The University of Southampton
University of Southampton Institutional Repository

The pallet-loading vehicle routing problem with stability constraints: The pallet-loading vehicle routing problem with stability constraints. Second revision

The pallet-loading vehicle routing problem with stability constraints: The pallet-loading vehicle routing problem with stability constraints. Second revision
The pallet-loading vehicle routing problem with stability constraints: The pallet-loading vehicle routing problem with stability constraints. Second revision
This paper addresses an integrated routing and loading problem in which the pallets ordered by a set of customers have to be delivered by a set of trucks so that the total distance traveled is minimized. The problem has two main distinctive features. On the one hand, when assigning pallets to trucks, strict packing constraints, concerning axle weight, stability, and sequential loading, must be considered. On the other hand, split delivery is allowed.

We have developed an integer linear model for the integrated problem, considering all routing and packing constraints. We have also designed a more efficient decomposition procedure in which some packing constraints are initially relaxed. Each time an integer solution is found in the search tree of the relaxed problem, it is checked to see whether it satisfies the remaining constraints and is therefore a feasible solution to the original problem. If it is not, a heuristic algorithm is first applied to rearrange the solution and, if it fails, an integer model is used, considering the packing problem for a single truck. If this also fails, a constraint is added to the relaxed problem to cut off the infeasible integer solution.

An extensive computational study shows how the integer linear model and the decomposition procedure work on a set of instances varying the number of customers, the number of pallets, and their weight distribution.
CVRP, Integer models, Packing, Pallet loading, Stability
0377-2217
860-873
Alonso, M.T.
b4cadad6-c880-4f5f-8509-63a1daa5523c
Martinez Sykora, Antonio
2f9989e1-7860-4163-996c-b1e6f21d5bed
Alvarez-Valdes, R.
4539c46f-4b92-4260-8f4f-31a6134092b6
Parreno, F.
fe68e0a6-4ebd-45ab-96c2-bcaaefaa1e5f
Alonso, M.T.
b4cadad6-c880-4f5f-8509-63a1daa5523c
Martinez Sykora, Antonio
2f9989e1-7860-4163-996c-b1e6f21d5bed
Alvarez-Valdes, R.
4539c46f-4b92-4260-8f4f-31a6134092b6
Parreno, F.
fe68e0a6-4ebd-45ab-96c2-bcaaefaa1e5f

Alonso, M.T., Martinez Sykora, Antonio, Alvarez-Valdes, R. and Parreno, F. (2022) The pallet-loading vehicle routing problem with stability constraints: The pallet-loading vehicle routing problem with stability constraints. Second revision. European Journal of Operational Research, 302 (3), 860-873. (doi:10.1016/j.ejor.2022.01.035).

Record type: Article

Abstract

This paper addresses an integrated routing and loading problem in which the pallets ordered by a set of customers have to be delivered by a set of trucks so that the total distance traveled is minimized. The problem has two main distinctive features. On the one hand, when assigning pallets to trucks, strict packing constraints, concerning axle weight, stability, and sequential loading, must be considered. On the other hand, split delivery is allowed.

We have developed an integer linear model for the integrated problem, considering all routing and packing constraints. We have also designed a more efficient decomposition procedure in which some packing constraints are initially relaxed. Each time an integer solution is found in the search tree of the relaxed problem, it is checked to see whether it satisfies the remaining constraints and is therefore a feasible solution to the original problem. If it is not, a heuristic algorithm is first applied to rearrange the solution and, if it fails, an integer model is used, considering the packing problem for a single truck. If this also fails, a constraint is added to the relaxed problem to cut off the infeasible integer solution.

An extensive computational study shows how the integer linear model and the decomposition procedure work on a set of instances varying the number of customers, the number of pallets, and their weight distribution.

Text
EJOR_accepted_submission - Accepted Manuscript
Download (453kB)

More information

Accepted/In Press date: 21 January 2022
e-pub ahead of print date: 31 January 2022
Published date: 1 November 2022
Additional Information: Funding Information: This work has been partially supported by the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation, and Universities, project RTI2018-094940-B-100, partially financed with FEDER funds, and by the Junta de Comunidades de Castilla-La Mancha, project SBPLY/17/180501/000282, partially financed with FEDER funds. Publisher Copyright: © 2022 Elsevier B.V.
Keywords: CVRP, Integer models, Packing, Pallet loading, Stability

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 454474
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/454474
ISSN: 0377-2217
PURE UUID: 5d6144f2-2d72-4a40-bebc-71a8df207160
ORCID for Antonio Martinez Sykora: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-2435-3113

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 10 Feb 2022 17:40
Last modified: 06 Jun 2024 04:04

Export record

Altmetrics

Contributors

Author: M.T. Alonso
Author: R. Alvarez-Valdes
Author: F. Parreno

Download statistics

Downloads from ePrints over the past year. Other digital versions may also be available to download e.g. from the publisher's website.

View more statistics

Atom RSS 1.0 RSS 2.0

Contact ePrints Soton: eprints@soton.ac.uk

ePrints Soton supports OAI 2.0 with a base URL of http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/cgi/oai2

This repository has been built using EPrints software, developed at the University of Southampton, but available to everyone to use.

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue without changing your settings, we will assume that you are happy to receive cookies on the University of Southampton website.

×