M.M. Kablan’s research while affiliated with Mutah University and other places

Specific applications of fuzzy logic in project management are relatively few in comparison to other application areas. The criteria of project cost, project time, and project quality may be considered as project management internal measures of efficiency. The objective of this research is to present an approach that employs fuzzy decision making (FDM) to combine these three measures into one measure namely the project management internal efficiency (PMIE) which should represent an overall estimate of how well the project was managed and executed. The proposed approach for the evaluation of PMIE is illustrated on a case study. A fuzzy decision making system is designed and implemented using the MATLAB software for the evaluation of the PMIE The methodology and procedure proposed in this research may be easily implemented by project management organizations. The evaluation of PMIE can serve for project managers and for project organizations as an indicator for the level of achievement of the project management internal objectives. PMIE may help in the evaluation of the performance of project teams.

This paper presents a modeling framework that emphasizes the integration of the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) in the quality function deployment (QFD) process. Many Japanese and US firms who have employed QFD reported product development time reduction by 33% to 50% and cost reduction by 60% while improving quality. The use of AHP in conjunction with QFD is not widely used in either Japan or US (Cristiano et al., 1993). One of the major strengths of AHP is that it ensures the consistency of judgments by the customers, technical people, and decision-makers. The absolute weights of the technical specifications on achieving customer requirements is determined using AHP. Two adjustment factors of the technical specifications are proposed in this paper. The first is called the technical competitiveness adjustment factor and the second is called the ease of implementation adjustment factor where resources availability and their effect in implementing each of the technical specifications is considered. The final priorities of the technical specifications are found using their absolute weights and the two adjustment factors. These final priorities can be helpful to management to determine in what order they should implement the technical specifications so that customer requirements are well deployed in the product within the given capabilities and resources of the company. The applicability of the model is illustrated at an air-conditioning manufacturing company.

An effective energy conservation program in any country should encourage the different enterprises, utilities and individuals to employ energy efficient processes, technologies, equipment, and materials. Governments use different mechanisms or policy instruments such as pricing policy (PP), regulation and legislation (RL), training and education, fiscal and financial incentives (FFI), and R&D to promote energy conservation. Effective implementation of energy conservation policies requires prioritization of the different available policy instruments. This paper presents an analytic hierarchy process (AHP) based modeling framework for the prioritization of energy conservation policy instruments. The use of AHP to support management in the prioritization process of policy instruments for promoting energy conservation is illustrated in this research using the case study of Jordan. The research provided a comprehensive framework for performing the prioritization in a scientific and systematic manner. The four most promising policy instruments for promoting energy conservation in Jordan are RL (37.4%), followed by FFI (22.2%), PP (18.0%), and Training, education and qualification (14.5%). One of the major advantages of the use of the AHP approach is that it breaks a large problem into smaller problems which enables the decision-maker (DM) to have a better concentration and to make more sound decisions. In addition, AHP employs a consistency test that can screen out inconsistent judgements. The presented methodology of the research might be beneficial to DMs in other countries.

Jordan, like many other developing countries, depends heavily on imported oil. Solar water heating systems (SWHS) in Jordan have a high share among the renewable energy sources in the total mix of the energy consumed. In recent years, the demand for SWHS is decreasing because of the high initial investment of the system. Many people are starting to use gas geyser systems (GGS) to secure their daily hot water needs instead of the SWHS because the former has relatively a low initial investment. In this research, we compare the economic feasibility of a SWHS that has a built-in electric coil to provide for hot water needs during cold days with the economic feasibility of a GGS. The author prepared for this purpose a spreadsheet on Excel that incorporated the necessary formulas and parameters governing the economics of the two systems. The resulting spreadsheet facilitates the evaluation of the annual cost of each system for any assumed scenario of the values of the parameters. The use of Excel was extremely powerful because any change in any parameter was linked directly to a change in the graphs which was very useful for purposes of the sensitivity analysis of the parameters. The SWHS is more economical as long as electricity is used to heat water for less than 120 days which applies for the case of the weather conditions of Jordan. The optimal operation life for a SWHS in Jordan is 20 years and for a GGS is 7 years. The research presents some policies that promote increased utilization of SWHS. The presented methodology of economic analysis can be useful for the comparison of other competitive technical systems.

