About OPTIMA - introductory video

Research Themes

OPTIMA's research is organised around three themes to address the needs of industry

Integrate

Many academic fields have contributed to optimisation methodologies and technologies, but the siloed nature of these efforts misses an opportunity. OPTIMA will integrate multidisciplinary optimisation methodologies, spearheaded by its world-leading investigators who span relevant disciplines, into a common toolkit. By tackling industry problems that require inspiration from multiple fields, OPTIMA will dissolve silos, making state-of-the-art methodologies more accessible to industry.

Advance

Industrial optimisation problems are typically “messier” and more complex than classical text-book examples for which optimisation techniques are developed. They are large-scale, with multiple competing objectives, multi-source uncertainties, and require decisions on multiple time-scales. OPTIMA will radically advance an industry-ready optimisation toolkit to support such complexities exemplified by our collection of industry partner challenge problems.

Uptake

Successful application of optimisation methods for industrial decision-making problems requires significant expertise, often beyond the reach of domain experts in a position to identify key industry needs. Current end-user tools for optimisation are limited in the feedback and guidance they provide to users, affecting trust and uptake. OPTIMA will transform optimisation technology to prioritise end-user ease, comprehension, and trust.

Our Projects

We have ten current projects with our industry partners

Optimisation of production by “selected turbine de-rating”

OPTIMA CIs: Professor Kate Smith-Miles

OPTIMA Research Fellow: Andrés Muñoz

PhD Student: Advertising

Learn more – Energy

Performance Optimisation of Call Centre Operations

OPTIMA CIs: Professor Peter Taylor and Professor Mark Fackrell

PhD Student: Hritika Gupta

Learn more – Communications

Large-scale optimisation of the numbers and locations of meters and monitoring devices

OPTIMA CIs: Assoc. Professor Guido Tack

Associates: Dr Mario Boley

PhD candidate: Rehan Mendis


Predict-and-Optimise through Time at Water Recycling Treatment Plants

OPTIMA CIs: Professor Peter Stuckey

Associates: Professor James Bailey

PhD candidate: Vincent Barbosa Vaz

Learn more – Infrastructure

Waterways long-term ambient WQ monitoring network

OPTIMA CIs: Professor Kate Smith-Miles

Associates: Professor Tim Fletcher

PhD Candidate: Vaughn Gray


Multi-objective optimisation of environmental outcomes in urban water systems

OPTIMA CIs: Professor Kate Smith-Miles

Associates: Professor Tim Fletcher, Dr Mathew Burns

PhD Candidate: Shiraz (Yi) Zhen

Learn more – Infrastructure

Optimising multi-item retail inventories using Artificial Intelligence

OPTIMA CIs: Professor Peter Stuckey

Associates: Dr John Betts

PhD Student: Zahra Namazian

Learn more – Retail

Aircraft design optimisation

New design prototypes of aeroplanes or electric batteries need to be studied to establish their performance characteristics under a multitude of use cases.

The challenge lies in choosing how to combine highly accurate but sparse information with abundant but sometimes unreliable information when modelling these design problems.

Learn more – Advanced manufacturing

OPTIMA CIs: Professor Peter Stuckey

Associates: Hamid Rezatofighi

PhD student: Emely Pierau

Read moreAdvanced Manufacturing

Assessing the risk of database reconstruction attacks on aggregate tables and linear systems

OPTIMA CIs: Professor Peter Taylor & Professor Kate Smith-Miles

Associates: Joseph Chien

PhD Student: Harry Mcarthur

Learn more –Security

Detecting Threats in Temporal Networks

OPTIMA CIs: Professor Peter Stuckey

OPTIMA AIs: Dr John Betts

PhD Student: advertising

Learn more – Security

Human-in-the-loop Microgrid

OPTIMA AIs: Dr Buser Say, Dr Hao Wang, Dr Frits de Nijs

PhD Student: Xinyu (Adam) Liang

Learn more – Energy

Industry Sectors

Advanced Manufacturing
Energy
Financial, Retail, Communications, and Insurance Services
Food and Agribusiness
Medical Technologies
Defence and Security
Transport and logistics
Infrastructure

