW) that integrates Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and Entropy Weight (EW) method is applied to derive criteria weights and the grey Multi-Attributive Border Approximation Area Comparison (MABAC) is adopted to rank the collection modes. Finally, sensitivity analysis is implemented to test the stability of the proposed method, and a demands-matching method is proposed to validate and evaluate the feasibility of the optimal alternative. The collection of used pressurizers is taken as case study to validate the applicability of the proposed model. The results showed the effectiveness of the proposed method in MCDM of RL.
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paper_title: Using a Novel Grey DANP Model to Identify Interactions between Manufacturing and Logistics Industries in China

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As a crucial part of producer services, the logistics industry is highly dependent on the manufacturing industry. In general, the interactive development of the logistics and manufacturing industries is essential. Due to the existence of a certain degree of interdependence between any two factors, interaction between the two industries has produced a basis for measurement; identifying the key factors affecting the interaction between the manufacturing and logistics industries is a kind of decision problem in the field of multiple criteria decision making (MCDM). A hybrid MCDM method, DEMATEL-based ANP (DANP) is appropriate to solve this problem. However, DANP uses a direct influence matrix, which involves pairwise comparisons that may be more or less influenced by the respondents. Therefore, we propose a decision model, Grey DANP, which can automatically generate the direct influence matrix. Statistical data for the logistics and manufacturing industries in the China Statistical Yearbook (2006–2015) were used to identify the key factors for interaction between these two industries. The results showed that the key logistics criteria for interaction development are the total number of employees in the transport business, the volume of goods, and the total length of routes. The key manufacturing criteria for interaction development are the gross domestic product and the value added. Therefore, stakeholders should increase the number of employees in the transport industry and freight volumes. Also, the investment in infrastructure should be increased.
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paper_title: ELASTIC – A methodological framework for identifying and selecting sustainable transport indicators

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There is significant reliance on sustainable transport indicators for monitoring and reporting progress towards sustainable transport. The selection of appropriate sustainability indicators presents a number of challenges however, not least because of the vast number of potential indicators available. To help address these challenges, this paper presents the Evaluative and Logical Approach to Sustainable Transport Indicator Compilation (ELASTIC) – a framework for identifying and selecting a small subset of sustainable transport indicators. ELASTIC is demonstrated with an application to the English Regions, UK.
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paper_title: Incorporating sustainability assessment in transportation planning: an urban transportation vehicle-based approach

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ABSTRACTEnvironmental assessments are on the critical path for the development of land, infrastructure and transportation systems. These assessments are based on planning methods which, in turn, are subject to continuous enhancement. The substantial impacts of transportation on environment, society and economy strongly urge the incorporation of sustainability into transportation planning. Two major developments that enhance transportation sustainability are new fuels and vehicle power systems. Traditional planning ignores technology including the large differences among conventional, hybrid and alternative fuel vehicles and buses. The introduction of alternative fuel vehicles is likely to change the traditional transportation planning process because different characteristics need to be taken into account. In this study a sustainability framework is developed that enables assessment of transportation vehicle characteristics. Identified indicators are grouped in five sustainability dimensions (Environment,...
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paper_title: Setting the weights of sustainability criteria for the appraisal of transport projects

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Although the Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) has made progress towards appraising and measuring the performance of smart and sustainable transport projects, it still has important issues that need to be addressed such as the problem associated with incomparable quantities, the inherent subjective qualitative assessment, the complexity of identifying impacts to be included and its measurement method, and the corresponding weights. The issue of trading-off different sustainability criteria is the main unresolved matter. This problem may lead to lack of accuracy in the decision making process. This paper presents a new methodology to set the weights of the sustainability criteria used in the MCDA in order to reduce subjectivity and imprecision. We suggest eliciting criteria weights based on both expert preferences and the importance that the sustainability criteria have in the geographical and social context where the project is developed. This novel methodology is applied to a real case study to quantify sustainable practices associated with the design and construction of a new roadway in Spain. The outcome demonstrates that the approach to the weighting problem has significance and general application in a multi-criteria evaluation process.
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paper_title: Prioritizing sustainable electricity production technologies: MCDM approach

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Economic, technological, social, and political developments stressed the need for shifts in energy-mix. Therefore it is important to provide a rationale for sustainable decision making in energy policy. The aim of this paper is to develop the multi-criteria decision support framework for choosing the most sustainable electricity production technologies. Given selection of sustainable energy sources involves many conflicting criteria, multi-criteria decision methods MULTIMOORA and TOPSIS were employed for the analysis. The indicator system covering different approaches of sustainability was established. The analysis proved that the future energy policy should be oriented towards the sustainable energy technologies, namely water and solar thermal ones. It is the proposed multi-criteria assessment framework that can constitute a basis for further sub-regional optimization of sustainable energy policy.
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paper_title: An analytical method for the measurement of energy system sustainability in urban areas

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Assessing the sustainability of urban energy systems and forecasting their development are important topics that have been the focus of recent research. In this paper, an approach for the measurement the sustainability of an urban energy system is introduced. The approach is based on prediction of the future energy needs within the consuming sectors of a city by specification of energy system development scenarios and validation of the scenarios by a multi-criteria decision method. Prediction of energy needs for the area of the city using the simulation model, model for analysis of the energy demands (MAED) is done. Finish the last level of aggregation, using the method of multi-criteria analysis, is getting the General Index of Sustainability (GIS), which shows a measure of the validity or viability, or quality of the investigated scenarios. In this way, the mathematical and graphical made a synthesis of all the indicators that are relevant to sustainable development. The accuracy in determining the mean of the GIS is checked by calculating the standard deviation. Also, a measure of reliability of the preference when watching a few consecutive scenarios was performed. The defined scenarios take into account the utilization of different energy sources, the exploitation of existing energy plants and infrastructure, and the building of new plants. The sustainability criteria are described by a unique set of economic, social and ecological indicators. The new approach was used to forecast the development of sustainable energy system in Belgrade, Serbia.
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paper_title: National Options for a Sustainable Nuclear Energy System: MCDM Evaluation Using an Improved Integrated Weighting Approach

