This project addresses the need for decision support for supply chain coordination at the operational level. We consider four practical environments where scheduling decisions made by different decision makers in a supply chain need to be coordinated. For each, the proposed research will begin with an evaluation of conflicts, or how far from optimal one decision maker's optimal schedule is for another decision maker's problem. The estimation of conflicts requires developing solution procedures for the scheduling problems of the individual decision makers. Where conflicts are significant, several further analyses are needed. Some of these relate to the optimization of the overall system. More generally, the benefit of cooperation needs to be evaluated for the various decision makers. These analyses require the development of solution procedures for the overall system problem. Since this problem is more complex than those of the individual decision makers, heuristic solution procedures may be needed. Asymmetric power relationships in the supply chain generate various scheduling problems that also require investigation. Finally, it is important to find incentives to encourage the decision makers to coordinate their decisions, and practical mechanisms for implementing coordination.
Extensive industry support underlies the project. The models to be investigated are motivated by the PIs' frequent interactions with industry. Because of the generality of the problems studied, the results can be applied broadly and have the potential to offer significant advances in decision support for industry's planning problems. The educational component of the project involves the training of future scholars, the development of new courses and seminars, new research experiences for both undergraduate and graduate students, and the incorporation of new applied research into the curriculum, at the business schools of both PIs. .
