Evaluation of suppliers in supply chain based on fuzzy-AHP approach

Competitive advantage is often determined by the effectiveness of an organization's supply chain, and as a result, the evaluation and selection of suppliers has become an increasingly important management activity. But the evaluation process is complex. The data that must be considered are both technical and social/organizational. Much of the data are difficult to obtain and ambiguous or vague to interpret. In addition, the dynamic global environment of changing exchange rates, economic conditions, and technical infrastructure, demand that the pool of potential suppliers be re-evaluated periodically. Nonetheless, a rational process of evaluation must exist to select the most appropriate suppliers. Fuzzy logic, a subset of artificial intelligence, together with analytical hierarchy process(ARP) is used to model this process and rank potential suppliers. It reflects the information of both personal and impersonal. It provides a comprehensive evaluation method for choosing supplier in supply chain. Finally a case was applied to qualify its scientific and feasibility.