Business Research Project: AI in Logistics at ADNOC, Abu Dhabi

This project is a business research proposal focusing on the application of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the logistics operations of ADNOC, the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company. The research aims to analyze the impact of AI on logistical efficiency, exploring how AI enhances operations and the future of the shipbuilding industry. It addresses key research questions such as the function of ADNOC Logistics, the impact of AI on efficiency, and the potential for AI to replace human labor. The methodology involves a descriptive research design with a mixed-methods approach, including qualitative and quantitative data collection through surveys and literature review. The project also considers ethical aspects and provides a timeline for completion, concluding with a discussion of the research outcomes and references.

Running head: BUSINESS RESEARCH METHOD AND RESEARCH PROPOSAL
Artificial intelligence in logistics
Name of the student
Name of the university
Author Note:

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Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................4
Research Title..................................................................................................................................4
Overview..........................................................................................................................................4
Research Purpose.............................................................................................................................5
Key Research Questions..................................................................................................................5
Literature Review............................................................................................................................6
Methodology....................................................................................................................................8
Research Philosophy........................................................................................................................9
Justification for Choosing the Research Philosophy.......................................................................9
Research Design..............................................................................................................................9
Justification for choosing the Research Design.............................................................................10
Research Methods..........................................................................................................................10
Selection of Sampling Methods and Sample Size.........................................................................11
Data Collection Methods...............................................................................................................12
Research Instrument......................................................................................................................12
Questionnaire.................................................................................................................................12
Ethical Considerations...................................................................................................................12
Research Outcomes.......................................................................................................................13

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Timeline.........................................................................................................................................14
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................15
References......................................................................................................................................16
Appendices....................................................................................................................................19
Appendix 1.....................................................................................................................................19
Gantt chart.....................................................................................................................................19

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Introduction
Research Title
The title of the research is “The Empirical Study on Artificial Intelligence in the Logistics
for Operational Efficiency Theory of Cost Control on the maintenance of ships and vessels in
ADNOC, Abu Dhabi”.
Overview
The following case study relates to the use of artificial intelligence in the logistics
business of ADNOC industries of Abu Dhabi. ADNOC (Abu Dhabi National Oil Company) is
the state owned oil company of the United Arab Emirates (https://adnoc.ae/adnoc-logistics-and-
services). The company provides world-class logistics, port, maritime and other oil field services
to the local as well as the international customers. The company is one of the largest energy
companies of the world that is evaluated by the amount of reserve and production units. The
logistics and facilities offering is one of the core elements in the core operations of ADNOC. The
company oversees the facilities that includes workshops, warehouses and jetties and provide the
clients with the required jetties, waste management facilities and other facilities like handling
equipment and rental solutions to their vast range of clients (Eggemann Leveling and Weiß
2015). The research will be used to determine the use of artificial intelligence in the modern era
logistics. Artificial Intelligence can be best defined as the machine level intelligence that is quite
powerful by the natural instinctive intelligence of humans and the animals. The artificially
intelligent machines have the ability to perceive the environment in which it is in and takes the
right actions at the perfect time to increase the chances of success and fulfill the pre-decided

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goals (Nettsträter et al. 2015). The resurgence of Artificial Intelligence in the modern era has
been fulfilled by the concurrent advances in the computer power. The ability of the computers to
store a large amount of data and the theoretical understanding of the machine has been helpful
for the more quick transformation of Artificial Intelligence.
Research Purpose
The purpose of the research is to analyze the role of artificial intelligence in the logistical
operations of ADNOC group of Abu Dhabi. The research will explore all the different aspects
related to the future of ship building industry and the use of artificial intelligence in performing
the logistics business in a proper and efficient manner.
Key Research Questions
The researcher has pointed out to some key questions that will turn out to be the main
basis for conducting the research. The answer to the following question will constitute the main
body of the research. The research questions are as follows;
1. What is the function of ADNOC Logistics in the development of the ship building
industry in Abu Dhabi?
2. How has the use of Artificial intelligence enhanced the logistical efficiency or the
capabilities of the organization?
3. Can artificial intelligence completely remove human labor as it is seen to be turning
out into a game changer in business? What impact has modern technology provided to
ADNOC?

