Many companies believe that the more efficient way of thinking “lean” will improve quality by eliminating waste, reducing lead time and reducing their overall costs. However, the benefits and downfalls of a lean process of manufacturing have been debated extensively. Many researchers have noted a positive improvement in productivity, quality, and efficiency which contribute positively to managers, supervisors and other white collared workers. However, some other researchers have noted negative impacts on the health of blue collared assembly workers.

The internship describes a novel method for improvement of Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy for cancer treatment. The intern’s team will implement a learning algorithm approach to design the number and value of orientations of the gantry that will optimize the radiation dose to the planned target volume while at the same time minimizing dose and damage to organs at risk. This is very important for cases such as prostate cancer, and will significantly reduce the time in designing cancer treatment protocols.

The project is aimed at the development of mathematical models and algorithms to optimize the supply chain network configuration for Dainty Foods, a food processing, packaging and storage company. The partner wants to optimize their current supply chain network through the management of their internal warehouse space and how it relates to external warehousing and cross-docking.