Inventory Record Inaccuracy,Double Marginalization,and RFID Adoption

Most retailers suffer from substantial discrepancies between inventory quantities recorded in the system and stocks truly available to customers. Promising full inventory transparency, radio frequency identification (RFID) technology has often been suggested as a remedy to the problem. We consider inventory record inaccuracy in a supply chain model, where a Stackelberg manufacturer sets the wholesale price and a retailer determines how much to stock for sale to customers. We first analyze the impact of inventory record inaccuracy on optimal stocking decisions and profits. By contrasting optimal decisions in a decentralized supply chain with those in an integrated supply chain, we find that inventory record inaccuracy exacerbates the inefficiencies resulting from double marginalization in decentralized supply chains. Assuming RFID technology can eliminate the problem of inventory record inaccuracy, we determine the cost thresholds at which RFID adoption becomes profitable. We show that a decentralized supply chain benefits more from RFID technology, such that RFID adoption improves supply chain coordination.     

Unlocking the Value of RFID

RFID (Radio‐Frequency Identification) technology has shown itself to be a promising technology to track movements of goods in a supply chain. As such, it can give unprecedented visibility to the supply chain. Such visibility can save labor cost, improve supply chain coordination, reduce inventory and increase product availability. Industry reports and white papers are now filled with estimates and proclamations of the benefits and quantified values of RFID. Early adopters are now rallying more and more followers. However, most such claims are educated guesses at best and are not substantiated, that is, they are not based on detailed, model‐based analysis. This paper argues that there is a huge credibility gap of the value of RFID, and that a void exists in showing how the proclaimed values are arrived at, and how those values can be realized. The paper shows that this credibility gap must be filled with solid model analysis, and therefore presents a great opportunity for the Production and Operations Management (POM) research community. The paper reviews some of the ongoing research efforts that attempt to close the credibility gap, and suggests additional directions for further strengthening the POM's contribution to help industry realize the full potentials of RFID.     

A Periodic Inventory Model for Stocking Modular Components

We study the benefit obtained by exploiting modular product design in fulfilling exogenous demand for both a complete assembly and its components in a service parts inventory system. Our goal is to reduce overall service system costs by allowing assembly and/or disassembly (A/D) to occur at some unit cost per A/D action. In an extensive set of computational experiments, we compare a naïve stocking and operating policy that treats all items independently and ignores the modular product structure and related A/D capability to the optimal base stock policy, and to a policy that allows A/D from the naïve stocking levels. While extensive computational analysis shows that the optimal base stock policy improves the system cost between 3 to 26% over the naïve approach, simply allowing A/D from the naïve stocking levels captures a significant portion (an average of 67%) of the naïve–optimal gap. Our computational results demonstrate that the optimization shifts the component‐assembly mix from the naïve levels and that limiting A/D capacity affects this mix. Limiting A/D capacity can actually increase the expected number of A/D actions (versus the uncapacitated case), since the optimization shifts stocking levels to reduce the probability that “too many” actions will be required.     

多分销中心供应链模型及其牛鞭效应的H∞控制

本文在文^[1]具有一个分销中心供应链模型的基础上,建立了具有多个分销中心的供应链结构模型,采用供应链上游库存与订货偏差波动之和与下游顾客需求偏差波动之比描述牛鞭效应。提出顾客末端需求波动最差条件下H_∞控制方法,以抑制牛鞭效应。这一方法本质就是供应链末端需求波动最差情况下,制定供应链管理的最优决策。并且以一个石油分销系统为对象进行了供应链牛鞭效应的H_∞控制仿真实验。     

基于系统动力学的库存管理研究

在讨论系统动力学相关理论及其应用现状的基础上,研究了供应商代管库存模式(VenderManagedInventory,VMI)的管理思想,并借助建模平台STELLAithink,建立了供应链环境下库存管理的系统动力学仿真模型,并对模型的运行和模拟结果进行了分析。     

基于时变需求的供应链基本库存水平优化研究

在时变需求环境下,基于模型推导得到供需双方基本库存水平局部优化与整体优化决策方程,并基于算例对基本库存水平整体优化的成本绩效以及需求时变性的影响进行数据分析,得到如下重要结论:基本库存水平整体优化明显降低供应链库存成本.     

需求信息滞后下的零售商决策与牛鞭效应分析

牛鞭效应是一种在企业经营中广泛存在的普遍现象,对企业的生产经营产生了极大的负面影响。本文考虑一个供应商和一个零售商组成的简单两级供应链系统。在这个系统中,首先建立在需求信息滞后情况下的零售商库存决策和混合决策(库存决策和定价决策)模型;然后进行决策对牛鞭效应的影响分析。结果显示:在需求信息存在滞后的情况下,零售商最优决策的定价和订货点的期望值是确定的,与需求信息滞后期的长度无关;零售商的库存决策能产生牛鞭效应,且牛鞭效应会随需求滞后期增加而逐渐减少;零售商的混合决策能否产生牛鞭效应,取决于需求自相关系数的变化,而与需求滞后期无关,但随着需求滞后期会改变期变化程度。此外,库存决策还是混合决策,在需求不具有滞后时较具有滞后时牛鞭效应表现得较为为减弱;零售商的混合决策与库存决策相比,只有在需求的自相关系数取较小值时,才表现得更为强烈,否则会减弱。因而对于零售商而言,适当的需求信息滞后以及供应商对零售商的定价柔性能减少牛鞭效应。     

物流金融中季节性存货质押融资质押率决策

物流金融创新模式下的存货质押融资业务能有效解决供应链上的资金瓶颈,具有很大发展空间,但风险控制水平的滞后严重制约了业务的成长.本文针对基于统一授信的物流金融创新模式中季节性存货质押融资业务的核心风险控制指标——质押率展开研究,首先考虑统一授信模式的特征及成本收益结构,借鉴贸易融资中“主体+债项”的风险评估思路,构建融资...     

供应商管理库存环境下的分销网络连续近似模型

本文在现有连续近似(CA)模型的基础上,从供应商管理库存(VMI)角度出发,引入了PowerofTwo(POT)周期配送策略,构建了VMI环境下分销网络设计的CA模型。该模型的目标函数不仅包括了分销中心的建设 运营费用、运输费用,而且引进了实际中关注的存储费和订货费;该模型在确定分销网络结构的同时,也确定了各分销中心的库存策略和对其客户的配送策略。文中给出了模型的解法,利用此解法对算例进行求解,并分析了求解的结果,得出各参数变化对解的影响。     

行为库存管理研究综述及前景展望

库存管理是运作管理学科的研究重点之一.由于其在经济活动中具有重要的地位,库存管理在行为运作管理这一新兴学科中再次成为学术界关注的焦点.本文首先简述了行为运作管理的行为理论基础以及行为经济学的发展,根据行为运作管理的研究目标构建了行为库存管理的整体研究框架,进而在这一框架下对现有的行为库存管理相关研究进行系统综述,并进一...