Abstract:

The case study presents application of distributed multi-agent system as a core information system in a manufacturing company. Information flow issues were identified and addressed as agents representing and multi-agent technology basics are introduced. Analogies between agents and actor model are identified. System architecture is proposes and technical considerations presented. Advantages and disadvantages of the approach are analyzed. Multi-agent technology is found suitable for such application and results in company business performance improvements coming from integration of information systems and superseding of manual information handing, which makes business data more accurate. The technology is also found beneficial to system scalability, reliability and maintainability. Implementation, however, require substantial investments and technical competence to avoid suboptimal solutions and address security threats. The multi-agent approach is found suitable to be combined with cloud computing technologies.