Mobile Agent Based Supply Chain Management in Shipbuilding Industry

Abstract

This chapter summarizes the related research of supply chain management (SCM) and intelligent agent and their application in shipbuilding industry, and explores a general commerce model developed by HAAS School of Business, which is used to design a shipbuilding SCM. Mobile agent based supply chain can reduce the cost, inventory, shorten the production period, and finally reach the agile manufacturing. From the implementation in the chapter, the result is encouraging, especially suitable for the global purchasing. But this system is quite simple, and currently the supply chain is mainly on purchasing. In the shipbuilding SCM, quantitative and correct production plan and its executing are an important factor, so integration of supply chain management and production plan system is the next major research. The dynamic attributes of supply chain management, such as later delivery and the quality of product are likely have a great impact on the whole SCM; therefore, it is necessary to implement research on simulation of its dynamic attributes.