A Multi-objective Location-allocation Model in the Global Supply Chain (Case Study: Ceramic and Tile Industry)

The ceramic and tile industry is one of the traditional Iranian jobs used in every historical period of different forms. Iran is one of the five largest producers of tiles and ceramics, which have been able to become the biggest exporter of these products in Western Asia by having a huge capacity in the industry. In recent years, ceramics and tiles exports have become one of the country's most important foreign trade. Therefore, to achieve a larger part of the export share, the competitive environment has dominated the industry. On the other hand, supply chain management is considered more and more attention due to the increasing globalization of industries and international competition. Many companies prefer to supply and manage their procurement, production and distribution sectors separately in several countries. Therefore, in dealing with global competitiveness, how to design a supply chain network with minimum cost and with emphasis on financial considerations, insurance and customs, has become an important issue for multinational companies. In this paper, using mixed integer programming method, a four level global positioning model is proposed considering the limitation of water consumption in the production line using GAMS software. The proposed model was used in one of the ceramic tile manufacturing industries in Yazd province to validate the model and investigate the effect of important parameters on strategic location decisions, which led to the location of two domestic warehouses and three foreign distribution centers in neighboring countries.