Modeling Terminal Operations

Abstract

In this chapter we describe terminal operations to be performed in vehicle transshipment. Particular attention is paid to the key-factors for efficient operations. We show, that next to the matter of a high productivity, the balancing of the operation effort is an important goal of terminal operations. A balanced load ensures safe and reliable operations, a prerequisite for the transshipment of finished vehicles. Finally, we discuss tasks and objectives of automated planning and scheduling for vehicle transshipment.

We formalize operational issues of vehicle transshipment in a mathematical model, which integrates storage space allocation and personal deployment. Such a model is needed in order to assess the problem difficulty with respect to the number and type of variables, objective function and constraints. Furthermore, the model supports the organizational embedding of decisions along the planning process. Since the problem is dynamic by definition, time and/or conditions have to be determined at which recent planning is to be renewed. Finally, the model is useful to derive manageable problems from a hierarchical problem separation. To this end the integral model is separated into two sub-problems coupled by an anticipation term.