A knowledge-based collaborative simulation system for supply chain integration

The importance of adopting and implementing a relevant and appropriate supply chain strategy has often been undermined to bring effective changes into an organisation. The customisation of appropriate supply chain strategy is often not easy and business workflow procedures may not map into current practices of a company. This paper presents a Knowledge-Based Collaborative Simulation System (KBCSS) for supply chain integration. It is proposed for supply chain parties to select a suitable strategy and make a right decision at the right time to maximise profits and minimise risks. Through this system, successful experience of supply chain parties can be assimilated for formulating and implementing supply chain strategies so as to increase total profits of a whole supply chain. The potential benefit is to provide guidance and solutions for the organisations to reduce risks and improve collaboration with their business partners. A prototype system has been built and its performance is preliminarily evaluated through a trial implementation at a selected reference site.