According to the multi-project and program management theory, this paper analyzes the program generation principle and establishes a program based on progress goals. On the basis of the present situation of calculatio...According to the multi-project and program management theory, this paper analyzes the program generation principle and establishes a program based on progress goals. On the basis of the present situation of calculation of penalty for delay of the bidding section construction period with the critical path method, we studied the effects of contractor-induced delay of the bidding section construction period in detail, including the effects on the construction period of the bidding section itself, the earliest start times of the next bidding section and other subsequent bidding sections, and the construction period of the program, and then constructed a penalty model for delay of the bidding section construction period from the perspective of programs. Using the penalty model, we conducted a practical analysis of penalty for delay of the construction period of the Baoying station program in the South-to-North Water Diversion Project. The model can help determine the amount of penalty for delay of the construction period in bidding sections scientifically and reasonably,展开更多
The importance and complexity of prioritizing construction projects (PCP) in urban road network planning lead to the necessity to develop an aided decision making program (ADMP). Cost benefit ratio model and stage rol...The importance and complexity of prioritizing construction projects (PCP) in urban road network planning lead to the necessity to develop an aided decision making program (ADMP). Cost benefit ratio model and stage rolled method are chosen as the theoretical foundations of the program, and then benefit model is improved to accord with the actuality of urban traffic in China. Consequently, program flows, module functions and data structures are designed, and particularly an original data structure of road ...展开更多
For the gray attributes of the equipment program and its difficulty to carry out the quantitative assessment of the equipment program information, the gray relation projection method is simply reviewed. Combining the ...For the gray attributes of the equipment program and its difficulty to carry out the quantitative assessment of the equipment program information, the gray relation projection method is simply reviewed. Combining the super-data envelopment analysis（DEA） model and the gray system theory, a new super-DEA for measuring the weight is proposed, and a gray relation projection model is established to rank the equipment programs. Finally, this approach is used to evaluate the equipment program. The results are verified valid and can provide a new way for evaluating the equipment program.展开更多
A subspace projected conjugate gradient method is proposed for solving large bound constrained quadratic programming. The conjugate gradient method is used to update the variables with indices outside of the active se...A subspace projected conjugate gradient method is proposed for solving large bound constrained quadratic programming. The conjugate gradient method is used to update the variables with indices outside of the active set, while the projected gradient method is used to update the active variables. At every iterative level, the search direction consists of two parts, one of which is a subspace trumcated Newton direction, another is a modified gradient direction. With the projected search the algorithm is suitable to large problems. The convergence of the method is proved and same numerical tests with dimensions ranging from 5000 to 20000 are given.展开更多
In order to minimize the project duration of resourceconstrained project scheduling problem( RCPSP), a gene expression programming-based scheduling rule( GEP-SR) method is proposed to automatically discover and select...In order to minimize the project duration of resourceconstrained project scheduling problem( RCPSP), a gene expression programming-based scheduling rule( GEP-SR) method is proposed to automatically discover and select the effective scheduling rules( SRs) which are constructed using the project status and attributes of the activities. SRs are represented by the chromosomes of GEP, and an improved parallel schedule generation scheme( IPSGS) is used to transform the SRs into explicit schedules. The framework of GEP-SR for RCPSP is designed,and the effectiveness of the GEP-SR approach is demonstrated by comparing with other methods on the same instances.展开更多
Themulti-skill resource-constrained project scheduling problem(MS-RCPSP)is a significantmanagement science problem that extends from the resource-constrained project scheduling problem(RCPSP)and is integrated with a r...Themulti-skill resource-constrained project scheduling problem(MS-RCPSP)is a significantmanagement science problem that extends from the resource-constrained project scheduling problem(RCPSP)and is integrated with a real project and production environment.To solve MS-RCPSP,it is an efficient method to use dispatching rules combined with a parallel scheduling mechanism to generate a scheduling scheme.This paper proposes an improved gene expression programming(IGEP)approach to explore newly dispatching rules that can broadly solve MS-RCPSP.A new backward traversal decoding mechanism,and several neighborhood operators are applied in IGEP.The backward traversal decoding mechanism dramatically reduces the space complexity in the decoding process,and improves the algorithm’s performance.Several neighborhood operators improve the exploration of the potential search space.The experiment takes the intelligent multi-objective project scheduling environment(iMOPSE)benchmark dataset as the training set and testing set of IGEP.Ten newly dispatching rules are discovered and extracted by IGEP,and eight out of ten are superior to other typical dispatching rules.展开更多
