Algorithm for the design of single-stage adaptive kanban system

The traditional kanban system with fixed number of cards does not work satisfactorily in unstable environment. In the adaptive kanban-type pull control mechanism the number of kanban is allowed to change with respect to the inventory and backorder level. It is required to set the threshold values at which cards are added or deleted which is a part of the design. Previous studies used the local search method to design the adaptive kanban system. In this paper Genetic Algorithm- and Simulated annealing-based heuristics are developed and used to set the design parameters of adaptive kanban system. The numerical results indicate that simulated annealing based heuristics produces better solution with improved computational efficiency. (C) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.