PHD Thesis - A Hierarchical Model For SC Optimization
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johnconnorPHD Thesis - A Hierarchical Model For SC Optimization
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johnconnorA HIERARCHICAL MODEL FOR
EXTENDED SUPPLY CHAIN COORDINATION
AND OPTIMIZATION
YIN XIAO FENG
SCHOOL OF MECHANICAL AND AEROSPACE ENGINEERING
2011
A HIERARCHICAL MODEL FOR
EXTENDED SUPPLY CHAIN COORDINATION
AND OPTIMIZATION
YIN XIAO FENG
School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
A thesis submitted to the Nanyang Technological University
in fulfilment of the requirement for the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy
2011
Ph.D Thesis
Abstract
ABSTRACT
Supply chain management is about coordinating and managing the entire value chain, from
customer order to production, storage, distribution and delivery. However, different function
units along a supply chain have their own purpose and operate independently. This research
presents an in-depth study aiming at realizing a hierarchical model and a framework for
supply chain coordination and optimization. It is envisaged that the proposed model can be
used as a tool to facilitate planning, optimize the detailed schedules of the various supply
chain units such as manufacturing plants, suppliers and distribution centres and support
global manufacturing.
Accordingly, a prototype distributed intelligent system for multi-level supply chain
coordination, optimization and order scheduling (SCASO) has been established. The
prototype SCASO system comprises three main modules, namely Routing and Sequence
Optimizer (RSO), Supply Chain Virtual Clustering (SCVC) and Supply Chain Order
Scheduler (SCOS). Basically, the RSO module is used to provide the SCVC with a
reasonably good routing and order processing sequence combination while taking into
account the capacity of each supply chain unit and the business strategy to maintain the
required customer service level and competitiveness. The SCVC module then attempts to
compartmentalize an extended supply chain optimization problem that can hardly be solved
by conventional algorithms into manageable sub-problems. Subsequently, the SCOS module,
which contains an agent-based distributed coordination and scheduling mechanism, integrates
scheduling with supply chain optimization.
The key methodologies and algorithms that enable the prototype SCASO system have also
been formulated and implemented. These include: i) a multiple populations search strategy
based evolutionary approach (MBEA), which is a generic methodology for solving different
optimization problems in this work; ii) a novel graph representation known as Supply_Graph,
which is employed to represent and analyze the complex business processes and order
routings; iii) a so-called Supply_Matrix to channel information from Supply_Graph to the
SCVC module for further processing; iv) an exact schema theorem for genetic algorithms
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Ph.D Thesis
Abstract
(GAs). The exact schema theorem is used to examine the optimal/compromised crossover
and mutation probabilities that may improve the performance of GAs; and v) an enhanced
fuzzy c-means technique for the clustering of supply chain units. The capability of the
prototype SCASO system has been illustrated using a case study gleaned from a
semiconductor packaging industry.
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Ph.D Thesis
Acknowledgements
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I would like to express my sincere gratitude and appreciation to my supervisor, Professor
Khoo Li Pheng, for his invaluable advice, inspiration and guidance throughout this work, and
for his understanding and consideration of my burden and pressure from both family and
work. Without his expert guidance, supervision and encouragement, this research work would
have never seen the light.
I would also like to thank Mr. Chua Tay Jin and other former-colleagues in GSS team of
Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology (SIMTech), who had always been
extremely supportive of my Ph.D study during my stay in SIMTech.
I also take this opportunity to acknowledge the support and help of my former-bosses Mr.
Irving Hu and Mr. Kelvin Ng from Idimension Systems Pte Ltd. Idimension Systems had
partially sponsored my Ph.D work.
Special thanks must be expressed to my loving wife for her continual encouragement,
sacrifice, and understanding throughout the research work; to my parents, and my brother and
his family for their moral support and encouragement; and to my two lovely and sweet
daughters for all the happiness and joyful moments they bring to me.
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List of Publications
LIST OF PUBLICATIONS
1. Yin, Xiao Feng and Khoo, Li Pheng. A Hierarchical Model for Large-Scale Supply
Chain Order Scheduling and Optimization, Computers in Industry, submitted on 30 Nov
2010.
2. Yin, Xiao Feng, Khoo, Li Pheng and Chen, Chun-Hsien, A distributed agent system for
port planning and scheduling, Advanced Engineering Informatics, submitted on 25 Apr
2010, Accepted.
3. Yin, Xiao Feng and Khoo, Li Pheng. A fuzzy c-means based hybrid evolutionary
approach to the clustering of supply chain, Computers & Industrial Engineering,
submitted on 10 Mar 2010, in advanced review.
4. Yin, Xiao Feng and Khoo, Li Pheng. An intelligent agent-based distributed architecture
for supply chain order scheduling, Computers in Industry, submitted on 7 Feb 2010.
5. Yin, Xiao Feng and Khoo, Li Pheng. An adaptive fuzzy clustering approach to machine
cell formation. Knowledge and Information System, submitted on 20 Jan 2010.
6. Yin, Xiao Feng and Khoo, Li Pheng (2011) An exact schema theorem for adaptive
genetic algorithm and its application to machine cell formation, Expert Systems with
Applications, 38(7), pp 85388552.
7. Yin, Xiao Feng and Khoo, Li Pheng (2007a) Multiple population search strategy for
routing selection and sequence optimization of a supply chain, International Journal of
Computer Integrated Manufacturing, 20(1), pp 39-56.
8. Yin, Xiao Feng and Khoo, Li Pheng (2007b) A hierarchical model for e-supply chain
coordination and optimisation, Journal of Manufacturing Technology Management,
18(1), pp 7-24.
9. Khoo, Li Pheng and Yin, Xiao Feng (2003) An extended graph-based virtual clusteringenhanced approach to supply chain optimization, International Journal of Advanced
Manufacturing Technology, 22, pp 836 847.
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Table of Contents
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Abstract
Acknowledgments
III
List of Publications
IV
Table of Contents
List of Abbreviations
List of Figures
XII
List of Tables
XVI
Chapter 1
Introduction
1.1
Background
1.2
Objective of the Research
1.3
Research Scope
1.4
Organization of the Thesis
Chapter 2
2.1
Literature Review
Supply Chain Management
8
8
2.1.1
Evolution of Supply Chain Management
11
2.1.2
ICT and Supply Chain Management
15
2.1.3
Outsourcing
18
2.2
Supply Chain Optimization
19
2.2.1
Supply Chain Design and Analysis
20
2.2.2
Supply Chain Coordination
24
2.2.3
Transportation Decisions and Optimization
26
2.2.4
Location Decisions and Optimization
28
2.2.5
Inventory Decisions and Optimization
30
2.2.6
Tracking and Tracing Systems
32
2.2.7
Reverse Logistics
32
2.3
Supply-Chain Operations Reference (SCOR) Model
33
2.3.1
An Overview of the SCOR Model
33
2.3.2
Processes in SCOR Model
34
2.3.3
Process Types of SCOR Process
35
2.4
Discussion on Agile and Responsive Extended Supply Chain Coordination
and Optimization
35
2.4.1
Planning, Control and Customer Order Schedule
36
2.4.2
Supply Chain Model and Representation
41
2.4.3
Solving Extended Supply Chain Optimization Problems
42
2.4.4
Intelligent Agent-Based Supply Chain Coordination
43
2.5
An Overview of Relevant Methodologies and Algorithms
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Table of Contents
2.5.1
Group Technology and Fuzzy C-Means Clustering Algorithm
44
2.5.2
Genetic Algorithm Based Fuzzy C-Means
47
2.5.3
Schema Theorem of Genetic Algorithms
49
2.6
Research Roadmap
51
2.7
Summary
53
Chapter 3
A Distributed Hierarchical Model and a Framework for Supply
Chain Coordination and Optimization
56
3.1
Introduction
56
3.2
Proposed Framework of the Prototype System
59
3.2.1
Assumptions of the Proposed Framework
62
3.2.2
Routing and Sequence Optimizer (RSO)
63
3.2.3
Supply Chain Virtual Clustering (SCVC)
65
3.2.4
Supply Chain Order Scheduler (SCOS)
66
Modelling a Typical Supply Chain Using SCOR
67
3.3
3.3.1
Modelling a Supply Chain
68
3.3.2
Modelling Supply Chain Units
69
3.4
MPSS Based Evolutionary Approach (MBEA)
71
3.5
Summary
73
Chapter 4
Supply Graph and Exact Schema Theorem for an Adaptive
Genetic Algorithm
75
4.1
Introduction
75
4.2
The Graph Representation of a Supply Chain
76
4.2.1
An Overview of Graph Theory in Supply Chain Management
76
4.2.2
The Supply Chain Representation
77
4.2.2.1
4.2.2.2
Graph Representation of a Supply Chain
Logical Relationship and the Extended Supply_Graph
80
82
4.2.3
Routing Extraction and Supply_Matrix Converter
83
4.2.4
An Example of the Supply_Graph
85
4.3
An Exact Schema Theorem for Adaptive Genetic Algorithm
88
4.3.1
Overview
88
4.3.2
The Schema Theorem
89
4.3.3
The Proposed Exact Schema Theorem
91
4.3.4
Analysis on Crossover and Mutation Probabilities
94
4.3.5
Applications of the Exact Schema Theorem
96
4.3.5.1
4.3.5.2
4.3.5.3
4.3.5.4
4.3.5.5
4.3.5.6
4.3.5.7
4.3.6
Fuzzy C-Means Clustering Algorithm
Problem Definition
MBEA Enabled Fuzzy C-Means for Solving Supply_Matrix
Chromosome Representation
Fitness Evaluation and Promise Level Calculation
GA Operators
Work Order and Supply Chain Unit Family Formation
Examples and Discussions
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100
101
103
105
106
110
111
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Table of Contents
4.3.6.1
4.3.6.2
4.4
Example 1: a 10x10 Supply_Matrix
Example 2: a 19x11 Matrix Data Set
Summary
Chapter 5
MBEA Enabled Routing and Sequence Optimization of
a Supply Chain
113
116
119
121
5.1
Introduction
121
5.2
Heuristic of Routing and Sequence Optimization for a Supply Chain
121
5.2.1
Problem Definition
122
5.2.2
The Heuristic of Routing and Sequence Optimizer (RSO)
124
5.2.3
Fitness Evaluation and Promise Level Calculation
128
5.2.4
Chromosome Representation and GA Operators
130
5.2.4.1
5.2.4.2
5.2.4.3
5.2.4.4
5.3
Representation
Crossover Operator
Mutation Operator with Adaptive Mutation Probability
Reactive Selection Operator
Examples and Discussions
5.3.1
Example 1: a Basic Model
5.3.1.1
5.3.1.2
Model Description
Results and Discussions
130
131
132
133
135
136
136
138
5.3.2
Example 2: a Supply Chain with Multiple Suppliers
146
5.3.3
Example 3: a Large Supply Chain Routing Selection Problem
148
5.4
Summary
Chapter 6
An Evolutionary Approach to Fuzzy Clustering for
Supply Chain Virtual Clustering
150
152
6.1
Introduction
152
6.2
Overview of the Supply Chain Virtual Clustering Module (SCVC)
153
6.3
Heuristic of an Evolutionary Approach to Fuzzy Clustering for SCVC
155
6.3.1
Problem Definition
155
6.3.2
MBEA Enabled Fuzzy C-Means Approach to SCVC
157
6.3.3
FCM Validity Index and Promise Level Calculation
160
6.3.4
Chromosome Representation, Fitness Evaluation and GA Operators
161
6.3.5
Work Order and Supply Chain Unit Families Generation
161
6.4
Examples and Discussions
162
6.4.1
Example 1: a 10x10 Supply_Matrix with 3 Cluster Centres
163
6.4.2
Example 2: a 10x10 Supply_Matrix with 5 Cluster Centres
165
6.4.3
Example 3: a 10x10 Supply_Matrix with Noise
167
6.4.4
Example 4: a 9x9 Matrix Data Set
168
6.4.5
Example 5: a 19x11 Matrix Data Set
170
6.5
Summary
Chapter 7
7.1
An Intelligent Agent-Based Distributed Architecture
for Supply Chain Order Scheduling
Introduction
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174
174
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Table of Contents
7.2
Overview of Software Agents
175
7.3
Overview of the Intelligent Agent-Based Distributed Architecture for SCOS
176
7.4
Agents Involved in the SCOS
178
7.4.1
Supply Chain Supervisory Agent (SCSA)
178
7.4.2
Supply Chain Cluster Agent (SCCA).
180
7.5
Structure of the Supply Chain Scheduling Master (SCSM)
181
7.5.1
System Configurator
182
7.5.2
Knowledge-based System and Production Rule Editor
183
7.5.3
System Output Generator
187
7.5.4
Agents Locale Provider
188
7.6
Structure of the Supply Chain Scheduling Client System (SCSC)
188
7.7
Example and Discussions
190
7.8
Summary
197
Chapter 8
Case Study: an Application of SCASO to Semiconductor
Packaging Industry
199
8.1
Introduction
199
8.2
The Supply Chain and the Process Flow
200
8.2.1
Overview of the Semiconductor Subcontract Environment and Its Supply Chain
200
8.2.2
Current Planning and Scheduling Practice of XYZ Company
202
8.3
Results and Discussions
204
8.3.1
Supply Chain Virtual Clustering Module (SCVC)
205
8.3.2
Supply Chain Order Scheduler (SCOS)
208
8.4
Summary
Chapter 9
9.1
Conclusions and Future Work
Conclusions
9.1.1
213
214
214
Framework of a Distributed Hierarchical Model for Supply Chain
Coordination and Optimization
215
9.1.2
Multiple Populations Based Evolutionary Approach (MBEA)
215
9.1.3
Extended Graph Representation of a Supply Chain
216
9.1.4
Exact Schema Theorem
217
9.1.5
MBEA Enabled Heuristic for Routing and Sequence Optimization (RSO Module)
217
9.1.6
A MBEA Enabled Supply Chain Virtual Clustering (SCVC Module)
218
9.1.7
An Intelligent Agent-Based Distributed Architecture for Supply Chain Order
Scheduling (SCOS Module)
219
9.2
Contributions of the Work
220
9.3
Limitations and Future Work
221
References
224
Appendices
239
Appendix A
Product Relationship of XYZ Company
239
Appendix B
Work Orders of XYZ Company
240
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Table of Contents
Appendix C
SCVC Result of XYZ Company
241
Appendix D
Detailed Schedule of Work Orders
244
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Ph.D Thesis
List of Abbreviations
List of Abbreviations
AHP
Analytical Hierarchy Process
BOM
Bill of Materials
CIMOSA
Computer Integrated Manufacturing Open System Architecture
DA
Die Attach (a semiconductor packaging process)
DC
Distribution Centre
EOL
End of Line (semiconductor packaging processes)
ERP
Enterprise Resource Planning
FCM
Fuzzy C-Means
FG
Finished Goods
FOL
Front of Line (semiconductor packaging processes)
GA
Genetic Algorithm
GT
Group Technology
IC
Integrated Circuit
ICT
Information and Communication Technologies
IT
Information Technology
JIT
Just-in-Time
KBS
Knowledge-Based System
MBEA
MPSS Based Evolutionary Approach
MIP
Mixed Integer Programming
MPSS
Multiple Populations Search Strategy
MRP
Material Requirement Planning
MRP II
Manufacturing Resource Planning
PCBA
Printed Circuit Board Assembly
PGP
Pre-emptive Goal Programming
PSA
Problem Specific Algorithms
RSO
Supply Chain Routing and Sequence Optimizer
SCASO
Supply Chain Coordination and Schedule Optimization System
SCCA
Supply Chain Cluster Agent
SCM
Supply Chain Management
SCOR
Supply-Chain Operations Reference
SCOS
Supply Chain Order Scheduler
SCSA
Supply Chain Supervisory Agent
SCSC
Supply Chain Scheduling Client
SCSM
Supply Chain Scheduling Master
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List of Abbreviations
SCVC
Supply Chain Virtual Clustering
TOC
Theory of Constraints
TQM
Total Quality Management
TS
Tabu Search
WB
Wire Bond (a semiconductor packaging process)
WLCSP
Wafer Level CSP
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List of Figures
LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 2 - 1
Geographic product flow in a supply chain
Figure 2 - 2
An example of a supply chain (Adapted from Yin and Khoo 2007b)
Figure 2 - 3
Flow of functional units of a supply chain
10
Figure 2 - 4
The five waves of the ERP movement (Sammon and Adam 2005)
15
Figure 2 - 5
Structure of pyramid supply chain (Ghayur 2003)
17
Figure 2 - 6
Structure of hour glass supply chain (Ghayur 2003)
17
Figure 2 - 7
A research roadmap
52
Figure 3 - 1
Different level of supply chain management
56
Figure 3 - 2
A framework of the prototype SCASO system
59
Figure 3 - 3
Business models (adapted from Kraemer et al. 2000)
62
Figure 3 - 4
Multiple routings of a typical supply chain
64
Figure 3 - 5
Functional units of a supply chain (Yin and Khoo 2007b)
67
Figure 3 - 6
SCOR model of a typical supply chain
69
Figure 3 - 7
Process elements of a manufacturing factory
70
Figure 3 - 8
Process elements of warehouse, distribution centre and transportation
70
Figure 3 - 9
Process elements of supplier and customer
71
Figure 3 - 10
Architecture of a MPSS based evolutionary approach (MBEA)
73
Figure 4 - 1
Graph representation of a supply chain
79
Figure 4 - 2
Multiple level assembly and transportation between nodes
82
Figure 4 - 3
Logical relationship among nodes
83
Figure 4 - 4
Graph representation of routings of work orders
86
Figure 4 - 5
Logical relationships
87
Figure 4 - 6
Flow chart of the proposed MBEA enabled FCM algorithm
101
Figure 4 - 7
Searching and updating of GA parameters
102
Figure 4 - 8
Neighbourhood creation for tabu search
104
Figure 4 - 9
Partial exchange
107
Figure 4 - 10
Overall exchange
108
Figure 4 - 11
Neighbourhood search
108
Figure 4 - 12
Selection operation for genetic algorithms
110
Figure 4 - 13
Mean fitness value Fi of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 1
114
Figure 4 - 14
Mean of the best fitness value Fi * of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 1
115
Figure 4 - 15
Best fitness value Fi * of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 1
115
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Figure 4 - 16
List of Figures
Absolute difference of the best fitness value Fi * of SIM1 and SIM2
for Example 1
115
Figure 4 - 17
Mean fitness value Fi of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 2
117
Figure 4 - 18
Mean of the best fitness value Fi * of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 2
118
Figure 4 - 19
Best fitness value Fi * of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 2
118
Figure 4 - 20
Absolute difference of the best fitness value Fi * of SIM1 and SIM2
for Example 2
119
Figure 5 - 1
Multiple routings of a supply chain
122
Figure 5 - 2
System structure of routing and sequence optimizer (RSO)
124
Figure 5 - 3
Flow chart of the proposed MBEA enabled RSO
126
Figure 5 - 4
Flow chart of searching and updating GA parameters for RSO
127
Figure 5 - 5
Flow chart of neighborhood creation for RSO
128
Figure 5 - 6
Flow chart of calculation of the mutation probability for RSO
133
Figure 5 - 7
Flow chart of GA selection for RSO
134
Figure 5 - 8
Functional structure of the prototype RSO
135
Figure 5 - 9
A supply chain model for study
136
Figure 5 - 10
Mean fitness value Fi of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 1
140
Figure 5 - 11
Absolute difference of mean fitness value Fi of SIM1 and SIM2
for Example 1
Figure 5 - 12
141
Standard deviation of mean fitness value Fi of SIM1 and SIM2
for Example 1
141
Figure 5 - 13
Mean of the best fitness value Fi * of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 1
142
Figure 5 - 14
Absolute difference of Fi * of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 1
142
Figure 5 - 15
Standard deviation of mean of Fi * of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 1
142
Figure 5 - 16
Absolute difference of Standard deviation of Fi * of SIM1 and SIM2
for Example 1
Figure 5 - 17
143
Absolute difference of the best fitness value of SIM1 and SIM2 for
Example 1
143
Figure 5 - 18
Results for Example 1
144
Figure 5 - 19
Minimal total cost of orders of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 1
144
Figure 5 - 20
Mean total cost of orders of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 1
145
Figure 5 - 21
Mean number of late orders of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 1
145
Figure 5 - 22
Absolute difference of Mean of Fi * of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 2
146
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Figure 5 - 23
List of Figures
Absolute difference of the best fitness value of SIM1 and SIM2
for Example 2
147
Figure 5 - 24
Minimal total cost of orders of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 2
147
Figure 5 - 25
Mean total cost of orders of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 2
148
Figure 5 - 26
Mean number of late orders of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 2
148
Figure 5 - 27
Absolute difference of Mean of the best fitness value Fi
of SIM1
and SIM2 for Example 3
Figure 5 - 28
149
Absolute difference of the best fitness value of SIM1 and SIM2
for Example 3
149
Figure 6 - 1
System structure of supply chain virtual clustering (SCVC)
154
Figure 6 - 2
Flow chart of the proposed MBEA enable fuzzy c-means approach
to supply chain virtual clustering (SCVC)
157
Figure 6 - 3
Flow chart of searching and updating FCM parameters for SCVC
158
Figure 6 - 4
Flow chart of neighbourhood creation for SCVC
159
Figure 6 - 5
Functional structure of the prototype SCVC
162
Figure 6 - 6
The best number of cluster centre of MBEA for Example 1
165
Figure 6 - 7
the best number of cluster centre of MBEA for Example 2
166
Figure 6 - 8
The best number of cluster centre of MBEA for Example 3
168
Figure 6 - 9
the best number of cluster centre of MBEA of Example 4
169
Figure 6 - 10
The best number of cluster centre of MBEA for Example 5
171
Figure 7 - 1
System structure of supply chain order scheduler (SCOS)
177
Figure 7 - 2
Overall architecture of the SCOS
178
Figure 7 - 3
Structure of supply chain supervisory agent (SCSA)
179
Figure 7 - 4
Structure of a supply chain cluster agent (SCCA)
180
Figure 7 - 5
Structure of supply chain scheduling master (SCSM)
182
Figure 7 - 6
Structure of supply chain scheduling client (SCSC)
189
Figure 7 - 7
Functional structure of the prototype SCOS
190
Figure 7 - 8
The overview of the supply chain in this example
191
Figure 7 - 9
Example schedule of the VC1 with/without SCOS
194
Figure 7 - 10
Schedule of VC2 without SCOS
194
Figure 7 - 11
Schedule of VC3 without SCOS
195
Figure 7 - 12
Schedule of VC2 with SCOS
195
Figure 7 - 13
Schedule of VC3 with SCOS
195
Figure 7 - 14
Schedule of VC4 with SCOS
196
Figure 7 - 15
Schedule of the 18 work orders from 3 customer orders
196
Figure 8 - 1
A typical semiconductor subcontract (OSAT) environment
200
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List of Figures
Figure 8 - 2
Geographic factory location and product flow in the supply chain
202
Figure 8 - 3
The best number of cluster centre of MBEA
207
Figure 8 - 4
Schedule of VC01
211
Figure 8 - 5
Schedule of VC02
212
Figure 8 - 6
Schedule of VC03
212
Figure 8 - 7
Overall schedule of the work orders
212
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List of Tables
LIST OF TABLES
Table 2 - 1
Evolution of supply chain management (adapted from Ross 2003 and Li 2007)
13
Table 2 - 2
Summary of literature review on supply chain design and analysis
36
Table 2 - 3
Summary of literature review on supply chain coordination
37
Table 2 - 4
Summary of literature review on transportation decisions and optimization
37
Table 2 - 5
Summary of literature review on location decisions and optimization
38
Table 2 - 6
Summary of literature review on inventory decisions and optimization
38
Table 4 - 1
An example of supply chain network
85
Table 4 - 2
Parameters used in simulation runs
112
Table 4 - 3
Supply_Matrix 1
114
Table 4 - 4
19x11 matrix from Bedworth et al. (1991).
116
Table 4 - 5
Optimized Clusters for Example 2
117
Table 5 - 1
Suppliers delivery lead-time and cost
136
Table 5 - 2
Production lead-time and cost
137
Table 5 - 3
Distribution centre capacity, lead-time and cost
137
Table 5 - 4
Orders to be processed
138
Table 5 - 5
Parameter setting of SIM1 and SIM2
139
Table 6 - 1
Supply_Matrix 1
164
Table 6 - 2
Parameters used in simulation run
164
Table 6 - 3
The fuzzy cluster matrix U* and cluster centres V* for Example 1
165
Table 6 - 4
Supply_Matrix 2
166
Table 6 - 5
The fuzzy cluster matrix U* and cluster centres V* for Example 2
166
Table 6 - 6
Supply_Matrix 3
167
Table 6 - 7
The fuzzy cluster matrix U* and cluster centres V* for Example 3
168
Table 6 - 8
Matrix data set 4
168
Table 6 - 9
The fuzzy cluster matrix U* and cluster centres V* for Example 4
169
Table 6 - 10
Optimized Supply_Matrix for Example 4
169
Table 6 - 11
Matrix data set 5
170
Table 6 - 12
the fuzzy cluster matrix U* and cluster centres V* for Example 5
171
Table 6 - 13
Optimized Supply_Matrix for Example 5
172
Table 7 - 1
Supply chain virtual clusters and their supply chain units
192
Table 7 - 2
Work order details of the example
193
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List of Tables
Table 8 - 1
List of factory capability
203
Table 8 - 2
Production lines and die supplier
205
Table 8 - 3
Supply_Matrix for Case Study of XYZ Company
206
Table 8 - 4
Parameters used in simulation run
207
Table 8 - 5
Optimized supply chain virtual clusters in Supply_Matrix format
208
Table 8 - 6
Supply chain virtual clusters and their supply chain units
210
Table 8 - 7
Work order details of the case study
210
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Chapter 1
1.1
Introduction
INTRODUCTION
Background
Supply chains are used extensively in almost every industry and organization, although their
complexity may vary greatly from industry to industry and from organization to organization.
For example, in Ford, which was a complex vertical integrated organization when it was first
started, its corporates objective was ownership-based control (Bowersox and Closs 1996). In
order to build a self-sufficient industrial empire, they invested in coal mines, timberlands,
glass factories, and even land to grow soybeans for manufacturing paint. They also developed
a huge manufacturing complex that comprised an inland port and an intricate network of rail
and road transportation to ensure a reliable supply of materials by controlling far beyond its
core businesses. However, in their final analysis, Ford found that no organization could be
self-sufficient due to the very high costs, low return on investment and lack of expertise. As a
result, their investment and resources were subsequently shifted to develop, improve and
maintain their core manufacturing and other competencies, and the functions and activities
outside their core competencies were covered by developing channel relationship with other
specialized organizations, which might provide cost effective and better quality services than
their own bureaucracy.
In recent years, the above-mentioned channel relationship has been further enhanced. As a
consequence, a supply chain that integrates critical processes and functions becomes
necessary in order for companies to compete in the global arena (Gourdin 2006). Business
partners can also realize a virtual enterprise which is a temporary alliance of enterprises that
share capabilities/skills/core competencies and resources in order to realize a better business
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
Ph.D Thesis
Introduction
opportunity. Suppliers, manufacturers and customers can form business partnerships, which
are operative/short-term, tactical/medium-term or strategic/long-term depending on specific
requirements among the business partners. In general, a supply chain encompasses all the
activities associated with the flow and transformation of goods from the raw materials stage,
through to the end user, as well as the associated information flows. Materials and
information flow both up and down the supply chain (Ross 2003, Schniederjans et al. 2010).
Products must flow smoothly from suppliers to manufacturer, through distribution, and need
to be delivered with a high level of service to final customers. Furthermore, in order to
achieve shorter time to market and reduce inventory costs, enterprises must focus on
designing an extended supply chain (Martin and Patterson 2009, McCormack and Kasper
2000, Wailgum 2008) which includes supply networks, distribution networks, and alliance
networks. Thus, an extended supply chain provides an avenue to include every company that
contributes to the development of a product. It extends the scope of a supply chain from
centre business or operation to include other entities or partners such as direct suppliers or
suppliers suppliers that provide resources and services, and clients, distributors and all
intermediaries between business operators and end users. Due to globalization, it is important
for a company to keep track of the happenings in its extended supply chain as they might
have an impact on the company itself. For example, a strike in a copper alloy supplier might
cause a lead frame manufacturer to run out of raw materials. This could eventually affect the
operation of a semiconductor packaging company as lead frame is a key direct material used
in die-attach operation. If the semiconductor packaging company knows what is happening in
its extended supply chain through data sharing and information technology (IT) it could
probably find another lead frame supplier that can ensure a smooth supply of the lead frame.
Supply chain management provides a tool through which such a channel relationship can be
achieved. It is about coordinating the various components of the entire value chain, from
customer order through production, storage, distribution and delivery. In order to optimize
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
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Introduction
the performance, supply chain functions must operate in a coordinated manner. For example,
Chrysler Corporation (CC), as a major international automobile manufacturer, began pushing
for developing cross-functional integration since early 1990s which extended to its supply
base as almost 80% of its revenue was spent on purchasing components from its suppliers
(Newman et al. 2009). Customer-supplier relationship in its supply chain has been studied in
different domains such as sharing schedule using electronic data interfaces (EDI), vendor
managed inventory and supplier portal to promote the coordination. However, the dynamic of
enterprise and market makes the coordination and information sharing difficult. A
comprehensive and effective model to facilitate the coordination along the entire supply chain
is therefore necessary for the purpose of optimization. Many researchers (Lakhal et al. 2001,
Luo et al. 2001, Zhong et al. 2008) have attempted to bridge the gap among the various
functions of an enterprise. Software agents (Chen et al. 2009, Dumond and Roche 2000, Xue
et al. 2005), mathematical modelling such as mixed integer programming and linear
programming (Elmaraghy and Majety 2008, Leung et al. 2002, Zapfel and Wasner 2002),
Petri nets (Raghavan and Viswanadham 1999), blackboard based system (Ito and Salleh
2000), artificial intelligence (Chen et al. 2009, Feng and Wang 2008), and simulation
(Archibald et al. 1999, Padmos et al. 1999) were employed to develop various supply chain
systems.
It is apparent that production facilities are often more complex than other units of a supply
chain, such as warehouses and retailers, in terms of resources constrains, and dynamic of
production. Researchers also examined the possibility of integrating manufacturing
scheduling with supply chains as the variation in factory schedule might adversely affect the
overall performance of a supply chain (Lendermann et al. 2001, Kreipl and Dickersbach 2008,
Nurmilaakso 2004, Sawik 2009).
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
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1.2
Introduction
Objective of the Research
The objective of this research is to carry out an in-depth study on how to realize a
hierarchical model and a framework of a distributed intelligent system for multi-level supply
chain coordination, optimization and order scheduling. It is envisaged that the hierarchical
model established in this work is able to handle extended supply chain optimization problems
and would help the planning and scheduling of supply chain units, such as suppliers,
manufacturing plants, warehouses, distribution centres and customers. It would also support
an extended supply chain and a global manufacturing environment, which takes into account
suppliers and customers supply chain networks.
1.3
Research Scope
In order to realize the proposed hierarchical model and a framework for extended supply
chain coordination and schedule optimization, critical issues concerning an holistic
representation of a supply chain, advanced computational algorithms and intelligent decision
support systems to facilitate the coordination and planning of a supply chain, and the detailed
scheduling optimization of supply chain units need to be addressed.
This research covers the followings:
(1) A hierarchical model and a framework for supply chain coordination and
optimization.
The development of a framework that supports the hierarchical coordination and
optimization of the entire supply chain.
An investigation into work order routing selection and sequence optimization. This
would involve the realization of a more robust optimization technique based on search
algorithms such as genetic algorithms (GAs) and the tabu search (TS).
The establishment of a virtual clustering methodology. The basic notions of group
technology (GT) are adapted and enhanced using such technique as fuzzy c-means. In
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
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Introduction
so doing, it is anticipated that the search space for the optimization of a complex
supply chain can be reduced.
An investigation into an intelligent agent based mechanism for information exchange
and coordination. When coupled with a scheduling engine, the mechanism can
possibly facilitate and promote the negotiation and coordination among supply chain
units so as to obtain a near global optimal schedule for a supply chain.
(2) Key methodologies and algorithms.
Supply chain modelling and representation using the Supply Chain Operations
Reference (SCOR) Model. For the purpose of illustration, a typical supply chain will
be designed and modelled using the Supply-Chain Operations Reference (SCOR)
model.
Graph representation. A novel graph representation to depict an extended supply
chain will be established. Such a representation enables a supply chain to be modelled
and the logical relationship among the nodes on the graph to be expressed.
GA and exact schema theorem. An exact schema theorem for genetic algorithms
(GAs) will be formulated. The proposed exact schema theorem extends Goldbergs
schema theorem. It can be employed to predict the expected number of copies of
schemas in the next GA generation. Leveraging on the exact schema theorem, the
existence of the optimal or a compromised pair of crossover and mutation
probabilities will be examined.
Multiple populations search strategy based evolutionary approach (MBEA). The
proposed MBEA comprises five different layers and are used to fulfil different
functionalities. It provides a generic methodology and can be applied to solve
different optimization problems.
Group technology and fuzzy c-means. The notions of group technology are borrowed
and extended to realize a supply chain virtual clustering. Fuzzy c-means is then
incorporated into MBEA to realize a hybrid technique to search for the near optimal
fuzzy cluster matrix as well as the number of cluster centres and the weighting
exponent.
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Introduction
(3) A prototype system and a case study. Realization of a prototype system to illustrate
the proposed framework, the ability of the novel approaches and the methodologies as
well as algorithms developed in this work. The effectiveness of the prototype system
will then be demonstrated by a case study.
1.4
Organization of the Thesis
The organization of this thesis is as follows.
Chapter 2 provides a comprehensive review on supply chain management, and supply chain
function units optimization. Some research areas, which have been well addressed in the
literature, are discussed. In addition, the importance of integrating detailed scheduling with
supply chain optimization is explained. A detailed discussion on the key methodologies and
algorithms that are related to this work is presented. They are group technology (GT), fuzzy
c-means, genetic algorithm (GA), the tabu search (TS) and the Schema Theorem. It includes
also a brief review on the Supply-Chain Operations Reference (SCOR) model proposed by
the Supply-Chain Council.
Chapter 3 describes a distributed hierarchical model and a framework for extended supply
chain coordination and optimization. The supply chain coordination and schedule
optimization system (SCASO) comprises three main modules, namely Routing and Sequence
Optimizer (RSO), Supply Chain Virtual Clustering (SCVC) and Supply Chain Order
Scheduler (SCOS). The modelling of a typical supply chain using SCOR is depicted.
Manufacturing plants, warehouses, distribution centres, transportations, suppliers and
customers are designed and discussed to tackle the short-term operational supply chain
optimization. Chapter 3 also includes a discussion on a novel multiple populations search
strategy based evolutionary approach (MBEA) that is embedded into the RSO and SCVC to
handle supply chain optimization problems.
Chapter 4 proposes a graph representation, which is coined Supply_Graph, to model and
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
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Introduction
analyze the business processes of the supply chain from customer orders to suppliers. Logical
relationships are superimposed onto the Supply_Graph to enable the modelling of a complex
supply chain with multiple level assemblies, transportations, multiple split and merging of
orders and cross-boundary virtual enterprises. Furthermore, an exact schema theorem that
attempts to explore the possibility of deriving optimal crossover and mutation probabilities,
i.e. p c and p m respectively, for genetic algorithms are studied. A MBEA enabled fuzzy cmeans approach, which can simultaneously search for a compromised pair of p c and p m , is
then proposed and sample data sets are used to examine the existence of the compromised
GA parameters.
Chapters 5, 6 and 7 outline the detailed designs and implementations of the three modules of
the SCASO, namely RSO, SCVC and SCOS, respectively. The MBEA enabled optimization
algorithms and hybrid heuristics of the RSO and SCVC modules are proposed. An intelligent
agent-based system is also established in order to realize the SCOS module in Chapter 7.
A comprehensive case study based on a leading assembly and test service provider for the
semiconductor packaging industry in Singapore is reported in Chapter 8. It is used to
illustrate the effectiveness and capability of the proposed prototype SCASO system. Chapter
9 summarizes the main conclusions reached in this work. It also outlines some suggestions
for future work that can enhance the present prototype SCASO system.
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Chapter 2
2.1
Literature Review
LITERATURE REVIEW
Supply Chain Management
Supply chain management concerns the implementation of a supply chain orientation
across suppliers and customers (Mentzer 2001). It involves systematic and strategic
coordination of traditional business functions within a particular company and across
businesses in a supply chain. It aimed at improving the long-term performance of the
individual companies and the supply chain as a whole. In other words, a supply chain
comprises a worldwide network of facilities and distribution options that performs the
functions of procurement of materials, transformation of these materials into intermediate and
finished products, and the distribution of these finished products to customers. Traditionally,
marketing, distribution, planning, manufacturing, and purchasing organizations in a supply
chain operate independently. These organizations have their own goals, which are often
conflicting. For example, the marketing strategy to achieve high customer service and
maximum sales dollars may contradict manufacturing and distribution goals (Fawcett et al.
2008, Infoscaler 2003). Frequently, many manufacturing operations are designed to
maximize the throughput and minimize costs with little consideration for the impact on
inventory levels and distribution capabilities, and purchasing contracts are often negotiated
with very little information beyond historical purchasing patterns (Infoscaler 2003). It is
apparent that there is no single, integrated plan for an organization. Thus, supply chain
management is a strategy through which such an integration can be achieved.
As shown in Figure 2-1, the supply chain units are geographically distributed all over the
world. A manufacturer in China may have a material supplier in United States of America
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and sales and retailers in Europe (Lenovo 2010). Figure 2-2 shows a supply chain which
includes suppliers, manufacturing plants, warehouses, retailers and consumers. Raw materials
are delivered from suppliers, transformed into commercial goods by manufacturing plants,
and then transported to distribution centres (DCs) and/or warehouses, and ultimately, to end
users or consumers through retailers (Figure 2-2).
DC / Warehouse
Figure 2 - 1
Figure 2 - 2
Supplier
Manufacturing
Customer
Geographic product flow in a supply chain
An example of a supply chain (Adapted from Yin and Khoo 2007b)
As shown in Figure 2-3, the materials and information flows connect different functional
units of the supply chain, which coordinates the whole value chain, from the procurement of
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
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materials from suppliers to manufacturing, storage, distribution and delivery of final product
to customers.
Materials flow: From the initial purchase of materials or a component, the supply chain
functional units add value at each step of its transformation from materials into finished
products.
Customers
Suppliers
Procurement
Monetary
flow
Information flow
Figure 2 - 3
Physical
Distribution
Manufacturing
Materials flow
Flow of functional units of a supply chain
Information flow: Information normally comprises two major types of flows:
coordination and operational flows. Coordination is the backbone of the overall supply
chain.
Forecast,
strategic
objectives,
procurement,
physical
distribution
and
manufacturing requirements must be integrated to facilitate the overall integrated
performance. The operational flow is to provide the detailed data for integrated
performance of physical distribution, manufacturing support and procurement by dealing
with the order management, inventory management, transportation, distribution and so on.
Monetary flow: business needs a healthy cash flow cycle for its growth. The flow of
money along the supply chain is as critical as the flow of goods and information.
However, as monetary flow is not the focus of this work, it will not be covered in the
following chapters.
Physical distribution: Physical distribution concerns the movement of finished products
which links manufacturing plants, distribution centres, warehouses and retailers to
provide products to the customers.
Procurement: Procurement deals with the purchase and arrangement of materials,
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components and half finished product to manufacturing or assembly plants and
warehouses.
Manufacturing: Manufacturing transforms materials and components into finished
products.
2.1.1 Evolution of Supply Chain Management
The evolution of supply chain management has been discussed by Ross (2003) and Li (2007).
Basically, supply chain management can be categorized into five distinct management stages
from the late 19th century to the early 21st century (Table 2-1). They are: (i) stage of logistics
decentralization and inventory management; (ii) stage of total cost management and material
requirement planning (MRP); (iii) stage of integrated functions and manufacturing resource
planning (MRP II); (iv) stage of enterprise resource planning (ERP) and supply chain
management (SCM); and (v) stage of e-supply chain management.
(1) Stage 1 - logistics decentralization and inventory management. The logistics during this
stage was viewed as an intermediary function concerned with inventory management
and delivery. Logistics activities were divided among operation functions, such as sales
and production. It resulted in a disjointed and uncoordinated logistics management.
Since there were no global competitions and mass production and mass distribution
were still the focus of business strategy, logistics decentralization was a minor problem
for most companies even it incurred costly management. Companys management
focuses
were
mainly
on
the
individual
operation
performance
and
inventory/transportation management.
(2) Stage 2 - total cost management and MRP. Due to the development of new concepts of
marketing, pricing and promotion, and the explosions in production lines, reducing the
total cost in order to compete in the market became a key element. Logistics functions
had been merged and centralized in a single department in order to reduce the costs
associated with inventory and distribution. Management concepts such as just-in-time
(JIT), zero inventories and quality management had been proposed to maintain the
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customer service level while reducing the total cost. MRP software and applications
were first introduced by IBM as computers became more sophisticated and less costly.
MRP was able to identify what product was required by customers and check against the
on-hand inventory level. Shortage could also be calculated and plan was worked out for
production. As MRP by itself didnt take into consideration the capacity limitation, a
closed loop MRP was soon been introduced to consider the capacity requirement when
the computational power of a computer was improved.
(3) Stage 3 - integrated functions and MRP II. MRP and closed loop MRP had evolved in
this stage into MRP II. Closed loop capacity planning and financial management
functions were incorporated into MRP II to ensure effective planning, control and
management of all the resources of a manufacturing company. Management concepts
and philosophies such as JIT, theory of constraints (TOC) and total quality management
(TQM) equipped the companies with tools to minimize cost and process lead-time and
maximize production flexibility and responsiveness to dynamic environment. In order to
maintain the competitive advantage, companies started to understand that competitive
values such as material availability and speed of delivery could be achieved by creating
the channel relationship and working together with other supply chain trading partners.
(4) Stage 4 ERP and SCM. Channel relationship and channel management functions at
this stage had been developed into supply chain management mainly due to the
acceleration of globalization, organizational reengineering, and the development of
information technologies. Through SCM applications that connected the entire supply
channels, enterprise could leverage channel competencies and viewed channel partners
as part of the virtual organization which could share capabilities/skills/core
competencies and resources in order to realize a better business opportunity. The
development of ERP system integrated the stand-alone isolated systems and created the
complete visibility of information across functions within an organization.
(5) Stage 5 e-supply chain management. At this stage, the e-business had been integrated
into a supply chain network to synchronize the channel functions of the entire supply
chain into a single, flexible and scalable virtual enterprise. It was capable of
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optimizing core competencies and resources leveraging the Internet and other
information systems and information and communication technologies (ICT). Business
intelligence that includeed decision support systems, statistical analysis, forecast and
data mining had been introduced to help the organization development. This stage is
further explained in Section 2.1.2.
Table 2 - 1
Evolution of supply chain management (adapted from Ross 2003 and Li 2007)
No
1
SCM Stage
Until early 60s
Logistics
decentralization
Inventory
management
Management Focuses
Operations performance
Warehousing and inventory
management
Transportation efficiencies
Specializing and focusing on local
markets
Organizational Consequences
Decentralized logistics functions
Small firms
Simple management structure
Slow transportation
Mid 60s to 70s
Total cost
management
and MRP
Logistics centralization
Total cost management
Operations optimization
Customer service
Centralized logistics functions
Application of computers
New management concepts (JIT, zero
inventory)
1980s
Integrated
functions and
MRP II
Logistics planning
Integration with enterprise systems
and functions
Integration with channel operations
functions
Total quality management
Supply chain planning
Integrated enterprise systems
New management concepts (TQM, TOC)
Late 80s to 90s
ERP and SCM
Growth of co-evolutionary channel
alliances
Collaboration to leverage channel
competencies
Information technology and the
Internet
Organization visibility and system
integration through ERP
Resource optimization
Supply chain network / trading partner
network
Virtual organizations
Globalization
Year 2000 and
beyond
e-Supply chain
management
Application of the Internet and
IT/ICT to the SCM concept
e-business/e-commence integration
Business intelligence
Multiple enterprise supply chain
Complex management structure
The evolution of the SCM is highly related to the development of the ERP. In their earlier
stage, MRP/MRP II is one of the core functions of both systems while SCM emphasises more
on the logistics integration and ERP on the manufacturing integration. Many SCM
applications rely on the ERP to provide the up-to-date information as ERP integrates all the
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information together in a single application. Most major ERP vendors such as SAP and
Oracle have SCM modules integrated with their ERP systems.
Figure 2-4 shows the five waves of the ERP movement (Sammon and Adam 2005). The
1970s saw the emergence of the production oriented information system, MRP. The MRP in
Wave 1 tried to automate all aspects of production master scheduling and provided more
control on the inventory planning. In the 1980s, the close-loop and extended version of MRP,
MRP II, was developed to focus on production capacity limitations and other business
functions, including order processing, manufacturing and distribution. MRP II was improved
and renamed as ERP by integrating the isolated manufacturing systems and related data and
processes within the organization. In Wave 2, i.e. enterprise integration in the 1990s, ERP
embraced functions across the organization such as finance, human resource management and
payroll, demand, inventory control, distribution, quality control, etc. The information from
these varying functions and systems had been integrated and shared within the organization
to improve the efficiency and facilitate the process standardization across multiple business
units. In Wave 3, i.e. customer-centric integration starting from late 1990s, the focus of
ERPs business requirements had been shifted from cost cutting, efficiency and internal
visibility to customer value and customer service. This was achieved by further expanding
ERP functions to include sales, marketing and e-commence. Different from traditional ERP
solutions that support make-to-stock and configure-to-order, the customer-centric resource
planning (CRP) meets the business requirement of build-to-order and fulfil-to-order
(Kalakota and Robinson 2001). The development of extended resource planning (XRP) in
Wave 4, i.e. inter-enterprise integration extends the scope of ERP system to cover the entire
value chain, which includes customers, suppliers and trading partners of an enterprise. By the
integration of external and internal business activities and better synchronization with trading
partners, XRP is able to pull up-to-date data from every step of the supply chain and internal
organization and provides intelligent decision support capacity so as to reduce inventories
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and cycle times, foster competitive pricing strategic, and increase customer service level and
customer satisfaction throughout the entire supply chain of the enterprise. The web-centric
model of ERP II in Wave 5 further allows the system to be accessed real-time by both
employees of the organization and external resources of its supply chain such as suppliers and
customers. Especially, ERP II has embraced customer relationship management (CRM) and
SCM functionalities in addition to being web and WAP enabled (Suresh et al. 2010).
Figure 2 - 4
The five waves of the ERP movement (Sammon and Adam 2005)
2.1.2 ICT and Supply Chain Management
In a supply chain, information technologies support internal operations, and also the
coordination and collaboration between supply chain partners. It relies on high speed
networks, various databases and information systems for data sharing and better management
of the supply chain as a whole in order to achieve competitive values (Hugos 2006). Data
capture and data communication can be realized through the Internet, the mobile network, the
broadband and related communication protocols. Data storage and retrieval can be
accomplished by database management systems, such as SQL Server from Microsoft,
MySQL from Sun Microsystems and DB2 from IBM. Information systems such as Enterprise
Resource Planning (ERP), Customer Relationship Management (CRM), forecast and demand
management system, Advanced Planning and scheduling (APS) and Manufacturing
Executive System (MES) are developed and deployed to manipulate the data through
transactions or simple/complex data processing and generate the necessary reports.
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As mentioned in Section 2.1.1, information and communication technologies (ICT), which
brings about e-business, has created much impact on almost every sector of the society. The
on-going of e-business has advanced the application of supply chain management (SCM) to
e-manufacturing and brings about global manufacturing. Conversely, recent review shows
that global manufacturing has increased the complexity of SCM, and as a result, supply chain
coordination and optimization have become essential elements of manufacturing strategy.
The so-called e-business enabled supply chain, or e-supply chain management, is an on-going
manufacturing and business strategy that enables the power of e-business to be integrated
with manufacturing operations and various supply chain units through the application of the
Internet, mobile and other tether-free technologies. The e-business uses the Internet, ICT and
digital technologies to manage business processes internal to the organization and with other
businesses (Schniederjans et al. 2010). It enables more efficient internal and external data
processing which promote the close work relationship between companies and their
suppliers/partners. As such, it is able to accelerate product realization, manufacturing and
delivery, and results in a shorter product cycle time, lower cost, better response to customer
needs and improved customer services. By embracing the e-business, e-supply chain is able
to provided better availability of service on the Internet, cost reduction in order and customer
information processing, better access to global customer markets and less operating costs.
As mobile technology emerges as the leading individual/personal digital content device, mbusiness (m-business 2010) that relies on the mobile, wireless technology and personal digital
devices including personal digital assistant (PDA), smart phone and PDA phone has created a
new value chain that allows supply chain activities to be carried out real-time in a
synchronized and instantaneous manner. For example, the mobile real-time supply chain
coordination built on top of the m-business (Soroor et al. 2009) enables the instant order and
customer data processing. Through searching an e-market registry and the coordination of
agents representing different services, the contractual details are agreed and the order is
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processed and shipped by the supplier.
Figure 2 - 5
Figure 2 - 6
Structure of pyramid supply chain (Ghayur 2003)
Structure of hour glass supply chain (Ghayur 2003)
Furthermore, supply chain structures have been developed in the context of e-supply chain.
Ghayur (2003) discussed two types of e-supply chain structure, Pyramid Supply Chain (PSC)
and Hour Glass Supply Chain (HGSC). In PSC, the MNC is at the top of the supply chain. It
creates the orders to assemblers which request the components from manufacturers who
connect to their suppliers for materials (Figure 2-5). Compared to traditional companies,
companies on PSC have such advantages as shorter production cycle time, fewer layers of
sales and fewer and nearly fixed suppliers. The biggest problem of the PSC is the total
dependency of the entire chain on one MNC company. The HGSC (Figure 2-6) on the other
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hand structures the customers on the top and grassroots suppliers at the bottom. It provides a
platform on which every entity in an economy can join and transact, using Internet
technology (Ghayur 2003).
Globalization is forcing companies and their entire supply chain to be more flexible, scalable
and responsive but less costly modes of operation. Companies have to leverage on new
information technologies and systems to achieve overall supply chain improvements. For
example, business intelligence systems continuously evolve. This helps companies to better
understand the happenings within their own organizations, along the whole supply chain, and
within the markets they serve (Hugos 2006) by data collection and analysis; Radio Frequency
Identification (RFID), which has been widely used in tracking and tracing systems in recent
years (He et al. 2008), is one of the enabling technologies that allows the identification of
objects in a fully automated manner via radio waves; There are strong interests of companies
emphasizing more environmentally-friendly supply chains, green sustainable supply chain,
that tries to maximize the resource efficiency, eliminate the waste, and promote the reuse or
recycle of the by-product and product at the end of its life cycle to deal with the resource
depletion and the environmental change (Dale 2010, Webber and Wallace 2009).
2.1.3 Outsourcing
As mentioned in Section 1.1, todays enterprise such as Ford is constantly examining its
internal processes and their performances. The non-core competency functions and services
are eventually eliminated and contracted out in order to free up resources and reduce the cost.
Besides, through outsourcing, the enterprise is able to gain effectiveness by focusing more on
its own competencies. Different types of outsourcing such as business process outsourcing to
outsource the entire department or process of an enterprise and value-added outsourcing to
combine both parties strengths to market product and service have been summarized by
Schniederjans et al. (2010).
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Enabled by globalization, the advancement of ICT and the e-business, outsourcing is
changing its roles in business organizations. In the past, organizations used subcontracting
rather than outsourcing and mostly were domestic outsourcing of tangible products. In
present day, big organizations use outsourcing for non-core activities, tangible products and
intangible services. They mostly are international outsourcing that involves at least one
foreign firm. In the near future, organizations may form virtual organizations with almost
everything outsourced. It includes non-critical business activities and large portion of total
production and service activities. These activities are mostly in the form of global
outsourcing that involves many international and external firms (Schniederjans et al. 2010).
The main reason for driving outsourcing activities is the possibility of significant reduction in
cost and capital expenditure (Outsourcing 2010, Schniederjans et al. 2010). Organization can
leverage on outside expertise and technology to improve its core services and products.
However, an organization has to understand that there will be less managerial control of the
service provider and more security and confidentiality issues. In addition, outsourcing may
not be always cheaper. Sometimes it may be more expensive than in-house process.
2.2
Supply Chain Optimization
Realistic supply chains have various modes of transportation and multiple end products with
shared components and capacities. The flow of materials is not always along an arborescent
network, and sometimes the bill of materials for the end items may be both deep and large.
Traditionally, various functional units along a supply chain have their own objectives and
operate independently. The objective of marketing strategy to achieve high customer service
level and maximize sales may have conflicts with manufacturing and distribution goals of
minimizing manufacturing cost and inventory. The individually optimized plan of a single
manufacturing plant or any other supply chain unit may incur big loss for the entire supply
chain (Fawcett et al. 2008, Torabi and Hassini 2009). Thus, there is a need to devise a system
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through which these different functions can be integrated. As a consequence, a globally
optimized solution is necessary in order to benefit the entire value chain.
In recent years, many researches have attempted to bridge the gap among the various
functions of a supply chain through coordination and optimization of the information and
materials flow. Some of the supply chain models focused on individual issues such as
logistics, inventory levels and variations of customer demands and forecasts while others
attempted to provide suggestions for companies to design or restructure their supply chains so
as to improve the performance.
Various research areas, including i) supply chain design and analysis (Vidyarthi et al. 2009,
Wang et al. 2005); ii) supply chain coordination (Soroor et al. 2009, Xue et al. 2005); and iii)
location decisions and optimization (Kodali and Routroy 2006, Robinson and Bookbinder
2007); iv) transportation decisions and optimization (Sawadogo and Anciaux 2009, Zhong et
al. 2008); v) inventory decisions and optimization (Chen et al. 2009, Piplani and Fu 2005); vi)
tracking and tracing systems (He et al. 2008, Fritz and Schiefer 2009, Mousavia et al. 2005);
and vii) reverse logistics (Lee and Chan 2009, Zhu 2008), have been addressed in many
literatures.
2.2.1 Supply Chain Design and Analysis
As the market has become increasingly competitive, competitors will not only compete on
product technology but also on the efficiencies of the supply chains. A supply chain needs to
acquire the ability to shorten the time-to-market of a product, adjusts to changing consumer
needs and delivers a satisfactory customer service level. It must be structured so that the
suppliers have an effective means of delivering components and, if required, must be
sensitive to lead time as well as quality issues. The design of a supply chain should also
promote timely communication with both its customers and suppliers. This will enable the
company and its supply chain greater flexibility to react to changes in the market.
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Graves et al. (1998) modelled a supply chain as a linear single production-inventory system.
The system made use of performance measures such as production smoothness, production
stability and inventory requirements to evaluate the inventory problem. Specially, they
attempted to optimize production capacity and inventory for a single production, and
subsequently, extended it to deal with multiple production-inventory problems. They also
analysed the influence of forecast and requirement planning of the supply chain on other
supply chain units by dynamic modelling. Basically, their model used stationary demand,
ignored the internal stock out and simplified the production process.
Some aspects of the design and control of logistical processes for traditional integrated
systems, and virtual factories for the sheet metal industry has been discussed in the work of
Cser et al. (2000). Through manufacturing, factory based logistics had been replaced by
global logistic concepts which could be used to determine materials flow, optimize the
parameters as well as to evaluate performance.
Using the results obtained from network flow theory, inventory theory and simulation theory,
Rao et al. (2000) developed an optimization engine for the design of Caterpillar's supply
chain. They attempted to address the effects of different factors, such as inventory level and
trans-shipment mode on profitability.
Angerhofer and Angelides (2000) conducted a review on system dynamics modelling in
supply chain management. They divided their investigation into three parts: i) contributions
to theory-building; ii) applications to solving a problem in supply chain management; and iii)
methodological contribution to improving modelling approaches. They concluded that current
work on system dynamics modelling in supply chain management mainly focused on
inventory decision and policy development, demand amplification and supply chain reengineering and design.
Dong and Chen (2001) presented a set of Computer Integrated Manufacturing Open System
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Architecture (CIMOSA)-based process behaviour rules to model the business process routing
structures
of
typical
manufacturing
supply
chain
network.
Object-oriented
predicate/transition nets based on Petri-nets were proposed for the modelling and analysis of
process models. Tukel and Wasti (2001) modelled and analysed the relationship between
buyers and suppliers using a so-called resource constrained project scheduling strategies, in
order to reduce product development time and improve project performance.
Lakhal et al. (2001) proposed a mathematical programming model of an extended enterprise.
In their work, activities, resources and products were modelled as a directed multi-graph of
activities using resource cost functions and product value functions. Basically, it was a largescale mixed integer programming (MIP) problem and could be used to investigate strategic
networking issues. A heuristic based on commercial software such as CPLEX of ILOG to
obtain solutions from the MIP model was also presented. However, such a model was limited
to the handling of static supply chain problems. It is important to note that the dynamics of a
supply chain need to be taken into account when dealing with strategic issues.
Luo et al. (2001) proposed an integrated e-supply chain model for agile and environmentally
conscious manufacturing. Their work examined raw materials suppliers, tiers I and II
suppliers, end-of-life product collectors and de-manufacturers, and extended performance
measures to cover environmental issues. Fuzzy logic was embedded in their multi-objective
optimization model. As pointed out by Luo et al., their proposed optimization algorithm was
not suitable for large network problems.
The work of Wang et al. (2005) looked into the selection of suppliers based on the SupplyChain Operations Reference (SCOR) model level I performance metrics and developed a socalled supply chain effectiveness measurement that was able to determine how good a supply
chain design was. Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) and Pre-emptive Goal Programming
(PGP) were employed to deal with qualitative and quantitative measures, respectively.
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Elmaraghy and Majety (2008) attempted to develop a multi-criteria mixed integer
programming optimization model for the selection of suppliers, computation of production
quantities and determination of transportation modes. A typical supply chain design problem
gleaned from the automobile industry was investigated.
Xu et al. (2009) developed a random fuzzy programming model for multi-stage supply chain
design. Uncertainties associated with the demand, supply, price and various relevant costs
were modelled and dealt with using fuzzy logic. This random fuzzy programming model was
subsequently converted into a deterministic 0-1 integer programming model and the optimal
solutions were obtained by using a so-called spanning-tree technique which was based on
genetic algorithms.
Vidyarthi et al. (2009) studied two business strategies: make-to-order (MTO) and assemblyto-order (ATO). They attempted to work out the design of a supply chain by minimizing the
response time in addition to the fixed cost of opening distribution centres (DCs) and
equipping them with sufficient assembly capacity and the variable cost of serving customers.
Both MTO and ATO were modelled as non-linear mixed-integer programming problems. The
MTO model was used to determine the location and the capacity of DCs and allocate
stochastic customer demand to DCs. It was solved by an approach that was based on a socalled cutting plane method. The ATO model considered factories and DCs serving a set of
customers, and solved the supply chain problem by a Lagrangean heuristic.
Hammami et al. (2009) attempted to develop a strategic-tactical supply chain design model
that integrated all the relevant components characterizing the delocalization problem. The
model considered technological issues such as technology selection, technological cost and
technological constraints, and supplier selection issues such as supplier selection, supplier
integration costs and supplier constraints in addition to capacity acquisition and relocation
decisions, and transfer prices determination. They used a branch-and-cut algorithm provided
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by a commercial software (CPLEX9.0) and developed a method based on Lagrangian
relaxation for large instances
2.2.2 Supply Chain Coordination
As mentioned in Section 2.1, recent developments in global manufacturing have both
increased supply chain complexity and reinforced the notion that supply chain coordination
and practices are essential elements of business strategy. Thus, many organizations have
moved from centralized, vertically integrated, and single-site manufacturing facilities to
geographically dispersed networks of resources that collectively create value for customers.
These extended enterprises may be consonant with a single multinational organization or, as
is increasingly the case, a set of strategically aligned companies to expand their capacity and
capture specific market opportunities by forming some kind of business partnership or
alliance. They are designed to provide the speed and flexibility necessary to respond rapidly
to windows of market opportunity.
Traditional supply chain practices and technologies that integrate productive and logistical
activities within a company are necessary but not sufficient for competitive success. New
supply chain practices and technologies such as e-business and e-manufacturing, must now
link production and logistics processes in different organizations across geographically
dispersed locations.
Huiskonen and Pirttila (2002) studied the coordination of activities between two different
organizations, which could actually be viewed as an extended enterprise. The objects of
analysis were a logistics outsourcing relationship and its inter-organizational coordination
requirements. The possibilities of using different forms of lateral coordination mechanisms
such as informal coordination, formal inter-organizational teams, and integrating roles had
been discussed. They found that the development of lateral organizational capability through
practicing the presented lateral coordination mechanisms, and actively promoting it to
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customers, could become a potential source of competitive advantage for logistics service
providers.
Kalakota et al. (2001) developed an agent-based system to provide real-time solutions at
planning level. By using mobile agent technology, Gupta et al. (2001) suggested an approach,
which was based on globally available information, to facilitate supply chain decision making.
Dumond and Roche (2000) used a so-called -calculus to specify multi-agents and addressed
their global coordination. As a result, customer requirements could be fulfilled through
negotiation and communication of distributed agents while customers, logistics, warehouses,
resources and plants were modelled as -calculus processes. Ito and Salleh (2000) proposed a
blackboard architecture to implement a collaborative supply chain system. Agent technology
was employed to achieve an effective material flow and to shorten the production lead-time.
In the area of virtual enterprise, Rupp and Ristic (2000) presented a distributed planning
methodology for the manufacturing of semiconductors and proposed leaving as much
responsibility and expertise as possible to local planning systems for carrying out
optimization tasks while maintaining a global coordinating entity to ensure an efficient
supply chain. In their work, the solution space for solving the problem seemed to be very
large which prolonged the computational time drastically. Furthermore, there was no
guarantee of an optimal or a good-enough plan for the entire manufacturing system.
Camarinha-matos and Pantoja-lima (2001) developed PRODNET to support coordination in
virtual enterprises. The PRODNET was intended to support a large diversity of enterprises
and interconnection modes, ranging from small company to a medium or large company with
various legacy systems.
Gaonkar and Viswanadham (2001) considered a global manufacturing system comprising
contract manufacturer, logistics provider, and OEM, and examined the influence of sharing
scheduling and demand information over the Internet within these organizations. A linear
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programming based optimization model for this environment was developed. Stock et al.
(2000) explored the relationship between enterprise logistics practices and improved the
performance of a new global enterprise. In response to competitive pressures, a conceptual
framework that explicitly recognized the emerging role of logistics and its importance to new
supply chain structures was proposed. Specifically, they examined the alignment of logistics
practices and supply chain architectures using the notion of fit, which was the consistency
between logistics practices and supply chain structures. Using a so-called configurations
approach, a set of hypotheses linking the logisticssupply chain fit to organizational
performance was examined. Their results indicated that enterprise logistics was a necessary
tool for the coordination of supply chain operations that were geographically dispersed
around the world. However, for a pure network structure, high level enterprise logistics
integration alone does not guarantee an improved organizational performance.
Xue et al. (2005) presented a multi agent system for supply chain coordination in the
construction industry. The proposed system applied utility theory and was able to perform
multi-attribute negotiation. Basically, it extended the internal supply chain of a construction
company to include external supply chains of designer, subcontractors and suppliers.
Arshinder et al. (2007) investigated a situationactor-process (SAP) model as well as a
learningactionperformance (LAP) model. These models were applied to analyze the
status of coordination in the supply chain of a leading automotive parts manufacturer in India.
The various issues under investigation included coordination with suppliers, coordination
with buyers, information sharing, information system, coordination initiatives and flexibility
to coordinate with members.
2.2.3 Transportation Decisions and Optimization
In the real world, many logistics problems cannot be simply defined as a transportation
problem. They are closely linked to inventory management, since the best choice of mode is
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often found by trading-off the cost of a particular mode of transportation with the inventory
costs associated with transportation. Though air shipments may be fast, reliable, and warrant
lesser inventory level, they are expensive. While shipping by sea or on rail may be much
cheaper, they require holding relatively large amounts of inventory to buffer against the
inherent uncertainty associated with them. Thus, a good understanding of the influence of the
different transportation modes and polices on the entire supply chain can possibly be obtained
by analyzing transportation alone, especially when the selection of the modes of
transportation is the main issue.
Leung et al. (2002) studied a transportation management problem faced by a Hong Kong
manufacturer as the companys factory was located at Dongguan of China and the
headquarter and distribution centre (DC) in Hong Kong. Three alternatives modes of
transportation were discussed: i) using private lorries to transport the products directly from
Dongguan to Hong Kong; ii) hiring Hong Kong lorries to transport products directly from
Dongguan to Hong Kong; and iii) hiring China lorries to transport products from Dongguan
to Shenzhen first and switching to private lorries for the trip between Shenzhen and Hong
Kong. Since the transportation cost, the hiring cost, the inventory cost, and the allowance
paid to the lorry drivers were different, a mixed integer programming (MIP) model was
developed and solved by a software package called Linear Inter-active and Discrete
Optimization (LINDO).
Keen competition in the transport market has led to new cooperative arrangements between
third-party logistics providers in the form of hub-and-spoke systems (Zapfel and Wasner
2002). As a result, management had to decide whether to adopt a pure hub-and-spoke system,
where all the quantities within the transportation network flow over the hub from or to the
depots, or a hybrid hub-and-spoke network in which direct transports took place.
Mathematical models for these operative planning tasks were developed and applied to an
Austrian parcel service provider and the problem was solved by heuristic method which
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combines expert rules with local search.
A dynamic assignment strategy, which allowed exchanging components between orders with
various priorities and optimizing the logistic processes to minimize the overall delivery
delays, was proposed by Sousa et al. (2002). Sousa et al. applied fuzzy decision making
technique to optimize logistic processes. Several criteria for assigning components to orders
were also investigated.
Liang (2007 and 2008) presented a fuzzy goal programming approach to deal with fuzzy
multiple goals, conflicting objectives and vagueness in the information. The proposed
approach was able to simultaneously minimize the total distribution cost, delivery time and
production costs.
Zhong et al. (2008) suggested a framework called PECAS, i.e. Production, Exchange,
Commodity Allocation System. PECAS has three modules, namely activity allocation, space
development and transport supply. The study showed that the flows of all commodities,
including goods, service, space, land and labour could be simultaneously considered.
2.2.4 Location Decisions and Optimization
The geographic placement of production facilities, stocking points, and sourcing points is
critical to a supply chain. The location of facilities affects the commitment of resources. Once
the size, number, and location are determined, so are the paths by which the materials and
product flows through suppliers to the final customer. These decisions are of great
significance to a company since they represent the basic strategy for accessing suppliers and
customer markets, and have a considerable impact on the revenue, cost and level of service.
Thus, they should be determined by an optimization approach that takes into account
production costs, supplier availability, inbound and outbound logistics, distribution channel
and costs and customer markets
Jayaraman and Pirkul (2001) studied an integrated logistics model for location production
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and distribution facilities in a multi-echelon environment. A mixed integer programming
(MIP) formulation had been developed to represent the integrated logistics model. This
allows the performance of the integrated logistics model to be evaluated.
Hwang (2002) examined the possibility of optimizing the performance of a supply chain with
respect to required service levels in terms of the number of warehouses or distribution centres
(W/D) and vehicle routing schedule. In his work, a supply chain comprised plants, W/D and
customers. Firstly, the problem was formulated using a so-called stochastic set-covering
technique to determine the minimum number of W/D centres among a discrete set of location
sites so that the probability of each customer to be covered was no less than a critical service
level. Subsequently, the problem was solved using the 0-1 programming method. Finally, a
vehicle routing problem was formulated using an improved genetic algorithm.
Kodali and Routroy (2006) presented a four-phase decision making framework for the
selection of facilities in a supply chain. The four phases were i) supply chain strategy review;
ii) selection of feasible locations; iii) analysis of feasible locations based on qualitative
measurements and cost analysis; and iv) ranking the desirable locations and choosing the best
location based on benefit/cost ratio. An analytical hierarchy process (AHP) was developed
for qualitative analysis and for solving the multi-criteria problem. Viswanadham and
Kameshwaran (2007) developed a generic decision making framework to facilitate the
location selection process in global supply chains. A hierarchical structure with four
fundamental criteria, namely product/process value chain, economic and political integration,
resources and management, and enabling technologies, was proposed.
Robinson and Bookbinder (2007) formulated a mixed-integer programming model to
optimize the number and location of finishing plants and distribution centres, each from a
discrete set of alternatives, as well as to specify the flow on arcs and the transport mode
employed, while minimizing the total cost and satisfying each customer's demand over a
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multi-period time horizon. The MIP model was solved using some optimization software.
Melo et al. (2009) presented a review on facility location analysis within the context of SCM.
The general relationship between facility location models and strategic supply chain planning
was discussed. Supply chain performance measures, solution methodologies as well as
applications of facility location models to strategic supply chain planning were also analyzed.
2.2.5 Inventory Decisions and Optimization
In a supply chain, goods are produced, stored, and then delivered based on demand or
forecast. Inventories exist at every stage of the supply chain as either raw materials, semifinished or finished products. They can also be in-process between locations. The primary
purpose is to buffer against any uncertainty that might exist in a supply chain. Since holding
of inventories is costly, efficient management is therefore critical to supply chain operations.
Researchers examined various strategies, such as push and pull, to determine the optimal
level of order quantities, safety stocks, and reorder approaches and points, at each inventory
location. These decisions are crucial for providing the necessary level of service level to the
customers.
Geunes and Zeng (2001) investigated the impacts of inventory shortage policies had on
transportation costs in a two-stage distribution system under uncertain demand. They
proposed a model that provided an insight into the relationship between inventory decisions
and transportation costs. The model could be used to support delivery policy negotiations
between a supplier and a customer.
Baganha and Cohen (1998) presented a hierarchical framework to analyse stabilizing effects
of inventory in multi-echelon manufacturing/distribution supply chains. They considered
retailer and distribution centre in their framework and show how the optimal behaviour of
companies could stabilize inventories. They found that variance amplification does not
necessarily exist throughout a supply chain. An approach based on multi-echelon
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decomposition was used for the analysis. Ettl et al. (2000) assumed capacity is infinite and
developed a supply network model to minimize the overall inventory capital throughout the
network. They attempted to guarantee customer service requirements by generating the basestock level at each store and the stocking location for a part or for an end-product while
considering on-hand inventory (finished goods) and WIP with non-stationary demands.
Viswanathan and Piplani (2001) modelled a one-vendor, multi-buyer supply chain for a
single product. The benefit of coordinating supply chain inventories through the use of
common replenishment time periods was analyzed.
Piplani and Fu (2005) presented a coordination framework known as ASCEND to align
inventory decisions in decentralized supply chains. Multi-agent technology was used to
delegate different tasks such as coordination, planning and execution. A genetic algorithmbased coordination process was employed to optimize the combination of fill rates and the
optimal performance measurement schema for the supply chain.
Feng and Wang (2008) proposed a real-time inventory-routing integrated model to analyze
dynamic location and time information in a mobile supply chain. In order to reduce the cost
and keep an acceptable service level, a constraint-based genetic algorithm approach to
resolving the NP problem and satisfying complex constraints was proposed. It was able to
dynamically optimize the destination and quantity of on-the-way inventory.
Seliaman and Ahmad (2008) considered a three-stage supply chain system involving
suppliers, manufactures and retailers. They assumed production and inventory decisions were
made at supplier and manufacturer levels and the demand at each end retailer was stochastic.
A direct search program based on the Hooke and Jeeves method was developed to find the
optimal solution under two coordination mechanisms, called equal cycle time mechanism and
integer multipliers mechanism.
Chen et al. (2009) developed an inventory decision system based on intelligent agent and
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artificial neural network. The system took into consideration the impact of the total supply
chain cost. The effects of decision making on factory, wholesaler, distributor and retailer
were also studied.
2.2.6 Tracking and Tracing Systems
Transport and logistic today have evolved into a high-technology industry. Distribution is no
longer about moving cargo on road or via air from A to B, but is a complex process that
adopts intelligent systems for sorting, planning, routing, and consolidation. Many large
companies have developed solutions to deliver these services in order to meet the
requirements of their customers and to improve their services.
Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is one of the enabling technologies that allows the
identification of objects in a fully automated manner via radio waves. It has been widely used
in tracking and tracing systems in recent years. Wang et al. (2007) used RFID technology to
improve the efficiency of tracking tires, warehouse management and extended it to deal with
aftermarket compensation management. Gandino et al. (2007) described how RFID could be
properly used to improve a tracing system in the agri-food supply chain. He et al. (2008)
attempted to develop a secure RFID-based tracking and tracing solution for supply chain
applications and implementations.
2.2.7 Reverse Logistics
In a competitive business environment, it is critical for companies to channel their energies
and core competence to realize an efficient and effective forward supply chain. However,
after selling their products to distributors, major retail chain stores, or consumers directly,
their supply chain process does not stop there. Reverse logistic management is not an easy
task. It involves multiple parties and complex tasks.
Companies eventually are forced to face enormous amount of problems related to reverse
logistic management. In the United States, companies such as Xerox, Home Depot and
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Eastman Kodak have successfully adopted third-party logistics providers to handle the
returns of retail business (Wang and Zhang 2009). Statistics showed that 80% 90% of the
returns of retail business have been efficiently managed by the third-party logistics providers
through re-producing and optimizing the reverse process and information system.
2.3
Supply-Chain Operations Reference (SCOR) Model
It is noted that most of the researchers mentioned in Section 2.2 developed their own supply
chain models and used them as the basis of their heuristic approaches. These supply chain
models are not able to provide a common supply-chain framework and standard terminology.
Hence, they cannot be used as a generic model for evaluating, and implementing supplychain applications. Furthermore, they are difficult to be reused and adapted to other
companies or industries due to lacks in flexibility and scalability. In order to address the
above, the Supply-Chain Operations Reference (SCOR) model proposed by the Supply-Chain
Council is reviewed and presented in this section.
2.3.1 An Overview of the SCOR Model
The Supply-Chain Council was organized in 1996 by Pittiglio Rabin Todd & McGrath
(PRTM) and AMR Research. Currently, it has over 700 members world-wide, many of them
are large manufacturers, including Intel and Siemens (Supply-Chain Council 2009).
Basically, the SCOR model aims at providing a set of standard supply chain practices to
create reusable and comprehensive procedures. It offers practices procedures for a wide
variety of supply chain activities, such as the planning, sourcing and delivery of goods,
spanning from the supplier to the manufacturer to the end customer, which can describe
supply chains that are very simple or very complex using a common set of definitions. The
latest SCOR is version 9.0. In a nutshell, the SCOR model involves (Supply-Chain Council
2009):
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All customer interactions, from order entry to paid invoice;
All product (physical material and service) transactions, from the suppliers supplier to
the customers customer, including equipment, supplies, spare parts, bulk products,
software and etc;
All market interactions, from the understanding of aggregate demand to the fulfilment of
each order.
2.3.2 Processes in SCOR Model
The SCOR model has five distinct management processes of a supply chain, namely Plan,
Source, Make, Deliver and Return (Supply-Chain Council 2009).
(1) Plan: to balance the aggregate demand and supply to develop a course of action which
best meets sourcing, production and delivery requirement.
(2) Source: to procure goods and services to meet planned or actual demand.
(3) Make: make-to-stock, make-to-order, and engineer-to-order production execution to
transform product to a finished state to meet planned or actual demand.
(4) Deliver: to provide finished goods and services to meet planned or actual demand,
typically including order management, transportation management, distribution
management and warehouse management.
(5) Return: associated with returning of raw material to supplier or receiving returned
products, including defective products, MRO (Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul)
products, and excess products, from customer for any reason. These processes extend
into post-delivery customer support.
SCOR must accurately reflect how a supply-chains configuration impacts management
processes and practices. Each basic supply-chain is a chain of Source, Make, and Deliver
execution processes. The intersection of two execution processes (Source-Make-Deliver) is a
link in the supply-chain.
Execution processes transform or transport materials and/or products.
Each process is a customer of the previous process and a supplier to the next.
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Planning processes manage these customer-supplier links.
Planning processes thus balance the supply chain.
Every link requires an occurrence of a plan process category.
2.3.3 Process Types of SCOR Process
Each SCOR process can be further described by process type. Three process types have been
defined (Supply-Chain Council 2009). They are planning, execution and enable.
(1) Planning: a process that aligns expected resources to meet expected demand
requirements.
(2) Execution: a process triggered by planned or actual demand that changes the state of
material goods.
(3) Enable: a process that prepares, maintains, or manages information or relationships on
which planning and execution processes rely.
2.4
Discussion on Agile and Responsive Extended Supply Chain
Coordination and Optimization
In order to better understand and compare the literatures on supply chain optimization
reviewed so far, a comparison of the various works are summarized in Tables 2-2 to 2-6.
It can be seen from Tables 2-2 to 2-6 that much work has been done in supply chain design,
restructuring and functional optimization, such as optimization of the locations of facilities,
transportation and inventory, in order to bridge the gap among various functions of a supply
chain and the gap between theory and practice. Furthermore, most of the researchers focused
on strategic issues such as i) which internal activities should be preserved and developed; ii)
what is the relationship among demand, inventory level and customer service level; and iii)
how to restructure a supply chain to maximize its profit. The operational issues, which are
fundamental to supply chain management, are not well addressed.
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Table 2 - 2
References
Graves et al.
1998
Rao et al.
2000
Dong and
Chen 2001
Tukel and
Wasti 2001
Lakhal et al.
2001
Luo et al.
2001
Wang et al.
2005
Elmaraghy
and Majety
2008
Xu et al. 2009
Hammami et
al. 2009
Literature Review
Summary of literature review on supply chain design and analysis
Descriptions
Optimization of the production capacity and inventory while
considering the requirement planning to analyze how the
forecast will affect other units of the supply chain.
Design of a supply chain.
Modelling and Analysis of the business processes of a typical
manufacturing supply chain network.
Modelling of the relationship between buyer and supplier to
reduce product development time and improve project
performance.
Modelling of an extended enterprise with generic activity
networking: activity, resources and products were modelled as a
directed multi-graph of activities with resource cost functions
and product vale functions for strategic planning.
Modelling of an extended e-supply chain that considered raw
material supply, tier I and II supply and de-manufacturing.
Analysis and selection of suppliers based on the SCOR model
level I performance metrics and a so-called supply chain
effectiveness measurement.
Selection of suppliers, determination of production quantities,
selection of transportation method and transported quantities in
a multi-stage, multi-level supply chain inventory locations/sizes.
Modelling of uncertainties that associated with demand, supply,
price and various relevant costs in random fuzzy environment.
Modelling and design of a strategic-tactical supply chain design
model that integrates all the relevant components that
characterize the delocalization problem.
Solution Approach
Linear system with
Monte Carlo simulation.
Network flow theory,
inventory theory and
simulation theory.
Predicate/transition nets
based on Petri nets.
Heuristic rules (resource
constrained project
scheduling strategies).
Mixed integer
programming problem
solved by commercial
solver such as CPLEX.
Fuzzy logic-based multiobjective optimization.
AHP and PGP.
Multi-criteria mixed
integer programming
optimization model.
Random fuzzy
programming model.
Branch-and-cut
algorithm and on
Lagrangian relaxation.
2.4.1 Planning, Control and Customer Order Schedule
Traditionally, a company needs to hold sufficient stock to guarantee a desired service level.
This is to ensure a safety stock so as to prevent shortage of materials/final products.
Essentially, safety stock as a buffer is able to ensure smooth production and customer
satisfaction, and to counteract negative impacts from such uncertainties as late delivery of
materials from supplier and unexpected increase in demand. The common way of calculating
the safety stock is based on demand, process lead time and service level. However, too much
safety stock may incur higher inventory carrying cost; while too little safety stock may affect
the desired customer service level.
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Table 2 - 3
References
Huiskonen
and Pirttila
2002
Gupta et al.
2001
Dumond and
Roche 2000
Ito and Salleh
2000
Rupp and
Ristic 2000
Camarinhamatos and
Pantoja-lima
2001
Gaonkar and
Viswanadham
, 2001
Xue et al.
2005
Arshinder et
al. 2007
Soroor et al.
2009
Literature Review
Summary of literature review on supply chain coordination
Descriptions
Analysis of the logistics outsourcing relationship and its
inter-organization coordination.
Solution Approach
Lateral coordination
mechanisms.
Design and analysis of mobile agents for improving supply
chain decision making by access to the necessary global
information without violating the security.
Modelling of supply chain management problem using the
multi-agent system based on pa-calculus.
Modelling of a blackboard-based system to achieve an
effective material flow and to shorten the production leadtime.
Analysis of a distributed planning methodology based on
local plan optimization under control of a global
coordination entity.
Analysis of a PRODNET approach to support coordination
in virtual enterprises.
Mobile agent technology.
Study of the influence of sharing scheduling and demand
information.
Linear programming.
Study of a multi agent system for supply chain
coordination in construction that extended the internal
supply chain of general contractor to external supply chain
of designer, subcontractors, and suppliers
Application of a SAP-LAP model to an automotive parts
manufacturer to analyze the status of coordination in the
supply chain
Study of the basic concepts of mobile real-time supply
chain coordination and a framework was proposed.
Multi-agent system.
Pa-calculus based multi-agent
approach.
Blackboard-based negotiation
system.
Simulated annealing
algorithm.
Workflow-based
coordination.
SAP-LAP model.
Mobile and internet
technology.
Table 2 - 4
Summary of literature review on transportation decisions and optimization
References
Leung et al.
2002
Descriptions
Analysis of the model to solve a transportation
management problem by selection of proper transportation
mode and routing.
Analysis of a logistical management problem to select the
mode of transportation from pure hub-and-spoke and
hybrid hub-and-spoke.
Optimization of logistic processes in order to minimize the
overall delivery delays while considering order priority.
Optimization of the total distribution cost and delivery
time by considering some environmental coefficients.
Selection of best route while considering green supply
chain by considering environmental aspects such as noise
pollution, air pollution, energy consumption.
Zapfel and
Wasner 2002
Sousa et al.
2002
Liang 2007
and 2008)
Sawadogo
and Anciaux
2009
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
Solution Approach
MIP problem solved by a
software package called
LINDO.
MIP problem solved by
heuristic method combining
expert rules with local search.
Fuzzy decision making
algorithm and simulation.
Fuzzy goal programming
approach.
Multi-criteria decision making
problem solved by
ELECTRE.
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Table 2 - 5
Summary of literature review on location decisions and optimization
References
Jayaraman
and Pirkul
2001
Hwang 2002
Descriptions
Optimization of location of production and distribution facilities
in a multi-echelon environment.
Solution Approach
Heuristic method for the
MIP problem.
Design of a logistical system to optimize the number of
warehouses, DCs and vehicle routing schedule.
Facility location optimization based on a four-phase decision
framework.
Analysis of a hierarchical structure that considered criteria such
as product/process value chain, resource and management for
location selection in global supply chain.
Appropriate algorithm,
clustering, and GA..
Heuristics and AHP.
Optimization of number and location of finishing plants and
distribution centres in a supply chain.
Mixed-integer
programming model.
Kodali and
Routroy 2006
Viswanadham
and
Kameshwaran
2007
Robinson and
Bookbinder
2007
Table 2 - 6
References
Ettl et al.
2000
Summary of literature review on inventory decisions and optimization
Seliaman and
Ahmad 2008
Descriptions
Optimization of the inventory capital and the stocking location
and guarantee the customer service requirements by considering
on-hand inventory and WIP with non-stationary demands.
Minimization of the inventory and transportation costs and
recommend the stock level while considering uncertain demand.
Analysis of a coordination framework to optimize the fill rates
and the performance measurement schema for decentralized
supply chains.
Optimization of the destination and quantity of on-the-way
inventory by using a real-time inventory-routing integrated
model.
Optimization of the production and inventory decision based on
a tree stage supply chain system.
Chen et al.
2009
Analysis of an inventory decision system that considered the
impact factors of the total supply chain cost.
Geunes and
Zeng 2001
Piplani and
Yonghui 2005
Feng and
Wang 2008
Heuristics and AHP.
Solution Approach
Conjugate gradient
method to optimize the
non-linear problem.
Simulation and heuristic
method.
Multi-agent system and
Genetic algorithm.
Constraint-based genetic
algorithm approach.
A direct search program
based on Hooke and
Jeeves.
Intelligent agent and
artificial neural network.
Many companies such as Dell have decided not to carry large inventory (Dell 2010). They
receive orders from the clients; buy components from external suppliers; collect the
components in special places as virtual stocks; and assemble and then deliver the orders to
the clients. The manufacturing of goods and their distribution to clients in this manner pose a
challenge, which is how to deliver the goods in time while minimizing the inventories,
reducing the production cost and achieving certain customer service level. Their impact on
the overall responsiveness of a large-scale supply chain usually cannot be addressed
effectively by simply considering capacity planning of the supply chain and manufacturing
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plants without a powerful supply chain planning, control and scheduling system. Any
variation in the local plan and the schedule of a supply chain unit such as manufacturing plant
might adversely affect the overall performance of the supply chain. This shows the necessity
of introducing a mechanism that can better use the e-business information flow network to
share production plan and the detailed schedule of the entire supply chain, and allowing each
supply chain unit to collaborate instead of trying to optimize individual processes at every
stage.
Furthermore, the works of Luber (1991) and Mentzer (2001) revealed that lead-time could be
used to estimate the processing time and transition time of a supply chain. To the best of the
authors knowledge, most of the work surveyed thus far does not have the ability to estimate
the actual loading of a manufacturing plant. As a result, the lead-time assigned is usually
much longer than necessary in practice so as to be safe. This may result in higher inventory
level and cost. Thus, it is obvious that adopting a holistic approach to planning and
scheduling are becoming more and more important for the purpose of achieving a near
optimized and well coordinated supply chain. Generally, production facilities are more
complex than other units of a supply chain in terms of resources constrains, dynamic of
production, uncertainty and so on. For example, sharing of the information about resource
constraints of production facilities will facilitate the planning and scheduling of other supply
chain units and creates greater values to these supply chain units. In this respect, a generic
model that supports hierarchical coordination and optimization of the entire supply chain, as
well as a holistic approach to facilitate the integration of detailed scheduling and planning
with supply chain management becomes essential to provide accurate schedule and delivery
information. It would help in meeting the customer service level, and ultimately achieving
strategic goals, such as JIT and capturing market.
From the review, it appears that not many studies have been done to integrate scheduling with
supply chain optimization. Griffiths and Margetts (2000) used some case studies to
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demonstrate how variations in production schedule could affect the supply of parts and show
the importance of supply chain management. Lendermann et al. (2001) described a
framework for distributed simulation with integrated advanced planning and scheduling (APS)
procedures to support a leaner and more responsive supply chain. They illustrated the
necessities of integrating APS with supply chain simulation by analyzing the problems faced
by some simulation systems without the support of an APS system. It is apparent from their
work that detailed schedule is important to supply chain management and optimization.
Reis et al. (2001) presented a multi-agent cooperative scheduling system for an extended
enterprise comprising capacity agent, retail agent and row-material agent. The system
embodied a dynamic production scheduler. It had a mechanism, which allowed a group of
cooperative scheduling agents to work out feasible schedules through physical level and
virtual level of coordination among agents, while avoiding only locally feasible solutions.
Hence, only one feasible solution is presented to the enterprise. In their work, resource
constraints such as tooling were difficult to incorporate due to the restriction imposed by the
system developed, which supported single client and single supplier only.
Nurmilaakso (2004) used an agent-based distributed simulation approach to determine some
feasible schedules for different companies along a supply chain. Agents that represented
companies attempted to resolve the conflicts by exchanging messages about their own
schedule. As commented by Nurmilaakso, the approach could not even provide a near
optimal local schedule.
Kreipl and Dickersbach (2008) attempted to integrate production scheduling using APO,
which is a supply chain planning and scheduling software provided by SAP. Basically, the
APO required a plan to be confirmed first. The plan will then be used as the input to
individual manufacturing plant for detailed scheduling. During which, coordination among
different plants has not been implemented. As a result, a globally optimized schedule is not
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achievable.
2.4.2 Supply Chain Model and Representation
From the review, various approaches, including MIP (Elmaraghy and Majety 2008,
Jayaraman and Pirkul 2001, Leung et al. 2002, Zapfel and Wasner 2002), 0-1 programming
(Hwang 2002), Petri nets (Raghavan and Viswanadham 1999), and non-linear model (Ettl et
al. 2000, Vidyarthi et al. 2009), had been used to handle supply chain management problems.
