Multi-agent simulation technology in supply chain management

Abstract

Supply chain management is a set of approaches utilized to effectively coordinate participants' behaviors in the supply chain so that products flow between the facilities properly and efficiently with minimized system-wide cost and satisfying service level. Simulation is one of the methodologies widely used in this research. In this paper, we introduce a new approach on simulating the supply chain network: multi-agent simulation technology. We also discuss its advantages and the multi-agent simulation model we developed as a complex adaptive system paradigm.