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Literature Review
In contrast to Information of Technology, businesses are improving on a daily basis
thanks to the modern technological use of artificial intelligence. According to Das
Chattopadhyay and Gupta (2016) robotics and Automation have been one of the key features of
artificial intelligence and thus have proved to be helpful and turned out to be the ultimate
resources for future management of the ports. Though the manufacturers of the products have
keen interest on industrial robots for some time, the main reason behind not accepting the same
is the huge amount of complex modifications and high cost of robots have created a barrier. On
the other hand Koro-Ljungberg (2015) has found out that the situation has undergone a sea of
change in the last few years as the prices have been going down. Apart from such an advantage
the costs are more flexible and easier to program in nature, which makes them to use the
technology. Another name for the artificial intelligence is the use of retail shipping Channel.
Though it may involve a large number of companies and consumers in supply chain the
researcher will be formulating the original research using only one particular company of Abu
Dhabi. Fauroux et al. (2017) have seen in his study that consumers always want the fastest
possible delivery at the lowest possible prices. The retailers want to offer a very fast delivery to
stay competitive in the market. ADNOC logistics has used artificial intelligence in such way that
it is able to deliver the goods at the preferred location in a very fast and precise manner. ADNOC
group of companies uses both the trends of Artificial Intelligence and Logistics.
1. Anticipatory Logistics- Anticipatory logistics used by the company is based upon the
predictive algorithms running on big information. The following practice allows the
personals of the company to improve the efficiency and quality by predicting demand
before a customer will be placing the order. The reasons or the drivers behind form of

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logistics are the customer impatience with a long time of delivery. The customers want
their online shopping being delivered to them on or before the exact time and date. The
following form of logistics also forms the supply chain risk management of the
organization.
2. Self Learning Systems- The self leaning systems is widely used in the management of
logistics. Machine learning/ Self learning is very much similar to the industries like e-
discovery, digital platform and many other different areas. The logistics sector has been
slow to adopt the machine learning, but ADNOC has been one of the rebels among them
as it has created a dedicated and developed self learning assessment methods. One of the
most recent developments in self learning systems is the use of intelligent warehouses.
The following system recognizes repeated trends and incidents to launch pre pack
instructions. This is helpful for the proper self learning of the company.
Figure 1- Self Learning Logistics
Source-(Fauroux et al. 2017)

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Methodology
Research methodology is the way by which the researcher will design his or her approach
to the research in a proper manner. The different methods that the researcher will undertake can
be accessed from the discussion of the methodologies.
Using only a solo method in the research will prove to be inconsistent with the different
aims and objectives of the study and so the literature review has been conducted by the
researcher in the proposal itself. The main research will be based upon a survey to determine the
primary as well as the secondary information to be used in the research (Guercini 2014). The
information will be obtained after interviewing each and every participant either on a face to face
basis or by the method of questionnaire review. The research will be formulated by the
researcher on the grounds of a local level knowledge along with a theoretical knowledge. The
following section provides an insight into the different processes and methods used to conduct
the main research.
The research will be following the process of a research that is dependent on different
theories and models. The main feature of the following is based more on “Theory then Research”
rather than concentrating on “Research then Theory” (Takhar and Ghorbani 2015). The main
research will focus on the qualitative process that helps to throw light on an in depth knowledge
of the different aspects and will try to display the original results using the best process. The
economic and financial aspects involved in the logistical research will help to answer the
research questions formulated in the proposal. The process will establish an explicit theory which
will be based on the number of different propositions on whether they are acceptable or not. The
different results that will be derived from the following research will be helpful to determine the
different changes points out to the models or theory for the empirical investigation of the said