They had managed to work out the solutions for these models by using software packages,
fuzzy methods, heuristic approaches or even simulations. Functional optimization is of great
value to an enterprise since it provides the basic strategy and tactic to assist suppliers and
customers, and to ensure sufficient materials or products flow to manufacturing plants in time
or to customers with adequate promised customer service level. However, most of the works
done so far were for decision-making at management level or were targeted at a specific
problem (Leung et al. 2002, Vidyarthi et al. 2009, Wang et al 2005). Some of the works had
been simplified in order to reduce the number of decision variables and to improve the speed
of problem-solving. These simplifications included removal of capacity limitation; stationary
demand (Graves et al. 1998, Elmaraghy and Majety 2008) to simplify production process and
eliminate internal stock-out; and a two-stage (inventory-transportation-customer) supply
chain (Geunes and Zeng, 2001) that ignored other supply chain units. The SCOR model
appears to be suitable as it provides a generic template to represent a supply chain and a set
of standard supply chain practices to create reusable and comprehensive procedures. It is
envisaged that in order to analyze, coordinate and schedule the entire supply chain, a
comprehensive representation of a supply chain is fundamental and critical. Such a
representation would enable multiple level decision making and optimization, from strategic
to operational levels, to take place. It should be able to provide an enabling infrastructure,
which is generic, flexible and sophisticated enough to incorporate important supply chain
features such as hierarchical structure, various modes of transportation, multiple level split,
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merge and assemble, and cross-boundary representation to promote the supply chain
coordination and achieve a near global optimized schedule.
2.4.3 Solving Extended Supply Chain Optimization Problems
A supply chain, one that supports global manufacturing in particular, may be enormous in
terms of size and number of supply chain units. In reality, an extended supply chain may have
multiple end products with shared components, facilities, capacities and suppliers. Thus, the
flow of materials is not always along an arborescent network. This will further increase the
complexity of the problem.
As mentioned in Section 1.1, an extended supply chain includes supply networks, distribution
networks, and alliance networks. It involves everyone who contributes to a product. However,
research on how planning and scheduling can be coordinated in order to realize an extended
supply chain is lacking. The work on e-supply chain by Luo et al. (2001) included tier I and
tier II suppliers as well as de-manufacturing. It excluded planning and scheduling of a supply
chain and could only be used to handle less complex optimization problems. A network based
approach to reduce inventory and improve customers service level in an n-tier complex
distributed supply chain network was discussed by Pan et al. (2007). The model only covered
the inventory cost and allocation cost. Important factors such as production capacity and
transportations had been ignored.
As such, to deal with a sizable supply chain that may grow beyond the ability of existing
optimization approaches to cope, a more robust methodology is therefore necessary. It is
envisaged that clustering technique, which is capable of decomposing a complex problem
into a smaller and controllable ones, would help in reducing the search space and improving
the efficiency of the search procedures to derive better solutions for the entire supply chain.
In this respect, Group Technology (GT), which was first postulated by Burbridge (1975), can
possibly be adapted and used to cluster an extended supply chain. Basically, GT is a
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manufacturing technique that can be employed to identify and group together similar parts
and manufacturing operations or processes into families during all stages of design and
production (Khoo et al. 2003, Snead 1989). For example, a family of parts is made up of
components that can be manufactured by similar machinery, tooling, machine operations and
jigs and fixtures. After the part families are formed, machines are often organized into
manufacturing cells and the families of parts assigned to cells according to their routings. It is
envisaged that the basic notions of GT can be borrowed and enhanced using such technique
as fuzzy clustering theory, graph theory and agent based technology to realize a
comprehensive model or representation for the handling of supply chain problems. In so
doing, a complex supply chain model can possibly be decomposed into well coordinated
supply chain clusters comprising supply chain units, transportation modes and work orders.
2.4.4 Intelligent Agent-Based Supply Chain Coordination
From the review on supply chain optimization, planning and scheduling described in Sections
2.2 and 2.3.1, it is apparent that the revision of plans or schedules of supply chain units in a
supply chain, which is a frequent occurrence, needs proper coordination. Any slip in the
coordination would lead to immediate and tangible losses (Griffiths and Margetts 2000). This
implies that the agility with which a supply chain is managed at tactical and operational
levels has an impact on the way in which enterprise goals are achieved. Furthermore, the
individually optimized solution of a single manufacturing plant or a supply chain unit may
turn out to be unfavourable to the global objectives and may even jeopardize the performance
of the entire supply chain (Fawcett et al. 2008, Infoscaler 2003). This provides the motivation
for the author to explore and propose an intelligent agent-based decision making mechanism
to facilitate the exchange of information and promote negotiation and coordination among the
various supply chain units. It is envisaged that such a mechanism would help in realizing a
near global optimal schedule for an extended supply chain.
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2.5
Literature Review
An Overview of Relevant Methodologies and Algorithms
2.5.1 Group Technology and Fuzzy C-Means Clustering Algorithm
As mentioned, Group Technology (GT) is a manufacturing technique that identifies and
groups together similar parts and manufacturing operations or processes during all stages of
design and production (Snead 1989). It was first postulated by Burbridge (1975) and provides
a useful way to improve the productivity of a manufacturing system. The GT philosophy
advocates combining similar parts into a group so that the cost associated with the design and
manufacturing the entire group of parts are reduced. Basically, a family of parts is made up of
components that can be manufactured by similar machinery, tooling, machine operations, and
jigs and fixtures. After part families are formed, machines are often organized into
manufacturing cells and the families of parts assigned to the various manufacturing cells
according to their routings. Generally, in a manufacturing cell, the set up time to switch from
manufacturing one part to another is minimal.
There are four basic methods that can be used to form part families (Bedworth et al. 1991,
Chu and Hayya 1991, Offodile et al. 1994). They are: (i) by visual method, (ii) by parts
coding analysis, (iii) by analysing component or production flow, and (iv) by applying
optimization algorithms. This work focuses on optimization algorithms, as the first three
approaches are difficult to be adapted to handle clustering of supply chains. Common
algorithms employed to create manufacturing cells include Rank Order Clustering (King
1980), Direct Clustering (Miltenburg and Montazemi 1993, Mukhopadhyay et al. 1994) and
Bond Energy (Currie 1992, Suresh and Kaparthi 1994). All of them represent machines (in
rows) and parts (in columns) as matrices. More recent techniques include Simulated
Annealing (Chen and Srivastava 1994, Souilah 1995, Zolfaghari and Liang 1998), Neural
Networks (Lozano et al. 1998, Wang and Yoshiyasu 1993) and Genetic Algorithms (Gupta et
al. 1996, Khoo et al. 2003, Rao et al. 1999, Venugopal and Narendran 1992).
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The effectiveness of cellular manufacturing is often measured the following objectives (Hyer
1991):
Minimal number of inter-cell movement;
The greatest proportion of part operations performed within a single cell;
The greatest number of parts handled by the cells as a percentage of the total number of
parts processed through the shop floor;
Maximum machine utilization;
Minimal total costs by reducing set-up times and WIP;
Shortest throughput time of a job; and
Minimal tardiness of a job.
The extent to which these objectives can be realized depends on several factors, foremost of
which are the operating policies such as the dispatching rules and labour utilization, and the
way in which machines and parts are grouped into manufacturing cells thereby determining
the work load of the machines.
Gupta, et al. (1996) made use of Genetic Algorithms (GAs) to perform the grouping of five
machines and seven components. Their work aimed at minimizing (i) the total number of
inter-cell and intra-cell part movements and (ii) the variation of workload of each machining
cell. The inter- and intra-cell part movements were weighted differently. Cell load variation,
on the other hand, was given by the difference between the workload of a machine and the
workload of the cell. The total movements were formulated as the weighted sum of both inter
and intra-cell movement. The GA-based approach was used to determine the machine cellpart grouping. Basically, gross part movement and cell load variation belong to two different
domains. It is difficult to use a single equation to represent them as their relative importance
is not known and they cannot be simply summed. Gupta, et al. (1996) used two distinct
populations to evaluate the twin objective functions separately and looked for identical
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chromosomes. In so doing, a solution satisfying both problems could be found, although it
might not be optimum.
A similar research, based on the same two objectives, was carried out by Venugopal and
Narendran (1992). Several real life issues, such as processing time of each part on different
machines, and demand of each part and workload on each machine imposed by various parts,
were considered. The machine cell-part grouping was determined as a bi-objective problem
with 15 machines and 30 parts. The results showed that the GA approach was able to provide
satisfactory solutions.
One common weakness with conventional analytical methods and optimizing algorithms
based on mathematical models is that the part and machine families are mutually exclusive.
Each part can only belong to one part family and each machine to one machine family.
However, in reality and in most manufacturing environments, it is possible that the linkages
of some parts/machines are less obvious, and human intervention and further analysis have to
be performed. Fuzzy clustering is thus a more appropriate technique to deal with machine cell
formation problem in a complex real manufacturing environment.
Fuzzy models are good for measuring and expressing the fuzziness in a system. Traditional
approaches used in Group Technology (Snead 1989) such as cluster analysis, mathematical
programming and heuristics assume that a given part or a machine can be a member of only
one part-family or a machine-cell respectively. Also, whenever new parts or machines have
been introduced into the production system, traditional approaches require re-computation of
the entire problem.
The foundation of a fuzzy model is fuzzy theory (Lowen 1996). Fuzzy theory as its name
suggests, is basically a theory of classes with blurred boundaries. In a conventional set
concept (crisp set), element is either a member of a set of not. Fuzzy sets on the other hand,
allow elements to be partially in a set. Each element is given a degree of membership. This
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membership value can range from 0 (not an element of the set) to 1 (a member of the set).
A membership function expresses the relationship between the values of an element and its
degree of membership in a fuzzy set. Fuzzy models are suitable for dealing with
impreciseness that may exist in the parameters of a system.
There is a growing research interest in quantifying the fuzziness in part-machine grouping
features. A better understanding is therefore needed to choose an appropriate membership
function to measure the fuzziness of a process plan and part-machine features. Some fuzzy
systems such as the fuzzified version of conventional methods which cover fuzzy c-means
clustering (Josien and Liao 2000, Yang et al. 2006), and fuzzy rank order clustering (Zhang
and Wang 1992), as well as the fuzzified version of modern methods which include fuzzyneural methods (Kuo et al. 2006, Park 2003), have been widely used. For example, Xu and
Wang (1989) proposed a simple fuzzy clustering for part family formation. Yang et al. (2006)
established a fuzzy clustering approach that could take care of mixed-variable for machine
cell formation.
2.5.2 Genetic Algorithm Based Fuzzy C-Means
Genetic Algorithm (GA), as described by Holland (1975), is a technique that is easy to apply
and can be used to solve a wide range of optimization problems such as scheduling and
sequencing (Khoo et al. 2000, Mori and Tseng 1997, Qiu 1997), cellular manufacturing
(Gupta et al. 1996, Li et al. 2002, Zhao et al. 1996), assembly line optimization (Lee et al.
2000), printed circuit board (PCB) layout design (Khoo and Ong 1998), engineering design
and concurrent engineering (Carlson 1996, Janikow and St Clair 1995). Basically, GA
belongs to a class of techniques called evolutionary computation (Mangano 1995). It is an
adaptive search algorithm that operates on a population of individuals representing potential
solutions to a given problem. It seeks to produce better or fitter individuals, i.e. solutions, by
combining the better of the existing ones through the mechanics of natural selection and
genetics. GA is more robust than traditional search techniques such as guided random-search
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or calculus-based techniques for three simple reasons (Goldberg 1989):
GAs use payoff also known as objective functions rather than derivatives as in the
gradient search techniques;
GAs adopt stochastic transition, not deterministic rules; and
GA searches are conducted over the entire solution space, not local decision spaces.
Recently, more and more researchers use GA based fuzzy c-means (FCM) to solve different
problems. Image segmentation problem (Awad et al. 2009; Cheng and Gong 2008;
Mukhopadhyay et al. 2006), model detection of a distributed sensor networks (Korjani et al.
2007), microarray gene expression data clustering (Mukhopadhyay and Maulik 2009), and
data mining (Yan and Li, 2008) are some of them. There are also studies on GA based fuzzy
c-means in GT (Li et al. 2002, Zhao et al. 1996). However, the number of cluster centres and
the weighting exponent have to be predetermined for the fuzzy c-means approach.
Pang et al. (2007) attempted to obtain an optimal solution by solving the fuzzy c-means
problem for each value of c ranging from 2 to n (number of samples) in order to search for
the best clustering. The approach obviously needs large computation efforts and is timeconsuming. Mukhopadhyay and Maulik (2009) and Saha et al. (2009) used a GA based fuzzy
clustering technique with a variable chromosome to determine the proper number of clusters.
A so-called XB index was used as the objective function. However, it is important to note
that the XB index is mainly used to determine the number of clusters. It is obvious from the
above discussion that c, the number of cluster centres, and m, weighting exponent, may not
be known as a prior knowledge and, as a result, have to be predetermined for a fuzzy c-means
approach. In this work, the author attempts to realize an approach that is able to search for the
optimal c and m while performing optimization.
It is envisaged that genetic algorithms (GAs) and tabu search (TS) can possibly be used to
enhance the fuzzy c-means clustering approach. Basically, the tabu search algorithm was
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developed by Glover and Hansen (Glover and Laguna 1997, Pham and Karaboga 2000) for
solving combinatorial optimization problems. It is an iterative search that is able to help
overcome premature convergence by using a flexible memory or a tabu list and search
beyond the local minima. Such a hybrid heuristic, i.e. combing GA, TS and FCM, can be
used to handle large-scale supply chain clustering problem and at the same time search for
the best fuzzy c-means parameters, c and m. Besides determining the cluster in which a
supply chain unit belongs to, it is able to provide the degree of membership of a supply chain
unit to each of the cluster. This information can help decision makers to decide the final
supply chain clusters while considering other constraints such as balancing the workload
among clusters and customer preference of manufacturing plants.
2.5.3 Schema Theorem of Genetic Algorithms
The building block hypothesis and the schema theorem (Holland 1975, Goldberg 1989) are
fundamental to Genetic Algorithms (GAs). They describe the survival and propagation of
schemas from one generation to another and were traditionally used to evaluate the
effectiveness of GAs. They postulated that the schemas with long defining length were likely
to be destroyed by crossover and short, lower order and highly fit schemas with above
average fitness survived and got copies at exponentially increasing rates.
However, the schema theorem has been widely criticised as it only provides the lower
boundary instead of the expected exact number of schemas in the next generation (Stephens
and Waelbroeck 1998, Stephens and Waelbroeck 1999, Whitley 2001). Stephens and
Waelbroeck (1999) even commented that there was no preference for short, low-order
schemas and in fact typically long schemas would be favoured when schema reconstruction
dominated.
Rabinovich and Wigderson (1991) analysed a simple GA dynamics in terms of the fitness
distributions. They attempted to develop a more rigorous understanding of how GAs evolve
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and create an exact mathematical analysis using a simple GA.
The notion of effective fitness had been introduced by Stephens and Waelbroeck (1999) in
governing the reproductive success of a schema. They found that effective fitness appeared to
be a more relevant concept than conventional fitness. They further analysed the schema
theorem and the building block hypothesis based on the exact evolution equation they
proposed in terms of effective fitness for GAs.
Poli (2001) proposed an exact formulation in terms of microscopic quantities to derive the
expected number of copies of a schema in the next generation of a GA operation. The
formulation was further improved to form a schema theorem for genetic programming (GP).
Such a schema theorem supported the calculation of effective fitness in GP. Poli also
concluded in his review of GP and GA schemas, and found that the schema theorem was as
important as any other mathematical models such as Voses and Markov models. However,
his work was limited to one-point crossover and the effect of mutation was not considered.
Whitley (2001) reviewed and critiqued the schema theorem. An exact version of the schema
theorem that considered reproduction, crossover and mutation was proposed using such
terminology as gains, losses and disruptions. The final version of his equation was
simplified to provide only the lower-bound of the expected value of the number of instances
of a schema in the next generation, while the gains of crossover were ignored.
Ming and Wang (2006) proposed a so-called ternary representation that was able to depict the
survival and construction probabilities of a schema. They further discussed a schema survival
and construction theory for one-point crossover using the ternary representation.
A stochastic schema theorem within the framework of the Wright-Fisher model of Markov
processes was proposed by Zhang et al. (2008) to analyse the evolution of the first order
schemas with finite population size. The influence of population size and mutation
probability on the success probability of obtaining the near optimal solution was studied.
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They concluded that when the population size was large, mutation tended to have a negative
effect on the fitness of the population, and vice versa.
Basically, the main GA parameters are population size, crossover probability and mutation
probability. They are very important to the performance of GAs. A set of good GA
parameters helps in improving the ability of the GA to search for near global optimal
solutions. However, as the mathematical foundation of GAs is weak, deterministic method
for the selection of GA parameters does not exist. Pham and Karaboga (2000) further
suggested that as two important control parameters, crossover and mutation probabilities
affected the performance of GAs drastically. In practice, it usually takes a lot of trial-anderror attempts to find a set of good GA parameters in order to obtain near optimal solutions.
Furthermore, a good set of GA parameters that works well for one problem may not be as
effective for other problems. Thus, it is envisaged that an exact schema theorem which
extends Goldbergs work can be used to mathematically characterize the evolution of a
population of a genetic algorithm. Based on the change in the expected number of schemas
over GA evolution, the optimal or a compromised pair of crossover and mutation
probabilities that can possibly lead to a better performance of GA can possibly be obtained.
2.6
Research Roadmap
From the review, seven stages of research have been identified in order to establish the
prototype SCASO system: i) a graph-based supply chain representation scheme and
hierarchical modelling of supply chains; ii) a framework of a multiple populations search
strategy based evolutionary approach (MBEA); iii) an exact schema theorem for GAs; iv)
supply chain routing and sequence optimization; v) supply chain virtual clustering; vi) supply
chain order scheduling; and vii) a case study to illustrate the prototype system developed.
As mentioned in Chapter 1, the objective of the research is to conduct an investigation into
the realization of a hierarchical model and a framework for extended supply chain
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coordination and optimization, which would be used as a tool to facilitate the planning and
detailed scheduling of the various supply chain units, such as suppliers, manufacturing plants,
warehouses, and distribution centres, and provides the capability to support an extended
supply chain and global manufacturing, which take into consideration suppliers and
customers supply chain networks. The research roadmap is summarized in Figure 2-7. It
involves
Figure 2 - 7
A research roadmap
(1) A study on a framework for supply chain optimization, which supports the hierarchical
coordination and optimization of the entire supply chain (Yin and Khoo 2007b). This
would involves the adaptation of the SCOR model to represent a typical supply chain;
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(2) A study on a framework of the proposed multiple populations search strategy based
evolutionary approach (MBEA). The MBEA is a generic optimization methodology and
can be employed to solve different optimization problems;
(3) A study on a novel graph representation of an extended supply chain (Khoo and Yin
2003). This includes i) the representation method; and ii) the logical relationship among
nodes of the graph. The graph representation would provide the foundation for supply
chain optimization;
(4) A study on an exact schema theorem which extends Goldbergs schema theorem. It
would be able to predict the expected number of copies of schemas in the next GA
generation. Further investigation leveraging on the exact schema theorem would be
conducted to examine the optimal or a compromised pair of crossover and mutation
probabilities that can lead to a better performance of GA;
(5) An investigation into work order routing selection and sequence optimization (Yin and
Khoo 2007a). This would involve the realization of a more robust optimization
technique based on local search algorithms such as GA and TS;
(6) The establishment of a virtual clustering methodology (Khoo and Yin 2003). The basic
notions of GT are adapted and enhanced using such techniques as fuzzy c-means, GA
and TS. This is used to reduce the search space for the optimization of a complex
extended supply chain;
(7) An investigation into an intelligent agent based mechanism for information exchange
and coordination. With the help of a scheduling engine, the mechanism is capable to
facilitate and promote the negotiation and coordination among supply chain units to
realize global optimization of the schedule for the entire supply chain; and
(8) Development of a prototype system to illustrate the proposed framework, approaches
and algorithms. The effectiveness of the prototype system will be demonstrated by a
case study gleaned from a semiconductor packaging company.
2.7
Summary
This chapter presents an overview of supply chain management and optimization. Researches
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on supply chain management and optimization have been reviewed and grouped into seven
areas: i) supply chain design and analysis; ii) supply chain coordination; iii) location
decisions and optimization; iv) transportation decisions and optimization; v) inventory
decisions and optimization; vi) tracking and tracing systems; and vii) reverse logistics.
The necessity of a mechanism that is able to facilitate an agile and responsive supply chain
coordination and optimization has been discussed. Though much work has been done in
supply chain design, restructuring and functional optimization, operational issues, which are
fundamental to a supply chain management, are not well addressed. It is noted that variation
in the local plan and schedule of a supply chain unit may adversely affect the overall
performance of the supply chain. The review also reveals that the widely used lead-time
approach may result in higher inventory level and cost. Furthermore, sharing of the
information on resource constraints of production facilities can possibly facilitate the
planning and scheduling and creates greater values to other supply chain units. In order to
provide a reasonably good schedule and delivery information, i) a comprehensive
representation such as graph representation, ii) a generic model supporting the hierarchical
coordination and optimization of the entire supply chain, and iii) an approach to facilitate the
scheduling and planning for supply chain management appear to be essential.
In order to deal with a sizable supply chain that may grow beyond the ability of existing
optimization approaches, it is envisaged that clustering and agent based technology would
help in reducing the search space and improving the search for better solution.
Finally, a discussion on the key methodologies and algorithms that are relevant to this work
has been presented. They are group technology (GT), fuzzy c-means, genetic algorithm (GA),
tabu search (TS) and the Schema Theorem. It is envisaged that the basic notions of GT can be
borrowed and enhanced using fuzzy c-means, GA and TS. The enhanced GT allows a
complex extended supply chain model to be decomposed into supply chain clusters of smaller
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size. In doing so, the search space of a complex supply chain problem can be drastically
reduced and the efficiency of the supply chain optimization can possibly be improved.
Furthermore, it has been established that the crossover and mutation probabilities of a GA
can drastically affect the performance of GA. An attempt to enhance Goldbergs schema
theorem will be explored. With the enhancement, it is envisaged that important parameters
for fuzzy clustering of supply chains as well as for GA can be obtained. As a result, a
prototype system to facilitate supply chain coordination and optimization can possibly be
realized.
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Chapter 3
A DISTRIBUTED HIERARCHICAL MODEL AND
A FRAMEWORK FOR SUPPLY CHAIN
COORDINATION AND OPTIMIZATION
3.1
Introduction
As mentioned in Chapter 2, a distributed hierarchical model of a supply chain is fundamental
and critical to provide an enabling infrastructure for extended supply chain coordination and
optimization. It needs to be generic, flexible and sophisticated enough to allow the
incorporation of important supply chain features so as to promote supply chain coordination
and derive a near global optimized schedule. In this chapter, a framework for supply chain
optimization, which supports the hierarchical coordination and optimization of an entire
supply chain, is proposed.
Supply-chain design
Strategic
Supply-chain modelling and simulation
Demand planning and forecasting
Capacity planning
Tactical
Transportation management
Inventory/warehouse management
Operational
Production scheduling
Seconds/
minutes
Hours/shifts/
days
Weeks/months
Quarters
Years
Time Horizon
Figure 3 - 1
Different level of supply chain management
As shown in Figure 3-1, supply chain optimization and management have different levels.
The strategic and long term level includes decisions on supply chain design and configuration,
and location of facilities. It is designed for long term application and is relatively expensive
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to change. The time frame of the tactical level is about a quarter to 12 months. It works on
forecast and demand, capacity planning, and inventory policies. The operational and shortterm level deals with customer orders and production scheduling in daily or weekly basis
(Chopra and Peter 2004). As mentioned in Chapter 2, the integration of scheduling with
supply chain optimization is a difficult task. The necessity of carrying out such a task
includes
Long-term management objectives frequently conflict with operational objectives. For
example, manufacturing operations may try to maximize the throughput and lower cost,
while this may directly affect the inventory level and increase the inventory level of
downstream operations. Minimizing inventory level is one of the long-term management
objective, which contradicts maximizing manufacturing throughput;
Supply chain units traditionally operate independently. Research aimed at promoting
integration and coordination is still at strategic level (Griffiths and Margetts 2000,
Lendermann et al. 2001). As for coordination and integration at operational level, they are
much more difficult to realize due to the complexity of communication, information
sharing and shielding, as well as the need to search for a globally feasible or near optimal
solution; and
A supply chain especially an extended supply chain, which includes suppliers and
customers supply chain networks, can be enormous as it may consist of a large number
of supply chain units. A large-scale supply chain would drastically increase the
complexity and adversely affect the effectiveness of the coordination as well.
Supply chain is stochastic and dynamic in the real business due to the uncertainties from
demand, production capacity, lead-time, supply of materials and so on. Companies usually
have to handle several conflicting objectives when making decision. The stochastic supply
chain models have been extensively discussed in supply chain design and planning (Lin 2010,
Sourirajan et al. 2007, Vidyarthi et al. 2009). Random variables and constraints with
probability distributions have been used to reflect the stochastic nature of a supply chain. The
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formulation of a stochastic model normally has much more variables and constraints than that
of a deterministic model. It largely increases the difficulty in solving a stochastic model
especially when an extended supply chain is in consideration.
This work attempts to address the above issues, i.e. scheduling and optimization of an
extended supply chain. The prototype system is based on a deterministic supply chain model
and is flexible and agile in response to dynamic events such as demand and production
capacity variations. It involves the realization of a hierarchical model for supply chain
coordination and optimization of all the supply chain units, such as suppliers, manufacturing
plants, warehouses, distribution centres and customers. The proposed hierarchical model
possesses the potential to support an extended supply chain environment, which takes into
consideration suppliers and customers supply chain networks.
As mentioned in Chapter 2, many supply chain models lack the ability in providing a
common supply-chain framework and standard terminology. In order to increase the
flexibility and scalability, this work also explores the possibilities of using the Supply-Chain
Operations Reference (SCOR) model described in Section 3.3, which provides a set of
standard supply chain practices to create reusable, comprehensive procedures for a wide
variety of supply chain activities, to model a supply chain. The representation can be further
enhanced by a so-called Supply_Graph developed in this work (Khoo and Yin 2003). The
Supply_Graph representation is comprehensive and flexible enough to facilitate the
hierarchical model of a supply chain. It provides a detailed description of a supply chain
network at the operational levels. It can handle complex supply chain units, customer order
routings and transportation information to assist the individual functional modules in the
proposed hierarchical model for supply chain coordination and optimization. As outlined in
Section 1.4, the details of the SCOR model and the Supply_Graph are presented in Sections
3.3 and 4.2 respectively. Furthermore, an architecture of a novel evolutionary approach (Yin
and Khoo 2007a) is proposed and described in Section 3.4. The approach is generic and can
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be used to handle various supply chain optimization problems.
3.2
Proposed Framework of the Prototype System
Data 3.3 Customer order detail
schedule
e-Business
Information Flow
Network
Supply Chain Order
Scheduler (SCOS)
Agent coordination mechanism
Data 3. Intermediate Data
3.1 Preferred routings,
transportation modes and
work order plan
3.2 Supply chain unittransportation-work order
families
3.3 Customer order detail
schedule
Feedback and compliance measure for RSO, SCVC and/or SCOS adjustment
Data 2. Management Level
Strategies
Customer service level
Inventory reduction
Production cost
Safety stock level reduction
...
Supply chain cluster agent
Supply chain supervisory
agent
Distributed
agents
Work order scheduling engine
Data Sharing and Shielding
Data 1. Supply Chain
Network
Supply_Graph
supply chain topology
customer order routings
transportation modes
Supply chain unit capacity
Materials cost
Manufacturing/Delivery cost
Inventory cost
Transportation cost
Customer orders
Cycle time
Other constraints
Supply Chain Execution
Data 1
Supply chain network
Supply_Graph
Order information
Cycle time
etc.
Data 3.2 Supply chain unittransportation-work order
families
Supply Chain Virtual
Clustering (SCVC)
Performance
measures
Inter/intra cluster transportation
Balance loading
Group efficiency measurement
Fuzzy c-means
GA & TS
MPSS
MBEA Enabled
SCVC optimization
engine
Data 1
Supply chain network
Supply_Graph
Order information
Cycle time
etc.
Data 3.1 Preferred routings,
transportation modes and
work order plan
Routing and Sequence
Optimizer (RSO)
GT notion and concept
Objective
measurements
RSO optimization
engine
Data 1 Supply chain network
Supply_Graph
Capacity
Cost
Order information
Cycle time
etc.
Data 2 Management level strategies
On-time-delivery
Delivery cost
Manufacturing cost
Distribution centre cost
GA & TS
MPSS
MBEA Enabled
Global Manufacturing Materials Flow Network
Note: The data in Global Manufacturing Materials Flow Network refers to the data in e-Business Information Flow Network.
: Data directly from data source
: Manipulated data or data generated from other modules
: Functions provided by a module
Figure 3 - 2
A framework of the prototype SCASO system
In order to achieve a seamless integration of supply chain units for supply chain optimization,
a distributed intelligent coordination and scheduling system that is able to support a materials
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flow network in a global manufacturing environment is necessary. The supply chain
coordination and schedule optimization system (SCASO) would help in resolving the
conflicts among the requirements of supply chain units. A framework of the prototype
SCASO system is shown in Figure 3-2. The prototype system comprises three main modules
(Yin and Khoo 2007b). They are
Routing and Sequence Optimizer (RSO);
Supply Chain Virtual Clustering (SCVC); and
Supply Chain Order Scheduler (SCOS).
The major functions of the three modules are as follows.
In order to reflect the strategies at management level, the RSO module takes into account
business strategies, customer requirements and the capacity of supply chain units to
generate a preferred set of routing and work order process sequence that can be
channelled to the SCVC module to form the so-call supply chain virtual clusters..
The SCVC module is used to compartmentalize a complex supply chain optimization
problem that can hardly be solved by conventional algorithms due to combinatory
explosion into smaller and manageable clusters.
The SCOS module is employed to work out the detailed plan and schedule for the entire
supply chain through coordination among clusters.
Briefly, sales and marketing data such as customer orders, which are gathered by marketing
personnel, and the detailed information about supply chain network and individual unit such
as status, capacities and topology, are forwarded to the prototype system for processing. The
prototype system (Figure 3-2) then invokes the RSO to generate intermediate data such as the
preferred routings, transportation modes and work order plan based on the information stored
in the supply chain network as well as management strategies such as constraints of customer
service level, cycle time, cost, and so on. A hybrid heuristic based on GA and TS, and
enhanced by a multiple populations search strategy (MPSS) is developed and used as the
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MBEA enabled RSO optimization engine to tackle the routing and sequence optimization
problem. Subsequently, it forwards the information obtained to the SCVC module. In order to
efficiently derive the near global optimal solutions for the entire supply chain, the supply
chain units, and transportation and related customer orders are virtually and dynamically
organized into different supply chain unit-transportation-work order families based on the
clustering technique, fuzzy c-means coupled with GA and TS as suggested in Section 2.5,
and some performance measures. The clustering technique is further enhanced by the MPSS.
A work order family can then be processed largely within a unit-transportation family with no
or little disturbance to other supply chain families. This will compartmentalize a supply chain
problem into sub-problems so as to reduce its search space and expedite flow planning and
scheduling using the SCOS module. The SCOS module generates a near global optimal
schedule for the entire supply chain. It minimizes the total cost and maximizes customer
service level with the assistance of a scheduling engine for individual supply chain family, i.e.
a virtual cluster, which takes into consideration such objective functions as machine
utilization and cycle time from the SCVC module. It is supported by a distributed and
intelligent agent-based mechanism to exchange information and promote negotiation and
coordination within or among supply chain families. The detailed schedule is then examined
and fine-tuned based on a compliance measure using the feedback information from the
SCOS to the SCVC, and to the RSO. Here, the compliance measure, which is the degree (in
percentage) in which the solution generated by a module complies with those derived by
higher-level modules, is used to evaluate the performance of all the modules and fine-tune the
detailed schedule of the SCOS. The e-business information flow network is used to provide
the necessary order and the supply chain information for the prototype SCASO system. With
such a framework, the long-term management objectives can be incorporated into the RSO
for routing and sequence selection which guides the other two modules, namely SCVC and
SCOS.
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3.2.1 Assumptions of the Proposed Framework
Dell Inc. is best known for its success in direct selling computers to end users through the
Internet. Its business model has been widely studied (Fan et al. 2007, Kraemer et al. 2000,
Ross 2003). Comparing to the traditional personal computer makers such as IBM, Dells
business model has fewer stages in its supply chain while customer pulls products directly
from Dell instead of a retailer (Figure 3-3). Customer orders received by Dell are processed
and the product requirement and configuration are shared electronically with its suppliers.
The suppliers are required to deliver immediately the components to Dell production facilities
directly where the computers are assembled, tested, packed and shipped to the customers.
Two significant and costly components, the retailer and the risks associated with carrying
large inventories of components and final products have been eliminated (Figure 3-3).
Customer
Pull
Dell
Customer
Pull
Retailer
Reseller
Supplier
Manufacturer
Supplier
a. Dell supply chain
Figure 3 - 3
b. Traditional PC supply chain
Business models (adapted from Kraemer et al. 2000)
As mentioned in Section 3.1, the proposed SCASO system is able to handle both the Dell
type of supply chains and traditional PC type of supply chains. As this work focuses on
operational level supply chain planning and detail scheduling, the major information required
and assumptions used are listed as follows.
Order information includes product, order quantity and due date are provided. An order
can be one that requested by a customer, i.e. built to order, or one that meets the demand
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forecasted, i.e. built to stock;
Production capacity of a manufacturing or assembly is known and can be calculated using
equipment capacity if equipment capacity data are available;
Transportation modes between supply chain units are given;
Supplier capacity and delivery lead time or suppliers supply chain are available;
Material cost / manufacturing cost / delivery cost / inventory cost / transportation cost etc.
are predefined;
Physical materials flow of a work order or a final product is given; and
e-business information flow network that is integrated in the supply chain is able to
provide and share the above information.
As mentioned in Section 3.1, this work concerns the operational level scheduling and
optimization of an extended supply chain. As a result, the business model will not be
considered in the prototype SCASO system. The prototype SCASO system gathers all the
changes including the demand fluctuation, production capacity change and material delivery
delay. It is able to respond to dynamic events and work out the new near-optimal plan and
schedule for the entire supply chain rapidly.
Without loss of generality, a supply chain network that includes supplier, manufacturer,
distribution centre, warehouse and customer (end user or client) will be used to illustrate the
capability of the different modules developed in this work.
3.2.2 Routing and Sequence Optimizer (RSO)
A work order may have multiple routings, which denote the flow of materials, i.e. materials
flow. Basically, materials flow indicates the sequence in which materials move from
suppliers (raw materials) to manufacturers (intermediate product), and to customers (finished
product) as shown in Figure 3-4. For each routing of a work order, it may use different
materials and go through different manufacturing plants. For example, both DCs D1 and D2
are able to distribute the product of work order WO1 to meet the requirement from customer
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order CO1. For this reason, a work order may have different cycle time, different cost and
delivery date when choosing different supply chain units and routings.
P3
SU1
W1
P1
D1
WO1
CO1
P2
D2
WO2
CO2
P4
SU2
P5
SU: Supplier
Figure 3 - 4
D: DC
W : W arehouse
P: Manufacturing Plant
W O: W ork order
CO:
Customer
order
Multiple routings of a typical supply chain
Since the capacity of each supply chain unit, such as a manufacturing plant, is limited, a near
optimal routing and a work order process sequence are necessary for a mixture of work
orders and products. Furthermore, the management level strategies can be incorporated into
the prototype system. By selecting a proper combination of the routing and work order
process sequence, better plans can be generated for the entire supply chain, which is effective
in maintaining or even increasing the customer service level, reducing the inventory,
transportation and production costs, and lowering the safety stock level.
As shown in Figure 3-2, a new hybrid heuristic, which combines the strengths of GA and TS
for solving routing and sequence optimization problems, is reported. The RSO optimization
engine is further enhanced by a so-called multiple populations search strategy (Yin and Khoo
2007b) that is able to facilitate the search process and help determining the GA parameters. In
order to find better or at least suitable GA parameters that can improve the GA performance,
an exact scheme theorem which extends the Goldbergs schema theorem is studied and the
details of the exact schema theorem as well as the MBEA enhanced RSO are presented in
Chapters 4 and 5 respectively.
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3.2.3 Supply Chain Virtual Clustering (SCVC)
Typically, in optimizing a supply chain, customer orders, product flows, supply chain units,
transportation, customer service level, and other resources and constraints are used as inputs
to a simulation program, an optimization program or a heuristic rule based engine so as to
derive a product plan or recommendations of inventories. As already mentioned, a complex
extended supply chain optimization problem can hardly be solved by conventional algorithms
due to combinatory explosion. An approach that is based on virtual clustering is proposed
here to reduce the search space. The approach is likely to help deriving near optimal or at
least good-enough solutions for a complex supply chain efficiently. The supply chain units,
transportation and customer orders as shown in Figure 3-4 can be virtually and dynamically
organized into different unit-transportation-work order families based on some performance
measures (Section 6.3) before optimization. A work order family can then be processed
largely within a unit-transportation family. Computational efficiency can be improved as a
large-scale supply chain optimization problem has been compartmentalized into relatively
small and manageable sub-problems.
Figure 3-2 shows the overall structure of the supply chain virtual clustering (SCVC) module
and the main components. The details of the module are discussed in Chapter 6.
In the SCVC module, the input data comprises supply chain units, customer orders / work
orders and transportation modes. Other constraints such as regional restrictions can also be
included. Different combinations of performance measurements, including inter/intra cell
transportation, loading balance and group efficiency, can be used to determine grouping
patterns by the optimization engine. The similarity of each supply chain units-transportationwork order family can then be evaluated so as to guide the search to derive a near optimal or
at least a good-enough solution. Heuristic procedures based on fuzzy c-means, GA and TS
are used to determine the fuzzy cluster matrix.
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More specifically, as mentioned in Section 2.5, the basic notions of Group Technology (GT)
are adapted and enhanced by fuzzy c-means, GA and TS as the clustering technique for the
SCVC module. A complex supply chain model can then be decomposed into smaller supply
chain families. It is envisaged that the search space for the optimization of a complex supply
chain can be reduced and as a result the efficiency of the search and optimization procedure
to derive the near global optimal solution can be improved.
3.2.4 Supply Chain Order Scheduler (SCOS)
A supply chain may have various customer requirements and multiple end products with
shared components and capacities. In order to fulfil customer order, materials and
components from suppliers are transformed into final products by manufacturing and
assembly plants, distributed to warehouses and distribution centres and finally delivered to
customers. The optimal schedule of an individual supply chain unit may be in conflict with
the requirements of other units and even deteriorate the overall performance of the entire
supply chain. In order to handle such complex scheduling problems within a global
manufacturing environment, a distributed intelligent coordination and scheduling mechanism
is therefore necessary.
The SCOS module is an agent-based distributed supply chain order scheduling system
(Figure 3-2). It consists of two subsystems, the Supply Chain Scheduling Master (SCSM) and
the Supply Chain Scheduling Client (SCSC). The SCSM maintains all the domain knowledge
and scheduling information in its database and communicates with all the SCSCs, which
represent the supply chain clusters in the global manufacturing environment. The SCSM also
provides a negotiation locale for the supply chain cluster agents to resolve any conflicts
among local optimized schedules when they try to obtain the near optimal schedule for the
entire supply chain. Basically, the SCOS module is supported by and built on top of the ebusiness information flow network, which enables the communication and coordination of
geographically dispersed networks of resources. The SCSC works out the local near-optimal
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schedule of a supply chain cluster by retrieving the necessary information from the SCSM.
An existing genetic algorithm (GA)-enhanced dynamic scheduler by which the near-optimal
local schedules are derived (Khoo et al. 2000, Yin 2000) is enhanced and embedded into the
SCOS module.
Two types of agents have been deployed, namely the supply chain supervisory agent (SCSA)
of the SCSM and the supply chain cluster agent (SCCA) of the SCSC. The SCOS module and
the functional roles of the supervisory agent and supply chain cluster agents are presented in
Chapter 7.
3.3
Modelling a Typical Supply Chain Using SCOR
As mentioned, the SCOR provides a general model for the representation of a supply chain as
well as a set of standard supply chain practices for the creation of reusable and
comprehensive procedures. This work attempts to highlight how the SCOR can be used and
the Level 3 process elements are presented for manufacturing factory, distribution centre,
warehouse, distribution centre, supplier, customer and transportation.
Warehouse
Distribution
Centre
Global Manufacturing
Materials Flow Network
e-Business Information
Flow Network
Supplier
Manufacturing
Factory
Customer
Transportation
Figure 3 - 5
Functional units of a supply chain (Yin and Khoo 2007b)
Consider a supply chain as depicted in Figures 2-1 and 2-2. The customers, suppliers,
warehouses, factories and other units in the supply chain are geographically dispersed in
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different locations. The materials and information flows (Figure 3-5) connect different
functional units of the supply chain as indicated by the lines, and coordinate the entire value
chain, from customer order to production, storage, distribution and delivery. Monetary flow,
though is an important part of the supply chain, is not within the scope of the work.
The supply chain modelled in this work covers three of the processes described in the SCOR
model, namely Processes Source, Make and Deliver. Make-to-Stock (MTS), Make-to-Order
(MTO) and Engineer-to-Order (ETO) associated with Processes Source, Make and Deliver
are the main concerns here. The SCOR model can be easily extended to handle the suppliers
supplier or the customers customer within a global manufacturing environment. Process
Return is not modelled here. Since this work attempts to address short-term operational
supply chain optimization, Process Plan, which focuses mainly on the middle or long term
production planning and control, is ignored. In addition, as the product design phase is not the
focus of this work, for simplicity, the different processes of ETO and MTO are disregarded.
3.3.1 Modelling a Supply Chain
Figure 3-6 shows that the supplier provides the materials to be delivered to the various
manufacturing sites. The information, which is extracted from upstream units such as
transportation, management of inventory and incoming materials and product, is maintained
by Process Source. Process Make schedules production activities, manages WIPs, equipment
and facilities, and releases product to deliver. Process Deliver manages the order and
inventory, and then transfers the product to downstream supply chain units, such as
warehouse and distribution centre, and finally customers, through some means of
transportation that exists between any two supply chain units. The customers here can be the
end user of some suppliers of other manufacturing factories. All these functional units are not
sequential events in a supply chain and may have multiple downstream units.
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Figure 3 - 6
SCOR model of a typical supply chain
3.3.2 Modelling Supply Chain Units
Figure 3-7 illustrates the process elements of a manufacturing factory. Orders and materials
from the upstream supply chain units, which may be suppliers, warehouses or another factory,
are routed to the elements of Process Source. This includes receive materials and receive
order information. Materials are processed and transformed into products by the shop floors
of factories, while some materials and in-process products may be temporarily stored in
internal warehouse for further processing or for delivery. Internal transportation that concerns
the movement of unfinished products within an establishment/factory has been included. In
case the time required for internal transportation is too long, it needs to be taken into
consideration when determining the detailed schedule. After the completion of all the
processes, products are delivered to the next supply chain unit, such as warehouses or another
factory.
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Figure 3 - 7
Figure 3 - 8
Process elements of a manufacturing factory
Process elements of warehouse, distribution centre and transportation
Typically, the process elements of a warehouse and a distribution centre are shown in Figure
3-8. They receive products and order information from the upstream supply chain units, store
and mange the products locally, and then distribute them to the downstream supply chain
units. The warehouse places a MTS order if the inventory is below a safety stock. Figure 3-8
also shows the two process elements of transportation, which are receive products and
deliver products, either by airfreight, by train, by truck or by other means.
The modelling of suppliers and customers is relatively simple since it only concerns the
modelling of receive order information and deliver materials by supplier, and place MTO
order and receive product by customer as a part of the supply chain (Figure 3-9). The
supplier and the customer may have their own supply chains. Other processes of the supplier
and customer, which are similar to what have been described above, can be included when
considering the supply chain of a virtual enterprise, a temporary alliance of enterprises
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sharing capabilities, skills, core competencies and/or resources in order for a better business
opportunity. For example, in order to provide an international service, a closely meshed
network of subsidiaries and partners is formed in the MAN group, which is a large
manufacturer of trucks and buses in Germany (Mehandjiev and Grefen 2010). Other
processes of a supply chain unit here means the processes of the customers supply chain
that transform the materials/components into the final product and then deliver to its
customers, or the processes of the suppliers supply chain that transform the materials
received from its suppliers into half finished product/components and then deliver to its
customers.
