Urban Logistics in Amsterdam: A Modal Shift from Roadways to Waterway

The efficiency of urban logistics is vital for economic prosperity and quality of life in cities. However, rapid urbanization poses significant challenges, such as congestion, emissions, and strained infrastructure. This paper addresses these challenges by proposing an optimal urban logistic network that integrates urban waterways and last-mile delivery in Amsterdam. The study highlights the untapped potential of inland waterways in addressing logistical challenges in the city center. The problem is formulated as a two-echelon location routing problem with time windows, and a hybrid solution approach is developed to solve it effectively. The proposed algorithm consistently outperforms existing approaches, demonstrating its effectiveness in solving existing benchmarks and newly developed instances. Through a comprehensive case study, the advantages of implementing a waterway-based distribution chain are assessed, revealing substantial cost savings (approximately 28%) and reductions in vehicle weight (about 43%) and travel distances (roughly 80%) within the city center. The incorporation of electric vehicles further contributes to environmental sustainability. Sensitivity analysis underscores the importance of managing transshipment location establishment costs as a key strategy for cost efficiencies and reducing reliance on delivery vehicles and road traffic congestion. This study provides valuable insights and practical guidance for managers seeking to enhance operational efficiency, reduce costs, and promote sustainable transportation practices. Further analysis is warranted to fully evaluate the feasibility and potential benefits, considering infrastructural limitations and canal characteristics

Optimal dynamic pricing and replenishment policies for deteriorating items

Marketing strategies and proper inventory replenishment policies are often incorporated by enterprises to stimulate demand and maximize profit. The aim of this paper is to represent an integrated model for dynamic pricing and inventory control of deteriorating items. To reflect the dynamic characteristic of the problem, the selling price is defined as a time-dependent function of the initial selling price and the discount rate. In this regard, the price is exponentially discounted to compensate negative impact of the deterioration. The planning horizon is assumed to be infinite and the deterioration rate is time-dependent. In addition to price, the demand rate is dependent on advertisement as a powerful marketing tool. Several theoretical results and an iterative solution algorithm are developed to provide the optimal solution. Finally, to show validity of the model and illustrate the solution procedure, numerical results are presented

Joint optimal inventory, dynamic pricing and advertisement policies for non-instantaneous deteriorating items

In this paper, a novel model for dynamic pricing and inventory control of non-instantaneously deteriorating items is proposed. To reflect the dynamic nature of the problem, the selling price is modeled as a time-dependent function of the initial selling price and the discount rate. To this end, the product is sold at the initial price value for a time period; then its price is exponentially discounted to boost customer demands. The demand rate is a function of dynamic price, advertisement and changes in price over time. The model seeks to maximize total profit of the system by determining the optimal replenishment cycle, initial price, discount rate, and frequency of advertisement. In order to characterize the optimal solution, some useful theoretical results are derived upon which an iterative solution algorithm is developed. To demonstrate validity of the proposed model and applicability of the developed algorithm, numerical results are provided that are accompanied by an efficient sensitivity analysis on the important parameters of the model

Food supply chain coordination for growing items: A trade-off between market coverage and cost-efficiency

The accurate operation of a Food Supply Chain (FSC) is a critical issue as it directly interfaces with health and safety matters. This study addresses coordination and conflict management in a three-level FSC that embraces a new inventory type known as growing items like poultry and livestock. The chain involves a rearing farm as the supplier, a processed food producer as the manufacturer, and multiple processed food retailers. Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI) is applied by the manufacturer to handle the retailers' systems and prevent replenishment mismatches and thereby food waste. To increase its market coverage, the manufacturer needs to provide the retailers with enough incentives to enter this setting. So, a cost-sharing contract is designed under which the manufacturer undertakes a fraction of the retailers’ holding costs. Accordingly, the manufacturer faces two contradictory targets, increasing its market coverage by convincing the retailers to enter the system on the one hand and managing its costs efficiently on the other hand. An analytic solution approach with a game-theoretic perspective is developed to solve the model. Extensive numerical experiments and a case study are provided, presenting fruitful managerial insights that can be utilized by the policymakers and chain members under different settings. The results highlight the efficiency of our VMI and cost-sharing collaboration scheme in enhancing the performance of the chain.Transport and Logistic

Dynamic pricing and inventory control policies in a food supply chain of growing and deteriorating items

Revenue and inventory management play a crucial role in the operational efficiency of food supply chains. The current study investigates dynamic pricing and inventory control policies in a two-level Food Supply Chain (FSC) of growing and deteriorating inventory that involves a rearing farm as the supplier and a retailer where these slaughtered items are prone to deterioration. The rearing farm breeds newborn animals, then slaughters them and sends the items to the retailer. The negative impact of overbreeding is taken into account to preserve the items’ quality and decrease food waste on the supply side. The model is analyzed under decentralized and centralized supply chain scenarios with a profit-sharing contract as the coordination tool in the centralized case. An analytic solution approach based on non-linear convex programming is developed to solve the problem. The developed structure is illustrated through experimental results with a real estimated growth function for broiler chickens. Sensitivity analysis is carried out to investigate the impact of different input parameters. It is shown that the centralized supply chain scenario not only enhances the profit of the supplier and the retailer but also is more desirable for the customers as the selling price of the items decreases in this setting. The results provide decision-makers of each echelon with insights into the features of the studied FSC, including their most influential input parameters, the areas that require further attention, and managerial suggestions under different scenarios.Green Open Access added to TU Delft Institutional Repository ‘You share, we take care!’ – Taverne project https://www.openaccess.nl/en/you-share-we-take-care Otherwise as indicated in the copyright section: the publisher is the copyright holder of this work and the author uses the Dutch legislation to make this work public.Transport and Logistic