Inventory Management under Fluctuating Raw Material Prices

该补助金为联合动态收购-生产-定价控制问题的理论模型分析和数值工具开发提供资金。 其目标是制定一般性指导方针和管理见解，以帮助那些与波动的原材料价格作斗争的公司做出谨慎的经营决策。 将逐步研究更复杂的模型。 从原材料价格状态离散的基本模型开始，项目将转向更复杂的设置，包括连续的原材料价格状态，同时的收购-生产考虑，同时的收购-定价考虑以及其他扩展。 对于每一个模型，企业的最优经营策略将被寻求。 还将追求特殊的问题条件，这将导致政策的期望属性。 将进行计算研究，以尽可能明确地确定政策特征与模型参数之间的联系。 如果研究成功，其结果将有助于更好地理解关节动力学控制问题，并推动相关理论领域的发展。 它们还将为从业人员提供一套技术指南，从而提高他们对面对不同原材料价格的采购、生产和定价联合管理的系统理解。 研究结果将通过经评审的专业期刊和会议报告传播，开发的计算机程序将向公众提供。 此外，该项目将与经常面临联合收购-生产-定价决策难题的制造企业建立互利关系。 最后，该研究将吸引博士的参与。和MS学生，并帮助他们为他们的学术和行业生涯做好准备。

This grant provides funding for the analysis of theoretical models and development of numerical tools for the joint dynamic acquisition-production-pricing control problem. Its goal is to produce general guidelines and managerial insights that will assist firms that battle fluctuating raw material prices in making prudent operational decisions. Progressively more sophisticated models will be studied. Starting with a base model where states of the raw material prices are discrete, the project will move on to more complicated settings involving continuous raw material price states, simultaneous acquisition-production considerations, simultaneous acquisition-pricing considerations, and other extensions. For each of the models, the optimal operations policies for the firm will be sought after. Also pursued will be special problem conditions that would lead to desired properties of the policies. Computational studies will be performed to establish, as definitive as possible, links between policy characteristics and model parameters. If successful, results of the research will lead to better understanding of the joint dynamic control problem and advancement of related theoretical fields. They will also offer practitioners a set of technical guidelines, and therefore enhance their systematic understanding of the joint management of acquisition, production, and pricing in the face of varying raw material prices. Results of the research will be disseminated through refereed professional journals and conference presentations, and the computer programs developed will be made available to the public. Furthermore, the project will establish mutually-beneficial relationships with manufacturing firms that frequently face the joint acquisition-production-pricing decision puzzle. Finally, the research will engage the participation of Ph.D. and MS students and help them prepare for their academic and industry careers.