A method for selecting maritime service providers based on three-way decision making

With the continuous development of global trade, the selection of maritime transportation suppliers is crucial to the logistics and supply chain management of enterprises. Traditional supplier selection often focuses on fixed criteria like cost and transportation time. However, real-world business is increasingly marked by uncertainty and variety, complicating the selection process. This study introduces a novel approach to maritime transportation supplier selection using rough set game theory. It’s designed to handle uncertainty and diversity effectively. The study develops a model that considers multiple suppliers and various influencing factors. Firstly, rough set theory is used to model the uncertainty, and the vague and incomplete information is classified and processed. Next, the concept of game theory is introduced to consider a game between three-way domains influenced by a threshold pair. The final suitable supplier is determined by updating the thresholds through continuous iteration. The study analyzes hypothetical maritime service provider data to validate this rough set game theory-based supplier selection method. The study’s goal is to offer an innovative maritime supplier selection method and fresh insights for efficient decision-making in supply chain contexts. It addresses the challenges of uncertainty and diversity faced by companies.