Stochastic Modeling and Optimization of Manufacturing Systems and Supply Chains

The editors have taken the occasion of Professor John A. Buzacott's retirement as a motivating event to develop this volume. The objective of this text is to both honour John Buzacott's achievements and to publish a set of chapters on cutting-edge topics in the field of manufacturing and supply chain management. The book is organized into two parts. The first part focuses on aspects of manufacturing systems modelling. This part includes chapters on the evolution of manufacturing systems modelling, queuing network models and related software technologies, two-moment approximation for fork/join queues, and asymptotic optimality of a scheduling policy. The second part focuses on production-inventory systems and supply chains.This second section includes chapters on a multi-echelon logistics system, optimal control of a substitutable inventory system, structured assemble-to-order systems, the impact of advance demand information on various production-inventory control mechanisms, the quality of demand information as it impacts flexible contracts, the supply of information goods using spot and forward pricing strategies, modelling frameworks that connect material flows with financial information flows.