Figure 3 - 9
3.4
Process elements of supplier and customer
MPSS Based Evolutionary Approach (MBEA)
As described in Section 3.2, in order to achieve better performance, the RSO and SCVC
module utilize a hybrid evolutionary approach that combines GA and TS. The hybrid
evolutionary approach is further enhanced by a multiple populations search strategy (MPSS).
This MPSS based evolutionary approach (MBEA) developed in this work provides a generic
optimization methodology that can be employed to handle different supply chain
optimization applications. Figure 3-10 depicts the details of the proposed architecture of the
MBEA.
The MBEA consists of five different layers that are able to fulfil different functions. They are
common data storage layer, the MPSS layer, optimization algorithms layer, logic and
computational layer, and application layer.
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Common data storage layer: This layer handles the data relevant to an optimization
problem such as supply chain topology, customer order and supply chain unit capacity.
MPSS layer: This layer contains the heuristic rules and procedures that are crucial to the
application of the multiple populations search strategy. The MPSS is used to coordinate
the GA, the TS and problem specific algorithms (PSAs), in which the TS is employed to
optimize the parameters of GA and/or PSA, while GA is for optimization. With MPSS,
the MBEA is able to search for the best solution of an optimization problem using the
best possible parameters that enable the optimization algorithms to achieve better
performance.
Optimization algorithms layer: This layer contains the mathematical models, the basic
routings and/or the heuristic rules of the optimization algorithms used in the MBEA. The
standard GA and TS procedures have been incorporated into this layer. It can be
customized for a particular optimization problem and PSA implemented.
Logic and computational layer: This is the layer that specifies the details of each
algorithm and carries out the necessary computations. It includes three parts.
(1) GA optimization logic: GA chromosome representation, GA operators such as
crossover, mutation and selection and evaluation functions are specified when PSA
is defined. It also identifies how the PSA optimization can be done by leveraging on
the GA.
(2) GA parameters: It defines the heuristic rules that can be used to optimize the GA
parameters. A so-call promise level that measures the performance of different GA
parameters is also specified. The promise level serves as a guide for the MPSS and
TS to find better GA parameters that might improve the performance of GAs.
(3) PSA parameters: Similar to GA parameters, it defines the heuristic rules to optimize
the PSA parameters. The same concept of the promise level is employed. The
promise level can guide the MPSS and TS to find better PSA parameters so as to
optimize the physical optimization problem.
Application layer: Physical optimization problems are defined in this layer. It includes the
domain specific knowledge, the possible PSAs, etc. For instance, a machine-cell
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formation problem can be defined in the application layer and it may be solved by a fuzzy
c-means that is further specified as the PSA in optimization algorithms layer.
Figure 3 - 10
3.5
Architecture of a MPSS based evolutionary approach (MBEA)
Summary
This chapter describes a framework of the distributed intelligent system for multi-level
supply chain coordination, optimization and order scheduling. The three main modules of the
prototype SCASO system, namely Routing and Sequence Optimizer (RSO), Supply Chain
Virtual Clustering (SCVC) and Supply Chain Order Scheduler (SCOS), have been presented.
As mentioned, the Routing and Sequence Optimizer (RSO) is used to initialize the SCVC
module with a good routing and work order process sequence combination while taking into
consideration the capacity of each supply chain unit, the business strategy and the customer
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requirements to maintain the required customer service level and competitiveness. The
Supply Chain Virtual Clustering (SCVC) uses the output from the RSO module as the initial
input and tries to compartmentalize a large-scale supply chain optimization problem that can
hardly be solved by conventional algorithms into manageable sub-problems. The Supply
Chain Order Scheduler (SCOS), which contains an agent-based distributed intelligent
coordination and scheduling mechanism, integrates the scheduling with supply chain
optimization. A reactive mechanism, which allows the fine-tuning of solutions based on the
compliance measure of different modules, such as the measure between SCOS and SCVC or
RSO, has also been proposed.
It is followed by a discussion on the details of a supply chain model, which covers three of
the processes described in the SCOR model, namely Source, Make and Deliver. The SCOR
provides a general model for the representation of a supply chain as well as a set of standard
supply chain practices for the creation of reusable and comprehensive procedures. Using such
a model, various supply chain units, such as manufacturing plants, warehouses, distribution
centres, transportations, suppliers and customers can be adequately modelled and,
subsequently, used to tackle short-term operational supply chain optimization problems
Finally, the architecture of a novel multiple populations search strategy based evolutionary
approach (MBEA) is presented. The MBEA is basically a generic optimization methodology
and can be applied to solve different supply chain optimization problems. It consists of five
different layers that are used to fulfil different functionalities. They are common data storage
layer, MPSS layer, optimization algorithms layer, logic and computational layer, and
application layer. The MBEA will be deployed in the RSO and SCVC modules to handle
relevant supply chain optimization problem.
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Chapter 4
Supply Graph and Exact Schema Theorem for an Adaptive Genetic Algorithm
SUPPLY GRAPH AND EXACT SCHEMA
THEOREM FOR AN ADAPTIVE GENETIC
ALGORITHM
4.1
Introduction
As mentioned in Section 2.3, in order to analyze and coordinate the schedule of an entire
supply chain, a comprehensive representation is fundamental and critical to facilitate the
hierarchical modelling of a supply chain. Such a representation should be able to provide an
enabling metrics, which is generic, flexible and sophisticated enough to incorporate important
supply chain features at operational level. This chapter describes the basic notions of a so-call
Supply_Graph developed in this work. Supply_Graph attempts to provide a comprehensive
representation for supply chain modelling. It covers the modelling of supply chain units,
customer order routings and transportation information. It lays the foundation for such
modules as Routing and Sequence Optimizer (RSO) and Supply Chain Virtual Clustering
(SCVC). This work also attempts to transform Supply_Graph into a so-called Supply_Matrix
which is a part-machine-formation like matrix. In doing so, Group Technology (GT) can
possibly be adapted to realize a virtual clustering module for supply chain applications.
On the other hand, Goldbergs schema theorem is fundamental to Genetic Algorithms (GAs).
It can be used to estimate the survival and propagation of schemas from one generation to
another. However, as mentioned in Section 2.5.3, the usefulness of the schema theorem has
been criticised as it only provides the lower boundary instead of the exact expected number
of schemas in the next generation. In this chapter, Goldbergs schema theorem is revisited
and is extended to realize a so-called exact schema theorem, which takes into account the
combined effects of reproduction, two-point crossover and mutation to enhance the
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performance of GAs. The proposed exact schema theorem attempts to mathematically
characterize the evolution of the population of a GA. This helps in making the prediction of
the future behaviour of GAs possible. Further study on the exact schema theorem is
conducted to examine the existence of the optimal crossover and mutation probabilities for
each GA generation.
4.2
The Graph Representation of a Supply Chain
4.2.1 An Overview of Graph Theory in Supply Chain Management
Graph theory has been widely used in supply chain modelling to facilitate the design of
supply chains and the analysis of supply chains at the strategic and tactical levels (Lakhal et
al. 2001, Lin and Wang 2008, Luo et al. 2009, Pan et al. 2007, Perea et al. 2009). A typical
supply chain network structure can be depicted generally as a directional and multi-layer
graph (Luo et al. 2009).
Pan et al. 2007 proposed a local network based approach to reduce inventory and improve
customers service level in an n-tier complex distributed supply chain network. Lin and Wang
(2008) discussed a directed graph for partner selection in a supply chain network based on
such criteria as quality, cost and reputation of the partner. The partner selection problem had
been transformed into an optimal path selection in graph theory. Perea et al. (2009) proposed
a directed network to model a distribution problem (DiP in short in their paper), which
included suppliers, intermediary centres and retailers. It was basically a network flow
problem and was presented as a linear programming formulation to find an optimal
distribution plan. Luo et al. (2009) proposed a multi-layer graph model to represent the
materials flow and information flow as a base for supply chain analysis. The inter-connection
and relationship of nodes in different layers were also depicted.
A supply chain network can also be modelled as Petri nets (Dotoli et al. 2009, Zhang et al.
2009). Basically, a Petri net is a directed bipartite graph that is widely used to describe some
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distributed systems. It provides the mathematical definitions of modelling and execution for
the process analysis. Dotoli et al. (2009) proposed a hybrid Petri net model to describe the
materials, financial and information flows. The hybrid Petri net model was able to evaluate
the performance of the system and help determine the design parameters. A coloured Petri net
was developed by Zhang et al. (2009) to handle the coordination of product, process and
logistics decision into supply chain configuration model.
However, the above mentioned models are not realistic when handling extended supply chain
as the network problems formulated usually are huge which need plenty of computational
efforts. They are system dependent and high degree of maintenance is expected in modelling
complex systems. Furthermore, as mentioned in Section 2.3.1, the research efforts on the
process flow from customer order to suppliers so as to support supply chain coordination and
order scheduling along the entire supply chain at the operational level is lagging behind. It
needs to take into consideration capacity limitations of individual supply chain unit, the
processing time in each stage, the different transportation modes and various possible order
routings. Thus, the graph representation proposed in this work has to be flexible enough to
support the RSO module that analyses the supply chain units and work order routings. In
addition, it also needs to be dynamic and can be easily modularized. It must be able to be
converted into a part-machine-formation like matrix (Supply_Matrix), and virtually and
dynamically organized a supply chain into smaller and manageable supply chain clusters by
the SCVC module.
In view of the limitations described above, a novel graph representation that is flexible to
model operational level supply chain characteristics and possesses the properties such as
modularity and reusability is described in this chapter.
4.2.2 The Supply Chain Representation
A graph (Figure 4-1) is employed here to represent and analyze the business process of a
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supply chain, from customer orders to suppliers. It is assumed that
Supply chain units such as factories, DCs and warehouses can be represented by
numbered nodes.
Transportation method and the movement of materials or half-finished products can be
represented by an arc between two nodes.
Suppliers and customer orders/work orders can be represented by symbols, which are
used to distinguish main supply chain units from other supplementary units such as
customer order (CO) and work order (WO).
The dotted line between customer order and work orders is used to indicate that a
customer order can be separated into a few work orders.
The multiple routings including transportation modes among supply chain units of a work
order are predefined.
The information is shared along the entire supply chain.
It is further assumed that
Order information including product, order quantity and due date is provided. An order
can be one that requested by a customer, i.e. built to order, or one that meets the demand
forecasted, i.e. built to stock.
The complete possible routings and materials flows of an order or a product are given.
Such information has to be predefined even for the new products that routings have yet to
finalize (to tentatively define the routing information).
The flows of parts and components for sub-assembly and final assembly are known.
Possible transportation modes between supply chain units are given.
The uncertainties of the demand and capacity and the stochastic nature of supply chain
are not considered.
All the relevant information is shared across the supply chain units.
As highlighted in Section 4.1, the Supply_Graph (Khoo and Yin 2003) can be employed to
model and depict the information about complex supply chain unit, customer order routing
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and transportation in an efficient manner. It can also be used to facilitate computation of the
functional modules, RSO and SCVC.
Accordingly, let the product structure of a work order, WOi, of a customer order be
represented by a Supply_Graph, Gi: Gi = {Ni, Ai}, with a set of nodes, Ni, and a set of arcs, Ai,.
The structures of m work orders of customer orders can be combined into a superimposed
graph G with n nodes and k arcs where
G = G1 G 2 G 3 ... G m
(4-1)
Gi = {N i , Ai }
(4-2)
Figure 4 - 1
Graph representation of a supply chain
where:
G:
Supply_Graph
Gi :
Supply_Graph for work order i
Ni :
Nodes involved in processing work order i
Ai :
Arcs involved in processing work order i
m:
Total number of work orders
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n:
Total number of nodes
k:
Total number of arcs
N = {n1 , n 2 ,..., nn } : Entire set of nodes
A = {a1 , a 2 ,..., a k } : Entire set of arcs
In the RSO, the supply chain routing and sequence optimization problem can be translated
into finding a routing combination of G * = G1 G2 G3 ... Gm , which optimizes
*
some performance measures such as customer service level and the total cost.
As for the SCVC, Sets N = {n1 , n 2 ,..., nn } and A = {a1 , a 2 ,..., a k } are employed to denote n
nodes (supply chain units) and k arcs (transportation methods) of a supply chain respectively,
and Set J = { j1 , j2 ,..., jm } is used to represent m work orders. Let Set P = { p1 , p 2 ,..., p x } be a
partition of N, which contains x subsets (supply chain unit families) of N. Similarly, let
Q = {q1 , q2 ,..., q x } be a partition of A, which comprises x subsets (transportation method
families) of A, and let R = {r1 , r2 ,..., rx } be a partition of J, which has subsets (work order
families) of J. Finally, let the collection of unit-transportation-work order families be
S = {s1 , s 2 ,..., s x } such that S G
where
s y = { p y , q y , ry } , which is a unit-transportation-work order family.
The purpose of performing virtual clustering, which is described in Chapter 6, is to determine
the optimal unit-transportation-work order families, S* ( S * = { p * , q * , r * } ), the number of
families, x*, and the logical description L* that is described further in Section 4.2.2.2.
4.2.2.1 Graph Representation of a Supply Chain
Using the Supply_Graph (Khoo and Yin 2003), the product structure of WOi can be
represented as a matrix as follows.
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Supply Graph and Exact Schema Theorem for an Adaptive Genetic Algorithm
n1 n 2 n 3
nn
y11 y12 y13 ... y1n
y y y ... y
2n
M i = 21 22 23
...
y b1 y b 2 y b 3 ... y bn
Operation 1
Operation 2
(4-3)
...
Operation b
where
n
The number of the nodes of the graph;
The maximum number of operations WOi needs to go through; and
0
y ef =
1
Node n f is not included in operation e
Node n f is included in operation e
Each row in Mi represents one operation of WOi while each element of a row represents the
relevant node of Supply_Graph G. If it is 0, the node is not included in the current
operation. On the other hand, if it is 1, the node is included in the current operation.
Basically, a Supply_Graph G is able to represent
Multiple level assemblies with the aid of logical descriptions (Section 4.2.2.2). Figure 42a shows three continuous operations, namely Operations r, r+1, r+2, of a work order.
Node 1 needs materials from Nodes 2 and 3, while Node 2 requires materials from Nodes
4, 5 and 6 subsequently. It indicates that the product has to go through sub-assembly at
Node 2 and final assembly at Node 1. This can be represented as follows.
n1 n 2 n 3 n 4 n 5 n 6
1 0 0 0 0 0
M i = 0 1 1 0 0 0
0 0 0 1 1 1
1
Operation r
or n 2 n3
Operation r + 1
n 4 n5 n6
Operation r + 2
(4-4)
The logical description between two nodes is presented in Section 4.2.2.2.
Various modes of transportation. In Figure 4-2b, the arc between two nodes can be used
to denote transportation with varied cost and delivery time attached.
Work order. A customer order may consist of many products. It can be partitioned into
different work orders, which can be handled by the supply chain upon receipt of the
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customer order with the number of products requested and the batch sizes. The work
orders are then processed and delivered by the supply chain. For example, Figure 4-1
shows that CO1 = WO1 WO2 ... .
4
1
Figure 4 - 2
Multiple level assembly and transportation between nodes
Cross-boundary representation. Basically, Supply_Graph supports cross-boundary
representation. It can be extended to handle the suppliers and the customers supply
chain networks, and eventually, the entire business processes within an extended supply
chain. For example, G = G 1 G 2 ... G x ... , where G x is the supply graph of a
company of the extended supply chain and x = 1, 2, , the number of the supply graphs.
In so doing, collaboration among enterprises could be promoted.
4.2.2.2 Logical Relationship and the Extended Supply_Graph
With the Supply_Graph, possible routings of a product can be represented. However, as
shown in Figure 4-2, it is difficult to represent such a relationship when Node 2 requires
materials from either Node 4 or Nodes 5 and 6 by the graph alone. Thus, a logical description
(L) needs to be introduced to realize an extended Supply_Graph so as to describe the
relationship between two adjoining layers. Here, logical symbols, and gate, or gate, and
exclusive or (xor), are incorporated to enhance the Supply_Graphs ability in handling
adjoining levels.
L = L1 L2 L3 ... Ln
(4-5)
where
n
the number of the nodes of the graph;
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7
6
5
Figure 4 - 3
Logical relationship among nodes
Figure 4-3 shows an example of the logical relationship between Nodes 5, 6, and 7 and Node
2. Here, assume Node 2 is a manufacturing plant requiring components from Nodes 5, 6, and
7, which may be the warehouses of half-finished products, the relationship can be depicted as
follows.
L2 = (n 7 and n6 ) or (n5 and n6 )
(4-6)
Other than those described in Section 4.2.2.1, the extended graph representation,
Supply_Graph with the aid of the logical descriptions, is able to represent:
Multiple level assembly;
Multiple split and merge of orders;
Alternative locations or manufacturing sites for products and their components; and
Other complex relationship, which can be depicted by the logical symbols between a node
and the next-level of adjoining nodes.
With the introduction of the logical descriptions, the Supply_Graph for work order i can be
extended as the follows.
Gi = {N i , Ai , Li }
(4-7)
where Li is the logical description of work order i.
4.2.3 Routing Extraction and Supply_Matrix Converter
As mentioned in Section 4.1, Supply_Graph lays the foundation for functional modules, RSO
and SCVC, to deal with supply chain problems. Basically, the RSO module is used to
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generate the preferred routings, transportation modes and work order plan based on the
information stored in the Supply_Graph which contains a complete list of routing and
transportation information. The following procedures are used to extract the routing and
transportation information from a Supply_Graph for a work order, i.
(1) Retrieve the Supply_Graph Gi = {N i , Ai , Li } of work order i.
(2) Convert the Supply_Graph Gi to its relevant matrix M i .
(3) Examine all the elements in the matrix, M i , and form the possible routings. Assign a
number to identify each of the routings.
(4) For each of the routings identified in Step 3, remove the unnecessary nodes by checking
Ai and Li .
(5) A complete list of routings of work order i is then stored and forwarded to the RSO for
further processing.
As for the SCVC module, the Supply_Graph can be converted into a so-called Supply_Matrix,
which is a part-machine-formation like matrix that is frequently used in Group Technology.
More specifically, a typical n p Supply_Matrix, which represents n work orders and p
supply chain units, is as follows.
x11
x
21
X =
...
x p1
x12
x 22
...
x p2
... x1n
... x 2 n
= ( xij )
... ...
... x pn
(4-8)
where
p:
total number of supply chain units
n:
total number of work orders
1,
xij =
0,
if supply chain unit i process work order j
if suppply chain unit i doesn't process work order j
i = 1,2,,p ; j= 1,2,, n
In a Supply_Matrix, supply chain units and work orders are mapped onto rows and columns
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respectively. The mapping is done by a Supply_Matrix Converter that applies the following
procedure.
(1) Retrieve the Supply_Graph G = G1 G 2 G 3 ... G m .
(2) Convert the Supply_Graph G j to its relevant matrix M j .
(3) Scan all the elements in the matrix, M j . If supply chain unit i needs to process work
order j, let element, xij , in the Supply_Matrix be 1; otherwise, assign 0 to element
xij .
4.2.4 An Example of the Supply_Graph
An example on a typical supply chain network is used here to illustrate the effectiveness of
the proposed Supply_Graph.
Table 4 - 1
An example of supply chain network
Supply chain units
Customer Order
Product
Symbol representation
CO1, CO2
Products 1, 2, 3
Work Order
WO1, WO2, WO3, WO4,
WO5
Manufacturing Plant
P1, P2, P3, P4, P5
Warehouse
W1, W2
Distribution Centre
D1, D2
Supplier
SU1, SU2
Remarks
Products requested in customer orders
(CO1 orders products 1, 2, and 3; CO2
orders products 1 and 2)
WO1and WO2 request product 1;
WO3 and WO4 request product 2;
WO5 requests product 3.
P1 and P2 are assembly plants;
P3, P4 and P5 provide components.
They are regarded as Nodes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 on
the Supply_Graph respectively.
They are regarded as Nodes 6 and 7 on the
Supply_Graph respectively.
They are regarded as Nodes 8 and 9 on the
Supply_Graph respectively.
They are regarded as Nodes 10 and 11 on
the Supply_Graph respectively.
As shown in Table 4-1, the supply chain network consists of two customer orders (CO1 and
CO2) with three products, five manufacturing plants (P1, P2, P3, P4 and P5), two
warehouses (W1 and W2), two distribution centres (D1 and D2), and two supplier (SU1 and
SU2). The customer orders comprise five work orders based on the product and the priority of
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customer orders. CO1 consists of WO1, WO3 and WO5, while CO2 consists of WO2 and
WO4. WO1 and WO2 request Product 1, WO3 and WO4 request Product 2, and WO5 requests
Product 3. The different transportation means between two nodes are ignored here to simplify
the graph representation and facilitate the discussion.
Figure 4 - 4
Graph representation of routings of work orders
Firstly, the business processes of the five work orders from two customer orders can be
represented by Supply_Graphs shown in Figure 4-4. The numbered nodes have been replaced
by the actual supply chain units in this example. For example, the routings to fulfil WO1 and
WO2, which request the same final product, Product 1, are shown in Figure 4-4a. Both
distribution centres, D1 and D2, can deliver the final product, Product 1, to partially fulfil the
customer orders, CO1 and CO2. D1 receives the product only from the assembly plant, P1,
while D2 from either P1 or P2 or both of them. This kind of demand-supply relationship
continues until the raw material suppliers are reached. Since the supply chain is not a very
complicated one, all of the above descriptions can be easily represented using a
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Supply_Graph (Figure 4-4a) and converted into the following matrix (Equation 4-9).
M WO1 = M WO 2
0
1
== 0
0
0
0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1
1
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
0 0 0 0 1
0 1 1 1
0 0 0
0 0 0 0
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
0 0
D1 D 2
0 0
P1 P 2
0 0 or W 1
0 0
P 3 P 4 P 5
SU 1 SU 2
1 1
(4-9)
D1
WO1
WO2
P3
D2
W1
P4
P4
P5
P2
P5
Figure 4 - 5
Logical relationships
Secondly, the logical relationships between adjoining nodes are denoted by logical symbols.
For instance, Assemble Plant P2 needs components directly from both Plants P4 and P5
before its product can be assembled. The logical symbol between them is an AND gate. Plant
P1 requests components from Warehouse W1, which in turn receives components from Plants
P3 and P4 or P4 and P5 (Figure 4-5). The logical relationships are given as follows.
LWO1 = LWO 2 = D1 or D2
LP 2 = P 4 and P5
LW 1 = ( P3 and P 4) or ( P 4 and P5)
In doing so, the Supply_Graph is able to provide a detailed description of the supply chain
network, the customer order routing and the logical relationships between adjoining nodes.
Using the Supply_Matrix Converter and the procedure outlined in Section 4.2.3, the
Supply_Matrix can be easily obtained (Equation 4-10).
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WO
1 2
1
1
W 1 1
W 2 0
P1 1
X = P 2 1
P3 1
P 4 1
P5 1
SU 1 1
SU 2 1
D1
D2
4.3
3 4 5
1 1 1 1
1 1 1 1
1 0 0 1
0 1 1 0
1 0 0 1
1 1 1 0
1 1 1 0
1 1 1 1
1 0 0 1
1 0 0 0
1 1 1 1
(4-10)
An Exact Schema Theorem for Adaptive Genetic Algorithm
4.3.1 Overview
As mentioned in Section 2.5, genetic algorithms (GAs) can be enhanced by other techniques
such as the tabu search to realize a hybrid approach. Such an approach is used extensively in
this work to optimize the performance of a supply chain. It is a well known fact that as two
important GA control parameters, crossover probability ( pc ) and mutation probability ( p m )
affect the performance of GAs drastically (Pham and Karaboga 2000). Essentially, a set of
good GA parameters help in improving the ability of a GA to search for near global optimal
solutions. As the mathematical foundation of GAs is weak and deterministic method for the
selection of GA parameters does not exist, most of the GA applications require fine-tuning of
GA parameters in order to achieve good results. Commonly used crossover operators such as
one-point, two-point and uniform crossover operators have different impacts on the
performance of GAs. Two-point and problem-specific crossover operators are frequently
employed by many researchers, as they are believed to be able to outperform other types of
crossover operators (Garrabos et al. 2008, Jiang et al. 2007, Lau et al. 2008, Rao and
Lakshmi 2009, Ziver et al. 2004).
As previously mentioned, the proposed exact schema theorem, which is an extension of
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Goldbergs schema theorem, takes into account the combined effects of reproduction, twopoint crossover and mutation to enhance the performance of GAs. It is able to estimate the
expected number of copies of schemas in the next GA generation and explore the possibility
of deriving the optimal crossover and mutation probabilities.
4.3.2 The Schema Theorem
Based on the Schema Theorem or the Fundamental Theorem of Genetic Algorithms
(Goldberg 1989), short, low-order, above-average schemas receive exponentially increasing
trials in subsequent generations.
The combined effect of reproduction, one-point crossover and mutation as in a simple GA
(Goldberg 1989) is given by Equation 4-11 as follows.
m( H , t + 1) m( H , t )
(H )
f (H , t)
(1 p c
)(1 p m ) o ( H )
l 1
f (t )
(4-11)
where
m( H , t ) number of schema H at generation t
f ( H , t ) average fitness value of the strings representing schema H at generation t
f (t )
average fitness of entire population at generation t
pc
crossover probability
(H )
length of schema H
length of individual string
pm
mutation probability
o(H )
order of schema H
As mentioned, in this work, Goldbergs schema theorem is further extended to handle a twopoint crossover. For a combined effort of reproduction, two-point crossover and mutation, the
schema theorem can be expanded. It is postulated that a schema H receives a number of
copies in the next generation under reproduction, two-point crossover and mutation. The
lower bound of the expected number of schemas H at time t+1 is given by Equation 4-12.
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m( H , t + 1) m( H , t )
f (H , t)
(H ) (H ) 1
[1 p c (
+
)](1 p m ) o ( H )
l 1
l 1
f (t )
(4-12)
Equation 4-12 can be easily derived as follows.
For normal reproduction while ignoring crossover and mutation, the expected number of
schemas H at time t+1 can be expressed by Equation 4-13.
m( H , t + 1) = m( H , t )
f (H , t)
f (t )
(4-13)
The expected number of schemas H at time t+1 when combining the effects of reproduction,
two-point crossover and mutation is given by Equation 4-14.
m( H , t + 1) = m( H , t )
f (H , t)
p ( H ) tc p ( H ) tm
f (t )
(4-14)
where
p ( H ) tc
the survival probability of schema H under crossover at generation t
p ( H ) tm
the survival probability of schema H under mutation at generation t
Due to crossover operation, the schema may be destructed if any of the selected crossover
points falls between the first and last positions of the schema H. As such, the survival
probability using two-point crossover is as follows.
p ( H ) tc 1 p c (
(H ) (H ) 1
+
)
l 1
l 1
(4-15)
As for mutation,
p ( H ) tm = (1 p m ) o ( H )
Thus, when combining the effects of reproduction, crossover and mutation,
m( H , t + 1) m( H , t )
f (H , t)
(H ) (H ) 1
[1 p c (
+
)](1 p m ) o ( H )
l 1
l 1
f (t )
In order to achieve a better performance, pc and p m should not be fixed for all the
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generations of a GA. Consider the lower-bound of m( H , t + 1) and ignore other gains and
losses of schema from two-point crossover and mutation.
m( H , t + 1) = m( H , t )
f (H , t)
(H ) (H ) 1
[1 p c (
+
)](1 p m ) o ( H )
l
1
l
1
f (t )
(4-16)
Accordingly, if H is a good schema, p c and p m should be as close as possible to 0 in order to
increase the survival probability of schema H. On the other hand, if H is a bad schema, p c
and p m should be as large as possible in order to eliminate it. However, the values of p c and
p m in GAs exhibit different or contradictory trends. For instance, p c is normally set as high
as possible so as to promote the probability that enables some child chromosomes to collect
all the good schemas from their parents through interchanging the genes between the parent
chromosomes; and p m as low as possible in order not to degenerate the GA into a random
search while still bringing in new schemas which prevents the GA from pre-mature
convergence. Accordingly, an ideal set of optimal p c and p m may not be apparent. To
handle this, an exact schema theorem is proposed and presented in Section 4.3.3.
4.3.3 The Proposed Exact Schema Theorem
Goldbergs schema theorem focuses on the lower-bound of m( H , t + 1) . An investigation into
the exact schema theorem is described in this section.
The exact expected number of schemas H at time t+1 is given by Equation 4-17.
m( H , t + 1) =
f (H , t)
{m( H , t )(1 p m ) o ( H ) + p c [ng c ( H , t ) m( H , t )](1 p m ) o ( H ) + n p m g m ( H , t )}
f (t )
(4-17)
where
n
size of population
g c ( H , t ) the gain probability of schema H under crossover at generation t
g m ( H , t ) the gain probability of schema H under mutation at generation t
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Crossover and mutation operations not only destroy the schema, but also create new
chromosomes that contain the same and/or new schema (Whitley 2001). For example, if
Chromosome 101010 is recombined (crossover operation) with Chromosome 010011 and
the crossover points are at 2 and 4, two offspring, 110010, 001011, will be created. For
offspring 110010, the crossover actually produces a new copy of schema, 11****, which
does not exist in both parents. Similarly, if Chromosome 101010 is selected to undergo
mutation and the mutation position is 3, it will create a new chromosome, 100010, which
produces a new copy of schema, **0***. Such gains of new copies of schemas can be
determined using Equation 4-17.
More specifically, Equation 4-17 can be easily derived as follows.
When considering selection and crossover operations, m( H , t + 1) is given by Equation 4-18.
m( H , t + 1) = m( H , t )
f (H , t)
f (H , t)
(1 p c ) + n
pc g c ( H , t )
f (t )
f (t )
(4-18)
For any selected two positions ( 1 and 2 ), i.e. two-point crossover, a chromosome can be
split into three portions, the left portion from positions 1 to 1 - 1, the middle portion from 1
to 2 , and the right portion from 2 +1 to l, where l is the length of chromosome. The gain,
g tc , associated with crossover is
g c (H , t) =
n
n
2
[ p L ( H , 1 , t ) p R ( H , 2 , t ) + p M ( H , 1 , 2 , t )]
n(n 1) 1 =1 2 =1 +1
(4-19)
where
1 , 2
the selected two positions for two-point crossover
the selected position for mutation
p L ( H , 1 , t )
the probability of the elements of schema H from positions 1 to 1 -1
at generation t
p R ( H , 2 , t )
the probability of the elements of schema H from positions 2 +1 to l
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at generation t
p M ( H , 1 , 2 , t )
the probability of the elements of schema H from positions 1 to 2
at generation t
Mutation is then incorporated to obtain Equation 4-20.
m( H , t + 1) = [m( H , t )
f (H , t )
f (H , t)
f (H , t)
(1 p c ) + n
p c g c ( H , t )](1 p m ) o ( H ) + n
pm g m ( H , t )
f (t )
f (t )
f (t )
(4-20)
Assuming position 3 has been selected to undergo mutation operation, the chromosome can
similarly be split into three portions, the left portion from positions 1 to 3 - 1, the middle
portion at the mutation position 3 , and the right portion from 3 +1 to l, where l is the length
of the chromosome. The gain, g tm , which is associated with the mutation, is given by
Equation 4-21.
g m (H , t ) =
1 n
[ p L ( H , 3 , t ) p R ( H , 3 , t ) p M ( H , 3 , t )]
n 3 =1
(4-21)
where
p L ( H , 3 , t )
the probability of the elements of schema H from positions 1 to 3 -1
at generation t
p R ( H , 3 , t )
the probability of the elements of schema H from positions 3 +1 to l
at generation t
p M ( H , 3 , t )
the probability of the element mutated to be of schema at position
3 at generation t
Thus, after rearranging Equation 4-20, the exact expected number of schemas H at time t+1
is given as follows.
m( H , t + 1) =
f (H , t)
{m( H , t )(1 p m ) o ( H ) + p c [ng c ( H , t ) m( H , t )](1 p m ) o ( H ) + n p m g m ( H , t )}
f (t )
(4-22)
Equation 4-22 accurately describes the combined efforts of reproduction, two-point crossover
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and mutation. It provides an avenue that is based on the population and average fitness values
of the entire population and the individual schema in generation t to estimate the exact
expected number of each schema in generation t+1, instead of giving the lower boundary
only by using the schema theorem. This also makes the prediction of the future behaviour of
a GA possible.
4.3.4 Analysis on Crossover and Mutation Probabilities
Most GA-based applications require fine-tuning of GA parameters in order to achieve better
results. In this section, the existence of the optimal p c and p m will also be examined by
analysing the extreme value obtained from the exact schema equation, Equation 4-17 as
follows.
If p m is sufficiently small, the exact schema equation (Equation 4-17) can be simplified as
follows.
m( H , t + 1) =
f (H , t)
{m( H , t )(1 p m o( H )) + p c [ng c ( H , t ) m( H , t )][1 p m o( H )] + n p m g m ( H , t )}
f (t )
(4-23)
By replacing some parts of Equation 4-23 that are not relevant to p c and p m , it can be
further simplified as follows.
m( H , t + 1) = A( H , t )[m( H , t )(1 p m o( H )) + p c B( H , t )(1 p m o( H ) + p m C ( H , t )]
(4-24)
where
A( H , t ) =
f (H , t)
f (t )
B( H , t ) = ng c ( H , t ) m( H , t )
C ( H , t ) = ng m ( H , t )
Thus, in Generation t of a GA population, m( H , t ) , A( H , t ) , B( H , t ) and o(H ) can be readily
determined. The exact schema theorem possesses the following properties.
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Property 1
A( H , t ) =
f (H , t)
is always greater than zero, i.e. A( H , t ) >0, since the fitness and average
f (t )
fitness values are always greater than zero.
Property 2
o(H ) , the order of schema H, is greater than zero.
Property 3
B ( H , t ) = ng c ( H , t ) m( H , t ) and B(H, t), in most cases, is non-zero as the chance of having
ng c ( H , t ) = m( H , t ) is very rare considering g c ( H , t ) a real number, which is given by
Equation 4-19, and m(H, t) an integer.
Based on the theory of extrema of functions of several variables (Smith and Minton 2006),
the first and second partial derivatives can be used to determine the extrema of p c and p m .
The first partial derivatives f pc ( pc , pm ) and f pm ( pc , pm ) are given as follows.
f pc ( p c , p m ) = A( H , t )[ B( H , t )(1 p m o( H )]
f pm ( p c , p m ) = A( H , t )[ m( H , t )o( H ) p c B ( H , t )o( H ) + C ( H , t )]
The second partial derivatives, f pm pm ( pc , pm ) , f pc pc ( pc , pm ) and f pc pm ( pc , pm ) are expressed
as follows.
f pc pc ( p c , p m ) = 0
f pm p m ( p c , p m ) = 0
f pc pm ( p c , p m ) = A( H , t ) B( H , t )o( H )
Thus,
f pc pc ( p c , p m ) f pm pm ( p c , p m ) f pc pm ( p c , p m ) 2 = [ A( H , t ) B ( H , t )o( H )] 2
(4-25)
From Equation 4-25,
Deduction 1
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As A( H , t ) and o(H ) are both greater than zero, the value of B ( H , t ) will determine
whether the f pc pc ( pc , pm ) f pm pm ( pc , pm ) f pc pm ( pc , pm ) 2 in Equation 4-25 is greater than zero
or equal to zero.
Deduction 2
If B( H , t ) 0 , then f pc pc ( p c , p m ) f pm pm ( p c , p m ) f pc pm ( p c , p m ) 2 < 0 . This indicates that the
optimal or extrema p c and p m do not exist.
Deduction 3
As mentioned in Property 3, B(H, t), in most cases, is non-zero as the chance of having
ng c ( H , t ) = m( H , t ) is very rare. Having f pc pc ( p c , p m ) f pm pm ( p c , p m ) f pc pm ( p c , p m ) 2 = 0 is
therefore extremely difficult to achieve.
From Deductions 1 - 3, it can be concluded that the optimal p c and p m do not exist in most
cases. Hence, a compromised pair of pc and p m in each GA generation needs to be
determined in order to ensure near optimal performance. Such a property is illustrated in
Section 4.3.5.
4.3.5 Applications of the Exact Schema Theorem
The mathematical deductions outlined in Sections 4.3.3 and 4.3.4 has shed some lights on
how the behaviour of a GA can be predicted and how the performance of GA parameters,
namely the probabilities of crossover pc and mutation p m , can be determined using the
proposed exact schema theorem. More importantly, the optimal p c and p m have been shown
to be non-existence in most cases. In this section, an attempt is made to examine the existence
of a compromised pair of p c and p m that is suggested by the exact schema theorem and is
able to guarantee better GA performance. Accordingly, the author employed the MBEA
described in Section 3.4 to look for better and suitable compromised pair of pc and p m for
GA runs. The MBEA (Yin and Khoo 2007a) was initially developed for work order routing
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selection and sequence optimization, i.e. the RSO module, of a supply chain. A detailed
discussion of the MBEA for RSO is summarized in the next chapter, Chapter 5.
MBEA enabled fuzzy c-means is developed to solve the supply chain clustering problem.
Basically, the evolutionary approach combines the strengths of genetic algorithms (GA) and
the tabu search (TS) to realize a hybrid technique that is able to identify the compromised
pc and p m and search for the best solutions with the aid of the MPSS. From the study, it will
be shown that a compromised pair of GA parameters, i.e. p c and p m , can be found, and as a
result, better GA performance and the near optimal supply chain group can be obtained. As
mentioned in Sections 2.3 and 2.5 as well as in Chapter 3, the basic notions of Group
Technology (GT) can possibly be adapted to realize a virtual clustering module for supply
chain, i.e. the SCVC module in Chapter 6. By extrapolation, it is envisaged that the MBEA
enabled fuzzy c-means can be extended to deal with virtual clustering of a supply chain,
which is represented in the form of a Supply_Matrix using the Supply_Matrix Converter
developed in this work.
4.3.5.1 Fuzzy C-Means Clustering Algorithm
Fuzzy models are good for measuring and expressing the fuzziness in a system. The element
that is considered in fuzzy c-means is given a degree of membership that ranges from 0 (not
an element of the set) to 1 (a member of the set). The underlining principle of fuzzy cmeans clustering is summarized as follows (Lowen 1996, Josien and Liao 2000).
For a sample set X with n samples
X = {x1 , x 2 ,..., x n }
(4-26)
Each xj has p attributes
x j = ( x1 j , x 2 j ,..., x pj )
(4-27)
Thus, X can be represented as a p n matrix
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x11
x
21
X =
...
x p1
x12
x 22
...
x p2
... x1n
... x 2 n
= ( x lj )
... ...
... x pn
(4-28)
where
the value of the attribute l of sample j, l = 1, 2, , p; j = 1, 2, , n
xlj :
Because of the unit of measurement of different attributes may vary, normalization is
performed before clustering. After normalization, a new matrix R is formed from X.
r11
r
21
R=
...
r p1
r12
r22
...
rp2
... r1n
... r2 n
= (rlj )
... ...
... r pn
(4-29)
where
rlj :
the value of the attribute l of sample j after normalization, range from [0,1] l
= 1, 2, , p; j = 1, 2, , n
If n samples with p attributes are grouped into c clusters, the fuzzy cluster matrix is given as
follows.
u11
u
U = 21
...
u c1
u12
u 22
...
u c2
... u1n
... u 2 n
= (u ij )
... ...
... u cn
(4-30)
where
u ij :
degree of membership of sample j to cluster i
subject to:
0 uij 1,
c
u
i =1
ij
= 1,
i = 1,2,..., c; j = 1,2,..., n
j = 1,2,..., n
(4-31)
0 < uij n, i = 1,2,..., c
j =1
Assume that the cluster centres of c clusters are known, which is a p c matrix V
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v11
v
21
V =
...
v p1
v12
v 22
...
v p2
... v1c
... v 2c
= (vli )
... ...
... v pc
(4-32)
where
eigenvalue of attribute l to cluster i, 0 vli 1
vli :
vli can also be given as vli =
(u
j =1
ij
) m xlj
(u
j =1
ij
)m
The vector of p attributes of sample j is
r j = (r1 j , r2 j , ..., r pj ) T
(4-33)
The eigenvalue vector of p attributes of cluster i in cluster centre is then given by
v i = (v1i , v 2i , ..., v pi ) T
(4-34)
Assuming the weightage vector of attributes is given by
w = ( w1, w2, ..., w p ) T
(4-35)
The distance between sample j and cluster i can be calculated using the weighted Euclidean
as follows.
d ij =
w (r
l =1
lj
vli ) 2
(4-36)
In order to obtain the optimal fuzzy cluster matrix, a commonly used objective function is
conceived which is the membership weighted within cluster error and is given as follows.
n
min{J m (U ,V ) = (u ij ) m (d ij ) 2 }
(4-37)
j =1 i =1
where m [1, ] is the weighting exponent on each fuzzy membership. The larger the m is,
the fuzzier the partition will be. Normally, the value of m is between 1.25 and 3.
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4.3.5.2 Problem Definition
A typical n p Supply_Matrix, which represents n work orders and p supply chain units, can
be expressed using Equation 4-38 as follows.
x11
x
21
X =
...
x p1
x12
x22
...
x p2
... x1n
... x2 n
= ( xlj )
... ...
... x pn
(4-38)
where
p:
Total number of attributes / total number of supply chain units.
n:
Total number of data points / total number of work orders.
x j = ( x1 j , x 2 j ,..., x pj ) is the jth data point (work order) with attributes (supply chain
units).
1,
xlj =
0,
if supply chain unit l process work order j
if supply chain unit l doesn't process work order j
l = 1,2,, p; j = 1,2,,n
In fuzzy clustering, classification results can be expressed as a fuzzy cluster matrix as shown
in Equation 4-30.
A fuzzy c-means algorithm is used in this work to search for the best U. Since the number of
possible U matrices that satisfy the constraints is infinite, an objective function has to be
defined to optimize the solution. The sum of the square error function which measures the
dissimilarity between the data points and their cluster centre by the Euclidean distance is
often used (Li et al. 2002, Pang et al. 2007). It can be defined using Equation 4-37.
n
min{J m (U ,V ) = (u ij ) m (d ij ) 2 }
j =1 i =1
where
p
(d ij ) 2 =| x j vi | 2 = ( x jl vil ) 2 is the Euclidean distance.
l =1
vi = (vi1 , vi 2 ,..., vip ) is the ith cluster centre.
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n
vli =
(u
j =1
ij
) m xlj
(4-39)
(u
j =1
ij
In optimizing the Supply_Matrix, normalization as mentioned in 4.3.5.1 is not necessary as
the measurement units of different attributes are the same. So x j in this situation is the same
as r j .
4.3.5.3 MBEA Enabled Fuzzy C-Means for Solving Supply_Matrix
Figure 4 - 6
Flow chart of the proposed MBEA enabled FCM algorithm
As shown in Figure 4-6, TS can be integrated with a GA to realize an enhanced multiple
populations search strategy (MPSS) and the MBEA that is able to help determine the
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compromised pair of GA parameters for the generation of next generation of chromosomes
and facilitate the search for near optimal solutions. Basically, the aforementioned routing
selection and sequence optimization problem is a minimization problem which aims at
minimizing J m (U , V ) .
p km = wbest f kmbest + wavg f kmavg
Figure 4 - 7
Searching and updating of GA parameters
More specifically, in each GA run, multiple populations with different GA parameters are
maintained. These populations are then treated as individuals in the tabu search and are
concurrently reproduced by GAs. At the end of each iteration, the promise level for each
parameter set, which is given by the fitness value attained by the objective function (Equation
4-41) during the tabu search, can be computed by Equations 4-44 and 4-45. The best
parameter set in terms of promise level is then selected. From the tabu search point of view,
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the GA run is used to evaluate the objective function, i.e. the promise level, of a parameter set,
while the number of populations of a GA is the number of individuals maintained in the tabu
search. For clarity, for every five generations of GA runs, the promise level of each parameter
set is evaluated and used as the value attained by the objective function. A neighbourhood
parameter set is created and employed in subsequent GA runs. The procedures for searching
and updating of GA parameters and for generating neighbourhood parameter set are depicted
in Figures 4-7 and 4-8, respectively.
As shown in Figure 4-8, in the neighbourhood creation, the length of steps taken by pc and
p m , namely sc and s m , are determined by the maximum ( s cmax , s mmax ) and minimal steps
( s cmin , s mmin ) of the p c and p m respectively.
