Dual Sourcing Inventory Systems: On Optimal Policies and the Value of Costless Returns

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Janakiraman, Ganesh; Seshadri, Sridhar
• 署名单位: University of Texas System; University of Texas Dallas; Indian School of Business (ISB)
• 刊物名称: PRODUCTION AND OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT
• ISSN/ISSBN: 1059-1478
• DOI: 10.1111/poms.12636
• 发表日期: 2017
• 页码: 203-210
• 关键词: Inventory/production systems; sample-path analysis; DUAL SOURCING; multiple suppliers; optimal policies

摘要

We study dual sourcing inventory systems with backordering and with stationary, stochastic demands. The two supply sources differ in their unit prices and lead times. We focus on the option of making costless returns to the cheaper, longer leadtime supplier. We show that the value of this option is zero. Our analysis leading to this result includes the derivation of several structural properties of the optimal policies for dual sourcing systems with and without the return option.