The investment decision making of Project Gang, the projects that are associated with one another on economy and technique, is studied. In order to find out the best Scheme that can make the maximum profit, a dynami...The investment decision making of Project Gang, the projects that are associated with one another on economy and technique, is studied. In order to find out the best Scheme that can make the maximum profit, a dynamic programming algorithm on the investment decision making of Project Gang is brought forward, and this algorithm can find out the best Scheme of distributing the m resources to the n Items in the time of O(m 2 n).展开更多
1 INTRODUCTION The tropical Indo-Pacific Oceans span over twothirds of the global tropical oceans.A major warm pool with the highest large-scale sea surface temperature of the global oceans is located in the western P...1 INTRODUCTION The tropical Indo-Pacific Oceans span over twothirds of the global tropical oceans.A major warm pool with the highest large-scale sea surface temperature of the global oceans is located in the western Pacific and eastern Indian Oceans.The climate systems over the tropical Pacific and Indian Oceans are subject to strong ocean-atmosphere coupling at multiple scales from intraseasonal to interannual,and to centennial.The展开更多
Regarding construction projects, no project is implemented exactly as planned. Changes in construction projects are common due to the dynamic nature of the construction process. It is necessary to use effective and ap...Regarding construction projects, no project is implemented exactly as planned. Changes in construction projects are common due to the dynamic nature of the construction process. It is necessary to use effective and appropriate tools by project management to support decision-making and control changes during all stages of project implementation. This study examined the effects of change orders through technical programs on construction projects in Jordan and focused on how to overcome these effects by making usual orders that can be handled by each of the contracting parties. Also, this study added an advantage by not addressing the negative effects of change orders, but it provided many positive effects of change orders by using technical programs method, which has not been yet researched in Jordanian studies in particular, and in global studies in general. The researcher used descriptive analytical method by interviews to collect data through nine questions to a random sample of 30 engineers selected form constructions projects in Jordan. The results related to the study questions on the effect of change orders through technical programs on construction projects in Jordan showed that, most of the study samples confirm that change orders through technical programs decrease the cost of the projects, cause no need for more materials, cause no delay in the completion schedule, enhances the quality of work, and increase the productivity of the work force. The study recommended applying integrated change management system with technical supports form different technologies, developing effective innovative and practical solution to manage change orders and increase training programs to qualify and increase engineering skills in dealing with ICT （information and communication technologies） program.展开更多
This paper discusses the impact of e-governance powered by blockchain in the project and program management industry. With the rise in technological innovations, many countries have turned to e-governance for efficien...This paper discusses the impact of e-governance powered by blockchain in the project and program management industry. With the rise in technological innovations, many countries have turned to e-governance for efficiency in service delivery, transparency, and decision-making. E-governance backed by blockchain technology entails improving the public services provision by implementing structures of information and communication technologies. There are many challenges with the traditional project management approach that causes organizations and its stakeholders’ cost and time. Thus, the introduction of blockchain has given many organizations a new approach to adopt in order to eliminate the challenges associated with the typical project management approach. In spite of the cutting-edge technology of blockchain and its broad applications in program management and e-governance, there are still many challenges that restrain its adoption on a broader scale. The research discusses the challenges of the blockchain deployment in the program management field and e-governance in private and government sectors and it highlights the efforts put by both sectors to make use of the technology. Also, the research covers the opportunities and the advantages of a blockchain adoption in various segments. The paper uses various case studies in the UAE, in both private and government sectors, and a qualitative research approach was implemented. The case studies were on government entities such as Smart Dubai and the Ministry of Health Prevention and also private entities like DP World and Emirates NBD. The paper concludes with recommendations and solutions on how to maximize the benefit of blockchain in the program management industry and how it is improving the decision-making process.展开更多