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While the prospects look bright for nuclear energy development in China, no consensus about an optimum transitional path towards sustainability of the nuclear fuel cycle has been achieved. Herein, we present a preliminary study of decision making for China’s future nuclear energy systems, combined with a dynamic analysis model. In terms of sustainability assessment based on environmental, economic, and social considerations, we compared and ranked the four candidate options of nuclear fuel cycles combined with an integrated evaluation analysis using the Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) method. An improved integrated weighting method was first applied in the nuclear fuel cycle evaluation study. This method synthesizes diverse subjective/objective weighting methods to evaluate conflicting criteria among the competing decision makers at different levels of expertise and experience. The results suggest that the fuel cycle option of direct recycling of spent fuel through fast reactors is the most competitive candidate, while the fuel cycle option of direct disposal of all spent fuel without recycling is the least attractive for China, from a sustainability perspective. In summary, this study provided a well-informed decision-making tool to support the development of national nuclear energy strategies.
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paper_title: A Spatial Decision Support System Framework for the Evaluation of Biomass Energy Production Locations: Case Study in the Regional Unit of Drama, Greece

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Renewable Energy Sources are expected to play a very important role in energy production in the following years. They constitute an energy production methodology which, if properly enabled, can ensure energy sufficiency as well as the protection of the environment. Energy production from biomass in particular is a very common method, which exploits a variety of resources (wood and wood waste, agricultural crops and their by-products after cultivation, animal wastes, Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) and food processing wastes) for the production of energy. This paper presents a Spatial Decision Support System, which enables managers to locate the most suitable areas for biomass power plant installation. For doing this, fuzzy logic and fuzzy membership functions are used for the creation of criteria layers and suitability maps. In this paper, we use a Multicriteria Decision Analysis methodology (Analytical Hierarchy Process) combined with fuzzy system elements for the determination of the weight coefficients of the participating criteria. Then, based on the combination of fuzzy logic and theAnalytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), a final proposal is created thatdivides the area into four categories regarding their suitability forsupporting a biomass energy production power plant. For the two optimal locations, the biomass is also calculated.The framework is applied to theRegional Unit of Drama, which is situated in Northern Greece and is very well known for the area’s forest and agricultural production.
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paper_title: A novel integrated decision-making approach for the evaluation and selection of renewable energy technologies

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The decision-making in energy sector involves finding a set of energy sources and conversion devices to meet the energy demands in an optimal way. Making an energy planning decision involves the balancing of diverse ecological, social, technical and economic aspects across space and time. Usually, technical and environmental aspects are represented in the form of multiple criteria and indicators that are often expressed as conflicting objectives. In order to attain higher efficiency in the implementation of renewable energy (RE) systems, the developers and investors have to deploy multi-criteria decision-making techniques. In this paper, a novel hybrid Decision Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory and analytic network process (DEMATEL-ANP) model is proposed in order to stress the importance of the evaluation criteria when selecting alternative REs and the causal relationships between the criteria. Finally, complex proportional assessment and weighted aggregated sum product assessment methods are used to assess the performances of the REs with respect to different evaluating criteria. An illustrative example from Costs assessment of sustainable energy systems (CASES) project, financed by European Commission Framework 6 programme (EU FM 6) for EU member states is presented in order to demonstrate the application feasibility of the proposed model for the comparative assessment and ranking of RE technologies. Sensitivity analysis, result validation and critical outcomes are provided as well to offer guidelines for the policy makers in the selection of the best alternative RE with the maximum effectiveness.
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paper_title: Evaluation of renewable power sources using a fuzzy MCDM based on cumulative prospect theory: A case in China

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Abstract Under the global implementation of low-carbon economy, the development of renewable energy becomes an important way of energy saving and emission reduction. Multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) techniques are gaining popularity in renewable power sources (RPS) evaluation since this process involves many conflicting criteria. Classical MCDM techniques assume that decisions are conducted in a deterministic environment and decision-makers (DMs) are completely rational while facing with investment risks. However, these hypotheses are not supported in the RPS selection. Fortunately, fuzzy set theory enables to cope with vagueness of evaluations in decision-making process, and cumulative prospect theory can reflect the risk preference of DMs and describe the actual behavior of them. Therefore, in this paper, a fuzzy MCDM technique based on cumulative prospect theory is proposed for selecting the most appropriate RPS in China. A case study in China is carried out to illustrate the rationality and feasibility of the proposed method. The results show that the solar PV is determined to be the best one in China, but the optimal alternative is sensitive to the prospect parameters. This research provides insightful information for the public investors with different risk preferences to evaluate the RPS and select the most appropriate one under uncertain environment.
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paper_title: Comparing the sustainability of U.S. electricity options through multi-criteria decision analysis

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Sustainable energy decision-making requires comparing energy options across a wide range of economic, environmental, social and technical implications. However, such comparisons based on quantitative data are currently limited at the national level. This is the first comparison of 13 currently operational renewable and non-renewable options for new US electricity generation using multi-criteria decision analysis with quantitative input values (minimum, nominal, and maximum) for 8 sustainability criteria (levelized cost of energy, life cycle greenhouse gas and criteria air pollutant emissions, land and water use, accident-related fatalities, jobs, and annual capacity factor) and 10 representative decision-maker preference scenarios. Results across several preference scenarios indicate that biopower and geothermal (flash and binary) currently score highest in sustainability for the US. Other renewable energy technologies generally offer substantial sustainability improvements over fossil fuel or nuclear technologies, and nuclear is preferable to fossil fuels in most scenarios. The relatively low ranking of natural gas combined cycle in most preference scenarios should encourage caution in adopting NGCC as a “bridge” to renewables. Although NGCC ranks high under economic and technical preference scenarios, renewables actually rank higher in both scenarios (hydro – economic; geothermal and biopower – technical).
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paper_title: Evaluating clean energy alternatives for Jiangsu, China: An improved multi-criteria decision making method

