Rescheduling Frequency and Supply Chain Performance

Abstract

Scheduling decisions control the flow of material and information in a supply chain. In many cases, scheduling decisions are made periodically. This paper studies how changes to the rescheduling frequency affect the performance of the participants of the supply chain. In the supply chains studied, the scheduling decisions and order release activities occur together. Three types of decisions are considered: ordering raw materials, scheduling production orders, and scheduling deliveries. Experimental results from two supply chains show that order release frequency affects the system performance more significantly than do the details of inventory and production control policies. Coordinating scheduling decisions between participants affects the performance of not only the individual participants but also the entire supply chain.