TOBB ETÜ Students Won the Operational Research and Industrial Engineering Competition, 2016

The students of TOBB ETÜ, Faculty of Engineering, Department of Industrial Engineering, won the project competition in the “36th National Convention on Operational Research and Industrial Engineering (YA/EM)” organized since 1975. Our students came in first with their senior design project, titled "Logistics Optimization Through WCM Methodology in Production Spaces", implemented at Konya Ice Cream Factory of Unilever-Algida, which was supported with the capacity of advisor by Assistant Prof. Dr. Salih Tekin. 

The TOBB ETÜ team, which won the competition, was composed of Elif Nur Demirpolat, Zeynep Şeyma Öztürk, Nilda Uzgören, Ceren Yılmaz and Ceren Vergili, being the students of the Department of Industrial Engineering. The competition, participated by 48 university teams, was held during the Congress, organized between July 13 and 15, 2016. TOBB ETÜ teams, which have been regularly taking part in YAEM events since 2010, won the first prize in 2011, and the third prize in 2012, 2013, and 2014.

What does the project bring?

By way of "Logistics Optimization Through WCM Methodology in Production Spaces"; a comprehensive carriage system, which determined in what amounts, how and on what route the materials should be carried to the track ends, has been developed for the three-car train system, which could not be used on account of the lack of a proper plan. Because, the then currently used existing pallet-based supply system caused agglomerations. The system, which has partially started to be implemented at the said factory, enabled the reduction by 78% of the material agglomerations at the track ends.  
The senior design projects, which are conducted in two semesters at many universities, have been being conducted in a single semester at TOBB ETÜ due to the University's cooperative education schedule, as a part of which one academic year is divided into 3 semesters. The project, which came in first at the competition, is also unique for having been completed within a shorter period of time compared to the other competing projects. 

The Competition Is Organized by the Operational Research Association (YAD) 

Operational research refers to the application of scientific methods in general, and mathematical methods in particular, for the review and solution of complicated problems, and the means to apply and the direction to take with respect to a specific piece of work. The Operational Research Association (YAD), in turn, was established in 1975, in order to contribute to the promotion, expansion, and implementation of operational research in Turkey. YA/EM Conventions are among the most established professional and scientific organizations held in Turkey on an annual basis. Each year, the Convention is held under the sponsorship of another Department of Industrial Engineering

As a tradition of the Convention, YA/EM student project competition covers project work undergraduate students engage in in the fields of industrial engineering - operational research. Leading universities of Turkey submit numerous projects to compete in the event. The projects are then evaluated with reference to a number of criteria including the definition and importance of the problem involved, correct and appropriate use of YA/EM perspectives, authentic value of the project, its independence from existing projects, potential and wide-spread effects and applicability, the success of the results achieved, and the authoring of the report.