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Promoting the utilization of clean energy has been identified as one potential solution to addressing environmental pollution and achieving sustainable development in many countries around the world. Evaluating clean energy alternatives includes a requirement to balance multiple conflict criteria, including technology, environment, economy and society, all of which are incommensurate and interdependent. Traditional MCDM (multi-criteria decision making) methods, such as the weighted average method, often fail to aggregate such criteria consistently. In this paper, an improved MCDM method based on fuzzy measure and integral is developed and applied to evaluate four primary clean energy options for Jiangsu Province, China. The results confirm that the preferred clean energy option for Jiangsu is solar photovoltaic, followed by wind, biomass and finally nuclear. A sensitivity analysis is also conducted to evaluate the values of clean energy resources for Jiangsu. The ordered weighted average method is also applied to compare the method mentioned above in our empirical study. The results show that the improved MCDM method provides higher discrimination between alternative clean energy alternatives.
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paper_title: Multi-Criteria Analysis of Electricity Generation Scenarios for Sustainable Energy Planning in Pakistan

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The now over a decade-long electricity crisis in Pakistan has adversely affected the socio-economic development of the country. This situation is mainly due to a lack of sustainable energy planning and policy formulation. In this context, energy models can be of great help but only a handful of such efforts have been undertaken in Pakistan. Two key shortcomings pertaining to energy models lead to their low utilization in developing countries. First, the models do not effectively make decisions, but rather provide a set of alternatives based on modeling parameters; and secondly, the complexity of these models is often poorly understood by the decision makers. As such, in this study, the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) methodology of Multi-Criteria Decision-Making (MCDM) has been used for the sustainability assessment of energy modeling results for long-term electricity planning. The four scenario alternatives developed in the energy modeling effort, Reference (REF), Renewable Energy Technologies (RET), Clean Coal Maximum (CCM) and Energy Efficiency and Conservation (EEC), have been ranked using the Expert Choice® tool based on the AHP methodology. The AHP decision support framework of this study revealed the EEC scenario as the most favorable electricity generation scenario followed by the REF, RET and CCM scenarios. Besides that, this study proposes policy recommendations to undertake integrated energy modeling and decision analysis for sustainable energy planning in Pakistan.
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paper_title: Location Selection for Wind Farms Using GIS Multi-Criteria Hybrid Model: An Approach Based on Fuzzy and Rough Numbers

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This paper presents spatial mathematical model in order to identify sites for the wind farms installment which can have significant support for the planners in the area of strategy and management of wind power use. The suggested model is based on combined use of Geographical Information Systems (GIS) with multi-criteria techniques of Best-Worst method (BWM) and MultiAttributive Ideal-Real Comparative Analysis (MAIRCA). Rough numbers and fuzzy logic are used to exploit uncertainty during data analysis in spatial mathematical model. The model is applied on the case study. Rough BWM model is used to determine weight coefficients of the criteria and rough MAIRCA method is used to rank separated sustainable locations. The implementation of MAIRCA method has shown that the location L3 is the most suitable for the wind farm in the area covered in the case study. Therefore, the suggested spatial mathematical model can be successfully used to identify the potential suitable sites for the wind farms in other areas with similar geographic conditions.
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paper_title: Optimal site selection of electric vehicle charging station by using fuzzy TOPSIS based on sustainability perspective

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Selecting the most sustainable site plays an important role in the life cycle of electric vehicle charging station (EVCS), which needs to consider some conflicting criteria. Different from the previous studies which mostly utilize programming (optimization) models, this paper employed a multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) method to consider some subjective but important criteria for EVCS site selection. To reflect the ambiguity and vagueness due to the subjective judgments of decision makers, fuzzy TOPSIS method was applied to select the optimal EVCS site. Based on academic literatures, feasibility research reports and expert opinions in different fields, the evaluation index system for EVCS site selection was built from sustainability perspective, which consists of environmental, economic and social criteria associated with a total of 11 sub-criteria. Then, the criteria performances of different alternatives and criteria weights were judged by five groups of expert panels in the fields of environment, economy, society, electric power system and transportation system. Finally, the EVCS site alternatives were ranked by employing fuzzy TOPSIS method. The result shows EVCS site A2 located at Changping district in Beijing obtains the highest ranking score and should be selected as the optimal site. Meanwhile, the environmental and social criteria are paid more attentions from decision makers than economic criteria. The sensitivity analysis results indicate the alternative A2 always secures its top ranking no matter how sub-criteria weights change. It is effective and robust to apply fuzzy TOPSIS method into EVCS site selection. This paper provides a new research perspective for site selection and also extends the application domains of fuzzy TOPSIS method.
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paper_title: Applicability of multicriteria decision aid to sustainable hydropower

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EU directives RESD (2001/77/EC) and WFD (2000/60/EC) can be considered as partially conflicting. Achieving a good qualitative and quantitative status of waters, what presumes “non-deterioration principle” of the existing ecological status in line with WFD, is conflicting with the construction of new hydropower plants that are promoting renewable energies, what is in line with RESD.
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paper_title: Energy project performance evaluation with sustainability perspective

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Energy is a means of economic development by raising living standards and reducing poverty. Electricity production is a vital process for households, industries and commercial activities. No two power plants are alike; they may vary in technology, size, cost, environmental aspects etc., so that evaluations shall be made on a project basis, rather than technologies. Evaluation of the best energy project among many alternatives is a complex problem which cannot be simplified to economic feasibility only, requiring investors to also consider environmental and social circumstances. This paper proposes a novel method with a sustainability perspective for better selecting concretely defined energy projects. This method is based on two multi-criteria decision making (‘MCDM’) techniques; AHP for determining the importance weights of evaluation criteria and VIKOR for ranking energy project alternatives. The work differentiates itself in its emphasis to analyze actual projects instead of generic energy technologies, its consideration of similar project scales, and the use of Group Decision Making (‘GDM’) for aggregating expert opinions. The applicability of the method is demonstrated on a case study from Turkey, where one thermal power and three renewable energy projects are compared and ranked analytically.
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paper_title: Sustainability assessment of electricity generation technologies using weighted multi-criteria decision analysis

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Solving the issue of environmental degradation due to the expansion of the World's energy demand requires a balanced approach. The aim of this paper is to comprehensively rank a large number of electricity generation technologies based on their compatibility with the sustainable development of the industry. The study is based on a set of 10 sustainability indicators which provide a life cycle analysis of the plants. The technologies are ranked using a weighted sum multi-attribute utility method. The indicator weights were established through a survey of 62 academics from the fields of energy and environmental science. Our results show that large hydroelectric projects are the most sustainable technology type, followed by small hydro, onshore wind and solar photovoltaic. We argue that political leaders should have a more structured and strategic approach in implementing sustainable energy policies and this type of research can provide arguments to support such decisions.
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paper_title: A Novel Approach for the Selection of Power-Generation Technology Using a Linguistic Neutrosophic CODAS Method: A Case Study in Libya

