http://hdl.handle.net/10071/5823 2026-04-07T17:25:37Z http://hdl.handle.net/10071/35331 Título próprio: Parcel delivery services: A sectorization approach with simulation Autoria: Lopes, I.; Rodrigues, A.; Ozturk, E.; Ferreira, J.; Nunes, A. C.; Rocha, P.; Oliveira, C. Editor: João Paulo Almeida; Filipe Pereira e Alvelos; Jorge Orestes Cerdeira; Samuel Moniz; Cristina Requejo Resumo: Sectorization problems, also known as districting or territory design, deal with grouping a set of previously defined basic units, such as points or small geographical areas, into a fixed number of sectors or responsibility areas. Usually, there are multiple criteria to be satisfied regarding the geographic characteristics of the territory or the planning purposes. This work addresses a case study of parcel delivery services in the region of Porto, Portugal. Using knowledge about the daily demand in each basic unit (7-digit postal code), the authors analysed data and used it to simulate dynamically new daily demands according to the relative frequency of service in each basic unit and the statistical distribution of the number of parcels to be delivered in each basic unit. The sectorization of the postal codes is solved independently considering two objectives (equilibrium and compactness) using Non-dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm-II (NSGA-II) implemented in Python. 2023-01-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/10071/31182 Título próprio: Towards a unified framework for routing and scheduling planning in an integrated continuous care unit Autoria: Godinho, M. T.; Lopes, M. J. Editor: Roberto Aringhieri; Francesca Maggioni; Ettore Lanzarone; Melanie Reuter-Oppermann; Giovanni Righini; Maria Teresa Vespucci Resumo: We study a real world routing and scheduling problem arising in home health care context. Requisites defined by stakeholders are introduced and examined. Then, the problem is modeled as a Time-constrained Vehicle Routing Problem with Time Windows and a new Single Commodity Flow Formulation is proposed. Valid Inequalities to enhance the model are presented. Extensions of the problem, such as aggregating different types of care and of ensuring a threshold on the difference between the duration of the routes, are also discussed. We discuss the results obtained from a set of computational tests on instances adapted from the literature. 2023-01-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/10071/29239 Título próprio: Developing a system for sectorization: An overview Autoria: Öztürk, E. L.; Sousa, F. S. de.; Lima, M. M.; Rocha, P. F.; Rodrigues, A. M.; Ferreira, J. S.; Nunes, A. C.; Lopes, I. C.; Oliveira, C. T. Editor: Almeida, J. P., Geraldes, C. S., Lopes, I. C., Moniz, S., Oliveira, J. F., and Pinto, A. A. Resumo: Sectorization is the partition of a set or region into smaller parts, taking into account certain objectives. Sectorization problems appear in real-life situations, such as school or health districting, logistic planning, maintenance operations or transportation. The diversity of applications, the complexity of the problems and the difficulty in finding good solutions warrant sectorization as a relevant research area. Decision Support Systems (DSS) are computerised information systems that may provide quick solutions to decision-makers and researchers and allow for observing differences between various scenarios. The paper is an overview of the development of a DSS for Sectorization, its extent, architecture, implementation steps and benefits. It constitutes a quite general system, for it handles various types of problems, which the authors grouped as (i) basic sectorization problems; (ii) sectorization problems with service centres; (iii) re-sectorization problems; and (iv) dynamic sectorization problems. The new DSS is expected to facilitate the resolution of various practitioners’ problems and support researchers, academics and students in sectorization. 2023-01-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/10071/27322 Título próprio: Working from home during COVID-19 lockdown: Changing competencies and work-home life boundaries Autoria: Almeida, J.; Silva, M. G. Editor: Florinda Matos e Álvaro Rosa Resumo: Crisis situations often introduces drastic lifestyle changes. This study is focused on the COVID-19 pandemic and aims to shed light on an unprecedented context of forcing employees to work from home with a short notice of companies and the government. The goal is three-fold: i) to understand the extent to which employees were indeed prepared to work from home; ii) to uncover the most important competencies that enabled employees to deal better with a crisis situation, such as the COVID-19 pandemic; and iii) to discuss the real impact that working from home had in the employees’ lives during the pandemic situation and the quarantine period. Using narrative inquiry, this study explores the experiences of 18 young adult consultants working in different business areas, in Portugal. Semi-structure interviews were conducting during the third wave (12/2020 – 03/2021) and thematic analysis was used to analysis the transcripts. The analysis revealed three main themes: ‘management competencies’, ‘work-life balance’ and ‘work flexibility’. Each theme consisted of several subthemes which illustrates how the participants perceived working from home and the factors that reflect their experiences and understanding. The research findings illustrate that interpersonal communication, anxiety and stress management, time management, and e-leadership are vital skills to cause a great impact on participants’ productivity and well-being at work. Participants all appeared to notice that working from home provides a better work-life balance (e.g. saving time on daily commute) and more flexibility with regards to the work schedule and home commitments. Nonetheless, their experiences of home working depend on the personal situation, personality and the perceived management support offered during the COVID-19 lockdown. The research highlights a need to train employees on soft skills and prepare them to future crisis situations. Theoretical implications suggest that academics should expand research and interventions to include not only the work environment but also other external factors that affect employees. The limitations of the study and recommendations for future research are suggested. 2022-01-01T00:00:00Z