Decision Criteria and Optimal Inventory Processes

Provides a theoretical and practical introduction to decision criteria and inventory processes. Inventory theory is presented by focusing on the analysis and processes underlying decision criteria. Included are many criterion models as background material. These models are extended to the authors' newly developed fuzzy criterion models which constitute a general framework for the study of stochastic inventory models with special focus on the real world inventory theoretic reservoir operations problems. The applications of fuzzy criterion dynamic programming models are illustrated by reservoir operations including the integrated network of reservoir operation and the open inventory network problems. The text pays special attention to the analysis of some theoretical and applied aspects of fuzzy criteria and dynamic fuzzy criterion models, thus opening up a way of injecting the type of non-cost, intuitive, and easy-to-use methods into multi-stage inventory processes. This is accomplished by constructing and optimizing the fuzzy criterion models developed for inventory processes.

Practitioners in operations research, management science, and engineering should find numerous new ideas and strategies for modelling real-world multi-stage inventory problems, and researchers and applied mathematicians should find this work a useful reference.