Ammonia is considered a key energy carrier with potential applications for low carbon storage, transportation and power generation. This carbon-free molecule offers several advantages, including high density well-established production distribution infrastructure that have been optimized over century. In this perspective, we analyze the roles of ammonia as an carrier, summarize research areas r...

We consider a model of a two-stage push-pull production-distribution supply chain. The orders arrive at the final stage according to a Poisson process. Two separate operations, which take place at different locations with exponential service times, are required to convert the raw materials into finished goods. When the first operation is completed the intermediate inventory is held at the first...

The design of a supply chain network as an integrated system with several tiers of suppliers is a difficult task. It consists of making strategic decisions on the facility location, stocking location, production policy, production capacity, distribution and transportation modes. This research develops a hybrid optimization approach to address the Supply Chain Configuration Design problem. The n...

In the research project called !fA Guide map for Finnish Rural Areas" we have developed an entirely new map production process as well as the map output. The goal was to develop a map for different distribution purposes, for emergency vehicle use as well as for general transportation. The source information was gathered as follows: land use information was interpreted from Landsat satellite ima...

The geographic concentration of production of main field crops in several growing regions is a distinctive feature of U.S. agriculture. Among many possible reasons for spatial concentration, I study here the effects of the distribution of end users and terminal markets on acreage allocation. The presence of multiple terminal markets in a growing area may allow for a more flexible marketing plan...

The cultivation and traffic of coca, Erythrolxylum coca, and coca derivatives remain understudied threats to the conservation of the Amazon rainforest. Currently the crop is transforming land use and livelihoods in the ecologically and culturally rich borderlands of Amazonian Peru. The isolated nature of this region characterized by indigenous populations (both settled and uncontacted), conserv...

In order to investigate the effect of variation of the moisture content of forest biomass residues on a supply chain strategy, a simulation was performed using integrated biomass supply analysis and logistics modeling. A simple supply chain strategy was chosen and applied for Miramichi and Plaster Rock, two different regions in New Brunswick, Canada. These regions are selected based on three cr...

In many multi-stage manufacturing supply chains, transportation related costs are a significant portion of final product costs. It is often crucial for successful decision making approaches in multistage manufacturing supply chains to explicitly account for non-linear transportation costs. In this article, we have explored this problem by considering a Two-Stage Production-Transportation (TSPT)...

When a make-to-order manufacturing company adopts a commit-to-delivery business mode, it commits a delivery due date for an order and is responsible for the shipping cost. Without loss of generality, we consider that transportation is done by a third party logistics company such as FedEx or UPS, which provides multiple shipping modes such as overnight, one-day, two-day delivery, and more. When ...

The purpose of this paper is to provide a decision support aid for the strategic design of an assembly system in the international business environment created by NAFTA. The strategic design problem is to prescribe a set of facilities, including their locations, technologies, and capacities, as well as strategic aspects of the supply chain, selecting suppliers; locating distribution centers; pl...