Understanding Applications and Best Practices of DEMATEL:A Method for Prioritizing Key Factors in Multi-Criteria Decision-Making

Decision Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory(DEMATEL)method is a powerful tool for understanding and visualizing the causal relationships among factors in complex decision-making problems.The method uses diagrams and matrixes to map out the causal relationships and interdependencies among factors,allowing decision-makers to identify key drivers and potential solutions to the problem.DEMATEL has a wide range of application areas,including supply chain management,environmental planning,healthcare,finance,and engineering,among others.The DEMATEL method is a valuable tool for decision-makers who need to understand the complex causal relationships among factors in order to make informed decisions.The method provides a structured approach for analyzing and prioritizing factors and for identifying potential solutions to complex problems.This paper describes the main features of this method,its application areas as well as the main process steps in the DEMATEL method.

Ideas of establishing the information system for emergence decisions on the protection against earthquakes and disaster reduction in cities (application of GIS)

ith urban reformation and opening becoming deeper,the work of protection against earthquake and disaster reduction would be more important.In this paper,some ideas are suggested about establishing the information system for emergency decisions on protection against earthquake and disaster reduction in cities .The information system mainly includes a subsystem for rapid evaluation of damage loss from earthquake (which includes input of seismic information,distribution of earthquake intensity,evaluation of seismic fragility on all social factors and etc.) and a subsystem for the decisive information of seismic emergency(which mainly includes project of disaster relief,project of personnel evacuation,dangerous degree warning for the dangerous articlesstoring places and protection measures against them,assistant decision on fire due to earthquake,location of headquarter for providing disaster relief,and etc.). It is thought that the data investigation and collection about all kinds of buildings(including lifeline engineering)are the most important and difficult work as establishing this system.

A Study on the Factors Influencing Value-Added in the Cruise Ship Value Chain Based on the DEMATEL-ISM Model

Cruise value chain is to take the exchange of cruise products and services as the core in a certain spatial scope,and enterprises with core advantages within or between different industries establish associations in accordance with certain technical and economic conditions,so as to realise the multi-dimensional extension and value appreciation of the cruise value chain in the vertical and horizontal links,and ultimately establish a chain-network type of enterprise strategic alliance.This paper tries to analyse the value-added factors of the cruise industry chain by constructing a multi-level hierarchical structural model with reference to the influencing factor analysis methods of relevant literature-DEMATEL(Decision Making Experiment and Evaluation Experiment)and ISM(Interpretative Structural Model).The study shows that the innovation and scale value-added module in the upstream of the cruise industry chain is the core module of value-added of the whole cruise industry chain,and the value-added mainly originates from the design and manufacturing of cruise ships.The middle reaches of the cruise industry chain are mainly cruise operation enterprises,and the specificity of cruise operation determines that its brand value-added is mainly accomplished through the global layout of multinational corporations,and the cruise brand is able to drive the consumption demand and has value-added ability.The downstream value-added of the cruise industry chain is mainly realised through the increase in profits of cruise tourism service products.

Assessing and Mapping Land Suitability Units for Maize (Zea mays L) Production Using Integrated DEMATEL-ANP Model and GIS in the Foumbot Agricultural Basin (Cameroon Western Highlands)

Land suitability assessment (LSA) is an essential step in the process of determining environmental limits for sustainable crop production. Up to date, studies on LSA for crop production in Cameroon have been based on empirical methods which are limited as they consider similar singnificance levels for all evaluation criteria and do not consider the interrelationships of criteria in the best-fit models. In the present study a qualitative land suitability evaluation by an integrated multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) approach and geographic information system (GIS) was tested to assess and map suitable land units for maize (Zea mays L) production in Cameroon Western highland. Eight environmental criteria identified as the most relevant for maize production in the area of interest (AOI) saw their thematic maps prepared using ArcGIS 10.8. The relationship between criteria was considered by the DEMATEL method. The criteria were weighted using the ANP method. Thereafter, the land suitability map was obtained using the weighted overlay analysis (WOA) in ArcGIS. The results obtained indicated that slope has the highest specific weight and consequently the greatest influence on land suitability for maize production in the locality. The land suitability map generated showed that Foumbot’s agricultural land suitability for maize production varies from very high to marginally suitable (99% of the surface area). Specifically, 11% (8056 ha) is very highly suitable, 29% (21,119 ha) is highly suitable, 38% (27,405 ha) are moderately suitable and 20% (14,422 ha) are marginally suitable. The remaining 1% that falls under non suitable class represents 606 ha and is located on the steep slopes around the Mount Mbappit. The kappa analysis reveals a total overall accuracy of 78.67% and a kappa value of 0.7256 with an asymptotic error of 0.058 which is good. Then the model used in this research is highly recommended for future land evaluation works in Cameroon and similar ecosystems around the world.