The impact of lead time forecasting on the bullwhip effect

Abstract

In this article we quantify the bullwhip effect (the variance amplification in replenishment orders) when demands and lead times are predicted in a simple two-stage supply chain with one supplier and one retailer. In recent research the impact of stochastic order lead time on the bullwhip effect is investigated, but the effect of needing to predict / estimate the lead time is not considered in the supply chain models. Under uncertainty conditions it is necessary to estimate the lead time for a member of the supply chain to place an order. We find a new cause of the bullwhip effect in the form of lead time forecasting and we give an exact form of the bullwhip effect measure (the ratio of variances) when demands and lead times are predicted by moving averages. In the bullwhip effect measure we discover two terms amplifying the effect which are the result of lead time estimation