Abstract
An intelligent agent-based supply chain simulation model, in which each enterprise/consumer is represented by an agent, is designed. There are six layers in this supply chain simulation model: raw material providers, component manufacturers, product assemblers, product holders, retailers, and final customers. Each entity in the supply chain represented by an agent has five components: interface, task distribution, business processing activities, knowledge management and decision support, and information storage. A detailed agent structure is designed and various functions of an agent including communication among agents are described. Issues in the supply chain integration, information sharing among supply chain partners, demand forecasting, supply chain risk management, and automated communication and negotiation, could be simulated and studied by using the proposed system. Based on the proposed supply chain simulation model, a generic six-layer prototype mobile phone supply chain simulation system is designed, developed and implemented. The system allows a user to setup and adjust a large number of parameters, including (1) simulation period, loan and saving interest rates; (2) customers' behavior and market demand; (3) each retailer's initial cash, loan, market share, inventories, Order Amount Policy and Order Point Strategy; (4) each product holder's initial cash, loan, market share, inventories, Order Amount Policy, Order Point Strategy and inventory strategy; (5) each assembler's and component agent's initial cash, loan, inventories, Order Amount Policy, Order Point Strategy, production strategy, and production capacities; and (6) each material provider's initial cash, loan, inventory, production strategy, and production capacities. Extensive simulation studies are carried out to examine and compare many supply chain management strategies and agent behaviors. This system can be used to test which strategy is most suitable in certain environments, The generic supply chain simulation system developed can be used in a number of ways, including: as an analysis tool for entity in a supply chain from the entity's perspective; as a tool for studying supply chain coordination and integration from the perspective of an entire supply chain, or portion of it; as a tool to design supply chains by answering "what-if" questions.
Highlights
Any kind of product that people consume cannot be manufactured and sold to customers by only one company
In order for a mobile phone to arrive at an end user, it is sold to a mobile telecommunication service provider, it is delivered to a mobile phone retailer store, where the end user can buy it
The scope view considers the strategy issues that relate to the nature and purpose of the enterprise, and it is the planner’s view; the business view is the observation and expectation of the enterprise which come from the owner’s standpoint; the system view is the perception of designers and architects for the enterprise model; the technology view is from a builder’s viewpoint to depict the constraints of technology, languages, tools, and materials; the component view stands for a subcontractor’s view point which only focuses on the individual module related to the subcontractor; and the operation view illustrates how the system works and operates
Summary
Any kind of product that people consume cannot be manufactured and sold to customers by only one company. The scope view considers the strategy issues that relate to the nature and purpose of the enterprise, and it is the planner’s view; the business view is the observation and expectation of the enterprise which come from the owner’s standpoint; the system view is the perception of designers and architects for the enterprise model; the technology view is from a builder’s viewpoint to depict the constraints of technology, languages, tools, and materials; the component view stands for a subcontractor’s view point which only focuses on the individual module related to the subcontractor; and the operation view illustrates how the system works and operates Another commonly used framework, the open group architecture framework (TOGAF), describes enterprise architecture from four aspects: Business Architecture, Application Architecture, Data Architecture, and Technical Architecture (The Open Group, 2007; Minoli, 2008). While Zachman Enterprise Architecture Framework is suitable for building an enterprise architecture concept, TOGAF ADM can be used to develop and create enterprise architecture
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