| dc.description.abstract | When multiple retailers hold inventory to satisfy random demand, retailer inventory-sharing
strategies can potentially reduce the supply-demand mismatch and increase overall supply
chain performance. This thesis research inventory sharing policies for a cosmetics company
in Vietnam to achieve a system design with a decreased negative effect of demand
uncertainty. In the thesis, a single echelon supply chain network with a main warehouse and
five stores is under consideration under an (s, S) inventory control policy. Six inventory
sharing designs are proposed and applied to the single item which contains the highest usage
values and frequently under out-of-stock conditions. A simulation-based optimization
method using ARENA with the OptQuest Optimization tool is developed. The approach
optimizes the inventory parameters under those policies in terms of maximizing total
network profit under a pre-defined fill rate constraint (i.e., 95%). Then a comparison is made
with the company’s current practice to find possible savings. In comparison to the case in
which there is no lateral inventory sharing policy in the network, the results suggest that
lateral inventory share policies provide better outcomes. | en_US |
