Coordinating product configuration in the order fulfilment processing: an approach based on the binary tree algorithm

With a view to reducing the distance between company and consumer, an enterprise should be able to offer enough differentiation in products to meet the consumer's needs and requirements regarding production process and cost. This is referred to as a ‘mass customization production environment’. In such an environment, the variety of product configurations causes many problems pertaining to information processing and management. In this study, the authors attempted to propose a binary-tree-based algorithm to coordinate the sale and R&D departments. Based upon the binary tree concept, the system not only offers the data structure and graph representation for product information, but also searches for feasible configuration solutions that meet the customer's needs. Furthermore, a profit analysis is proposed to serve as a criterion for marketing staff 's strategy. A screwdriver and a PC are used as practical examples to illustrate the application of the binary-tree-based algorithm in this study. Finally, the C++ programming language is used to simulate and verify the proposed method.