A coordination framework for distributed supply chains

Supply chain is a network of cooperating organizations that are involved through upstream and downstream linkages. Such a complex system cannot be modeled simply by mathematical equations without simplification of the problem. Recently, Multi-Agent System (MAS) is proposed as a modeling technique to represent supply chain networks. In fact, many application problems in MASs that are concerned with finding a consistent combination of agent actions can be formalized as Distributed Constraints Satisfaction Problem (DCSP). The main purpose of this paper is to propose a novel coordination framework by adopting the DCSP philosophy for distributed supply chains, which are modeled by MASs, subjected to uncertainties. Simulation results indicate that the proposed mechanism outperforms traditional stochastic modeling in solving supply chain dynamics in terms of total cost and fill rate of the system. © 2004 IEEE.published_or_final_versio

Coordination mechanisms with mathematical programming models for decentralized decision-making, a literature review

[EN] The increase in the complexity of supply chains requires greater efforts to align the activities of all its members in order to improve the creation of value of their products or services offered to customers. In general, the information is asymmetric; each member has its own objective and limitations that may be in conflict with other members. Operations managements face the challenge of coordinating activities in such a way that the supply chain as a whole remains competitive, while each member improves by cooperating. This document aims to offer a systematic review of the collaborative planning in the last decade on the mechanisms of coordination in mathematical programming models that allow us to position existing concepts and identify areas where more research is needed.Rius-Sorolla, G.; Maheut, J.; Estelles Miguel, S.; García Sabater, JP. (2020). Coordination mechanisms with mathematical programming models for decentralized decision-making, a literature review. 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Blockchain-Coordinated Frameworks for Scalable and Secure Supply Chain Networks

Supply chains have progressed through time from being limited to a few regional traders to becoming complicated business networks. As a result, supply chain management systems now rely significantly on the digital revolution for the privacy and security of data. Due to key qualities of blockchain, such as transparency, immutability and decentralization, it has recently gained a lot of interest as a way to solve security, privacy and scalability problems in supply chains. However conventional blockchains are not appropriate for supply chain ecosystems because they are computationally costly, have a limited potential to scale and fail to provide trust. Consequently, due to limitations with a lack of trust and coordination, supply chains tend to fail to foster trust among the network’s participants. Assuring data privacy in a supply chain ecosystem is another challenge. If information is being shared with a large number of participants without establishing data privacy, access control risks arise in the network. Protecting data privacy is a concern when sending corporate data, including locations, manufacturing supplies and demand information. The third challenge in supply chain management is scalability, which continues to be a significant barrier to adoption. As the amount of transactions in a supply chain tends to increase along with the number of nodes in a network. So scalability is essential for blockchain adoption in supply chain networks. This thesis seeks to address the challenges of privacy, scalability and trust by providing frameworks for how to effectively combine blockchains with supply chains. This thesis makes four novel contributions. It first develops a blockchain-based framework with Attribute-Based Access Control (ABAC) model to assure data privacy by adopting a distributed framework to enable fine grained, dynamic access control management for supply chain management. To solve the data privacy challenge, AccessChain is developed. This proposed AccessChain model has two types of ledgers in the system: local and global. Local ledgers are used to store business contracts between stakeholders and the ABAC model management, whereas the global ledger is used to record transaction data. AccessChain can enable decentralized, fine-grained and dynamic access control management in SCM when combined with the ABAC model and blockchain technology (BCT). The framework enables a systematic approach that advantages the supply chain, and the experiments yield convincing results. Furthermore, the results of performance monitoring shows that AccessChain’s response time with four local ledgers is acceptable, and therefore it provides significantly greater scalability. Next, a framework for reducing the bullwhip effect (BWE) in SCM is proposed. The framework also focuses on combining data visibility with trust. BWE is first observed in SC and then a blockchain architecture design is used to minimize it. Full sharing of demand data has been shown to help improve the robustness of overall performance in a multiechelon SC environment, especially for BWE mitigation and cumulative cost reduction. It is observed that when it comes to providing access to data, information sharing using a blockchain has some obvious benefits in a supply chain. Furthermore, when data sharing is distributed, parties in the supply chain will have fair access to other parties’ data, even though they are farther downstream. Sharing customer demand is important in a supply chain to enhance decision-making, reduce costs and promote the final end product. This work also explores the ability of BCT as a solution in a distributed ledger approach to create a trust-enhanced environment where trust is established so that stakeholders can share their information effectively. To provide visibility and coordination along with a blockchain consensus process, a new consensus algorithm, namely Reputation-based proof-of cooperation (RPoC), is proposed for blockchain-based SCM, which does not involve validators to solve any mathematical puzzle before storing a new block. The RPoC algorithm is an efficient and scalable consensus algorithm that selects the consensus node dynamically and permits a large number of nodes to participate in the consensus process. The algorithm decreases the workload on individual nodes while increasing consensus performance by allocating the transaction verification process to specific nodes. Through extensive theoretical analyses and experimentation, the suitability of the proposed algorithm is well grounded in terms of scalability and efficiency. The thesis concludes with a blockchain-enabled framework that addresses the issue of preserving privacy and security for an open-bid auction system. This work implements a bid management system in a private BC environment to provide a secure bidding scheme. The novelty of this framework derives from an enhanced approach for integrating BC structures by replacing the original chain structure with a tree structure. Throughout the online world, user privacy is a primary concern, because the electronic environment enables the collection of personal data. Hence a suitable cryptographic protocol for an open-bid auction atop BC is proposed. Here the primary aim is to achieve security and privacy with greater efficiency, which largely depends on the effectiveness of the encryption algorithms used by BC. Essentially this work considers Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC) and a dynamic cryptographic accumulator encryption algorithm to enhance security between auctioneer and bidder. The proposed e-bidding scheme and the findings from this study should foster the further growth of BC strategies

