From supply chains to demand networks. Agents in retailing: the electrical bazaar

A paradigm shift is taking place in logistics. The focus is changing from operational effectiveness to adaptation. Supply Chains will develop into networks that will adapt to consumer demand in almost real time. Time to market, capacity of adaptation and enrichment of customer experience seem to be the key elements of this new paradigm. In this environment emerging technologies like RFID (Radio Frequency ID), Intelligent Products and the Internet, are triggering a reconsideration of methods, procedures and goals. We present a Multiagent System framework specialized in retail that addresses these changes with the use of rational agents and takes advantages of the new market opportunities. Like in an old bazaar, agents able to learn, cooperate, take advantage of gossip and distinguish between collaborators and competitors, have the ability to adapt, learn and react to a changing environment better than any other structure. Keywords: Supply Chains, Distributed Artificial Intelligence, Multiagent System.Postprint (published version

Critical Management Issues for Implementing RFID in Supply Chain Management

The benefits of radio frequency identification (RFID) technology in the supply chain are fairly compelling. It has the potential to revolutionise the efficiency, accuracy and security of the supply chain with significant impact on overall profitability. A number of companies are actively involved in testing and adopting this technology. It is estimated that the market for RFID products and services will increase significantly in the next few years. Despite this trend, there are major impediments to RFID adoption in supply chain. While RFID systems have been around for several decades, the technology for supply chain management is still emerging. We describe many of the challenges, setbacks and barriers facing RFID implementations in supply chains, discuss the critical issues for management and offer some suggestions. In the process, we take an in-depth look at cost, technology, standards, privacy and security and business process reengineering related issues surrounding RFID technology in supply chains

The use of information systems for logistics and supply chain management in South East Europe: Current status and future direction

This research aims to investigate the current status and future direction of the use of information systems for logistics and supply chain management (LSCM) in South East Europe. The objectives are threefold: (1) to identify major challenges and developments on the use of information systems for LSCM by enterprises, (2) to examine the actual level of satisfaction of current policy on LSCM, and (3) to reveal the actual need of enterprises in South East Europe on effective use of information systems for LSCM. Mixed methodology of literature review and questionnaire survey is adopted in this research. Data collected from 79 enterprises are analysed using descriptive analysis in SPSS. The findings suggest that enterprises in Albania, Bulgaria, Greece, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), Romania, and Serbia and Montenegro, face similar challenges but all are in different stages of developments of LSCM. Their use of information systems explains their heavy focus on supply chain partnership and weakness in demand chain partnership. Major findings suggest that companies and governments alike in that region do not seem to be ready for playing a significant and demanding role in global supply chains. Current deficiencies, including limited abilities in building valuable forward relations, weak strategic planning and organisation, and infrastructural problems, are major obstacles for fast development in LSCM. At the same time though, traces of changing mentalities do exist, setting the ground for improved performance and ultimately for a better position in global business

A framework for smart production-logistics systems based on CPS and industrial IoT

Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) has received increasing attention from both academia and industry. However, several challenges including excessively long waiting time and a serious waste of energy still exist in the IIoT-based integration between production and logistics in job shops. To address these challenges, a framework depicting the mechanism and methodology of smart production-logistics systems is proposed to implement intelligent modeling of key manufacturing resources and investigate self-organizing configuration mechanisms. A data-driven model based on analytical target cascading is developed to implement the self-organizing configuration. A case study based on a Chinese engine manufacturer is presented to validate the feasibility and evaluate the performance of the proposed framework and the developed method. The results show that the manufacturing time and the energy consumption are reduced and the computing time is reasonable. This paper potentially enables manufacturers to deploy IIoT-based applications and improve the efficiency of production-logistics systems

The strategic importance of supply chains and the RFID radio data identification system

Purpose: The paper presents the issues related to the process of supply chain management. It presents the essence and classification of supply chains and the interpretation of global supply network management. Design/Methodology/Approach: Using systems theory as a basis, a RFID utilization and outcome(s) performance model was developed from the literature. The study uses surveys conducted among twenty companies in the 2016-2017 research year. Enterprises that use RFID technologies in the supply chain were analyzed. Findings: The Findings indicate that application of RFID technology leads to improved manufacturing efficiency and manufacturing effectiveness, while improvement in efficiency lead directly to improved organizational performance, and improvements in effectiveness lead directly to improved supply chain performance. Practical Implications: Certain policy implications and obligations accrue are companies that use RFID technology in their supply order to manage the company more efficiently. Originality/Value: The publication presents the results of research carried out in enterprises using the new RFID system as a modern technique of supporting supply chain management to increase the efficiency of cooperation throughout the entire supply chain.peer-reviewe

Modeling of RFID-Enabled Real-Time Manufacturing Execution System in Mixed-Model Assembly Lines

To quickly respond to the diverse product demands, mixed-model assembly lines are well adopted in discrete manufacturing industries. Besides the complexity in material distribution, mixed-model assembly involves a variety of components, different process plans and fast production changes, which greatly increase the difficulty for agile production management. Aiming at breaking through the bottlenecks in existing production management, a novel RFID-enabled manufacturing execution system (MES), which is featured with real-time and wireless information interaction capability, is proposed to identify various manufacturing objects including WIPs, tools, and operators, etc., and to trace their movements throughout the production processes. However, being subject to the constraints in terms of safety stock, machine assignment, setup, and scheduling requirements, the optimization of RFID-enabled MES model for production planning and scheduling issues is a NP-hard problem. A new heuristical generalized Lagrangian decomposition approach has been proposed for model optimization, which decomposes the model into three subproblems: computation of optimal configuration of RFID senor networks, optimization of production planning subjected to machine setup cost and safety stock constraints, and optimization of scheduling for minimized overtime. RFID signal processing methods that could solve unreliable, redundant, and missing tag events are also described in detail. The model validity is discussed through algorithm analysis and verified through numerical simulation. The proposed design scheme has important reference value for the applications of RFID in multiple manufacturing fields, and also lays a vital research foundation to leverage digital and networked manufacturing system towards intelligence

Application of auto-ID in agent-based manufacturing control

Conference Theme: Soft Computing Techniques for Advanced Manufacturing and Service SystemsSession - MA-Ha Manufacturing Technologies 1: cie177hk-1A feasibility study has been established to integrate agent and auto-ID technologies in manufacturing control applications. A multi-agent system (MAS) framework for intelligent manufacturing has been established. The intelligent MAS environment attempts to exploit the potential of Auto-ID (RFID in particular) technology in manufacturing applications. The aim is to evaluate the applications of Auto-ID, especially with RFID technology, in manufacturing control. This involves the establishment of the hardware and software interfaces to enable production and process data to be recorded and written in the Auto-ID devices. Experiments are being conducted to study the working requirements and parameters of the Auto-ID devices in the shopfloor environments. Subsequently, the RFID technology is adopted in a flexible assembly cell (FAC) to evaluate the feasibility of integrating the RFID devices in a multi-agent based manufacturing control system. A MAS infrastructure for FAC control has been developed to incorporate the coordination of the RFID devices.published_or_final_versionThe 40th International Conference on Computers & Industrial Engineering (CIE40), Awaji City, Japan, 25-28 July 2010. In Proceedings of the International Conference on Computers and Industrial Engineering, 2010, p. 1-