An integrated production-distribution model for a deteriorating inventory item

We develop an integrated production-distribution model for a deteriorating item in a two-echelon supply chain. The supplier’s production batch size is restricted to an integer multiple of the discrete delivery lot quantity to the buyer. Exact cost functions for the supplier, the buyer and the entire supply chain are developed. These lead to the determination of individual optimal policies, as well as the optimal policy for the overall, integrated supply chain. We outline a procedure for determining the optimal supply chain decisions with the objective of minimizing the total system cost. Our approach is illustrated through a numerical example.     

Competition under capacitated dynamic lot-sizing with capacity acquisition

Lot-sizing and capacity planning are important supply chain decisions, and competition and cooperation affect the performance of these decisions. In this paper, we look into the dynamic lot-sizing and resource competition problem of an industry consisting of multiple firms. A capacity competition model combining the complexity of time-varying demand with cost functions and economies of scale arising from dynamic lot-sizing costs is developed. Each firm can replenish inventory at the beginning of each period in a finite planning horizon. Fixed as well as variable production costs incur for each production setup, along with inventory carrying costs. The individual production lots of each firm are limited by a constant capacity restriction, which is purchased up front for the planning horizon. The capacity can be purchased from a spot market, and the capacity acquisition cost fluctuates with the total capacity demand of all the competing firms. We solve the competition model and establish the existence of a capacity equilibrium over the firms and the associated optimal dynamic lot-sizing plan for each firm under mild conditions.     

基于EVA的供应链融资模型与绩效衡量

供应链融资是近年来供应链管理研究领域一个较为新型的课题,是解决中小企业融资瓶颈的新型融资运作模式.结合供应链理论和财务指标的设置,文章拓展了供应链融资模型和关键绩效衡量维度,提出基于EVA视角下的供应链融资绩效衡量具有系统性、相对量的三个动态维度：业务融资周期率、资本融资率和成本盈利指数,使之更加适合国内供应链融资风险大、融资条件苛刻的经济环境.运用案例研究的方法,对成都某X石油贸易公司的案例进行分析,证实了上述提出的基于EVA视角的供应链融资三个维度的合理性,并得出研究的结论和启示.     

Supply chain integration and service oriented transformation: Evidence from Chinese equipment manufacturers

This study builds a conceptual model to describe the relationships among operational integration and strategic integration of supply chain, product-based and customer action-based service provided by industrial manufacturers, and firm performance. Using sample data from Chinese equipment manufacturers, this study finds that operational integration of supply chain has positive direct effect on product-based service, while strategic integration has positive direct effect on customer action-based service. Furthermore, product-based service is the basic transformation strategy for industrial manufacturing companies and it has not only positive direct effect but also indirect effect through customer action-based service on firm performance.     

随机需求下横向并购供应链网络整合优化策略研究

本文从系统优化视角,针对增设集散中心的横向并购供应链网络整合策略,利用变分不等式建立了随机需求下的整合优化模型。以市场链为主线,以供应链网络均衡理论为基 础,构建了以横向并购供应链网络活动总成本最小为目标的数学模型,通过转换成变分不等式采用改进的欧拉算法进行模型求解。通过数值算例进一步说明了模型的适用性和灵活性,得出了增设集散中心的并购整合策略能够降低供应链网络的平均运营成本的结论,通过对比不同市场紧密程度下产生的供应链网络平均成本协同效应,发现随着市场紧密程度的增加其协同效应更明显,为横向并购供应链网络整合优化提供理论依据与方法。     

Coordination in a retailer-led supply chain through option contract

This paper develops a model to study channel coordination and risk sharing in a retailer-led supply chain. Such chains are characterized by a dominant retailer who aims to coordinate the upstream production quantity. We investigate a coordinating contract based on an option with two parameters. An option price is paid by the retailer for each additional unit of product reserved beyond the initial order. An exercise price serves as the unit purchasing price when the retailer sets a second order if realized demand is more than the initial order. A successful coordination needs two conditions. One condition is to maintain a negative correlation between exercise price and option price. Particularly, we draw the functional form. The other is that the firm commitment must be lower than the optimal production quantity in a centralized system. In a risk sharing mechanism, we prove that such a contract brings benefit to each party.     

Towards a sustainable fashion retail supply chain in Europe: Organisation and performance

Sustainability issues are particularly sensitive to the fashion supply chain, given current fierce competition, intensive resource use, and the exposure of penurious labour conditions in some regions.In this paper, we discuss how the sustainability movement is impacting the fashion retail supply chain organisation and its performance. We carried out a study with stakeholders of the fashion industry and we report on their views. We elaborate on the challenges and conflicts of the different dimensions of sustainability, and we discuss how to leverage both the internal and external organisations in the European supply chain.     

