Browsing by Author "Fernando, M"

Now showing 1 - 8 of 8

item: Conference-Full-text
Assessing the oil supply chain risk in Sri Lankan petroleum industry
(IEEE, 2021-07) Fernando, M; Sigera, I; Adhikariwatte, W; Rathnayake, M; Hemachandra, K
Energy security is a critical challenge in today's world. The petroleum product supply chain is highly uncertain due to geopolitical tension and inherent complexity. Sri Lankan petroleum product requirement entirely relies on the global oil supply chain. The research was planned to study the oil supply chain risk in Sri Lanka. Risk factors and disruptions were identified using a literature review and a pilot survey. The expert opinion survey was conducted along with probability impact analysis to assess the risk factors. It was highlighted that the lack of infrastructure facilities is the main barrier to ensure energy security in Sri Lanka. Gasoline was identified as the most vulnerable refined product type due to ever-increasing demand. Subsequently, a forecasting model was developed using ARIMA to determine the future Gasoline demand. It was revealed that additional monthly Gasoline shipment will be required in the next two years' time.
item: Article-Full-text
Barriers to optimize the upstream of the tea smallholding supply chain in Sri Lanka
(Department of, 2023) Fernando, M; Ratnayake, C; Perera, N; Thibbotuwawa, A
Sri Lanka is the world’s fourth-largest tea producer and prime orthodox variety supplier. In Sri Lanka, tea export earnings peaked in 2014 at USD 1.56 billion, and the industry managed to record USD 1.3 billion in 2021, regardless of the increased cost of production and lower yields. The majority (75%) of total tea production is supplied by tea smallholders whose land extent is less than ten acres [1]. Tea is grown in 14 districts, and smallholder farmers play a significant role in Rathnapura, Galle, Matara, Kandy, Kalutara, and Kegalle districts. Smallholder farmers cultivate 61% of the total tea-grown land, which amounts to 200,000 hectares. According to the Tea Small Holdings Development Authority (TSHDA), approximately 75% of smallholder land plots are less than one acre, demonstrating the notable contribution of micro-level farming to the industry
item: Conference-Full-text
Blockchain-based solution for the process of obtaining and maintaining of the rainforest alliance certification in the Sri Lankan tea supply chain
(Sri Lanka Society of Transport and Logistics, 2023-08-26) Wickramaarachchi, K; Thibbotuwawa, A; Fernando, M; Gunaruwan, TL
The tea industry in Sri Lanka holds a significant position in the global market, as it is the fourth largest tea producer worldwide, and renowned for its premium brand name, “Ceylon Tea.” However, despite the positive economic impacts, the industry encounters several sustainable challenges, such as inadequate agricultural practices, labour wage disparities, deforestation, and soil erosion, among others. This study aims to propose a blockchain-based framework to address these sustainability issues and streamline the process of obtaining and maintaining the Rainforest Alliance certification in the Sri Lankan tea supply chain. The Rainforest Alliance is a voluntary certification program that is widely adopted in the tea industry as a mark of sustainability.
item: Article-Full-text
Discrete-time neuroadaptive control using dynamic state feedback with application to vehicle motion control for intelligent vehicle highway systems
(John Wiley & Sons Inc., 2010) Fernando, M; Kumarawadu, S
Discrete time neuro-compensated dynamic state feedback control system for lateral and longitudinal control of intelligent vehicle highway systems (IVHS) is developed. A discrete time counterpart of the continuous time non-linear IHVS model is obtained in state-space form and the controller is analysed in three stages, with and without compensation mechanisms resulting in an implementation from low to high complexity. Gain parameters of the dynamic state feedback control are optimised with respect to a minimisation of a linear quadratic cost function. The weight convergence of the neuro-compensation algorithm is established in discrete time Lyapunov sense via a graphical method. The performance enhancement of each design stage of the controller is presented and compared with the aid of computer simulations.