To Greener Pastures: An Action Research Study on the Environmental Sustainability of Humanitarian Supply Chains

Purpose: While humanitarian supply chains (HSCs) inherently contribute to social sustainability by alleviating the suffering of afflicted communities, their unintended adverse environmental impact has been overlooked hitherto. This paper draws upon contingency theory to synthesize green practices for HSCs, identify the contingency factors that impact on greening HSCs and explore how focal humanitarian organizations (HOs) can cope with such contingency factors. Design/methodology/approach: Deploying an action research methodology, two-and-a-half cycles of collaboration between researchers and a United Nations agency were completed. The first half-cycle developed a deductive greening framework, synthesizing extant green practices from the literature. In the second and third cycles, green practices were adopted/customized/developed reflecting organizational and contextual contingency factors. Action steps were implemented in the HSC for prophylactics, involving an operational mix of disaster relief and development programs. Findings: First, the study presents a greening framework that synthesizes extant green practices in a suitable form for HOs. Second, it identifies the contingency factors associated with greening HSCs regarding funding environment, stakeholders, field of activity and organizational management. Third, it outlines the mechanisms for coping with the contingency factors identified, inter alia, improving the visibility of headquarters over field operations, promoting collaboration and resource sharing with other HOs as well as among different implementing partners in each country, and working with suppliers for greener packaging. The study advances a set of actionable propositions for greening HSCs. Practical implications: Using an action research methodology, the study makes strong practical contributions. Humanitarian practitioners can adopt the greening framework and the lessons learnt from the implementation cycles presented in this study. Originality/value: This is one of the first empirical studies to integrate environmental sustainability and HSCs using an action research methodology

Supply chain collaboration

In the past, research in operations management focused on single-firm analysis. Its goal was to provide managers in practice with suitable tools to improve the performance of their firm by calculating optimal inventory quantities, among others. Nowadays, business decisions are dominated by the globalization of markets and increased competition among firms. Further, more and more products reach the customer through supply chains that are composed of independent firms. Following these trends, research in operations management has shifted its focus from single-firm analysis to multi-firm analysis, in particular to improving the efficiency and performance of supply chains under decentralized control. The main characteristics of such chains are that the firms in the chain are independent actors who try to optimize their individual objectives, and that the decisions taken by a firm do also affect the performance of the other parties in the supply chain. These interactions among firms’ decisions ask for alignment and coordination of actions. Therefore, game theory, the study of situations of cooperation or conflict among heterogenous actors, is very well suited to deal with these interactions. This has been recognized by researchers in the field, since there are an ever increasing number of papers that applies tools, methods and models from game theory to supply chain problems

Multi Agent Systems in Logistics: A Literature and State-of-the-art Review

Based on a literature survey, we aim to answer our main question: “How should we plan and execute logistics in supply chains that aim to meet today’s requirements, and how can we support such planning and execution using IT?†Today’s requirements in supply chains include inter-organizational collaboration and more responsive and tailored supply to meet specific demand. Enterprise systems fall short in meeting these requirements The focus of planning and execution systems should move towards an inter-enterprise and event-driven mode. Inter-organizational systems may support planning going from supporting information exchange and henceforth enable synchronized planning within the organizations towards the capability to do network planning based on available information throughout the network. We provide a framework for planning systems, constituting a rich landscape of possible configurations, where the centralized and fully decentralized approaches are two extremes. We define and discuss agent based systems and in particular multi agent systems (MAS). We emphasize the issue of the role of MAS coordination architectures, and then explain that transportation is, next to production, an important domain in which MAS can and actually are applied. However, implementation is not widespread and some implementation issues are explored. In this manner, we conclude that planning problems in transportation have characteristics that comply with the specific capabilities of agent systems. In particular, these systems are capable to deal with inter-organizational and event-driven planning settings, hence meeting today’s requirements in supply chain planning and execution.supply chain;MAS;multi agent systems

EDI and intelligent agents integration to manage food chains

Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) is a type of inter-organizational information system, which permits the automatic and structured communication of data between organizations. Although EDI is used for internal communication, its main application is in facilitating closer collaboration between organizational entities, e.g. suppliers, credit institutions, and transportation carriers. This study illustrates how agent technology can be used to solve real food supply chain inefficiencies and optimise the logistics network. For instance, we explain how agribusiness companies can use agent technology in association with EDI to collect data from retailers, group them into meaningful categories, and then perform different functions. As a result, the distribution chain can be managed more efficiently. Intelligent agents also make available timely data to inventory management resulting in reducing stocks and tied capital. Intelligent agents are adoptive to changes so they are valuable in a dynamic environment where new products or partners have entered into the supply chain. This flexibility gives agent technology a relative advantage which, for pioneer companies, can be a competitive advantage. The study concludes with recommendations and directions for further research