Abstract :
Handling freightatcrossdockingterminalsconstitutesacomplexplanningtaskwhichcomprisesseveral
executive stepsasshipmentsdeliveredbyinboundtrucksaretobeunloaded,sortedaccordingtotheir
designated destinations,movedacrossthedockandfinallyloadedontooutboundtrucksforanimmediate
delivery elsewhereinthedistributionsystem.Toenableanefficientsynchronizationofinboundand
outbound flows,acarefulplanningofoperations,e.g.bycomputerizedschedulingprocedures,becomes
indispensable. Thisworktreatsaspecialtruckschedulingproblemarisinginthe(zero-inventory)cross
docks ofthefoodindustry,wherestrictcoolingrequirementsforbidanintermediatestorageinsidethe
terminal, sothatallproductsaretobeinstantaneouslyloadedontorefrigeratedoutboundtrucks.The
problem isformalizedsuchthatdifferentoperationalobjectives,i.e.theflowtime,processingtimeand
tardiness ofoutboundtrucks,areminimized.Tosolvetheresultingtruckschedulingproblemsuitedexact
and heuristicsolutionproceduresarepresented.
Keywords :
Logistics , Food industry , Cross docking , Truck scheduling , Dynamic programming