4.3.5.4 Chromosome Representation
In this work, a c n matrix, U, which represents a fuzzy c-partition, can be treated as a
chromosome in GA terminology. Each gene of a chromosome is denoted by an element of the
matrix, U, i.e. u ij , which is the degree of membership.
u11
u
21
U =
...
u c1
u12
u 22
...
uc 2
... u1n
... u 2 n
= u ij
... ...
... u cn
(4-40)
For an n-work order c-cluster centre problem, a chromosome contains c n genes. For
example, for a 2 3 problem, chromosome 0.5, 0.3, 0.2, 0.5, 0.7, 0.8 can be used to
represent the matrix U 2 x3 .
x1
x2
x3
0.5 0.3 0.2 c1
U 23 = [u ij ]23 =
0.5 0.7 0.8 c 2
This implies that work orders x1 , x2 and x3 can be grouped into two clusters, c1 and c2. The
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numerical values in the matrix U 2 x 3 represent the degree of the membership of the work
order to the corresponding cluster centre.
nc = nc 1
nc = nc + 1
sc =
sm =
s cmax s cmin
+ s cmin
2 nc
s mmax s mmin
+ s mmin
2 nc
( pc , pm + sm )
( pc , pm sm )
( pc + sc , pm )
( pc sc , pm )
Figure 4 - 8
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The initial chromosome of GA population is generated randomly through the following steps:
(1) Generate c n random numbers y11 , y12 ,..., y cn , y ij [1,1000] , i = 1,2,..., c; j = 1,2,..., n .
(2) Use u ij =
y ij
to form a chromosome.
y
i =1
ij
(3) Repeat steps (1) and (2) to generate the entire GA population.
4.3.5.5 Fitness Evaluation and Promise Level Calculation
The fitness or relative fitness of chromosomes needs to be evaluated in order to select
suitable chromosome pairs for genetic operations. The evaluation process normally comprises
fitness calculation, scaling and ranking. As mentioned in Section 4.3.5.2, the sum of square
error J m (U , V ) , which is the measurement of the fuzzy cluster matrix, is used to calculate the
fitness value. Basically, J m (U , V ) is used to compute the sum of square error of the sample
data in relation to the cluster centres. It will be minimal when the fuzzy cluster matrix is
optimum. The fitness function is given by Equation 4-41 as follows.
n
J m (U ,V ) = (u ij ) m (d ij ) 2
(4-41)
j =1 i =1
where
p
(d ij ) 2 =| x j vi | 2 = ( x jl vil ) 2
l =1
(4-42)
Here, d ij is the distance between sample j and cluster i and can be calculated using the
Euclidean distance.
A minimization problem needs to be transformed into a maximization problem in order to
apply the GA. The transformation can be easily realized using Equation 4-43 (Goldberg
1989).
C J m (U , V ) if C max J m (U , V ) > 0
f ( x) = max
.
otherwise
0
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(4-43)
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Here, Cmax can be assigned a value initially or assigned the largest value of J m (U ,V ) in the
current GA population.
The promise level of a parameter set for a population can be derived using Equation 4-44.
p km = wbest f kmbest + wavg f kmavg
(4-44)
wbest + wavg = 1
(4-45)
where
f kmbest :
Fitness value of the best chromosome of mth population of kth generation.
f kmavg :
Average fitness value of chromosomes of mth population of kth generation.
p km :
Current promise level of GA parameters in of mth population of kth
generation.
wbest :
Weight of the relative fitness of the best chromosome in terms of the fitness
value of a population. It is fixed at 0.8 in this research.
wavg :
Weight of the average relative fitness of a population. It is fixed at 0.2 in this
study.
4.3.5.6 GA Operators
Much of the power of GAs derives from the recombination of genes such as crossover,
mutation and inversion operations, which helps in exploring the virgin search space. In this
work, three genetic operators, crossover, mutation and selection, are used to generate
offspring chromosomes.
Crossover operator
Traditional crossover operation might create illegal offspring that cannot satisfy the
constraint of the fuzzy cluster matrix U described in Section 4.3.5.1. This work proposed
three types of crossover operations, namely partial exchange, overall exchange and
neighbourhood search. These operations ensure the legality of the offspring while each of
them serves different purpose. Specifically, partial exchange keeps the traits of parents and
only swaps the selected columns in the fuzzy cluster matrix; the overall exchange replaces the
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entire parents by applying the ratios c1 and c2 using Equations 4-46 and 4-47; the
neighbourhood search, as its name implies, attempts to explore the neighbourhood of each
u ij . For each generation, GA randomly selects one of them for crossover operation. The
details of the three crossover operations are described as follows.
Let pc be the crossover probability. U1 and U2 are two parents selected to undergo crossover
operation and U1 and U2 are the offspring generated by the crossover operation.
Partial exchange (Figure 4-9)
(1) Select a pair of chromosomes randomly based on the crossover probability, p c ;
(2) Choose two integers p1 and p 2 between 1 and n randomly; and
(3) Exchange the selected columns between p1 and p 2 in the two parents to generate the
two offspring.
u111
u1
21
U1 =
...
u1c1
u111
u1
21
U 1' =
...
u1c1
... u11 p1
... u12 p1
... u11 p2
... u12 p2
...
...
... u1cp1
...
...
... u1cp2
... u 21 p1
... u 2 2 p1
... u 21 p2
... u 2 2 p2
...
...
... u 2 cp1
...
...
... u 2 cp2
... u11n
... u12 n
... ...
... u1cn
... u11n
... u12 n
... ...
... u1cn
Figure 4 - 9
u 211
u 2
21
U2 =
...
u 2 c1
u 211
u 2
21
'
U2 =
...
u 2 c1
... u 21 p1
... u 21 p2
... u 2 2 p1
...
...
... u 2 2 p2
...
...
... u 2 cp1
... u 2 cp2
... u11 p1
... u12 p1
... u11 p2
... u12 p2
... ...
... u1cp1
...
...
... u1cp2
... u 21n
... u 2 2 n
... ...
... u 2 cn
... u 21n
... u 2 2 n
... ...
... u 2 cn
Partial exchange
Overall exchange (Figure 4-10)
(1) Select a pair of chromosomes randomly based on the crossover probability, p c ;
(2) Choose c11 , c12 , c 12 and c 22 between 0 and 1 randomly, where c11 + c12 = 1 and c12 + c 22 = 1 ;
and
(3) Equations 4-46 and 4-47 will then be used to generate the two offspring.
U 1' = c11 U 1 + c12 U 2
(4-46)
U 2' = c12 U 1 + c22 U 2
(4-47)
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u111
u1
21
U1 =
...
u1c1
Supply Graph and Exact Schema Theorem for an Adaptive Genetic Algorithm
... u11 p1 ... u11 p2
... u12 p1 ... u12 p2
... ... ... ...
... u1cp1 ... u1cp2
... u11n
u 211
u 2
... u12 n
21
U2 =
...
... ...
... u1cn
u 2 c1
... u 2 2 p1 ... u 2 2 p2
...
...
... u 2 cp1
...
...
... u 2 cp2
... u 21n
... u 2 2 n
... ...
... u 2 cn
c11u111 + c12u 211
1
c1u121 + c12u 2 21
'
U1 =
...
1
2
c1u1c1 + c1 u 2c1
... c11u11 p1 + c12u 21 p1 ... c11u11 p2 + c12u 21 p2 ... c11u11n + c12u 21n
... c11u12 p1 + c12u 2 2 p1 ... c11u12 p2 + c12u 22 p2 ... c11u12 n + c12u 2 2 n
...
...
...
...
...
...
... c11u1cp1 + c12u 2cp1 ... c11u1cp2 + c12u 2cp2 ... c11u1cn + c12u 2cn
c12u111 + c22u 211
1
c2u121 + c22u 2 21
'
U2 =
...
1
2
c2u1c1 + c2 u 2 c1
... c12u11 p1 + c22u 21 p1 ... c12u11 p2 + c22u 21 p2
... c12u12 p1 + c22u 2 2 p1 ... c12u12 p2 + c22u 2 2 p2
...
...
...
...
... c12u1cp1 + c22u 2 cp1
Figure 4 - 10
... u 21 p1 ... u 21 p2
... c12u1cp2 + c22u 2 cp2
... c12u11n + c22u 21n
... c12u12 n + c22u 2 2 n
...
...
... c12u1cn + c22u 2 cn
Overall exchange
Neighbourhood search (Figure 4-11)
u111
u1
21
U1 =
...
u1c1
... u11 p1
... u12 p1
... ...
... u1cp1
... u11 p2
... u12 p2
...
...
... u1cp2
... u11n
u 211
u 2
... u12 n
21
U2 =
...
... ...
... u1cn
u 2 c1
... u 21 p1
... u 2 2 p1
...
...
... u 21 p2
... u 2 2 p2
...
...
... u 2 cp1
... u 2 cp2
u111 + sc
u1 s
21
c
'
U1 =
...
u1c1 + sc
... u11 p1 + sc
... u12 p1 sc
...
...
... u1cp1 + sc
... u11 p2 + sc
... u12 p2 sc
...
...
... u1cp2 + sc
u 211 + sc
u 2 s
21
c
'
U2 =
...
u 2 c1 + sc
... u 21 p1 + sc
... u 2 2 p1 sc
...
...
... u 2 cp1 + sc
... u 21 p2 + sc
... u 2 2 p2 sc
...
...
... u 2 cp2 + sc
Figure 4 - 11
... u 21n
... u 2 2 n
... ...
... u 2 cn
... u11n + sc
... u12 n sc
...
...
... u1cn + sc
... u 21n + sc
... u 2 2 n sc
...
...
... u 2 cn + sc
Neighbourhood search
(1) Select one chromosome randomly based on the crossover probability, p c ;
(2) For each of the gene u ij which is a real number, apply u ij' = u ij + s c if i is an odd
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number and u ij' = u ij s c if i is an even number, where sc is the interval defined by the
user;
(3) U 1' = [u ij' ] ; and
(4) Adjust the last row of U1 and make sure that the constraints for the fuzzy cluster matrix
can be satisfied.
This neighbourhood search does not look like a normal crossover operator which commonly
involves two parent chromosomes that exchange building blocks. However, as the
neighbourhood search changes the value of every single gene, it incurs considerable
variations of schemas in their offspring while the mutation operator in general only brings in
minimum such variations. As a result, in this work, the neighbourhood search is labelled as
crossover (Yamada and Nakano 1995).
Mutation operator
The primary purpose of performing mutation is to inject variation into a population, to help
bring back some essential genetic traits and to avoid pre-mature convergence caused by the
existence of some super chromosomes. In this work, as any change in a gene will bring about
a series of changes in the genes in the same column, a column-wise changing is introduced to
simplify the mutation operation as follows.
(1) Select one column of a chromosome randomly based on the mutation probability, p m ;
(2) Generate c random numbers y1 , y 2 ,..., y c , y i [1,1000], i = 1,2,..., c ;
c
(3) Use u i = y i / y i to form a column; and
i =1
(4) Replace the selected column with the new column generated in step 3.
Selection operator
In GA, the way in which a population is generated would affect the survival of fitter
chromosomes. In this work, the roulette wheel approach (Goldberg 1989) is used to select
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mating chromosomes within the population. Basically, the roulette wheel approach
guarantees chromosomes with higher fitness values to occupy a larger slot-size in the roulette
wheel. As a result, these chromosomes are more likely to be selected to form the next
generation of chromosomes. Such an approach (Figure 4-12) gives every chromosome a
chance to propagate as it is based on the probability distribution of fitness values.
Alternatively, the elitist selection scheme, which selects the fittest to form the next generation
of chromosomes, can also be used together with the roulette wheel selection. It aims at
preserving the fittest chromosomes and ensures their survival in the next generation.
Figure 4 - 12
Selection operation for genetic algorithms
Using the aforementioned GA operators as well as the best combination of p c and p m
obtained from MBEA, the near optimal fuzzy cluster matrix can be determined by the
proposed hybrid evolutionary approach.
4.3.5.7 Work Order and Supply Chain Unit Family Formation
The final fuzzy cluster matrix U* worked out by the MBEA enabled fuzzy c-means specifies
the near optimal degree of membership of a work order to a supply chain unit family. Using
the matrix, the final work order families and associated supply chain unit families can be
obtained.
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u11
u
*
U = 21
...
u c1
u12
u 22
...
uc2
... u1n
... u 2 n
= (u ij )
... ...
... u cn
(4-48)
If u mj = max(u ij ) , work order j belongs to cluster i.
i =1
From Equation 4-39, the cluster centre matrix, V, is the mean value of the attributes of work
orders in each supply chain family and vli represents the degree of membership of supply
chain units, the attributes, to each work order family. Thus, the final cluster centre matrix V*
is used to form the supply chain unit families.
v11
v
21
*
V =
...
v p1
v12
v 22
...
v p2
... v1c
... v 2 c
= (vli )
... ...
... v pc
(4-49)
If vln = max (vli ) , supply chain unit l belongs to cluster i.
i =1
4.3.6 Examples and Discussions
Two sets of sample data were used to examine the existence of the compromised p c and p m
suggested by the exact schema theorem. Example 1 examines a 10x10 Supply_Matrix with an
optimal number of cluster centres of 3. Example 2 further investigates the effect of the
suitable compromised GA parameters, p c and p m , using a data set gleaned from literature.
Two types of simulation runs have been carried out using the software programs developed
by the author, namely a basic GA simulation (SIM1) with one GA population and a MBEA
enabled fuzzy c-means (SIM2) with four different GA populations. The parameters for each
of the simulation runs are summarized in Table 4-2. The total number of GA generations is
200 and the GA parameters are updated every 20 generations in SIM2. In order to make a fair
comparison, the population size for SIM1 is fixed at 200 while SIM2 50 but with four
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populations at any time. Thus, the projected population size of SIM2 is 200 (504), which is
the same as that of SIM1. In the examples, all the simulation runs are able to reach the near
optimal solution, an optimal Supply_Matrix easily.
Table 4 - 2
Parameters used in simulation runs
Parameters
Number_of_generation_for_
parameter_updating
SIM1 SIM2
NA
20
FC_c
FC_m
GA_number_of_generation
GA_population_size
GA_crossover_rate
GA_mutation_rate
GA_Pc (Max/Min Pc)
GA_Pc_Step ( s cmax / s cmin )
3
1.25
200
200
0.8
0.05
NA
NA
3
1.25
200
50
Dynamic
Dynamic
0.9/0.4
0.1/0.05
Description
Number of GA generations between
two consecutive TS for parameter
updating
number of cluster of fuzzy c-means
number of m of fuzzy c-means
Total number of GA generations
GA population size
GA crossover probability Pc
GA mutation probability Pm
The maximum and minimum Pc
Crossover probability step length
GA_Pm (Max/Min Pm)
GA_Pm_Step ( s mmax / s mmin )
NA
NA
0.15/0.01
0.03/0.01
The maximum and minimum Pm
Mutation probability step length
GA_elitist_rate
0.08
TS_number_of_individual
NA
TS_new_population_elitist_rate NA
0.08
4
0.2
TS_length_of_tabu_list
TS_promise_level_weightage
(best/average)
8
0.8/0.2
Percentage for GA elitist strategy
Number of GA populations for TS
Percentage of the best chromosome to
be selected into the new population
after TS parameter updating
Tabu list length
The weightages for best and average
fitness values for promise level
calculation respectively
Notes:
NA
1/0
NA not applicable
An explanation of the parameters can be found in Section 4.3.5
Based on past experiments, 20 simulation runs is conducted for both SIM1 and SIM2. A
comparative analysis based on the mean fitness value and the best individual in each
generation of the 20 simulation runs is then performed using Equations 4-50 to 4-53.
Fi =
1 n
F ij
n j =1
(4-50)
Fi* =
1 n
min( Fij )
n j =1
(4-51)
Fi* = min( Fij )
(4-52)
| Fi* |= Fi*S1 Fi*S 2
(4-53)
where
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SIM1
The simulation runs of a basic GA.
SIM2
The simulation runs of the proposed MBEA enabled fuzzy c-means.
n:
The number of simulation runs of SIM1 or SIM2. Here it is 20.
Fij :
The fitness value of generation i of simulation run j of SIM1 or SIM2.
F ij :
Mean fitness value of generation i of simulation run j of SIM1 or SIM2.
Fi :
Mean fitness value of generation i of simulation runs of SIM1 or SIM2.
Fi* :
The mean value of the best fitness value of generation i of simulation runs of
SIM1 or SIM2.
Fi* :
The best fitness value of generation i of simulation runs of SIM1 or SIM2.
| Fi* |
Absolute difference of Fi* .
Fi *S 1
Fi * of SIM1.
Fi*S 2
Fi* of SIM2.
4.3.6.1 Example 1: a 10x10 Supply_Matrix
The 10x10 Supply_Matrix is given in Table 4-3. It shows the optimal result which has three
cluster centres. Subsequently, five pairs of columns or rows of the table were randomly
selected and their positions were swapped. For example, columns su1 and su9, and
subsequently, rows wo6 and wo8 are swapped to form a new table. After such an operation,
the information registered in the new table is used as inputs for the evaluation.
In all the simulation runs, the optimal cluster allocation shown in Table 4-3 can be reached. A
comparison of the mean fitness values ( Fi ) and the mean of the best fitness value ( Fi* )
obtained in 20 simulation runs using the MBEA enabled fuzzy c-means and the basic GA are
shown in Figures 4-13 and 4-14 respectively. It is apparent that the MBEA enabled fuzzy cmeans has a faster convergence rate compared to that of the basic GA and the Fi (Figure 413) and Fi* (Figure 4-14) are kept well below that of the basic GA except for the first 20
generations. It is due to i) the compromised GA parameter set has not yet been computed
before 20th generation as the updating of GA parameter set by TS is defined at every 20 GA
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generations starting from 20th generation; and ii) each population of MPSS has a population
size of 50 which is much smaller than that of the basic GA with the population size of 200.
An obvious decrease in the mean fitness value can be found for every 20 generations as that
is the point where the MBEA updates the GA parameter set and creates new populations
having the best 20 percent populations in the previous four GA populations. It also
demonstrates the effectiveness of the MBEA enabled fuzzy c-means.
Table 4 - 3
Supply_Matrix 1
su1 su2 su3 su4 su5 su6 su7 su8 su9 su10
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
wo1
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
wo2
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
wo3
0
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
wo4
0
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
wo5
0
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
wo6
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
wo7
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
wo8
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
wo9
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
wo10
Note: woi and sui denote work orders and supply chain units respectively
Figure 4 - 13
Mean fitness value
Fi of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 1
The best fitness value for each generation ( Fi* ) is presented in Figure 4-15. It shows the
trends exhibited by both MBEA enabled fuzzy c-means and the basic GA. The absolute
difference of Fi * of the MBEA enabled fuzzy c-means is smaller than that of the basic GA
after 20th generation. Similar results, i.e. the MBEA enabled fuzzy c-means outperforms the
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basic GA, can be deduced from the plots of Fi* (Figure 4-15) and the absolute difference of
Fi* (Figure 4-16).
Mean of the best fitness value Fi
Figure 4 - 14
of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 1
Best Fitness Value Comparison (Best of 20 Simulation Runs)
Fitness Value
16
11
1
1
11
21
31
41
51
61
71
81
91 101 111 121 131 141 151 161 171 181 191
GA Generation
MBEA
Basic GA
Best fitness value Fi of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 1
Figure 4 - 15
Absolute Difference of Best Fitness Value
Difference (fitness value)
3
2
1
0
-1
12
23
34
45
56
67
78
89 100 111 122 133 144 155 166 177 188 199
-2
-3
-4
GA Ge neration
Figure 4 - 16
Absolute difference of the best fitness value
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4.3.6.2 Example 2: a 19x11 Matrix Data Set
The existence of the compromised pc and p m was further examined using a 19x11 data
matrix which has the same format as a Supply_Matrix (Table 4-4) extracted from the work of
Bedworth et al. (1991). As virtual clustering of supply chain units is derived from that of
group technology, it is reasonable to use a Supply_Matrix that is adapted from a machine cell
formation matrix to illustrate the concept. Different from Example 1, Example 2 possesses
some exceptional points such as elements wo12su4 and wo6su5 in the matrix. They are not
able to be allocated appropriately to a particular cluster. The parameters used1 in this example
are the same as those employed in Example 1 except for the number of GA generation in both
simulation runs (SIM1 and SIM2) is 400 instead of 200 as both SIM1 and SIM2 were not
able to reach the optimal clusters within 200 generations. By increasing the number of GA
generation from 200 to 400, all the simulation runs were able to find out the optimized
clusters as shown in Table 4-5.
Table 4 - 4
wo1
wo2
wo3
wo4
wo5
wo6
wo7
wo8
wo9
wo10
wo11
wo12
wo13
wo14
wo15
wo16
wo17
wo18
wo19
19x11 matrix from Bedworth et al. (1991).
su1 su2 su3 su4 su5 su6 su7 su8 su9 su10 su11
0
1
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
1
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
1
0
0
1
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
1
1
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
Note: woi and sui denote work orders and supply chain units respectively
Similar to Example 1, the performance measurements of the algorithms are shown in Figures
1
Please refer to Table 4-2.
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4-17 to 4-20. Clearly, the MBEA outperforms the basic GA in terms of the mean fitness value,
the best fitness value and the absolute difference of Fi* . As shown in Figures 4-17 and 4-18,
the values of Fi (Figure 4-17) and Fi* (Figure 4-18) of the MBEA enable fuzzy c-means
are kept well below those of the basic GA. The value of Fi* (Figure 4-19) and the absolute
difference of Fi* (Figure 4-20) also display similar trends in terms of performance.
Table 4 - 5
wo5
wo12
wo13
wo17
wo19
wo3
wo4
wo6
wo7
wo8
wo9
wo14
wo15
wo1
wo2
wo10
wo11
wo16
wo18
Optimized Clusters for Example 2
su5 su7 su10 su11 su3 su4 su9 su1 su2 su6 su8
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
1
Note: woi and sui denote work orders and supply chain units respectively
Mean Fitness Value Comparison (Mean of 20 Simulation Runs)
23
22
21
Value
Fitness Value
24
20
19
18
17
21
41
61
81 101 121 141 161 181 201 221 241 261 281 301 321 341 361 381
GA Generation
MBEA
Figure 4 - 17
Basic GA
Mean fitness value Fi of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 2
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In this example, the tabu search used in MBEA enabled fuzzy c-means of SIM2 tends to
select a lower crossover probability especially when they are close to convergence. In other
words, using the MBEA, the crossover and mutation rates can be made adaptive to suit
different stages of search. In so doing, it significantly reduces the computational time as the
search evolves. Thus, the MBEA enabled fuzzy c-means is not only able to reach a better
solution, but is also likely to reduce computational time as a lower crossover probability is
often selected.
Mean Fitness Value Comparison (Best of 20 Simulation Runs)
24
22
21
Value
Fitness Value
23
20
19
18
17
21
41
61
81 101 121 141 161 181 201 221 241 261 281 301 321 341 361 381
GA Generation
MBEA
Figure 4 - 18
Mean of the best fitness value Fi
Basic GA
*
of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 2
Best Fitness Value Comparison (Best of 20 Simulation Runs)
Fitness Value
24
23
22
21
20
19
18
17
16
1
21
41
61
81 101 121 141 161 181 201 221 241 261 281 301 321 341 361 381
GA Generation
MBEA
Figure 4 - 19
Best fitness value
Basic GA
Fi* of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 2
Throughout the two examples and simulation runs, it can be seen that the proposed hybrid
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evolutionary approach, MBEA enabled fuzzy c-means, outperforms the basic GA. This was
made possible by searching for the suitable compromised pair of p c and p m that was
suggested in the study of the exact schema theorem. The results of the two examples also
reveal the effectiveness of the MBEA enabled fuzzy c-means as it is able to reach the optimal
cluster allocations within a reasonable number of GA generations.
Absolute Difference of Best Fitness Value
Difference (fitness value)
1.5
1
0.5
0
1
22
43
64
85 106 127 148 169 190 211 232 253 274 295 316 337 358 379 400
-0.5
-1
GA Generation
Figure 4 - 20
4.4
Absolute difference of the best fitness value
Fi* of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 2
Summary
This chapter presents the details of a Supply_Graph, which can be used to represent a supply
chain. The Supply_Graph can be employed to represent the complex work order routings and
business processes from customer orders to suppliers. It has been shown that the
Supply_Graph is able to provide an enabling representation, which is generic, flexible and
sophisticated enough to incorporate important supply chain features. These features include i)
multiple level assembly; ii) various modes of transportation; iii) multiple split and merge of
orders; iv) alternative locations or manufacturing sites for product and its components; v)
cross boundary representation; and vi) other complex relationship that can be expressed by
logical symbols to facilitate supply chain coordination and global schedule optimization.
The rules to extract routings and to convert the Supply_Graph into a part-machine-formation
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like matrix, Supply_Matrix, have been proposed. Such a matrix helps in channelling the data
from Supply_Graph into both RSO and SCVC modules. It is followed by an investigation
into the exact schema. The proposed exact schema theorem attempts to mathematically
characterize the evolution of a population of GAs. It is able to predict the expected number of
copies of schemas in the next generation. The work further analyzes the crossover probability
( p c ) and mutation probability ( p m ) using the proposed exact schema theorem and the theory
of extrema of functions of several variables. It shows that optimal p c and p m do not exist in
most cases. As a result, a compromised pair of p c and p m can help improve the performance
of GAs.
Furthermore, a MBEA enabled fuzzy c-means, which can simultaneously search for the
compromised pair of p c and p m , to a Supply_Matrix is then proposed. The hybrid approach
embeds TS into a GA and is able to dynamically search for better GA parameters in a GA run.
Three types of new crossover operations, namely partial exchange, overall exchange and
neighbourhood search, have been proposed. The evaluation of the fitness value and the
promise level has also been formulated. The MBEA enabled fuzzy c-means enables pc and
p m to be adaptive so as to suit different stages of the GA search for near optimal solutions.
Finally, two examples were conducted to illustrate the existence of the compromised p c and
p m with the aid of the proposed MBEA enabled fuzzy c-means. In these examples, the
influence of p c and p m on, respectively, a 10x10 and a 19x11 matrices have been evaluated.
The results show that a compromised pair of GA parameters can be found. By using the
compromised pair of GA parameters, the MBEA enabled fuzzy c-means was able to reach
better solutions faster as a result of a faster convergence rate.
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Chapter 5
MBEA Enabled Routing and Sequence Optimization of a Supply Chain
MBEA ENABLED ROUTING AND SEQUENCE
OPTIMIZATION OF A SUPPLY CHAIN
5.1
Introduction
Section 3.2 described a framework for extended supply chain coordination and optimization.
As one of the key modules, the routing and sequence optimizer (RSO) generates a preferred
set of routing, transportation and work order process plan based on various constraints, such
as customer service level, cycle time, and cost and so on. The result obtained can be further
channelled to the SCVC module for supply chain clustering. As mentioned in Section 3.4,
MBEA, a novel hybrid approach developed in this work, can be used to solve the routing and
sequence optimization problem. The architecture of the MBEA has been discussed in Section
3.4. In Chapter 4, fuzzy c-means was incorporated into MBEA to handle the Supply_Matrix
problem that was used to study the proposed exact schema theorem and GA parameters. The
results presented in Section 4.3.6 show that MBEA is able to find a set of compromised GA
parameters which are able to improve the performance of GA. In this chapter, the MBEA is
further tuned to solve the routing and sequence optimization problem.
5.2
Heuristic of Routing and Sequence Optimization for a Supply
Chain
As mentioned in Section 2.1, in a typical supply chain, customers, suppliers, warehouses,
manufacturing plants and other units in the supply chain may be geographically distributed
(Figure 2-1). A work order may have multiple routings that denote materials flows. It is
assumed that materials flow captures the sequence in which materials move from suppliers
(raw materials) to manufacturers (intermediate product), and to customers (finished product)
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through the distribution network as depicted in Figure 5-1.
Figure 5 - 1
Multiple routings of a supply chain
For each routing of a work order, it may use different materials, and goes through different
manufacturing plants. Because of this, the work order may have different cycle times,
different costs and delivery dates when applying different routings. In other words, these
routings have different
Materials/manufacturing/transportation/inventory/delivery cost;
On time delivery;
Cycle time and so on.
The purpose of the RSO module is to search for a preferred set of routing, transportation and
work order process plan that is effective in maintaining or even increasing customer service
level, reducing inventory, transportation and production costs, and eventually lowering safety
stock level within the limit of the capacity of each supply chain unit.
5.2.1 Problem Definition
A general supply chain routing and sequence optimization problem may be represented using
a Supply_Graph (Section 4.2) as follows.
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G = G1 G 2 G 3 ... G m
Gi = {N i , Ai , Li }
where:
G:
Supply_Graph.
Gi :
Supply_Graph for work order i.
Ni :
Nodes involved in processing work order i.
Ai :
Arcs involved in processing work order i.
Li :
Logical relationship in processing work order i.
m:
Number of work orders.
n:
Number of nodes.
k:
Number of arcs.
N = {n1 , n 2 ,..., nn } : Entire set of nodes.
A = {a1 , a 2 ,..., a k } : Entire set of arcs.
Using the Supply_Graph, a supply chain routing selection problem can be translated to
finding a routing combination G * = G1 G2 G3 ... Gm such that it optimizes some
*
performance measures, such as customer service level and cost. In this work, cost is used as
the key performance measure. Hence, the objective is to minimize cost while maximize ontime delivery. Accordingly, the objective function is given as follows:
f = min(r c C p + r d nl
Cp
)
m
(5-1)
where
f:
Fitness value.
Cp:
Cost of the plan.
nl :
Number of late orders of the plan.
m:
Total number of orders.
rc:
The weight of cost.
rd :
The weight of penalty on late orders.
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5.2.2 The Heuristic of Routing and Sequence Optimizer (RSO)
Figure 5 - 2
System structure of routing and sequence optimizer (RSO)
As illustrated in Figure 5-2, the RSO module consists of the following key functional submodules.
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(1) Supply_Graph Routing Extraction. It retrieves the work order from a Supply_Graph that
is under consideration. Using the procedures described in Section 4.2.3, an entire list of
routings and transportation modes can be worked out and prepared for the RSO
optimization engine.
(2) Objective Measurements. It computes the value attained by the objective function based
on Equation 5-1. The measurement can be the costs incurred by delivery, manufacturing
and/or distribution, and/or some management level business strategies such as on-time
delivery, customer service level or inventory reduction that can be further introduced
into the objective function.
(3) RSO Optimization Engine. The RSO optimization engine combines the features of GA
and TS to find the near optimal work order routing, transportation mode and order plan.
It is further enhanced by the multiple population search strategy of MBEA and
possesses the ability to search for the suitable compromised GA parameters that are able
to improve the GA performance.
(4) RSO Output. This module takes care of the results worked out by the RSO optimization
engine and represents them in a Supply_Matrix format which can be used by the SCVC
module for virtual clustering.
Figure 5-3 presents a flow chart of the proposed MBEA enabled RSO. As shown, TS is
embedded into the GA to implement the multiple population search strategy (MPSS) of the
MBEA. The hybrid approach is able to facilitate the search process, help determine GA
parameters and generate next generation of chromosomes, and avoid premature convergence.
Basically, the aforementioned routing selection and sequence optimization problem is a
minimization problem in nature. Multiple objectives, such as on-time delivery and cost of the
product that need to be minimized, are considered in this work.
Similarly, a minimization problem needs to be transformed into a maximization problem in
order to apply the GA. The transformation can be easily realized as follows (Goldberg 1989).
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f ( x ) = C max g ( x ) if Cmax g( x ) > 0 .
otherwise
0
Here, g(x) is the objective function and Cmax can be assigned a value initially or assigned the
largest value of g(x) in the current GA population.
Start
Initialize the GA and
TS parameters
Generate initial populations of GA
randomly / through user defined rule(s)
Evaluate the fitness value
and apply scaling/ranking for
each population
No
Meet the termination condition?
Apply GA operator:
crossover and mutation,
within each population
Yes
End
Meet GA parameters
updating condition?
Yes
Apply TS to determine GA
parameters for populations of
next generation
No
Apply GA selection to
generate population(s) of
the next generation
Figure 5 - 3
Flow chart of the proposed MBEA enabled RSO
Similar to the MBEA enabled fuzzy c-means procedure adopted in Section 4.3.5, a promise
level (Section 5.2.3) needs to be calculated to guide the selection of the compromised GA
parameter set. The procedures for searching and updating the GA parameter set and for the
generation of neighbourhood parameter set are depicted in Figures 5-4 and 5-5, respectively.
The equations for creating the neighbourhood parameter set are given as follows.
sc =
s cmax s cmin
+ s cmin
nc
2
(5-2)
sm =
smmax smmin
+ smmin
2nc
(5-3)
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N = [(rc , rm + s m ), (rc , rm s m ), (rc + s c , rm ), (rc s c , rm )]
(5-4)
where
sc :
Length of step of crossover probability to find the neighborhood parameters.
sm :
Length of step of mutation probability to find the neighborhood parameters.
rc :
Original crossover probability before the parameter search.
rm :
Original mutation probability before the parameter search.
nc :
Counter of the duplication of the parameter set. If the same parameter set as
the last run is chosen, nc = nc + 1 ; otherwise, nc = nc 1 .
scmax :
Predefined maximum length of step of the crossover probability.
s cmin :
Predefined minimum length of step of the crossover probability.
s mmax :
Predefined maximum length of step of the mutation probability.
s mmin
Predefined minimum length of step of the mutation probability.
N:
Neighborhood parameter set collection.
Start
Maintain p parallel
populations
No
Meet the criteria of
updating GA parameters?
Yes
Ranking/scaling the best and
average fitness value of
populations
Calculate the promise level
p km = wbest f km'best + wavg f km'avg
Select the best parameter pair
Construct the neighborhood parameter
pairs
Set the parameters for the next generation
End
Figure 5 - 4
Flow chart of searching and updating GA parameters for RSO
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MBEA Enabled Routing and Sequence Optimization of a Supply Chain
Start
Crossover and mutation rates (rc, rm )
Counter: nc
nc = nc 1
No
The same parameter set as last run ?
Yes
nc = nc + 1
If nc less than zero,
reset nc to zero
sc =
sm =
s cmax s cmin
+ s cmin
2 nc
s mmax s mmin
+ s mmin
2 nc
Create neighborhood parameter sets
( rc , rm + s m )
( rc + s c , rm )
No
( rc , rm s m )
( rc s c , rm )
Any set is tabued?
Yes
kk = 1
nc' = nc
nc' = nc' - kk
Extend the neighborhood to
create more parameter sets
kk = kk + 1
Enough neighborhood parameter sets ?
No
Yes
Set the parameter sets for
the next generation using the
neighborhood parameter sets
and the original set
A
End
Figure 5 - 5
Flow chart of neighborhood creation for RSO
5.2.3 Fitness Evaluation and Promise Level Calculation
The fitness or the relative fitness of chromosomes needs to be evaluated in order to select
chromosome pairs for genetic operations. The evaluation process includes fitness calculation,
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scaling and ranking. Management-level strategies can be incorporated into the objective
functions for the purpose of fitness evaluation. In this study, two factors, namely cost and ontime delivery, are considered. The formulae for the evaluation are given as follows.
m
C p = (C iS + C iM + C iD )
(5-5)
i =1
f = r cC p + r d nl
Cp
m
(5-6)
where
f:
Fitness value.
Cp:
Cost of the plan.
nl :
Number of late jobs of the plan.
m:
Total number of work orders.
rc:
The weight of cost.
rd :
The weight of penalty on late orders.
CiS :
Suppliers delivery cost.
C iM :
Manufacturing cost.
C iD :
Distribution centre cost.
The promise level of a parameter set for a population can be derived using the formulae listed
as follows.
f kmbest = min( f kmi )
(5-7)
PopSize
f kmavg =
f
'best
km
f kmi
i =1
PopSize
(5-8)
f kmbest min( f kmbest )
=
max( f kmbest ) min( f kmbest )
(5-9)
f kmavg min( f kmavg )
max( f kmavg ) min( f kmavg )
(5-10)
f km'avg =
p km = wbest f km'best + wavg f km'avg
(5-11)
wbest + wavg = 1
(5-12)
where
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f kmi :
Fitness value of ith chromosome of mth population of kth generation.
PopSize: Population size.
f km'best :
Relative fitness value of the best chromosome of mth population of kth
generation.
f km'avg :
Relative average fitness value of chromosomes of mth population of kth
generation.
p km :
Current promise level of GA parameters in of mth population of kth
generation.
wbest :
Weight of the relative fitness of the best chromosome in terms of the fitness
value of a population. It is fixed at 0.5 in this research.
wavg
Weight of the average relative fitness of a population. It is fixed at 0.5 at this
study.
5.2.4 Chromosome Representation and GA Operators
The GA operators including mutation and selection have been redesigned to be adaptive to
the fitness value of the individual chromosome. This can further improve the performance of
the GA.
5.2.4.1 Representation
In this work, a routing and sequence, which comprises a series of work orders, can be
represented as a chromosome in GA terminology. Each gene of a chromosome stands for a
work order. However, because of the precedence of routings of a work order, this kind of
chromosome representation may produce infeasible results. To avoid this situation, all the
operations of a work order were given the same symbol, work order ID, and then interpreted
according to the order of occurrence in the sequence for a given chromosome (Gen and
Cheng, 1997). Here, a non-fixed length string is used as a gene to represent the routing and
sequence of a work order. There are two parts in the string separated by a colon :. The first
part is the identification (ID) number of the alternative routings derived from the
Supply_Graph G, and the second part is work order ID to identify different work orders. For
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example, the gene 4:03 represents the work order 03 and currently the 4th routing in
Supply_Graph G is being used.
For an m-work order n-supply chain unit routing and sequence optimization problem, a
chromosome contains not more than n m genes. This implies that some of the work orders
may not need to go through all the supply chain units. For example, Chromosome 1:03-2:021:01-2:02-1:01-1:03-1:01 shows that there are altogether three work orders, from 01 to
03, the last two digits of each gene. The first gene 1:03 in the chromosome represents the
first handling unit of work order 03 while the second 1:03 denotes the second handling
unit of the same work order; the ID number of the alternative routing is 1, which is
represented by the first digit of the gene. By mapping the number of work orders and
alternative routings to the Supply_Graph and supply chain database, the supply chain unit,
materials, lead time, transportation mode and other resources used for each of these work
order can be easily determined. Obviously, any permutation of the genes that satisfies the
requirements of the routing and sequence optimization problem always yields a feasible
solution.
5.2.4.2 Crossover Operator
Partial crossover operation, which involves partial schedules of two parents, is used here to
exchange the ordering of chromosomes. Since these partial schedules contain different types
of genes, the offspring generated can be illegal. Thus, a novel repair operation is carried out
immediately after each crossover operation in order to legalize the offspring. As the
representation of a chromosomes is context-dependent and the offspring generated need to
inherit the genetic traits of their respective parents, the partial schedule in each of the
offspring must therefore has the same ordering as their parents. Otherwise, the genes in the
partial schedule may refer to different operations. The procedure for the crossover operation
is given as follows.
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MBEA Enabled Routing and Sequence Optimization of a Supply Chain
(1) Choose a partial string in every parent randomly;
(2) Exchange the selected genes in the two parents; and
(3) Delete or add genes to legalize the offspring, that is, order the selected genes in the
offspring similar to those of their parents, so as to inherit the genetic traits of their
parents.
5.2.4.3 Mutation Operator with Adaptive Mutation Probability
The primary purpose of mutation is to introduce variation into a population, to help bring
back some essential genetic traits and to avoid pre-mature convergence caused by the
existence of some super chromosomes. Here, a work order-pair exchange scheme that
involves swapping of two randomly selected genes is used as the mutation operator. For
example, 1:03-2:02-1:01-2:02-1:01-1:03-1:01 is the chromosome chosen to mutate. Two
genes (1:03 and 2:02) are randomly selected and swapped to create the offspring, in this
case, 2:02-1:03-1:01-2:02-1:01-1:03-1:01. In order to introduce alternative routings, a
secondary mutation operator is proposed as follows.
(1) Create lists of ID numbers of alternative routings of a work order;
(2) Randomly select one gene (one work order) from the chromosome;
(3) Randomly select a ID number from the list of the ID numbers of the alternative routings
of the work order chosen in Step 2; and
(4) Change the first portion (represents the ID number of alternative routing) of all the
genes, which represents the same work order as the one selected in Step 2, to the
selected ID number of alternative routing in Step 3. This completes the mutation
process.
Furthermore, in order to avoid early convergence, fitter chromosomes are given lower
mutation probability, while weaker chromosomes are given higher mutation probability so as
to promote the exploration of search space beyond local area (Figure 5-6). The following
formulae are for the computation of adaptive mutation probability.
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'
f kmi
=
max( f km ) f kmi
max( f km ) min( f km )
(5-13)
m
'
m
p kmi
= p kmm r m + (1 r m ) f kmi
p km
(5-14)
where
f kmi :
Fitness value of ith chromosome of mth population of kth generation.
'
f kmi
:
Relative fitness value of ith chromosome of mth population of kth generation.
m
:
p km
Mutation probability of mth population of kth generation.
m
p kmi
:
Mutation probability of ith chromosome of mth population of kth generation.
rm:
m
Ratio of the mutation probability of the best chromosome to p km
. It is set to
0.5 that indicates a mutation probability of the best chromosome to half of
m
.
p km
k:
GA Generation number.
m:
Population number in a generation.
Start
Normalize the fitness
value
'
f kmi
=
max( f km ) f kmi
max( f km ) min( f km )
Calculate the mutation rate for
each chromosome
m
m m
m
'
pkmi
= pkm
r + (1 r m ) f kmi
pkm
End
Figure 5 - 6
Flow chart of calculation of the mutation probability for RSO
5.2.4.4 Reactive Selection Operator
As already mentioned, the way in which a population is generated would affect the survival
of fitter chromosomes. In this work, the roulette wheel approach (Goldberg 1989) is used to
select the mating chromosomes within the population. As previously explained, the roulette
wheel approach guarantees chromosomes with higher fitness values to occupy a larger slotsize in the roulette wheel. As a result, these chromosomes are more likely to be selected to
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form the next generation of chromosomes. Such an approach gives every chromosome a
chance to propagate as it is based on the probability distribution of fitness values.
Alternatively, the elitist selection scheme, which selects the fittest to form the next generation
of chromosomes, can also be used. It aims at preserving the fittest chromosomes and ensures
their survival in the next generation.
Start
Current population
and offsprings
Apply elitist strategy: copy
the best few chromosomes
into next generation directly
Roulette Wheel Selection ,
while control the population
similarity Skm <= Sp
End
Figure 5 - 7
Flow chart of GA selection for RSO
Accordingly, population selection is subject to:
s km s p
(5-15)
where
sp:
Predefined Population similarity ranges from 0 to 1.
skm:
Population similarity of mth population of kth generation.
Between the two consecutive populations, there may exist ns similar chromosomes. Since a
higher ns value is likely to bring about premature convergence, a so-call population similarity
measure, which is given by ns/population size, is proposed and used to control the similarity
of two consecutive populations (Figure 5-7). For each population, its population similarity is
not allowed to exceed sp. Basically, population similarity is adaptive and changes according
to the number of GA generations with smaller value at the beginning of a GA run to maintain
population diversity, and larger value at the end of the GA run to facilitate convergence.
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5.3
MBEA Enabled Routing and Sequence Optimization of a Supply Chain
Examples and Discussions
The functional structure of the RSO module developed is shown in Figure 5-8. Data such as
customer orders, the supply chain model, and the production capacity and cost can be
imported from files or manually through the data input function. The configurations of the
optimization engine, GA, TS, MBEA and their related parameters can be defined using the
system configuration function. This includes the constraints and objective functions that are
required by the optimization engine. The RSO optimizer accesses the configuration data and
works out the near optimal work order routing, transportation mode and order plan. The user
can control the running of the RSO optimizer and monitor the status and the progress of the
optimization engine through the RSO engine control and the runtime monitor. The RSO result
output function provides the routing and work order process sequence. Besides, statistic data
are stored for future reference.
Figure 5 - 8
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5.3.1 Example 1: a Basic Model
5.3.1.1 Model Description
Figure 5-9 shows a supply chain model, which comprises three suppliers, three
manufacturing plants, two assembly plants, three distribution centres and the end customer.
Raw materials are delivered from the suppliers, transformed into half-finish components by
the manufacturing plants and assembled to commercial products in the assembly plants,
transported to DCs, and ultimately, delivered to customers. The detailed data model is
adapted from literatures including those of Bhatnagar and Sohal (2005), Caramanis and Anh
(1999), Leung et al. (2002), and Robinson and Bookbinder (2007).