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topic (Amelina Faist and Nergiz, 2014). The research will totally focus on the latest forms of
technological advancements in logistics and how its use will help ADNOC ensure a bright and
sustainable future for them. As mentioned in the beginning the researcher would be conducting a
survey to determine the different thoughts of the people relating to the research. A sample size of
50 participants will be earmarked for the same purpose.
Research Philosophy
Research Philosophy in a research plays a crucial role in its proper formulation. The
following includes the particular ways by which the different elements of the research is
collected, analyzed and used in the research (Koro-Ljungberg 2015). The philosophy that will be
used by the researcher to complete this particular research will contain a detailed understanding
of the study. In general there are three research philosophies namely positivism, realism and
interpretivism. The researcher would be using any one kind of approach to construct the total
research.
Justification for Choosing the Research Philosophy
The researcher will be choosing the positivism based approach to identify the different
factors and elements related to the following study. The approach will help him to identify the
topic in a much broader way and identify the issues that are related to the following topic.
Research Design
There are mainly four types of research design namely analytical, descriptive,
explanatory and exploratory. The research design helps to integrate the different processes in a

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logical manner (Amelina Faist and Nergiz, 2014). The researcher will be selecting any one of the
above mentioned designs to complete the research accordingly.
Justification for choosing the Research Design
The researcher will choose the descriptive research design to formulate the research. The
descriptive design is the only one which will provide ample scope and opportunities for the
researcher to take a varied range of sources on the mentioned topic and discuss them in detail.
The use of the varied range of sources will help the researcher to critically evaluate the
mentioned topic.
Research Methods
The researcher will use the “multi-operationalism” to conduct the research process in an
efficient manner. A minimum of two different approaches to the research will be combined in the
following study to ensure a transparent and compact research (Guercini 2014). The following
process can be best defined as the methodological triad involving the qualitative, quantitative and
local information that will be obtained from a wide range of relevant sources. The methods will
thus be helpful to determine the information received both from the specific case studies and the
general literature formulated by the researcher. The case study insights provided by the
researcher will be used in the research to gain a precise and accurate understanding of the local
methods used in logistics as well as the futuristic methods like the use of artificial intelligence in
logistics.
The proposal that has been made by the researcher has highlighted a small but relevant
overview of ADNOC Company and introduced about the term logistics and their type of use

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after the implementation of the latest technological developments in the form of artificial
intelligence. The research questions forms an important part of the proposal and helps the
researcher to work on both the local as well as the national levels. Qualitative method will
mostly be used throughout the research review (Saldanha et al. 2016). The qualitative research
process will help to obtain the ground level information regarding the use of the latest
technologies by the management of the mentioned Ship building company. The explanation of
the situations and the case study positions can be used to synthesize the idea of developing the
technology in a vast and more sophisticated way to facilitate more such logistical capabilities for
the organization.
Selection of Sampling Methods and Sample Size
The information provided by the researcher will have to be collected from a large pool of
resources that will involve a good volume of sample size. However the ease of accessing
information which is much easier to access is always preferred. A small sample that is
representative in nature can prove to be the most efficient while serving the actual purpose of the
research. Both the probability and the non probability sampling techniques will be used by the
researcher to complete the sampling methods. The researcher will be choosing a sample size of
100 persons which will consist of workers from the ship industry, workers of the logistical
companies and different managers and supervisors of the related offices. The researcher will also
take the help of some engineers involved in the ship building process to conduct the survey. The
selection of the workers of the industry will help the researcher to get the exact details regarding
the use of technology in logistics and its impact on the work carried out by ADNOC.

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Data Collection Methods
The primary information of the research will be received once the survey and the
interview session get over. The survey and the interview will be of immense importance as it will
create the basic steps that will be required to step into the next level of the research. The next
level of the research will constitute the secondary research elements. The information that will be
collected in the secondary research methods will be obtained from the printed sources like
journals, newspapers, articles or any other forms of similar printed elements. The secondary
research information can also be obtained from online literary sources.
Research Instrument
Questionnaire
The participants of the survey would be provided with an online questionnaire which will
consist of different questions related to the said topic. A time limit of 20 days will be assigned
for the participants to submit the questionnaire.
Ethical Considerations
Ethical Considerations in a research is the most critical and must be maintained by the
researcher to ensure its proper conduction. Ethics are the standard code of conduct that must be
maintained during or after the research is formulated. Ethical standards helps to prevent the
fabrication or the falsification of the information provided in the research and helps to create an
environment of trust and mutual acceptance among the researchers. One of the key ethical
considerations in a research is the use of the human subjects. The survey that will be undertaken
by the researcher will involve a number of people who will act as the participants of the research.