2628. Motorail loading problem with two-dimensional irregular constraints: Formulation, optimization and implications
Invited abstract in session MC-21: Irregular packing and cutting, stream Cutting and packing (ESICUP).
Monday, 12:30-14:00Room: Esther Simpson 2.12
Authors (first author is the speaker)
| 1. | Songtao Wang
|
| Shenzhen International Graduate School, Tsinghua University | |
| 2. | Peiyao Liu
|
| Department of Industrial Engineering, Tsinghua University | |
| 3. | Yichen Li
|
| University of Michigan | |
| 4. | Mingda Liu
|
| Tsinghua University | |
| 5. | Mingyao Qi
|
| Tsinghua University |
Abstract
Railway transportation, renowned for its safety, efficiency, and environmental friendliness, is favored by transportation companies for long-haul automobile distribution, necessitating excellence in loading management and operations. However, manual scheduling, particularly for JSQ6 wagons, suffers from inefficiencies and suboptimal wagon utilization, leading to idle space and revenue loss.
In contrast to the prevalent focus in the existing literature on simplified bin packing assumptions and regular-shaped containers, our paper seeks to handle not only irregular wagon spatial constraints but also dynamic deck positioning. To this end, we propose a mixed-integer programming model to account for irregular loading constraints, drawn from the operational practices of our industry partner. Our research develops a novel branch-and-price algorithm to produce exact solutions, leveraging variable neighborhood search metaheuristics for initial warm-up and integrating tailored pricing problems for different deck positions.
Our computational experiments demonstrate that this framework achieves 90% time savings over manual scheduling while improving wagon utilization by 0.4%. Empirical results also reveal that prioritizing vehicle loading length over quantity and maintaining a balanced composition of vehicles maximizes space efficiency. The findings also offer valuable managerial insights in terms of objective selection and vehicle composition for better decision-making.
Keywords
- Logistics
- Cutting and Packing
Status: accepted
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