Optimal control of a finite-capacity inventory system with setup cost and lost sales

One of the most fundamental results in inventory theoryis the optimality of (s, S) policy for inventory systems withsetup cost. This result is established based on a key assumptionof infinite production/ordering capacity. Several studies haveshown that, when there is a finite production/ordering capacity,the optimal policy for the inventory system is very complicatedand indeed, only partial characterization for the optimal policyis possible. In this paper, we consider a continuous reviewinventory system with finite production/ordering capacity andsetup cost, and show that the optimal control policy for thissystem has a very simple structure. We also develop efficientalgorithms to compute the optimal control parameters.     

A mixed integer nonlinear optimization model for gas sale company

In this paper the authors propose an optimisation model, called OMoGaS (Optimisation Modelling for Gas Seller), to assist companies dealing with gas retail commercialisation. The model takes into account the limits on price imposed by law on small consumers as well as the gas company policies in order to explore the commercial consequences of different policies. The GAMS framework is used for the optimisation of the defined MINLP model where the profit function is based on the number of contracts with the final consumers, on the tipology of consumers and on the cost supported to meet the final demand while the constraints include information on a maximum daily gas consumption, on yearly maximum and minimum comsumption in order to avoid penalties and on consumption profiles. A case study is presented.     

Inventory Problems with Partially Observed Demands and Lost Sales

This paper considers the case of partially observed demand in the context of a multi-period inventory problem with lost sales. Demand in a period is observed if it is less than the inventory level in that period and the leftover inventory is carried over to the next period. Otherwise, only the event that it is larger than or equal to the inventory level is observed. These observations are used to update the demand distributions over time. The state of the resulting dynamic program consists of the current inventory level and the current demand distribution, which is infinite dimensional. The state evolution equation for the demand distribution becomes linear with the use of unnormalized probabilities. We study two demand cases. First, the demands evolve according to a Markov chain. Second, the demand distribution has an unknown parameter which is updated in the Bayesian manner. In both cases, we prove the existence of an optimal feedback ordering policy. Permanent address of J. Adolfo Minjárez-Sosa: Departamento de Matemáticas, Universidad de Sonora, Hermosillo, Sonora, México. This project was partially supported by NSF Grant 0509278, ARPATP Grant 009741-0019-2006, and CONACYT (Mexico) Grant 46633-F.     

Research note on the criteria for the optimal solution of the inventory model with a mixture of partial backordering and lost sales

Perishable products are commonly seen in inventory management. By allowing shortages and backlogging, the impact on the cost from the decay of the products can be balanced out. In a recent paper published in Computers and Industrial Engineering [P.L. Abad, Optimal lot size for a perishable good under conditions of finite production and partial backordering and lost sale, Comput. Ind. Eng. 38 (2000) 457–465] considered a problem in such context. However, his algorithm was incomplete due to flaws in his solution procedure. The purpose of this note is to explore the same production inventory models with a mixture of partial backordering and lost sales for deteriorated items. We find the criteria for the optimal solution for different cases and derive a formulated minimum value. By theoretical analysis, we develop a few lemmas to reveal parameter effects and optimal solution procedure. The solutions are illustrated by solving the same examples from Abad’s paper to illustrate the accuracy and completeness of our procedure.     

绩效趋近目标导向与交易型领导对销售绩效的影响

研究表明,目标导向和领导行为均会显著影响员工绩效.已有研究大多关注学习导向和变革型领导的积极作用,相对而言,较少探讨绩效趋近导向和交易型领导如何影响下属绩效等问题.鉴于此,本研究基于特质激活理论,以制药行业的销售人员为研究对象,通过对308名销售人员的调查数据进行多层线性模型分析,探讨绩效趋近导向以及交易型领导行为对销售绩效的影响,结果表明:(1)销售人员的绩效趋近导向正向预测销售绩效;(2)上司的交易型领导行为也正向预测其销售绩效.本研究需要结合情境特征来探讨特质与绩效之间的关系,研究结果对销售行业的人员招聘、选拔有一定借鉴作用.     

考虑零售商风险规避及努力因素的供应链协调与优化模型

引入零售商风险规避偏好,在努力水平影响需求的两种模式下,分别建立了销售回馈与惩罚契约模型。随后,探讨了单纯的销售回馈与惩罚契约能否实现供应链协调,以及协调时各契约参数满足的条件。最后,通过数值分析对契约的协调性进行进一步分析。     

寡头垄断市场下纯捆绑与部件销售模式的选择模型

本文研究了在寡头市场下部件销售模式和纯捆绑模式的选择问题,分别构建了部件销售模式下和纯捆绑模式下的利润函数,并且在此基础上构建了目标函数。文章突破了传统的生产者主导捆绑策略的模式,而是从全新的视角即消费者和生产者的双重视角研究。研究发现:销售模式的选择依赖于商品预期价格的标准差、商品之间的相关系数、商品之间的需求水平、市场信息的透明程度、消费者的消费经验以及商品之间的兼容程度。     

Hypergeometric series and continued fractions

Ramanujan’s results on continued fractions are simple consequences of three-term relations between hypergeometric series. Theirq-analogues lead to many of the continued fractions given in the ‘Lost’ notebook in particular the famous one considered by Andrews and others.     

Lost-sales inventory theory: A review

In classic inventory models it is common to assume that excess demand is backordered. However, studies analyzing customer behavior in practice show that most unfulfilled demand is lost or an alternative item/location is looked for in many retail environments. Inventory systems that include this lost-sales characteristic appear to be more difficult to analyze and to solve. Furthermore, lost-sales inventory systems require different replenishment policies to minimize costs compared to backorder systems. In this paper, we classify the models in the literature based on the characteristics of the inventory system and review the proposed replenishment policies. For each classification and type of replenishment policy we discuss the available models and their performance. Furthermore, directions for future research are proposed.     

Supply-chain coordination model with insufficient production capacity and option for outsourcing

In this paper, a mathematical model is developed to analyze the situation of lost sales from the supply-chain coordination perspective. In a two-stage supply chain, the supplier’s production capacity is less than the annual demand of the retailer. The supplier may recover the deficit by procuring the same from an external source at a certain price and then supplying it back to the retailer. Here, the conditions have been derived when the practice of external procurement may be a viable solution to enhance the profits of both the supplier and retailer in a coordinated approach. A numerical example is carried out to illustrate the efficacy of the developed model and the procedure developed for solving the problem.