Tables 5-1 to 5-4 depict the delivery lead-time and cost relationship, production capacity,
lead-time and cost relationship, DCs capacity, lead-time and cost relationship, and orders to
be processed of the basic model for the study of the prototype system.
SU1
MP1
DC1
AP1
SU2
DC2
MP2
CU
AP2
SU3
SU: Supplier
DC: Distribution Center
MP: Manufacturing Plant
AP: Assembly Plant
Figure 5 - 9
Table 5 - 1
DC3
MP3
CU:
Customer
A supply chain model for study
Suppliers delivery lead-time and cost
Supply chain unit
Supplier 1
Supplier 2
Supplier 3
Supplier Cap
200
150
180
Delivery time (day) Delivery cost (unit cost)
10
10
6
12
4
12
The suppliers delivery lead-time and the related cost are depicted in Table 5-1. In recent
years, the distance between two destinations is less critical compared to the transportation
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mode such as by sea freight or by air freight, it is assumed that the delivery lead-time and
cost are independent of destination in this study. For example, Supplier 1 takes 10 days to
deliver its materials to the customer, the manufacturing plants, regardless where the customer
is located. It is assumed that it costs 10 units to do so, while Supplier 2 takes less time (6 days)
but delivery costs more (say 12 units).
Table 5 - 2
Production lead-time and cost
Supply chain unit
Mfg Plant 1
Mfg Plant 2
Mfg Plant 3
Assy Plant 1
Assy Plant 2
Table 5 - 3
Production lead-time (day) Production cost per day (unit cost)
No. of lines P1 P2 P3 P4 P5
P1
P2
P3
P4
P5
3
5
8
6
10 10
7.2
14.4 21.6 4.8
12
2
8
15 15 15
6
4.8
4.8
7.2
2.4
21.6
1
10 11 12
6
15
2.4
9.6
12
9.6
7.2
2
3
10
15
14
6
6
12
9
16
6
10
24
12
7.2
21.6
21.6
9.6
4.8
2.4
19.2
9.6
Distribution centre capacity, lead-time and cost
Supply chain unit
DC1
DC2
DC3
Capacity Lead time (day)
100
3
200
3
150
3
Cost per day (unit cost)
2.4
7.2
7.2
Table 5-2 illustrates the production lead-time and cost. All the plants including the
manufacturing plants and the assembly plants produce five types of products, P1, P2, P3, P4
and P5. In this study, there are three manufacturing lines in Manufacturing Plant 1. For each
line, it needs 5 days to complete product P1 and 8 days for P2, and the respective costs per
day are 7.2 units and 14.4 units.
Besides the lead-time and cost of processing the shipment and delivery, the capacity is
embedded in the distribution centre model (Table 5-3). It is assumed that DC1 has a capacity
of handling 100 units of products at any time while DC2 has a higher capacity of 200 units.
As DC2 and DC3 provide better services, for example, they are able to maintain consistent
temperature and humidity level in the store room, and cost 7.2 units per day which is 3 times
of that of DC1 although the lead-times are actually the same.
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Fifteen (15) orders of different products are processed (Table 5-4). The order quantity and the
respective due date are also shown in the table. The order planning start date is fixed on 10
Jan of 2000 for all the simulation runs.
Table 5 - 4
Orders to be processed
Order Product
A001
P1
A002
P1
A003
P1
Customer
ABC Engineers
MDN Gearboxes
ABC Engineers
Order qty
20
30
20
Due date
2000-02-21
2000-03-05
2000-02-25
B001
B002
B003
P2
P2
P2
MDN Gearboxes
A1 Axles
MDN Gearboxes
30
40
30
2000-02-28
2000-03-05
2000-03-10
C001
C002
C003
P3
P3
P3
A1 Axles
Central Tubes
A1 Axles
10
50
20
2000-02-15
2000-02-10
2000-02-21
D001
D002
D003
P4
P4
P4
Central Tubes
ABC Engineers
Central Tubes
25
30
15
2000-03-10
2000-02-15
2000-03-15
E001
E002
E003
P5
P5
P5
MDN Gearboxes
ABC Engineers
ABC Engineers
45
50
35
2000-02-25
2000-02-28
2000-03-15
5.3.1.2 Results and Discussions
Two types of simulation runs have been carried out, namely a basic GA simulation (SIM1)
and a MBEA enabled RSO (SIM2). The parameters for each of the simulation runs are
summarized in Table 5-5.
Similarly, in order to make a fair comparison, the population size for SIM1 is fixed at 200
while SIM2 50 but with four populations at any time. Thus, the projected population size of
SIM2 is 200 (504), which is the same as that of SIM1. The crossover probability and
mutation probability are 0.8 and 0.005 respectively for SIM1, as from the preliminary
simulation runs carried out by the author, this parameter set generates the best solution for the
basic GA. Dynamic crossover and mutation probabilities are applied in SIM2 using MBEA.
As depicted in Table 5-5, s cmax , scmin , s mmax and s mmin are fixed at 0.2, 0.01, 0.05 and 0.001
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respectively, which restrict the steps of the crossover probability between 0.01 and 0.2, and
mutation probability between 0.001 and 0.05.
Table 5 - 5
Parameter setting of SIM1 and SIM2
Parameters
SIM1: Basic GA
SIM2: MBEA enabled
Number of simulation runs
Number of generation for parameter
updating
20
20
NA
Generation of new population
Number of population
Number of GA generation
Population size
Initial crossover probability
Initial mutation probability
Elitist strategy (percentage of the best
individual to be selected)
Crossover probability step length
( s cmax / s cmin )
NA
1
100
200
0.8
0.005
10
Random selection plus
elitist 30%
4
100
50
0.9
0.01
8%
8%
NA
0.2 / 0.01
NA
2
1
NA
0.05 / 0.001
2
1
5
Mutation probability step length ( s
max
m /
s mmin )
Weight of Delivery on time
Weight of order cost
Length of Tabu list of GA parameters
Note: NA not applicable
The comparison is based on the mean fitness value and the best individual in each generation
of the 20 simulation runs. It can be derived by the following formulae:
Fi =
1 n
F ij
n j =1
Fi* =
1 n
min( Fij )
n j =1
where
n:
The number of simulation runs of SIM1 or SIM2. Here it is 20.
Fij :
The fitness value of generation i of simulation run j of SIM1 or SIM2.
F ij :
Mean fitness value of generation i of simulation run j of SIM1 or SIM2.
Fi :
Mean fitness value of generation i of simulation runs of SIM1 or SIM2.
Fi* :
The mean value of the best fitness value of generation i of simulation runs of
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SIM1 or SIM2.
The work order routings generated by both SIM1 and SIM2 are evenly distributed to all the
supply chain units in most simulation runs. It is able to maximize the on-time delivery.
However, the fitness values vary a lot as the objective function includes both on-time
delivery and cost.
Mean fitness value
A comparison of the mean fitness values ( Fi ) is shown in Figure 5-10. It is apparent that the
MBEA enabled RSO has a faster convergence rate and Fi is kept 100 to 200 below that of
the basic GA. The fitness values of the first five generations possess noticeable differences
(Figure 5-11). The reason being 10% of chromosomes with better fitness value are introduced
to each population initially. Only one population is used in SIM1 compared to four different
populations in SIM2.
Figure 5 - 10
Mean fitness value
Fi of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 1
The plot of the standard deviation of the mean fitness value (Figure 5-12) reveals that the
variation of individuals of MBEA enabled RSO is smaller than that of the basic GA. This
also implies that the MBEA enabled RSO requires fewer generations to converge. Only the
first five generations show contradictory trend due to initial setting.
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Difference (fitness value)
Absolute Difference of Mean Fitness Value (mean)
900
700
500
300
100
-100 1
11
21
31
41
51
61
71
81
91
Generation
Figure 5 - 11
Absolute difference of mean fitness value Fi of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 1
Figure 5 - 12
Standard deviation of mean fitness value
Fi of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 1
Best fitness value
The mean value of the best fitness value for each generation ( Fi* ) is shown in Figures 5-13
to 5-16, while Figure 5-17 presents the absolute difference of the best fitness value for each
generation in all the simulation runs. Similar conclusion, i.e. the MBEA enabled RSO
outperforms the basic GA, can be drawn from the observation of the plots of the Fi* , the
absolute difference of Fi* and the standard deviation.
During the simulation runs, the MBEA enabled RSO arrives at the best solution, which has a
fitness value of 4697, in 28 generations, while the basic GA reaches the same solution in 50
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generations (Figure 5-17). It is obvious that the MBEA enabled RSO can converge earlier.
This can be attributed to the application of adaptive crossover and mutation rates.
Figure 5 - 13
Figure 5 - 14
Figure 5 - 15
Mean of the best fitness value Fi
Absolute difference of
of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 1
Fi* of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 1
Standard deviation of mean of
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Absolute Difference of Standard Deviation (best)
Difference (fitness value)
50
30
10
-10 1
11
21
31
41
51
61
71
81
91
-30
-50
Generation
Figure 5 - 16
Figure 5 - 17
Absolute difference of Standard deviation of Fi
of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 1
Absolute difference of the best fitness value of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 1
Figure 5-18 shows a typical solution of the preferred routings of orders, which can minimize
the cost and maximize the on-time delivery. For example, it shows that Order A003 is
planned to get the materials from Supplier 1. After processing by Manufacturing Plant 3 and
Assembly Plant 2, the final product is transported to DC1 before delivery to customer. Both
SIM1 and SIM2 are able to derive similar results. However, the minimum and the mean total
cost of orders shown in Figures 5-19 and 5-20, respectively, reveal that the MBEA enabled
RSO has a higher convergence rate as it is able to reach the optimal value much faster than
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the basic GA. On time delivery in terms of the number of late orders that fail to be delivered
to customer by due date is also plotted (Figure 5-21). From the figure, it is apparent that more
late orders can be found in the first five to ten generations. Once MBEA is instantiated, the
number of late jobs diminishes quickly.
Figure 5 - 18
Figure 5 - 19
Results for Example 1
Minimal total cost of orders of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 1
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Figure 5 - 20
Figure 5 - 21
Mean total cost of orders of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 1
Mean number of late orders of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 1
Furthermore, the basic model has been extended by including multiple suppliers and large
number of supply chain units in Examples 2 and 3 respectively. This is to illustrate the
effectiveness of the proposed MBEA enabled algorithm in solving more complex RSO
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problems. In order not to burden the readers with too many figures, the figures that can
clearly illustrate the results will be presented
5.3.2 Example 2: a Supply Chain with Multiple Suppliers
Besides the three suppliers mentioned in Example 1, another 21 suppliers have been added in
order to examine the effectiveness of the MBEA in handling supply chain routing selection
with multiple suppliers. This is done by repeating the three original suppliers seven times so
as to form a supply chain with 24 suppliers. The results generated by the basic GA (SIM1)
and the MBEA enabled RSO (SIM2) using the same set of parameters (Table 5-5) are shown
in Figures 5-22 and 5-23. Similarly, the work order routings generated by both SIM1 and
SIM2 are reasonably distributed to all the supply chain units in most simulation runs. The
work order routings are not omitted as there are too many supply chain units to show in the
result. From the figures, it is apparent that MBEA enabled RSO is able to generate better Fi*
in terms of mean fitness values and best fitness values. The absolute difference of Fi* as
shown in Figure 5-18 increases consistently. This indicates that the MBEA enabled RSO is
capable to reach a near optimal solution in fewer generations than the basic GA.
Figure 5 - 22
Absolute difference of Mean of Fi
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The above observation can also be seen in the minimal total cost of orders and the mean total
cost of orders as illustrated in Figures 5-24 and 5-25 respectively. The minimal total cost of
SIM2 is well below that of SIM1. It has been improved from 4661.48 to 4620.68. The mean
total cost decreases much faster for SIM2 and its value is smaller than that of SIM1 after
about 40 generations. It shows that the MBEA enabled RSO constantly outperforms the basic
GA. As for Example 1, on time delivery can be quickly maximized by the MBEA enabled
RSO after the initial 5 to 10 generations (Figure 5-26).
Figure 5 - 23
Absolute difference of the best fitness value of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 2
Figure 5 - 24
Minimal total cost of orders of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 2
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Figure 5 - 25
Figure 5 - 26
Mean total cost of orders of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 2
Mean number of late orders of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 2
5.3.3 Example 3: a Large Supply Chain Routing Selection Problem2
A large supply chain problem is presented in this example. The basic model used in Example
The prototype SCASO system can also integrate with such simulation programmes as Beer Game. In so
doing, if at a particular point in time of the Beer Game, all the orders and related supply chain data can be
collected and used as the inputs, the prototype SCASO system can be used to work out a proper schedule for all
the supply chain components involved in the Game. This is based on the assumption that all the information is
shared along the supply chain.
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1 is further expanded by adding seven times more of suppliers, three times more of
manufacturing plants, assembly plants and distribution centres. Accordingly, this large supply
chain model comprises 24 suppliers, 18 manufacturing plants, 15 assembly lines, and 9
distribution centres. The orders in hand are also increased by two folds to reach 45. Same
investigations are carried out and the results are shown in Figures 5-27 and 5-28. Similarly,
the MBEA enabled RSO outperforms the basic GA in terms of mean fitness values and the
absolute difference Fi * . The mean fitness value has been improved from 14477.9 to 14451.5.
As mentioned, smaller mean fitness value and better Fi* suggest convergence in fewer
generations.
Absolute Diffe re nce of M e an Fitne ss Value (Be st)
Difference (fitness value)
150
130
110
90
70
50
30
10
-10
-30
11
21
31
41
51
61
71
81
91
-50
Generation
Figure 5 - 27
Absolute difference of Mean of the best fitness value
Fi* of SIM1 and SIM2 for
Example 3
Difference (fitness value)
Absolute Diffe re nce of B e st Fitne ss Value (B e st)
70
50
30
10
-10 1
11
21
31
41
51
61
71
81
91
-30
-50
Ge ne ra tion
Figure 5 - 28
Absolute difference of the best fitness value of SIM1 and SIM2 for Example 3
One observation that is not obvious in Examples 1 and 2 concerns the run time of simulation.
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Each of the simulation runs of Examples 1 or 2 takes only a few minutes. However, it takes
tens of minutes for Example 3 due to the size of the supply chain. The run time of each
simulation of SIM1 described in Example 3 appears to change very little as the crossover and
mutation rates are fixed at 0.8 and 0.005 respectively. However, large variations are observed
in SIM2 as the MBEA creates different and near optimal crossover and mutation rates in
every 10 generations. The run time of SIM2 ranges from 25% to 110% of the average run
time of SIM1. Many of the simulation runs of SIM2 can be completed much faster than those
of SIM1 as the MBEA enabled RSO of SIM2 tends to select a lower crossover probability
when they are close to convergence. It proves the findings in Section 4.3.6 that using the
MBEA, the crossover and mutation rates can be made adaptive to suit different stages of GA
runs. That means the MBEA enabled RSO is not only able to reach a better solution, but also
possesses good potential to reduce computational time.
5.4
Summary
The focus of this Chapter is on the routing selection for work orders and the optimization of
work order sequencing using an MBEA enabled hybrid heuristic based on GA, TS and MPSS.
Firstly, the framework of the RSO module has been depicted. It includes Supply_Graph
routing extraction, objective measurements, RSO optimization engine and RSO output. The
RSO module is able to generate a preferred set of routing, transportation and work order
process plan based on various constraints, such as customer service level, cycle time, and cost
and so on. The result can be further channelled to the SCVC module for supply chain
clustering.
Secondly, the MBEA is adapted to realize the optimization engine of RSO for the routing and
sequence optimization problem as well as searching for the suitable compromised GA
parameters to improve the GA performance. To do so, a novel chromosome representation
scheme, new genetic operators to repair illegal chromosomes, adaptive mutation probability
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and a reactive selection technique based on population similarity have been proposed and
implemented. Through managing multiple populations in a GA run, it has been shown that
MBEA can be used to search and update GA parameters dynamically. This is done via a socalled promise level of GA parameter sets.
Finally, three examples were used to illustrate the capability of the MBEA enabled RSO. The
results show that compared to basic GAs, the MBEA performs better as it determines the
compromised pair of GA parameters for different stage of GA runs. It shows the early
convergence and better solutions to the RSO problems. As a result, it is able to find the best
solution in fewer generations and possesses good potential to reduce computational time.
More suppliers and supply chain units had been introduced in Examples 2 and 3 to show that
the algorithm can also handle reasonably complex problems.
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Chapter 6
An Evolutionary Approach to Fuzzy Clustering for Supply Chain Virtual Clustering
AN EVOLUTIONARY APPROACH TO FUZZY
CLUSTERING FOR SUPPLY CHAIN VIRTUAL
CLUSTERING
6.1
Introduction
As discussed in Section 3.2, extended supply chain optimization problems are complex and
can hardly be solved by conventional algorithms due to combinatory explosion. This chapter
described the work that adapted the basic notions of group technology (GT) and applies them
to realize a supply chain virtual clustering (SCVC) module. The SCVC module virtually and
dynamically organizes the supply chain units, transportation modes and work orders into
different unit-transportation-work order families using a MBEA enabled fuzzy clustering
approach, which embeds fuzzy c-means, a widely used fuzzy clustering algorithm. In so
doing, a complex supply chain model can possibly be decomposed into supply chain families
of smaller size. The search space of a complex large-scale supply chain problem can then be
drastically reduced. It is envisaged that the efficiency of supply chain optimization can be
improved.
The details of the MBEA enabled fuzzy c-means approach to handle Supply_Matrix problem
have been presented in Section 4.3.5. One common problem associated with the application
of fuzzy c-means is that the clustering parameters such as number of clusters, c, and
weighting exponent, m, need to be predetermined. In this chapter, the MBEA enabled fuzzy
c-means approach will be adapted to handle SCVC. It will be further enhanced to
automatically identify the optimal clustering parameters. The necessity to pre-define suitable
values for the parameters c and m of fuzzy c-means (FCM), which may not be known as a
prior knowledge, can therefore be eliminated.
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6.2
An Evolutionary Approach to Fuzzy Clustering for Supply Chain Virtual Clustering
Overview of the Supply Chain Virtual Clustering Module (SCVC)
Figure 6-1 shows the key functional sub-modules of the SCVC module. They are:
(1) Supply_Matrix Converter. It retrieves the Supply_Graph and the relevant Supply_Graph
matrix of each work order and converts it into a Supply_Matrix that can be used for
virtual clustering. The detail procedures of the converter have been discussed in Section
4.2.3.
(2) Performance Measure. It calculates the validity index of fuzzy c-means and serves as the
objective function of TS that is used to determine the performance of different GA
populations with different c and m. The measurement can be for inter or intra cluster
transportation, the loading balance and/or the group efficiency described in Section
6.3.3.
(3) SCVC Optimization Engine. The engine utilizes the basic notions of GT and combines
them with the features of fuzzy c-means, GA and TS to find the near optimal supply
chain families. The proposed MBEA enabled SCVC optimization engine is able to
search for the suitable compromised fuzzy c-means parameters as well as the near
optimal clusters.
(4) SCVC Output. It stores the supply chain unit-transportation-work order families worked
out by the SCVC module and feeds them into the SCOS module.
Supported by the SCVC optimization engine, the SCVC is able to organize a complex largescale supply chain into different supply chain unit-transportation-work order families. It is
postulated that work orders can be processed and optimized mainly within the respective
families. This facilitates the process of distributed planning and scheduling of SCOS. The
above-mentioned approach has the following characteristics.
(1) Compartmentalize a supply chain problem into sub-problems so as to decompose a
complex problem into a number of manageable and smaller problems, which will
expedite the planning and scheduling. Although a trade-off between the speed of the
optimization and the quality of the near optimal local solutions may exist, by using an
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appropriate performance measure, it is possible to derive a near global optimal or goodenough solution efficiently;
Supply Chain Execution
e-Business
Information Flow
Network
Data 2. Management Level
Strategies
Customer service level
Inventory reduction
Production cost
Safety stock level reduction
...
Data 3.2 Supply chain unittransportation-work order
families
Supply Chain Virtual Clustering (SCVC)
SCVC Output
Data Sharing and Shielding
Data 1. Supply Chain
Network
Supply_Graph
supply chain topology
customer order routings
transportation modes
Supply chain unit capacity
Materials cost
Manufacturing/Delivery cost
Inventory cost
Transportation cost
Customer orders
Cycle time
Other constraints
Supply Chain Order Scheduler (SCOS)
Data 3. Intermediate Data
3.1 Preferred routings,
transportation modes and
work order plan
3.2 Supply chain unittransportation-work order
families
3.3 Customer order detail
schedule
SCVC Optimization Engine
(MBEA Enabled)
Fuzzy c-means
Genetic Algorithm
Tabu Search
Multiple Populations Search Strategy
GT Notions and Concept
Performance Measures
Supply_Matrix
Converter
Inter/intra cluster transportation
Balance loading
Group efficiency measurement
Data 1
Supply chain network
Supply_Graph
Order information
Cycle time
etc.
Data 3.1 Preferred routings,
transportation modes and
work order plan
Routing and Sequence Optimizer (RSO)
Global Manufacturing Materials Flow Network
Note: The data in Global Manufacturing Materials Flow Network refers to the data in e-Business
Information Flow Network.
: Data directly from data source
: Manipulated data or data generated from other modules
Figure 6 - 1
System structure of supply chain virtual clustering (SCVC)
(2) Help to split a supply chain optimization problem purposefully instead of blindly so that
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it can be executed on multiple distributed computers concurrently with less interference;
and
(3) Use as a plug-in and can possibly be integrated with existing supply chain optimization
systems.
6.3
Heuristic of an Evolutionary Approach to Fuzzy Clustering for
SCVC
It is obvious from the discussion in Section 6.1 that c, the number of cluster centres, and m,
the weighting exponent, have to be predetermined for the fuzzy c-means approach. This
section focuses on supply chain virtual clustering as well as the enhancement of the MBEA
enabled fuzzy c-means approach described in Section 4.3.5 to enable the determination of the
best c and m for fuzzy clustering.
6.3.1 Problem Definition
The problem definition for Supply_Matrix using fuzzy c-means has been presented in Section
4.3.5.2. It is further summarized as follows.
Similarly, a typical n p Supply_Matrix, which represents n work orders and p supply chain
units, can be expressed using Equation 6-1. This forms the input data of a supply chain virtual
clustering problem.
x11
x
21
X =
...
x p1
x12
x22
...
x p2
... x1n
... x2 n
= ( xlj )
... ...
... x pn
(6-1)
where
p:
Total number of supply chain units.
n:
Total number of work orders.
x j = ( x1 j , x 2 j ,..., x pj ) is the jth work order .
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1,
xlj =
0,
if unit l process order j
l = 1,2,, p; j = 1,2,,n
if unit l doesn't process order j
In fuzzy clustering, classification results can be expressed as a fuzzy cluster matrix as shown
in Equation 6-2.
u11 u12
u
u 22
21
U =
... ...
u c1 u c 2
... u1n
... u 2 n
= (u ij )
... ...
... u cn
(6-2)
where
c:
Number of cluster centre
u ij :
Degree of membership of work order j to cluster i
subject to:
0 u ij 1,
c
u
i =1
i = 1,2,..., c; j = 1,2,..., n
= 1,
ij
j = 1,2,..., n
0 < uij n, i = 1,2,..., c
j =1
The sum of the square error function which measures the dissimilarity between the data
points and their cluster centre by the Euclidean distance is often used. It can be defined using
Equation 6-3.
n
min{J m (U ,V ) = (u ij ) m (d ij ) 2 }
(6-3)
j =1 i =1
where
p
(d ij ) 2 =| x j vi | 2 = ( x jl vil ) 2 is the Euclidean distance
l =1
vi = (vi1 , vi 2 ,..., vip ) is the ith cluster centre
n
vli =
(u
j =1
ij
) m xlj
(6-4)
(u
j =1
ij
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m [1, ] is the weighting exponent on each fuzzy membership. The larger the m is,
the fuzzier the partition will be. Normally, the value of m is between 1.25
and 3.
6.3.2 MBEA Enabled Fuzzy C-Means Approach to SCVC
As shown in Figure 6-2, TS is embedded into the GA to implement the multiple population
search strategy that is able to facilitate the search process, help determine the fuzzy c-means
parameters and generate next generation of chromosomes, and avoid premature convergence.
Basically, the aforementioned supply chain virtual clustering problem using fuzzy c-means is
a minimization problem in nature which is to minimize the J m (U ,V ) .
Start
Initialize the GA, TS
and FCM parameters
Generate initial populations of GA
randomly through pre-defined rule
Evaluate the fitness value
and apply scaling/ranking for
each population
No
Meet the termination condition?
Apply GA operator:
crossover/mutation/selection,
within each population
Yes
End
No
Meet FCM parameters
updating condition?
Yes
Apply TS to determine FCM
parameters for populations of the
following GA generations
Generate populations for the following
GA generations with new sets of FCM
parameters
Figure 6 - 2
Flow chart of the proposed MBEA enable fuzzy c-means approach to supply chain
virtual clustering (SCVC)
In a normal fuzzy c-means implementation, it usually takes a lot of trial-and-error attempts
and comparisons using a validity index (Wang and Zhang 2007) to find proper fuzzy cmeans parameters, c and m. As mentioned in Section 6.1, to overcome this weakness, the
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MBEA enabled fuzzy c-means approach described in Chapter 4 is further enhanced to
automatically identify optimal fuzzy c-means parameters. Thus, in each GA run, multiple
populations with different fuzzy c-means parameters are used.
avg
pkm = wbest (Vxf )best
km + wavg (V xf ) km
Figure 6 - 3
Flow chart of searching and updating FCM parameters for SCVC
As mentioned in Section 4.3.5, these populations are treated as individuals in the tabu
search and are concurrently reproduced by GA operators. At the end of each GA generation,
the promise level for a parameter set can be computed by the equations outlined in Section
6.3.3. Subsequently, the best parameter set in terms of promise level is selected. From the
tabu search point of view, the GA run is used to evaluate the objective function which depicts
the promise level of the fuzzy c-means parameter set, while the number of populations of a
GA is the number of individuals maintained in the tabu search. For example, for every five
generations of GA runs, the promise level of each parameter set of the GA population is
evaluated and used as the value attained by the objective function for the selection of the best
fuzzy c-means parameter set. The neighbourhood parameter set is then created and used in
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the succeeding GA runs. The procedures for searching and updating the fuzzy c-means
parameter set and for the generation of neighbourhood parameter set are depicted in Figures
6-3 and 6-4, respectively. The promise level of a parameter set for a population can be
derived using the formulae listed in Section 6.3.3.
nc = nc 1
nc = nc + 1
sc =
sm =
s cmax s cmin
+ s cmin
2 nc
s mmax s mmin
+ s mmin
2 nc
(c, m + sm ), (c, m sm ), (c + sc , m), (c sc , m)
Figure 6 - 4
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As shown in Figure 6-4, in neighbourhood creation, the length of steps taken by c and m,
namely sc and s m , are determined by the maximum ( s cmax , s mmax ) and minimal steps ( s cmin , s mmin )
of the c and m respectively.
6.3.3 FCM Validity Index and Promise Level Calculation
A new validity index has been proposed for the MBEA to compare the performance of
different GA populations with different c and m by taking into consideration the inter-cluster
transportation and group efficiency. It serves as the objective function to guide the TS. The
proposed validity index V xf that considers both inter-cluster transportation and group
efficiency is given as follows.
Vxf = E + F / c
(6-5)
where
p
E=
x
j =1 l =1 s j tl
n
j =1 l =1
lj
(1 x
i =1
(6-6)
F =
lj
s j =i t l = i
lj
x + (1 x
s j =i t l = i
lj
s j = i tl = i
lj
(6-7)
s j and tl is the cluster centre the jth work order and lth supply chain unit belongs to
respectively. They are given by the following formulae.
c
s j = i, if u ij = max (u ij ), j = 1,2,3,..., n
i =1
(6-8)
t l = i, if vli = max(v li ), l = 1,2,3,..., p
i =1
The promise level is further computed from the V xf .
avg
p km = wbest (V xf ) best
km + wavg (V xf ) km
(6-9)
where
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th
population of kth
(Vxf )best
km : Validity index value of the best chromosome of m
generation.
th
(Vxf ) avg
population of kth
km : Average validity index value of chromosomes of m
generation.
p km :
Promise level of mth population of kth generation.
wbest :
Weight of (Vxf )best
km .
wavg :
Weight of (Vxf ) avg
km .
The promise level determined using Equation 6-9 is then subjected to MBEA to compute the
best combination of c and m.
6.3.4 Chromosome Representation, Fitness Evaluation and GA Operators
Using the Supply_Matrix converter, a Supply_Graph and related work orders are transformed
into a Supply_Matrix. The chromosome representation, fitness function and GA operators
described in Section 4.3.5 can be used to perform supply chain virtual clustering. The
difference between the evolutionary approach to fuzzy c-means for supply chain virtual
clustering and that depicted in Section 4.3.5 is that the MBEA in the SCVC module is to find
the near optimal fuzzy c-means parameters, namely c and m, while the approach described in
Section 4.3.5 is to search for the suitable compromised pair of GA parameters, namely the
crossover probability, p c , and the mutation probability, p m .
6.3.5 Work Order and Supply Chain Unit Families Generation
As mentioned in Section 4.3.5.7, the final fuzzy cluster matrix U* and the final cluster centre
matrix V* worked out by the MBEA enabled SCVC can be used to generate the final work
order families and associated supply chain unit families.
As such, the supply chain unit-transportation-work order families can be organized by
combining the supply chain unit and work order families achieved by the SCVC module with
the preferred transportation modes associated with the relevant supply chain units and work
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orders that are determined by the RSO module.
6.4
Examples and Discussions
Figure 6 - 5
Functional structure of the prototype SCVC
The functional structure of the SCVC module developed is shown in Figure 6-5. Similar to
the RSO module, the SCVC module provides the following functions: data input, system
configuration, SCVC optimizer control and SCVC result output. The necessary input data for
this module such as Supply_Matrix can be extract from the RSO module or imported from
data files through the data input function. The system configuration provides functions for
user to configure the optimization engine, FCM, GA, TS, MBEA and define their related
parameters and the constraints and objective functions that are required by the optimization
engine. The users can control the running of the SCVC optimizer and monitor the status and
the progress of the optimization engine through the SCVC engine control and the runtime
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monitor. The SCVC result output function provides the optimal cluster centres, the result of
virtual clusters and the statistic data obtained.
As mentioned in Section 6.2, the sub-module of SCVC, which is the Supply_Matrix
Converter, is able to transform a Supply_Graph that represents the supply chain units and
order routings into a Supply_Matrix. It can then be optimized by the MBEA enabled SCVC
to form the supply chain unit-transportation-work order families. The examples described in
this section begin with the Supply_Matrix for ease of explanation, as the Supply_Matrix
Converter has already been discussed in Section 4.2.3. Once an optimal fuzzy cluster matrix
has been generated by the MBEA enabled SCVC, the supply chain unit-transportation-work
order families can be easily formed using the procedures described in Section 6.3.5.
Five sets of sample Supply_Matrix data are used to illustrate the capability of the proposed
SCVC. Two 10x10 Supply_Matrices with respectively 3 and 5 cluster centres are used in
Examples 1 and 2. Example 3 used the same data set of Example 1 but with the introduction
of some irregularities. Examples 4 and 5 further illustrated the effectiveness of the proposed
evolutionary approach through two matrices gleaned from literature. Both matrices contain
some exceptional points that introduce complexity into the data set. Since the SCVC model
adopts the virtual clustering which is a concept derived from the group technology, it is
reasonable, to adapt the data sets (with known results) extracted from the literature on group
technology and use them for the comparative study.
Throughout the five examples and simulation runs, it can be seen that the proposed hybrid
evolutionary approach is able to find the best c and m while searching for the best supply
chain families. This overcomes the necessity to pre-define suitable values for the parameters
c and m of fuzzy c-means which may not be known as a prior knowledge.
6.4.1 Example 1: a 10x10 Supply_Matrix with 3 Cluster Centres
The 10x10 Supply_Matrix is given in Table 6-1. It is the same data set that was used in
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Section 4.3.6.1 and has three cluster centres. To illustrate the capability of the proposed
hybrid evolutionary approach, five pairs of columns or rows of the table were randomly
selected and their positions were swapped. For example, columns su1 and su9, and
subsequently, rows wo6 and wo8 are swapped to form a new table. After such an operation,
the information registered in the new table is used as inputs for the evaluation.
Table 6 - 1
wo1
wo2
wo3
wo4
wo5
wo6
wo7
wo8
wo9
wo10
Supply_Matrix 1
su1 su2 su3 su4 su5 su6 su7 su8 su9 su10
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
Note: woi and sui denote work orders and supply chain units respectively
Table 6 - 2
Parameters used in simulation run
Parameters
Number_of_generation_for_
parameter_updating
FC_c_Min
FC_c_Max
FC_c_Step_Min
Value
20
3
10
1
FC_c_Step_Max
FC_m_Min
FC_m_Max
FC_m_Step_Min
1.25
3
0.01
FC_m_Step_Max
0.3
GA_number_of_generation
GA_population_size
GA_crossover_rate
GA_mutation_rate
GA_elitist_rate
TS_number_of_individual
TS_new_population_elitist_rate
TS_length_of_tabu_list
TS_promise_level_weightage
(best/average)
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100
0.9
0.1
0.08
4
0.2
8
1/0
Description
Number of GA generations between two
consecutive TS for parameter updating
Minimal number of cluster of fuzzy c-means
Maximal number of cluster of fuzzy c-means
Minimal step for neighbourhood search of
parameter c
Maximal step for neighbourhood search of
parameter c
Minimal number of m of fuzzy c-means
Maximal number of m of fuzzy c-means
Minimal step for neighbourhood search of
parameter m
Maximal step for neighbourhood search of
parameter m
Total number of GA generations
GA population size
GA crossover probability
GA mutation probability
Percentage for GA elitist strategy
Number of GA populations for TS
Percentage of the best chromosome to be
selected into the new population after TS
parameter updating
Tabu list length
The weightages for best and average promise
level respectively
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Table 6-2 lists the parameters used in the computation of fuzzy c-means, GA and TS. Figure
6-6 depicts the mean value of 10 simulation runs of the number of cluster centre in each
updating of parameters. The hybrid approach can quickly reach the optimal number of cluster
in around five to six updating of parameters, i.e. iterations. A typical final fuzzy cluster
matrix U* and cluster centre matrix V* are summarized in Table 6-3. Obviously, the optimal
cluster allocation shown in Table 6-1 can be reached.
Number of cluster centre
Number of cluster centre
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
2
MBEA parameter update
Figure 6 - 6 The best number of cluster centre of MBEA for Example 1
Table 6 - 3
The fuzzy cluster matrix U* and cluster centres V* for Example 1
U*
c1
c2
c3
wo1
0.00
0.80
0.20
wo2
0.00
0.79
0.21
wo3
0.00
0.81
0.19
wo4
0.01
0.02
0.97
wo5
0.00
0.00
1.00
wo6
0.00
0.02
0.98
wo7
0.78
0.08
0.14
wo8
0.73
0.11
0.16
wo9
0.57
0.20
0.23
wo10
0.74
0.15
0.11
V*
c1
c2
c3
su1 su2 su3 su4 su5 su6 su7 su8 su9 su10
0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00
0.99 0.99 0.99 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01
0.01 0.01 0.01 0.98 0.98 0.98 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01
Note: woi, sui and ci denote work orders, supply chain units and cluster centres respectively
The highlighted numbers in Table 6-3 show the maximum degree of membership of each
work order as well as the best-fit cluster for a particular work order. For example, wo1
belongs to Cluster 2 (U*) as it has the highest membership value 0.8.
6.4.2 Example 2: a 10x10 Supply_Matrix with 5 Cluster Centres
Another 10x10 Supply_Matrix is given in Table 6-4 which consists of five clusters. Similar
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to Example 1, five pairs of columns or rows of the table were randomly chosen to undergo
the swapping operation.
Table 6 - 4
wo1
wo2
wo3
wo4
wo5
wo6
wo7
wo8
wo9
wo10
Supply_Matrix 2
su1 su2 su3 su4 su5 su6 su7 su8 su9 su10
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
Note: woi and sui denote work orders and supply chain units respectively
Number of cluster centre
Number of cluster centre
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
1
10
11 12
13
14
15 16
17
18
19
MBEA parameter update
Figure 6 - 7 the best number of cluster centre of MBEA for Example 2
Table 6 - 5
The fuzzy cluster matrix U* and cluster centres V* for Example 2
U*
c1
c2
c3
c4
c5
wo1
0.173
0.181
0.199
0.260
0.188
wo2
0.154
0.184
0.206
0.265
0.190
wo3
0.202
0.228
0.184
0.181
0.205
wo4
0.209
0.222
0.185
0.184
0.200
wo5
0.187
0.204
0.207
0.177
0.224
wo6
0.208
0.208
0.189
0.165
0.230
wo7
0.222
0.189
0.198
0.182
0.209
wo8
0.220
0.186
0.204
0.179
0.211
wo9
0.198
0.202
0.219
0.190
0.191
wo10
0.199
0.208
0.219
0.198
0.186
su1
0.134
0.162
0.205
0.347
0.170
su2
0.134
0.162
0.205
0.347
0.170
su3
0.216
0.251
0.168
0.163
0.197
su4
0.216
0.251
0.168
0.163
0.197
su5
0.199
0.209
0.196
0.143
0.250
su6
0.199
0.209
0.196
0.143
0.250
su7
0.250
0.171
0.202
0.160
0.213
su8
0.250
0.171
0.202
0.160
0.213
su9
0.201
0.207
0.229
0.186
0.170
su10
0.201
0.207
0.229
0.186
0.170
V*
c1
c2
c3
c4
c5
Note: woi, sui and ci denote work orders, supply chain units and cluster centres respectively
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The parameters used in this example are the same as the parameters in Example 1 except for
the generation of GA is 400 instead of 200. Figure 6-7 depicts the mean value of 10
simulation runs of the number of cluster centre in each parameter updating. An optimal
number of cluster centres of five can be obtained after 12 iterations. A typical final fuzzy
cluster matrix U* and cluster centre matrix V* is described in Table 6-5. It is obviously that
the optimal cluster allocation shown in Table 6-4 can be reached.
6.4.3 Example 3: a 10x10 Supply_Matrix with Noise
The 10x10 Supply_Matrix with noise being introduced is given in Table 6-6. It is the same
matrix used in Example 1 with irregularities such as cells wo2su7 and wo7su3. Similar to
Examples 1 and 2, five pairs of columns or rows of the table were randomly picked to
undergo the swapping operation.
Table 6 - 6
wo1
wo2
wo3
wo4
wo5
wo6
wo7
wo8
wo9
wo10
Supply_Matrix 3
su1 su2 su3 su4 su5 su6 su7 su8 su9 su10
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
Note: woi and sui denote work orders and supply chain units respectively
The parameters used in this simulation run are the same as those reported in Example 1. The
irregularities introduced did not cause any trouble for the hybrid approach to obtain the
optimal results. Figure 6-8 depicts the mean value of 10 simulation runs of the number of
cluster centre in each iteration. It exhibits the similar trend and the hybrid approach can
quickly determine the optimal number of cluster in five to six updating of parameters. A
typical final fuzzy cluster matrix U* and a final cluster centre matrix V* are depicted in Table
6-7. It is apparent that the optimal cluster allocation shown in Table 6-6 can be obtained.
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Number of cluster centre
Number of cluster centre
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
1
MBEA parameter update
Figure 6 - 8 The best number of cluster centre of MBEA for Example 3
Table 6 - 7
The fuzzy cluster matrix U* and cluster centres V* for Example 3
U*
c1
c2
c3
wo1
0.843
0.118
0.039
wo2
0.579
0.169
0.252
wo3
0.553
0.236
0.211
wo4
0.002
0.832
0.166
wo5
0.015
0.896
0.090
wo6
0.027
0.807
0.166
wo7
0.256
0.166
0.578
wo8
0.181
0.038
0.781
wo9
0.131
0.001
0.869
wo10
0.217
0.132
0.651
V*
su1
su2
su3
su4
su5
su6
su7
su8
su9 su10
c1 0.965 0.965 0.982 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.230 0.035 0.035 0.035
c2 0.011 0.011 0.013 0.986 0.986 0.986 0.006 0.004 0.004 0.004
c3 0.016 0.016 0.134 0.006 0.006 0.006 0.988 0.978 0.978 0.978
Note: woi, sui and ci denote work orders, supply chain units and cluster centres respectively
6.4.4 Example 4: a 9x9 Matrix Data Set
In this sub-section, the hybrid approach was used to evaluate a typical 9x9 matrix (Table 6-8)
from the work of Chu and Hayya (1991).
Table 6 - 8
wo1
wo2
wo3
wo4
wo5
wo6
wo7
wo8
wo9
Matrix data set 4
su1 su2 su3 su4 su5 su6 su7 su8 su9
1
1
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
1
0
0
1
0
0
1
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
1
1
0
0
1
0
0
1
0
0
0
1
0
0
1
0
0
1
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
1
1
1
0
1
1
0
0
1
0
0
0
1
0
0
1
Note: woi and sui denote work orders and supply chain units respectively
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Number of cluster centre
Number of cluster centre
5
4
3
2
1
0
1
10
11 12
13
14
15 16
17
18
19
MBEA parameter update
Figure 6 - 9 the best number of cluster centre of MBEA of Example 4
Table 6 - 9
The fuzzy cluster matrix U* and cluster centres V* for Example 4
U*
c1
c2
c3
wo1
0.692
0.105
0.202
wo2
0.005
0.058
0.936
wo3
0.013
0.919
0.068
wo4
0.265
0.589
0.145
wo5
0.606
0.322
0.072
wo6
0.255
0.000
0.745
wo7
0.064
0.823
0.113
wo8
0.257
0.656
0.087
wo9
0.217
0.052
0.730
V*
c1
c2
c3
su1
su2
su3
su4
su5
su6
su7
su8
su9
0.612 0.605 0.215 0.476 0.707 0.174 0.115 0.495 0.174
0.105 0.200 0.887 0.429 0.284 0.017 0.723 0.964 0.017
0.405 0.932 0.088 0.065 0.082 0.848 0.055 0.102 0.848
Note: woi, sui and ci denote work orders, supply chain units and cluster centres respectively
Table 6 - 10
wo1
wo5
wo3
wo4
wo7
wo8
wo2
wo6
wo9
Optimized Supply_Matrix for Example 4
su1 su4 su5 su3 su7 su8 su2 su6 su9
1
0
1
0
0
0
1
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
1
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
Note: woi and sui denote work orders and supply chain units respectively
The parameters used in this example are the same as those in Example 1 except for the
followings.
maximum c = 6;
number of generation for parameter updating = 15; and
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maximum GA number of generation = 300.
Figure 6-9 depicts the mean value of the number of cluster centre against the updating of
parameters in 10 simulation runs. It shows that the hybrid approach can quickly reach the
optimal number of cluster in 13 parameter updating. A typical final fuzzy cluster matrix U*
and a cluster centre matrix V* are depicted in Table 6-9. The final result of the clustering is
shown in Table 6-10.
6.4.5 Example 5: a 19x11 Matrix Data Set
The hybrid approach was then used to evaluate a 19x11 matrix (Table 6-11) which was
extracted from the work of Bedworth et al. (1991). Basically, it is the same data set that was
described in Section 4.3.6.2.
Table 6 - 11
wo1
wo2
wo3
wo4
wo5
wo6
wo7
wo8
wo9
wo10
wo11
wo12
wo13
wo14
wo15
wo16
wo17
wo18
wo19
Matrix data set 5
su1 su2 su3 su4 su5 su6 su7 su8 su9 su10 su11
0
1
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
1
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
1
0
0
1
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
1
1
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
Note: woi and sui denote work orders and supply chain units respectively
The parameters used in this example are the same as those used in Example 1 except for
maximum c = 6;
GA population size = 200; and
maximum number of generation = 400.
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Figure 6-10 depicts the mean value of the number of cluster centre against updating of
parameters in 10 simulations. It shows that even for a complex problem, the hybrid approach
is able to derive the optimal number of cluster without much difficulty. A typical final fuzzy
cluster matrix U* and a cluster centre matrix V* are presented in Table 6-12. The final result
of the clustering is shown in Table 6-13.
