Coordinating a three-echelon fresh agricultural products supply chain considering freshness-keeping effort with asymmetric information

This paper studies the coordination problem of a three-echelon supply chain system consisting of one supplier, third-party logistics service providers (TPLSP) and one retailer that provides seasonal fresh agricultural products to customers. The market demand for the retailer is assumed to be influenced by the retail price, the product's freshness and other random variables. Both quantity and quality losses are viewed as endogenous variables of the freshness-keeping effort, which is decided by the TPLSP. Dynamic game models for both the decentralized decision mode and the centralized decision mode are developed, and asymmetric demand information is considered in the decentralized decision mode. The analysis shows that decentralized decision making could result in the distortion of the order quantity and selling price and could ultimately result in a loss of supply chain profit. The TPLSP is motivated to exaggerate the demand, which could seriously damage the supplier's interests. Based on an analysis of the major influencing factors in the supply chain system, a coordination contract based on cost and revenue sharing (RS) is designed for the two transaction processes in the three-echelon supply chain system. We illustrate the proposed models with a numerical study and conduct a sensitivity analysis of some of the key parameters in the models. It is proven that with the designed contract, the sales volume can be significantly expanded, all the supply chain members can benefit from Pareto improvement, and both the retailer and the TPLSP have no incentive to exaggerate the market demand.     

基于Kriging模型的供应链优化设计

供应链优化的目的之一是确定使得总成本最小的最佳运作水平.供应链系统是复杂的动态系统,由于库存系统的复杂性和供应链本身的不确定性,利用传统优化方法往往需要耗费一定的计算成本和经济成本.而元模型则能以简单的数学表达式较精确地刻画仿真系统的输入输出关系,为研究者分析复杂系统提供了一种分析方法.针对供应链优化问题,给出了一种基于计算机试验设计中的元模型一Kriging模型的供应链优化方法,并通过一个三级供应链问题对所提方法进行了实证研究.研究结果表明了所提方法的有效性和可用性,为供应链优化提供了一种新的研究思路.     

需求受价格影响的三层供应链协调模型

针对由一个制造商、一个批发商和一个零售商构成的三层供应链系统,在随机市场需求且需求受商品零售价格影响的情况下,研究了零售商如何定价和确定订货量.在此基础上给出了一个能使供应链系统达到完美协调的收益分享合约策略,最后给出了数值例子.     

Reverse supply chain coordination by revenue sharing contract: A case for the personal computers industry

Products that are not recycled at the end of their life increasingly damage the environment. In a collection – remanufacturing scheme, these end-of-life products can generate new profits. Designed on the personal computers industry, this study defines an analytical model used to explore the implications of recycling on the reverse supply chain from an efficiency perspective for all participants in the process. The cases considered for analysis are the two- and three-echelon supply chains, where we first look at the decentralized reverse setting followed by the coordinated setting through implementation of revenue sharing contract. We define customer willingness to return obsolete units as a function of the discount offered by the retailer in exchange for recycling devices with a remanufacturing value. The results show that performance measures and total supply chain profits improve through coordination with revenue sharing contracts on both two- and three-echelon reverse supply chains.     

Approximate analysis and optimization of batch ordering policies in capacitated supply chains

Devising manufacturing/distribution strategies for supply chains and determining their parameter values have been challenging problems. Linking production management to stock keeping processes improves the planning of the supply chain activities, including material management, culminating in improved customer service levels. In this study, we investigate a multi-echelon supply chain consisting of a supplier, a plant, a distribution center and a retailer. Material flow between stages is driven by reorder point/order quantity inventory control policies. We develop a model to analyze supply chain behavior using some key performance metrics such as the time averages of inventory and backorder levels, as well as customer service levels at each echelon. The model is validated against simulation, yielding good agreement of robust performance metrics. The metrics are then used within an optimization framework to design the supply chain so as to minimize expected total system costs. The outcome of the optimization framework specifies how to move inventory throughout the supply chain and how to set inventory control parameters, i.e., reorder levels and replenishment batch sizes.     

An algorithm for solving the multi-period online fulfillment assignment problem

This paper develops an optimal solution procedure for the multi-period online fulfillment assignment problem to determine how many and which of a retailer/e-tailer’s capacitated regional warehouse locations should be set up to handle online sales over a finite planning horizon. To reduce the number of candidate solutions in each period, dominance rules from the facility location literature are extended to handle the nonlinear holding and backorder cost implications of our problem. Computational results indicate that multi-period considerations can play a major role in determining the optimal set of online fulfillment locations. In 92% of our test problems, the multi-period solution incorporated fewer openings and closings than myopic single period solutions. To illustrate the use of the model under changing demands, the multi-period solution yielded different supply chain configurations than the myopic single period solution in over 37% of the periods.     

