Numerous studies have confirmed the negative impact of the lack of coordination on supply chain performance. In particular, the lack of coordination leads to the bullwhip effect, which has severe impacts on supply chain stability. This paper evaluates a proposed coordination mechanism that allows a decentralized information sharing in multi-echelon supply chains. The proposed mechanism “Info-Smooth” utilizes the ordering rule of the generalized (R, S) policy in which a replenishment order can be transferred to upstream echelons including two pieces of information (demand forecast and inventory balance). As the generalized (R, S) can allow order smoothing, Info-Smooth combines the power of both information sharing and order smoothing. A simulation modeling methodology is employed to investigate the effectiveness of Info-Smooth in a multi-echelon supply chain. The factorial design results have shown that Info-Smooth is successful in mitigating the bullwhip effect whilst keeping acceptable inventory stability, compared to the traditional supply chain model.

中文翻译：

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通过广义（R，S）策略协调多级供应链

许多研究证实了缺乏协调对供应链绩效的负面影响。特别是缺乏协调导致牛鞭效应，严重影响供应链稳定性。本文评估了一种提议的协调机制，该机制允许在多级供应链中进行分散的信息共享。提议的机制“信息平滑”利用广义（R，S）策略的排序规则，其中补货订单可以传输到上游梯队，包括两条信息（需求预测和库存平衡）。由于广义 (R, S) 可以允许顺序平滑，Info-Smooth 结合了信息共享和顺序平滑的强大功能。采用仿真建模方法研究多级供应链中 Info-Smooth 的有效性。析因设计结果表明，与传统供应链模型相比，Info-Smooth 成功地减轻了牛鞭效应，同时保持了可接受的库存稳定性。