Supply chain coordination for the joint determination of order quantity and reorder point using credit option

Decisions regarding order quantity and reorder point are two major challenges in supply chain inventory management. In this paper, a coordination model of the joint determination of these two decision variables is proposed. A decentralized supply chain consisting of one buyer and one supplier in a multi-period setting is investigated. Demand and lead times are uncertain in our model. An incentive scheme based on credit option has been developed to encourage the buyer to participate in the coordination model. In this model, the downstream member has the option of using credit to purchase goods during the credit time, subject to its commitment to a jointly agreed order quantity and reorder point. The credit time is determined in such a way that the two parties have incentives to participate. The proposed incentive scheme can share the benefits of coordination between the two members based on their bargaining power. The proposed model shows that the coordination of the reorder point, together with order quantity, can increase the overall chain profitability as well as each member’s profitability.     

A note on supply chain coordination for joint determination of order quantity and reorder point using a credit option

Credit options and side payments are two methods suggested for achieving coordination in a two-echelon supply chain. We examine the credit option coordination mechanism introduced by Chaharsooghi and Heydari [Chaharsooghi, S., & Heydari, J. (2010). Supply chain coordination for the joint determination of order quantity and reorder point using credit option. European Journal of Operational Research, 204(1), 86–95]. This method assumes that the supplier’s opportunity costs are equal to the reduction in the buyer’s financial holding costs during the credit period. In this note, we show that Chaharsooghi and Heydari’s method is not applicable when buyer and supplier opportunity costs are not equal. We introduce an alternate per order rebate method that reduces supply chain costs to centralized management levels.     

An economic order quantity model with partial backlogging under general backorder cost function

In this work, we study a single-item inventory model where shortages are allowed. A known constant fraction of the demand during the stockout period is backlogged, and the rest are lost sales. Usually, in the literature on inventory control, the unit backorder cost is considered to be a linear function of the waiting time until the customer gets the item. However, in some real-world situations, the unit cost of a backorder may not be linear. To model this situation, we develop a new approach by considering that the backlogging unit cost is a nondecreasing, continuous, and positive function of the amount of time the customers wait before receiving the item. Our objective is to maximize the average profit per unit time. An effective solution procedure to determine the optimal policy and the maximum average profit is developed. Numerical examples, which help us to understand the theoretical results, are also presented.     

Models for a fuzzy inventory of two replaceable merchandises without backorder based on the signed distance of fuzzy sets

This paper investigates the inventory problems for two mutually complementary merchandises. We first consider the merchandises in a monopoly market, and then in a perfect competitive market. With the fuzzy sets concept, we discuss how to determine the optimal ordering policy for the aforementioned inventory problem such that the total related cost is minimum. Three results are obtained and the numerical examples are provided to illustrate these results. In contrast with the previous studies that employed the extension principle and centroid method to derive the estimate of the total cost in the fuzzy sense, we show that using the decomposition principle and the signed distance can attain it easier.     

Fixed point theorems for fuzzy numbers

In this paper we study the problem of the existence of fixed points for fuzzy maps. We first define uniform structures on sets of fuzzy subsets and describe the ‘closed convergence’ and ‘myope convergence’ structures which have properties close to the corresponding traditional ones. We then give two ways in order to obtain fixed point results. We finally give applications of these results, particularly to fuzzy Markov processes.     

Fixed point theorems for fuzzy mappings

This paper presents some new fixed point theorems for fuzzy mappings. The results given in this paper improve and extend some recent results.     

Neural fuzzy point processes

Synaptic events in neural systems were described as generated by an apparatus @ possessing memory and encoding a fuzzy point process (the presynaptic discharge) into another N (the postsynaptic discharge). @ was considered to be a fuzzy automata, for which state membership is dependent on input membership and distribution as well as on a control exercised by other neural structures. In such a device, irregular input distributions favour a direct monotonic codification, whereas regular ones induce discontinuous and inverse relations between both fuzzy point processes. Both behaviors favour analogic and membership relations between the fuzzy input and output. However, there exist intermediate grades of irregularities which result in a context-free encoding, where similitude and equivalence relations predominate. The importance of such findings to neurophysiology is discussed.     

Fuzzy profit measures for a fuzzy economic order quantity model

Changing economic conditions make the selling price and demand quantity more and more uncertain in the market. The conventional inventory models determine the selling price and order quantity for a retailer’s maximal profit with exactly known parameters. This paper develops a solution method to derive the fuzzy profit of the inventory model when the demand quantity and unit cost are fuzzy numbers. Since the parameters contained in the inventory model are fuzzy, the profit value calculated from the model should be fuzzy as well. Based on the extension principle, the fuzzy inventory problem is transformed into a pair of two-level mathematical programs to derive the upper bound and lower bound of the fuzzy profit at possibility level α. According to the duality theorem of geometric programming, the pair of two-level mathematical programs is transformed into a pair of conventional geometric programs to solve. By enumerating different α values, the upper bound and lower bound of the fuzzy profit are collected to approximate the membership function. Since the profit of the inventory problem is expressed by the membership function rather than by a crisp value, more information is provided for making decisions.     

Generalized singular point quantity and integrability of degenerate resonant singular point

In this paper, integrability and generalized complex resonant center condition of degenerate resonant singular point for a class of complex polynomial differential system were studied. The concept of generalized singular point quantity of degenerate resonant singular point was proposed and the construction of that was studied. Two methods of computing generalized singular point quantities were given. Furthermore, the sufficient and necessary condition of integrability of degenerate resonant singular point was discussed for the first time.     

