A sharing mechanism for superadditive and non-superadditive logistics cooperation

International audienceThe lack of a stable, fair and generally applicable sharing mechanism is one of the most noticeable impediments to the implementation of logistics cooperation. Most of the current literature on the sharing mechanism in logistics cooperation focuses on superadditive logistics cooperation games, neglecting the probable occurrence of other types of games resulting from coordination cost and unequal partners. In this work, we propose a sharing model based on game theoretic solutions, taking account of the bargaining power of players to identify a fair in-Core allocation. Under full cooperation assumption, we generalize this model for non-superadditive logistics cooperation games with coordination costs at different levels. The games with empty Core are also studied within the model

Associated economy- wide effects of transport and logistics clusters

Abstract: Regional competitiveness can be improved by providing value-added services, such as transport and logistics services to both the local and global supply chains. Transport and logistics clusters have been shown to reduce trade transactions and to improve the efficiency of both local and international transactions. The aim of this study was to identify the sectors that comprise the transport and logistics cluster and to determine the cluster’s associated economywide effects. Using a cross-sectional study design, location-specific competitive advantages and economic multipliers associated with the clustering of transport and logistics companies were computed for the North-West Province (NWP) in South Africa. Findings illustrate that the transport and logistics cluster comprises seven sectors that associate positively with upstream and downstream multipliers in various sectors within the region. Additionally, the sectors in the cluster are relatively integrated and have high interlinkages. The cluster has potential for higher levels of integration once the cluster is strengthened. In the context of South Africa, this implies that transport and logistics cluster optimisation has a knock on effect on various industries including tourism as shown elsewhere. This study offers a unique econometric approach to identify and quantify the effects of transport and logistics clusters on regional competitiveness and provides practitioners and policy makers with insights into alternative strategies to enhance regional competitiveness and growth

Profit aAlocation Problems for Fourth Party Logistics Supply Chain Coalition Based on Game Theory Approach

Aim/purpose - The paper analyses how game theory can be exploited to provide the implementation of profit allocations among the members of the fourth party logistics supply chain coalition system. Design/methodology/approach - The study compares four allocation rules from cooperative game theory in order to explore fair and reasonable sharing of revenue among the partners in the venture. Findings - As a result, more practical situations can be modelled and more supply chain efficiency can be obtained throughout the several steps carried out by decision makers. Our computational analysis establishes that the proposed methods are computationally efficient and can be implemented to solve real-life problems. Research implications/limitations - Our business process simulation of the 4PL supply chain coalition including a simulation of the profit allocation concept allowed us to develop a broad understanding of the management process of the 4PL supply chain coalition approach. Originality/value/contribution - A comparison of the different methods based on game theory provided an opportunity for reaching the prefect collaboration. These views enrich our understanding of the 4PL supply chain coalition and help us to implement an innovative development for the sector.(original abstract

Approximations for the Steiner Multicycle Problem

The Steiner Multicycle problem consists of, given a complete graph, a weight function on its vertices, and a collection of pairwise disjoint non-unitary sets called terminal sets, finding a minimum weight collection of vertex-disjoint cycles in the graph such that, for every terminal set, all of its vertices are in a same cycle of the collection. This problem generalizes the Traveling Salesman problem and therefore is hard to approximate in general. On the practical side, it models a collaborative less-than-truckload problem with pickup and delivery locations. Using an algorithm for the Survivable Network Design problem and T -joins, we obtain a 3-approximation for the metric case, improving on the previous best 4-approximation. Furthermore, we present an (11/9)-approximation for the particular case of the Steiner Multicycle in which each edge weight is 1 or 2. This algorithm can be adapted to obtain a (7/6)-approximation when every terminal set contains at least 4 vertices. Finally, we devise an O(lg n)-approximation algorithm for the asymmetric version of the problem

Service level, cost and environmental optimization of collaborative transportation

Less than truckload is an important type of road-based transportation. Based on real data and on a collaboration with industry, we show that a collaborative approach between companies offers important benefits. We propose to develop partnerships between shipping companies and to synchronize their shipments. Four operational collaborative schemes with different objectives are developed. The first one focuses on minimizing shipping costs for shippers. The second and third ones minimize the carrier’s costs and the environmental cost, respectively. The fourth one is a combination of all three. The results of our computational experiments demonstrate that collaboration lead to significant cost reductions

On the collaboration uncapacitated arc routing problem

This paper introduces a new arc routing problem for the optimization of a collaboration scheme among carriers. This yields to the study of a profitable uncapacitated arc routing problem with multiple depots, where carriers collaborate to improve the profit gained. In the first model the goal is the maximization of the total profit of the coalition of carriers, independently of the individual profit of each carrier. Then, a lower bound on the individual profit of each carrier is included. This lower bound may represent the profit of the carrier in the case no collaboration is implemented. The models are formulated as integer linear programs and solved through a branch-and-cut algorithm. Theoretical results, concerning the computational complexity, the impact of collaboration on profit and a game theoretical perspective, are provided. The models are tested on a set of 971 instances generated from 118 benchmark instances for the Privatized Rural Postman Problem, with up to 102 vertices. All the 971 instances are solved to optimality within few seconds.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Short- and mid-term evaluation of the use of electric vehicles in urban freight transport collaborative networks: a case study

