Wenbo Cai

Associate Professor, Mechanical & Industrial Engineering
About Me
I received both my doctorate and master’s degrees in industrial engineering and operations research from University of California, Berkeley. I received two bachelor’s degrees from Cornell University, one in Electrical and Computer Engineering and the other in Operations Research and Industrial Engineering.
Education
Ph.D.; University of California-Berkeley; Industrial Engineering And Operations Research; 2012
M.S.; University of California-Berkeley; Industrial Engineering And Operations Research; 2007
B.S.; Cornell University; Electrical And Computer Engineering; Operations Research And Industrial Engineering; 2005
Website
http://mie.njit.edu/people/cai.php
2026 Fall Courses
IE 725 - INDEPENDENT RESEARCH I
IE 726 - INDEPENDENT RESEARCH II
EM 701B - MASTER'S THESIS
EM 701C - MASTER'S THESIS
IE 481 - INVSTGTNS IN INDS ENGR I
IE 701B - MASTER'S THESIS
IE 790A - DOCTORAL DISSERTATION
EM 602 - MANAGEMENT SCIENCE
EM 725 - INDEPENDENT STUDY I
EM 726 - INDEPENDENT STUDY II
IE 335 - ENGR COST ANALYSIS & CONTROL
IE 701C - MASTER'S THESIS
IE 792B - PRE DOCTORAL RESEARCH
EM 700B - MASTER'S PROJECT
IE 700B - MASTER'S PROJECT
Teaching Interests
Operations Research; Operations Management; Supply Chain;
Past Courses
EM 602: MANAGEMENT SCIENCE
IE 439: DETERMINISTIC MODELS-IE
IE 459: PRODUCTION PLAN & CONTL
IE 459: SUPPLY CHAIN AND PROD PLANNING
IE 459: SUPPLY CHAIN AND PROD PLANNING - HONORS
IE 459: SUPPLY CHAIN AND PRODUCTION PLANNING
IE 650: ADV TOPICS OPER RES
IE 650: ADVANCED TOPICS IN OPERATIONS RESEARCH
IE 706: Q APPROACH PERFORM ANALY
IE 791: GRADUATE SEMINAR
Research Interests
My research is in Operations Management, a field that combines methodologies and tools from multiple disciplines, such as stochastic models and optimization techniques in operations research, game theory in economics, and human behavior in psychology, to study how enterprises can provide quality products and services efficiently by modeling the decision processes of businesses and consumers and by creating incentive devices.

I have three research areas: data-driven decisions in invasive species management, sustainable energy systems, and management of e-commerce. Commonalities among these research areas are the interdisciplinary nature and the immense opportunity to integrate knowledge and techniques from multiple fields to create innovative ways in addressing complex societal challenges.
Journal Article
Mark Rodgers, Wenbo S. Cai, Kwon Gi Mun. 2025. "Designing sustainable power grid investment plans for economic growth and energy security: A case study on kenya.." IEEE Transactions on Energy Markets, Policy and Regulation, vol. 3, no. 4, pp. 440-450.
Kwon Gi Mun, Wenbo S. Cai, Mark Rodgers, Sungyong Choi. 2024. "Optimizing multi resource-based energy supply chains in developing economies: A periodic review model for affordable and sustainable solutions." Computers & Industrial Engineering, no. 192, pp. 110188.
Chen Chen, Wenbo S. Cai, Ismet Esra Buyuktahtakin-Toy, Robert G. Haight. 2023. "A Game-Theoretic Approach to Incentivize Landowners to Mitigate an Emerald Ash Borer Outbreak." IISE Transactions, vol. 56, no. 11, pp. 1131-1145.
Kwon Gi Mun, Wenbo S. Cai, Mark Rodgers, Sungyong Choi. 2023. "A data-driven viable supply network for energy security and economic prosperity." International Journal of Production Research, vol. 62, no. 24, pp. 8988-9010.
Dashi I. Singham, Wenbo S. Cai, Armin Fügenschuh. 2021. "Flexible Contracting with Heterogeneous Agents and Stochastic Demand." International Journal of Production Economics, vol. 231, pp. 107840.
Megan E. O'Neill, Matthew P. Adams, Matthew J. Bandelt, Shawn A. Chester, Wenbo S. Cai, Siva P.V. Nadimpalli. 2019. "Cohort Learning: Supporting Transdisciplinary Communication and Problem-Solving Skills in Graduate STEM Researchers." International Journal of Teaching and Learning, vol. 31, no. 1, pp. 166-175.
Conference Proceeding
"The Impact of Adopting 3D Printing Technology on Retailer's Capacity and Inventory Decisions"
20th International Working Seminar on Production Economics, February, 2018.
"Sampling Approximations to the Continuous Type Principal-Agent Problem"
Winter Simulation Conference, August, 2017.
"Improving the Primary Care Performance Using Stochastic Carve-out Scheduling"
19th International Working Seminar on Production Economics, February, 2016.
"Flexible Contracting with Minimum Order Quantity Commitment and Expedited Delivery"
18th International Working Seminar on Production Economics, February, 2014.
Chapter
Soodabeh Yazdania, Yen-Ting Lin, Wenbo S. Cai, Edward Huang. "A Game Theory Perspective on Requirement-Based Engineering Design." In Madni A, Boehm B., Ghanem R., Erwin D., Wheaton M. , eds., Disciplinary Convergence in Systems Engineering Research, 2018.
Written Case with Instructional Material
"The Young Professional Dream Company’s Stochastic Inventory Management Problem"
Sage Publications , March, 2016.