An a posteriori decision support methodology for solving the multi-criteria supplier selection problem

This research presents a novel, state-of-the-art methodology for solving a multi-criteria supplier selection problem considering risk and sustainability. It combines multi-objective optimization with the analytic network process to take into account sustainability requirements of a supplier portfolio configuration. To integrate ‘risk’ into the supplier selection problem, we develop a multi-objective optimization model based on the investment portfolio theory introduced by Markowitz. The proposed model is a non-standard portfolio selection problem with four objectives: (1) minimizing the purchasing costs, (2) selecting the supplier portfolio with the highest logistics service, (3) minimizing the supply risk, and (4) ordering as much as possible from those suppliers with outstanding sustainability performance. The optimization model, which has three linear and one quadratic objective function, is solved by an algorithm that analytically computes a set of efficient solutions and provides graphical decision support through a visualization of the complete and exactly-computed Pareto front (a posteriori approach). The possibility of computing all Pareto-optimal supplier portfolios is beneficial for decision makers as they can compare all optimal solutions at once, identify the trade-offs between the criteria, and study how the different objectives of supplier portfolio configuration may be balanced to finally choose the composition that satisfies the purchasing company's strategy best. The approach has been applied to a real-world supplier portfolio configuration case to demonstrate its applicability and to analyze how the consideration of sustainability requirements may affect the traditional supplier selection and purchasing goals in a real-life setting.     

An integrated FCM and fuzzy soft set for supplier selection problem based on risk evaluation

Supplier selection problem, considered as a multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) problem, is one of the most important issues for firms. Lots of literatures about it have been emitted since 1960s. However, research on supplier selection under operational risks is limited. What’s more, the criteria used by most of them are independent, which usually does not correspond with the real world. Although the analytic network process (ANP) has been proposed to deal with the problems above, several problems make the method impractical. This study first integrates the fuzzy cognitive map (FCM) and fuzzy soft set model for solving the supplier selection problem. This method not only considers the dependent and feedback effect among criteria, but also considers the uncertainties on decision making process. Finally, a case study of supplier selection considering risk factors is given to demonstrate the proposed method’s effectiveness.     

A QFD-based fuzzy MCDM approach for supplier selection

Supplier selection is a highly important multi-criteria group decision making problem, which requires a trade-off between multiple criteria exhibiting vagueness and imprecision with the involvement of a group of experts. In this paper, a fuzzy multi-criteria group decision making approach that makes use of the quality function deployment (QFD) concept is developed for supplier selection process. The proposed methodology initially identifies the features that the purchased product should possess in order to satisfy the company’s needs, and then it seeks to establish the relevant supplier assessment criteria. Moreover, the proposed algorithm enables to consider the impacts of inner dependence among supplier assessment criteria. The upper and the lower bounds of the weights of supplier assessment criteria and ratings of suppliers are computed by using the fuzzy weighted average (FWA) method. The FWA method allows for the fusion of imprecise and subjective information expressed as linguistic variables or fuzzy numbers. The method produces less imprecise and more realistic overall desirability levels, and thus it rectifies the problem of loss of information. A fuzzy number ranking method that is based on area measurement is used to obtain the final ranking of suppliers. The computational procedure of the proposed framework is illustrated through a supplier selection problem reported in an earlier study.     

Multi-criteria decision making approaches for supplier evaluation and selection: A literature review

Supplier evaluation and selection problem has been studied extensively. Various decision making approaches have been proposed to tackle the problem. In contemporary supply chain management, the performance of potential suppliers is evaluated against multiple criteria rather than considering a single factor-cost. This paper reviews the literature of the multi-criteria decision making approaches for supplier evaluation and selection. Related articles appearing in the international journals from 2000 to 2008 are gathered and analyzed so that the following three questions can be answered: (i) Which approaches were prevalently applied? (ii) Which evaluating criteria were paid more attention to? (iii) Is there any inadequacy of the approaches? Based on the inadequacy, if any, some improvements and possible future work are recommended. This research not only provides evidence that the multi-criteria decision making approaches are better than the traditional cost-based approach, but also aids the researchers and decision makers in applying the approaches effectively.     

Evaluating and selecting the supplier in detergent production industry using hierarchical fuzzy TOPSIS

Supply chain management has increasingly attracted attention as a systematic approach to integrate the supply chain in order to planning and controlling the materials and information from suppliers to customers. One of the most important issues in supply chain management is selection of the appropriate supplier which has significant effect on purchasing cost decrease and increase in the organization’s competition ability. Selection of the best supplier is naturally complex with no definite structure, and dependent on the type of suppliers’ activity. In the process of decision making about suppliers and many qualitative and quantitative performance indicators such as quality, price, flexibility, and due date should be considered. Then, the supplier selection problem is a multi-criteria decision making problem where numerous methods have been proposed to solve this problem so far. In the current paper, four suppliers of imported raw material “Tripolyphosphate (TPP)” (primary material to produce the detergent powder with a case study in Iran) are evaluated based on 25 effective criteria using the hierarchical fuzzy TOPSIS (HFTOPSIS) approach.     

