Coordination of Vertically Integrated, Multi-Plant Companies: VPW

将调查垂直整合公司中多个工厂的生产和运输控制策略，强调具有复杂因素的设置，如设置（机器切换），工厂之间的运输延迟，不确定的产量和不确定的生产前置时间。最主要的激励例子是电子工业。目标是开发改进协调的方法，以减少制造响应时间，同时保持低运输和生产成本。将开发分析模型来研究各种复杂因素，了解它们之间的相互作用，然后制定控制战略，鼓励针对这些因素进行协调。项目结果将用于适当调整东道国部门现有的生产计划模型，以考虑这些因素。该项目解决了垂直整合公司的生产控制方法，与半导体和电子行业非常相关，并且适用于更广泛的问题。该项目进一步推进了VPW项目的目标，即通过研究为女性提供在科学或工程领域发展的机会，并通过研究人员在东道国校园中作为榜样的知名度提高，鼓励其他女性在这些领域追求职业。在这个项目中，对第二个目标有贡献的拟议活动包括：教授两门讲座课程（一门本科生和一门研究生），为理科硕士学生的项目提供建议，举办至少一次客座研讨会，以及非正式的指导和咨询以及角色示范（主办部门没有全职女性教师）。

Production and transportation control strategies for multiple plants in a vertically integrated company will be investigated, emphasizing settings with complicating factors such as setups (machine changeovers), transportation delays between plants, uncertain yields, and uncertain production lead times. The primary motivating example is the electronic industry. The goal is to develop approaches to improve coordination so as to reduce the manufacturing response time while keeping transportation and production costs low. Analytical models will be developed to study groups of complicating factors, to understand their interactions, and then to develop control strategies that encourage coordination in view of these factors. Project results will be used to appropriately adapt an existing production planning model at the host department, to account for these factors. This project addresses production control methodology for vertically integrated companies, is extremely relevant to the semiconductor and electronics industries, and has applicability to a much broader range of problems. The project furthers VPW program objectives to provide opportunities for women to advance their careers in science or engineering through research, and to encourage other women to pursue careers in these areas through the investigators' enhanced visibility as role models on the host campuses. In this project, the proposed activities which contribute to the second objective include: teaching two lecture courses (one undergraduate and one graduate), advising on projects for Master of Science students, presenting at least one guest seminar, and informal mentoring and counseling and role modeling (there are no full-time female faculty in the host department).