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Failure prioritization process is described by identifying potential failures and its effects, quantifying their priorities and determining appropriate ways to mitigate or control. In the literature, many approaches are suggested to prioritize failures and associated effects quantitatively. Multicriteria decision-making (MCDM) approaches are forefront that they can express the failures verbally based on decision-makers’ judgments. They explain different types of uncertainties, which are generally modeled by fuzzy sets. However, fuzzy sets focus only on one membership value in decision-making. At this point, neutrosophic sets are more suitable than classical fuzzy sets by proposing three membership values named truth-membership, indeterminacy-membership and falsity-membership. Therefore, in this study, a novel approach based on the neutrosophic best and worst method (NBWM) is proposed and a case study is also performed in the implant production. The best and worst method (BWM) is merged with neutrosophic sets since it has fewer pairwise comparisons while determining the importance weights of failures. To show the applicability of the approach, a case study in an implant manufacturing plant that produces many products, including implants in different shapes and sizes in Turkey is carried out. Besides the case study, a comparative study is performed to test the validity of the proposed NBWM approach. This approach can make the decision-making process more dynamic in real-world problems with indeterminate and inconsistent information, considering the benefits of BWM and neutrosophic sets either individually or in integration. The present study contributes to the knowledge both methodologically and in an application by proposing NBWM for failure assessment problems for the first time in the literature and creating an adaptive model for manufacturing and other industries.

Solar energy stands out with its increasing potential in the world. The decision to choose the location of a solar power plant is very important due to the investment return. In this study, a solar power plant site selection for Tunceli, Turkey is studied with a two-stage multi-criteria decision-making approach. In the first stage, the importance levels of the determined nine factors are obtained by the best-worst method (BWM). In the second stage, the most appropriate site is selected among the eight districts of Tunceli. As a result of the first stage, solar and fault line emerged as the most and least important factor, respectively. The second stage showed that Pertek district is the most suitable place. A comparative framework has been created including five different MCDM methods, which strengthens the final decision's accuracy and reveals whether each method's results are correlated.

Assessing and improving energy efficiency is crucial for addressing the problems of climate change and global warming. This study evaluates the performance of each Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) nation based on the weights obtained by Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA), combined with a modified Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to an Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) method based on the concept of the aspiration level (called modified TOPSIS-AL). Objective weights are obtained for each country through DEA. This method offers an effective improvement over the previous methods which only use the same subjective weights for the calculation. In addition, our model is also able to account for negative environmental externalities generated during development and provides a comprehensive assessment system for the evaluation of national sustainable development. The findings indicate that the member nations are gradually adopting policies to reduce fossil fuel consumption. However, regional analysis showed that the overall performance of the G7 nations differed significantly from that of the non-G7 nations. The importance of this study lies in the fact that energy consumption not only creates environmental burdens but also affects resource production patterns and productivity. By evaluating the performance of nations in terms of energy efficiency and environmental impact, we aim to address the challenges posed by energy consumption for sustainable development. The proposed hybrid model offers several advantages, including a comprehensive assessment system, consideration of negative externalities, and practical policy recommendations.

The importance of risk assessment in the context of occupational health and safety by manufacturing operators strengthens their hands in solving the problems they may encounter in business processes related to health and safety. One of the most important phases of conducting an exhaustive occupational risk assessment is to analyze potential hazards and associated risks quantitatively. Since manufacturing is one of the industries that require workers to be highly exposed to work, creating a safer environment to reduce occupational injuries is an important task. This study proposes a novel fuzzy risk assessment approach developed by integrating Fermatean fuzzy sets (FFSs) and technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS) method for ranking potential hazards in manufacturing. FFSs are a new version of fuzzy set theory that covers the intuitionistic fuzzy sets and Pythagorean fuzzy sets. This version of the fuzzy set is crucial in the decision-making process to handle uncertain information more easily and reflect uncertainty better. A linguistic scale under Fermatean fuzzy documentation has also been developed for experts/decision makers to disclose their judgments easily. Occupational risk analysts can benefit from this approach since FFSs are used for the first time in occupational risk assessment, and the approach is presented in integration with TOPSIS. The proposed approach is applied in the aluminum plate-manufacturing process risk assessment. In the conclusion of the implementation, risks arising in the production are prioritized. In addition, this study made comparisons with other fuzzy methods to demonstrate the proposed approach’s difference and practicality. This study’s results can support practitioners and risk analysts in formulating the improvement measures to increase the safety of the work environment further.

