Exploring mathematical approximation for the time spans of transfer operations in parcel transshipment terminals

Authors:
Douglas L. Mcwilliams;Maranda E. Mcbride
Affiliations:
Jackson State University, Department of Management and Marketing, 1400 Lynch Street, Jackson, MS 39217, United States;North Carolina A&T State University, Department of Management, 145 Merrick Hall, Greensboro, NC 27411, United States
Venue:
Computers and Industrial Engineering
Year:
2013

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Abstract

The parcel delivery industry (PDI) is a very labor intensive industry, from the drivers of the pickup and delivery vans, to the unloaders, sorters, and loaders in the transshipment terminals. The labor efficiency is a key performance measure in the PDI. In this study, the focus is on developing a framework for improving labor efficiencies in a parcel transshipment terminal. The objective is to minimize the time required to transfer parcels from inbound trailers to outbound trailers. This paper is an exploratory study to developing a framework for a solution approach to solve large-scale parcel hub scheduling problems (PHSP). A binary integer programming (BIP) model is proposed along with a branch and bound (BaB) algorithm with lower and upper bounds. The computational study shows that the BaB algorithm is able to generate solutions for small-size problems. The proposed BIP model sets the ground work for developing solution approaches to much larger size problems.