The design of distribution networks is prone to risks due to the uncertainties associated with factors that change over time. In this paper we present a new method to identify those factors that the structure of a distribution network is most sensitive to. The new method combines simulation and the Taguchi technique to allow a wide range of factor uncertainties to be evaluated without excessive...

A contaminant intentional intrusion into a water distribution system is one of the most difficult threats to address. This is because of the uncertainty of the type of the injected contaminant and its consequences, and the uncertainty of the location and intrusion time. An online contaminant sensor network is the main constituent to enhance the security of a water distribution system against su...

In this note the analog effects that prevent integrity of digital signals are discussed with reference to the implementation of a reliable distribution network for a 60 MHz clock onto a card with a 64-bit data bus.

In this paper a procedure for the split-pipe design of looped water distribution network based on the use of simulated annealing is proposed. Simulated annealing is a heuristic-based search algorithm, motivated by an analogy of physical annealing in solids. It is capable for solving the combinatorial optimization problem. In contrast to the split-pipe design that is derived from a continuous di...

Supply chain management is taken into account as an inseparable component in satisfying customers' requirements. This paper deals with the distribution network design (DND) problem which is a critical issue in achieving supply chain accomplishments. A capable DND can guarantee the success of the entire network performance. However, there are many factors that can cause fluctuations in input dat...

This paper explores the use of the optimization procedures in SAS/OR software with application to the contemporary logistics distribution network design using an integrated multiple criteria decision making approach. Unlike the traditional optimization techniques, the proposed approach, combining analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and goal programming (GP), considers both quantitative and qualita...

Distribution network design deals with defining which elements will be part of the supply chain and how they will be interrelated. Many authors have studied this problem from a cost minimization point of view. Nowadays the sustainability factor is increasing its importance in the logistics operations and must be considered in the design process. We deal here with the problem of determining the ...

Distribution network design is one of the important issues in supply chain management. Two important sub-problems of distribution network design are inventory and location decisions. Traditional approaches considered inventory and location decisions separately which might result in suboptimal solutions. This paper considers the design of a distribution network and simultaneously determines the ...

A water distribution network (WDN) consists of thousands of nodes with nonlinear hydraulic behaviour, linked by thousands of interconnecting links. The inherent problem associated with cost optimisation in the design of water distribution networks is due to the nonlinear relationship between flow and head loss and availability of the discrete nature of pipe sizes. The importance and huge capita...