Title: Perturbation analysis-based optimisation for a failure-prone manufacturing system with constant delivery time and stochastic demand

Authors: Sadok Turki; Sophie Hennequin; Nathalie Sauer

Addresses: COSTEAM – INRIA Nancy Grand Est, LGIPM/Université Paul Verlaine – Metz, Ile du Saulcy, 57045 Metz Cedex 01, France. ' COSTEAM – INRIA Nancy Grand Est, LGIPM/ENIM, Ile du Saulcy, 57045 Metz Cedex 01, France. ' COSTEAM – INRIA Nancy Grand Est, LGIPM/Université Paul Verlaine – Metz, Ile du Saulcy, 57045 Metz Cedex 01, France

Abstract: In this paper, a manufacturing system composed by a single machine, a buffer and a stochastic demand is considered. A discrete flow model is adopted to describe the system and to take into account delivery times. The goal of this paper is to evaluate the optimal buffer level, based on a hedging point policy. This optimal buffer allows minimising the total cost which is the sum of inventory, transportation and lost sales costs. Infinitesimal perturbation analysis is proposed for optimisation of the failure-prone manufacturing system. Indeed, based on discrete flow model, trajectories of all variables are studied and the perturbation analysis estimates are evaluated. These estimates are shown to be unbiased and then are implanted in an optimisation algorithm which determines the optimal buffer level in the presence of delivery time.

Keywords: failure-prone manufacturing systems; discrete flow modelling; delivery times; infinitesimal perturbation analysis; IPA; optimisation; stochastic demand; optimal buffer levels; hedging point policy.

DOI: 10.1504/IJAOM.2012.045894

International Journal of Advanced Operations Management, 2012 Vol.4 No.1/2, pp.124 - 153

Published online: 11 Aug 2014 *

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