The paper realizes the importance of communicating with schools to conduct nutritional screening, assessment and intervention programs for obesity and related risk factors to tackle the problem at earlier stage. The s...The paper realizes the importance of communicating with schools to conduct nutritional screening, assessment and intervention programs for obesity and related risk factors to tackle the problem at earlier stage. The screening program was conducted by dietetics＇ students ＂under supervision＂ as part of their practice and community services to apply some assessment method for mritional status. Two intermediate schools for girls in Jeddah city were involved in the screening stage, followed by a full nutritional assessment and implementation of a designed intervention program at one of the schools. At screening stage, interview questionnaires for diet histories and anthropometric measurements used to screen overweight status and related food patterns. National and international references data used for assessment and comparison. Following screening approach, a designed comprehensive nutritional assessment and intervention program was piloted at one of the screened schools for overweight status. For screening stage： the overall prevalence of overweight girls is 61% （n = 81 out of 133） of the population, 73% （n = 91） of girls were centrally obese. Almost 3/4 of all students reported no participations in any type of physical activities/exercises. Dietary behaviors included non-consumption of breakfast （83%） and low intake of fruit and vegetables （38%）. For intervention stage, the present report concentrates on data concerning post intervention changes in Body Mass Index （BMI） and Waist Circumference （WC）. By the 30 days of intervention there were significant changes in values for BMI according to Saudi growth chart （p value = 0.009） with no changes among the control group. No statistically significant difference in the mean WC of the group. Study＇s results suggest that approaching young girls through schools to screen, assess and intervene overweight status and risk factors is vital. Although the non-random selection of only two schools for screening the prevalence of overweight status among school girls prevent the geralizability of the study findings to wider population, previous studies used random selection of schools and large sample sizes showed a high prevalence of overweight status among Saudi students Therefore, designing and piloting of an intervention program for implementation at a national level is useful to tackle theproblem.展开更多
After more than half a year of preparatory work, the CAS announced its initiation of 12 pilot projects on October 14, 1998 as the first step for starting the National Program of Knowledge Innovation (NPKI).
Knowledge innovation and high-tech industrialization are focuses of competition among countries all over the world today. Yet, the innovation capacity of China is not compatible with her economic growth, leaving a big...Knowledge innovation and high-tech industrialization are focuses of competition among countries all over the world today. Yet, the innovation capacity of China is not compatible with her economic growth, leaving a big gap when compared with domestic demand and world standards.展开更多
The construction projects’ dynamic and interconnected nature requires a comprehensive understanding of complexity during pre-construction. Traditional tools such as Gantt charts, CPM, and PERT often overlook uncertai...The construction projects’ dynamic and interconnected nature requires a comprehensive understanding of complexity during pre-construction. Traditional tools such as Gantt charts, CPM, and PERT often overlook uncertainties. This study identifies 20 complexity factors through expert interviews and literature, categorising them into six groups. The Analytical Hierarchy Process evaluated the significance of different factors, establishing their corresponding weights to enhance adaptive project scheduling. A system dynamics (SD) model is developed and tested to evaluate the dynamic behaviour of identified complexity factors. The model simulates the impact of complexity on total project duration (TPD), revealing significant deviations from initial deterministic estimates. Data collection and analysis for reliability tests, including normality and Cronbach alpha, to validate the model’s components and expert feedback. Sensitivity analysis confirmed a positive relationship between complexity and project duration, with higher complexity levels resulting in increased TPD. This relationship highlights the inadequacy of static planning approaches and underscores the importance of addressing complexity dynamically. The study provides a framework for enhancing planning systems through system dynamics and recommends expanding the model to ensure broader applicability in diverse construction projects.展开更多
The current structure of Landmark University (LU) was induced by raising a generation of solution providers through a qualitative and life-applicable training system that focuses on values and creative knowledge by ma...The current structure of Landmark University (LU) was induced by raising a generation of solution providers through a qualitative and life-applicable training system that focuses on values and creative knowledge by making it more responsive and relevant to the modern-day demands of demonstration, industrialization and development. The challenge facing Landmark University is the question of which of its numerous projects they should invest to give maximum output with minimum input. In this paper, we maximize the Net Present Value (NPV) and maintain the net discount cash overflow of each project per period as contained and extracted as the secondary data of cash inflows of the Landmark University (LU) monthly financial statement and annual reports from 2012 to 2017 of which the documents have been regrouped as small and large scale projects as many enterprises make more use of the trial-and-error method and as such firms have been finding it difficult in allocating scarce resources in a manner that will ensure profit maximization and/or cost minimization with a simple and accurate decision making by the company through an optimization principle in selecting LU project under multi-period capital rationing using linear programming (LP) and integer programming (IP). The annual net cash flow which is the difference between the cash inflows and cash outflows during each period for the project was estimated and recorded. The discount factors were estimated at cost of capital of 10% for each cash flow per period with the corresponding NPV at 10% which revealed that the optimal decision achieves maximum returns of $110 × 102 and this assisted the project manager to select a large number of the variable projects that can maximize the profit which is far better than relying on an ad-hoc judgmental approach to project investment that could have cost 160 × 102 for the same project. Sensitivity analysis on the project parameters are also carried out to test the extent to which project selection is sensitive to changes in the parameters of the system revealed that a little reduction and or addition of reduced cost by certain amount or percentages to its corresponding coefficient in the objective function effect no changes in the shadow prices with solution values for variables (x1), (x4), (x5) and the optimal objective function.展开更多
According to the World Health Organization, approximately 3 million deaths are prevented each year in the world thanks to vaccination and then, in addition, each year, it makes it possible to avoid nearly 750,000 chil...According to the World Health Organization, approximately 3 million deaths are prevented each year in the world thanks to vaccination and then, in addition, each year, it makes it possible to avoid nearly 750,000 children suffering from serious physical, mental or neurological handicaps and 1.5 million other deaths could be avoided if the vaccination coverage is improved. However, vaccination coverage is often not achieved due to various difficulties encountered by health providers in the expanded program on vaccination activities. Yet, it is important to strengthen the program. This research paper aimed to assess health providers’ points of view on the impact of the project to strengthen the routine expanded program on vaccination in the Barumbu health zone in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo (RDC). To do so, we surveyed a convenience sample of 234 health providers involved in the implementation of the project, including 210 community relays, 9 permanent nurses, 9 health committee chairpersons and 6 health authorities. A questionnaire related to the objective of the research was submitted to them. After analyzing the data, we found that the points of view of health providers are negative. The performance of the vaccination program was not great. Several reasons were given for this, including the non-involvement of the political and administrative authorities, the failure to respect the funds disbursement circuit and the non-effective financing of vaccination activities in the Barumbu health zone in Kinshasa, DRC.展开更多
基金supported by the National Science and Technology Plan of China (Major Project of the Eleventh Five-Year Plan, Grant No. 2006BAB04A13)the Philosophy and Social Science Fund of Education Department of Jiangsu Province (Grant No. 07SJD630006)+1 种基金the Third Key Discipline (Techno-Economics and Management) of the Project 211the Key Disciplines of Jiangsu Province (Engineering and Project Management)
文摘According to the multi-project and program management theory, this paper analyzes the program generation principle and establishes a program based on progress goals. On the basis of the present situation of calculation of penalty for delay of the bidding section construction period with the critical path method, we studied the effects of contractor-induced delay of the bidding section construction period in detail, including the effects on the construction period of the bidding section itself, the earliest start times of the next bidding section and other subsequent bidding sections, and the construction period of the program, and then constructed a penalty model for delay of the bidding section construction period from the perspective of programs. Using the penalty model, we conducted a practical analysis of penalty for delay of the construction period of the Baoying station program in the South-to-North Water Diversion Project. The model can help determine the amount of penalty for delay of the construction period in bidding sections scientifically and reasonably,
文摘The importance and complexity of prioritizing construction projects (PCP) in urban road network planning lead to the necessity to develop an aided decision making program (ADMP). Cost benefit ratio model and stage rolled method are chosen as the theoretical foundations of the program, and then benefit model is improved to accord with the actuality of urban traffic in China. Consequently, program flows, module functions and data structures are designed, and particularly an original data structure of road ...
