Thesis (M.S.)--Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 1993. / Vita. Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 178-185). Also available via the Internet.

Thesis (M. Eng.)--Carleton University, 1988. / Also available in electronic format on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Aberdeen University, 2008. / Title from web page (viewed on Apr. 29, 2009). Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.A.)--City University of Hong Kong, 2007. / Title from PDF t.p. (viewed on Sept. 7, 2007) "LW6409A dissertation of MA arbitration and dispute resolution" Includes bibliographical references.

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The use of ready-mixed concrete primarily involves two parties, the supplier and the customer (who is usually a construction contractor), although others may be involved. Ready-mixed concrete is not only a product, it is also a service. This implies that the supply of ready-mixed concrete should satisfy the customers' needs in relation to both quality and supply. To satisfy quality requirements, ready-mixed concrete must contain suitable materials, and be produced under conditions of quality control by experienced staff using reliable equipment To meet the supply requirement, it must be delivered at the time and rate required. Based on the findings in several surveys and studies, the UK ready-mixed concrete industry appears to meet the quality requirement quite well. However, the service provided to the customers could be improved. In addition, the industry's efficiency is not satisfactory when compared to its counterparts in other European countries such as Germany. Due to the peculiar characteristics of the product, which has a "shelf life" of only a few hours, and the unpredictable nature of the operating environment, the planning and scheduling problems of the production and delivery activities are usually unstructured and complex. In practice, UK ready-mixed concrete companies rely on their shippers' personal experience or intuition to make their planning and scheduling decisions. This research explored the feasibility of using a knowledge-based decision support system for planning' and scheduling the production and delivery of ready-mixed concrete. A prototype called ISRMC has been successfully developed as a result of a study of the operations of concrete production and construction as well as the ready-mixed concrete production and delivery process and detailed collection of knowledge from various sources.

M.Com. (Informatics) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

This thesis reports the research which led to the development of the P.R .O. Expert System Shell. The P.R.O . System is primarily, though not exclusively , designed for use in ecological domains. In the light of two specific expert systems, The RCS (River Conservation Status) and the Aquaculture Systems, which were developed as part of this research, a number of areas of importance have been identified. The most significant of these is the need to handle uncertainty effectively. The style of knowledge representation to be implemented also plays an important role. After consulting the relevant literature and the available microcomputer expert system shells, a number of ideas have been included in the P.R.O. System. The P.R.O . System is a backward chaining, production system based expert system shell. It embodies a simple but effective method of handling uncertainty. An important feature of this method is that it takes cognizance of the different relative importances of the conditions which need to be satisfied before a conclusion can be reached. The knowledge base consists of more than rules and questions. It also contains meta-knowledge, which is used by the inference engine. The P.R.O. System has been designed to be of practical use. Its strongest recommendations are therefore, that the two non-trivial systems which have been implemented in it, have been accepted by the experts and their peers as systems which produce good, accurate answers . / KMBT_363 / Adobe Acrobat 9.53 Paper Capture Plug-in