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Rapid increases in energy demand and international drive to reduce carbon emissions from fossil fuels have led many oil-rich countries to diversify their energy portfolio and resources. Libya is one of these countries, and it has recently become interested in utilizing its renewable-energy resources in order to reduce financial and energy dependency on oil reserves. This paper introduces an original multicriteria decision-making Pairwise-CODAS model in which the modification of the CODAS method was made using Linguistic Neutrosophic Numbers (LNN). The paper also suggests a new LNN Pairwise (LNN PW) model for determining the weight coefficients of the criteria developed by the authors. By integrating these models with linguistic neutrosophic numbers, it was shown that it is possible to a significant extent to eliminate subjective qualitative assessments and assumptions by decision makers in complex decision-making conditions. The LNN PW-CODAS model was tested and validated in a case study of the selection of optimal Power-Generation Technology (PGT) in Libya. Testing of the model showed that the proposed model based on linguistic neutrosophic numbers provides objective expert evaluation by eliminating subjective assessments when determining the numerical values of criteria. A sensitivity analysis of the LNN PW-CODAS model, carried out through 68 scenarios of changes in the weight coefficients, showed a high degree of stability of the solutions obtained in the ranking of the alternatives. The results were validated by comparison with LNN extensions of four multicriteria decision-making models.
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paper_title: Assessing the sustainability of renewable energy technologies using multi-criteria analysis: Suitability of approach for national-scale assessments and associated uncertainties

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Multi-criteria analyses (MCAs) are often applied to assess and compare the sustainability of different renewable energy technologies or energy plans with the aim to provide decision-support for choosing the most sustainable and suitable options either for a given location or more generically. MCAs are attractive given the multi-dimensional and complex nature of sustainability assessments, which typically involve a range of conflicting criteria featuring different forms of data and information. However, the input information on which the MCA is based is often associated with uncertainties. The aim of this study was to develop and apply a MCA for a national-scale sustainability assessment and ranking of eleven renewable energy technologies in Scotland and to critically investigate how the uncertainties in the applied input information influence the result. The developed MCA considers nine criteria comprising three technical, three environmental and three socio-economic criteria. Extensive literature reviews for each of the selected criteria were carried out and the information gathered was used with MCA to provide a ranking of the renewable energy alternatives. The reviewed criteria values were generally found to have wide ranges for each technology. To account for this uncertainty in the applied input information, each of the criteria values were defined by probability distributions and the MCA run using Monte Carlo simulation. Hereby a probabilistic ranking of the renewable energy technologies was provided. We show that the ranking provided by the MCA in our specific case is highly uncertain due to the uncertain input information. We conclude that it is important that future MCA studies address these uncertainties explicitly, when assessing the sustainability of different energy projects to obtain more robust results and ensure better informed decision-making.
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paper_title: Optimal Siting of Charging Stations for Electric Vehicles Based on Fuzzy Delphi and Hybrid Multi-Criteria Decision Making Approaches from an Extended Sustainability Perspective

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Optimal siting of electric vehicle charging stations (EVCSs) is crucial to the sustainable development of electric vehicle systems. Considering the defects of previous heuristic optimization models in tackling subjective factors, this paper employs a multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) framework to address the issue of EVCS siting. The initial criteria for optimal EVCS siting are selected from extended sustainability theory, and the vital sub-criteria are further determined by using a fuzzy Delphi method (FDM), which consists of four pillars: economy, society, environment and technology perspectives. To tolerate vagueness and ambiguity of subjective factors and human judgment, a fuzzy Grey relation analysis (GRA)-VIKOR method is employed to determine the optimal EVCS site, which also improves the conventional aggregating function of fuzzy Vlsekriterijumska Optimizacijia I Kompromisno Resenje (VIKOR). Moreover, to integrate the subjective opinions as well as objective information, experts’ ratings and Shannon entropy method are employed to determine combination weights. Then, the applicability of proposed framework is demonstrated by an empirical study of five EVCS site alternatives in Tianjin. The results show that A3 is selected as the optimal site for EVCS, and sub-criteria affiliated with environment obtain much more attentions than that of other sub-criteria. Moreover, sensitivity analysis indicates the selection results remains stable no matter how sub-criteria weights are changed, which verifies the robustness and effectiveness of proposed model and evaluation results. This study provides a comprehensive and effective method for optimal siting of EVCS and also innovates the weights determination and distance calculation for conventional fuzzy VIKOR.
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paper_title: GIS-based onshore wind farm site selection using Fuzzy Multi-Criteria Decision Making methods. Evaluating the case of Southeastern Spain

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When it is necessary to select the best location to implant an onshore wind farm, the criteria that influence the decision-making are not always numerical values but can also include qualitative criteria in the form of labels or linguistic variables which can be represented through fuzzy membership. In this paper, some fuzzy approaches of different Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) methods are combined in order to deal with a trending decision problem such as onshore wind farm site selection. More specifically, the Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (FAHP) is applied to obtain the weights of the criteria, whereas the Fuzzy Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (FTOPSIS) is used to evaluate the alternatives. A Geographic Information System (GIS) is applied to obtain the database of the alternatives and criteria which are transformed in a fuzzy decision matrix through triangular fuzzy numbers. The coast of the Murcia Region, located at the Southeast of Spain, has been chosen as the study area to carry out this evaluation.
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paper_title: Sustainable energy planning by using multi-criteria analysis application in the island of Crete

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The sustainable energy planning includes a variety of objectives, as the decision-making is directly related to the processes of analysis and management of different types of information (technological, environmental, economic and social). Very often, the traditional evaluation methods, such as the cost-benefit analysis and macro-economic indicators, are not sufficient to integrate all the elements included in an environmentally thorough energy plan. On the contrary the multiple criteria methods provide a tool, which is more appropriate to assemble and to handle a wide range of variables that is evaluated in different ways and thus offer valid decision support. This paper exploits the multi-criteria methodology for the sustainable energy planning on the island of Crete in Greece. A set of energy planning alternatives are determined upon the implementation of installations of renewable energy sources on the island and are assessed against economic, technical, social and environmental criteria identified by the actors involved in the energy planning arena. The study constitutes an exploratory analysis with the potential to assist decision makers responsible for regional energy planning, providing them the possibility of creating classifications of alternative sustainable energy alternatives.
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paper_title: Multi-criteria sustainability analysis of thermal power plant Kolubara-A Unit 2

