ABSTRACT
Nonlinear dynamical systems have been a fertile field for the application of simulation techniques. Since the 1960's, System Dynamics has studied such problems by integrating systems of ordinary differential equations over time. Modern industrial strategists are developing the vision of the 'virtual enterprise', formed for a particular market opportunity from independent firms with well-defined core competencies. The Dynamical Analysis of Supply Chains project includes three species of agents. Company agents represent the different firms that trade with one another in a supply network. PPIC agents model the Production Planning and Inventory Control algorithms used by company agents to determine what inputs to order from their suppliers, based on the orders they have received from their customers. Shipping agents model the delay and uncertainty involved in the movement of both material and information between trading partners. Each of the three modeling approaches offers distinctive contributions to understanding of the dynamics of the inventory oscillator.
