The International Journal of Production Economics focuses on topics treating the interface between engineering and management. All aspects of the subject in relation to manufacturing and process industries, as well as production in general are covered. The journal is interdisciplinary in nature, considering whole cycles of activities, such as the product life cycle - research, design, development, test, launch, disposal - and the material flow cycle - supply, production, distribution.

The ultimate objective of the journal is to disseminate knowledge for improving industrial practice and to strengthen the theoretical base necessary for supporting sound decision making. It provides a forum for the exchange of ideas and the presentation of new developments in theory and application, wherever engineering and technology meet the managerial and economic environment in which industry operates. In character, the journal combines the high standards of a traditional academic approach with the practical value of industrial applications. 

Articles accepted need to be based on rigorous sound theory and contain an essential novel scientific contribution. Tracing economic and financial consequences in the analysis of the problem and solution reported, belongs to the central theme of the journal. Submissions should strictly follow the Guide for Authors of the journal. 

article, review

Editor-in-Chief
S. Minner
TUM School of Management, Logistics and Supply Chain Management, Technische Universität München, Arcisstraße 21, 80333, München, Germany Email S. Minner
Editor (Asian-Pacific)
T.C.E. Cheng
Dean's Office, Fac. of Business, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, 11 Yuk Choi Road, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong
Editor (Europe)
B. MacCarthy
Nottingham University Business School, Nottingham, England, UK
Editor (North-America)
P. Kelle
Dept. of Information Systems and Decision Sci, E.J. Ourso College of Business Administration, Louisiana State University, 3197 CEBA, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, LA 70803, USA
Editor (Europe)
O. Tang
Linköping Universitet, Linköping, Sweden
Honorary Editor
Robert W. Grubbström
Editorial Board
P.J. Agrell
Université Catholique de Louvain (UCL), Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
S. Axsäter
Lund University, Lund, Sweden
W.L. Berry
The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
L.E. Cardenas-Barron
Monterrey Institute of Technology, Monterrey, Mexico
A. Chikán
Corvinus University of Budapest, Budapest, Hungary
H. Ding
Beijing Jiaotong University, Beijing, China
S.M. Disney
Cardiff Business School, Cardiff, Wales, UK
A. Dolgui
École des Mines de Nantes, Nantes, France
T. Durand
Ecole Centrale Paris, Châtenay Malabry, France
W.G. Ferrell
Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina, USA
B.E. Flores
Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA
J.R. Freeland
Virginia Commonwealth University, Charlottesville, Virginia, USA
L.F. Gelders
KU Leuven, Heverlee-Leuven, Belgium
T.N. Goh
National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
A. Gunasekaran
University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, North Dartmouth, Massachusetts, USA
H.H. Hinterhuber
Leopold-Franzens-Universität Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
K. Hitomi
Ryukoku University, Kyoto, Japan
R.H. Hollier
University of Manchester, Manchester, England, UK
K. Ishii
Kanazawa University, Ishikawa, Japan
M. Jin
University of Tennessee - Knoxville, Knoxville, Tennessee, USA
U.S. Karmarkar
University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, California, USA
B.M.T. Lin
National Chiao Tung University, Hsinchu, Taiwan
T.M. Lin
Taiwan Tech - National Taiwan Institute of Technology, Taipei, Taiwan
R.J. Linn
The Boeing Company, Everett, Washington, USA
G. Lo Nigro
Università degli Studi di Palermo, Palermo, Italy
H. Matsukawa
Keio University, Yokohama, Japan
T. Morton
Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
J.A. Muckstadt
Cornell University, New York, New York, USA
D.N.P. Murthy
University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland, Australia
C. O'Brien
Nottingham, Nottingham, England, UK
S. Park
Seoul National University (SNU), Gwanag-Gu, Seoul, The Republic of Korea
L. Peccati
Università Bocconi, Milano, Italy
J.-M. Proth
Institut National de Recherche en Informatique et en Automatique (INRIA), Metz, France
L.E. Quezada
University of Santiago, Santiago, Chile
D.S. Remer
Harvey Mull College, Claremont, California, USA
B.H. Rho
Sogang University, Seoul, The Republic of Korea
J. Rowcroft
University of New Brunswick, Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada
D.A. Samson
University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
B.R. Sarker
Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA
C.A. Snyder
Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama, USA
M.T. Tabucanon
Asian Institute of Technology, Pathumthani, Thailand
J.M.A. Tanchoco
Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana, USA
R. Teunter
University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands
M. Tuominen
Lappeenranta University of Technology (LUT), Lappeenranta, Finland
L. N. Van Wassenhove
INSEAD, Fontainebleau, France
D.C. Whybark
University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
J. Wijngaard
Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands
S. Wu
Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
H. Yamashina
Matsue National College of Technology, Kyoto, Japan
C.A. Yano
University of California at Berkeley, Berkeley, California, USA
P. Zipkin
Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA