LabOtim — PESC/COPPE/UFRJ, home page PT — versão em português

For companies and institutions

Operations Research Applied to Your Organization

Com­pa­nies and insti­tu­tions make hard deci­sions every day, usually with more data than they can use. Oper­a­tions research is the field that turns that data into better deci­sions, and LabOtim does this in tai­lored R&D projects, from the diag­no­sis of the problem to tools the partner can use in oper­a­tion.

ANPResearch unit accredited by ANP · registration No. 1243/2026

Propose an R&D project

Analytics

From Data to Decisions

LabOtim projects cover the three layers of ana­lyt­ics. Each layer answers a dif­fer­ent ques­tion, and one project may combine more than one.

  1. 01 · Descriptive

    What happened?

    Orga­niz­ing and analysing oper­a­tional data, with indi­ca­tors and visu­al­iza­tions that show where the bot­tle­necks are.

    • Integrating and cleaning operational data
    • Indicators and monitoring dashboards
    • Diagnosis of bottlenecks and waste

  2. 02 · Predictive

    What will happen?

    Sta­tis­ti­cal and machine learn­ing models that antic­i­pate demand, fail­ures, queues and other system behav­iour.

    • Demand and time-series forecasting
    • Machine learning models
    • Estimating failures, queues and service times

  3. 03 · Prescriptive

    What should we do?

    Opti­miza­tion models and exact and heuris­tic algo­rithms that rec­om­mend deci­sions within the real con­straints of the oper­a­tion.

    • Integer programming and combinatorial optimization
    • Metaheuristics and hybrid methods
    • Optimization under uncertainty and scenario analysis

What we do

Problems We Solve

Oper­a­tions research shows up in almost every deci­sion that involves rules, limited resources and many alter­na­tives. These are the kinds of project the team runs, on their own or com­bined in a single piece of work.

  1. 01

    Scheduling and Timetabling

    Staff rosters, broad­cast sched­ules and task sequenc­ing with many rules at once.

  2. 02

    Routing and Logistics

    Routes, fleets and dis­tri­bu­tion in land and off­shore net­works.

  3. 03

    Facility Location and Network Design

    Where to open facil­i­ties, depots or service centres and how to connect them.

  4. 04

    Production and Market Planning

    Plan­ning of energy and of oil and oil product chains, from refin­ing to trading.

  5. 05

    Queues and Capacity in Healthcare

    Patient flow and surgery queues, with more care deliv­ered from the same struc­ture.

  6. 06

    Forecasting and Machine Learning

    Models that antic­i­pate demand and system behav­iour and feed the opti­miza­tion deci­sions.

  7. 07

    Data Platforms

    Inte­grated data with dash­boards and APIs, such as the plat­form for oceano­graphic data and fore­casts.

  8. 08

    Digital Twins

    Digital repli­cas that combine data, fore­cast­ing and opti­miza­tion to test deci­sions before apply­ing them.

    See how the parts connect

Digital twins

All of This Together in a Digital Twin

A digital twin con­nects the pieces on this page in a replica of the real system. Oper­a­tional data feed the descrip­tive layer, pre­dic­tive models antic­i­pate the system’s behav­iour and opti­miza­tion chooses the deci­sions, which are tested on the replica before they reach the oper­a­tion.

  1. 01 · DescriptiveOperational Data
  2. 02 · PredictiveSystem Forecasts
  3. 03 · PrescriptiveOptimized Decisions
  4. 04 · Digital twinReplica That Tests the Decisions

What the replica learns flows back into the operation

Applications

Where We Have Applied It

See all projects

ANP accreditation

Research Unit Accredited by ANP

LabOtim is accred­ited by Brazil’s National Agency of Petro­leum, Natural Gas and Bio­fu­els (ANP) to carry out research, devel­op­ment and inno­va­tion projects funded by the R&D clause of oil and natural gas explo­ration and pro­duc­tion con­tracts. Com­pa­nies with invest­ment obli­ga­tions under this clause can allo­cate those funds to projects with the lab­o­ra­tory in the accred­ited lines.

ANP STM Order No. 1,069 of 16 July 2026, published in the Brazilian Official Gazette (DOU) on 17 July 2026. ANP registration No. 1243/2026, under ANP Resolution No. 917/2023.

