Joint optimisation of replenishment policies on a downstream multi-echelon, multi-product pharmaceutical supply chain with lost sales, stochastic demands and storage capacity constraints: centralised vs. decentralised structure Online publication date: Tue, 18-May-2021
by Saâdia Khoukhi; Chakib Bojji; Yahya Bensouda
International Journal of Logistics Systems and Management (IJLSM), Vol. 39, No. 1, 2021
Abstract: This paper presents a methodology to identify the near optimal replenishment policies of a downstream pharmaceutical supply chain operating under two different structures (decentralised vs. centralised). We consider a stochastic demand as well as specific constraints related to pharmaceutical supply chain such as limited storage capacity, required service level and order frequency. To compare the performance of both structures an iterative procedure based on Monte Carlo simulation has been developed. The effectiveness and efficiency of the proposed framework are illustrated by using a real case of a university hospital. Detailed analyses of the numerical experiments show that centralised structure results not only in cost savings but also ameliorate the quality of care service.
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