Cost-stable truck scheduling at a cross-dock facility with unknown truck arrivals: A meta-heuristic approach

• Published in: Transportation research. Part E, Logistics and transportation review Logistics and transportation review, 2013-01, Vol.49 (1), p.71-91
• Main Authors: Konur, Dinçer, Golias, Mihalis M.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Arrivals; Bi-objective optimization; Cost analysis; Costs; Cross-dock operations; Genetic algorithms; Heuristic; Pareto optimum; Schedules; Scheduling; Stable scheduling; Strategy; Studies; Transportation; Transportation problem (Operations research); Trucks; Unknown truck arrivals
• ISSN: 1366-5545; 1878-5794
• DOI: 10.1016/j.tre.2012.06.007

► A cross-dock scheduling problem with uncertain truck arrival times is studied. ► We propose a cost-stable approach to the scheduling problem under consideration. ► A bi-objective bi-level optimization problem is formulated. ► A genetic algorithm based search heuristic is discussed. ► Numerical studies are conduced to compare the cost-stable approach with first-come-first-served policies. We study a cross-dock operator’s truck scheduling problem at inbound doors in case of unknown truck arrival times. Due to uncertainty of truck arrivals, a scheduling strategy is subject to variations in costs of serving the trucks. A cost-stable scheduling strategy is defined as a schedule with low variation levels. In this paper, we analyze the cross-dock operator’s problem of determining a cost-stable scheduling strategy while minimizing the average of total service costs. A bi-objective bi-level optimization problem is formulated and we discuss a genetic algorithm based heuristic to find Pareto efficient schedules. The proposed approach is compared to first-come-first-served policies.