Despite its negative impacts, freight transportation is a primary component of all supply chains. Decision makers have considered diverse strategies, such as Horizontal Collaboration (HC) and the usage of alternative types of vehicles, to reduce overall cost and the related environmental and social impacts. This paper assesses the implementation of an electric fleet of vehicles in urban goods distribution under HC strategy between carriers. A biased randomisation based algorithm is used to solve the problem with a multi-objective function to explore the relationships between both delivery and environmental costs. Real data from the city of Bogota, Colombia are used to validate this approach. Experiments with different costs and demands projections are performed to analyse short- and medium-term impacts related to the usage of electric vehicles in collaborative networks. Results show that the optimal selection of vehicle types depends considerably on the time horizon evaluation and demand variation.This work has been partially supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (TRA2013-48180-C3-P and TRA2015-71883-REDT) and the Ibero-American Program for Science and Technology for Development (CYTED2014-515RT0489). Likewise, we want to acknowledge the support received by the Special Patrimonial Fund from Universidad de La Sabana (Colombia) and the doctoral grant from the UOC-Open University of Catalonia (Spain)

Inter-firm collaboration in transportation

Dans la littérature académique et professionnelle relative au transport de marchandise, il y a longtemps que les méthodes de planification avancées ont été identifiées comme un moyen de dégager des économies grâce à une efficacité accrue des opérations de transport. Plus récemment, la collaboration interentreprises dans la planification du transport a été étudiée comme une source de gain supplémentaire en efficacité et, par conséquent, une opportunité pour dégager de nouvelles économies pour les collaborateurs. Cependant, la mise en œuvre d'une collaboration interentreprises en transports soulève un certain nombre d’enjeux. Cette thèse aborde trois thèmes centraux de la collaboration interentreprises et démontre les contributions via des études de cas dans l’industrie forestière et du meuble. Premièrement, les moyens technologiques pour soutenir une collaboration en planification du transport sont étudiés. Un système d’aide à la décision supportant la collaboration en transport forestier est présenté. Deuxièmement, le partage entre les collaborateurs du coût commun en transport est étudié. Une méthode de répartition du coût de transport tenant compte de l'impact - l’augmentation du coût de transport - des exigences inégales entre des collaborateurs est proposée. Troisièmement, la création de groupes collaboratifs - des coalitions - dans un ensemble de collaborateurs potentiel est étudiée. Un modèle réseau pour la formation d’une coalition selon les intérêts d’un sous-ensemble de collaborateurs adoptant ou pas un comportement opportuniste est détaillé. De plus, pour soutenir l'étude des thèmes précédents, la thèse comprend deux revues de la littérature. Premièrement, une revue sur les méthodes de planification et les systèmes d’aide à la décision en transport forestier est présenté. Deuxièmement, à travers la proposition d'un cadre pour créer et gérer une collaboration en transport et, plus généralement en logistique, une revue de travaux sur le transport et la logistique collaborative est offerte.In the academic and professional literature on freight transportation, computer-based planning methods have a long time ago been identified as a means to achieve cost reduction through enhanced transportation operations efficiency. More recently, inter-firm collaboration in transportation planning has been investigated as a means to provide further gains in efficiency and, in turn, to achieve additional cost reduction for the collaborators. However, implementation of inter-firm collaboration in transportation raises a number of issues. This thesis addresses three central themes in inter-firm collaboration and exemplifies the contributions in case studies involving collaboration in furniture and forest transportation. First, technological means to enable collaboration in transportation planning are studied. Embedding a computer-based planning method for truck routing, a decision support system enabling collaborative transportation is presented. Second, sharing the common transportation cost among collaborators is studied. A cost allocation method taking into account the impact – an increase of the transportation cost – of uneven requirements among collaborators is proposed. Third, building collaborating groups (i.e. coalitions) among a set of potential collaborators is studied. A network model for coalition formation by a subset of self-interested collaborators adopting or not an opportunistic behaviour is detailed. Moreover, to support the study of the aforementioned themes, the thesis includes two literature reviews. First, a survey on planning methods and decision support systems for vehicle routing problem in forest transportation is presented. Second, through the proposition of a framework for building and managing collaboration in transportation and, more generally in logistics, a survey of works on collaborative transportation and logistics is given

Impact of benefit sharing among companies in the implantation of a collaborative transportation system—An application in the furniture industry

Transportation has become an increasingly important part of th