| This work is focused on designing a hub-and-spoke in-bound supply chain networks for coal plants. Biomass and coal are co-fired to produce electricity. One of the main reasons for focusing this study on biomass supply to coal plants is that biomass, in the form of forest and agricultural waste, is cleaner to burn as compared to coal. The user, most likely a supply chain manager or production control engineer, would input their supplier locations, costs and biomass availability. The mathematical model which supports this DSS is a mixed-integer program. The model uses this input to identify optimal order quantities which optimize costs. This DSS helps address the logistical issues of determining the in-bound supply chain network to transport biomass to coal plants. |
