A common objective of analytical modeling of a shipper's physical distribution system is the minimization of costs. As a result, many cost expressions relating to distribution activities have appeared in the literature. This paper discusses the modeling of shipper costs through an examination of...

Vendor-managed inventory (VMI) and consignment inventory (CI) are supply-chain sourcing practices between a vendor and customer. VMI allows the vendor to initiate orders on behalf of the customer. This presumably benefits the vendor who can then make replenishment decisions according to her own...

Consider a supply chain with one vendor and multiple buyers. That vendor not only manufactures the goods demanded, but also transports them by its own fleet of trucks to buyers that are densely dispersed in a distribution zone. The buyers are sensitive to both price and delivery-time guarantee....

Increased competition in business environments requires that firms provide not only quality but also timely service with minimal cost. Offering a delivery-time guarantee may increase the demand for a product or service, or allow the firm to charge a price premium. This paper investigates the...

This paper addresses a hub-and-spoke network problem for railroad freight, where a central planner is to find transport routes, frequency of service, length of trains to be used, and transportation volume. Hub-and-spoke networks, often found in air freight, have not been favoured by railways in...

Most studies on supply chain management have taken an "inventory" point of view: The chain, supplier--manufacturer--majormanufacturer, is thus analyzed as a series of production-inventory decisions. Although correct, that approach neglects issues on the transportation between nodes, thereby...