An Application Of Multi-Attribute Decision Making For Evaluating Industrial Heritage In Nananzui And Guibei Area Of Wuhan

The evaluation of industrial heritage can be seen a complex decision problem, involving history, economy, society, and physical environment. The evaluation, classification, registration for industrial heritage in our country is still in the exploratory stage. Although there have been practical cases focused on revitalization of historical industrial buildings and sites, the evaluation system of industrial heritage has not been formed. Multi-Attribute Decision Making (MADM) methods can offer a formal methodology to deal with such problems. The Multi-Attribute Value Theory (MAVT) method, Elimination et Choice Translating Reality III(ELimination Et Choix Traduisant la REalite Ⅲ, ELECTRE Ⅲ) method, Preference Ranking Organization Methods for Enrichment Evaluations I (PROMETHEE I) method, and PROMETHEE II method have been chosen to assess industrial heritage in Nananzui and Guibei Area of Wuhan, after reviewing the applications of Multiple Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) methods to heritage field and summarizing29MADM methods. The main innovation results are as follows:(1) The deficiency of Industrial Heritage Protection and Utilization Planning in Wuhan is analyzed after literature review and field survey. The MADM methods have been proposed for the evaluation of industrial heritage.(2) The method selection guidelines have been formed based on comparison and analysis of29MADM methods. The MADM method, ELECTRE III method, PROMETHEE I method, and PROMETHEE II method have been selected to form the industrial heritage evaluation model and assess industrial heritage in Nananzui and Guibei Area of Wuhan. The evaluation results of four methods are compared with that of Wuhan Planning&Design Institute, and the reasons of significant differences are analyzed. A comprehensive evaluation about this area has been formed, based on the results of four methods and sensitivity analysis.(3) The result of PROMETHEE method has showed high consistency with that of MAVT method, and both results are basically in line with that of ELECTRE III method. In a particular problem the evaluation results obtained with these methods may differ greatly. Therefore, it is better to use several methods for the same problem when possible to have the final conclusion; when not, we recommend using PROMETHEE I method. An important advantage of outranking methods, when compared to MAVT method applied in today’s heritage management, is the ability to deal with ordinal and uncertain information on the alternatives to be evaluated. However the difficult interpretation of the results is the main drawback of the outranking methods.