We consider the problem of optimally determining an investment portfolio for an energy company owning a network of gas pipelines, and in charge of purchasing, selling and distributing gas. We propose a two stage stochastic investment model which hedges risk by means of Conditional Value at Risk constraints. The model, solved by a decomposition method, is assessed on a real-life case, of a Brazi...

We develop a constraint programming based heuristic algorithm using column generation technique to solve a ship routing problem which the loading and unloading times of cargoes at pickup and drop-off locations are significant. In order to prevent congestions at the locations, we need to assign berthing time slots to each vessel to perform the loading and unloading tasks at different locations. ...

PayPal is an account-based system that allows anyone with an email address to send and receive online payments. This service is easy to use for customers. Members can instantaneously send money to anyone. Recipients are informed by email that they have received a payment. PayPal is also available to people in 38 countries. This paper starts with introduction to the company and its services. The...

Since they were first developed, lean methodologies have grown in importance and scope and have been applied in both manufacturing and service. However, determining how to transform a common manufacturing company into a lean one, as well as how to evaluate the future company, are challenges for both researchers and manufacturers. This paper presents a case study of a lean manufacturing implemen...

Today’s growth of the service sector as a whole has created demand for more efficient service production. Many services require interaction between customers and service personnel, whereas some can be automated into self-services. In this study, we focus on services, that are neither purely human facilitated, nor purely automated, and contain uncertainty in the production process. Based on reso...

Cloud service for personal users has become more popular world-wide since Apple Inc. launched iCloud storage service in October, 2011. However, such cloud storage service was not new because many global telecom companies, usually called telcos, as well as many portals had already offered similar Internet-based online storage services at that time. As of now, there can be seen hundreds of divers...

Angela Esco Elder explores the emotions of Confederate widows in Love & Duty: Widows and Emotional Politics Loss. Not only does reveals widows’ multifarious but also how state exploited their grief to advance cause. Esco’s Duty “adds growing history during Civil War,” will become required reading for those interested southern women emotionality, writes reviewer Daniel Kotzin.