We live in a time where many different approches for simulating systems are already being used and explored worlwide, mainly due to the last decade´s explosion in high level programming languages and the vertiginous level of information conceded by the Internet.
The simulation of Supply Chain Systems is no exception. However, it is still very difficult to obtain information about the details behind most of the Suplly Chain simulators announced out there, for they easily turn into products of high value to those who develop them, as well as to the consultnacy agencies that make them highly rentable.
But the world of simulation has also changed, from the trustful and innocent academic old-fashioned reliability to the present suspicious and voracious days of modern commerce. In reality, there are no available books or articles or any other texts on how to project a Suplly Chain simulator obviously, therefore my opitnio has been to built up my own personal approach from the ground.
This thesis, based on some hypotheses of flexibility, intends to expose the ideas behind such an approach, as well as to document the relevant steps that have been taken to reach this challange, from the bibliographic review and the study of conceptual issues on Supply Chain systems and trends of simulation, to the conception and development of a practical simulator written in C++ with some results anc conclusions have benn obtained.
[resumido]
Chapter 1
Logistics, Life and Simulation
1.1 - Introduction
1.2 - The Past
1.3 - The Present
1.4 - The Future
Chapter 2 -
On Modelling The Supply Chain
2.1 - Systems and Models
2.2 - Supply Chain Overview
2.3 - Suplly Cahin Modelling
2.4 - Which Approach to Choose
2.5 - Model Consistency, Accuracy
2.6 - Getting Results With the Model
2.7 - Final Comments
Chapter 3 -
The Flexible Suplly Chain Aproach
3.1 - Introduction
3.2 - The Basic Idea
3.3 - A Generic Network Concept
3.4 - Modelling The CSU Costs
3.5 - Information And Money Flows
3.6 - Products And Product-Boxes
3.7 - Modelling the CSU Resources
3.8 - Modelling the CSU Activity
3.9 - Products, Orders and Vehicles
3.10 - About the Flexibility (Matrix)
Chapter 4
Implementation and Overview
4.1 - Introduction
4.2 - The Simulator Structure
4.3 - Discrete Event Modelling
4.4 - The Basic Entity
4.5 - Listing The Event IDS
4.6 - Coding The States (Activities)
4.7 - The Simulator Object
4.8 - Entity Motion (Simmovie)
4.9 - A Daily Mark (Simtimemark)
4.10 - Some Utilities
4.11 - Suply Chain Entities
4.12 - The Simulator Application
Chapter 5
Case Studies and Comments
5.1 - Introduction
5.2 - Verification Strategy
5.3 - About Validating the Simulator
5.4 - Case 1: Procurement of Additives in the Oil Refinery of Porto, Portugal
5.5 - Case 2: Comparing Standard and Naive Ordering Policies in al Inline Suplly Chain
5.6 - Case 3: Distributed Simulation Game Supply Chain Management Training
5.7 - Case 4: Computing the Rigidity Matrix of a Didactic Suplly Chain
5.8 - Last Coments
Chapter 6
Conclusions And Future Work
6.1 - The Final Chapter
6.2 - Specific Advances
6.3 - Verifications Of the Hypotheses
6.4 - General Conclusions
6.5 - Future Work
6.6 - Closing
J. Manuel Feliz-Teixeira