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(7107307971222106+2 种基金70901069)the Research Foundation of the National Excellent Doctoral Dissertation of Chinathe Research Fund for the Doctoral Program of Higher Education(20133402110028)
文摘For the gray attributes of the equipment program and its difficulty to carry out the quantitative assessment of the equipment program information, the gray relation projection method is simply reviewed. Combining the super-data envelopment analysis（DEA） model and the gray system theory, a new super-DEA for measuring the weight is proposed, and a gray relation projection model is established to rank the equipment programs. Finally, this approach is used to evaluate the equipment program. The results are verified valid and can provide a new way for evaluating the equipment program.
基金This research was supported by Chinese NNSF grant and NSF grant of Jiangsu Province
文摘A subspace projected conjugate gradient method is proposed for solving large bound constrained quadratic programming. The conjugate gradient method is used to update the variables with indices outside of the active set, while the projected gradient method is used to update the active variables. At every iterative level, the search direction consists of two parts, one of which is a subspace trumcated Newton direction, another is a modified gradient direction. With the projected search the algorithm is suitable to large problems. The convergence of the method is proved and same numerical tests with dimensions ranging from 5000 to 20000 are given.
基金The Spring Plan of Ministry of Education,China(No.Z2012017)
文摘In order to minimize the project duration of resourceconstrained project scheduling problem( RCPSP), a gene expression programming-based scheduling rule( GEP-SR) method is proposed to automatically discover and select the effective scheduling rules( SRs) which are constructed using the project status and attributes of the activities. SRs are represented by the chromosomes of GEP, and an improved parallel schedule generation scheme( IPSGS) is used to transform the SRs into explicit schedules. The framework of GEP-SR for RCPSP is designed,and the effectiveness of the GEP-SR approach is demonstrated by comparing with other methods on the same instances.
基金funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Nos.51875420,51875421,52275504).
文摘Themulti-skill resource-constrained project scheduling problem(MS-RCPSP)is a significantmanagement science problem that extends from the resource-constrained project scheduling problem(RCPSP)and is integrated with a real project and production environment.To solve MS-RCPSP,it is an efficient method to use dispatching rules combined with a parallel scheduling mechanism to generate a scheduling scheme.This paper proposes an improved gene expression programming(IGEP)approach to explore newly dispatching rules that can broadly solve MS-RCPSP.A new backward traversal decoding mechanism,and several neighborhood operators are applied in IGEP.The backward traversal decoding mechanism dramatically reduces the space complexity in the decoding process,and improves the algorithm’s performance.Several neighborhood operators improve the exploration of the potential search space.The experiment takes the intelligent multi-objective project scheduling environment(iMOPSE)benchmark dataset as the training set and testing set of IGEP.Ten newly dispatching rules are discovered and extracted by IGEP,and eight out of ten are superior to other typical dispatching rules.
文摘The investment decision making of Project Gang, the projects that are associated with one another on economy and technique, is studied. In order to find out the best Scheme that can make the maximum profit, a dynamic programming algorithm on the investment decision making of Project Gang is brought forward, and this algorithm can find out the best Scheme of distributing the m resources to the n Items in the time of O(m 2 n).