Supplier selection and order allocation problem using a two-phase fuzzy multi-objective linear programming

The aim of this paper is to solve a supplier selection problem under multi-price level and multi-product using interactive two-phase fuzzy multi-objective linear programming (FMOLP) model. The proposed model attempts to simultaneously minimize total purchasing and ordering costs, a number of defective units, and late delivered units ordered from suppliers. The piecewise linear membership functions are applied to represent the decision maker’s fuzzy goals for the supplier selection and order allocation problem, and can be resulted in more flexibility via an interactive decision-making process. To demonstrate effectiveness of the proposed model, results of applying the proposed model are shown by a numerical example. The analytical results show that the proposed approach is effective in uncertain environments and provide a reliable decision tool for integrated multi-objective supplier selection problems.     

An integrated FANP–MOLP for supplier evaluation and order allocation

In the face of acute global competition, supplier management is rapidly emerging as a crucial issue to any companies striving for business success and sustainable development. To optimize competitive advantages, a company should incorporate “suppliers” as an essential part of its core competencies. Supplier evaluation, the first step in supplier management, is a complex multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) problem, and its complexity is further aggravated if the highly important interdependence among the selection criteria is taken into consideration. The objective of this paper is to suggest a comprehensive decision method for identifying top suppliers by considering the effects of interdependence among the selection criteria, as well as to achieve optimal allocation of orders among the selected suppliers.     

多阶段应急决策的方案链选择方法

针对多阶段不同情景下多指标多任务的应急决策问题,提出了一种方案链选择方法。在该方法中,首先给出了决策方案链的概念,并对多阶段多指标多任务的应急决策问题进行了描述;然后根据相邻阶段的子方案之间的相容性,构建了相容性关系矩阵;进一步地,在考虑相邻阶段子方案之间相容性的情形下,以各阶段的子方案的综合评价值最大为目标,建立了应急决策的方案链选择的优化模型。通过求解模型,得到应急决策的最优方案链。最后,通过一个算例说明了该方法的可行性和有效性。     

Optimizing product assortment under customer-driven demand substitution

The problem of product assortment and inventory planning under customer-driven demand substitution is analyzed and a mathematical model for this problem is provided in this paper. Realistic issues in a retail context such as supplier selection, shelf space constraints, and poor quality procurement are also taken into account. The performance of three modified models, one that neglects customers’ substitution behavior, another that excludes supplier selection decision, and one that ignores shelf space limitations, are analyzed separately with computational experiments. The results of the analysis demonstrate that neglecting customer-driven substitution or excluding supplier selection or ignoring shelf space limitations may lead to significantly inefficient assortments. The effects of demand variability and substitution cost on optimal assortment and supplier selection decisions as well as on the optimal revenue are also investigated. The main contribution of this paper is the development of a practical and flexible model to aid retailers in finding optimal assortments to maximize the expected profit.     

模糊环境下动态供应商选择的混合整数非线性规划模型

基于供应商选择问题的动态性和模糊性,考虑在每个周期内生产商的需求能力及供应商的供应能力为模糊变量,本文将一个多阶段多商品多渠道的供应商选择问题视为一个0-1混合整数模糊动态非线性规划问题,目标函数为总成本最小化。然后建立了0-1混合整数模糊动态非线性规划模型。为了求解该模型,通过可信性理论把模型中模糊机会约束清晰化,将该模型转化为一个确定型的0-1混合整数动态非线性规划模型。最后给出了一个数值算例验证了模型的可行性。     

Production control and replenishment strategy with multiple suppliers

This paper considers the joint supplier selection, replenishment and manufacturing control problem in a dynamic stochastic context. This problem is characterized by conflicting interests between suppliers, the manufacturer, and clients, which raise the need for coordination and information sharing. This paper contributes to the discourse mainly by developing and resolving an integrated mathematical model leading to information sharing strategies for supplier selection, replenishments and production activities. This is an optimal control problem with state constraints and hybrid dynamics. A dynamic stochastic model is thus proposed, and the optimality conditions obtained are then solved numerically. It is shown that the problem considered leads to a modified state-dependent multi-level (s, S) policy for the supplier selection and replenishment strategy and a base-stock policy for the production activities. The fact that these control policies are coupled confirms the necessity of considering the interactions present in the system in an integrated model. The obtained results show clearly that it is always profitable to consider multiple suppliers to make replenishment and production decisions. Moreover, it is shown that the availability rates of the supply chain actors and the replenishment lead time are important parameters to consider when choosing the best supplier.     

