A Comprehensive Approach to Defining the Cost of Inventory Management: A Case Study on Small Batch Cargo Delivery

Taran I. Arpabekov M. Potaman N. Pavlenko O. Muzylyov D.
March 2026 Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute (MDPI)

Sustainability (Switzerland)
2026 #18 Issue 5

In recent years, there has been a significant negative impact on the sustainability of supply chains for the delivery of small batch cargo, caused by crisis situations. Therefore, it is important to develop a modern methodology to reduce uncertainty in the delivery of small batch cargo, especially when considering a flexible inventory management system. This study proposes an integrated approach to inventory management, consisting of three elements: an updated ABC-XYZ structure of inventory formation analysis with criteria that determine stability; an additive mathematical model for calculating inventory management costs; and the development of a regression model for operational forecasting of inventory management costs, based on the number of end customers, unit cost and batch size. A comparison of regressions showed the advantage of the power model over the linear one. The main advantage of the study is the proposed mathematical and regression models for the operational calculation of inventory management costs, considering the uncertainty factors that determine the sustainability of the supply chain. This approach will be of interest to trading enterprises, allowing them to make flexible decisions in inventory management in the event of various disruptions in small batch cargo supply chains.

digital integration , small batch cargo , supply chain sustainability , uncertainty management

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Department of Roads and Bridges, Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture, Rzeszow University of Technology, Rzeszów, 35-959, Poland
Department of Organization of Transport, Traffic and Transport Operation, Faculty of Transport Energy, L.N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University, Astana, 010008, Kazakhstan
Department of Transport Technologies, Kharkiv National Automobile and Highway University, Kharkiv, 61002, Ukraine

Department of Roads and Bridges
Department of Organization of Transport
Department of Transport Technologies

10 лет помогаем публиковать статьи Международный издатель

Книга Публикация научной статьи Волощук 2026 Book Publication of a scientific article 2026