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Top2. Background
2.1. Logistics Systems
Logistic systems are a complex network with a huge number of interactions and inter-dependencies among different entities including suppliers, customers and business partners, activities and resources. From another perspective it can be viewed as a complex information processing system in which the useful information needs to be stored, processed and transmitted.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Complex Adaptive System (CAS): A complex adaptive system (CAS) can be formulated as a system with dynamical elements that emerges over time into a coherent form, adapting itself without any singular entity deliberately managing or controlling it.
Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP): AHP is a multi-criteria decision making approach introduced in the early 1980th that encompasses both quantitative and non-quantitative objectives. AHP is a flexible approach with several characteristics such as defining the problem, deriving the desired solution, and the solutions’ sensitivity can be tested to changes in information. It has been widely utilized in many areas such as business decisions, public policy and economic policy decisions, and representing systems networks. Basically, AHP is based on the fact that the inherent complexity of a multi-criteria decision making problem can be modeled by breaking it down into several levels in such a way that they form a hierarchy with unidirectional hierarchical relationships between levels.
Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT) Matrix: SWOT matrix is a useful methodology/tool for conducting a strategic formulation.
Complex Adaptive Logistic System (CALS): Logistics are such complex systems in which the autonomous or semi-autonomous entities such as suppliers, customers, and business partners are interconnected and collectively responsible for procurement, manufacturing, and distribution activities depending on the successful management of the adaptation, self-organization, and learning process.
Analytical Network Process (ANP): ANP is a generalization of AHP which represents a decision making problem as a network of elements (including criteria and other alternatives) that are grouped into clusters. In ANP, a network can incorporate feedback and complex inter-relationships within and between clusters which means all the elements in the network can be related in a possible way. This mechanism can provide a more accurate modeling of complex settings.
Closed-Loop: Supply Chain (CLSC): Closed-loop supply chain (CLSC) is the combination of forward logistic and reverse logistic that including the flows of materials from suppliers to end customers and the flows of used products back to the (re)manufacturers.
Internet of Things (IoT): Internet of things (IoT) is a new generation of information network in which trillions of smart devices or things are interconnected to provide and consume information on the network.