Container Inventory Management: Factors influencing Container Interchange

ABSTRACTEfficient and effective management of empty containers and empty container repositioning is an important issue in the liner shipping industry. Many alliance agreements of carriers have provisions to interchange containers but not practiced in real life scenario. It is hard to find any previous literature on container exchange except the technical details of alliance agreements. The researchers reiterate the conditions provided in carriers’ alliance agreements to interchange containers and in principle recommend container interchange as an efficient and effective container inventory management mechanism. Accordingly, the research attempts to find the factors that influence container interchange between carriers. The research was conducted in Sri Lanka. Researchers believe that the sample is adequate because 16 container carriers in the world top 20 list presently call port of Colombo in Sri Lanka. A series of interviews followed by a questionnaire survey have been carried out and data were analysed mainly using Chi-Square Tests. This would lead to understand the critical factors that influence container exchange and thereby develop efficient, sustainable and effective mechanism for container inventory management through container interchange. The study concluded that five factors namely, operational, legal, branding, benefits, and feasibility may influence the container interchange by carriers. There were two limitations noted in the research; the reluctance to provide information pertaining to container inventory by carriers; and the common dislike of carriers to participate in surveys due to their busy work schedules. These findings would help practitioners to expedite the process of developing a user-friendly container interchange system. In addition, this research will fill the serious gap in the present literature on container exchange and provide an incentive to further research on this topic. The container imbalance is a global issue and finding an efficient and effective solution is vital.Key words: container, inventory, management, shipping, maritime, exchang

Multi-carrier track capacity allocation in forward and spot markets of freight transport

This dissertation addresses multi-carrier, multi-line train scheduling problems for forward and spot markets. Schedules resulting from solution of these train scheduling problems enable carriers to make customer commitments for serving forward contracts and to transport one-off-loads arising on spot markets. A train slot selection model based on multicommodity network flow concepts is developed for determining timetables for use in forward markets and a column generation methodology is proposed for its solution. The model considers needs of both shippers and carriers. The solution approach is embedded in a simulation-based iterative framework, where demand elasticity is explicitly treated. A combinatorial auction-based track capacity allocation framework is introduced to allocate residual track capacity among competing carriers seeking to run additional trains on an as-needed basis. Bid set construction techniques are proposed that allow carriers to express their preferences for track usage. A winner determination problem is formulated, solution of which provides the optimal allocation of track capacity among carriers. The potential benefits of collaborative operation among carriers in both markets were recognized. Collaborative decision-making (CDM) strategies are designed for scheduling trains to serve forward markets. Performances of these strategies are assessed in a carrier collaboration simulation-assignment framework. A train space leasing technique and a CA-based train slot creation approach are proposed to accommodate one-off-loads on previously scheduled and newly formed trains, respectively. Required techniques for bid set construction are developed. A WDP is formulated that seeks the optimal allocation of track access rights to bidders for the given bid sets. Implementation of the resulting train schedules will aid in creating efficient and cost-effective rail transport, resulting in a competitive and green alternative to truck transportation. Additionally, collaboration among competing carriers can lead to the formation of profitable trains that might otherwise have been underutilized and an ability of each carrier to serve a greater share of the freight market. The methodologies were specifically intended for solving large, real-world train scheduling problems

Collaboration modes and advantages in supply chain

This research aims to address supply chain collaboration with a perspective of broader three-dimensional relationship, not a linear two-dimensional relationship discussed broadly in previous research. Case study was adopted for this research, and data collection was mainly conducted via interview. The research results highlighted that supply chain collaborations are common practice across all levels of the pharmaceutical supply chain. The results also indicated that the different strengthen levels of barging power among collaborative partners will influence the achieved advantages at different supply chain levels, including strategic, operational and political levels

Smart manufacturing and supply chain management

In the fourth industrial revolution, smart manufacturing will be characterized by adaptability, resource efficiency and ergonomics as well as the integration of customers and business partners in business and value processes. Business model, operations management, workforce and manufacturing process all face substantial transformations to reasoning the manufacturing process. This paper explores the impacts of smart manufacturing on supply chain management, and develops several propositions to improve supply chain performance under the context of smart manufacturing