Accredited lines

  • Refining · optimization and reliability of equipment, processes and systems
  • Exploration · development of new algorithms
  • Production · risers, umbilicals and subsea pipelines
  • Other energy sources
  • Distribution, logistics and transport
  • Risk assessment and management
  • Greenhouse gas emissions in the oil, natural gas and biofuels industry
  • Modelling and prevention of environmental impacts
  • Monitoring and control of onshore and offshore facilities

How we work

From the Problem to a Tool in Operation

  1. 01

    Diagnosis

    We under­stand the deci­sion problem, the rules of the oper­a­tion and the data avail­able.

  2. 02

    Modelling

    We write the problem as a math­e­mat­i­cal model and test a proof of concept on sim­pli­fied sce­nar­ios.

  3. 03

    Validation

    We run the model on real sce­nar­ios and compare its deci­sions with those the oper­a­tion makes today.

  4. 04

    Deployment

    We fit the tool to the partner’s envi­ron­ment, with inter­faces, dash­boards or APIs.

Deliverables

What the Partner Receives

  • Tailored Models and Algorithms

    Math­e­mat­i­cal for­mu­la­tions and exact or heuris­tic methods designed for the partner’s problem rather than adapted from a generic package.

  • Decision Support Tools

    Inter­faces that let the partner’s team gen­er­ate, compare and adjust solu­tions without depend­ing on the lab­o­ra­tory team.

  • Results in Dashboards and APIs

    Indi­ca­tors and deci­sions avail­able for con­sul­ta­tion and for inte­gra­tion with the orga­ni­za­tion’s systems.

  • Knowledge Transfer

    Doc­u­men­ta­tion, code and train­ing so that the partner’s team can operate, main­tain and extend the solu­tion after the project.

The team

A Research Team Behind Every Project

PESC/COPPE faculty members
7
research themes
9
ongoing projects
19
master’s, doctoral and postdoctoral researchers supervised
39

Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

What is operations research?

It is the field that uses math­e­mat­i­cal models, sta­tis­tics and algo­rithms to support deci­sions. It lies behind sched­ul­ing, logis­tics, pro­duc­tion plan­ning, resource allo­ca­tion and queue man­age­ment prob­lems, among many others, and it brings together the three layers of ana­lyt­ics.

Does LabOtim run R&D projects with companies?

Yes. The projects listed as ongoing in Lattes include R&D with the private sector, such as opti­miz­ing the choice of matches broad­cast on free-to-air TV and pay-per-view, and projects applied to sectors such as oil and health.

What kinds of problems does the laboratory solve?

Deci­sion prob­lems that can be described with data and models, such as broad­cast sched­ul­ing, logis­tics and trans­port, plan­ning of oil and oil product markets, patient flow man­age­ment, and appli­ca­tions in smart cities and Indus­try 4.0.

Which methods does the team use?

Data anal­y­sis, machine learn­ing, integer pro­gram­ming and com­bi­na­to­rial opti­miza­tion, non­lin­ear opti­miza­tion, and exact and heuris­tic methods. The inte­gra­tion of machine learn­ing and opti­miza­tion is the subject of several recent projects.

Can LabOtim carry out projects funded by the ANP R&D clause?

Yes. LabOtim is a research unit accred­ited by ANP (reg­is­tra­tion No. 1243/2026, ANP STM Order No. 1,069/2026) and can carry out projects funded by the R&D clause of oil and natural gas explo­ration and pro­duc­tion con­tracts, in the accred­ited research lines.

How do I start a project with LabOtim?

Write to labotim-ufrj@cos.ufrj.br describ­ing the problem, the data avail­able and the desired time­line. The Team page shows each faculty member’s projects, so you can indi­cate who is closest to the subject.

Which institution does LabOtim belong to?

The Systems Engi­neer­ing and Com­puter Science Program (PESC) of COPPE, the Alberto Luiz Coimbra Insti­tute for Grad­u­ate Studies and Research in Engi­neer­ing of the Federal Uni­ver­sity of Rio de Janeiro.

Do You Have a Decision Problem?

Tell us about the problem, the data available and the desired timeline. If a faculty member on the Team page is closest to the subject, mention them in your message.

Propose an R&D projectlabotim-ufrj@cos.ufrj.br