An effective energy conservation program in any country should encourage the different enterprises, utilities and individuals to employ energy efficient processes, technologies, equipment, and materials. Governments use different mechanisms or policy instruments such as pricing policy (PP), regulation and legislation (RL), training and education, fiscal and financial incentives (FFI), and R&D to promote energy conservation. Effective implementation of energy conservation policies requires prioritization of the different available policy instruments. This paper presents an analytic hierarchy process (AHP) based modeling framework for the prioritization of energy conservation policy instruments. The use of AHP to support management in the prioritization process of policy instruments for promoting energy conservation is illustrated in this research using the case study of Jordan. The research provided a comprehensive framework for performing the prioritization in a scientific and systematic manner. The four most promising policy instruments for promoting energy conservation in Jordan are RL (37.4%), followed by FFI (22.2%), PP (18.0%), and Training, education and qualification (14.5%). One of the major advantages of the use of the AHP approach is that it breaks a large problem into smaller problems which enables the decision-maker (DM) to have a better concentration and to make more sound decisions. In addition, AHP employs a consistency test that can screen out inconsistent judgements. The presented methodology of the research might be beneficial to DMs in other countries.

This paper presents insights into the energy problem in Jordan and specifically into the energy conservation status in the industrial sector in Jordan. The results of a recent survey of the energy consumption of the industrial sector were used to draw deductions about the energy conservation situation. The country of Jordan imports oil from its neighboring countries to cover about 94% of its total energy demand. In the year 2000, the annual share of the industrial sector of the final energy consumption of the country is around 23%. Energy conservation in the industrial sector is a crucial area for energy saving. Many representatives of industrial firms are reluctant to participate in energy conservation projects because they think that the investment in energy-saving equipment may result in higher prices for their products, which may lead to reducing their competitiveness in the local market. Some managers are resistant to change because they do not know how to implement an energy conservation project. This research proposes a methodology for the effective implementation of energy conservation projects for Jordanian industries. The proposed methodology is useful for other countries.

Jordan is an example of a developing country that depends almost exclusively on imported oil. Luckily, Jordan is blessed with good solar energy resources. However, only 24% of Jordanian families are installing solar water heating systems (SWHS). The objective of this research is to forecast the yearly demand on SWHS by the household sector during the period 2001–2005 and to compute the potential energy savings throughout the investigated period due to the use of SWHS. It is found that the net energy collected over the entire investigated period is about 1454.4 million kW h. In addition, the capital savings over the entire investigated period is estimated to be 46.28 million US$ if SWHS are used to heat water instead of the commonly used LPG gas cookers. The results of the research may assist decision makers in the energy sector to implement more comprehensive plans that encourage more families to install SWHS and save on imported oil.

Maintaining a temperature level of about 40°C, the optimum temperature for mesophilic bacteria’s growth and activity, is crucial for obtaining the best results with respect to biogas production. This study investigates the utilization of solar energy for heating a bioreactor that was already developed at our laboratory and is currently in operation. For purposes of this study, a solar collector combined with a heat exchanger are designed, manufactured, and installed to provide the necessary heating requirements for a water jacket around the bioreactor. In addition, an inexpensive PID (proportional. integral, and differential) controller was also designed, installed, and tested to maintain a constant temperature of 40°C in the water-jacket around the bioreactor. The theoretical efficiency of the solar collector was computed and found to be about 61%. The controller action was seen to be very effective and a prompt response for little variation in the temperature of the water jacket (ΔT=1 K) was noticed. Moreover, the internal rate of return of the investment in such solar heating system was found to be 32.7%, which indicates that we have an attractive investment.

Jordan is an example of a third world country that is non-oil producing but contains huge reserves of other energy sources such as tar sand, oil shale, and olive cake. Some limited research is available about how to utilize these energy sources in pure form. However, available research does not deal with combinations of these energy sources. This experimental study investigates combinations of these energy forms as potential energy sources in Jordan. The experimental procedure involves characterization of samples by proximate analysis, calorific value determination of different combinations, and a compacting process of the different particles. The best combination, with respect to calorific value, is found to be 20% tar sand, 20% olive cake, and 60% oil shale. Compacting materials either with starch or with heated tar sand up to 110°C for 1 h indicates a feasible process for handling, packaging, and transporting.

In this study, an investigation of the potential of olive cake, which is available in large amounts in many developing countries and at very low cost, as a source of energy is conducted. The effect of olive cake grain size on its calorific value was studied. A process for intacting grains of olive cake in a suitable shape for handling, packaging and storing is proposed. A bench scale model to prepare intact samples was designed and fabricated. Proximate analysis of the olive cake indicated that olive cake has an excellent potential to be a renewable source of energy. Moreover, the calorific values of olive cake and oil shale mixtures, to catalyse oil shale combustion, is studied.