Analytic network process in supplier selection: A case study in an electronic firm

Supplier selection, which is the first step of the activities in the product realization process starting from the purchasing of material till to the end of delivering the products, is evaluated as a critical factor for the companies desiring to be successful in nowadays competition conditions. With the scope of this paper, supplier selection was considered as a multi criteria decision problem. A model aiming the usage of analytic network process (ANP) in supplier selection is developed owning to the evaluation of the relations between supplier selection criterias in a feedback systematic. The proposed model is implemented in a company of electronic.     

Restricting weights in supplier selection decisions in the presence of dual-role factors

One of the uses of data envelopment analysis (DEA) is supplier selection. Weight restrictions allow for the integration of managerial preferences in terms of relative importance levels of various inputs and outputs. As well, in some situations there is a strong argument for permitting certain factors to simultaneously play the role of both inputs and outputs. The objective of this paper is to propose a method for selecting the best suppliers in the presence of weight restrictions and dual-role factors. This paper depicts the supplier selection process through a DEA model, while allowing for the incorporation of decision maker’s preferences and considers multiple factors which simultaneously play both input and output roles. The proposed model does not demand exact weights from the decision maker. This paper presents a robust model to solve the multiple-criteria problem. A numerical example demonstrates the application of the proposed method.     

考虑供应链风险和绩效的供应商选择的模糊动态非线性多目标规划模型

基于供应链风险和供应链绩效的模糊性和供应商选择问题的动态性,本文考虑供应链风险和供应链绩效作为模糊变量,讨论如何给生产商一个满意的动态多目标供应商选择方案,确定供应链风险和总成本最小,以及供应链绩效最大。然后对该问题提出了一个动态多目标多产品供应商选择模型,该模型是首次同时考虑供应商选择,订单分配,供应链风险和供应链绩效的一个模糊动态非线性多目标规划模型。为了去模糊化和求解该模型,给出了一个风险和绩效的模糊评估法。最后给出一个数值算例验证了该模型的可行性,为决策者选择供应商提供了理论依据。     

A multi-objective supplier selection framework based on user-preferences

Annals of Operations Research - This paper introduces an interactive framework to guide decision-makers in a multi-criteria supplier selection process. State-of-the-art multi-criteria methods for...     

Supplier selection for one-sided processes with unequal sample sizes

In this paper, we consider the supplier selection problem which deals with comparing two one-sided processes and selecting the one that has a significantly higher capability value. We present an exact approach to tackle the supplier selection problem. Testing hypotheses with two phases for comparing two processes are considered. Critical values of the tests are calculated to determine the selection decisions. Sample size required for a designated selection power and confidence level is also investigated. The results provide useful information to practitioners. The proposed approach generalizes the existing method by not requiring equal sample sizes for the two processes. An application example on comparing two wavelength division multiplexer (WDM) manufacturing processes is presented to illustrate the practicality of our approach to actual data collected from the factories.     

Integrated analytical hierarch process and mathematical programming to supplier selection problem with quantity discount

In this article an integration of analytical hierarchy process and non-linear integer and multi-objective programming under some constraints such as quantity discounts, capacity, and budget is applied to determine the best suppliers and to place the optimal order quantities among them. This integration-based multi-criteria decision making methodology takes into account both qualitative and quantitative factors in supplier selection. While the analytical hierarchy process matches item characteristics with supplier characteristics, non-linear integer programming model analytically determines the best suppliers and the optimal order quantities among the determined suppliers. The objectives of the mathematical models constructed are maximizing the total value of purchase (TVP), minimizing the total cost of purchase (TCP) or maximizing TVP and minimizing TCP simultaneously. In addition, several “what if” scenarios are facilitated and the quality of the resulting models is evaluated on real-life data.     

基于微博客的手机供应商排名推荐

微博作为一种新兴的日渐被广泛使用的网络平台,大大的满足了人们人际交流、信息获取等多方面的需求,它已经成为人们日常生活的重要组成部分.传统的供应商选择问题是从供应商角度出发,通过考虑成本等问题而得到解决的.借助新兴的网络平台-微博,利用微博数据的评价性信息,引入微博影响力评价的概念,提出了全新的供应商排名推荐方法,最终得出了基.于微博影响力评价的手机供应商排名.     

基于ANP-RBF神经网络的化工行业绿色供应商选择

基于绿色供应链理念,提出了化工行业绿色供应商选择的特色指标,构建了化工行业绿色供应商选择的ANP-RBF神经网络模型。通过ANP确定各指标权重,再结合RBF神经网络,从训练数据中提取隐含的知识和规律,能够方便地用于新供应商的选择。该模型求解算法为增量算法,具有很好的可扩展性,从而增加了评价的动态性。算例验证结果表明,将ANP-RBF神经网络模型用于化工行业绿色供应商的选择具有较强的实用性。