低碳经济下三级供应链动态减排的微分博弈分析

在低碳经济的背景下,考虑到碳减排的连续性,引入时间因素,从动态角度将微分博弈的方法应用到三级供应链的减排决策中,构建了由一个供应商、一个制造商和一个零售商组成三级供应链的动态减排决策模型,比较分析在协同状态和非协同状态下产品减排量的变化曲线和供应链利润,同时还得到供应商、制造商和零售商的最优决策及利润。最后,使用算例分析的方法分析了各参数对产品减排量轨迹的影响,所得结论可以为供应商、制造商和零售商的决策提供理论依据。     

Optimal model for warehouse location and retailer allocation

Warehouse location and retailer allocation is a high‐level strategic decision problem that is commonly encountered by logisticians and supply chain managers, especially during the supply chain design phase. Considering the product distribution cost and warehouse capital cost trade‐offs, this paper models the warehouse location and retailer allocation problem as a 0–1 integer programming problem and provides an efficient two‐stage set covering heuristic algorithm to solve large‐sized problems. Finally, concluding remarks and some recommendations for further research are also presented. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

零售商主导的模糊供应链博弈——考虑销售努力的情形

以包含一个制造商与一个零售商的两级供应链为研究对象,考虑零售商居于主导地位并付出销售努力时供应链各成员的决策。结合经济环境的不确定性,将市场需求函数和制造商的制造成本、零售商的经营成本视为模糊变量;运用斯塔克尔伯格模型刻画零售商和制造商之间的博弈过程,并引入期望值模型、机会约束模型来解决最优决策问题;通过一个数值算例证明了供应链博弈模型的有效性。研究表明,在均衡结果中,考虑到零售商所承担的销售努力成本,其总体期望值利润相比于制造商而言偏低,但单位产品边际利润较高。原因在于,零售商的主导地位使其不仅通过销售努力提高产品销量,提高了供应链的整体利润,同时也能够采用压低批发价格的方式,使自身在供应链中获取更多收益。     

公平偏好下基于批发价契约的供应链 协调研究

文中基于Nash讨价还价博弈思想建立公平偏好框架,构建公平偏好效用体系,以此为基础对采用批发价契约的报童模型展开行为研究,采用数理模型和数值分析方法分析了零售商和供应商的公平偏好行为对零售商和供应链系统最优订货量的影响,即零售商和供应商同时关注公平时,零售商和供应链系统的最优订货量趋于保守;并发现零售商和供应链系统的最优订货量随零售商的公平偏好程度增加而递减,但随着供应商公平偏好程度增加而递增,且供应链系统最优订货量变化趋势比零售商明显．然后,在此基础上分析比较得到,无论供应商和零售商是否偏好公平,批发价契约都不能实现供应链协调．最后,对批发价、零售价、供应商生产成本、零售商缺货成本和供应商缺货成本进行敏感度分析．     

A real-time decision rule for an inventory system with committed service time and emergency orders

In this paper, we study the inventory system of an online retailer with compound Poisson demand. The retailer normally replenishes its inventory according to a continuous review (nQ, R) policy with a constant lead time. Usually demands that cannot be satisfied immediately are backordered. We also assume that the customers will accept a reasonable waiting time after they have placed their orders because of the purchasing convenience of the online system. This means that a sufficiently short waiting time incurs no shortage costs. We call this allowed waiting time “committed service time”. After this committed service time, if the retailer is still in shortage, the customer demand must either be satisfied with an emergency supply that takes no time (which is financially equivalent to a lost sale) or continue to be backordered with a time-dependent backorder cost. The committed service time gives an online retailer a buffer period to handle excess demands. Based on real-time information concerning the outstanding orders of an online retailer and the waiting times of its customers, we provide a decision rule for emergency orders that minimizes the expected costs under the assumption that no further emergency orders will occur. This decision rule is then used repeatedly as a heuristic. Numerical examples are presented to illustrate the model, together with a discussion of the conditions under which the real-time decision rule provides considerable cost savings compared to traditional systems.     

On explicit solutions of a two-echelon supply chain coordination game

A contracting game under asymmetric information specific to two-echelon supply chain coordination between a retailer of unknown type and a supplier is studied. When the parameter which is private information to the retailer (holding cost) is known up to an interval of uncertainty, a uniform discrete approximation for retailer types leads to closed-form solutions where the joint (coordinated) optimal order quantity for a modified holding cost plays a major role. Furthermore, the closed-form solutions result in increasing information rent for higher types under easy-to-verify conditions involving strict lower limits on the total holding costs of retailer and supplier and the difference between uncoordinated optimal costs of consecutive retailer types.     

Make-or-buy service capacity decision in a supply chain providing after-sales service

We consider a supply chain comprising a manufacturer and a retailer. The manufacturer supplies a product to the retailer, while the retailer sells the product bundled with after-sales service to consumers in a fully competitive market. The sales volume is affected by the retailer’s service-level commitment. The retailer can build service capacity in-house at a deterministic price before service demand is realized, or buy the service from an outsourcing market at an uncertain price after service demand realization. We find that the outsourcing market encourages the retailer to make a higher level of service commitment, while prompting the manufacturer to reduce the wholesale price, resulting in more demand realization. We analyze how the expected cost of the service in the outsourcing market and the retailer’s risk attitude affect the decisions of both parties. We derive the conditions under which the retailer is willing to build service capacity in-house and under which it will buy the service from the outsourcing market. Moreover, we find that the manufacturer’s sharing with the retailer the cost to build service capacity improves the profits of both parties.     