Publications

TitleContentLinkhf:doc_authorhf:doc_categories
Revisiting where are the hard knapsack problems? via Instance Space Analysismunoz-m-a christiansen-j smith-miles-kjournal-article
Constraint Reduction Reformulations for Projection Algorithms with Applications to Wavelet Constructiondizon-n-d hogan-j-a tam-m-k dao-m-njournal-article
Network scheduling problem with cross-docking and loading constraintscastellucci-p-b costa-a-m toledo-fjournal-article
Strengthened splitting methods for computing resolventsaragon-artacho-f-j campoy-r tam-m-kjournal-article
Conserving workforce while temporarily rebalancing assembly lines under demand disruptionmichels-a-s costa-a-mjournal-article
Minimizing the Risk of Spreading Processes via Surveillance Schedules and Sparse Controlsomers-v-l-j manchester-i-rjournal-article
Balancing-sequencing paced assembly lines: a multi-objective mixed-integer linear case studymagatao-l lopes-t-c michels-a-s brauner-njournal-article
An exact algorithm for constructing minimum Euclidean skeletons of polygonsbrazil-m ras-c thomas-d andres-thio-n volz-mjournal-article
Minimum Steiner trees on a set of concyclic points and their centerbrazil-m whittle-d grossman-p-a rubinstein-j-h thomas-d-ajournal-article
Bifidelity Surrogate Modelling: Showcasing the Need for New Test Instancesmunoz-m-a smith-miles-k andres-thio-njournal-article
Enhanced instance space analysis for the maximum flow problemmunoz-m-a alipour-h smith-miles-kjournal-article
Probabilistic forecast reconciliation: Properties, evaluation and score optimisationpanagiotelis-a gamakumara-p hyndman-r-j athanasopoulos-gjournal-article
gratis: Generating Time Series with Diverse and Controllable Characteristicskang-y hyndman-r-j ohara-wild-m li-f zhao-bjournal-article
A Look at the Evaluation Setup of the M5 Forecasting Competitionhyndman-r-j hewamalagea-h montero-mansob-p bergmeira-cjournal-article
Detecting distributional differences between temporal granularities for exploratory time series analysisgupta-s cook-d hyndman-r-jworking-paper journal-article
Forecasting COVID-19 activity in Australia to support pandemic response: May to October 2020moss-r hyndman-r-j price-d-j golding-n dawson-p mcvernon-j shearer-f-m mccaw-j-mjournal-article
Anomaly detection in dynamic networkskandanaarachchi-s hyndman-r-jjournal-article
STR: Seasonal-Trend Decomposition Using Regressionhyndman-r-j dokumentov-ajournal-article
MSTL: A Seasonal-Trend Decomposition Algorithm for Time Series with Multiple Seasonal Patternsbandara-k bergmeir-c hyndman-r-jjournal-article
A First Approach to Risk-Limiting Audits for Single Transferable Vote Electionsstuckey-p-j blom-m teague-v vukcevic-djournal-article
Instance Space Analysis for Algorithm?Testing: Methodology and Software Toolsandres-munoz-m smith-miles-kjournal-article
Weight Constrained Path Finding with Bidirectional A*ahmadi-s tack-g harabor-d kilby-pconference-paper
Optimisation of waste clean-up after large-scale disastersthompson-r-g cheng-c costa-a-m zhu-rjournal-article
A mathematical model for mineable pushback designsrubinstein-h yarmuch-j-l thomas-d-a brazil-mjournal-article
Cutting to the Core of Pseudo-Boolean Optimization: Combining Core-Guided Search with Cutting Planes Reasoningstuckey-p-j devriendt-j nordstrom-j gocht-s demirovic-econference-paper
Computational complexity of the 2-connected Steiner network problem in the ?p planeras-c-j thomas-d-a brazil-mjournal-article
Gearhart-Koshy acceleration for affine subspacestam-m-kjournal-article
Towards understanding clustering problems and algorithms: An instance space analysisdos-santos-fernandes-l-h smith-miles-k lorena-a-cjournal-article
On the diversity and robustness of parameterised multi-objective test suitessmith-miles-k munoz-m-a yap-ejournal-article
Convergence rates for boundedly regular systemscsetnek-e-r eberhard-a tam-m-kjournal-article
