DeGroote professor receives lifetime achievement award

[img_inline align=”right” src=”http://padnws01.mcmaster.ca/images/wesolowskylala.jpg” caption=”Zvi Drezner (left) of California State University, Fullerton presents the lifetime achievement award to George Wesolowsky (right).”]George Wesolowsky, professor emeritus of operations management at the DeGroote School of Business, was presented with the Lifetime Achievement in Location Analysis award at the 11th International Symposium on Location Decisions in Santa Barbara, California, on July 1.

The award was made on behalf of the Section on Location Analysis (SOLA), which is part of the Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences. The award is traditionally given at the triennial Symposium and there have been only five previous winners since the award was inaugurated in 1996.

The primary criterion for the award is the impact of the recipient's work on the location analysis field. Wesolowsky is one of the pioneers of modern location research. He co-authored an early book on location analysis and has authored or co-authored more than 100 journal articles. Over the course of his 40-year career, the location models and analytical methods he proposed have led to many new lines of research in many disciplines and have had a profound impact on the field.

Zvi Drezner, himself a previous winner of the award, made the presentation on behalf of SOLA.

Drezner said, “What is unique about George is that he has continued to be a prolific researcher on new location models throughout his career. He introduced many new avenues that enriched the scope of location analysis.”

Location analysis uses mathematical models to minimize costs, improve service and increase efficiency. For example, location analysis helps determine where to build new hospitals so that the greatest number of people benefit, it helps design warehouses so that goods can be retrieved quickly, it helps locate facilities such as distribution centres and design transportation routes to minimize costs and delivery times.

Wesolowsky said, “What is exciting about the location field is that it has grown so rapidly. It now involves a very large number of researchers from different countries who bring an amazing variety of backgrounds, skills, disciplines, and applications to the study of location.”