When forecasting intermittent demand the method derived by Croston (1972) is often cited. Previous research favorably compared Croston's forecasting method for demand with simple exponential smoothing assuming a nonzero demand occurs as a Bernoulli process with a constant probability. In...

A Bayesian approach to demand forecasting to optimize spare parts inventory that requires periodic replenishment is examined relative to a non-Bayesian approach when the demand rate is unknown. That is, optimal inventory levels are decided using these two approaches at consecutive time...