Optimising training for service deliverystuckey-p-j senthooran-i le-bodic-pconference-paper
Hierarchical forecast reconciliation with machine learningpetropoulos-f assimakopoulos-v abolghasemi-m spiliotis-e hyndman-r-jjournal-article
A note to: A multiple-rule based constructive randomized search algorithm for solving assembly line worker assignment and balancing problemcosta-a-m michels-a-sjournal-article
Assembly line balancing for two cycle times: Anticipating demand fluctuationsmagatao-l sikora-c-g-s lopes-t-c michels-a-s brauner-njournal-article
Optimal allocation of PCR tests to minimise disease transmission through contact tracing and quarantinebaker-c-m chades-i mcvernon-j bondell-h robinson-a-pjournal-article
Reconstructing missing and anomalous data collected from high-frequency in-situ sensors in fresh waterspeterson-e-e leigh-c kermorvant-c liquet-b hyndman-r-j litt-g jones-j-b mengersen-kjournal-article
Multi-period two-echelon location routing problem for disaster waste clean-upthompson-r-g cheng-c costa-a-m huang-x zhu-rjournal-article
Visualizing Probability Distributions Across Bivariate Cyclic Temporal Granularitiesgupta-s cook-d unwin-a hyndman-r-jjournal-article
Fast Forecast Reconciliation Using Linear Modelshyndman-r-j ashouri-m shmueli-gjournal-article
Globalizing constraint modelstack-g leo-k mears-c garcia-de-la-banda-mjournal-article
Leave-One-Out Kernel Density Estimates for Outlier Detectionhyndman-r-j kandanaarachchi-sjournal-article
Analysing Multiobjective Optimization Using Evolutionary Path Length Correlationkirley-m pakravan-d herring-dconference-paper
Enumerated Types and?Type Extensions for?MiniZincstuckey-p-j tack-gconference-paper
Coupling Different Integer Encodings for?SATbierlee-h tack-g gange-g dekker-j-j stuckey-p-jconference-paper
A FastMap-Based Algorithm for?Block Modelingkumar-t-k-s li-a stuckey-p koenig-sconference-paper
A system dynamics model for sustainable corporate strategic planningbecerra-fernandez-m ruiz-acosta-l-e camargo-mayorga-d-a munoz-m-ajournal-article
Distributed ARIMA models for ultra-long time serieskang-y hyndman-r-j wang-x li-fjournal-article
On the Coordination of Transmission-Distribution Grids: A Dynamic Feasible Region Methodwang-h zhang-t wang-j jin-r li-g zhou-mjournal-article
LoMEF: A framework to produce local explanations for global model time series forecastshyndman-r-j bergmeir-c rajapaksha-djournal-article
Multi-Stage Sparse Resource Allocation for Control of Spreading Processes over Networkssomers-v-l-j manchester-i-rconference-paper
An Instance Space Analysis of Constrained Multi-Objective Optimization Problemskirley-m alsouly-h munoz-m-ajournal-article
Optimal construction of montages from mathematical functions on a spectrum of order-disorder preferencesmith-miles-k munoz-m-ajournal-article
Network augmentation for disaster-resilience against geographically correlated failureras-c thomas-d andres-thio-n brazil-mjournal-article
Insurance Contract for High Renewable Energy Integrationhuang-j lin-x zhao-d wang-hconference-paper
A survey on Benders Decomposition methods applied to Assembly Line Balancing Problemssikora-c-g-s michels-a-sconference-paper
Forecast combinations: An over 50-year reviewkang-y hyndman-r-j wang-x li-freview
Instance Space Analysis of Search-Based Software Testingsmith-miles-k neelofar-n aleti-a munoz-m-ajournal-article
Cluster-based Diversity Over-sampling: A Density and Diversity Oriented Synthetic Over-sampling for Imbalanced Dataaickelin-u yang-y khorshidi-h-aconference-paper
Algorithm selection and instance space analysis for curriculum-based course timetablingschaerf-a schoisswohl-j de-coster-a smith-miles-k musliu-njournal-article
Model selection in reconciling hierarchical time serieshyndman-r-j abolghasemi-m spiliotis-e bergmeir-cjournal-article
In search of peak human athletic potential: A mathematical investigationmenzies-m james-n bondell-hjournal-article
