Theory of constraints product mix optimisation based on immune algorithm

Solving the integrated product mix-outsourcing problem using the Imperialist Competitive Algorithm

“…Furthermore, another major difficulty is how to optimize the enterprise's production throughput within the determined product types (Wang, Sun, Si, & Yang, 2008). Aggregating the above two optimization concerns results in the product mix optimization problem which involves identification of the type and quantity of product to produce in order to make the most profit (Coman & Ronen, 2000).…”

“…Therefore, in addition to heuristic methods some meta-heuristics and intelligent search algorithms, such as Tabu search (TS) (Onwubolu, 2001), genetic algorithms (GA) (Onwubolu & Mutingi, 2001), hybrid Tabu-simulated annealing approach (Mishra, Tiwari, Shankar, & Chan, 2005), and other metaheuristics algorithms are used to solve large-scale product mix optimization problem. Wang et al (2008) developed an immune algorithm to solve the TOC product mix problem.…”

When less is better: Insights from the product mix dilemma from the Theory of Constraints perspective

“…New solutions -heuristics, genetic algorithms, tabu search and even fuzzified linear programming -have been proposed to overcome this weakness of TOC (Fredendall and Lea 1997, Hsu and Chung 1998, Balakrishnan and Cheng 2000, Finch and Luebbe 2000, Onwubolu and Mutingi 2001a,b, Onwubolu 2001, Aryanezhad and Komijan 2004, Wang, Sun, and Yang 2009, Sobreiro and Nagano 2012. However, as Linhares (2009) points out, "there is still a clear need for further research of cases with imperfect and non-deterministic information".…”

“…They conclude that TOC and LP present the same performance and are superior to traditional accounting Fredendall and Lea (1997) Revise the TOC product mix heuristic to identify conditions where the original TOC heuristic fails Hsu and Chung (1998) Indicate the use of an explicit algorithm when a plant has multiple resource constraints, but do not compare its effectiveness with the TOC-h of Lea (1997) Mabin andGibson (1998) Reveal how the TOC and LP spreadsheet approaches can complement each other and may be integrated in a simple way Finch and Luebbe (2000) Criticise the comparison of TOC with LP performed by Balakrishnan and Cheng (2000); they affirm that they have different natures Balakrishnan and Cheng (2000) Contrary to the conclusions of Luebbe and Finch (1992), they show that using LP is preferable to the $ return/constraint unit method Onwubolu and Mutingi (2001a,b) Apply a genetic algorithm for the product mix decision Onwubolu (2001) Employs a Tabu-search-based algorithm to product mix problems Boyd and Cox (2002) Demonstrate that TOC outperforms three accounting systems when making some decisions, including product mix problems Mabin and Davies (2003) Study the product mix problem according to a variety of TOC approaches that complement traditional treatments such as LP Aryanezhad and Komijan (2004) Present and compare TOC-h and LP, and recommend an algorithm to determine the product mix Bhattacharya and Vasant (2007), Bhattacharya et al (2008) Describe an alternative to the LP solution for a TOC product mix using a fuzzy linear programming approach in order to maximise the degree of satisfaction of the decision maker Linhares (2009) Reinforces the fragility of the TOC heuristic, pointing out some facts that go against the TOC literature, including showing some particular cases where the application of TOC to define the production mix fails even for small problems and with a single bottleneck Wang, Sun, and Yang (2009) Propose an immune algorithm as a means to solve product mix problems Ray, Sarkar, and Sanyal (2010) Demonstrate the combined use of TOC and the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) in the product mix definition Sobreiro and Nagano (2012) Evaluate some constructive heuristics and propose a new and better (according to their findings) constructive heuristic based on the Theory of Constraints and the Knapsack Problem…”

Optimal product/customer mix selection as a strategic tool for cross-functional integration

“…Generally heuristic or meta-heuristic approaches are used to find solutions for product mix problems, which are an important component of the Theory of Constraints (please see Goldratt, 1988) and these heuristics rely heavily on characteristics of the specific case being examined as illustrated by recent research. Wang et al (2009) proposed an immune mechanism algorithm approach to maximize throughput in a capacity-constrained resource. Hasuike and Ishii (2009) investigated several production planning problems in which product-mix decisions under random and fuzzy conditions and proposed models for them.…”