A Multi-agent Framework for Agile Outsourced Supply Chains

The primary goal of an agile supply chain is to meet the varying demand of customers. Therefore, the supply chain nowadays involves coordination among partners, and this has raised issues of effective networking and logistics. The present chapter proposes a reconfigurable multi-agent architecture framework that can assist in selecting outsourcing partners and develop effective coordination among the partners and between manufacturing units. The proposed multi-agent architecture is inspired by the human self-healing mechanism and is capable of managing disruptions that occur during manufacturing operations. When a new production order is introduced, or during the disruptions, this agent framework uses a string matching algorithm to generate a better plan. The proposed agent architecture also learns continuously from its past experiences. This framework will also help to manufacture better quality products at minimum cost and within the due date.