Real-Time Decision Making in First Mile and Last Mile Logistics: How Smart Scheduling Affects Energy Efficiency of Hyperconnected Supply Chain Solutions

Abstract

Energy efficiency and environmental issues have been largely neglected in logistics. In a traditional supply chain, the objective of improving energy efficiency is targeted at the level of single parts of the value making chain. Industry 4.0 technologies make it possible to build hyperconnected logistic solutions, where the objective of decreasing energy consumption and economic footprint is targeted at the global level. The problems of energy efficiency are especially relevant in first mile and last mile delivery logistics, where deliveries are composed of individual orders and each order must be picked up and delivered at different locations. Within the frame of this paper, the author describes a real-time scheduling optimization model focusing on energy efficiency of the operation. After a systematic literature review, this paper introduces a mathematical model of last mile delivery problems including scheduling and assignment problems. The objective of the model is to determine the optimal assignment and scheduling for each order so as to minimize energy consumption, which allows to improve energy efficiency. Next, a black hole optimization-based heuristic is described, whose performance is validated with different benchmark functions. The scenario analysis validates the model and evaluates its performance to increase energy efficiency in last mile logistics.

The Role of Digital Connectivity in Supply Chain and Logistics Systems: A Proposed SIMPLE Framework

“…This involves internal and external digital supply chain efforts [1]. • Provide integration and real-time interaction with key SCM members: for an organization to achieve effective connectivity integration through its SCM operations, it should resort to cutting-edge technologies like blockchain to enhance realtime interaction and visibility [29,30]. • Create integration and leverage interplay between robots and humans: smart concepts are built on SCM activities only when robots and humans work in symbiosis [31].…”

A Multi-Objective Programming Approach to Design Feeder Bus Route for High-Speed Rail Stations

“…Constraint (28) states that the feeder bus route cannot end at a node, which is not a candidate terminal. Constraints (29)- (30) define the domains of the decision variables.…”

“…In fact, our problem is also similar to some routing and scheduling problems in the domain of transportation, such as cash transportation vehicle routing and scheduling problem [28,29], first and last mile delivery problem [30][31][32], waste collection routing problem [33][34][35] and dial-a-ride problem [36,37]. Considering the locations of customers and some specific constraints (e.g., time windows and vehicle capacity), the solution approaches to these problems cannot be applied to our problem directly.…”

Substantiating the Logistics Chain Structure While Servicing the Flow of Requests for Road Transport Deliveries

“…According to Yao and Askin (2019), the decision-making procedures concerning the product and supply chain design should be jointly developed [4], which increases the design complexity, but might result in the optimal decision. Bányai et al underline the impact of routing procedures on environmental awareness and sustainability [5] and the influence of the scheduling outcome on energy efficiency [6]. Calleja et al (2018) provide a review of methodological approaches to supply chain design and conclude that the use of typical solutions for supply chains designing is not the proper approach, while the methods proposing a succession of stages to follow through the design process may be effective if they are clear for practitioners [7].…”