Ports are complex systems that play a crucial role in the transportation of maritime-related products and services. Since ports face various safety issues in design, installation, operation and maintenance processes, there are many aspects open for improvement in Occupational Health and Safety risk assessment and it is required to deal with risks, reduce them to an acceptable level and control. To struggle with emerging risks and manage this process better, a risk assessment framework is proposed for ports in this study. A case study is performed in a Turkish international port authority using the proposed framework. Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (FAHP), which is a commonly used fuzzy multi-criteria decision-making method, was used in weighting two risk factors: likelihoodand severity. The orders of priority of hazards were then determined by a fuzzy-based VIKOR method based on the output of FAHP. The proposed framework overcomes some drawbacks, including a lack of assignment on the weight to two risk assessment factors and lack of the high dependence of the prioritisation on the experts’ opinions. To validate the results, a sensitivity analysis was conducted. In conclusion, the study contributes to the applicability of the proposed framework to assess the risks in ports and provides a distinct risk prioritisation.

ABSTRACTEmergency departments (EDs) provide medical treatment for a broad spectrum of illnesses and injuries to patients who arrive at all hours of the day. The quality and efficient delivery of health care in EDs are associated with a number of factors, such as patient overall length of stay (LOS) and admission, prompt ambulance diversion, quick and accurate triage, nurse and physician assessment, diagnostic and laboratory services, consultations and treatment. One of the most important ways to plan the healthcare delivery efficiently is to make forecasts of ED processes. The aim this study is thus to provide an exhaustive review for ED stakeholders interested in applying forecasting methods to their ED processes. A categorisation, analysis and interpretation of 102 papers is performed for review. This exhaustive review provides an insight for researchers and practitioners about forecasting in EDs in terms of showing current state and potential areas for future attempts.

The field of occupational health and safety (OHS) focuses on reducing occupational accidents to an acceptable level. OHS covers systematic efforts aimed at providing employee health, safety and welfare in the workplace. This study proposes a new approach for risk assessment in the field of OHS. It integrates the Pythagorean fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (PFAHP) and fuzzy VlseKriterijumska Optimizacija I Kompromisno Resenje (FVIKOR) into a risk assessment process. The PFAHP is used in weighting the risk parameters. FVIKOR is then applied to prioritize the hazards. To demonstrate the applicability and validity of the proposed approach, a case study of a barrel external surface oxidation and colouring unit of a gun and rifle production facility is performed. A comparison is also provided between the proposed approach and an intuitionistic fuzzy sets-based approach. The proposed approach is found to produce reliable outcomes that better represent the vagueness of the decision-making process.

Occupational Risk Assessment (ORA) is so crucial for safety management in the weapons industry since numerous hazards may lead to human casualties. Therefore, occupational health and safety stakeholders suggest proactive approaches in reducing risks to an acceptable level. Therefore, this paper aims to develop a novel hybrid ORA model for the weapons industry. The approach merges TODIM with Fine-Kinney concept. Risk parameters used in traditional Fine-Kinney method are weighted by Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (FAHP). Then, hazards and associated risks are prioritised using the approach. As an illustration, the gun and rifle assembly line of a weapon factory is handled. The application is carried out to improve operational safety and protect employee health. From both theoretical and practice aspects, it contributes to the literature by handling the problem in an integrated style of Fine-Kinney, FAHP and TODIM and by improving overall safety level of the observed factory and by suggesting potential action plans.

