Thesis (M. Eng. in Logistics)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, 2010. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references. / AAA, a large oil and gas field services company, is in the business of providing drilling services to companies that extract and market hydrocarbons. One of the key success factors in this industry is the ability to provide comprehensive drilling solutions on short notice and in demanding conditions; fast and reliable delivery of drilling equipment to well sites is critical to maintaining customer satisfaction and market share. The company is considering a reconfiguration of its tool distribution network in order to facilitate a more rapid and cost-effective delivery of drilling tools to drilling sites. Specifically, the company is considering using either a "pure" hub-and-spoke distribution setup, with one of its major facilities - OK - serving as a logistics hub, or a hub-and-spoke system with postponement capabilities, whereby the OK facility will also have certain assembly and configuration capabilities. This thesis develops a model of the AAA distribution network and creates a simulation of the flow of drilling tools through the two alternative network configurations. As customer service levels and logistics costs are evaluated under various levels of end-user demand, both network setups are shown to increase the effectiveness and cost-efficiency of tool deliveries. The key finding is that the hub-and-spoke with postponement design appears to be superior in terms of logistics costs and timely deliveries. / by Alexander Martchouk. / M.Eng.in Logistics

Thesis (S.M. in Technology and Policy)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, 2013. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 60-62). / The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) provides care to over eight million Veterans and operates over 1,700 sites of care distributed across twenty-one regional networks in the United States. Health care providers within VHA report large seasonal variation in the demand for services, especially in healthcare systems located in the southern U.S. that experience a large influx of "snowbirds" during the winter. Since the majority of resource allocation activities are carried out through a single annual budgeting process at the start of the fiscal year, the seasonal load imposed by "traveling Veterans," defined as Veterans that seek care at VHA sites outside of their home network, make providing high quality services more difficult. This work constitutes the first major effort within VHA to understand the impact of traveling Veterans. We found a significant traveling Veteran population (6.6% of the total number of appointments), distributed disproportionately across the VHA networks. Strong seasonal fluctuations in demand were also discovered, particularly for the VA Bay Pines Healthcare System, in Bay Pines, Florida. Our analysis further indicated that traveling Veterans imposed a large seasonal load (up to 46%) on the Module A clinic at Bay Pines. We developed seasonal autoregressive integrated moving average (SARIMA) models to help the clinic better forecast demand for its services by traveling Veterans. Our models were able to project demand, in terms of encounters and unique patients, with significantly less error than the traditional historical average methods. The SARIMA model for uniques was then used in a Monte Carlo simulation to understand how clinic resources are utilized over time. The simulation revealed that physicians at Module A are over-utilized, ranging from a minimum of 92.6% (June 2013) to maximum 207.4% (January 2013). These results evince the need to reevaluate how the clinic is currently staffed. More broadly, this research presents an example of how simple operations management methods can be deployed to aid operational decision-making at other clinics, facilities, and medical centers both within and outside VHA. / by Shahed Al-Haque. / S.M.in Technology and Policy

Thesis (M. Eng. in Logistics)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, 2010. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 62-63). / Global operation strategies have been widely used in the last several decades as many companies and industries have taken advantage of lower production costs. However, in choosing a location, companies often only consider labor cost and, as a result, overall costs may not be reduced. What other costs besides labor should be considered in locating a global facility? This research examines sourcing, manufacturing and distribution costs and develops a total landed cost model for global operations. We use this total landed cost model to estimate the total cost from raw material to the customer for one sample company operation, Tyco Electronics, across multiple manufacturing and customer countries. This total landed cost model was used to analyze the cost for each manufacturing location, customer, and mode of transportation as well as predict the effect from risks and uncertainties in global supply chain. / by Apichart Jearasatit. / M.Eng.in Logistics

Thesis (M. Eng. in Logistics)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, 2010. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 73). / There is no doubt that the 21st century is the century of globalization. The great majority of companies' supply chains span multiple countries, cultures, and industries. However people in different parts of the globe perceive supply chain risks differently. Is it possible to predict the way people manage their supply chain in terms of prevention versus response, based on demographics? Using a large-scale worldwide, online survey as a base, conducted by the MIT Global SCALE Initiative, this research project analyzes the relationship between a dependent variable (Prevention vs. Response) and independent variables (demographics). The analysis shows that there are indeed demographic factors that can help predict how people manage supply chain risk. The following demographic factors need to be known: country of origin, gender, primary field of study, and job function. / by Nuno Miguel Mendes Toste Dinis. / M.Eng.in Logistics

Thesis (M. Eng. in Logistics)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, 2003. / This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections. / Includes bibliographical references (leaf 29). / Following the incidents of 9/11, the FAA imposed new restrictions on cargo to be carried aboard commercial aircraft. This had broad and immediate impact on the U.S. Postal Service, which has long depended on such flights to carry mail, particularly expedited services such as Priority and Express Mail. In fact, the USPS normally utilizes over 15,000 commercial flights daily to transport approximately one quarter of the daily mail volume-over 170 million pieces. In less than 3 hours on that September 11 in 2001, more than 4,500 commercial flights were landed immediately regardless of where they were or where they were headed. It was two days before mail began to move again aboard commercial aircraft, and restrictions persist 18 months later, including one prohibiting any mail weighing in excess of 16 ounces. It is this restriction in particular that most drastically affected movement of the mail. There are many measures that the USPS has identified and/or undertaken since the onset of the aforementioned situations. Some of these measures were permanent and some temporary. While the USPS is different in some respects from other businesses or organizations in general, there are certainly many parallels as well. In lights of this, there may be valuable lessons to be learned from the experiences and actions of the U.S. Postal Service. By studying these actions--and determining their effectiveness in terms of delivery standards, financial impact, and effect on short and long-term strategy--other organizations may ultimately save themselves time and money by following the example of the USPS. / by Christopher J. Hamel. / M.Eng.in Logistics

