DIMA—A research methodology for comprehensive multi-disciplinary modeling of production and logistics networks

The paper presents a multi-disciplinary decentralized integrated modeling approach (DIMA) for comprehensive modeling production and logistics networks. The DIMA allows the implementing of the principle of throughout modeling ‘conceptual model → mathematical model → software’. In the paper, the DIMA is illustrated on the problem of collaborative network (CN) dynamical synthesis and reconfiguration. This problem is described in a comprehensive way on the conceptual and mathematical levels. This description allows interlinking synthesis and analysis issues of CN planning and control taking into account system elements’ activity, uncertainty factors, and structure dynamics. The paper reports a novel approach for comprehensive multi-disciplinary modeling distributed large-scale business systems with decentralized decision-making and control. In this paper, the main features of the DIMA are summarized based on recently developed partial models and algorithms for a large spectrum of CN management issues.