REDESIGNING THE COUNTER UNMANNED SYSTEMS ARCHITECTURE

Includes supplementary material. Please contact [email protected] for access.When the Islamic State used Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) to target coalition forces in 2014, the use of UAVs rapidly expanded, giving weak states and non-state actors an asymmetric advantage over their technologically superior foes. This asymmetry led the Department of Defense (DOD) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to spend vast sums of money on counter-unmanned aircraft systems (C-UAS). Despite the market density, many C-UAS technologies use expensive, bulky, and high-power-consuming electronic attack methods for ground-to-air interdiction. This thesis outlines the current technology used for C-UAS and proposes a defense-in-depth framework using airborne C-UAS patrols outfitted with cyber-attack capabilities. Using aerial interdiction, this thesis develops a novel C-UAS device called the Detachable Drone Hijacker—a low-size, weight, and power C-UAS device designed to deliver cyber-attacks against commercial UAVs using the IEEE 802.11 wireless communication specification. The experimentation results show that the Detachable Drone Hijacker, which weighs 400 grams, consumes one Watt of power, and costs $250, can interdict adversarial UAVs with no unintended collateral damage. This thesis recommends that the DOD and DHS incorporates aerial interdiction to support its C-UAS defense-in-depth, using technologies similar to the Detachable Drone Hijacker.DASN-OE, Washington DC, 20310Captain, United States Marine CorpsApproved for public release. Distribution is unlimited

Water and Sanitation for Disabled People and Other Vulnerable Groups

Water and Sanitation for Disabled People and Other Vulnerable Group

Enhancing the Automotive E/E Architecture Utilising Container-Based Electronic Control Units

Over the past 40 years, with the advent of computing technology and embedded systems, such as Electronic Control Units (ECUs), cars have moved from solely mechanical control to predominantly digital control. Whilst improvements have been realised in terms of passenger safety and vehicle efficiency, there are several issues currently facing the automotive industry as a result of the rising number of ECUs. These include greater demands placed on power, increased vehicle weight, complexities of hardware and software, dependency on software, software life expectancy, ad-hoc methods concerning automotive software updates, and rising costs for the vehicle manufacturer and consumer. As the modern-day motor car enters the autonomous age, these issues are predicted to increase because there will be an even greater reliance on computing hardware and software technology to support these new driving functions. To address the issues highlighted above, a number of solutions that aid hardware consolidation and promote software reusability have been proposed. However, these depend on bespoke embedded hardware and there remains a lack of clearly defined mechanisms through which to update ECU software. This research moves away from these current practices and identifies many similarities between the datacentre and the automotive Electronic and Electrical (E/E) architecture, demonstrating that virtualisation technologies, which have provided many benefits to the datacentre, can be replicated within an automotive context. Specifically, the research presents a comprehensive study of the Central Processor Unit (CPU) and memory resources required and consumed to support a container-based ECU automotive function. The research reveals that lightweight container virtualisation offers many advantages. A container-based ECU can promote consolidation and enhance the automotive E/E architecture through power, weight and cost savings, as well as enabling a robust mechanism to facilitate future software updates throughout the lifetime of a vehicle. Furthermore, this research demonstrates there are opportunities to adopt this new research methodology within both the automotive industry and industries that utilise embedded systems, more broadly

Sustainable development for the logistics industry in the UK

At a time when environmental mitigation is firmly at the centre of the agenda for sustainable development, there is no shortage of research in the field of green logistics. However, little has been done in an attempt to provide integrated solutions for industry, based on a practical assessment of the interrelationships between specific measures. This research investigates the current status of the British logistics industry in terms of its environmental sustainability, by examining 14 sustainable measures that feature strongly in contemporary logistics practice and policies, and determines the interrelationships among them. The primary data was collected using a combined approach involving a postal questionnaire survey and in-depth company interviews. The survey covered both logistics services providers (LSPs) and logistics service users (LSUs), together with the targeted inclusion of more specific actors within the logistics industry. Through analysis of the sustainable practice and implementation process as seen in the experiences and judgments of key actors in the logistics industry, it is shown that the role of the actors as either logistics providers or users has a certain impact on their perceptions of, and behaviours in, sustainable logistics. Particular characteristics of the company and the sector it belongs to also exert influence, to various extents, on its response to sustainability. The findings also highlight cost-effectiveness as another critical factor determining companies’ sustainability policies. On the basis of the assessment of the measures, in particular their effectiveness and cost efficiency, the thesis concludes with proposals for sustainable packages constructed from different perspectives, along with suggestions for their implementation. This evidence-based research thus informs policy-makers of appropriate and viable sustainable strategies with the right incentives in various circumstances, and the potential to bring about tangible improvements in environmental performance