Inventory Control using Linear Functions for Dual-channel Supply Chains

Abstract

This paper proposes a new inventory control technique for dual-channel supply chains. In dual-channel supply chains, both a retail channel and a direct channel via a website exist. In previous studies, Takahashi et al. (2011) proposed a new inventory control technique for dual-channel supply chains by using a switching point that starts and stops for production and delivery. However, using a linear function for switching, reductions in inventory cost and lost sales costs can be expected. Therefore, in this paper, the authors propose an inventory control method using linear functions for dual-supply chains and and prove its effectiveness using numerical experiments and comparing results with those of a previous study conducted by Takahashi et al. (2011).