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The paper presents a possible approach for creating business decisions based on multi-criteria analysis. Seven options for a possible revitalization of the thermal power plant “Kolubara”-A Unit No. 2 with energy indicators of sustainable development (EISD) are presented in this paper. The chosen EISD numerically express the essential features of the analyzed options, while the sustainability criteria indicate the option quality within the limits of these indicators. In this paper, the criteria for assessing the sustainability options are defined based on several aspects: economic, social, environmental and technological. In the process of assessing the sustainability of the considered options the Analysis and Synthesis of Parameters under Information Deficiency (ASPID) method was used. In this paper, the EISD show that production and energy consumption are closely linked to economic, environmental and other indicators, such as economic and technological development of local communities with employment being one of the most important social parameter. Multi-criteria analysis for the case study of the TPP “Kolubara”-A clearly indicated recommendations to decision makers on the choice of the best available options in dependence on the energy policy.
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paper_title: Multi-criteria ranking of energy generation scenarios with Monte Carlo simulation

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Integrated Assessment Models (IAMs) are omnipresent in energy policy analysis. Even though IAMs can successfully handle uncertainty pertinent to energy planning problems, they render multiple variables as outputs of the modelling. Therefore, policy makers are faced with multiple energy development scenarios and goals. Specifically, technical, environmental, and economic aspects are represented by multiple criteria, which, in turn, are related to conflicting objectives. Preferences of decision makers need to be taken into account in order to facilitate effective energy planning. Multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) tools are relevant in aggregating diverse information and thus comparing alternative energy planning options. The paper aims at ranking European Union (EU) energy development scenarios based on several IAMs with respect to multiple criteria. By doing so, we account for uncertainty surrounding policy priorities outside the IAM. In order to follow a sustainable approach, the ranking of policy options is based on EU energy policy priorities: energy efficiency improvements, increased use of renewables, reduction in and low mitigations costs of GHG emission. The ranking of scenarios is based on the estimates rendered by the two advanced IAMs relying on different approaches, namely TIAM and WITCH. The data are fed into the three MCDM techniques: the method of weighted aggregated sum/product assessment (WASPAS), the Additive Ratio Assessment (ARAS) method, and technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS). As MCDM techniques allow assigning different importance to objectives, a sensitivity analysis is carried out to check the impact of perturbations in weights upon the final ranking. The rankings provided for the scenarios by different MCDM techniques diverge, first of all, due to the underlying assumptions of IAMs. Results of the analysis provide valuable insights in integrated application of both IAMs and MCDM models for developing energy policy scenarios and decision making in energy sector.
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paper_title: Relational spatial database and multi-criteria decision methods for selecting optimum locations for photovoltaic power plants in the province of Seville (southern Spain)

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This work aims to develop a methodology for selecting optimum locations for the construction of photovoltaic power plants. In order to achieve this, a data model is defined and a multi-criteria decision methodology, based on an analytical hierarchy process, is applied. In contrast to the previous studies, in which the spatial analysis was undertaken by a GIS managing different layers of information (grids, shapefiles, etc.), in this work the spatial analysis is carried out by means of an open-code spatial database management system: PostgreSQL-PostGIS. This system uses Structure Query Language to manage different tables in the context of relational spatial databases. The case study is the province of Seville (southern Spain), where this sort of facility already exists. The empirical analysis concludes that a large percentage of the province of Seville has an excellent potential for the installation of photovoltaic plants. The methodology allows the dynamic updating of criteria and parameters, as well as the reproducibility, scalability and automating of analyses carried out in other fields.
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paper_title: Solar PV power plant site selection using a GIS-AHP based approach with application in Saudi Arabia

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Site selection for solar power plants is a critical issue for utility-size projects due to the significance of weather factors, proximity to facilities, and the presence of environmental protected areas. The primary goal of this research is to evaluate and select the best location for utility-scale solar PV projects using geographical information systems (GIS) and a multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) technique. The model considers different aspects, such as economic and technical factors, with the goal of assuring maximum power achievement while minimizing project cost. An analytical hierarchy process (AHP) is applied to weigh the criteria and compute a land suitability index (LSI) to evaluate potential sites. The LSI model groups sites into five categories: “least suitable,” “marginally suitable,” “moderately suitable,” “highly suitable” and “most suitable.” A case study for Saudi Arabia is provided. Real climatology and legislation data, such as roads, mountains, and protected areas, are utilized in the model. The solar analyst tool in ArcGIS software is employed to calculate the solar insolation across the entire study area using actual atmospheric parameters. The air temperature map was created from real dispersed monitoring sensors across Saudi Arabia using interpolation. The overlaid result map showed that 16% (300,000 km2) of the study area is promising and suitable for deploying utility-size PV power plants while the most suitable areas to be in the north and northwest of the Saudi Arabia. It has been found that suitable lands are following the pattern of the approximate range of the proximity to main roads, transmission lines, and urban cities. More than 80% of the suitable areas had a moderate to high LSI. The integration of the GIS with MCDM methods has emerged as a highly useful technique to systematically deal with rich geographical information data and vast area as well as manipulate criteria importance towards introducing the best sites for solar power plants.
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paper_title: Assessing the global sustainability of different electricity generation systems

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A model is presented for assessing the global sustainability of power plants. It uses requirement trees, value functions and the analytic hierarchy process. The model consists of 27 parameters and makes it possible to obtain a sustainability index for each conventional or renewable energy plant, throughout its life-cycle. Here the aim is to make society aware of the sustainability level for each type of power system. As a result, decision making can be done with greater objectivity in both the public and private sectors. The model can be useful for engineers, researchers and, in general, decision makers in the energy policy field. With the exception of biomass fuels, the results obtained reinforce the idea that renewable energies make a greater contribution to sustainable development than their conventional counterparts. Renewable energies have a sustainability index that varies between 0.39 and 0.80; 0 and 1 being the lowest and highest contribution to sustainability, respectively. On the other hand, conventional power plants obtained results that fall between 0.29 and 0.57. High temperature solar-thermal plants, wind farms, photovoltaic solar plants and mini-hydroelectric power plants occupy the first four places, in this order.
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paper_title: Application of multi-criteria decision analysis in design of sustainable environmental management system framework

