Acquiring logistics process intelligence: Methodology and an application for a Chinese bulk port

The processes of logistics service providers are considered as highly human-centric, flexible and complex. Deviations from the standard operating procedures as described in the designed process models, are not uncommon and may result in significant uncertainties. Acquiring insight in the dynamics of the actual logistics processes can effectively assist in mitigating the uncovered risks and creating strategic advantages, which are the result of uncertainties with respectively a negative and a positive impact on the organizational objectives.In this paper a comprehensive methodology for applying process mining in logistics is presented, covering the event log extraction and preprocessing as well as the execution of exploratory, performance and conformance analyses. The applicability of the presented methodology and roadmap is demonstrated with a case study at an important Chinese port that specializes in bulk cargo.     

Embedded devices for supply chain applications: Towards hardware integration of disparate technologies

The emergence of the RFID technology and its application to supply chain processes has in particular led to the creation of such standards as the EPCglobal’s model of supply networks as a tool for materializing intra- and inter-enterprise visibility of resources and products, collaboration and integration. Among other critical uses, RFID has been deployed by supply networks to improve asset utilization, effectively combat counterfeiting, and advance targeted product recalls. However, new affordable and deployable technologies and microsensors have recently appeared and keep maturing. This paper discusses the needs and the possibilities that exist for leveraging these technologies and sensors with RFID to guarantee continuous and seamless visibility of all assets (fixed and mobile resources and field personnel) of smart enterprises, thereby expanding and complementing the roles of RFID. It examines the design challenges for the integration of these technologies for advanced logistics operations at the level of product classes or their instances. It then outlines our development of an embedded microsystem that combines RFID, GPRS, GPS and environmental sensors for applications in logistics. The prototyped microsystem demonstrated the feasibility of the multi-sensor integration paradigm that the paper proposes.     

Greedy-search-based multi-objective genetic algorithm for emergency logistics scheduling

To enable the immediate and efficient dispatch of relief to victims of disaster, this study proposes a greedy-search-based, multi-objective, genetic algorithm capable of regulating the distribution of available resources and automatically generating a variety of feasible emergency logistics schedules for decision-makers. The proposed algorithm dynamically adjusts distribution schedules from various supply points according to the requirements at demand points in order to minimize unsatisfied demand for resources, time to delivery, and transportation costs. The proposed algorithm was applied to the case of the Chi–Chi earthquake in Taiwan to verify its performance. Simulation results demonstrate that under conditions of a limited/unlimited number of available vehicles, the proposed algorithm outperforms the MOGA and standard greedy algorithm in ‘time to delivery’ by an average of 63.57% and 46.15%, respectively, based on 10,000 iterations.     

Novel multi-objective resource allocation and activity scheduling for fourth party logistics

In order to reduce logistic costs, the scheduling of logistic tasks and resources for fourth party logistics (4PL) is studied. Current scheduling models only consider costs and finish times of each logistic resource or task. Not generally considered are the joint cost and time between two adjacent activities for a resource to process and two sequential activities of a task for two different resources to process are ignored. Therefore, a multi-objective scheduling model aiming at minimizing total operation costs, finishing time and tardiness of all logistic tasks in a 4PL is proposed. Not only are the joint cost and time of logistic activities between two adjacent activities and two sequential activities included but the constraints of resource time windows and due date of tasks are also considered. An improved nondominated sorting genetic algorithm (NSGA-II) is presented to solve the model. The validity of the proposed model and algorithm are verified by a corresponding case study.     

基于PBIL算法的物流中心选址问题研究

介绍了基于种群竞争式学习的PBIL算法的基本原理和实现方法。比较了PBIL算法和遗传算法求解过程的异同点。分析了PBIL算法在物流中心选址问题中的应用,并且通过实例验证了算法的可行性和有效性,证明了PBIL算法比遗传算法具有更高的搜索效率。     

A domain-specific knowledge-based heuristic for the Blocks Relocation Problem

The Blocks Relocation Problem consists in minimizing the number of movements performed by a gantry crane in order to retrieve a subset of containers placed into a bay of a container yard according to a predefined order. A study on the mathematical formulations proposed in the related literature reveals that they are not suitable for its solution due to their high computational burden. Moreover, in this paper we show that, in some cases, they do not guarantee the optimality of the obtained solutions. In this regard, several optimization methods based on the well-known A¹ search framework are introduced to tackle the problem from an exact point of view. Using our A¹ algorithm we have corrected the optimal objective function value of 17 solutions out of 45 instances considered by Caserta et al. (2012) [4]. In addition, this work presents a domain-specific knowledge-based heuristic algorithm to find high-quality solutions by means of short computational times. It is based on finding the most promising positions into the bay where to relocate those containers that are currently located on the next one to be retrieved, in such a way that, they do not require any additional relocation operation in the future. The computational tests indicate the higher effectiveness and efficiency of the suggested heuristic when solving real-world scenarios in comparison with the most competitive approaches from the literature.     

试谈铁路运输企业发展第三方物流的对策

从物流及第三方物流的概念着手,主要分析了物流与铁路运输的本质区别,并就铁路运输开展第三方物流优势及存在问题进行了详细分析,重点论述了铁路运输业开展第三方物流的可行性及有关对策。     

带控制结构的物流园区平面布置法

物流园区的规划是个世界范围的新课题,尤其在物流园区设施规划方面理论和经验更是欠缺。对系统化设计法（SLP）做了改进,提出了带控制结构的物流园区总平面布置法。该方法把选址区外部交通设施作为控制点或控制线,与内部功能分区一起进行关联分析,外部控制结构和内部关联关系同时作为布置搜索线进行内部功能区位置构建。该方法的优点是体现了园区内部平面布置和外部交通设施的互动,并通过扬州城北物流园区的应用实例,取得了较好的效果。     

基于现代物流理念的旅游产业整合

本文首先分析了我国2003—2012年物流业、旅游业的发展状况,然后利用灰色关联度分析法测定了物流业与旅游业之间的关联度,得出两者之间具有较大关联性的结论。通过辨析现代物流与旅游产业整合的概念,对如何运用现代物流理念促进旅游产业整合提出了对策建议。     

浅谈我国物流企业文化建设

现阶段,我国物流行业发展迅猛,技术手段不断进步,专业人才也不断涌出,硬件方面达到了世界物流企业的平均水平,但是,却忽视了对企业文化的建设。到目前为止,我国少数物流企业认识到企业的发展壮大不能仅仅依赖于引进先进的技术手段和专业人才,建设企业自身的文化对于企业立足于激烈的市场竞争有很大的优势。本文分析了企业文化的内涵及其对企业发展的意义,以及我国物流企业文化建设中存在的问题及原因,并提出了相应地解决方法及对策。