Multi-criteria analysis as a tool for assessment of district towns

Author(s):  
Roman Vavrek

A technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution is a multi-criteria decision analysis method used for complex assessment of a set of alternatives. It is often combined with the CV (Coefficient of Variance) method to determine the weight of these criteria to objectify achieved results. Using these methods, we have assessed a group of district towns in the Slovak Republic based on 2016 data by using six budgetary criteria, including maximizing and minimizing ones. The main contribution of this article is the complex assessment of a selected set of territorial administration entities, differences in their results and the importance of selecting the right method to determine weights, which has a significant impact on the overall results. It can be said that there were almost no differences in results among the majority of district towns, there were no significant correlations between the results and the criteria, and there were some common characteristics in the three created clusters. The analysis has confirmed that it is necessary to pay special attention to the selection of criteria and of the method used to determine their weight, as these factors have a significant impact on the overall results of analysis.

2020 ◽  
pp. 652-664
Author(s):  
Kesra Nermend ◽  
Mateusz Piwowarski ◽  
Mariusz Borawski

In this study different methodological approaches are used and described by many features (indicators) of complex socio-economic process. Outcome of analysis has the most reliable and acceptable representation of the studied process specific to chosen case. In order to solve problems in this area (depending on the situation, case under consideration), methods from two groups are most often used: multidimensional comparative analysis and multi-criteria decision analysis. The first of these cases concern problems at the macro level (socio-economic development, demographic situation, population's living standards, etc.), in which the decisionmaker's participation is relatively small (eg the selection of diagnostic variables or expert assessment). The second of these groups include issues in which the decisionmaker's participation is significant which are subjective to the decisions taken and reflects his or her preferences. Among the decision support methods, one can also distinguish those that have both the characteristics of methods from the area of multidimensional comparative analysis and multi-criteria decision analysis. The article presents the combination of both trends exposing maximum possibilities of using selected methods used in the decision making by Polish schools. The general methodological assumptions, advantages of having approaches discussed (in relation to other known methods) as well as the applied aspects (exemplary applications) also presented.


2018 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 255-277 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sepideh Yazdekhasti ◽  
Kalyan Ram Piratla ◽  
John C. Matthews ◽  
Abdul Khan ◽  
Sez Atamturktur

Purpose There has been a sustained interest over the past couple of decades in developing sophisticated leak detection techniques (LDTs) that are economical and reliable. Majority of current commercial LDTs are acoustics based and they are not equally suitable to all pipe materials and sizes. There is also limited knowledge on the comparative merits of such acoustics-based leak detection techniques (ALDTs). The purpose of this paper is to review six commercial ALDTs based on four decisive criteria and subsequently develop guidance for the optimal selection of an ALDT. Design/methodology/approach Numerous publications and field demonstration reports are reviewed for evaluating the performance of various ALDTs in this study to inform their optimal selection using an integrated multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) framework. The findings are validated using interviews of water utility experts. Findings The study approach and the findings will have a broad impact on the water utility industry by identifying a suite of suitable ALDTs for a range of typical application scenarios. The evaluated ALDTs include listening devices, noise loggers, leak-noise correlators, free-swimming acoustic, tethered acoustic, and acoustic emissions. The evaluation criteria include cost, reliability, access requirements, and the ability to quantify leakage severity. The guidance presented in this paper will support efficient decision making in water utility management to minimize pipeline leakage. Originality/value This study attempts to address the problem of severe dearth of performance data for pipeline inspection techniques. Performance data reported in the published literature on various ALDTs are appropriately aggregated and compared using a MCDA, while the uncertainty in performance data is addressed using the Monte Carlo simulation approach.


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