Award-winning research supports new military logistics model
Major Blake Schwartz, an NC State doctoral student and active duty Army officer, was awarded the 2018 Army Operations Research Symposium Best Paper for his research modeling logistics networks to support military operations.
Schwartz’s research titled “Leveraging Real-Time Data for Operational Sustainment Optimization” uses data analytics and large-scale simulation techniques to provide new capabilities to Army planners. It enables them to analyze the performance of a logistics network against a planned or current operation and could be used to sustain overseas operations.
“My primary goals are for improved Army operations,” said Schwartz, “I hope that Army planners can soon use the tools my research team is working on to improve logistics planning and operations.”
The new methods of measuring the performance of a sustainment network outlined in Schwartz research will further support the Military Logistics Network Planning System (MLNPS), a new model to provide automated assistance for military planners. It will allow them to generate and assess logistics plans and applications in humanitarian or disaster-relief scenarios.
The Army Operations Research Symposium Best Paper award is a highly coveted Department of the Army award, which brings further spotlight to this growing area of operational research.