Coordinated Control Can Deliver Synergies Across Multiple Rainwater Storagesfletcher-t-d xu-w-d smith-miles-k burns-m-j cherqui-fjournal-article
Seasonal functional autoregressive modelshyndman-r-j zamani-a haghbin-h hashemi-mjournal-article
Time-of-Use Pricing for Energy Storage Investmenthuang-j lin-x zhao-d wang-hjournal-article
Unsupervised anomaly detection ensembles using item response theorykandanaarachchi-sjournal-article
Biomechanical Markers of Forward Hop-Landing After ACL-Reconstruction: A Pattern Recognition Approachsritharan-p pivonka-p bryant-a-l munoz-m-a mokhtarzadeh-h perraton-l-gjournal-article
Revisiting Facial Age Estimation With New Insights From Instance Space Analysisgeng-x smith-miles-kjournal-article
Analyzing randomness effects on the reliability of exploratory landscape analysiskirley-m munoz-m-a smith-miles-kjournal-article
Multi-objective Semi-supervised clustering for finding predictive clustersaickelin-u khorshidi-h-a ghasemi-zjournal-article
Forecasting for social goodrostami-tabar-b ali-m-m hong-t porter-m-d syntetos-a hyndman-r-jjournal-article
Simplifying obstacles for Steiner network problems in the planethomas-d brazil-m volz-m ras-cjournal-article
Can machine learning improve small area population forecasts? A forecast combination approachkirley-m grossman-i bandara-k wilson-tjournal-article
Explaining Propagation for Gini and Spread with Variable Meantack-g ek-a schutt-a stuckey-p-jconference-paper
Reproducibility and baseline reporting for dynamic multi-objective benchmark problemskirley-m yao-x herring-dconference-paper
Benchmarking algorithm portfolio construction methodsmunoz-m-a kandanaarachchi-s soleimani-hconference-paper
Examining algorithm behavior using recurrence quantification and landscape analysesmunoz-m-aconference-paper
Relating instance hardness to classification performance in a dataset: a visual approachpaiva-p-y-a moreno-c-c valeriano-m-g smith-miles-k lorena-a-cjournal-article
Honeyboost: Boosting honeypot performance with data fusion and anomaly detectionochiai-h rao-a kandanaarachchi-sjournal-article
Temporal and spectral governing dynamics of Australian hydrological streamflow time seriesjames-n bondell-hjournal-article
An integrated multi-objective model for disaster waste clean-up systems optimizationcheng-c costa-a-m lu-j-w zhu-r xiao-z thompson-r-gjournal-article
Mixed-integer linear programming models for the type-II resource-constrained assembly line balancing problemcosta-a-m michels-a-sjournal-article
Shape and size optimization of truss structures by Chaos game optimization considering frequency constraintskhorshidi-h-a shishehgarkhaneh-m-b azizi-m aickelin-ujournal-article
Uncertainty representation in investment planning of low-carbon power systemspuschel-lovengreen-s costa-a-m moya-b moreno-r mancarella-pjournal-article
Nonparametric conditional density estimation in a deep learning framework for short-term forecastinghuberman-d-b reich-b-j bondell-h-djournal-article
Informing Multiobjective Optimization Benchmark Construction Through Instance Space Analysismunoz-m-a smith-miles-k yap-ejournal-article
A machine learning enabled hybrid optimization framework for efficient coarse-graining of a model polymerweeratunge-h menzel-a phillips-a-w larson-r-g smith-miles-k hajizadeh-e shireen-zjournal-article
Drayage routing with heterogeneous fleet, compatibility constraints, and truck load configurationscosta-a-m bustos-coral-djournal-article
Probabilistic Forecasts Using Expert Judgment: The Road to Recovery From COVID-19athanasopoulos-g kourentzes-n ohara-wild-m hyndman-r-jjournal-article
Increasing User Trust in Optimisation through Feedback and Interactiontack-g liu-j marriott-k dwyer-tjournal-article
A model for open-pit pushback design with operational constraintsrubinstein-h yarmuch-j-l thomas-d-a brazil-mjournal-article