Optimization problem of product updating schedule in phase-in regulations

Abstract

In recent years, various product regulations are developed aimed for environmental preservation or other social rationality. The companies selling any equipment or products are required to be pursuant to the established rules. For many product groupings, the regulations are relaxed using a framework named {\it Phase-In Method}. A product specification is changed one or more times a year, and each company pays for each change. There are two kinds of change of product specification, major change and minor change which costs are smaller than the major change. The goal of this paper is finding a solution minimizing the total cost consisting of the product specifications and pursuant to the rules using the tabu search.