Operational Research Commons^™

Integrated Intermodal Network Design With Nonlinear Inter-Hub Movement Costs, Mohammad Ghane-Ezabadi, Hector A. Vergara

15th IMHRC Proceedings (Savannah, Georgia. USA – 2018)

In this research, transportation mode and load route selection problems are integrated with the hub location problem in a single mathematical formulation to find the optimal design of intermodal transportation networks. Economies of scale are modeled utilizing a stepwise function that relates the per container transportation cost to the amount of flow between two nodes. A heuristic method combining a genetic algorithm and the shortest path algorithm was developed to solve this integrated planning problem. Computational experiments were completed to evaluate the performance of the proposed heuristic for different problem instances. At the end, conclusions are presented and future research …

Shuttle-Based Storage And Retrieval Systems With Robotic Order-Picking Shuttle Carrier, Tone Lerher

15th IMHRC Proceedings (Savannah, Georgia. USA – 2018)

Shuttle-based storage and retrieval systems with robotic order picking shuttle carrier are relatively new systems not yet address in automated storage system research. The objective of this research paper is to propose analytical model for robotic order picking shuttle carriers. Analytical expressions for the calculation of multi cycle have been determined by assuming uniform distributed order-picking locations and the probability theory. The proposed model enables the calculation of the expected travel (cycle) time for multiple command cycles of the robotic order picking shuttle carrier, from which the throughput performance can be evaluated.

Batching In Bucket Brigade Order Picking, Yossi Bukchin, Eran Hanany, Eugene Khmelnitsky

15th IMHRC Proceedings (Savannah, Georgia. USA – 2018)

Order picking is the most labor cost consuming element in warehouse operations. In this paper, we consider an order picking process in a single picking aisle in the forward pick area, consisting of multiple locations (pick faces). The picking is performed by a group of pickers, each characterized by stochastic (forward and backward) walking process and picking times. We assume that the bucket brigade (BB) approach is applied, in a static environment, in which a given set of orders has to be picked. In order to improve the picking process, we suggest a batching procedure, where the objective is to …

Deployment Of An Distributed Strategic Material Flow Control For Automated Material Flow Systems Consisting Of Autonomous Modules, Christian Lieberoth-Leden, Johannes Fottner

15th IMHRC Proceedings (Savannah, Georgia. USA – 2018)

The modularisation of hardware and software is one approach to handle the demand for increasing flexibility and changeability of automated material flow systems that are, for example, utilised in flexible production systems. In such automated material flow systems, autonomous modules communicate with each other to coordinate and execute transport tasks. In this paper a strategic material flow control is introduced, which is distributed on several modules realised with a multi-agent system. The strategic material flow control agent coordinates transport tasks with advanced logistical requirements, such as sequencing. A transport task states for a transport unit the system source and sink …

A Practical Collaborative Material Handling Strategy For Cross-Docks, Hector J. Carlo, Stephanie Santiago-Montano

15th IMHRC Proceedings (Savannah, Georgia. USA – 2018)

The current operational paradigm at less-than- truckload (LTL) cross-dock industry (i.e., dedicated strategy) is to assign one material handler (MH) per inbound trailer. As a consequence, each loaded trip performed by a MH to move a load from the assigned inbound door to the loads’ corresponding outbound door is followed by an identical empty trip to return to the inbound door. This paper introduces the monomaniacal strategy as a practical rule-based material handling collaborative strategy for LTLs designed to minimize the total empty travel. In the monomaniacal strategy, after delivering a load to an outbound door, MHs travel counterclockwise to …

A Measurement Tool For Circular Economy Practices: A Case Study In Pallet Supply Chains, Maria Grazia Gnoni, Fabiana Tornese, Brian K. Thorn, Andres L. Carrano, Jennifer A. Pazour

15th IMHRC Proceedings (Savannah, Georgia. USA – 2018)

A circular economy (CE) is an economic system where products and services are traded in closed loops or ‘cycles’. This work develops a framework for assessing the extent to which product supply chains incorporate circular economy principles, and applies this framework to a specific material handling application, the wooden pallet supply chain. The main decisions affecting circularity and the most common decision alternatives for the wooden pallet supply chain are identified for the Pre-manufacturing, manufacturing, product delivery, customer use, and end-of-life phases. A streamlined life cycle assessment tool is developed for supporting a quick analysis about how the level of …

On The Unique Features And Benefits Of On-Demand Distribution Models, Jennifer A. Pazour, Kaan Unnu

15th IMHRC Proceedings (Savannah, Georgia. USA – 2018)

To close the gap between current distribution operations and today’s customer expectations, firms need to think differently about how resources are acquired, managed and allocated to fulfill customer requests. Rather than optimize planned resource capacity acquired through ownership or long- term partnerships, this work focuses on a specific supply-side innovation – on-demand distribution platforms. On-demand distribution systems move, store, and fulfill goods by matching autonomous suppliers' resources (warehouse space, fulfillment capacity, truck space, delivery services) to requests on-demand. On-demand warehousing systems can provide resource elasticity by allowing capacity decisions to be made at a finer granularity (at the pallet-level) and …

