Speaker
Describe the added value of the Grid for the scientific/technical activity you (plan to) do on the Grid. This should include the scale of the activity and of the potential user community and the relevance for other scientific or business applications
The mathematical foundation of the EMMIL model has been laid down
for the
buyer-oriented type of EMMIL, where a powerful buyer issues a
request for
proposal followed by bidding of sellers and 3PLs. The new three
sided
auction model involves a new cost model for transportation
separating fix
and variable costs.
The suggested model leads to a non-linear optimization problem
where the
objective function is discontinuous so the non-linear solvers do
not work.
Linearisation is possible at the price of a massive increase in
the number
of variables. The mixed integer programming problem we get can be
so big
that it results in a computation time infeasible for a web
auction. To
shorten the processing time a parallel computational model has been
developed and a grid based solution has been tested.
The potential user community consists of companies who want to
buy, sell
and deliver products via an e-marketplace.
Describe the scientific/technical community and the scientific/technical activity using (planning to use) the EGEE infrastructure. A high-level description is needed (neither a detailed specialist report nor a list of references).
The EMMIL model represents a new type of B2B electronic
marketplace with a
new kind of bid structure that allows buyers, sellers and third
party
logistics service providers (3PL) to take part in the same
transaction
aiming at buying-selling and delivering tangible goods of
homogeneous
kinds. The new structure involves an optimization process that is
much
more complex than the ones currently in use.This project is
carried out
on the SEEGRID infrastructure using the gLite middleware.
Report on the experience (or the proposed activity). It would be very important to mention key services which are essential for the success of your activity on the EGEE infrastructure.
The grid version of the EMMIL model is developed under the
P-GRADE portal
release 2.5 that can support parameter sweep applications. The
organization of EMMIL on the Grid is basically a parameter sweep
application consisting of three main parts. The first part
contains the
so-called generator jobs that are used to generate and place the
required
input parameter sets into a given storage element of the grid.
The 2nd part is a workflow to be executed as many times as many
input sets
are generated by the generator jobs. We use a realistic business
constraint, namely that despite the high number of bidding
sellers the
buyer wants to establish partnership with only a limited number of
partners. The 3rd part finds the best solution and generates output.
The key services are the broker and the built-in workflow manager
of the
portal. The portal hides the orchestration of the jobs and
workflows in
the parameter sweep application.
With a forward look to future evolution, discuss the issues you have encountered (or that you expect) in using the EGEE infrastructure. Wherever possible, point out the experience limitations (both in terms of existing services or missing functionality)
The first grid solution implements the simplified auction model
where only line-
haul delivery is allowed and full market is assumed. It is also
assumed that a
best 3PL can be found from each seller. In the following versions
this limitations
will be resolved one by one. Meanwhile running the application we
found
several problems in the infrastructure: 1. File catalogue entries
may become
incoherent with accessible files on SEs. 2. Unspecified
stochastic refusal of
correct jobs from the WMS.
