Fuzzy Programming Models for Vendor Selection Problem in a Supply Chain

This paper characterizes quality, budget, and demand as fuzzy variables in a fuzzy vendor selec-tion expected value model and a fuzzy vendor selection chance-constrained programming model, to maxi-mize the total quality level. The two models have distinct advantages over existing methods for selecting vendors in fuzzy environments. A genetic algorithm based on fuzzy simulations is designed to solve these two models. Numerical examples show the effectiveness of the algorithm.