We provide a novel approach to characterize the order process of continuous review (s,S) and (r,nQ) inventory policies, and study the impact of the batching parameter (the value of Q or S-s) on the variability in the order process. First, we characterize the distribution of the time between...

An important supply chain research problem is the bullwhip effect: demand fluctuations increase as one moves up the supply chain from retailer to manufacturer. It has been recognized that demand forecasting and ordering policies are two of the key causes of the bullwhip effect. In this paper we...

A major cause of supply chain deficiencies is the bullwhip effect which can be substantial even over a single echelon. This effect refers to the tendency of the variance of the replenishment orders to increase as it moves up a supply chain. Supply chain managers experience this variance...