EURO 2025 Leeds
Abstract Submission

1132. Smart stacking import containers in multiple yard blocks at container terminals

Invited abstract in session TC-32: Container Stacking and Yard Planning-1, stream Maritime and Port Logistics.

Tuesday, 12:30-14:00
Room: Maurice Keyworth 1.09

Authors (first author is the speaker)

1. Yuanjun Feng
Operations & Supply Chain Management, University of Liverpool
2. Liqun Liu
School of Computer Science, University of Leeds
3. Dongping Song
School of Management, University of Liverpool
4. Ying Xie
School of Management, Cranfield University

Abstract

Efficient storage planning for newly arriving containers is a critical decision-making challenge at container terminals. This decision is typically structured hierarchically at two levels: (1) the yard block level, which determines the number of containers allocated to each block, and (2) the yard slot level, which assigns each container to a specific storage location within a block. In import container operations, block-level planning often prioritises vessel handling efficiency during the stacking process while overlooking future retrieval efficiency. At slot-level planning, the smart stacking strategy has been shown to improve retrieval efficiency for import containers in a single block by creating relocation-free stacks. This study applies the smart stacking strategy to a multi-block setting, where the block-level planning has been addressed yet the selection of individual containers for each block remains undetermined. Given a predetermined number of import containers unloaded from each vessel to each block, we optimise the assignment of individual containers to blocks and their storage slots, aiming to minimise the container retrieval time while maintaining vessel handling efficiency. We formulate the problem as a mixed-integer programming model and develop a heuristic algorithm to generate efficient solutions. Computational experiments demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed model and the efficiency of the algorithm.

Keywords

Status: accepted

Back to the list of papers