In delivery networks, companies assign time windows to customers, informing them between which times they may expect service. Unfortunately, these time windows are often too wide to be informative, for example from 9am to 5pm. Another problem is that time windows may not be met due to unforeseen delays.  



In this thesis, we study assigning time windows in distribution networks to improve customer satisfaction. More and more companies realize that the satisfaction of their customers is import

Dalmeijer, K. (Kevin)

Dalmeijer, Kevin

EUR Research Repository

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Time Window Assignment in Distribution Networks

In delivery networks, companies assign time windows to customers, informing them between which times they may expect service. Unfortunately, these time windows are often too wide to be informative, for example from 9am to 5pm. Another problem is that time windows may not be met due to unforeseen delays.  



In this thesis, we study assigning time windows in distribution networks to improve customer satisfaction. More and more companies realize that the satisfaction of their customers is important. As such, the customers cannot be ignored when assigning time windows and constructing delivery routes.  



We consider two optimization problems that explicitly incorporate the satisfaction of the customers. First, we study the Time Window Assignment Vehicle Routing Problem. This is the problem of assigning time windows for delivery before demand volume becomes known. In this case, the distributor guarantees service within the assigned time window, regardless of the realization of demand.  



Second, we introduce and study the Dynamic Time Window Adjustment Problem. Here, the distributor is faced with travel time uncertainty. To deal with this uncertainty, the time windows that are communicated to the customers can be updated throughout the day. Adjustments may not be appreciated by the customers. However, informing the customer timely that a delivery will be made in a later time window is preferred to missing the deadline unannounced. We call these updates dynamic time window adjustments, and the Dynamic Time Window Adjustment Problem is the problem of optimizing these

Erasmus University Digital Repository

Propositionsattached to the thesisTime Window Assignment in Distribution NetworksKevin DalmeijerErasmus University RotterdamFriday 15 November 2019 at 09:30 hoursIThe precedence inequalities introduced in Chapter 2 can be used to speed upsolution algorithms for the Time Window Assignment Vehicle Routing Prob-lem.(Chapters 2 and 3)IIUsing a branch-price-and-cut algorithm to solve the Time Window AssignmentVehicle Routing Problem is competitive with the state-of-the-art, but only iforientation-symmetry is properly addressed.(Chapter 3)IIIThe main ideas presented in Chapter 3 are not specific to the Time WindowAssignment Vehicle Routing Problem and can be applied to other vehicle rout-ing problems with consistency considerations or synchronization requirements.(Chapter 3)IVDynamic time window adjustments have the potential to improve customersatisfaction by effectively communicating delays to the customers.(Chapter 4)VThere is no single best algorithm for optimizing dynamic time window adjust-ments, as different models benefit from different solution approaches.(Chapter 4)VIProviding real-time information to customers does not necessarily improvecustomer satisfaction.VIIIn the game of Tower Bloxx, the goal is to build a city that gives the highestpossible score. Because different plans can lead to the same result, addressingsymmetry as in Chapter 3 is highly effective for solving this problem.VIIIUniversities have a responsibility to provide high quality education. In light ofthis responsibility, teaching skills are not sufficiently appreciated in academia.IXIt is more effective to explain advanced methods in simple terms than to resortto complicated mathematics.XSpending time to help others with their research is an efficient use of time.XIResearchers should celebrate when they submit a paper to an academic journal,rather than wait until the paper is accepted for publication.

https://repub.eur.nl/pub/120773/21-propositions.pdf

Time Window Assignment in Distribution Networks

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