Number of cluster centre
Number of cluster centre
5
4
3
2
1
0
1
10
11 12
13
14
15 16
17
18
19
MBEA parameter update
Figure 6 - 10
Table 6 - 12
The best number of cluster centre of MBEA for Example 5
the fuzzy cluster matrix U* and cluster centres V* for Example 5
U*
c1
c2
c3
c1
c2
c3
wo1
0.324
0.318
0.358
wo12
0.348
0.327
0.325
wo2
0.321
0.322
0.357
wo13
0.381
0.304
0.315
wo3
0.277
0.432
0.291
wo14
0.298
0.378
0.324
wo4
0.257
0.420
0.323
wo15
0.315
0.327
0.358
wo5
0.362
0.305
0.333
wo16
0.337
0.322
0.341
wo6
0.326
0.346
0.328
wo17
0.382
0.286
0.332
wo7
0.227
0.439
0.334
wo18
0.303
0.318
0.379
wo8
0.249
0.431
0.320
wo19
0.361
0.297
0.342
wo9
0.254
0.428
0.318
wo10
0.324
0.319
0.357
wo11
0.311
0.326
0.363
V*
c1
c2
c3
su1
su2
su3
su4
su5
su6
su7
su8
su9 su10 su11
0.102 0.172 0.175 0.682 0.124 0.212 0.400 0.202 0.229 0.166 0.166
0.079 0.113 0.521 0.869 0.088 0.153 0.162 0.153 0.328 0.065 0.065
0.127 0.179 0.265 0.803 0.095 0.252 0.244 0.263 0.221 0.093 0.093
Note: woi, sui and ci denote work orders, supply chain units and cluster centres respectively
Throughout the five examples and simulation runs, it can be seen that the optimal cluster
allocation can be obtained by the proposed MBEA enabled SCVC. Simultaneously, the
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hybrid approach is able to find the optimal number of cluster.
Table 6 - 13
wo5
wo12
wo13
wo17
wo19
wo3
wo4
wo6
wo7
wo8
wo9
wo14
wo1
wo2
wo10
wo11
wo15
wo16
wo18
Optimized Supply_Matrix for Example 5
su5 su7 su10 su11 su3 su4 su9 su1 su2 su6 su8
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
1
Note: woi and sui denote work orders and supply chain units respectively
6.5
Summary
This chapter presents the detailed design of the SCVC module which consists of four key
sub-modules, namely Supply_Matrix Converter, Performance Measure, SCVC Optimization
Engine, and SCVC Output.
In order to effectively organize the supply chain units, transportation modes and work orders
into different unit-transportation-work order families, the SCVC module adopts the MBEA
enabled fuzzy c-means approach described in Section 4.3.5 and equips it with the ability to
search for the optimal clustering parameters, c and m. In so doing, the MBEA enabled SCVC
eliminates the necessity to pre-define the suitable value of c and m for fuzzy c-means.
Furthermore, a new fuzzy c-means validity index that combines the inter-cluster
transportation and group efficiency is created to help the calculation of the promise level that
serves as the objective function to determine how good a set of clustering parameter is.
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Finally, the capability and effectiveness of the proposed MBEA enabled SCVC is illustrated
using five examples. The results show that it is able to find the optimal fuzzy c-means
parameters in all the five examples. The optimal fuzzy cluster matrix can also be obtained by
the proposed hybrid approach without difficulty.
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Chapter 7
An Intelligent Agent-Based Distributed Architecture for Supply Chain Order Scheduling
AN INTELLIGENT AGENT-BASED
DISTRIBUTED ARCHITECTURE FOR SUPPLY
CHAIN ORDER SCHEDULING
7.1
Introduction
As mentioned in Chapter 6, a complex supply chain optimization problem can be virtually
and dynamically organized by the SCVC module into some supply chain unit-transportationwork order families (supply chain clusters) to facilitate the supply chain order scheduling.
Subsequently, work orders are processed and optimized within the respective families as
much as possible. The SCOS module is tasked to coordinate the schedules and local decisions
worked out by each individual supply chain cluster as the optimal schedule for an individual
cluster may be in conflict with the requirements of other clusters. In order to efficiently
resolve the conflicts as well as to generate a near optimal schedule for the entire supply chain,
software agents are used by the SCOS module as they possess the ability to
delegate tasks;
negotiate and communicate with other software agents within the system; and
find a feasible and near-optimal solution to the entire supply chain intelligently by
adapting themselves to changing environments.
This chapter describes the third module of SCASO, the SCOS module, which leverages on an
intelligent agent-based distributed architecture (Yin et al. 2010). A GA-enhanced dynamic
scheduler for multiple supply chain clusters developed by Khoo et al. (2000) and Yin (2000)
is adapted and enhanced to realize the SCOS module, which is the core scheduling engine.
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7.2
An Intelligent Agent-Based Distributed Architecture for Supply Chain Order Scheduling
Overview of Software Agents
In the artificial intelligence community, numerous research groups in universities and
research laboratories are building what have come to be called software agents. Software
agents work by allowing people to delegate work that they could have done, to the agent
software. Agents can automate repetitive tasks, intelligently summarise complex data; learn
from other agents; negotiate with other agents to accomplish certain purposes; and even make
recommendations (Ahmad et al. 2008, Bradshaw 1997).
Software agents are kinds of computer programs that interact with software environment such
as operating system, Internet sites, information databases, other agents, and so forth, in order
to achieve certain goals (Ahmad et al. 2008). They are one of the fastest growing research
areas of information technology. In recent years, agent technology has been applied to many
fields, such as information retrieval (Htoon and Thet 2008, Siddiqui and Tiwary 2005),
distributed meeting scheduling (Glezer 2003, Shakshuki et al. 2008), manufacturing control
and design (Han and Jafari 2003, Lastra and Colombo 2006, Zhang and Xie 2007) and many
others.
Software agents are different from other applications by their additional attributes (Ahmad et
al. 2008, Brenner et al. 1998). They are:
(1) Software agents are autonomous and intelligent; they are able to solve tasks without the
intervention of users. All agents have control over their own actions and are goal-driven,
which means agents have a purpose and act in accordance with that purpose;
(2) Software agents have social ability. They interact, communicate or negotiate with other
software agents in order to complete their problem solving or cooperate with each other;
(3) Software agents are reactive. That is, an agent senses changes in its world and responds
in a designed pattern. All agents continue to run even when the user is gone, in order to
achieve the purpose of the user;
(4) Software agents are robust. They are autonomous and presumably doing something
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important, agents must be able to respond unexpected changes and recover from errors
in their computation world;
(5) Software agents are adaptive. They can modify their behaviours over time in response to
changing environments or an increase in knowledge about their problem solving;
(6) Software agents are typically distributed across a network; and
(7) Some agents are mobile, and move from machine to machine in order to enhance the
ability of problem solving.
The above attributes of software agents show that they can simplify the complexities of
distributed problems and coordinate with each other to solve the problems in a more natural,
more efficient and more effective way.
7.3
Overview of the Intelligent Agent-Based Distributed
Architecture for SCOS
The proposed intelligent agent-based distributed architecture for the SCOS module consists
of two subsystems, the Supply Chain Scheduling Master (SCSM) and Supply Chain
Scheduling Client (SCSC). Figures 7-1 and 7-2 depict the overall system structure and the
architecture of the SCOS module respectively.
The SCSM maintains all the necessary information in the scheduling database for the
scheduling of the entire supply chain. At the same time, it provides a negotiation locale for
the supply chain cluster negotiators, which are the representatives of the supply chain cluster
agents (SCCA), to resolve their conflicts with the aid of a decision-making module under the
supervision of a supply chain supervisory agent (SCSA). The SCSC, on the other hand,
retrieves all the scheduling information and knowledge related to the various supply chain
clusters from the SCSM. Each supply chain unit-transportation-work order family that is
worked out by the SCVC module is represented by a supply chain scheduling client (SCSC).
It is used to determine the local near optimal schedule for every supply chain cluster. It also
co-ordinates the activation of supply chain cluster agents and their negotiators, and controls
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the communication among the SCSA and SCCAs, so as to derive the feasible or the near
optimal schedule for the entire supply chain according to the objectives and decision-making
policies.
Figure 7 - 1
System structure of supply chain order scheduler (SCOS)
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Figure 7 - 2
7.4
Overall architecture of the SCOS
Agents Involved in the SCOS
As mentioned, there are two types of software agents used in this work. They are the supply
chain supervisory agent (SCSA) and supply chain cluster agents (SCCAs).
7.4.1 Supply Chain Supervisory Agent (SCSA)
The supervisory agent (Figure 7-3), which always maintains a list of all the supply chain
clusters and keeps track of all the activated supply chain cluster agents in the system, is the de
facto manager of all the software agents. It has four sub-modules namely a supervisor, a
communicator, a decision maker and a data format interpreter. The supervisor is tasked to coordinate the activities of the various modules of the supervisory agent. It monitors the status
of the supply chain cluster agents and receives the results (bid data) worked out by them.
These bid data are then forwarded to the decision maker for negotiation and decision making.
The communicator is the I/O of the SCSA. It enables and establishes the communication
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among the supervisory agent, supply chain cluster negotiators and supply chain cluster agents.
The decision maker, which is essentially a knowledge-based system (KBS), is controlled by
the supervisor. Upon activation, it prioritises the supply chain cluster negotiators based on the
rules or decision-making policies residing in the domain knowledge base, relevant scheduling
information gleaned from the scheduling database and the bespoke bid data. Details of the
supply chain cluster negotiators are presented in Section 7.4.2. Basically, the decisionmaking module carries out the following tasks.
Figure 7 - 3
Structure of supply chain supervisory agent (SCSA)
(1) Retrieve all the schedules determined at supply chain cluster level;
(2) Perform a pair-wise comparison using the schedules retrieved in Step 1 to check for
conflicts;
(3) Resolve the conflicts using the rules from the domain knowledge base and the bid data
offered by the supply chain cluster negotiators to prioritise the supply chain clusters;
(4) Instruct affected supply chain clusters to reschedule via the communicator; and
(5) Repeat the above until a conflict-free schedule for the entire manufacturing system has
been established.
The rules of the KBS are presented in Section 7.5.2. In Step 4, once a re-schedule instruction
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is sent to the affected supply chain clusters, the work order scheduling engine of the SCSC
works out another local optimal schedule under a set of new constraints such as the new
starting time of work orders that may need to travel to other supply chain clusters.
The data format interpreter is used to translate the information from the supply chain cluster
agents into the information that the SCSM and the SCSA can understand and use. It serves as
some kind of communication protocol that helps the SCSM/SCSA understand the data sent
over from the SCSC/SCCA.
7.4.2 Supply Chain Cluster Agent (SCCA).
Supply Chain Cluster Agent (SCCA)
Supply Chain Cluster
Agent Controller
Bid Evaluator
Supply Chain
Cluster
Negotiator
Data Format
Interpreter
Local Scheduling
Information
Figure 7 - 4
Domain
Knowledge
Structure of a supply chain cluster agent (SCCA)
Basically, a supply chain cluster agent (Figure 7-4) is packaged with the scheduling
information and the domain knowledge of a particular supply chain cluster. A supply chain
cluster agent comprises five sub-modules, namely a communicator, a data format interpreter,
a supply chain cluster agent controller, and a bid evaluator. The communicator, which is the
I/O of the supply chain cluster agent, takes care of the data communication activities between
the supply chain supervisory agent residing in the SCSM and other supply chain cluster
agents. Similar to the supply chain supervisory agent, it also possesses a data format
interpreter to translate the data received from the SCSM. The supply chain cluster controller
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oversees the operations of all the modules in a supply chain cluster agent, such as
communication, and scheduling and rescheduling instructions to work order scheduling
engine. Once the scheduling engine has completed scheduling the tasks on a supply chain
cluster, the bid evaluator is instantiated by the supply chain cluster controller to derive a set
of bid data using the schedule computed for the supply chain cluster. The bid data consists of
different scheduling attributes, such as the number of work order in the supply chain cluster,
the processing start/end time of work orders, the due date of work orders and so on. These
data and the supply chain cluster schedule are then forwarded to the representative of the
supply chain cluster that is the supply chain cluster negotiator, and the scheduling database
(both residing in the SCSM) respectively (Figure 7-2). The reason for residing the supply
chain cluster negotiator instead of the whole supply chain cluster agent in the SCSM is to
ease the scheduling load imposed on the SCSM. Using the supply chain cluster negotiators,
instead of dealing directly with all the supply chain cluster agents, the SCSM only needs to
provide a locale for negotiation and decision-making. This enables a complex supply chain
scheduling problem to be decomposed into sub-tasks, which are handled at supply chain
cluster level using local computers. An intelligent agent-based distributed architecture for
scheduling multiple supply chain clusters is thus established. Once a supply chain cluster
negotiator has received a rescheduling instruction from the decision maker of the SCSM, it
will then instruct the supply chain cluster concerned to carry out the rescheduling task using
the set of new constraints established in the decision making process mentioned in Section
7.4.1.
7.5
Structure of the Supply Chain Scheduling Master (SCSM)
The SCSM makes use of the scheduling database and the knowledge base to provide services
to the scheduling system and supply chain cluster agents. The scheduling database is the
repository of all the data necessary for scheduling, including the latest supply chain unit-
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transportation-work order families, current supply chain cluster schedules, capacity and/or
manufacturing processes of supply chain unit, work orders, process routings, materials, and
scheduling parameters. The knowledge base contains the domain knowledge to support the
intelligent decision-making activities of software agents. The knowledge is represented by
decision rules that determine the priority of supply chain cluster negotiators and
communication. It also contains the decision rules for conflict resolution.
Figure 7 - 5
Structure of supply chain scheduling master (SCSM)
Besides the scheduling database and the domain knowledge base, the SCSM system comes
with a system configurator, a production rule editor, a system output generator and an agents'
locale provider. The structure of SCSM is shown in Figure 7-5.
7.5.1 System Configurator
The system configurator provides the following functionalities:
(1)
Supervisory agent configuration. It allows the users to define decision-making policies
and supply chain cluster scheduling attributes (Section 7.5.2) for decision-making.
(2)
Network setting. It defines the network properties, such as the IP address and the socket
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port for communication.
(3) Supply chain cluster configuration. It provides the users the means to modify the supply
chain cluster, and define the constraints, objectives and scheduling parameters.
7.5.2 Knowledge-based System and Production Rule Editor
In this work, a KBS is used to prioritise supply chain cluster negotiators and resolves
deadlocks or conflicting supply chain cluster schedules. The production rule editor is to
enable the user for inputting, retrieving and modifying production rules.
An expert system shell, Jess, which includes the rule engine and the scripting environment
written by Friedman-Hill (http://www.jessrules.com), is adopted for the development of the
KBS for the SCOS module. Basically, Jess supports the development of rule-based KBSs that
can be tightly coupled to codes written in the powerful, portable Java language. Basically,
Jess is a productive development and delivery expert system shell and provides a complete
environment for the construction of rule and/or object-based KBSs. It is said to have many
thousands of users worldwide (http://www.jessrules.com/links).
Basically, the supply chain cluster with a higher priority will try to resolve the conflicts
between itself and other supply chain cluster schedules and impose constraints on other
supply chain clusters before their local schedules are rescheduled.
There are three sets of decision rules namely the rule set based on predefined priority of the
supply chain cluster, the rule set based on scheduling attributes of supply chain clusters and
the rule set based on the weighted scheduling attributes of supply chain clusters. It also has a
rule set for deadlock resolution.
Rule Set Based on Predefined Priority of the Supply Chain Cluster
This set of rules is used to prioritise supply chain cluster negotiators simply based on the
predefined priority of supply chain clusters that may reflect the relative importance of
different supply chain clusters, the bottleneck and other practices of the supply chain. The
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main rule of this rule set in pseudo-English form is as follows.
Rule #1
If (using predetermined supply chain cluster priorities)
And (predetermined supply chain cluster sequence for supply chain clusters in hand exists)
Then (return the supply chain cluster ID with higher supply chain cluster priority).
Rule Set Based on Scheduling Attributes of Supply Chain Clusters
There are many supply chain cluster scheduling attributes, which can be selected as the
criteria to prioritise supply chain cluster negotiators. In this work, these scheduling attributes
include:
(1) Average work order priority;
(2) Highest work order priority;
(3) Number of work order;
(4) Number of work order with deadline constraints;
(5) Number of work order with start time constraints;
(6) Percentage of work order with deadline constraints;
(7) Percentage of work order with start time constraints; and
(8) Priority of supply chain cluster.
Based on the priority or relative importance of scheduling attributes, Jess proceeds to define
the priority of supply chain cluster negotiators.
For example, scheduling attributes such as average work order priority, number of work
orders and the highest work order priority are considered. If the corresponding values of the
three scheduling attributes of supply chain clusters 1 and 2 are 10, 20 and 30, and 10, 30 and
10 respectively, cluster 2 will be assigned a higher priority. The reason being, although it has
the same average work order priority as cluster 1 (the first attribute), it has 10 more work
orders than cluster 1 (the second attribute). The third attribute is then ignored. The main rules
in pseudo-English form are listed below.
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Rule #1
If(using the priority of supply chain cluster scheduling attributes)
And (the value of the first attribute in the sequence of the first supply chain cluster is greater
than that of the second supply chain cluster)
Then (return the supply chain cluster ID of the first supply chain cluster).
Rule #2
If(using the priority of supply chain cluster scheduling attributes)
And (the value of the first attribute in the sequence of the first supply chain cluster equals
that of the second supply chain cluster)
And ()
And (the value of the nth attribute in the sequence of the first supply chain cluster is greater
than that of the second supply chain cluster)
Then (return the supply chain cluster ID of the first supply chain cluster)
.
Rule Set Based on the Weighted Scheduling Attributes of Supply Chain Clusters
Apart from having a value, each scheduling attribute is also assigned a weightage to reflect its
relative importance. The final value for a supply chain cluster is that of the attribute and its
weightage. The larger the final value of a supply chain cluster, the higher its priority. The
supply chain cluster with a higher priority will impose constraints on other supply chain
clusters when all supply chain cluster negotiators try to derive the global schedule. The
schedule of the supply chain cluster with higher priority remains unchanged. The main rules
in pseudo-English form are as follows.
Rule #1
If (using the weights of supply chain cluster scheduling attributes)
Then (final value = (attribute 1 weight 1 + + attribute n weight n) / (attribute 1 + +
attribute n)).
Rule #2
If (using the weights of supply chain cluster scheduling attributes)
And (final values of the supply chain clusters exist)
Then (return the supply chain cluster ID with largest final value).
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Rule Set for Deadlock Resolution
As already mentioned, the priority of a supply chain cluster is based on the final values
computed. During each cycle of computation, the SCOS module actually carries out the
following iterative tasks:
Local scheduling by the dynamic schedulers of SCSC;
Determining a near optimal schedule and/or detecting conflicts by SCSM; and
Rescheduling of affected supply chain cluster if conflicts are detected.
Under certain circumstances that the values of all the attributes involved in decision-making
are the same or similar to those of the previous cycle of computation, Jess may work out the
same priority for supply chain cluster negotiators. This may cause some schedules that are
feasible for individual supply chain clusters but unfeasible for the entire manufacturing
system to be always accepted. As a result, deadlocks may occur. An easy and simple way for
deadlock resolution is proposed and implemented in this work to monitor and break possible
deadlock during program execution. The procedure is outlined as follows:
(1) predefine the maximum number of iteration for rescheduling;
(2) Check the iteration number every time when rescheduling is instantiated;
(3) Carry out rescheduling if the iteration number is less than the predefined number;
(4) Otherwise, reset the iteration number to zero and randomly select a supply chain cluster
for rescheduling which is fairly similar to the mutation operation in GAs.
The above procedure temporarily suspends using the priority worked out for each of the
supply chain cluster negotiators to derive the near optimal schedule for the entire
manufacturing system. It randomly selects a supply chain cluster for rescheduling. As a result,
the supply chain cluster schedule that causes a deadlock may be rejected. A new schedule can
then be worked out. Such an action may eventually enable a compromised solution to be
discovered.
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For example, in cycle n, the priorities of the supply chain cluster negotiators is cluster 1 - one,
cluster 3 - two and cluster 2 - three, which means cluster 1 will impose some constraints on
cluster 2 and cluster 3 when they try to resolve the conflicts between them. Clusters 2 and 3
are rescheduled while cluster 1 remains unchanged.
In cycle n + 1, the priorities of the supply chain negotiators of clusters 1, 2 and 3 remain
unchanged, assuming the values of all the attributes involved in decision-making are the same
or similar to those of the previous cycle of computation. Cluster 1 will again impose some
constraints on clusters 2 and 3, when they try to reschedule their local schedules. Cluster 1
remains unchanged.
If the local schedule of cluster 1 is locally feasible but not the global schedule of the entire
manufacturing system, a deadlock occurs. As long as the schedule of cluster 1 remains
unchanged in the subsequent cycles, no feasible global schedule can be found.
Some of the main rules in pseudo-English form are as follows.
Rule #1
If (loop number of rescheduling is less than the predefined maximum loop number)
Then (add 1 to loop number of rescheduling)
Rule #2
If (loop number of rescheduling is equal to the predefined maximum loop number)
Then (loop number of rescheduling equals 0)
And (return a randomly selected supply chain cluster ID)
7.5.3 System Output Generator
The system output generator comprises two functional sub-modules namely the scheduling
information output and the agents monitor. The scheduling information output searches the
scheduling database, which stores all the information involved in a scheduling problem, and
displays the information required by users. Through the system output generator, users are
able to access the scheduling database and browse the information of every processing stage.
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The runtime status of the supervisory agent and the activated supply chain cluster agents can
be obtained via the agents monitor. In summary, the system output generator is able to show
the following information.
(1) The optimal or near optimal schedule of different supply chain clusters;
(2) The historical records of different scheduling problems and their results. This is useful
for the choice of GA parameters for the current scheduling problem;
(3) The run-time status of the activated supply chain cluster agents, the supervisory agent
and the KBS.
7.5.4 Agents Locale Provider
The agents locale provider is a place for supply chain cluster agents to prioritise supply
chain cluster negotiators, to reject or accept schedules generated, and to finalize the overall
schedule, under the control of the supervisory agent. The activities carried out by the agents'
locale provider are as follows.
The supply chain cluster negotiator, which is the representative of a supply chain cluster
agent, forwards its bid data to the supervisory agent, after a local optimal schedule for the
supply chain cluster has been worked out;
The supervisory agent works out the priority of supply chain cluster negotiators according
to the bid data and decision-making policies. Some of the schedules generated are
rejected as a result of the negotiations among supply chain cluster negotiators based on
their priority; and
The supervisory agent instructs the affected supply chain clusters, whose schedules have
been rejected or whose scheduling problems have additional constraints added, to 'reschedule' so as to work out another local near optimal schedule.
7.6
Structure of the Supply Chain Scheduling Client System (SCSC)
The supply chain scheduling client System (SCSC) allows users to view the properties of
supply chain clusters, and monitor the status of supply chain cluster agents and the
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performance of the work order scheduling engine (Figure 7-6). Once the SCSC is invoked, it
will establish communication with the SCSM. Subsequently, each supply chain cluster agent
begins to retrieve all the necessary information relevant to the supply chain cluster which it
belongs, from the scheduling database and domain knowledge base of the SCSM. This
information is then kept in the local data store containing local scheduling information and
domain knowledge respectively (Figure 7-2).
Briefly, the local scheduling information data store contains such information as supply chain
unit-transportation-work order family that it represents, supply chain unit capacity and cycle
time, GA parameters and the objective functions for the work order scheduling engine,
schedule constraints imposed by other supply chain clusters, and local optimal schedule
worked out by the work order scheduling engine.
Supply Chain Scheduling Client (SCSC)
System Configurator
Supply Chain Cluster Agent
Configuration
Network Setting
Supply Chain Cluster
Properties
Local
Scheduling
Information
Domain
Knowledge
Supply
Chain
Cluster
Agent
Other Supply Chain
Cluster Agents
Supply Chain
Supervisory Agent
System Output Generator
Supply Chain Cluster
Agent Monitor
Work Order Scheduling Engine
Scheduling
Information Output
Figure 7 - 6
Structure of supply chain scheduling client (SCSC)
Figure 7-6 shows the structure of the SCSC. Similar to the SCSM, a system configurator and
a system output generator, which allow the interaction with the SCSC, have been
incorporated.
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The intelligent agent based SCOS is illustrated by a hypothetical 18 work orders from 3
customers and 4 supply chain virtual clusters as reported in Section 7.7.
7.7
Example and Discussions
Figure 7 - 7
Functional structure of the prototype SCOS
The functional structure of the SCOS module developed is shown in Figure 7-7. The data
input provides the necessary functions to import data from files or to extract data from the
RSO and SCVC modules. The system configuration allows the users to configure the supply
chain clusters, supply chain scheduling master/client and the dynamic scheduler embedded.
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The network options and communication and information change protocols can be defined
for both supply chain scheduling master and client. Besides, decision making rules and the
parameters used to solve the conflicts among software agents are configured in decision
making options and the bid evaluation options. The SCOS runtime is used to control the
running of the SCOS and monitor the status of the agents and the KBS inference engine. The
order schedule and the schedule of individual supply chain units can be retrieved from the
SCOS result output. It also provides the statistic data of the system and the function to export
the results.
Figure 7-8 shows the supply chain and its units that are modelled in this example. It consists
of 3 suppliers (SU01, SU02 and SU03), 6 manufacturing plants (MP1, MP2, MP3, MP4,
MP5 and MP6), 4 assembly plants (AP01, AP02, AP03 and AP04), and 4 distribution centres
(DC01, DC02, DC03 and DC04).
Figure 7 - 8
The overview of the supply chain in this example
Assume that based on the supply chain topology depicted in Figure 7-8 and the customer
orders shown in Table 7-2, the RSO module has determined the work order routings and
subsequently the SCVC module has assigned the supply chain units into four virtual clusters,
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VC1, VC2, VC3 and VC4 (Table 7-1). Table 7-1 also indicates the manufacturing lines of a
manufacturing plant. For example, the manufacturing plant, MP01, has two manufacturing
lines namely M1L1 and M2L2; the manufacturing plant, MP03, has three manufacturing lines
namely M3L1, M3L2 and M3L3.
Table 7 - 1
Supply chain virtual clusters and their supply chain units
Virtual Cluster 1 (VC1)
SU01
MP01
(M1L1,M1L2)
MP05
(M5L1,M5L2)
AP01
DC01
Virtual Cluster 2 (VC2)
MP02
(M2L1,M2L2)
AP02
DC02
Virtual Cluster 3 (VC3)
SU02
SU03
MP03
(M3L1,M3L2,M3L3)
MP06
(M6L1,M6L2)
AP03
DC03
Virtual Cluster 4 (VC4)
MP04
(M4L1,M4L2,M4L3)
AP04
DC04
In this example, six products (P01, P02, P03, P04, P05 and P06) are to be completely
processed by four supply chain clusters (VC1, VC2, VC3, and VC4) according to the
sequence shown in Table 7-2. The tasks or jobs in each virtual cluster are uniquely identified.
For example, Product P01 is processed through VC1 and VC3 in the job sequence 011-031
for work order WO11 of customer order CU01 from customer ABC Engineering. If one were
to examine the schedule of a virtual cluster, say VC1, it would look like the one shown in
Figure 7-9 which depicts the utilization of the sever supply chain units in the VC1 for all the
12 jobs (011, 012, 013, 014, 017, 018, 019, 01A, 01D, 01E, 01F and 01G). It needs to process
33 jobs in order to fabricate 6 products and fulfil the three customer orders. The local
schedules of all the four virtual clusters are derived independently and are used to compare
with the results obtained from SCOS.
Since most of the products are processed in more than one virtual cluster, it is clear that a
global schedule has to be defined and optimized, even though the local schedule of each
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supply chain unit is already optimized subject to its own constraints. In this example, the
local schedules of the four virtual clusters have been optimized by a GA-enhanced dynamic
scheduler for a population size of 60, crossover and mutation rates of 0.9 and 0.03
respectively, and 100 generations (Khoo et al. 2000, Yin 2000). The objective functions are
cycle time, which is to be minimized, and the on-time delivery, which is to be maximized.
For easy illustration and comparison, the dynamic scheduler partitions a day into 50 equal
time intervals.
Table 7 - 2
Work order details of the example
Customer
Order
Customer
Name
Work
Order
Product
Order
Qty
Delivery
Date
Job Id
in VC1
CU01
ABC
Engineers
WO11
P01
20
15 Dec 2009
011
WO22
WO33
WO4A
WO5B
WO6C
P02
P03
P04
P05
P06
10
15
30
20
30
15 Dec 2009
15 Dec 2009
15 Dec 2009
15 Dec 2009
15 Dec 2009
012
013
01A
WO17
WO28
WO39
WO44
WO55
WO66
P01
P02
P03
P04
P05
P06
20
10
15
30
20
30
16 Dec 2009
16 Dec 2009
16 Dec 2009
16 Dec 2009
16 Dec 2009
16 Dec 2009
017
018
019
014
WO1D
WO2E
WO3F
WO4G
WO5H
WO6I
P01
P02
P03
P04
P05
P06
20
10
15
30
20
30
16 Dec 2009
16 Dec 2009
16 Dec 2009
16 Dec 2009
16 Dec 2009
16 Dec 2009
01D
01E
01F
01G
CU02
CU03
AA Pte Ltd
BB Mold
Job Id
in VC2
Job Id
in VC3
Job Id
in VC4
031
023
02A
03B
03C
04A
04B
037
029
024
035
036
044
045
03D
02F
02G
03H
03I
04G
04H
Figures 7-9 to 7-11 show the schedules of VC1, VC2 and VC3 respectively before rescheduling by the SCOS. Although the local schedules of virtual clusters are optimized for
minimum cycle time, as mentioned earlier, conflicts among the local schedules can arise in
the process of deriving an optimum global schedule. For example, it is clear from Figures 7-9
and 7-10 that, for Product P03 of WO39, Job 029 in VC2 can only start after completion of
Job 019 in VC1. However, it can be seen obviously from Figures 7-10 and 7-11 that Job 029
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(on manufacturing line M2L1) starts and ends much earlier than Job 019 (on manufacturing
line M1L1). That is to say, Job 029 precedes Job 019. Similar conflicts arise for other jobs
such as Job 014 (Figure 7-9) and Job 024 (Figure 7-10), and Job 017 (Figure 7-9) and 037
(Figure 7-11). Such conflicts arise because the local schedule is derived independently of
other locally optimized virtual cluster schedules.
Figure 7 - 9
Example schedule of the VC1 with/without SCOS
Figure 7 - 10
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Figure 7 - 11
Schedule of VC3 without SCOS
Figure 7 - 12
Schedule of VC2 with SCOS
Figure 7 - 13
Schedule of VC3 with SCOS
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Figure 7 - 14
Figure 7 - 15
Schedule of VC4 with SCOS
Schedule of the 18 work orders from 3 customer orders
After the intelligent agent based SCOS has re-scheduled all four virtual clusters in order to
arrive at a near optimal global schedule, their local schedules are shown in Figure 7-9 and
Figures 7-12 to 7-14 respectively. There is no change in the schedule of VC1 as all the jobs
of VC1 have no constraints from other local schedules. It is clear from these Figures 7-12 to
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7-14 that many supply chain units have many idle periods, giving rise to unduly long cycle
time. It is due to the constraints imposed by the order of processing of the respective jobs in
other virtual clusters as specified in Table 7-1 and the negotiation and conflicts solving
among different supply chain virtual clusters. For example, consider the Job 019 in VC1 in
Figure 7-9 again that finishes at around 240th time interval. As a result, Job 029 in VC2 in
Figure 7-12 is forced to begin after the 240th time interval from the initial schedule in Figure
7-10, in which Job 029 begins at around 120th time interval, after negotiation among the
various supply chain cluster agents. As shown, most of the jobs have been scheduled as early
as possible. The final schedules are feasible and near-optimal, given the two objectives of
minimizing cycle time and maximizing on-time delivery, subject to the constraints of due
date and supply chain unit capacity. The overall schedule of 501 time intervals to fulfil the 18
work orders from 3 customers is shown in Figure 7-15.
7.8
Summary
An intelligent agent-based distributed architecture for supply chain order scheduling (SCOS),
which is built on top of a dynamic scheduler, is presented. The intelligent agent-based SCOS
consists of two subsystems namely the supply chain scheduling master (SCSM) and the
supply chain scheduling client (SCSC). Two software agents, namely the supply chain
supervisory agent (SCSA) and the supply chain cluster agents (SCCA), work out the global
near-optimal schedule for a complex supply chain system consisting of multiple supply chain
clusters that are derived from the SCVC module. The SCSM maintains all the domain
knowledge and scheduling information in its database and can communicate with all the
virtual clusters residing in the SCSC. The SCSC once invoked, establishes communication
with the SCSM and retrieves the relevant information to schedule the individual supply chain
virtual cluster, which is accomplished by the dynamic scheduler. The SCSM contains a
knowledge base with production rules for decision-making and conflict or deadlock
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resolution in multiple virtual clusters scheduling. The various supply chain cluster negotiators,
assisted by the knowledge base, arrive at a near optimal global schedule for the entire
manufacturing system.
The capability of the intelligent agent-based SCOS was illustrated by a hypothetical supply
chain optimization problem with 18 work orders from 3 customers and 4 supply chain virtual
clusters. The results show that the agent-based architecture of the SCOS can successfully
resolve the conflicts among supply chain virtual clusters through negotiation and
communication, and obtain a feasible, near-optimal global schedule for the entire supply
chain.
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Chapter 8
Case Study: an Application of SCASO to Semiconductor Packaging Industry
CASE STUDY: AN APPLICATION OF SCASO
TO SEMICONDUCTOR PACKAGING INDUSTRY
8.1
Introduction
In this chapter, a case study based on a leading assembly and test service provider in
semiconductor packaging industry in Singapore is discussed in detail to illustrate the
effectiveness of the prototype SCASO system which has been realized using Microsoft
Visual Studio and Java with the aid of a java-based expert system shell, Jess.
Semiconductor packaging provides the interconnection from the Integrated Circuit (IC) to the
printed circuit board (PCB) and acts as an interface between circuit and the board.
Additionally, packaging also provides the desired mechanical and environmental protection
for the circuitry to ensure reliability and performance. Semiconductor packaging is labour
intensive and this has resulted in the outsourcing of the assembly and test activities. The
major location for the semiconductor packaging industry especially the subcontract
packaging companies such as ASE, Amkor, SPIL and STATS ChipPAC is in the Asia Pacific
region. The large subcontractors are able to provide assembly, test and turnkey services.
XYZ Company headquartered in Singapore is a leading service provider of semiconductor
assembly and test. It is able to provide services to a diversified global customer base
including the computing, communications, consumer, automotive and industrial markets. As
an Outsourced Semiconductor Assembly and Test (OSAT) provider, XYZ Company is
capable to provide a comprehensive turnkey solution that encompasses key building blocks of
design, redistribution, wafer bump, probe, assembly, test and supply chain management to its
customers. It has a global manufacturing presence spanning from Singapore, China, South
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Korea, Malaysia, Taiwan, Thailand and the United States. Due to the sensitivity of the
semiconductor industry, the data in the following case study are simplified and represented
using alphanumeric codes.
8.2
The Supply Chain and the Process Flow
8.2.1 Overview of the Semiconductor Subcontract Environment and Its Supply
Chain
Figure 8-1 shows a typical semiconductor subcontract (OSAT) environment. Basically, the
customer orders the wafer from a wafer fab/foundry that fabricates the wafer based on the IC
design through many complex and repeated sequential processes known as front-end
processing. The IC is then created on a silicon substrate called wafer and the wafer lots will
then be shipped to the semiconductor packaging factories for assembly and test. During the
back-end processing phase, the IC chips are encapsulated into packages, and thoroughly
inspected before becoming completed products. The finished goods (FG) will then be
arranged for the shipment to the customer directly or to the PCBA plant/warehouse/DC
through some drop shipping arrangement that can effectively eliminate the upfront inventory
and other duplication efforts such as packing and shipping. The drop shipping is able to
reduce the total inventory management and shipping costs.
Figure 8 - 1
A typical semiconductor subcontract (OSAT) environment
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Wafer fab/foundry: It is where all electronic components of a semiconductor are
interconnected onto a single die of silicon. It provides a clean-room facility where wafers
of silicon or other semiconductor substrates are manufactured based on the full IC layout
design from customer. Wafers then become the raw materials for the IC fabrication
process.
Materials supplier: Semiconductor assembly and test utilizes and consumes many
materials in addition to the wafer. The direct material is the materials that are required in
assembly operations which create the IC leads and eventually encapsulate the chips, such
as epoxy and lead frame for die attach operation, gold wire for wire bonding operation,
and compound for mold operation. The packing material is used in the post test
operations to pack IC components for shipment. Inspected IC components are stored in
trays or tapes and labelled with the product information. The humidity indicator is
frequently used to monitor the environment as certain level of humidity might degrade the
quality of the IC components.
Vendor managed inventory (VMI): In order to optimize the supply chain and inventory
carrying cost, the supplier or vendor of a material sometimes becomes responsible for
maintaining the customers inventory levels to prevent the material shortage.
Semiconductor assembly and test: It is where the semiconductor back-end packaging
processes are carried out. The semiconductor assembly and test service provider normally
maintains customer wafer lots in its own die bank if the wafer lot shipments arrive before
the lot release instruction. Once receiving the instructions from customers, it will release
the relevant wafer lots either in the die bank or in-transit as soon as the capacity and lots
are available. It works out its own material purchase plan using the forecast data as the
lead-time of some materials such as lead frame is as long as one month. This will ensure
the minimal material shortage. After a lot released to the assembly and/or test line, the
customer is informed the earliest possible FG and shipment date, so that the customer is
able to make proper arrangement for shipment directly to the PCB assembly plants or
other desired locations based on its shipment schedule and flight availability among
cities.
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8.2.2 Current Planning and Scheduling Practice of XYZ Company
XYZ Company has nine assembly and test facilities with different capacity and capability.
They are strategically located near its major customers (Figure 8-2). It provides services such
as wafer bump, flip chip, wafer level CSP (WLCSP), wafer sort, wafer probe, assembly, test,
post test and drop shipping and serves more than 50 customers all over the world. Though
none of the nine factories is able to support all the services, the company is still able to
furnish the so-called full back-end turnkey services for a wide variety of electronics
applications by combining the strength of each factory.
Figure 8 - 2
Geographic factory location and product flow in the supply chain
Table 8-1 further lists the service type(s) that each factory can support and the product type(s)
that each factory is capable of and qualified to run. For example, Factory F1 is able to
provide the services of assembly, test, WLCSP and capable to run both laminate and leaded
products.
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Table 8 - 1
Factory
F1
F2
F3
F4
F5
F6
F7
F8
F9
Case Study: an Application of SCASO to Semiconductor Packaging Industry
List of factory capability
Service Type
Assembly
Test WLCSP Wafer Bump
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Product Type
Laminate
Leaded
Y
Y
Y
Y
Flip Chip
Y
Y
Note: Y indicates the factory has the capability.
The factorys Industrial Engineering (IE) department is the main force of product planning
with the help of the demand management team and the capacity planning team. They will sit
down for more than two weeks of meetings and discussions through conference calls to
coordinate in MS Excels and work out the committed product plan and customer
commitments in weekly bucket for the current and next months and in monthly bucket for
subsequent months. The main considerations in their mind are the capacity of each factory
and the customer location.
On the other hand, the product scheduling is carried out in each factory separately without
any coordination and consideration of the upstream and/or downstream requirements of a
wafer lot in the supply chain. In most of the factories, the MS Excel is the only tool to help
them on the scheduling and it takes the factory planner and scheduler a few hours a day to
schedule the lots only for the key front-of-line operations, such as die attach and wire bound,
and end-of-line operations, such as mold and marking. In the situation where a lot needs to be
processed in Factory F1 for assembly and then moved to Factory F2 for test, post test and
shipping, there is no visibility for Factory F2 if the lot is still processing in Factory F1.
Similarly, Factory F1 also has no visibility of the capacity and schedule of Factory F2 that
could help it better allocate the lot which is needed to be further processed in Factory F2.
Thus, when this research was carried out, the company did not have an optimized local
schedule for individual factory, let along the coordination and optimization of the schedule
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along the supply chain.
8.3
Results and Discussions
Due to sensitivity, the information obtained is masked where necessary. The following
assumptions are made.
(1) The production lines of factories are limited to the lines shown in Table 8-2. Some
factories may have more production lines that handle different package families. For
example, Factory F2 has two assembly lines, F2A1 and F2A2, one flip chip line, F2F1,
one test line, F2T1, and one post test line, F2P1. It also owns a die inventory, F2D1, and
most of the dies are shipped from supplier F2S1.
(2) Package families that involved in this case study are listed in Appendix A. The
relationship of product type, package type and package family is also indicated.
(3) Wafer bump/WLCSP services have been ignored. As an advanced packaging technique,
the volume is not large at the moment comparing to other services. To simplify the
modelling, the product lines providing these services have been ignored. It includes
lines F3B1, F6B1, F9B1, F1W1, F6W1, and F8W1.
(4) In the subcontract environment, the order due date is not important. The factory has to
issue the wafer lots to the lines as soon as receiving customers instruction. The
customer normally requests the earliest possible release and shipment date of its IC
components.
(5) Wafer/die supply is considered while other materials such as direct materials and
packing materials are ignored. In subcontract environment, the materials other than
wafer lots are normally ordered and stored according to the forecast/demand planning to
ensure the sufficient materials supply for a smooth production. There might be materials
shortage due to the drastic demand variation or the human error.
(6) As mentioned in Section 8.2, the status of a customer wafer lot might be in-die-bank or
in-transit. It is assumed that in-transit lot needs one day for shipment to arrival and indie-bank lots can be issued to the line any time though some inspection and quality
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checking might be still requested. The shipment of the wafer lot from wafer fab might
be affect by the shipment schedule and the flight availability. In this case study, such
disturbs are ignored.
(7) A lot might need to transfer from one factory location to another due to the different
services that a factory can provide and the location of the customer. For example, a
customer in Taiwan wants the turnkey products which include the assembly and test
services, but the Taiwan factories do not provide assembly service. The products have to
be shipped to China or nearby factories with assembly capability and shipped back to
Taiwan factories for test and packing, and delivered to the customer eventually. One day
transportation lead-time is introduced in the prototype system if a lot needs to move
between two different locations. Similarly, the flight availability and other factors that
might affect the transportation are ignored.
(8) As the customer orders have been committed in production planning phase as described
in Section 8.2.2, the factory commitment and the product routing is then determined.
Thus, this case study only examines the supply chain virtual clustering and order
scheduling modules
Table 8 - 2
Production lines and die supplier
Factory
Assembly
Test
F1
F2
F3
F4
F5
F6
F7
F8
F9
F1A1,F1W1
F2A1,F2A2,F2F1
F3B1
F4A1,F4A2,F4F1
F5A1
F6A1,F6W1,F6B1
F1T1,F1P1
F2T1,F2P1
F4T1,F4T2,F4P1
F5T1,F5P1
F6T1,F6P1
F7T1,F7P1
Die inventory
Die bank
F1D1
F2D1
Supplier (die)
F4D1
F4S1
F6D1
F6S1
F1S1
F2S1
F8W1
F9B1
Note: A-Assembly line; B-Wafer bump; F-Flip chip; P-Post test; T-Test location; W-WLCSP
8.3.1 Supply Chain Virtual Clustering Module (SCVC)
The details of the work orders and the processes are listed in Appendix B. The work orders
and their processes can be converted into a Supply_Matrix shown in Table 8-3.
Table 8-4 lists the parameters used in the computation of the MBEA enabled SCVC which
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include parameters for fuzzy c-means, GA and TS. A larger GA number of generation and
population size is used as this case study is a much larger optimization problem (23 work
orders 30 production lines) compared to that of Section 6.4.
