THE OPTIMAL CYCLE TIME FOR EXPONENTIALLY DETERIORATING PRODUCTS UNDER TRADE CREDIT FINANCING

ABSTRACT This paper considers the problem of determining the optimal cycle time for exponentially deteriorating products under the condition of permissible delay in payments. Theorem 1 demonstrates that the annual net profit function is concave. With the concavity, Theorem 2 shows a specific number that can be used to decide the optimal cycle time of the annual net profit function. Theorem 3 reveals the relationship between the optimal cycle time and the annual net profit function. Finally, the algorithm to find the optimal cycle time is derived out. Numerical examples are provided to illustrate the algorithm.