Economic order quantity under advance payment

Though advance payment is widely used in practice, its influences on buyer’s inventory policy are rarely discussed. This paper investigates the buyer’s inventory policy under advance payment, including all payment in advance and partial-advanced–partial-delayed payment. The buyer’s ordering policy is derived by minimizing his total inventory costs including inventory holding cost, ordering cost, and interest cost caused by advance payment or delayed payment. The conclusions show that when all the payment is paid in advance, the buyer’s optimal replenishment cycle is influenced only by the price discount associated with advance payment, and the length of advance payment has no effect. For the partial-advanced–partial-delayed payment case, the buyer’s replenishment cycle is also not influenced by the length of advance period. However, in this situation, the delayed period and the price discount may have impacts on the inventory policy. We also use discounted cash flow (DCF) model to derive the buyer’s replenishment cycle and show that the replenishment cycle is negatively related to the length of advance period. Numerical examples are presented to illustrate the results.     

An economic production quantity inventory model involving fuzzy demand rate and fuzzy deterioration rate

Generally, in deriving the solution of economic production quantity (EPQ) inventory model, we consider the demand rate and deterioration rate as constant quantity. But in case of real life problems, the demand rate and deterioration rate are not actually constant but slightly disturbed from their original crisp value. The motivation of this paper is to consider a more realistic EPQ inventory model with finite production rate, fuzzy demand rate and fuzzy deterioration rate. The effect of the loss in production quantity due to faulty/old machine have also been taken into consideration. The methodology to obtain the optimum value of the fuzzy total cost is derived and a numerical example is used to illustrate the computation procedure. A sensitivity analysis is also carried out to get the sensitiveness of the tolarance of different input parameters.     

Coupled fixed point theorems for contractions in fuzzy metric spaces

In the present work, we prove a coupled fixed point theorem for contractive mappings in complete fuzzy metric spaces.     

An elaborative unit cost structure-based fuzzy economic production quantity model

The purpose of this paper is to investigate and propose a fuzzy extended economic production quantity model based on an elaboratively modeled unit cost structure. This unit cost structure consists of the various lot-size correlative components such as on-line setups, off-line setups, initial production defectives, direct material, labor, and depreciation in addition to lot-size non-correlative items. Thus, the unit cost is correlatively modeled to the production quantity. Therefore, the modeling or the annual total cost function developed consists of not only annual inventory and setup costs but also production cost. Moreover, via the concept of fuzzy blurred optimal argument and the vertex method of the α-cut fuzzy arithmetic (or fuzzy interval analysis), two solution approaches are proposed: (1) a fuzzy EPQ and (2) a compromised crisp EPQ in the fuzzy sense. An optimization procedure, which can simultaneously determine the α-cut-vertex combination of fuzzy parameters and the optimizing decision variable value, is also proposed. The sensitivity model for the fuzzy total cost and thus EPQ to the various cost factors is provided. Finally, a numerical example with the original data collected from a firm demonstrates the usefulness of the new model.     

Fixed point theorems in fuzzy metric spaces

In the present work, we establish several fixed point theorems for a new class of self-maps in M-complete fuzzy metric spaces and compact fuzzy metric spaces, respectively.     

Fixed point theorems in fuzzy metric spaces

In this paper, we state and prove some common fixed point theorems in fuzzy metric spaces. These theorems generalize and improve known results (see [1]).     

Convergence of sequences of fuzzy numbers and fixed point theorems for increasing fuzzy mappings and application

In this paper, we discuss some properties of the convergence of sequences of fuzzy numbers and obtain some fixed point theorems for increasing fuzzy mappings. And as applications, we give two examples. One is about fishery production, which discusses the balance problems between the quantity of catching fish and the increase in the quantity of fish that is produced by the reproduction and growth of fish. Another is about the solvability of the equation of fuzzy numbers.     

Order selection and pricing methods using flexible quantity and fuzzy approach for buyer evaluation

This paper presents the methods for order selection and pricing of manufacturer (supplier) with make-to-order basis when orders exceed production capacity. By quoting the concepts of triangular fuzzy numbers and linguistic variables, a fuzzy approach to evaluating buyers by taking into account both positive and negative criteria is proposed. According to the classified results of buyers, the orders will be produced with priority, declined, or determined by MIP model. The fixed quantity MIP model and flexible quantity MIP model are employed to determine the produced orders along with the production quantity and the reference amount for price reduction. By applying the concept of TOPSIS, the closeness coefficients for satisfaction grades of orders and for ranking values of buyers are used as the adjusting rates in the final pricing MIP model to set segmented price.     

Economic order quantity models with nonlinear holding costs

We consider a generalization of the classical Economic Order Quantity Model. The traditional parameters of unit cost, selling price, demand rate and set-up cost are constant but the holding cost per unit is a non-linear function of the length of time the item is held in stock. The application is to any inventory system where the value of the item decreases non-linearily the longer it is held in stock. For the case of deterministic demands we present the cost formula and the optimal order quantity for both finite and infinite horizons. For the case of stochastic demands the cost function is examined and the optimal order amount is presented. Computational results are presented indicating the effect of the non-linearity in holding costs.     

The first focus quantity of a complex monodromic singular point

We consider the problem of distinguishing the center and focus in the case of a strongly degenerate singular point. A sufficient condition is explicitly stated for the existence of a focus for singular points of vector fields on the plane belonging to a certain class.Translated from Trudy Seminara imeni I. G. Petrovskogo, No. 13, pp. 106–122, 1988.