Intelligent decision support systems: A unique application in the petroleum industry

This research focuses on a new and successful optimization-based intelligent decision support system (DSS) implemented at Citgo Petroleum Corporation to address the complex short-term planning and operational issues associated with the supply, distribution, and marketing of refined petroleum products. Citgo is the nation’s largest independent downstream marketer of refined petroleum products, with 1985 sales of approximately £3.8 billion. This intelligent DSS, called the SDM (supply, distribution, and marketing) system, integrates an optimization-based model, state-of-the-art database management system, fourth-generation modeling language, and flexible report generation capabilities with a knowledge-base component. The knowledge-base component, which incorporates artificial intelligence and expert systems techniques, enhances management decision making by using the knowledge of analysts, decision makers, and experts, accumulated from experience in the industry and with the system. It is used to analyze, verify, and modify the input data to the system and to evaluate the model solution through parametric changes and post optimality analysis. The knowledge-base component thus helps to provide fast and easy answers to what-if and why questions about the model, solution, and data.