Which lot-sizing rule minimises total set-up plus holding cost in a deterministic time-phased plan?

Lot-for-lot is a simple ordering policy that matches the order quantity to the demand for each period, which eliminates holding costs but often results in higher set-up costs due to frequent orders. This approach does not consider the trade-off between set-up and holding costs, making it less effective for cost minimization compared to the Wagner–Whitin algorithm.

The Economic Order Quantity (EOQ) model seeks to determine the optimal order size that minimizes total inventory costs, including ordering and holding costs. However, it assumes constant demand and does not account for time-phased requirements or varying demand patterns, making it less suitable than the Wagner–Whitin algorithm for minimizing costs in a deterministic time-phased plan.

The Silver–Meal heuristic is a dynamic programming approach that calculates costs and determines the order quantity for each period based on minimizing average costs over time. While it improves upon simpler methods, it does not guarantee the lowest total cost like the Wagner–Whitin algorithm, particularly in a deterministic scenario where demand is known in advance.