Research on vendor selection in vertical business-to-business marketplace

The characteristics and the application of the vendor selection processes in the business-to-business (B2B) marketplace are different from those in the single-company environment. The vendor selection problem in vertical B2B marketplaces, focusing on the marketplace's feature of more trading information than manufacturing information, is researched. In order to make it work more effectively in a vertical B2B marketplaces, the purchasing habits study and the cooperated supplier evaluation modules based on the kernel selection algorithm of AHP are added. The vendor pre-search algorithm is also modified based on the characteristics of B2B marketplaces. The key technologies in the field are investigated and a purchasing decision support system for vertical B2B marketplaces is designed. As an example of application, a vendor selection decision support system is implemented on a motor industry exchange platform. Thereby, the general methodology of vendor selection in Vertical B2B marketplace is demonstrated.