Consistent vehicle routing problem with service level agreements: a case study in the pharmaceutical distribution sector

• Type: Article in International Scientific Journal
• Date: 2019

Authors

Pedro Campelo (Author) Other; Fábio Neves Moreira (Author) Other; Pedro Amorim (Author) FEUP; Bernardo Almada Lobo (Author) FEUP

Journal

Title: European Journal of Operational Research

Vol. 273 No. 1

Pages: 131-145

ISSN: 0377-2217

Publisher: Elsevier

Indexing

ISI Web of Knowledge - 53 Citations

ISI Web of Science

Scopus - 63 Citations

INSPEC

Other information

Authenticus ID: P-00N-ZX8

DOI: 10.1016/j.ejor.2018.07.030

Abstract (EN): In this paper, a mathematical model is developed to tackle a Consistent Vehicle Routing Problem, which considers customers with multiple daily deliveries and different service level agreements such as time windows, and release dates. In order to solve this problem, an instance size reduction algorithm and a mathematical programming based decomposition approach are developed. This solution approach is benchmarked against a commercial solver. Results indicate that the method solves instances of large size, enabling its application to real-life scenarios. A case study in a pharmaceutical distribution company is analyzed. Consistent routes are planned for several warehouses, comprising hundreds of orders. A simulation model evaluates the performance of the generated route plans. Significant improvements in terms of the total distance traveled and the total travel times are obtained when compared to the company's current planning process.

Language: English

Type (Professor's evaluation): Scientific

No. of pages: 15