An inventory problem with two randomly available suppliers
Date
1997Source Title
Operations Research
Print ISSN
0030-364X
Publisher
Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences
Volume
45
Issue
6
Pages
904 - 918
Language
English
Type
ArticleItem Usage Stats
206
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331
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Abstract
This paper considers a stochastic inventory model in which supply availability is subject to random fluctuations that may arise due to machine breakdowns, strikes, embargoes, etc. It is assumed that the inventory manager deals with two suppliers who may be either individually ON (available) or OFF (unavailable). Each supplier's availability is modeled as a semi-Markov (alternating renewal) process. We assume that the durations of the ON periods for the two suppliers are distributed as Erlang random variables. The OFF periods for each supplier have a general distribution. In analogy with queuing notation, we call this an Es1[Es2]/G1[G2] system. Since the resulting stochastic process is non-Markovian, we employ the "method of stages" to transform the process into a Markovian one, albeit at the cost of enlarging the state space. We identify the regenerative cycles of the inventory level process and use the renewal reward theorem to form the long-run average cost objective function. Finite time transition functions for the semi-Markov process are computed numerically using a direct method of solving a system of integral equations representing these functions. A detailed numerical example is presented for the E2[E2]/M[M] case. Analytic solutions are obtained for the particular case of "large" (asymptotic) order quantity, in which case the objective function assumes a very simple form that can be used to analyze the optimality conditions. The paper concludes with the discussion of an alternative inventory policy for modeling the random supply availability problem.
Keywords
AvailabilityFunctions
Integral equations
Mathematical models
Mathematical transformations
Numerical methods
Queueing theory
Random processes
State space methods
Erlang random variables
Inventory
Random supply availability
Renewal reward theorem
Stages method
Inventory control