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Abstract Proactive environmental management initiatives such as pollution prevention, cleaner production and sustainability are inherently multi-objective processes that require joint considerations of environmental, industrial, economic and social criteria in all stages of decision making. The success of such initiatives, however, depends on the solidity and the relevance of their strategic frameworks. This paper proposes strategic positioning of pollution prevention and clean production projects via design of a sustainable environmental management system (SEMS) that is responsive to regulatory requirements, and is relevant to industry culture and business structure. Built on the traditional and familiar environmental management system platform and the requirements of the multi-criteria decision making models ELECTRE III, the SEMS is capable of supporting design and implementation of defensible solutions to environmental problems industry face today according to sustainability criteria. The ELECTRE III model was selected as an integral part of the framework due to its ease of application, flexibility in design and selection of performance criteria, and capability to identify the best management solutions by giving an order of preference to multiple alternatives. The proposed SEMS framework is also in line with the Rio+20 sustainable development goals, objectives and guidelines that call for action and result-oriented strategies and institutional frameworks that could account for multiple stakeholders' key issues while suggesting environmental solutions according to the three dimensions of sustainable development. A case study that demonstrates the management of waste streams at a manufacturer of energy drinks and diet bars is provided to demonstrate how the SEMS can be designed and implemented.
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paper_title: Development of a decision support system for the study of an area after the occurrence of forest fire

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There is a great diffusion of modern information systems in all areas of science. In the case of forestry, new information tools have emerged during the last 15 years which have helped to improve the work of foresters. Decision support systems (DSSs) are applications which are designed to help managers in the task of decision making, by accelerating the relevant decision-making processes, while simultaneously focusing on the conservation of natural, financial and human resources. In this paper, we describe the development of a DSS which has been designed to help managers in the process of decision making, in relation to areas that have been burnt by forest fires. In addition, the above system also provides the user with the capacity to create hypothetical (what-if) scenarios in order to achieve the best form of intervention. The relevant software was created using Visual C# and the weights of the various parameters were calculated using multi-criteria decision analysis.
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paper_title: Sustainability Decision Support Framework for Industrial System Prioritization

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A multicriteria decision-making methodology for the sustainability prioritization of industrial systems is proposed. The methodology incorporates a fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process method that allows the users to assess the soft criteria using linguistic terms. A fuzzy Analytic Network Process method is used to calculate the weights of each criterion, which can tackle the interdependencies and interactions among the criteria. The Preference Ranking Organization Method for Enrichment Evaluation approach is used to prioritize the sustainability sequence of the alternative systems. Moreover, a sensitivity analysis method was developed to investigate the most critical and sensitive criteria. The developed methodology was illustrated by a case study to rank the sustainability of five alternative hydrogen production technologies. The advantages of the developed methodology over the previous approaches were demonstrated by comparing the results determined by the proposed framework with those determined using the pervious approaches. © 2015 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2015
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paper_title: Evaluation and selection of materials for particulate matter MEMS sensors by using hybrid MCDM methods

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Air pollution poses serious problems as global industrialization continues to thrive. Since air pollution has grave impacts on human health, industry experts are starting to fathom how to integrate particulate matter (PM) sensors into portable devices; however, traditional micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) gas sensors are too large. To overcome this challenge, experts from industry and academia have recently begun to investigate replacing the traditional etching techniques used on MEMS with semiconductor-based manufacturing processes and materials, such as gallium nitride (GaN), gallium arsenide (GaAs), and silicon. However, studies showing how to systematically evaluate and select suitable materials are rare in the literature. Therefore, this study aims to propose an analytic framework based on multiple criteria decision making (MCDM) to evaluate and select the most suitable materials for fabricating PM sensors. An empirical study based on recent research was conducted to demonstrate the feasibility of our analytic framework. The results provide an invaluable future reference for research institutes and providers.
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paper_title: A Hybrid MCDM Approach for Strategic Project Portfolio Selection of Agro By-Products

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Due to the increasing size of the population, society faces several challenges for sustainable and adequate agricultural production, quality, distribution, and food safety in the strategic project portfolio selection (SPPS). The initial adaptation of strategic portfolio management of genetically modified (GM) Agro by-products (Ab-Ps) is a huge challenge in terms of processing the agro food product supply-chain practices in an environmentally nonthreatening way. As a solution to the challenges, the socio-economic characteristics for SPPS of GM food purchasing scenarios are studied. Evaluation and selection of the GM agro portfolio management are the dynamic issues due to physical and immaterial criteria involving a hybrid multiple criteria decision making (MCDM) approach, combining modified grey Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL), Multi-Attributive Border Approximation area Comparison (MABAC) and sensitivity analysis. Evaluation criteria are grouped into social, differential and beneficial clusters, and the modified DEMATEL procedure is used to derive the criteria weights. The MABAC method is applied to rank the strategic project portfolios according to the aggregated preferences of decision makers (DMs). The usefulness of the proposed research framework is validated with a case study. The GM by-products are found to be the best portfolio. Moreover, this framework can unify the policies of agro technological improvement, corporate social responsibility (CSR) and agro export promotion.
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paper_title: Key performance indicators (KPIs) and priority setting in using the multi-attribute approach for assessing sustainable intelligent buildings