item: Conference-Full-text
Identifying the potential of unmanned aerial vehicle routing for blood distribution in emergency requests
(Sri Lanka Society of Transport and Logistics, 2023-08-26) Dewmini, J; Thibbotuwawa, A; Fernando, M; Gunaruwan, TL
This study is focusing on identifying the potential of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) routing for blood distribution in emergency requests in Sri Lanka compared to existing transportation modes. Capacitated Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Routing Problem was used as the methodology to find the optimal distribution plan between blood banks directing emergency requests. The developed UAV routing model was tested for different instances to compare the results. Finally, the proposed distribution process via UAVs was compared with the current distribution process for the objective function set up in the model and other Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) including energy consumption savings and operational cost savings. The average percentage of distribution time reduction, energy consumption cost reduction, and operational cost per day reduction utilizing UAVs were determined to be 48.24%, 95.65%, and 60.13%, respectively, for the instances tested using the model highlighting the potential of UAVs. Therefore, the deficiencies in Sri Lanka’s present blood delivery system can be addressed using UAVs’ potential for time, cost, and energy savings. The ability to save time through the deployment of UAVs to the fleet during emergency situations plays a crucial role in preventing the loss of human lives.
item: Article-Full-text
Investigating various solution techniques for real-world vehicle routing problems
(2022-09) Fernando, M; Thibbotuwawa, A; Perera, N
Operations research (OR) is a field of study that employs analytical techniques to improve decision-making. The field of OR can help you make better decisions in a variety of fields, including manufacturing, transportation, project management, supply chain management, etc. Vehicle Routing Problem (VRP) is a well-studied application within the field of OR. The primary goals of the vehicle routing problem are to find the optimal route plan to minimize distribution costs and travel times while maximizing customer satisfaction and fleet capacity utilization [1] (Figure 1). Researchers have used VRP in a variety of fascinating applications, including green vehicle routing, electric vehicle routing, unmanned aerial vehicle routing
item: Conference-Extended-Abstract
A technical framework for community geographic information systems in low end smart phones
(2014-01-16) Fernando, M; Perera, A; Kannangara, D; Jayaweera, D; Gunathilake, R; Kulawansa, KADT; Jayathilake, D
Popularity of social networks and ubiquitous use of hand held devices such as smart phones have brought the usage of GIS into the next level. With the Geo-Iocation detection capabilities of hand held devices, users can share their current location and paths traversed along with useful metadata. Community GIS is generated at this level where users can contribute to map data make use of existing geo location information which others have already added. This has changed one of the other aspects of GIS which is known as Traditional GIS, where users have to pay and consume data available on maps developed by expert organizations. In order to use and contribute to community GIS a user needs a smart phone with features such as location detection, camera and a good display along with an application tailor made for the purpose. A prominent problem is that a vast majority of existing applications assume a high-end smartphone with sophisticated hardware. On the other hand, most users from developing countries, who represent the bigger fraction of the smartphone user base, still work with low-end smartphones that employ low cost alternative hardware and software. This paper comprehends an attempt to devise an application model for low-end smart phones so that community GIS capabilities are disseminated to users with less purchasing power. First, a survey is carried out to collect data regarding the smartphone platforms that will potentially dominate the low-end market. A client-server application model is designed targeting the identified platforms. We demonstrate a proof-of concept application for the model.
item: Conference-Full-text
Vehicle routing problem for drone-based food delivery: a comparison of drone delivery with traditional delivery methods
(Sri Lanka Society of Transport and Logistics, 2023-08-26) Charuka, R; Thibbotuwawa, A; Fernando, M; Gunaruwan, TL
This research proposes vehicle routing problem (VRP) models for food delivery using motorbikes and drones, with the aim of minimizing the total delivery time and distance. Payload capacity, maximum flying time, and the maximum time permitted per drone are considered constraints for drone delivery. Real-world instances were tested and, the implementation of VRP for both motorbike and drone deliveries resulted in substantial reductions in delivery time and distance compared to the traditional method of motorbike deliveries, where food orders were delivered randomly without any planned routing.