Towards improving supply chain coordination through agent-based simulation

Abstract

One of the most significant paradigm shifts of modern business management is that individual businesses no longer compete as autonomous entities but rather as supply chains. However, the majority of companies, especially small and medium enterprises, fail to design and manage their supply chains in a profitable way, as it is difficult to understand the complex dynamics of Supply Chain Management (SCM). In this paper we argue that agent technologies can provide an intelligent solution to the improvement of SCM. We present a multiagent-based framework for simulating supply chain (SC) operation and re-configuration, with the vision of helping to improve overall SC performance and coordination. The suggested key innovation lies in the better explanation of simulation results and its attractiveness to SCM practitioners. Its theoretical conceptualisation, a logic-based formalisation and the system’s architecture that combines agent technologies with business rules and business process modelling are presented.