Synthetic Order Data Generator For Picking Data, Mohammadnaser Ansari, Behnam Rasoolian, Jeffrey S. Smith

15th IMHRC Proceedings (Savannah, Georgia. USA – 2018)

Sample data are in high demand for testing and benchmarking purposes. Like many other fields, warehousing and specifically order picking process are not exempt from the need for sample data. Sample data are used in order picking pro- cesses as a way of testing new methodologies such as new routing and new storage allocation approaches. Unfortunately, access to real order picking data is limited because of confidentiality and privacy issues which make it difficult to obtain practical results from the new methodologies. On the other hand, order data follows a highly complex and correlated structure that cannot be easily extracted …

Optimization Of A Fast-Pick Area In A Cosmetics Distribution Center, Mario C. Velez-Gallego, Alice E. Smith

15th IMHRC Proceedings (Savannah, Georgia. USA – 2018)

Fast-pick areas are commonly used in order picking warehouses to improve labor efficiency by concentrating picking activities within a compact area, thus minimizing the distance traveled by the pickers. One problem that must be solved when a fast-pick area is to be implemented is the so-called assignment-allocation problem. This deals with deciding which products should be assigned to the fast-pick area, and how much space should be allocated to these products. This research was motivated by the picking operation of a cosmetics distribution center where several fast-pick areas are in place. A mixed integer linear programming formulation is proposed for …

Service Flow Networks For Functional Design Of Distribution Centers, Michael Schmidt, Detlef Spee, Michael Ten Hompel

15th IMHRC Proceedings (Savannah, Georgia. USA – 2018)

This work deals with the determination of an approach for concept planning of distribution centers. For this purpose, the "Distribution Center Design Process" is defined. Solution concepts for logistics centers are developed and evaluated in an eight-step process. In particular, it will be focused on formalization of the functional area, which has not been considered scientifically, yet. This results, among other things, in the definition of services and basic transformation properties of handling units. These can be used to create and semantically test service flow networks, which describe the functional sequence and transformations of service objects in distribution centers.

Progress In Autonomous Picking As Demonstrated By The Amazon Robotic Challenge, Dominik Colling, Jonathan Dziedzitz, Kai Furmans, Patric Hopfgarten, Kai Markert

15th IMHRC Proceedings (Savannah, Georgia. USA – 2018)

The automation of the picking process is a longheld dream in intra-logistics. while the expert judgment in recent years was, that there is no immediate applicability to be expected for applications in areas, where the variety of products is high. However, the recent advances in computer science, mechanical engineering and material handling systems design have moved the field substantially forward. In this article we want to show, how the Amazon Robotic Challenge has driven this development process and how capable the technology is. The Amazon robotic Challenge (ARC) and its increasingly difficult challenges are described first. Then the applied technology …

The Small World Of Material Handling Research, Parag J. Siddique, Kevin Gue, Md Salahuddin Ayuby

15th IMHRC Proceedings (Savannah, Georgia. USA – 2018)

Using data from 88 journals over an 8 year period, we investigate the relationships among researchers in material handling. We apply social network analysis to measure many attributes of the network, including papers published each year, papers published per author, number of collaborators per author, strength of collaboration between authors, and how influential an author is in the network. We observe that collaboration patterns in material handling follow a scale-free structure in the presence of some hub-like researchers. According to social network theory, these hub researchers facilitate rapid dissemination of knowledge in the network. We conclude that the scientific community …

A Design Methodology To Optimize Supply Chain Network Performance, Dheeraporn Nippaya, J. David Porter

15th IMHRC Proceedings (Savannah, Georgia. USA – 2018)

Organizations are constantly looking for new ways to reduce costs while still providing high customer service levels to face stringent competitive environments and the ever- increasing market globalization. An alternative these organizations can pursue to respond to these challenges and to gain a competitive differentiation is to optimize their supply chain network (SCN). This research aims to develop an effective SCN design strategy to locate facilities (i.e., plants and distribution centers) and to balance the allocation of customers to these facilities to satisfy capacity limitations and customer demands with minimum total cost and maximum level of service. It is anticipated …

Economic And Performance Analysis Of Dual-Bay Vertical Lift Modules, Fabio Sgarbossa, Martina Calzavara, Alessandro Persona

15th IMHRC Proceedings (Savannah, Georgia. USA – 2018)

Warehouse picking is one of the most time and cost consuming activities in a warehouse, often requiring the presence of human operators, who travel within the aisles to retrieve the items needed by the customers. Several studies demonstrate that the travelling activity can represent even the 50% of the total picking time, with a subsequent creation of a separate storage and picking area for small objects. In the last years, new solutions for order picking systems have been developed, especially for small items. One of these solutions requires Vertical Lift Modules (VLMs), storage columns with extractable trays. In this paper, …

Collaborative Bots In Distribution Centers, Russell D. Meller, Dima Nazzal, Lisa M. Thomas

15th IMHRC Proceedings (Savannah, Georgia. USA – 2018)

