Spare parts allocation by improved genetic algorithm and Monte Carlo simulation

Abstract

A combined Monte Carlo (MC) simulation and Genetic Algorithm (GA) method was proposed by other researchers for the optimisation of spare parts allocation. From case studies, it was found that the number of simulation trials of the existing method tended to be either excessive or inadequate. Thus, a simulation replication number control method making full use of the advance simulation effort is proposed and implemented into the existing method. A numerical example shows significant improvement on overall simulation efficiency and that at the same time the required accuracy is guaranteed. Furthermore, it is argued that application-specific knowledge should be embedded into the general GA procedure so that the evolution process can be more efficient. Heuristic methods for initial population preparation for GA with and without considering component cost difference are proposed and illustrated for spare parts allocation. A computing experiment was designed and performed to examine the influence of parameters for replication number control and initial population preparation. The generation of availability–cost curve further indicates the necessity to adopt heuristic methods to improve searching efficiency in GA.