Comparing the effectiveness of different metaheuristics for optimization of flows of containers in a containers terminal

In this paper we propose a model of decision support to optimize the physical flows of the supply chain port. The physical flow, considered here, is a group of containers. To optimize these flows, we have developed a mathematical model proposing an allocation of incoming vessels on the waterfront in a way to minimize the total distance traveled by containers loaded / unloaded in the port area. As it is difficult to solve realistic problems within the imposed constraints, we propose a mathematical model to achieve our goals by respecting imposed constraints. This model is solved using different metaheuristics : genetic algorithms, simulated annealing, and the algorithm of ants colony optimisation and hybridization of the genetic algorithm and simulated annealing. The results of calculations and comparisons between these metaheuristics are presented in this article. These results are compared with others obtained by CPLEX for the same model and the same data.