回收数量受价格和随机因素影响的定价模型

假设在再制造闭环供应链中,集中决策者、第三方和制造商分别从最终客户那里回收废旧品,其回收数量受回收价格和随机因素影响,制造商对获得的旧部件进行再制造,如果旧部件不能满足生产需求,制造商将从新部件供应商那里以高价格采购新部件来补充短缺。本文按照废旧品回收的供应链成员不同,建立了3个定价决策模型,证明了每个模型最优解的存在性和唯一性,然后在特殊情形下进一步求得各模型最优解的解析式,最后用具体算例对模型进行了验证。     

Optimal pricing and order policies with B2B product returns for fashion products

We study optimal pricing and order policies in supply chain management of fashion products (e.g., a fashion apparel category) with consideration of product returns between supply chain partners (B2B). In order to study channel performance and optimal policies, two stochastic models for centralized channel and decentralized channel are, respectively, developed to handle new fashion and off-season product sales. In the centralized channel, closed-form solutions for optimal order and pricing decisions are proposed for new fashion products. Further, in a decentralized channel, the Stackelberg game model is proposed to derive the optimal Stackelberg equilibrium solution, and then a buy-back contract is designed to coordinate the channel. We also perform parameter analysis on performance of the two channel models. Numerical analysis is finally presented to validate our theoretical results and compare channel performances.     

Strategic marketing in global supply chains: Four challenges

Supply chain management has emerged as a critical arena in which firms can find significant cost reduction opportunities, giving them a cost advantage over competitors. When supply chain management orientations are adopted by several firms in a supply chain, together they can significantly reduce supply chain costs pitting supply chain against supply chain. However, the pursuit of cost savings opportunities is not the only objective of supply chain management. Superior supply chain management can facilitate marketing strategy and lead to the creation of superior customer value, satisfaction, and loyalty, which in turn lead to improved product profit margins, overall firm profitability, and overall corporate growth. However, marketing strategy is problematic in global supply chains. Specifically, four significant strategic marketing challenges exist that relate to the development and execution of marketing strategy in global supply chains. This article draws attention to these challenges to stimulate managerial and research efforts that will move marketing strategy through the 21st century.     

Short-term financing in a cash-constrained supply chain

In this paper we consider a two-level supply chain with a single retailer and a manufacturer, where both the firms are facing financial constraints and can not produce/order their optimal quantity. Our work shows that a lender who finances the manufacturer has a motivation to finance the retailer as well. Motivated by this, we investigate lender's problem of financing both the firms by making a joint decision on the loan amount and comparing it with the case when lender makes independent decision on loan amount for both the firms. Our numerical study indicates that if one of the firms in the supply chain has sufficiently low cash, joint decision (we refer to it as supply chain financing) may be better not only for the lender but for the retailer and manufacturer as well.     

Ordering and pricing policies in a manufacturing and distribution supply chain for fashion products

In the paper, we develop a model of manufacturing and distribution supply chains that are operating to meet price-sensitive random demand for products with short life cycles such as fashion products. Two specific scenarios are considered. The manufacturer-controlled scenario is one where the distributor shares price-sensitive random demand with the manufacturer, and the manufacturer controls the supply chain stocking decisions and bears the risk of overstocking costs. The distributor-controlled scenario works in the opposite direction. Prevailing wisdom suggests that the manufacturer should control supply chain decisions (e.g., via vendor-managed inventory). Our results indicate that such an arrangement is against the interest of a distributor selling short life-cycle products. Furthermore, we find that the total supply chain profit is generally higher when the distributor controls the supply chain stocking decisions and bears the risk of overstocking costs.     

Supply Chain Relationships for Customer Satisfaction in China: Interdependence and Cooperative Goals

This study develops a model based on Deutsch’s theory of cooperation and competition to clarify the supply chain relationships and interactions that contribute to customer satisfaction. Results of structural equation analyses suggest that organizations and suppliers and organizations and distributors who recognize each other’s importance develop cooperative rather than competitive and independent goals. With cooperative goals, they come to trust each other and work for continuous improvement; these relationships in turn result in the products and service that satisfy customers. Results were interpreted as suggesting that cooperative goals are an important basis for developing effective supply chain partnerships in Asia and perhaps in other regions as well.     

