Data for OR spectrum paper simultaneous Berth allocation and yard planning at tactical level

A gzipped-tar file containing the files we used for generating the result in our 2013 paper: M.P.M. Hendriks, E. Lefeber, J.T. Udding, Simultaneous berth allocation and yard planning at tactical level, OR Spectrum 35(2), 441-456, 2013

Simultaneous berth allocation and yard planning at tactical level

We present a simultaneous berth allocation and yard planning problem at tactical level, since the berth allocation has a great impact on the yard planning and vice versa. This problem is solved by means of an alternating berth and yard planning heuristic approach. The alternating heuristic quickly converges to a local minimum which heavily depends on the starting point. Therefore, we formulate another optimization problem for generating a suitable starting point. A real size case study provided by PSA Antwerp shows that our approach to simultaneously solve both problems might reduce the total straddle carrier travel distance considerably as compared with a representative allocation

Trace theory and the definition of hierarchical components

The relevance of trace theory to the design of VLSI circuits is discussed. We present an introduction to trace theory and to regular trace structures in particular. We show, in a number of examples, how trace theory can be used to reason about and to prove properties of hierarchical components

Robust periodic berth planning of container vessels

We consider a container operator, who serves a number of shipping lines by discharging and loading their periodically arriving container vessels. Disruptions on vessels’ travel times lead to stochastic arrivals in the port. To cope with these disturbances, the operator and each vessel line agree on two types of arrivals: arrivals i) within, and ii) out of a so-called arrival window. If a vessel arrives within its window, the operator guarantees a maximal process time. If not, the operator is not bound to any guaranteed process time. The problem is to construct a periodic window-based i) arrival, ii) departure and iii) time-variant crane capacity plan to minimize the maximal crane capacity reservation. In this paper, we propose a mixed integer linear program (MILP) that minimizes the maximal crane capacity reservation while window agreements are satisfied for all scenarios in which vessels arrive within their windows. Results of a case study suggest that with slight modifications to an existing plan, significant reductions in the maximal crane capacity reservation can be achieved. As a particular case, the MILP determines the conventional optimal window-ignoring plan. Results suggest that although the windowignoring plan on itself requires less crane capacity than the window-based plan, it is much more sensitive to the arrival window agreements

Design and control of automated guided vehicle systems: A case study

In this paper, we study the design and control of automated guided vehicle (AGV) systems, with the focus on the quayside container transport in an automated container terminal. We first set up an event-driven model for an AGV system in the zone control framework. Then a number of layouts of the road network (guide-path) are carefully designed for the workspace of the AGVs in a container terminal. Based on our zone control model, a traffic control strategy is proposed, which decouples the motion conflict resolution among the AGVs from the routing problem. A routing algorithm is also constructed with the goal of minimizing the vehicle travel distances and the transportation time. The efficiency of the integrated design and control is demonstrated by computer simulations in terms of a set of defined measures of system performance. Lastly, we point out several possibilities towards improving our current results

Online disruption management of container terminal operations

Abstract only

Strategic terminal allocation and time scheduling of cyclically arriving container vessels

We present an MILP formulation to construct a strategic, cyclic terminal allocation and time scheduling for a set of container vessels, which are processed by a multi-terminal port operator. Our case study is about balancing the workload over time, minimizing inter-terminal transport and minimizing deviations from the existing time schedule

Strategic allocation of cyclically calling vessels for multi-terminal container operators

We consider a terminal operator who provides container handling services at multiple terminals within the same port. In this setting, the well-known berth allocation problem can no longer be considered for each terminal in isolation since vessel calls should be spread over the various terminals to avoid peaks and troughs in quay crane utilization, and an allocation of two connecting vessels to different terminals will generate inter-terminal container transport. In this paper, we address the problem of spreading a set of cyclically calling vessels over the various terminals and allocating a berthing and departure time to each of them. The objectives are (1) to balance the quay crane workload over the terminals and over time and (2) to minimize the amount of inter-terminal container transport. We develop a solution approach based on mixed-integer programming that allows to solve real-life instances of the problem within satisfactory time. Additionally, a practical case study is presented based on data from the terminal operator PSA Antwerp who operates multiple terminals in the port of Antwerp, Belgium. The computational results show the cost of the currently agreed schedules, and that relatively small modifications can significantly reduce the required crane capacities and inter-terminal transport

Strategic allocation of cyclically arriving container vessels to inter-related terminals

We consider a port consisting of a cluster of inter-related terminals, where container vessels arrive cyclically. The problem is to strategically assign a terminal and a time interval of berthing to each of the vessels in the cycle. Restricting properties are terminal quay lengths and quay crane capacity. Conflicting objectives are i) minimizing the number of required quay cranes, ii) minimizing the amount of inter-terminal traffic and iii) minimizing the total weighted deviation from desired berthing intervals. We formulate both a straightforward and an alternative mixed integer linear program to model this system. Results show that the alternative model is much faster solvable and enables to optimize real-life problems within a couple of hours