International Journal of Research in Industrial Engineering
Volume:14 Issue: 2, Spring 2025

Environmental sustainability has become a primary concern for businesses and policymakers aiming to balance economic growth with ecological preservation. This urgency is driven by the increasing pressures of climate change, resource depletion, and heightened societal expectations for sustainable practices. Recognizing the need for a method to assess environmental and economic efficiency, this study introduces an innovative hybrid approach that combines Interpretive Structural Modeling (ISM) with Network Data Envelopment Analysis (NDEA), offering a refined framework for measuring green efficiency that addresses both environmental and economic dimensions. This methodology leverages expert insights to pinpoint and organize key variables affecting green efficiency, employing ISM to construct a comprehensive model. The ISM-structured model informs the selection of a suitable DEA variant (either simple or network) and elucidates the role of each variable as an input, intermediate process, or output measure. Subsequently, green efficiency values are calculated using the DEA model identified by ISM. This approach is then applied to calculate the green efficiency of  European Union (EU) countries, providing a benchmark for measuring green efficiency across the EU. Our analysis uncovers significant findings that highlight disparities in green efficiency among EU members, revealing areas for policy improvement and resource allocation. The insights gleaned from this study have implications for stakeholders seeking to enhance their operational sustainability, providing a roadmap for better-informed and more effective policy and business strategies aimed at fostering sustainable development.

Warm air infiltration is a hidden phenomenon that can go unnoticed for weeks, months, or even years in cold storage envelopes. It is a common source of energy wastage that can be explored to achieve significant energy and cost savings. This research assesses warm air infiltration into fruit cold storages using a case study approach for an international fruit exporter based in Kenya, covering baseline study, root cause analysis, and developing a risk-based mitigation strategy to minimize the infiltration rates. Thermal graphic measurements, electricity bills, and on-site observation of the operation patterns provided source data. An Ishikawa diagram and a risk-based Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (FMEA) were used to identify and prioritize root causes, respectively, and a modified decision tree was then utilized to structure the mitigation strategy. The study established a lack of awareness of cold storage operations, irregular and untimed maintenance of components, broken door seals, and inconsistency in the frequency of cold storage door openings as the critical root causes for the warm air-infiltration challenge. It was further revealed that cold storage facilities need to take advantage of the available sensory and operational data to introduce maintenance management systems, temperature-airflow monitoring systems, and environmental control devices to complement the functionality of cold storage components. To operate fruit cold storages optimally and efficiently, facilities management must comprehensively understand the sources of temperature variations and adopt mitigation strategies that minimize warm air infiltration. There is no one-size-fits-all approach to reducing warm air infiltration; thus, both systemic and behavioral approaches must be adopted and integrated into cold storage operations.

Cloud Manufacturing (CMfg) enables flexible and customized manufacturing services through dynamic service composition. However, achieving optimal service composition remains challenging due to the need to meet complex Quality of Service (QoS) requirements, including cost, time, quality, and resource workload balance. Notably, previous studies on service composition models have rarely considered workload balancing as part of their QoS criteria, which is critical for maintaining efficient and sustainable resource use. This study addresses this gap by presenting an advanced service composition model that integrates workload balance as an essential QoS metric alongside traditional factors like composite service quality, time, and cost. To further support optimization, the Simulated Annealing (SA) and Tabu Search (TS) algorithms are enhanced with a novel shaking mechanism designed to expand the search space and mitigate premature convergence risks common in metaheuristics. Experimental evaluations conducted on an OR-Library dataset confirm that the enhanced SA algorithm achieves up to a 25% improvement in the fitness function and a 7% reduction in computational time, while the improved TS algorithm achieves a 2% reduction in the fitness function and a 21% decrease in computational time. These findings highlight the model's potential to enhance CMfg service composition efficiency, offering substantial performance benefits over traditional methods. The core contributions of this study include the development of a workload-integrated service composition model and enhancements to SA and TS algorithms for effective problem-solving within this framework.

A greater understanding of the obstacles and misconceptions towards blood donation is needed to address the ongoing challenges of increasing the nation's blood supply levels. Whereas 62% of the US population is eligible to donate blood, only 3% of the US population donates blood each year. This study aims to elucidate the ongoing blood donation problem in the US and highlight the use of emerging and disruptive technologies in attracting new donors. A systematic literature review using the PRISMA flow diagram resulted in a final review of 166 papers from 1970-2024  retrieved from several scientific databases, which were categorized by common themes to answer the following three research questions: RQ1: What are the current problems and issues concerning the recruitment and retention of blood donors in the US? RQ2: What personal and social barriers, including misconceptions, exist that preclude people from donating blood? RQ3: How is the development of emerging and disruptive technology used to attract blood donors? There is a 10-year trend of declining blood donations in the US, particularly among younger donors. From 2019 to 2021, there was a 62.5% decline in blood donations from individuals in the 16-18 age group, a 34.9% decline in donations from individuals 19-24 years old, an 8.9% increase in donations from individuals 25-64 years old, and a 34.8% increase in donations from individuals sixty-five and older. Reported obstacles include personal and social barriers, including misconceptions about donating blood, distrust in the US healthcare system, and fear of needles or pain. The decline in donations from individuals 16-24 years old may be attributed to restrictions placed on school blood drives during the COVID-19 pandemic. Conversely, the increase in donations from the sixty-five and older age group may signal that a sizable portion of blood donors (i.e., baby boomers) are advancing. The continued development of emerging and disruptive technologies, such as ubiquitous computing smartphones, social media, blood mobile apps, Virtual Reality (VR), blockchain technology, neural networks, and Artificial Intelligence (AI), affords alternative approaches to overcoming these obstacles versus traditional means of attracting new donors.

Food waste poses significant challenges, with bread waste being a major concern. This study aims to analyze the key factors influencing the recycling and reuse of bread waste within the circular economy framework. We employed a mixed-methods approach, incorporating qualitative data from 15 semi-structured interviews with experts and quantitative data from 210 structured questionnaires. We utilized thematic analysis and structural equation modelling to interpret the data. The findings reveal that environmental conservation, social awareness, economic benefits, and technological advancements significantly impact bread waste recycling and reuse. Specifically, energy and resource conservation, community participation, long-term economic benefits, and recycling technology efficiency are all critical factors. This research underscores the necessity of developing comprehensive strategies that integrate these factors to enhance bread waste management. By focusing on these areas, policymakers and managers can create more effective recycling programs, ultimately contributing to sustainability goals. The study's holistic approach provides actionable insights for improving the efficiency and effectiveness of bread waste recycling practices.