Department of Industrial Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Alzahra University, Tehran, Iran.
Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Torbat Heydarieh, Torbat Heydarieh, Iran.
Sci Rep. 2024 Oct 1;14(1):22829. doi: 10.1038/s41598-024-67071-0.
The recent pandemic caused by COVID-19 is considered an unparalleled disaster in history. Developing a vaccine distribution network can provide valuable support to supply chain managers. Prioritizing the assigned available vaccines is crucial due to the limited supply at the final stage of the vaccine supply chain. In addition, parameter uncertainty is a common occurrence in a real supply chain, and it is essential to address this uncertainty in planning models. On the other hand, blockchain technology, being at the forefront of technological advancements, has the potential to enhance transparency within supply chains. Hence, in this study, we develop a new mathematical model for designing a COVID-19 vaccine supply chain network. In this regard, a multi-channel network model is designed to minimize total cost and maximize transparency with blockchain technology consideration. This addresses the uncertainty in supply, and a scenario-based multi-stage stochastic programming method is presented to handle the inherent uncertainty in multi-period planning horizons. In addition, fuzzy programming is used to face the uncertain price and quality of vaccines. Vaccine assignment is based on two main policies including age and population-based priority. The proposed model and method are validated and tested using a real-world case study of Iran. The optimum design of the COVID-19 vaccine supply chain is determined, and some comprehensive sensitivity analyses are conducted on the proposed model. Generally, results demonstrate that the multi-stage stochastic programming model meaningfully reduces the objective function value compared to the competitor model. Also, the results show that one of the efficient factors in increasing satisfied demand and decreasing shortage is the price of each type of vaccine and its agreement.
由 COVID-19 引发的最近的大流行被认为是历史上一场空前的灾难。开发疫苗分发网络可以为供应链经理提供有价值的支持。由于疫苗供应链的最后阶段供应有限，优先考虑分配的可用疫苗至关重要。此外，参数不确定性在实际供应链中很常见，在规划模型中解决这种不确定性至关重要。另一方面，区块链技术处于技术进步的前沿，有可能提高供应链的透明度。因此，在这项研究中，我们开发了一个新的用于设计 COVID-19 疫苗供应链网络的数学模型。在这方面，设计了一个多渠道网络模型，以最小化总成本并最大限度地提高区块链技术的透明度。这解决了供应的不确定性，并提出了一种基于情景的多阶段随机规划方法来处理多期规划中固有的不确定性。此外，模糊规划用于应对疫苗价格和质量的不确定性。疫苗分配基于包括年龄和基于人口的优先级在内的两项主要政策。使用伊朗的实际案例研究对所提出的模型和方法进行了验证和测试。确定了 COVID-19 疫苗供应链的最优设计，并对所提出的模型进行了一些全面的敏感性分析。一般来说，结果表明，多阶段随机规划模型与竞争模型相比，显著降低了目标函数值。此外，结果表明，增加满足需求和减少短缺的有效因素之一是每种疫苗的价格及其协议。