文摘1 INTRODUCTION The tropical Indo-Pacific Oceans span over twothirds of the global tropical oceans.A major warm pool with the highest large-scale sea surface temperature of the global oceans is located in the western Pacific and eastern Indian Oceans.The climate systems over the tropical Pacific and Indian Oceans are subject to strong ocean-atmosphere coupling at multiple scales from intraseasonal to interannual,and to centennial.The
文摘Regarding construction projects, no project is implemented exactly as planned. Changes in construction projects are common due to the dynamic nature of the construction process. It is necessary to use effective and appropriate tools by project management to support decision-making and control changes during all stages of project implementation. This study examined the effects of change orders through technical programs on construction projects in Jordan and focused on how to overcome these effects by making usual orders that can be handled by each of the contracting parties. Also, this study added an advantage by not addressing the negative effects of change orders, but it provided many positive effects of change orders by using technical programs method, which has not been yet researched in Jordanian studies in particular, and in global studies in general. The researcher used descriptive analytical method by interviews to collect data through nine questions to a random sample of 30 engineers selected form constructions projects in Jordan. The results related to the study questions on the effect of change orders through technical programs on construction projects in Jordan showed that, most of the study samples confirm that change orders through technical programs decrease the cost of the projects, cause no need for more materials, cause no delay in the completion schedule, enhances the quality of work, and increase the productivity of the work force. The study recommended applying integrated change management system with technical supports form different technologies, developing effective innovative and practical solution to manage change orders and increase training programs to qualify and increase engineering skills in dealing with ICT （information and communication technologies） program.
文摘This paper discusses the impact of e-governance powered by blockchain in the project and program management industry. With the rise in technological innovations, many countries have turned to e-governance for efficiency in service delivery, transparency, and decision-making. E-governance backed by blockchain technology entails improving the public services provision by implementing structures of information and communication technologies. There are many challenges with the traditional project management approach that causes organizations and its stakeholders’ cost and time. Thus, the introduction of blockchain has given many organizations a new approach to adopt in order to eliminate the challenges associated with the typical project management approach. In spite of the cutting-edge technology of blockchain and its broad applications in program management and e-governance, there are still many challenges that restrain its adoption on a broader scale. The research discusses the challenges of the blockchain deployment in the program management field and e-governance in private and government sectors and it highlights the efforts put by both sectors to make use of the technology. Also, the research covers the opportunities and the advantages of a blockchain adoption in various segments. The paper uses various case studies in the UAE, in both private and government sectors, and a qualitative research approach was implemented. The case studies were on government entities such as Smart Dubai and the Ministry of Health Prevention and also private entities like DP World and Emirates NBD. The paper concludes with recommendations and solutions on how to maximize the benefit of blockchain in the program management industry and how it is improving the decision-making process.
文摘The paper realizes the importance of communicating with schools to conduct nutritional screening, assessment and intervention programs for obesity and related risk factors to tackle the problem at earlier stage. The screening program was conducted by dietetics＇ students ＂under supervision＂ as part of their practice and community services to apply some assessment method for mritional status. Two intermediate schools for girls in Jeddah city were involved in the screening stage, followed by a full nutritional assessment and implementation of a designed intervention program at one of the schools. At screening stage, interview questionnaires for diet histories and anthropometric measurements used to screen overweight status and related food patterns. National and international references data used for assessment and comparison. Following screening approach, a designed comprehensive nutritional assessment and intervention program was piloted at one of the screened schools for overweight status. For screening stage： the overall prevalence of overweight girls is 61% （n = 81 out of 133） of the population, 73% （n = 91） of girls were centrally obese. Almost 3/4 of all students reported no participations in any type of physical activities/exercises. Dietary behaviors included non-consumption of breakfast （83%） and low intake of fruit and vegetables （38%）. For intervention stage, the present report concentrates on data concerning post intervention changes in Body Mass Index （BMI） and Waist Circumference （WC）. By the 30 days of intervention there were significant changes in values for BMI according to Saudi growth chart （p value = 0.009） with no changes among the control group. No statistically significant difference in the mean WC of the group. Study＇s results suggest that approaching young girls through schools to screen, assess and intervene overweight status and risk factors is vital. Although the non-random selection of only two schools for screening the prevalence of overweight status among school girls prevent the geralizability of the study findings to wider population, previous studies used random selection of schools and large sample sizes showed a high prevalence of overweight status among Saudi students Therefore, designing and piloting of an intervention program for implementation at a national level is useful to tackle theproblem.
文摘After more than half a year of preparatory work, the CAS announced its initiation of 12 pilot projects on October 14, 1998 as the first step for starting the National Program of Knowledge Innovation (NPKI).