There are a wide range of chemical cargoes carried in chemical tankers. The chemical tankers are carrying hazardous chemical cargoes in their cargo tanks. When carrying hazardous chemicals in cargo tanks, the coating is required which is to provide safety barrier between the hull plate and the cargo. Therefore, capabilities of cargo tanks are of paramount importance for safe and efficient transport. Tank coatings to be applied to chemical tankers are epoxy coatings, zinc silicate coating, stainless steel coating, and marine line coating. This paper aims at conducting a numerical performance analysis of tank coatings in chemical tankers to contribute decision-making process of shipowner and safety professionals. To achieve this purpose, a multi-criterion decision-making (MCDM) tool is adopted: An Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) and Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to an Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) under interval type-2 fuzzy set (IT2Fs) environment. The outcomes of the numerical performance analysis showed that stainless steel type tank coating has the best performance since result of closeness coefficient value c(xj) is found 0.55. The findings of the research will contribute chemical tanker ship owners, safety inspectors, naval architects, and safety professionals during decision-making process of ideal cargo tank coating.

•Emergency department ergonomic design is studied.•An adapted check-list and FDEMATEL-based methodology is proposed.•A case study is carried out a training and research hospital ED.•FDEMATEL reflects the causal relationships among criteria through a cause-effect relationship diagram.•Suggestions are provided on accessibility, physical spaces, structures and equipment, patient and personnel accommodations and personnel privacy.

The alternatives selection problem with multi-criteria in stochastic form variables is called as stochastic multi-criteria decision-making. The stochasticity of the criteria is considered using stochastic dominance, prospect theory, and regret theory. In this paper, a total 61 papers are reviewed and analyzed based on method(s) used in stochastic multi-criteria decision-making problem, method used in stochasticity, specific objective, application area, and so on classification. All papers with respect to classification aspects are examined their real or empirical applications. Moreover, the studies are statistically investigated to present the latest trends of stochastic multi-criteria decision-making. This detailed review study ensures a comprehension for researchers on stochastic multi-criteria decision-making in respect of showing up-to-date literature and potential research areas to be concentrated in the future. It is observed that the stochastic multi-criteria decision-making problem has an attractive approach by researchers.

Risk analysis (RA) contains several methodologies that object to ensure the protection and safety of occupational stakeholders. Multi attribute decision-making (MADM) is one of the most important RA methodologies that is applied to several areas from manufacturing to information technology. With the widespread use of computer networks and the Internet, information security has become very important. Information security is vital as institutions are mostly dependent on information, technology, and systems. This requires a comprehensive and effective implementation of information security RA. Analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS) are commonly used MADM methods and recently used for RA. In this study, a new RA methodology is proposed based on AHP–TOPSIS integration extended with Pythagorean fuzzy sets. AHP strengthened by interval-valued Pythagorean fuzzy numbers is used to weigh risk parameters with expert judgment. Then, TOPSIS with Pythagorean fuzzy numbers is used to prioritize previously identified risks. A comparison of the proposed approach with three approaches (classical RA method, Pythagorean fuzzy VIKOR and Pythagorean fuzzy MOORA) is also provided. To illustrate the feasibility and practicality of the proposed approach, a case study for information security RA in corrugated cardboard sector is executed.

•Wish to contribute in terms of fuzzy decision making on material selection.•The fuzzy-PROMETHEE method based on trapezoidal fuzzy numbers.•New application of PROMETHEE for material selection problem.•The proposed method is tested by using correlation coefficient.•The proposed method is compared with VIKOR and other MCDM methods.

Emergency departments (EDs) have an important position in healthcare system environment because of their serviceability to the patients with several illnesses and injuries at all hours of the day and night. Therefore, efficient management of these departments by executives and service providers is only possible with effective tools such as simulation. The concept of multiple criteria decision-making (MCDM) is applicable by computer simulation for decision analysis and performance evaluation of an ED. This study proposes an integration of computer simulation, MCDM methods of interval type-2 fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (IT2FAHP), and ELECTRE for an ED system in a university hospital. Due to the high uncertainty in ED operations, interval type-2 fuzzy sets (IT2FSs) are used in MCDM process. Consequently, the integrated method can be used as a useful tool to evaluate the ED performance and select the best scenario considering different numbers of nurses and doctors for three shifts. [Received 30 July 2013; Revised 9 February 2015; Accepted 14 June 2015]