Title: CSET automated negotiation model for optimal supply chain formation

Authors: Yang Hang, Simon Fong, Zhuang Yan

Addresses: Department of Computer and Information Science, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of Macau, Av. Padre Tomas Pereira, Taipa, Macau SAR, China. ' Department of Computer and Information Science, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of Macau, Av. Padre Tomas Pereira, Taipa, Macau SAR, China. ' Department of Computer and Information Science, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of Macau, Av. Padre Tomas Pereira, Taipa, Macau SAR, China

Abstract: In an effort to compose an optimal supply chain (SC), this paper tries to bring forward a new collaborative agent-based single machine earliness/tardiness (SET) model. It includes the sub-agents, which are designed for fairly coordinating and distributing job requests at the mid-stream levels. Extending from the precedent SET model, collaborative-SET (CSET) has a coordinating collaborative agent, which is responsible for optimising the information flow and scheduling of the whole SC. This is done by coordinating the information flow at the sub-agent between each two streams. In a long run, this new model makes a complex dynamic SC more efficient and shortens response time. A stimulator that implements the algorithms is programmed in order to calculate the amount of information transfer, time and cost incurred between SET and CSET model. The results generally indicate that the more streams a SC has, the better the performance gain is yielded.

Keywords: automated negotiation; dynamic supply chain formation; CSET model; collaborative agents; collaboration; supply chain management; SCM; single machine earliness; single machine tardiness; agent-based systems; multi-agent systems; MAS.

DOI: 10.1504/WRSTSD.2010.032344

World Review of Science, Technology and Sustainable Development, 2010 Vol.7 No.1/2, pp.67 - 78

Published online: 31 Mar 2010 *

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