Price discount based on early order commitment in a single manufacturer–multiple retailer supply chain

Early order commitment (EOC) is a strategy for supply chain coordination, wherein the retailer commits to purchasing from a manufacturer a fixed order quantity a few periods in advance of the regular delivery lead time. In this paper, we formulate and analyze the EOC strategy for a decentralized, two-level supply chain consisting of a single manufacturer and multiple retailers, who face external demands that follow an autocorrelated AR(1) process over time. We characterize the special structure of the optimal solutions for the retailers’ EOC periods to minimize the total supply chain cost and discuss the impact of demand parameters and cost parameters. We then develop and compare three solution approaches to solving the optimal solution. Using this optimal cost as the benchmark, we investigate the effectiveness of using the wholesale price-discount scheme for the manufacturer to coordinate this decentralized system. We give numerical examples to show the benefits of EOC to the whole supply chain, examine the efficiency of the discount scheme in general situation, and provide the special conditions when the full coordination is achieved.     

信息不对称下混合渠道零售商创新投入的供应链影响研究

通过建立Stackelberg博弈模型,研究了在混合渠道下零售商创新投入对供应链的影响,分析了零售商创新成本系数信息对称和不对称两种情况下各方的决策变量和利润受创新成本系数,制造商对零售商创新信息掌握的不确定性程度,需求转移系数,市场潜力及创新潜力等的影响关系。研究结果发现制造商总能通过信息分享受益,另外得到了零售商愿意分享成本信息以及使得供应链整体受益的条件,这些为制造商信息分享决策提供了依据。最后通过算例分析对结果进行了验证。     

企业社会责任下碳减排优化策略与协调机制研究

基于企业社会责任(CSR)的视角,本文研究由生产低碳产品的制造商和零售商组成的二级供应链的最优策略及供应链协调问题。通过构造供应链成员具有社会责任感的效用函数,分析了CSR对各成员的利润和环境的影响。研究发现:制造商和零售商都是通过降低碳排放水平来体现社会责任感;无论制造商有社会责任感还是零售商有社会责任感,供应链的利润都增大;在收益共享-成本分摊合同(RC合同)下协调,可以使制造商和零售商实现双赢(帕累托最优);零售商应该承担更多的社会责任,降低碳排放水平。     

A note on “Price discount based on early order commitment in a single manufacturer-multiple retailer supply chain”

In a recent paper by Xie et al. [Xie, J., Zhou, D., Wei, J.C., Zhao, X., 2010. Price discount based on early order commitment in a single manufacturer-multiple retailer supply chain. European Journal of Operational Research 200, 368-376], the authors have studied the early order commitment (EOC) strategy for a decentralized, two-level supply chain consisting of a single manufacturer and multiple retailers. They fail to provide an algorithm to determine the optimal EOC periods to minimize the total supply chain cost. This note proposes a polynomial-time algorithm to find the optimal solutions, and provides a new set of sufficient conditions under which the wholesale price discount scheme coordinates the whole supply chain.     

考虑企业社会责任的三级供应链协调策略研究

为考察企业社会责任(CSR)对供应链绩效的影响,将消费者剩余作为企业参与社会责任活动的利润函数,研究了由单个制造商、单个分销商和单个零售商组成的三级供应链的协调优化问题.考虑两种情况:一种情况是零售商参与CSR活动,另一种情况是制造商参与CSR活动.研究表明,在制造商是斯坦克尔伯格(Stackelberg)博弈主导者的...     

A stochastic periodic review integrated inventory model involving defective items, backorder price discount, and variable lead time

The purpose of this article is to investigate a stochastic integrated supplier-retailer inventory problem. The model analyzed in this article explores the problem of the protection interval, the backorder price discount, the lead time, and the numbers of shipments from the supplier to the retailer in one production run as control variables to widen applications for an integrated periodic review inventory model. We consider the situation in which the supplier and the retailer establish a long-term strategic partnership and contract to jointly determine the best strategy. We assume that the protection interval demand follows a normal distribution. Our objective is to determine the optimal review period, the optimal backorder price discount, the optimal lead time, and the optimal number of shipments from the supplier to the retailer in one production run, so that the joint expected annual total cost incurred has the minimum value. Furthermore, an algorithm of finding the optimal solution is developed. Also, the sensitivity analysis included and a numerical example is given to illustrate the results of the proposed model.     

An inventory model with partial backordering and unit backorder cost linearly increasing with the waiting time

As the implementation of JIT practice becomes increasingly popular, each echelon in a supply chain tends to carry fewer inventories, and thus the whole supply chain is made more vulnerable to lost sales and/or backorders. The purpose of this paper is to recast the inventory model to be more relevant to current situations, where the penalty cost for a shortage occurrence at a downstream stage in a supply chain is continually transmitted to the upstream stages. The supplier, in this case, at the upstream of the supply chain is responsible for all the downstream shortages due to the chain reaction of its backlog. The current paper proposes a model in which the backorder cost per unit time is a linearly increasing function of shortage time, and it claims that the optimal policy for the supplier is setting the optimal shortage time per inventory cycle to minimize its total relevant cost in a JIT environment.