供应链上制造商与供应商关系的影响因素探讨——基于以制造商为核心的视角

当今社会的市场竞争已经转变为供应链之间的竞争,供应链上节点企业之间关系的好坏已经对供应链竞争力的强弱产生重要影响。制造商与供应商的关系是供应链成员关系的重要组成部分,文章对其关系的类型进行了划分,并在此基础上分析了其关系好坏的取决于合作中的供给产品、技术能力和人为因素等多方面的作用,明确了在每一方面又存在多种影响因素,且不同影响因素的作用存在着差异,这些诸多因素的综合作用决定了供应链上制造商与供应商的关系,最终决定了供应链运行的好坏。     

A multi-objective robust optimization model for multi-product multi-site aggregate production planning in a supply chain under uncertainty

Manufacturers need to satisfy consumer demands in order to compete in the real world. This requires the efficient operation of a supply chain planning. In this research we consider a supply chain including multiple suppliers, multiple manufacturers and multiple customers, addressing a multi-site, multi-period, multi-product aggregate production planning (APP) problem under uncertainty. First a new robust multi-objective mixed integer nonlinear programming model is proposed to deal with APP considering two conflicting objectives simultaneously, as well as the uncertain nature of the supply chain. Cost parameters of the supply chain and demand fluctuations are subject to uncertainty. Then the problem transformed into a multi-objective linear one. The first objective function aims to minimize total losses of supply chain including production cost, hiring, firing and training cost, raw material and end product inventory holding cost, transportation and shortage cost. The second objective function considers customer satisfaction through minimizing sum of the maximum amount of shortages among the customers’ zones in all periods. Working levels, workers productivity, overtime, subcontracting, storage capacity and lead time are also considered. Finally, the proposed model is solved as a single-objective mixed integer programming model applying the LP-metrics method. The practicability of the proposed model is demonstrated through its application in solving an APP problem in an industrial case study. The results indicate that the proposed model can provide a promising approach to fulfill an efficient production planning in a supply chain.     

A global supply chain framework

The relationship between supply chain competencies and performance has been somewhat elusive. The 21st Century Logistics framework, developed at Michigan State University is currently assessed as to its global relevance, particularly relating to performance. A sample of U.S. firms is compared to a sample of Australian and New Zealand firms to assess the robustness of the framework across different business environments as well as to better understand the supply chain competencies/performance relationship. Results suggest that the framework is reasonably robust across environments, although some improvements in future versions of the framework are suggested. Additionally, results confirm that supply chain competencies do lead to improved performance. Interestingly, supply chain competencies appear to be employed in different ways to create different performance advantages across the various business environments.     

采购限制下的电子采购策略库存水平分析

库存是影响供应链成本性能的主要因素之一,有效地减少库存可以降低整个供应链的成本性能,因此库存管理是优化供应链运作、提高竞争优势的重要手段。论文针对库存管理中的(s,S)策略,建立了库存水平变化的模型,分别分析了无采购条件限制和有采购条件限制下的库存水平的变化,并分别给出了期望值和方差。     

Logistics and supply chain management in luxury fashion retail: Empirical investigation of Italian firms

The Italian industry of fashion goods is a business worth 67.6€ billion in 2006 (Il Sole 24ore, January 10, 2007), of which about 26€ billion is due to the luxury segment. Marketing gurus state that “consumers everywhere at every income level want more luxury” [Danziger, P.N., 2005. Let them Eat the Cake: Marketing Luxury to the Masses as well as the Classes. Dearborn Trade Publishing, Chicago]: therefore, companies should move brands towards a higher positioning and add more valuable features to products and services, but this cannot be obtained only by means of marketing efforts. Which is the role of operations and supply chain management in luxury fashion companies’ success? This paper presents the results of the exploratory stage of a research project ongoing at Politecnico di Milano and dealing with supply chain management in the luxury fashion industry. In total, 12 Italian luxury fashion retailers have been studied in order to describe the main features of operations and supply chain strategies in the luxury fashion segment and to identify their role with respect to the relevant critical success factors.     

Demand chain management-integrating marketing and supply chain management

This paper endorses demand chain management as a new business model aimed at creating value in today's marketplace, and combining the strengths of marketing and supply chain competencies. Demand chain design is based on a thorough market understanding and has to be managed in such a way as to effectively meet differing customer needs. Based on a literature review as well as the findings from a co-development workshop and focus group discussions with marketing and supply chain professionals, a conceptual foundation for demand chain management is proposed. Demand chain management involves (1) managing the integration between demand and supply processes; (2) managing the structure between the integrated processes and customer segments and (3) managing the working relationships between marketing and supply chain management. Propositions for the role of marketing within demand chain management and implications for further research in marketing are derived.     

网格供应链——基于时间Petri网的供应链协同管理优化

为了使当前供应链协同管理货物流程面临的时间效率得以提高,提出了一种将网格技术和供应链协同管理相结合的货物流程触发时间求解方式。在该求解方式中,为获得供应链货物流程的触发时间值,利用基于时间Petri网的可达性分析算法模型进行仿真计算,以在从订货、发货到收货的流程中,得到每个流程相对应的最早、最晚触发时间值,进而通过在网格环境下改善后的流程触发时间与相应的传统供应链流程触发时间值进行对比,明显的减少了时间上的浪费,提高了货物流程的时间效率,体现了将网格技术应用于供应链协同管理的优势。