文摘Knowledge innovation and high-tech industrialization are focuses of competition among countries all over the world today. Yet, the innovation capacity of China is not compatible with her economic growth, leaving a big gap when compared with domestic demand and world standards.
文摘The construction projects’ dynamic and interconnected nature requires a comprehensive understanding of complexity during pre-construction. Traditional tools such as Gantt charts, CPM, and PERT often overlook uncertainties. This study identifies 20 complexity factors through expert interviews and literature, categorising them into six groups. The Analytical Hierarchy Process evaluated the significance of different factors, establishing their corresponding weights to enhance adaptive project scheduling. A system dynamics (SD) model is developed and tested to evaluate the dynamic behaviour of identified complexity factors. The model simulates the impact of complexity on total project duration (TPD), revealing significant deviations from initial deterministic estimates. Data collection and analysis for reliability tests, including normality and Cronbach alpha, to validate the model’s components and expert feedback. Sensitivity analysis confirmed a positive relationship between complexity and project duration, with higher complexity levels resulting in increased TPD. This relationship highlights the inadequacy of static planning approaches and underscores the importance of addressing complexity dynamically. The study provides a framework for enhancing planning systems through system dynamics and recommends expanding the model to ensure broader applicability in diverse construction projects.
文摘The current structure of Landmark University (LU) was induced by raising a generation of solution providers through a qualitative and life-applicable training system that focuses on values and creative knowledge by making it more responsive and relevant to the modern-day demands of demonstration, industrialization and development. The challenge facing Landmark University is the question of which of its numerous projects they should invest to give maximum output with minimum input. In this paper, we maximize the Net Present Value (NPV) and maintain the net discount cash overflow of each project per period as contained and extracted as the secondary data of cash inflows of the Landmark University (LU) monthly financial statement and annual reports from 2012 to 2017 of which the documents have been regrouped as small and large scale projects as many enterprises make more use of the trial-and-error method and as such firms have been finding it difficult in allocating scarce resources in a manner that will ensure profit maximization and/or cost minimization with a simple and accurate decision making by the company through an optimization principle in selecting LU project under multi-period capital rationing using linear programming (LP) and integer programming (IP). The annual net cash flow which is the difference between the cash inflows and cash outflows during each period for the project was estimated and recorded. The discount factors were estimated at cost of capital of 10% for each cash flow per period with the corresponding NPV at 10% which revealed that the optimal decision achieves maximum returns of $110 × 102 and this assisted the project manager to select a large number of the variable projects that can maximize the profit which is far better than relying on an ad-hoc judgmental approach to project investment that could have cost 160 × 102 for the same project. Sensitivity analysis on the project parameters are also carried out to test the extent to which project selection is sensitive to changes in the parameters of the system revealed that a little reduction and or addition of reduced cost by certain amount or percentages to its corresponding coefficient in the objective function effect no changes in the shadow prices with solution values for variables (x1), (x4), (x5) and the optimal objective function.
文摘According to the World Health Organization, approximately 3 million deaths are prevented each year in the world thanks to vaccination and then, in addition, each year, it makes it possible to avoid nearly 750,000 children suffering from serious physical, mental or neurological handicaps and 1.5 million other deaths could be avoided if the vaccination coverage is improved. However, vaccination coverage is often not achieved due to various difficulties encountered by health providers in the expanded program on vaccination activities. Yet, it is important to strengthen the program. This research paper aimed to assess health providers’ points of view on the impact of the project to strengthen the routine expanded program on vaccination in the Barumbu health zone in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo (RDC). To do so, we surveyed a convenience sample of 234 health providers involved in the implementation of the project, including 210 community relays, 9 permanent nurses, 9 health committee chairpersons and 6 health authorities. A questionnaire related to the objective of the research was submitted to them. After analyzing the data, we found that the points of view of health providers are negative. The performance of the vaccination program was not great. Several reasons were given for this, including the non-involvement of the political and administrative authorities, the failure to respect the funds disbursement circuit and the non-effective financing of vaccination activities in the Barumbu health zone in Kinshasa, DRC.
