Heuristic algorithm to solve the multi-floor layout problem with the consideration of elevator utilization

This paper presents an algorithm to get a solution of the facility layout problem for multiple-floors. In a number of previous research, these problems are formulated as a combinatorial optimization problem to minimize only the cost owing to material flow between departments ignoring the utilization of the elevators, which is a typical transportation equipment for vertical transportation. In our proposed algorithm, the capacity of elevators is taken into consideration. Then the proposed algorithm optimizes the number and location of elevator with the consideration of the assignment of each carriage to the elevators. Numeric results are given to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm.