Coordination and synchronization of material flows in supply chains: An analytical approach

The coordination of joint material flows is a key element in supply chain management. Although analytical models for the coordination of materials are of great practical value, literature analyzing them remains scarce. This article contributes to this gap by studying a generic supply chain model. The supply chain is assumed to have a single production facility that is supplied by two independent suppliers. The field of combinatorics serves as a means to derive exact results for important performance measures, and the results suggest insights related to several supply chain management principles.