DESIMMAL modeling, simulation, animal-farm system

DESIMMAL
Supply Chain Simulation; A System Dynamics Approach for Improving Performance (Campuzano & Mula, 2011)

Supply chain simulation implies operating a model that suitably represents a
supply chain. Supply chain management can be carried out in the model should it
be impossible, too expensive or impractical to do so in the real organization.
Model performance may be studied and the properties relating to real supply chain
performance may be deduced. There are several reasons to simulate the supply chain. It could prove impossible or costly to observe certain processes in a real supply chain, for instance, sales in forthcoming years, etc. A supply chain can be too complex to describe it as mathematical equations. Even if a mathematical model was formulated, it could be too complex to obtain a solution by means of analytical techniques. It is feasible to study changes in a supply chain in a model and/or to verify analytical solutions. Supply chain simulation can provide a valuable idea about the most important variables and how they interact. It can also be used to experiment with new situations about which little or no information is available (uncertainty), and to check new policies and decision rules before risking experiments with campuzanothe real supply chain.