Thesis (M. Eng. in Logistics)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 81-82). / This thesis will discuss a new approach to preventing the adulteration of prescription medicines in America. The primary thrust of the solution is based on research conducted at MIT's Auto-ID Center on radio frequency technology. The United States faces a growing threat to patient health due to the increasing rate of counterfeit medicine being introduced into the legal pharmaceutical supply chain. This has long been an unresolved global problem, but only recently has it become a major threat in America. Existing legal and technical efforts to control counterfeiting are no longer sufficient to contain the problem. The threat of counterfeits can be partially ameliorated by installing RF-capable electronic tags onto medical packaging, and creating a unique electronic product code (EPC). RF tags though, are not the only component of the required solution. New legal actions, better use of existing technical countermeasures, and industry cooperation are also required. This thesis will outline in more detail the interplay of each of these components in developing a robust solution to the problem of counterfeit medicines. / by Indy Chakrabarti. / M.Eng.in Logistics

Thesis (M. Eng. in Logistics)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 24). / Supply contracts are used to maximize profits in a supply chain by coordinating order quantities between the suppliers and retailers. In traditional supply contracts, retailers use a newsvendor approach to maximize their profits, while the supplier's profits increase linearly as a function of the number of units supplied to retailers. Initially, retailers assume risk in the supply chain because they are facing an unknown demand, and the suppliers assume no risk. This thesis looks at an example from the garment industry where retailers order to replenish stock after a small assortment buy is placed at the start of the finite selling season. The suppliers must place production orders for the entire selling season before the selling season begins. It is clear see that the retailers assume little risk in this model, while the supplier faces significant risk, especially if its forecasting methods are not accurate. The levels of risk that each assumes in this model are reversed when compared to the traditional supply contract model. A method is developed that coordinates the retailer ordering with the supplier's production schedule. It is shown that coordinating the supply chain's ordering will lead to higher profits than the current, uncoordinated model. / by Craig K. Prisby. / M.Eng.in Logistics

Thesis (M. Eng. in Logistics)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, 2004. / "June 2004." / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 53-54). / Shippers who use for-hire carriers need a careful estimation of their need for trucking capacity in order to be able to haul products in a timely and cost-effective manner. This thesis outlines a flexible approach to transportation procurement. According to the proposed method, a shipper makes a firm commitment to a carrier to use a guaranteed level of capacity and agrees to pay a penalty for any unutilized equipment. In exchange, the carrier provides the shipper with an option to fulfill the shipper's request for additional capacity above the guaranteed level and up to a predermined limit if needed. The analysis focuses on actual data from a shipper and explores a "what if' scenario--whether it would have been possible to achieve savings and generate value by having such a flexible contract. / by Georgi Zhelev Zhelev. / M.Eng.in Logistics

Thesis (M. Eng. in Logistics)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 42-43). / by Benjamin Yukai Zheng. / M.Eng.in Logistics

Thesis (M. Eng. in Logistics)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, 2012. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 66-67). / FoodCo is a leading foods company that has reputed brands and global operations with revenues in excess of USD 5Bn. Although FoodCo's sales to Small Format Stores (SFS) customers are a small part of the overall sales, it is a fast growing segment where FoodCo sees future. However, distribution to the SFS channel is a challenge - FoodCo needs to ship refrigerated and frozen products to over 40,000 stores through multiple distributors. Furthermore, such stores are characterized by low sales velocity relative to traditional retailers. The transactional nature of FoodCo's supply chain relationship with channel partners creates challenges for FoodCo in influencing key decisions in the supply chain. To tackle the problem, the authors reviewed the literature and interviewed experts and practitioners to understand best practices in Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) companies across the world serving SFS. Although there were few direct parallels, collaboration was found to be a practice that successful companies employed. The authors also analyzed data including store sales, orders to FoodCo, promotions and supply chain costs, etc. They created a quantitative model that suggested that fees paid out to distributors for their full service are not proportional to the costs. They also concluded that FoodCo's lack of visibility into the sell-through demand made it subject to a strong bullwhip effect, leading to large amounts of inventories and shrinkage. Further, they identified that store sales were scattered geographically and that direct shipments to high selling stores were not possible. Based on the analysis, the authors recommend that FoodCo start collaborating with their channel partners. First, FoodCo could communicate the value of collaboration to its channel partners in order to gain their support. Then, FoodCo and the retailers can share their demand plan with each other, foster collaboration and elevate the manufacturer-retailer relationships to a strategic level. Further, FoodCo could build scale by consolidating volumes through a single re-distributor for channels where the sales volumes are very low. / by Sachin Khandekar and Aleksandra Titova. / M.Eng.in Logistics