A proposal for an operational methodology to assist the ranking-aggregation problem in manufacturing

Ranking aggregation is an ancient problem with some characteristic elements: a number of experts , who individually rank a set of objects according to a certain (subjective) attribute , and the need to aggregate the resulting expert rankings into a collective judgment . Although this problem is traditionally very popular in fields such as social choice , psychometrics , and economics , it can also have several interesting applications in manufacturing , e.g., for customer-oriented design, reliability engineering, production management, etc. Through a case study related to a cobot-assisted manual (dis)assembly, the paper illustrates an operational methodology and various useful tools that assist in tackling the problem practically, effectively, and with a critical mind. Some of the proposed tools allow to estimate the degree of concordance among experts, and the collective judgment’s consistency and robustness . The paper is aimed at scientists and practitioners in manufacturing.