Table 8 - 3
SCU
Supply_Matrix for Case Study of XYZ Company
F
1
A
1
1
F
1
T
1
1
F
1
P
1
1
F
1
D
1
1
F
1
S
1
F
2
A
1
F
2
A
2
F
2
F
1
F
2
T
1
F
2
P
1
F
2
D
1
F
2
S
1
F
4
A
1
F
4
A
2
F
4
F
1
F
4
T
1
F
4
T
2
F
4
P
1
F
4
D
1
F
4
S
1
F
5
A
1
F
5
T
1
F
5
P
1
F
6
A
1
WO
WO11
WO21
1
1 1
1
WO51
1
1
WO61
1
WO71
1
1
WO81
1
1 1
1
WO91
1
1
1
1
WOA1
1 1 1
1
WOB1
1
1 1 1
WOC1
1
1
1 1
WOD1
1
WOE1
1 1 1
WOF1
1
WOG1
1
1
WOH1
1
1 1 1
WOJ1
1
1 1 1
WOK1
1
1 1
1
WOL1
1
1 1
1
WOM1
1 1 1 1
WO52
1 1
1
1
WO53
1 1 1
1
WO54
1 1
1 1
WO55
1 1 1 1
Note: WO and SCU denote work orders and supply chain units respectively
F
6
T
1
F
6
P
1
F
6
D
1
F
6
S
1
F
7
T
1
1 1
1
1
1 1
1 1
1
1
1 1
1
1 1
Figure 8-3 depicts the mean value of 6 simulation runs of the number of cluster centre in each
updating of parameters. It can be seen that the MBEA enabled SCVC eventually converges to
3 cluster centres. This shows that the MBEA enabled SCVC is able to derive the optimal
number of cluster. A typical final fuzzy cluster matrix U* and a cluster centre matrix V* are
shown in Appendix C. The effectiveness of the MBEA enabled SCVC has been demonstrated.
Obviously, the work orders requiring inter-cluster movement are minimal and the near
optimal cluster allocation shown in Table 8-5 is good enough for the SCOS module.
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1
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Table 8 - 4
Parameters used in simulation run
Parameters
Number_of_generation_for_
parameter_updating
FC_c_Min
FC_c_Max
FC_c_Step_Min
Description
Number of GA generations between two
consecutive TS for parameter updating
Minimal number of cluster of fuzzy c-means
Maximal number of cluster of fuzzy c-means
Minimal step for neighbourhood search of
parameter c
Maximal step for neighbourhood search of
parameter c
Minimal number of m of fuzzy c-means
Maximal number of m of fuzzy c-means
Minimal step for neighbourhood search of
parameter m
Maximal step for neighbourhood search of
parameter m
Total number of GA generations
GA population size
GA crossover probability
GA mutation probability
Percentage for GA elitist strategy
Number of GA populations for TS
Percentage of the best chromosome to be
selected into the new population after TS
parameter updating
Tabu list length
The weightages for best and average promise
level respectively
Value
60
2
6
1
FC_c_Step_Max
FC_m_Min
FC_m_Max
FC_m_Step_Min
1.25
3
0.01
FC_m_Step_Max
0.3
GA_number_of_generation
GA_population_size
GA_crossover_rate
GA_mutation_rate
GA_elitist_rate
TS_number_of_individual
TS_new_population_elitist_rate
1200
500
0.9
0.1
0.08
4
0.2
TS_length_of_tabu_list
TS_promise_level_weightage
(best/average)
8
1/0
Number of cluster centre
Number of Cluster Centre
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
1
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
MBEA parameter update
Figure 8 - 3
The best number of cluster centre of MBEA
Three supply chain unit-transportation-work order families (supply chain virtual clusters)
have been formed and the work orders and supply chain units are evenly distributed to the
three families. There are only four, WO51, WO52, WO61 and WOG1, out of the 23 work
orders that are required to travel among clusters. A typical cluster as shown in Table 8-5
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includes supply chain units, F4A1, F4A2, F4F1, F4T1, F4T2, F4P1, F4D1, F4S1, F5A1,
F5T1, F5P1 and F6D1, and work orders, WOE1, WO91, WOC1, WOG1, WOJ1, WOL1 and
WO54, and their associate transportations. By successfully identifying the virtual clusters, the
supply chain model with 23 work orders and 30 supply chain units is decomposed into three
supply chain virtual clusters of much smaller size. Thus, the search space is reduced. It will
improve the efficiency of the subsequent module, the SCOS module.
Table 8 - 5
Optimized supply chain virtual clusters in Supply_Matrix format
SCU
F F F F F F F F F F F F F F F F F F F
4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 5 5 5 6 7 7 2 2 2 2 2
A A F T T P D S A T P D T P A A F T P
WO
1 2 1 1 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 1 1 1
WOE1
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
WO91
1 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
WOC1
1 0 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
WOG1 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
WOJ1
0 1 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
WOL1
0 1 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
WO54
0 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
WO21
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 1
WO71
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0
WO81
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 1
WOB1
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 1
WOH1
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 1
WOK1
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 1
WO53
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1
WO55
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1
WO61
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
WO11
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
WO51
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
WOA1
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
WOD1
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
WOF1
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
WOM1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
WO52
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
Note: WO and SCU denote work orders and supply chain units respectively
F
2
D
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
1
0
0
1
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
1
F
2
S
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
F
1
S
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
F
1
A
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
1
0
F
1
T
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
1
1
F
1
P
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
1
1
F
1
D
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
1
0
F
6
A
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
F
6
T
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
1
1
0
0
F
6
P
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
1
0
0
8.3.2 Supply Chain Order Scheduler (SCOS)
The data of the optimized supply chain virtual clusters (Table 8-5) derived from the SCVC
module in Section 8.3.1 is channeled to the SCOS module. The supply chain scheduling
master (SCSM) initializes a scheduling client system (SCSC) for each of the virtual cluster
and the supply chain cluster agent (SCCA) will then take control and negotiate with other
SCCAs representing different virtual clusters with the help of the cluster negotiators to reach
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F
6
S
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
Ph.D Thesis
Case Study: an Application of SCASO to Semiconductor Packaging Industry
a near global optimal schedule.
Table 8-6 shows the three supply chain virtual clusters, namely VC01, VC02 and VC03, with
their associated supply chain units transformed from the Supply_Matrix shown in Table 8-5.
For example, VC03 consists of nine supply chain units, F1S1, F6S1, F1D1, F1A1, F6A1,
F1T1, F6T1, F1P1 and F6P1. Two Die Attach (DA) machine types, i.e. DA01 for
ALPHASEM machines and DA02 for ESEC machines, and two Wire Bond (WB) machine
types, i.e. WB01 for KNS machines and WB02 for ASM Eagle machines, and one end of line
(EOL1) are further modelled to represent the assembly line F2A2. In doing so, the detailed
schedule on individual machine types can be worked out.
Similarly, since some of the work orders such as WO51, WO61 and WOG1 have been
processed in more than one virtual cluster, it is clear that a global schedule has to be defined
and optimized, even though the local schedule of each supply chain unit is already optimized
subject to its own constraints. In the subsequent simulation runs, the parameters of the genetic
algorithm of the dynamic scheduler are as follows: population size of 80, 200 generations, the
probability of crossover and mutation are 0.9 and 0.03 respectively and the linear fitness
ranking method and elitist selection are applied. The rule set based on scheduling attributes is
adopted to do the decision-making and the objective function to be optimized is cycle time.
Similar as the case study presented in Chapter 7, the dynamic scheduler partitions a day into
50 equal time intervals for easy illustration and comparison.
In this case study, 23 work orders from seven customers (Appendix B) are to be completely
processed by the three supply chain clusters (VC01, VC02 and VC03) according to the
process sequence shown in Table 8-7. Similar to the case study described in Chapter 7, the
tasks or jobs in each virtual cluster are uniquely identified. For example, WO51 of customer
LSI is processed through VC02 and VC03 in the job sequence 02A-033.
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Table 8 - 6
Case Study: an Application of SCASO to Semiconductor Packaging Industry
Supply chain virtual clusters and their supply chain units
Virtual Cluster 1 (VC01)
F4S1
F4D1
F6D1
F4A1
F4A2
F4F1
F4T1
F4T2
F4P1
F5A1
F5T1
F5P1
Virtual Cluster 2 (VC02)
F2S1
F2D1
F2A1
F2A2
- DA01,DA02
- WB01,WB02
- EOL1
F2F1
F2T1
F7T1
F2P1
F7P1
Virtual Cluster 3 (VC03)
F1S1
F6S1
F1D1
F1A1
F6A1
F1T1
F6T1
F1P1
F6P1
Table 8 - 7
Work order details of the case study
Work Order
WO11
WO21
WO51
Customer
INTEL
SANDISK
LSI
Qty(k)
20
30
10
Die
F1D1
F2S1
F2D1
Processes
F1A1, F1T1,F1P1
F2A1,F2T1,F2P1
F2F1,F6T1,F6P1
WO61
WO71
WO81
WO91
WOA1
WOB1
WOC1
WOD1
WOE1
NVIDIA
TSMC
IDT
SONY
INTEL
SANDISK
ANALOG
LSI
LSI
20
10
15
25
30
10
5
15
20
F6D1
F2D1
F2S1
F4S1
F1S1
F2D1
F4D1
F6S1
F6D1
F6A1,F6T1,F6P1
F2A1,F7T1,F7P1
F2A1,F2T1,F2P1
F4A1,F4T1,F4P1
F1A1, F1T1,F1P1
F2A1,F2T1,F2P1
F4A1,F4T1,F4P1
F6A1,F6T1,F6P1
F5A1,F5T1,F5P1
WOF1
WOG1
WOH1
WOJ1
NVIDIA
TSMC
IDT
SONY
10
20
15
25
F6S1
F4D1
F2D1
F4D1
F6A1,F6T1,F6P1
F4A2,F7T1,F7P1
F2A2,F2T1,F2P1
F4A2,F4T2,F4P1
WOK1
WOL1
WOM1
IDT
SONY
INTEL
10 F2S1
5 F4S1
15 F1D1
F2A2,F2T1,F2P1
F4A2,F4T2,F4P1
F1A1, F1T1,F1P1
WO52
WO53
WO54
WO55
INTEL
IDT
SONY
SANDISK
10
25
25
5
F2F1,F1T1,F1P1
F2F1,F2T1,F2P1
F4F1,F4T1,F4P1
F2F1,F2T1,F2P1
F2D1
F2S1
F4D1
F2D1
Job Id
Job Id
Job Id
In VC01 In VC02 In VC03
032
022
02A
033
01A
038
023
024
012
034
025
013
035
011
036
014
021
026
015
027
016
037
02B
028
031
017
029
Figures 8-4 to 8-6 shows the schedules of VC01, VC02 and VC03 respectively. Obviously,
the work orders that require being processed by more than one virtual clusters, such as WO51,
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WO61 and WOG1, have been scheduled properly without any conflicts on job start and end
times. For example, Job 02A of work order WO51 ends its process on line F2F1 at 403rd time
interval in VC02 (Figure 8-5). After 1 day of shipment from the time interval between 403
and 453 which is represented by TDL1 in VC03 (Figure 8-6), it continues the remaining
processes on line F6T1 from time interval 453rd onwards. Appendix D lists the details of the
entire work order schedules including their transpiration lead-time from wafer fab and the
shipment lead-time from one factory location to another.
As shown in Figures 8-4 to 8-6, all the work orders and its relevant jobs have been scheduled
as early as possible. The final schedules are feasible while all the conflicts that are considered
in the model among local schedules are resolved. In VC02 in Figure 8-5, the schedules for
DA and WB operations are detailed down to the machine group level that gives the
production planner and scheduler more flexibility and visibility on how the capacity of each
operation that is modelled in the system is consumed and whether there is any shortage. The
overall schedule of 581 time intervals to fulfil the 23 work orders from 7 customers is shown
in Figure 8-7.
Figure 8 - 4
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Figure 8 - 5
Schedule of VC02
Figure 8 - 6
Schedule of VC03
Figure 8 - 7
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Overall schedule of the work orders
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8.4
Case Study: an Application of SCASO to Semiconductor Packaging Industry
Summary
In this chapter, the effectiveness of the prototype SCASO system has been illustrated using a
case study based on the data obtained from a leading semiconductor back-end assembly and
test company. An overview of the semiconductor subcontract environment and its supply
chain is presented followed by the current planning and scheduling practices of the XYZ
Company. An optimization problem with 23 work orders and 30 product lines has been
discussed in detail. The MBEA enabled SCVC has been employed to compartmentalize the
large optimization problem into relatively small sub-problems. It successfully derived the
optimal number of cluster centres as well as the three supply chain virtual clusters. The
virtual cluster information is then forwarded to the intelligent agent based SCOS to activate
the SCSCs and SCCAs. With the help of a dynamic scheduler and the supply chain cluster
negotiators, the SCCAs carry out coordination and negotiation, and are able to reach a near
optimal schedule for the entire supply chain under the supervision of the SCSA. The results
derived from the SCVC and SCOS are reasonable and feasible. Thus, the case study has
demonstrated the effectiveness and capability of the prototype SCASO system.
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Chapter 9
9.1
Conclusions and Future Work
CONCLUSIONS AND FUTURE WORK
Conclusions
This thesis presents a study on the realization of a hierarchical model and a framework for
extended supply chain coordination and optimization. The study aims at providing a tool to
facilitate the planning and detailed scheduling of supply chain units such as suppliers,
manufacturing plants, warehouses and distribution centres for global manufacturing. A
prototype supply chain coordination and schedule optimization system (SCASO) comprising
three main modules, namely Routing and Sequence Optimizer (RSO), Supply Chain Virtual
Clustering (SCVC) and Supply Chain Order Scheduler (SCOS), has been established.
Additionally, a novel approach known as multiple populations search strategy based
evolutionary approach (MBEA) that serves as a generic optimization methodology has been
formulated. The MBEA has been embedded into the RSO module as well as the SCVC
module. The MBEA enabled RSO is able to derive a compromised set of GA parameters and
use them to achieve better optimization performance. On the other hand, the MBEA also
enables the SCVC module to identify optimal fuzzy c-means parameters, c and m, and use
them to derive near optimal supply chain clusters, i.e. unit-transportation-work order families.
More specifically, the RSO module is tasked to provide the SCVC module with a good
routing and work order process sequence combination while taking into consideration the
capacity of each supply chain unit, the business strategy and the customer requirements in
order to maintain the required customer service level and competitiveness. The SCVC
module uses the outputs of the RSO module as inputs, and attempts to compartmentalize a
large-scale supply chain optimization problem that can hardly be solved by conventional
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algorithms into manageable sub-problems. As for the SCOS module, it is built on top of an
intelligent agent-based distributed architecture. It comes with an agent-based distributed
intelligent coordination and scheduling mechanism that integrates scheduling with supply
chain optimization.
9.1.1 Framework of a Distributed Hierarchical Model for Supply Chain
Coordination and Optimization
As already mentioned, the framework of a distributed hierarchical model for supply chain
coordination and optimization comprises three main modules, namely RSO, SCVC and
SCOS. It enables:
Generation of preferred routings, transportation modes and work order plan under the
constraints of customer service level, cycle time and cost;
Formation of supply chain unit-transportation-work order families using the proposed
MBEA enabled fuzzy clustering approach;
Integration of scheduling with supply chain optimization to provide a near global optimal
schedule for the entire supply chain; and
Realization of a mechanism, which enables fine-tuning of solutions using the feedback
information obtained from the SCOS module. Specifically, the feedback information is
forwarded to the SCVC module and the RSO module. A compliance measure that is
embedded in these modules can be used to evaluate the performance of the modules.
9.1.2 Multiple Populations Based Evolutionary Approach (MBEA)
The RSO and SCVC modules utilize a hybrid evolutionary approach that combines the
strength of Genetic Algorithms (GAs) and Tabu Search (TS) to achieve better performance. It
is further enhanced by a multiple populations search strategy (MPSS). The architecture of the
novel multiple populations search strategy based evolutionary approach (MBEA) provides:
A generic optimization methodology that can be applied to solve different optimization
problems.
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Multiple flexible layers that enables optimization of multiple objective functions. The
innovative five layers of the MBEA, namely common data storage layer, MPSS layer,
optimization algorithms layer, logic and computational layer, and application layer, are
able to provide common heuristics that can be used to realize a generic optimization tool.
The MBEA not only searches for the best solution for the physical optimization problem,
but also optimizes the parameters for GAs and fuzzy c-means. These parameters help
solve the optimization problem quickly and effectively.
9.1.3 Extended Graph Representation of a Supply Chain
A novel graph representation known as Supply_Graph has been proposed and implemented.
The Supply_Graph can be employed to represent the complex work order routings and
business processes from customer orders to suppliers. On a Supply_Graph, the nodes
represent the supply chain units such as factories, DCs and warehouses, while the arcs
between two nodes indicate the transportation methods. It has been shown that the
Supply_Graph is able to provide an enabling infrastructure, which is generic, flexible and
sophisticated enough to incorporate important supply chain features. These features include i)
multiple level assembly; ii) various modes of transportation; iii) multiple split and merge of
orders; iv) alternative locations or manufacturing sites for product and its components; v)
cross boundary representation; and vi) other complex relationship that can be expressed by
logical symbols to facilitate supply chain coordination and global schedule optimization.
It has also been shown that a Supply_Graph can be employed to model and depict the
information about complex supply chain units, customer order routing and transportation in
an efficient manner. It lays the foundation for modules such as the RSO and the SCVC. The
conversion rules used to extract routings and transform a Supply_Graph into a Supply_Matrix
have also been established. Such a matrix helps in channelling the data from Supply_Graph
to the SCVC module for further processing.
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9.1.4 Exact Schema Theorem
Goldbergs schema theorem is fundamental to Genetic Algorithms (GAs). However, it can
only provide the lower boundary instead of the exact expected number of schemas in the next
generation. In view of this, an in-depth study has been carried out to realize an exact schema
theorem which can mathematically characterize the evolution of the population of a GA. This
also helps to predict the future behaviour of a GA.
Furthermore, an investigation into the existence of optimal crossover and mutation
probabilities has been conducted. It examines the crossover probability, p c , and mutation
probability, p m , using the proposed exact schema theorem and the theory of extrema of
functions of several variables. As two very important GA control parameters, p c and p m
affect the performance of GAs drastically. This work establishes that optimal p c and p m do
not exist in most cases. Hence, a compromised pair of p c and p m may help improve the
performance of GAs.
9.1.5 MBEA Enabled Heuristic for Routing and Sequence Optimization
(RSO Module)
A work order may have multiple routings, which denote the flow of materials that captures
the sequence in which materials move from suppliers (raw materials) to manufacturers
(finished product), and to customers (delivery). Since the capacity of each supply chain unit,
such as a manufacturing plant, is limited, a near optimal routing and a work order process
sequence is necessary for a mix of work orders and products. Furthermore, management level
strategies can be incorporated into the prototype system.
In many situations, the combination of multiple goals and constraints may result in an
exponentially growing search space. It is quite difficult for conventional optimization
methods such as calculus based or enumerative techniques to reach a near global optimal
solution due to combinatory explosion.
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The RSO module has demonstrated the possibility of adopting a hybrid evolutionary
approach to optimize routing and sequence of a supply chain with growing search space. In
association with this, a novel chromosome representation scheme, new genetic operator to
repair illegal chromosomes and flexible tabu list have been proposed and implemented. In
addition, adaptive mutation probability for individuals in a generation has been employed to
promote the diversification of the worst chromosomes. A reactive selection operator is
designed to ensure proper propagation of each chromosome of a generation. As GAs require
fine-tuning of GA parameters in order to obtain good results, the MBEA has been adapted
and embedded into the RSO module. A so-called promise level that measures the
performance of the GA parameters has been proposed and implemented. Through managing
multiple populations in a GA run, it has been shown that the MBEA enabled RSO is able to
dynamically search and update the GA parameters. The results from different examples have
shown that MBEA enabled RSO is able to converge earlier and the fitness values have been
improved.
9.1.6 A MBEA Enabled Supply Chain Virtual Clustering (SCVC Module)
A complex extended supply chain optimization problem, which involves various supply chain
units such as customer orders, supply chain units, transportation and product flows, can
hardly be solved by conventional algorithms due to combinatory explosion. An MBEA
enabled fuzzy c-means approach has been established to reduce the complexity of the
optimization problem while retain the constraints and the ability to derive near optimal
solutions for the entire supply chain.
Using the MBEA enabled fuzzy c-means approach, supply chain units, transportation modes
and customer orders are virtually and dynamically organized into different unittransportation-work order families. A work order family can then be processed largely within
its unit-transportation-work order family. It has been shown that computational efficiency can
be improved, as a large-scale supply chain optimization problem has been compartmentalized
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Conclusions and Future Work
into a number of relatively small and manageable problems. In addition, a new fuzzy c-means
validity index has been proposed and implemented specially for the SCVC module to
automatically identify the optimal fuzzy c-means parameters, namely number of clusters, c,
and the weighting exponent, m. From the examples discussed, the MBEA enabled SCVC is
able to search for near optimal supply chain clusters through the determination of the optimal
fuzzy c-means parameters, c and m. The necessity to pre-define suitable values for the
parameters c and m of fuzzy c-means, which may not be known as a prior knowledge, has
thus been eliminated.
9.1.7 An Intelligent Agent-Based Distributed Architecture for Supply Chain
Order Scheduling (SCOS Module)
An intelligent agent-based distributed architecture for supply chain order scheduling, which is
built on top of a GA based dynamic scheduler, has been established to schedule orders in a
dynamic and distributed environment. Two subsystems namely the supply chain scheduling
master (SCSM) and the supply chain scheduling clients (SCSCs) have been developed for the
SCOS module. With the aid of a distributed architecture, the supply chain supervisory agent
(SCSA) of SCSM and the supply chain cluster agents (SCCAs) of SCSCs can cooperate with
each other to resolve conflicts and work out the global near optimal schedule for a complex
supply chain system consisting of multiple supply chain clusters that are derived from the
SCVC module.
The SCSM maintains all the necessary information and provides a negotiation locale for the
supply chain cluster negotiators, which are the representatives of the SCCAs to resolve their
conflicts with the aid of a decision-making module under the supervision of a SCSA. Four
rule sets for the knowledge-based system have been developed to determine the priority of
the supply chain clusters. They are the rule set based on predefined priority of the supply
chain cluster, the rule set based on scheduling attributes of supply chain clusters, the rule set
based on the weighted scheduling attributes of supply chain clusters, and the rule set for
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Conclusions and Future Work
deadlock resolution.
The SCSC, on the other hand, retrieves all the scheduling information and knowledge related
to the various supply chain clusters from the SCSM. Each supply chain unit-transportationwork order family that is worked out by the SCVC module is represented by a supply chain
cluster and its SCSC. It is used to determine the local near optimal schedule for every supply
chain cluster. It also co-ordinates the activation of supply chain cluster agents and their
negotiators, and controls the communication among the SCSA and SCCAs, so as to derive
the feasible or the near optimal schedule for the entire supply chain according to the
objectives and decision-making policies.
From the example discussed, the agent-based system of the SCOS module is able to
successfully resolve the conflicts among supply chain virtual clusters through negotiation and
communication, and obtain a feasible, near-optimal global schedule for the entire supply
chain.
9.2
Contributions of the Work
The contributions of the work are summarized as follows.
(1) Establishment of a hierarchical model and a framework for extended supply chain
coordination and optimization (Yin and Khoo 2007b). It has been shown that a typical
supply chain can be designed and modelled using the Supply-Chain Operations
Reference (SCOR) model;
(2) Formulation of a novel multiple populations search strategy based evolutionary
approach (MBEA). The general and flexible layers that are built into the MBEA make it
a generic optimization methodology and can be applied to solve different optimization
problems;
(3) Realization of a novel graph representation known as Supply_Graph to denote an
extended supply chain. This includes the representation method and the logical
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Conclusions and Future Work
relationship among the nodes of a Supply_Graph. A Supply_Matrix Converter is also
implemented that can transform a Supply_Graph into a Supply_Matrix. This provides an
avenue for supply chain information integration.
(4) Formulation of an exact schema theorem which can predict the expected number of
copies of schemas in the subsequent GA generation and makes the prediction of future
behaviour of GA possible. Furthermore, the existent of a compromised pair of crossover
and mutation probabilities that can lead to a better performance of GA has been
established;
(5) Realization of a MBEA enabled RSO module to optimize the routing and sequence of a
supply chain (Yin and Khoo 2007a);
(6) Establishment of the supply chain virtual clustering module (SCVC) (Khoo and Yin
2003) to compartmentalize a complex large-scale supply chain. This helps in reducing
the search space for a complex supply chain problem. The MBEA enabled SCVC can
also used to determine the parameters for fuzzy c-means. This eliminates the necessity
to pre-define these parameters; and
(7) Establishment of an intelligent agent-based distributed architecture for supply chain
order scheduling module. The intelligent agent-based SCOS is able to facilitate and
promote the negotiation and coordination among supply chain clusters. As a result, near
global optimal schedule for the entire supply chain including suppliers and
manufacturing plants can be obtained.
9.3
Limitations and Future Work
Globalization has brought about keen competition. At the same time, enterprises have to deal
with increasingly complex tasks. The supply chain of an enterprise needs to handle the flow
of materials in one direction and concurrently, the flow of orders as well as money in the
other direction. Accordingly, the flow of information in both directions may be enormous in
terms of size and number of supply chain units. It is important to note that a change in any
supply chain unit may create waves of fluctuations propagating throughout the supply chain.
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Conclusions and Future Work
This change could take place in any part of the supply chain including materials supply,
manufacturing and assembly, inventory, transportation and demand. Dynamic and stochastic
events associated with a supply chain may also make coordination and optimization
extremely difficult. Accordingly, the limitations and constraints of the prototype system
include
(1) The proposed MBEA uses GA and TS as the two main building blocks. Although it is
able to search for the near optimal p c and p m , determination of other parameters such as
number of populations and number of generations is still done subjectively;
(2) The prototype system is able to react to dynamic events within supply chain clusters.
However, the life span of a supply chain cluster has to be defined as the dynamic events
may affect the effectiveness of the existing supply chain clusters. A more flexible way
to handle dynamic events and a methodology to determine the life span of a supply
chain cluster need to be explored;
(3) The research work is built upon a deterministic supply chain model. Uncertainties in the
supply chain network can adversely affect its performance. For example, common
events such as traffic jam or flight delay may create disruptions to materials supply and
goods delivery; exaggerated demand from sales departments may cause inventory and
production fluctuations; and
(4) Supply chain is evolving very fast with new practices, techniques and philosophies. The
prototype system may not be able to accommodate all of them.
Thus, some future works to improve the prototype SCASO system have been identified as
follows.
(a)
A study to investigate how such parameters as number of populations and number of
generations can affect the convergence rate and the performance of the proposed
MBEA;
(b)
A study to explore the possibility of deriving a compromised pair of GA parameters
using the exact schema theorem directly. In doing so, it is postulated that the efficiency
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Ph.D Thesis
Conclusions and Future Work
of the proposed MBEA can be improved;
(c)
A study on the theories and algorithms that can be used to integrate the Supply_Graph
with the RSO and SCVC modules seamlessly;
(d)
A study to realize a reactive mechanism upon detecting dynamic events as well as a
compliance measure to fine-tune the results obtained, and a more flexible way to handle
dynamic events and a methodology to determine the life span of a supply chain cluster;
(e)
A study on how the stochastic nature of a supply chain can be incorporated into the
prototype system to improve the results obtained; and finally,
(f)
A study to incorporate more supply chain practices and techniques such as inventory
policies, vendor managed inventory, drop shipping, outsourcing and transportation
policies into the prototype system.
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Ph.D Thesis
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Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
238
Ph.D Thesis
Appendix A
APPENDICES
Appendix A
Product Relationship of XYZ Company
The following table shows the product type and package family relationship that are used in
the case study.
Product Type
LAMINATES
Package Type
CSP
LAMINATES
LAMINATES
WLCSP
WLCSP
FLIP CHIP
PBGA
LEADED
QFP
LEADED
SOP
LEADED
QFN
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
Package Family
FBGA
FLGA
WLFBGA
WLFLGA
fcBGA
EBGA
EPBGA
PBGA
TBGA
BQFP
DQFP
LQFP
MQFP
TQFP
MSOP
SSOP
TSOP
TSSOP
BCC
QFN punch
QFN sawn
239
Ph.D Thesis
Appendix B
Product Type
LAMINATES
LAMINATES
LAMINATES
LAMINATES
LAMINATES
LAMINATES
LAMINATES
LEADED
LEADED
LEADED
LEADED
LEADED
LEADED
LEADED
LEADED
LEADED
LEADED
LEADED
LEADED
LAMINATES
LAMINATES
LAMINATES
LAMINATES
Appendix B
Work Orders of XYZ Company
Package Type
CSP
CSP
FLIP CHIP
PBGA
PBGA
PBGA
PBGA
QFP
QFP
QFP
QFP
QFP
SOP
SOP
SOP
SOP
QFN
QFN
QFN
FLIP CHIP
FLIP CHIP
FLIP CHIP
FLIP CHIP
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
Package Family
FBGA
FLGA
fcBGA
EBGA
EPBGA
PBGA
TBGA
BQFP
DQFP
LQFP
MQFP
TQFP
MSOP
SSOP
TSOP
TSSOP
BCC
QFN punch
QFN sawn
fcBGA
fcBGA
fcBGA
fcBGA
Work Order
WO11
WO21
WO51
WO61
WO71
WO81
WO91
WOA1
WOB1
WOC1
WOD1
WOE1
WOF1
WOG1
WOH1
WOJ1
WOK1
WOL1
WOM1
WO52
WO53
WO54
WO55
Customer
INTEL
SANDISK
LSI
NVIDIA
TSMC
IDT
SONY
INTEL
SANDISK
ANALOG
LSI
LSI
NVIDIA
TSMC
IDT
SONY
IDT
SONY
INTEL
INTEL
IDT
SONY
SANDISK
Customer Code
CU11
CU21
CU61
CU62
CU71
CU22
CU42
CU11
CU21
CU41
CU61
CU61
CU62
CU71
CU22
CU42
CU22
CU42
CU11
CU11
CU22
CU42
CU21
Qty(k)
20
30
10
20
10
15
25
30
10
5
15
20
10
20
15
25
10
5
15
10
25
25
5
Die
F1D1
F2S1
F2D1
F6D1
F2D1
F2S1
F4S1
F1S1
F2D1
F4D1
F6S1
F6D1
F6S1
F4D1
F2D1
F4D1
F2S1
F4S1
F1D1
F2D1
F2S1
F4D1
F2D1
Product Routing
F1A1, F1T1,F1P1
F2A1,F2T1,F2P1
F2F1,F6T1,F6P1
F6A1,F6T1,F6P1
F2A1,F7T1,F7P1
F2A1,F2T1,F2P1
F4A1,F4T1,F4P1
F1A1, F1T1,F1P1
F2A1,F2T1,F2P1
F4A1,F4T1,F4P1
F6A1,F6T1,F6P1
F5A1,F5T1,F5P1
F6A1,F6T1,F6P1
F4A2,F7T1,F7P1
F2A2,F2T1,F2P1
F4A2,F4T2,F4P1
F2A2,F2T1,F2P1
F4A2,F4T2,F4P1
F1A1, F1T1,F1P1
F2F1,F1T1,F1P1
F2F1,F2T1,F2P1
F4F1,F4T1,F4P1
F2F1,F2T1,F2P1
240
Ph.D Thesis
Appendix C
Appendix C
SCVC Result of XYZ Company
The near optimal fuzzy cluster matrix U* and cluster centres V* for the case study is as follows.
U*
C1
C2
C3
WO11
0.3317
0.3328
0.3356
WO21
0.3256
0.3409
0.3336
WO51
0.3333
0.3322
0.3345
***
WO61
0.3348
0.3308
0.3344
WO71
0.3348
0.3351
0.3301
WO81
0.3239
0.3402
0.3359
WO91
0.3360
0.3303
0.3337
WOA1
0.3336
0.3308
0.3355
C1
C2
C3
WOJ1
0.3373
0.3303
0.3325
WOK1
0.3286
0.3385
0.3328
WOL1
0.3384
0.3283
0.3332
WOM1
0.3302
0.3309
0.3389
WO52
0.3295
0.3333
0.3371
WO53
0.3267
0.3417
0.3316
WO54
0.3363
0.3303
0.3334
WO55
0.3292
0.3395
0.3313
C1
C2
C3
F1A1
0.1302
0.1275
0.1336
F1T1
0.1727
0.1707
0.1783
F1P1
0.1727
0.1707
0.1783
F1D1
0.0861
0.0852
0.0895
***
F1S1
0.0441
0.0422
0.0441
F2A1
0.1679
0.1819
0.1720
F2A2
0.0845
0.0907
0.0856
C1
C2
C3
F4T1
0.1359
0.1263
0.1292
F4T2
0.0916
0.0833
0.0860
F4P1
0.2275
0.2096
0.2152
F4D1
0.1813
0.1686
0.1718
F4S1
0.0911
0.0833
0.0865
F5A1
0.0438
0.0432
0.0434
F5T1
0.0438
0.0432
0.0434
V*
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
WOB1
0.3283
0.3401
0.3316
WOC1
0.3376
0.3308
0.3317
WOD1
0.3316
0.3319
0.3365
***
WOE1
0.3329
0.3322
0.3339
WOF1
0.3309
0.3297
0.3395
WOG1
0.3358
0.3311
0.3331
WOH1
0.3293
0.3390
0.3317
F2F1
0.1703
0.1781
0.1733
F2T1
0.2917
0.3209
0.3006
F2P1
0.2917
0.3209
0.3006
F2D1
0.2578
0.2668
0.2579
F2S1
0.1649
0.1839
0.1731
F4A1
0.0907
0.0842
0.0859
F4A2
0.1365
0.1256
0.1292
F4F1
0.0452
0.0421
0.0432
F5P1
0.0438
0.0432
0.0434
F6A1
0.1309
0.1267
0.1337
F6T1
0.1749
0.1694
0.1774
F6P1
0.1303
0.1272
0.1337
F6D1
0.0884
0.0854
0.0871
F6S1
0.0863
0.0844
0.0901
F7T1
0.0895
0.0862
0.0851
F7P1
0.0895
0.0862
0.0851
241
Ph.D Thesis
Appendix C
Optimized virtual clusters for the case study are as follows.
SCU
F F
1 4
S A F4 F4 F4 F4 F4 F4 F4 F5 F5 F5 F6
WO
1 1 A2 F1 T1 T2 P1 D1 S1 A1 T1 P1 D1
WO61
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
WO91
0 1
0
0
1
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
WOC1
0 1
0
0
1
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
WOG1
0 0
1
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
WOJ1
0 0
1
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
WOL1
0 0
1
0
0
1
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
WO54
0 0
0
1
1
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
WO22
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
WO71
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
WO81
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
WOB1
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
WOH1
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
WOK1
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
WO53
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
WO55
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
WO11
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
WO51
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
WOA1
1 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
WOD1
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
WOE1
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
WOF1
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
WOM1 0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
WO52
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Note: WO and SCU denote work orders and supply chain units respectively
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
F7
T1
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
F7
P1
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
F2
A1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
F2
A2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
F2
F1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
1
F2
T1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
1
1
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
F2
P1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
1
1
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
F2
D1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
1
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
1
F2
S1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
F1
A1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
1
0
F1
T1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
1
1
F1
P1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
1
1
F1
D1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
F6
A1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
F6
T1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
1
0
0
F6
P1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
1
0
0
F6
S1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
242
Ph.D Thesis
Appendix C
Noticed that WO61, WOE1 and F1S2 are not well placed by the SCVC, the second best clusters that are suggested by the near optimal fuzzy cluster
matrix U* and the cluster centre matrix V* are then selected. Thus, the WO61, WOE1, F1S1 are re-allocated into cluster C3, C1 and C3 respectively.
The re-arranged virtual clusters are as follows.
SCU
F F
4 4
A A F4 F4 F4 F4 F4 F4 F5 F5 F5 F6 F7
WO
1 2 F1 T1 T2 P1 D1 S1 A1 T1 P1 D1 T1
WOE1
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
0
WO91
1 0
0
1
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
WOC1
1 0
0
1
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
WOG1
0 1
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
1
WOJ1
0 1
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
WOL1
0 1
0
0
1
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
WO54
0 0
1
1
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
WO22
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
WO71
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0 0
WO81
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
WOB1
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
WOH1
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
WOK1
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
WO53
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
WO55
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
WO61
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
WO11
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
WO51
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
WOA1
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
WOD1
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
WOF1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0 0
WOM1 0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
WO52
0 0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Note: WO and SCU denote work orders and supply chain units respectively
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
F7
P1
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
F2
A1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
F2
A2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
F2
F1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
1
F2
T1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
1
1
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
F2
P1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
1
1
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
F2
D1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
1
0
0
1
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
1
F2
S1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
F1
S1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
F1
A1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
1
0
F1
T1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
1
1
F1
P1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
1
1
F1
D1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
1
0
F6
A1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
F6
T1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
1
1
0
0
F6
P1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
1
0
0
F6
S1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
243
Ph.D Thesis
Appendix D
Appendix D
Work Order
WO21
WO21
WO21
WO21
WO21
WO51
WO51
WO51
WO51
WO51
WO52
WO52
WO52
WO52
WO52
WO52
WO52
WO53
WO53
WO53
WO53
WO53
WO54
WO54
WO54
WO54
WO61
WO61
WO61
WO61
WO61
WO71
WO71
WO71
WO71
WO81
WO81
WO81
WO81
WO81
WO91
WO91
WO91
WO91
WO91
WOA1
WOA1
WOA1
WOA1
WOA1
Job
022
022
022
022
022
02A
02A
033
033
033
02B
02B
02B
02B
031
031
031
028
028
028
028
028
017
017
017
017
01A
038
038
038
038
023
023
023
023
024
024
024
024
024
012
012
012
012
012
034
034
034
034
034
Detailed Schedule of Work Orders
Start Date
2008-12-20
2008-12-20
2008-12-21
2008-12-24
2008-12-28
2008-12-20
2008-12-26
2008-12-28
2008-12-29
2008-12-30
2008-12-20
2008-12-20
2008-12-23
2008-12-24
2008-12-24
2008-12-25
2008-12-27
2008-12-20
2008-12-20
2008-12-22
2008-12-28
2008-12-31
2008-12-20
2008-12-20
2008-12-22
2008-12-25
2008-12-20
2008-12-20
2008-12-22
2008-12-24
2008-12-26
2008-12-20
2008-12-20
2008-12-21
2008-12-22
2008-12-20
2008-12-20
2008-12-24
2008-12-25
2008-12-27
2008-12-20
2008-12-20
2008-12-21
2008-12-25
2008-12-28
2008-12-20
2008-12-20
2008-12-23
2008-12-27
2008-12-30
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
Time
0
1
2
26
6
5
23
3
3
13
3
43
16
26
36
46
6
3
4
23
6
6
0
1
26
26
1
2
1
1
21
1
2
2
12
2
3
2
27
17
0
1
1
26
26
0
1
26
6
36
End Date
2008-12-20
2008-12-21
2008-12-24
2008-12-28
2008-12-28
2008-12-20
2008-12-28
2008-12-29
2008-12-30
2008-12-30
2008-12-20
2008-12-22
2008-12-24
2008-12-24
2008-12-25
2008-12-27
2008-12-27
2008-12-20
2008-12-21
2008-12-26
2008-12-31
2008-12-31
2008-12-20
2008-12-22
2008-12-25
2008-12-26
2008-12-20
2008-12-21
2008-12-24
2008-12-26
2008-12-26
2008-12-20
2008-12-21
2008-12-22
2008-12-22
2008-12-20
2008-12-21
2008-12-25
2008-12-27
2008-12-27
2008-12-20
2008-12-21
2008-12-23
2008-12-28
2008-12-29
2008-12-20
2008-12-21
2008-12-26
2008-12-30
2008-12-31
Time
1
1
2
6
36
6
3
3
13
23
4
23
26
36
36
6
16
4
4
23
6
31
1
26
26
1
2
2
1
21
41
2
2
12
22
3
3
27
17
32
1
1
26
26
1
1
1
26
36
16
Virtual Cluster
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC03
VC03
VC03
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC03
VC03
VC03
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC01
VC01
VC01
VC01
VC01
VC03
VC03
VC03
VC03
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC01
VC01
VC01
VC01
VC01
VC03
VC03
VC03
VC03
VC03
Line
F2S1
TSL1
F2A1
F2T1
F2P1
F2D1
F2F1
TDL1
F6T1
F6P1
F2D1
F2F1
F2T1
F2P1
TDL3
F1T1
F1P1
F2S1
TSL4
F2F1
F2T1
F2P1
F4D1
F4F1
F4T1
F4P1
F6D1
TDL2
F6A1
F6T1
F6P1
F2D1
F2A1
F7T1
F7P1
F2S1
TSL2
F2A1
F7T1
F7P1
F4S1
TSL1
F4A1
F4T1
F4P1
F1S1
TSL1
F1A1
F1T1
F1P1
244
Ph.D Thesis
Work Order
WOB1
WOB1
WOB1
WOB1
WOC1
WOC1
WOC1
WOC1
WOD1
WOD1
WOD1
WOD1
WOD1
WOE1
WOE1
WOE1
WOE1
WOF1
WOF1
WOF1
WOF1
WOF1
WOG1
WOG1
WOG1
WOG1
WOG1
WOH1
WOH1
WOH1
WOH1
WOH1
WOH1
WOJ1
WOJ1
WOJ1
WOJ1
WOK1
WOK1
WOK1
WOK1
WOK1
WOK1
WOK1
WOL1
WOL1
WOL1
WOL1
WOL1
WOM1
WOM1
WOM1
WOM1
Appendix D
Job
025
025
025
025
013
013
013
013
035
035
035
035
035
011
011
011
011
036
036
036
036
036
014
014
021
021
021
026
026
026
026
026
026
015
015
015
015
027
027
027
027
027
027
027
016
016
016
016
016
037
037
037
037
Start Date
2008-12-20
2008-12-25
2008-12-29
2008-12-30
2008-12-20
2008-12-20
2008-12-20
2008-12-21
2008-12-20
2008-12-20
2008-12-24
2008-12-26
2008-12-28
2008-12-20
2008-12-20
2008-12-22
2008-12-24
2008-12-20
2008-12-20
2008-12-21
2008-12-22
2008-12-23
2008-12-20
2008-12-23
2008-12-25
2008-12-27
2008-12-29
2008-12-20
2008-12-20
2008-12-20
2008-12-21
2008-12-21
2008-12-23
2008-12-20
2008-12-20
2008-12-22
2008-12-26
2008-12-20
2008-12-20
2008-12-21
2008-12-21
2008-12-21
2008-12-22
2008-12-23
2008-12-20
2008-12-20
2008-12-22
2008-12-25
2008-12-26
2008-12-20
2008-12-20
2008-12-21
2008-12-23
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
Time
4
27
37
47
3
4
29
9
1
2
1
21
11
0
1
1
21
0
1
1
1
11
2
2
2
17
37
0
1
26
1
26
16
1
2
27
1
1
2
2
17
32
12
22
1
2
27
27
26
0
1
26
16
End Date
2008-12-20
2008-12-26
2008-12-30
2008-12-31
2008-12-20
2008-12-20
2008-12-21
2008-12-21
2008-12-20
2008-12-21
2008-12-25
2008-12-28
2008-12-28
2008-12-20
2008-12-22
2008-12-24
2008-12-24
2008-12-20
2008-12-21
2008-12-22
2008-12-23
2008-12-23
2008-12-20
2008-12-25
2008-12-26
2008-12-29
2008-12-30
2008-12-20
2008-12-20
2008-12-21
2008-12-21
2008-12-23
2008-12-23
2008-12-20
2008-12-22
2008-12-25
2008-12-26
2008-12-20
2008-12-21
2008-12-21
2008-12-21
2008-12-22
2008-12-23
2008-12-23
2008-12-20
2008-12-21
2008-12-23
2008-12-26
2008-12-26
2008-12-20
2008-12-21
2008-12-23
2008-12-23
Time
5
27
47
7
4
29
9
14
2
2
26
11
26
1
1
21
41
1
1
1
11
21
3
2
2
37
7
1
26
1
26
16
31
2
27
27
26
2
2
17
32
2
22
32
2
2
2
7
31
1
26
16
31
Virtual Cluster
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC01
VC01
VC01
VC01
VC03
VC03
VC03
VC03
VC03
VC01
VC01
VC01
VC01
VC03
VC03
VC03
VC03
VC03
VC01
VC01
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC01
VC01
VC01
VC01
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC02
VC01
VC01
VC01
VC01
VC01
VC03
VC03
VC03
VC03
Line
F2D1
F2A1
F7T1
F7P1
F4D1
F4A1
F4T1
F4P1
F6S1
TSL2
F6A1
F6T1
F6P1
F6D1
F5A1
F5T1
F5P1
F6S1
TSL3
F6A1
F6T1
F6P1
F4D1
F4A2
TDL1
F7T1
F7P1
F2D1
DA01
WB02
EOL1
F2T1
F2P1
F4D1
F4A2
F4T2
F4P1
F2S1
TSL3
DA02
WB01
EOL1
F7T1
F7P1
F4S1
TSL2
F4A2
F4T2
F4P1
F1D1
F1A1
F1T1
F1P1
245
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