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The main objectives of this paper are to: firstly, identify key issues related to sustainable intelligent buildings (environmental, social, economic and technological factors); develop a conceptual model for the selection of the appropriate KPIs; secondly, test critically stakeholder's perceptions and values of selected KPIs intelligent buildings; and thirdly develop a new model for measuring the level of sustainability for sustainable intelligent buildings. This paper uses a consensus-based model (Sustainable Built Environment Tool- SuBETool), which is analysed using the analytical hierarchical process (AHP) for multi-criteria decision-making. The use of the multi-attribute model for priority setting in the sustainability assessment of intelligent buildings is introduced. The paper commences by reviewing the literature on sustainable intelligent buildings research and presents a pilot-study investigating the problems of complexity and subjectivity. This study is based upon a survey perceptions held by selected stakeholders and the value they attribute to selected KPIs. It is argued that the benefit of the new proposed model (SuBETool) is a ‘tool’ for ‘comparative’ rather than an absolute measurement. It has the potential to provide useful lessons from current sustainability assessment methods for strategic future of sustainable intelligent buildings in order to improve a building's performance and to deliver objective outcomes. Findings of this survey enrich the field of intelligent buildings in two ways. Firstly, it gives a detailed insight into the selection of sustainable building indicators, as well as their degree of importance. Secondly, it tesst critically stakeholder's perceptions and values of selected KPIs intelligent buildings. It is concluded that the priority levels for selected criteria is largely dependent on the integrated design team, which includes the client, architects, engineers and facilities managers.
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paper_title: Environmental sustainability benchmarking of the U.S. and Canada metropoles: An expert judgment-based multi-criteria decision making approach

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Abstract In this paper, environmental sustainability performance assessment of 27 U.S. and Canada metropoles is addressed. A four-step hierarchical fuzzy multi-criteria decision-making approach is developed. In the first step, the proposed methodology is established by determining the sustainability performance indicators (a total of 16 sustainability indicators are considered), collecting the data and contacting experts from academia, U.S. government agencies and within the industry. In the second step, experts are contacted and the entire list is finalized; sustainability performance evaluation forms are delivered; and then expert judgment results are obtained and quantified, respectively. In the third step, the proposed Multi-criteria Intuitionistic Fuzzy Decision Making model is developed and sustainability performance scores are quantified by using the collected data, multi-criteria decision making model and sustainability indicator weights obtained from expert judgment phase. In the final step, the sustainability scores and rankings of the 27 metropoles, results analysis and discussions, and statistical highlights about the research findings are provided. Results indicated that the average sustainability performance score is found to be 0.524 over scale between 0 and 1. The metropole with the greatest sustainability performance score is found to be New York with 0.703 and the poorest performing city is identified as Cleveland with 0.394. The results of the statistical analysis indicate that the greatest significant correlations are obtained with carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) emissions per person (−0.749 – significant negative correlation with sustainability performance score) and share of workers traveling by public transport (+0.753 – significant positive correlation with sustainability performance score). Therefore, the CO 2 emissions and public transport are found to have the most significant impact on the sustainability scores.
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paper_title: Compression ignition engine performance modelling using hybrid MCDM techniques for the selection of optimum fish oil biodiesel blend at different injection timings

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Abstract The increasing demand on energy due to population growth and rise of living standards has led to considerable use of fossil fuels which cause environmental pollution and depletion of fossil fuels. Biodiesel proves to be a good alternative for fossil fuels. But sustainability of biodiesel is the key factor for determining it as a fuel in diesel engines. It needs identification of proper blend of biodiesel and diesel to meet the efficiency, engine suitability and environmental acceptability. Alternative fuel blend evaluation in IC engine fuel technologies is a very important strategic decision tool involving balancing between a number of criteria such as performance, emission and combustion parameters and opinions from different decision maker of IC engine experts. Hence, it is a MCDM problem. This paper describes the application of hybrid Multi Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) techniques for the selection of optimum biodiesel blend in IC engine. FAHP-TOPSIS, FAHP-VIKOR and FAHP-ELECTRE, are the three methods that are used to evaluate the best blend. The performances of these MCDM methods are also compared with each other. Here, FAHP is used to determine the relative weights of the criteria, whereas TOPSIS, VIKOR and ELECTRE are used for obtaining the final ranking of alternatives. A single cylinder, constant speed and direct injection diesel engine with a rated output of 4.4 kW is used for exploratory analysis of evaluation criteria at different load conditions. Diesel, B20, B40, B60, B80 and B100 fuel blends are prepared by varying the proportion of biodiesel. Similarly, Brake thermal efficiency (BTE), Exhaust gas temperature (EGT), Oxides of Nitrogen (NO x ), Smoke, Hydrocarbon (HC), Carbon monoxide (CO), Carbon dioxide (CO 2 ), Ignition Delay, Combustion Duration and Maximum Rate of Pressure Rise are considered as the evaluation criteria. The ranking of alternatives obtained by FAHP-TOPSIS, FAHP-VIKOR and FAHP-ELECTRE are B20 > Diesel > B40 > B60 > B80 > B100 for 21°bTDC and 24°bTDC and Diesel > B20 > B40 > B60 > B80 > B100 for 27°bTDC. It shows that B20 is ranked first for 21°bTDC and 24°bTDC and second for 27°bTDC injection timing. Hence, it is concluded that mixing 20% biodiesel with diesel is suggested as a good replacement for diesel. This paper provides a new insight of applying MCDM techniques to evaluate the best fuel blend by decision makers such as engine manufactures and R&D engineers to meet the fuel economy and emission norms to empower green revolution.
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paper_title: Measuring systems sustainability with multi-criteria methods: A critical review

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Determining the sustainability of a system (e.g. through a criteria and indicators approach) has been the focus of research in many branches of science. Frequently, this research used multiple criteria decision making techniques. In this work, we analyze and critically assess the literature published on these topics. For this purpose, a set of 271 papers appearing in the ISI Web of Science database has been studied. The results show that these techniques have been applied to a great variety of problems, levels, and sectors, related to sustainability. Thus, up to 15 multiple criteria decision making techniques, which have been applied in 4 or more papers, have been identified. Those techniques have been grouped in 5 large clusters; the two most used being those called Analytic Hierarchical Process and Weighted Arithmetic Mean. On the other hand, in this work it has been verified that the use of multiple criteria decision making techniques hybridized with group decision-making techniques is quite common, and the use of both techniques for assessing sustainability problems has risen over the last few years. The aim of this hybridization process consists of including in the analysis the preferences of the stakeholders with respect to the indicators initially suggested. Finally, it has been seen that during the past few years there has been a great proliferation of works aggregating sustainability criteria by using this type of tool, which is undoubtedly a sign of the paramount importance of these techniques in this highly pluridisciplinary context.
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paper_title: Sustainable Assessment of Alternative Sites for the Construction of a Waste Incineration Plant by Applying WASPAS Method with Single-Valued Neutrosophic Set

