An approximation method for the problem of a repairable-item inventory system with lateral resupply

This paper deals with a two-echelon repairable-item inventory system which consists of several bases, a central depot, and repairable items operated at the bases. In each base, some spare items are allocated. Failed items are repaired at the depot. The purpose of this paper is to introduce ‘lateral resupply’ into a repairable-item inventory problem and to develop a method for obtaining approximate steady-state probabilities for this inventory system modelled as a multidimensional Markovian model. In an inventory system with lateral resupply, a base may provide its spares to the other bases. As measures of performance for this inventory system, the mean number of failed items in each base and the probability that a back order occurs in the inventory system are obtained.