An integrated supplier selection methodology incorporating QFD and DEA with imprecise data

• A novel fuzzy decision framework that integrates QFD and DEA is presented for supplier selection.
• The proposed approach incorporates imprecise data into the analysis using linguistic variables.
• Both relationships among product features and supplier attributes (SAs), and dependencies among SAs are considered.
• FWA is used to compute the lower and upper bounds of the weights of SAs utilizing the data from the HOQ.
• DEA is implemented using weights of SAs computed by FWA and supplier ratings with respect to SAs.

Supplier evaluation and selection is an important group decision making problem that involves not only quantitative criteria but also qualitative factors incorporating vagueness and imprecision. This paper proposes a novel fuzzy multi-criteria group decision making framework for supplier selection integrating quality function deployment (QFD) and data envelopment analysis (DEA). The proposed methodology allows for considering the impacts of inner dependence among supplier assessment criteria through constructing a house of quality (HOQ). The lower and upper bounds of the weights of supplier assessment criteria are identified by adopting fuzzy weighted average (FWA) method that enables the fusion of imprecise and subjective information expressed as linguistic variables. An imprecise DEA methodology is implemented for supplier selection, which employs the weights of supplier assessment criteria computed by FWA utilizing the data from the HOQ and the supplier ratings with respect to supplier assessment criteria. The application of the proposed framework is demonstrated through a case study in a private hospital in Istanbul.