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The principles of sustainability have become particularly important in the construction, real estate maintenance sector, and all areas of life in recent years. The one of the major problem of urban territories that domestic and construction waste of generated products cannot be removed automatically.
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paper_title: Urban sewage sludge, sustainability, and transition for Eco-City: Multi-criteria sustainability assessment of technologies based on best-worst method

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The treatment of urban sewage sludge is of vital importance for mitigating the risks of environmental contaminations, and the negative effects on human health. However, there are usually various different technologies for the treatment of urban sewage sludge; thus, it is difficult for decision-makers/stakeholders to select the most sustainable technology among multiple alternatives. This study aims at developing a generic multi-criteria decision support framework for sustainability assessment of the technologies for the treatment of urban sewage sludge. A generic criteria system including both hard and soft criteria in economic, environmental, social and technological aspects was developed for sustainability assessment. The improved analytic hierarchy process method, namely Best-Worst method, was employed to determine the weights of the criteria and the relative priorities of the technologies with respect to the soft criteria. Three MCDM methods including the sum weighted method, digraph model, and TOPSIS were used to determine sustainability sequence of the alternative technologies for the treatment of urban sewage sludge. Three technologies including landfilling, composting, and drying incineration have been studied using the proposed framework. The sustainability sequence of these three technologies determined by these three methods was obtained, and finally the priority sequence was determined as landing filling, drying incineration and composting in the descending order.
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paper_title: SCORE: a novel multi-criteria decision analysis approach to assessing the sustainability of contaminated land remediation.

paper_content:

The multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) method provides for a comprehensive and transparent basis for performing sustainability assessments. Development of a relevant MCDA-method requires consideration of a number of key issues, e.g. (a) definition of assessment boundaries, (b) definition of performance scales, both temporal and spatial, (c) selection of relevant criteria (indicators) that facilitate a comprehensive sustainability assessment while avoiding double-counting of effects, and (d) handling of uncertainties. Adding to the complexity is the typically wide variety of inputs, including quantifications based on existing data, expert judgements, and opinions expressed in interviews. The SCORE (Sustainable Choice Of REmediation) MCDA-method was developed to provide a transparent assessment of the sustainability of possible remediation alternatives for contaminated sites relative to a reference alternative, considering key criteria in the economic, environmental, and social sustainability domains. The criteria were identified based on literature studies, interviews and focus-group meetings. SCORE combines a linear additive model to rank the alternatives with a non-compensatory approach to identify alternatives regarded as non-sustainable. The key strengths of the SCORE method are as follows: a framework that at its core is designed to be flexible and transparent; the possibility to integrate both quantitative and qualitative estimations on criteria; its ability, unlike other sustainability assessment tools used in industry and academia, to allow for the alteration of boundary conditions where necessary; the inclusion of a full uncertainty analysis of the results, using Monte Carlo simulation; and a structure that allows preferences and opinions of involved stakeholders to be openly integrated into the analysis. A major insight from practical application of SCORE is that its most important contribution may be that it initiates a process where criteria otherwise likely ignored are addressed and openly discussed between stakeholders.
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paper_title: A sensitivity analysis in MCDM problems: A statistical approach

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This study provides a model for result consistency evaluation of multi-criteria decision-making (MDM) methods and selection of the optimal one. The study presents the results of an analysis of the sensitivity of decision-making based on the rank methods: SAW, MOORA, VIKOR, COPRAS, CODAS, TOPSIS, D’IDEAL, MABAC, PROMETHEE-I,II, ORESTE-II with variations in the elements in the decision matrix within a given error (imprecision). It is suggested to use multiple simulation of the elements estimations of the decision matrix within a given error for calculating the ranks of alternatives, which allows obtaining statistical estimates of ranks. Based on the statistics of simulations, decision-making can be carried out not only on the alternatives statistics having rank I but also on the statistics of alternatives having the largest total I and II rank or I, II and III ranks. This is especially true when the difference in rank values ​​is not large and is distributed evenly among the first three ranks. The calculations results for the task of selecting the adequate location of 8 objects by 11 criteria are presented here. The main result shows that the alternatives having I, II and III ranks for some ranking methods are not distinguishable within the selected error value of the elements in the decision matrix. A quantitative analysis can only narrow the number of effective alternatives for a final decision. A statistical analysis makes the number of options estimation possible in which an alternative has a priority. Additional criteria that take into account both aggregate priorities and the availability of possible priorities for other alternatives with small variations in the decision matrix provide additional important information for the decision-maker.
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Title: Application of MCDM Methods in Sustainability Engineering: A Literature Review 2008–2018

Section 1: Introduction
Description 1: Discuss the emergence of the concept of sustainability, the definition of sustainable development, and the role of sustainable engineering, highlighting the importance of multiple criteria decision making (MCDM) methods in this context.

Section 2: Primary Review Results
Description 2: Present the methodology used to collect and process the articles, the total number of MCDM articles found in various fields, and the trend of increasing publications in recent years.

Section 3: Detailed Review Results
Description 3: Provide an in-depth analysis and categorization of 108 collected articles into different areas like civil engineering, supply chains, transport and logistics, energy, and others. Each category should discuss the specific application of MCDM methods within these sectors.

Section 4: Civil Engineering and Infrastructure
Description 4: Detail the application of MCDM methods in civil engineering and infrastructure projects, including case studies and frameworks involving various methods and criteria.

Section 5: Supply Chain Management
Description 5: Analyze the use of MCDM methods in supply chain management, highlighting the challenges and solutions related to sustainable supplier selection and other supply chain aspects.

Section 6: Transport and Logistics
Description 6: Discuss the application of MCDM methods in transport and logistics, including the selection of sustainable transport plans, location of logistics centers, and alternative fuels.

Section 7: Energy
Description 7: Review the application of MCDM methods in the energy sector, focusing on the selection of renewable energy sources, location of energy facilities, and planning of energy production projects.

Section 8: Other Engineering Disciplines
Description 8: Cover the application of MCDM methods in various other engineering disciplines, addressing environmental management, smart housing sustainability, and other miscellaneous topics.

Section 9: Conclusions
Description 9: Summarize the findings, highlighting the significance of MCDM methods in achieving sustainability in engineering, the prevailing trends, and future directions for research in using MCDM methods to address complex engineering problems.