This research investigates the business case for using autonomous collaborative robots (“bots”) in warehouses. Bots are designed to work collaboratively with human workers in warehouses to fill orders, primarily in e-commerce environments. In order-picking applications, a bot knows the location of every item in the warehouse, and when an item needs to be picked for an order, the bot navigates to that item and waits. Human workers are assigned to patrol specific zones, and when they see a bot waiting, the worker walks to the bot, reads the instructions off the screen, executes the task, and moves on. The bot …

A Performance Calculator For Shuttle-Based Storage And Retrieval System Design, Banu Yetkin Ekren, Anil Akpunar, Tone Lerher

15th IMHRC Proceedings (Savannah, Georgia. USA – 2018)

In this study, we present an analytical model based tool that can estimate critical performance measures from a pre-defined shuttle-based storage and retrieval system (SBS/RS) design. SBS/RS is relatively a new automated storage and retrieval technology and mostly used for mini-load material handling. In this study, we develop an open queuing network model based tool estimating critical performance measures: the mean travel time of lifts/shuttles, utilization of lifts/shuttles, amount of energy consumption and energy regeneration per transaction, waiting times and number of jobs waiting in queues, etc., from a pre-defined SBS/RS design. By the developed tool, one can evaluate an …

Urban Parcel Logistics Hub And Network Design: The Impact Of Modularity And Hyperconnectivity, Benoit Montreuil, Shannon Buckley, Louis Faugere, Reem Khir, Shahab Derhami

15th IMHRC Proceedings (Savannah, Georgia. USA – 2018)

This paper examines how exploiting the hyperconnectivity and modularity concepts underpinning the Physical Internet enables the parcel logistics industry to meet the worldwide challenges to efficiently and sustainably offer faster and more precise deliveries across urban agglomerations, notably across the world’s megacities. It emphasizes disruptive transformations of package logistics hubs and networks, such as multi-tier world pixelization, multi-plane parcel logistics web, smart dynamic parcel routing and hub-based consolidation, and modular parcel containerization.

Dynamic Batching For Order Picking In Warehouses, Jelmer Pier Van Der Gaast, Bolor Jargalsaikhan, Kees Jan Roodbergen

15th IMHRC Proceedings (Savannah, Georgia. USA – 2018)

Dynamic batch picking is characterized by combining product demand from multiple customer orders into one pick tour where new orders are continuously received. Using modern order-picking aids, updated picking instructions can be included in the current pick tours which allows pickers to be re-routed to pick for new orders even when they already started a pick tour. We develop a mathematical model for dynamic batch picking that minimizes the order throughput time of incoming customer orders. In case of new order arrivals, we can quickly re-optimize the model and determine new updated pick tours. This allows for short order throughput …

Anomaly Inference Based On Heterogeneous Data Sources In An Electrical Distribution System, Yachen Tang

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Harnessing the heterogeneous data sets would improve system observability. While the current metering infrastructure in distribution network has been utilized for the operational purpose to tackle abnormal events, such as weather-related disturbance, the new normal we face today can be at a greater magnitude. Strengthening the inter-dependencies as well as incorporating new crowd-sourced information can enhance operational aspects such as system reconfigurability under extreme conditions. Such resilience is crucial to the recovery of any catastrophic events. In this dissertation, it is focused on the anomaly of potential foul play within an electrical distribution system, both primary and secondary networks as …

Differences In The Throughput Performance Of The Warehouse Depending On The Quality Of The Calculation Parameters, David Sourek

15th IMHRC Proceedings (Savannah, Georgia. USA – 2018)

This article explores the quality level of the parameters that are used to determine the throughput performance of the warehouse. In our model case, this is a rack warehouse where the storage and picking of goods is ensured by forklifts. All kind of goods are stored on pallets. The aim of our research is to assess to what extent the quality level (accuracy) of the description of warehouse processes influences the accuracy of the determination of the throughput performance of the warehouse. In the first part of the article, we defined the parameters and the ways in which different levels …

การปรับปรุงประสิทธิภาพการทำงานของโรงไฟฟ้าพลังงานแสงอาทิตย์โดยใช้การบำรุงรักษาเชิงรุก, มธุรส มิ่งมงคล

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

แม้ว่ามีดำเนินงานการบำรุงรักษาเชิงป้องกันในโรงไฟฟ้าพลังงานแสงอาทิตย์แต่ยังคงมีการขัดข้องของเครื่องจักรต่างๆ โรงงานไฟฟ้าพลังงานแสงอาทิตย์ที่เป็นกรณีศึกษานี้ได้กำหนดค่าเป้าหมายความพร้อมของเครื่องจักรไว้สูงกว่า 99.25% เมื่อเวลาผ่านไปพบว่าค่าความพร้อมใช้งานมีแนวโน้มต่ำลง แม้ว่าก่อนการปรับปรุงมีค่าความพร้อมใช้งานเฉลี่ย 99.43% ส่วนเบี่ยงเบนมาตรฐานมีค่าสูงถึง 1.20% แสดงให้เห็นว่า การบำรุงรักษาเชิงป้องกันที่มีอยู่นั้นอาจไม่เพียงพอที่จะจัดการปัญหานี้ได้ งานวิจัยนี้จึงได้นำการบำรุงรักษาเชิงรุกมาเป็นกลยุทธ์ในการปรับปรุงค่าความพร้อมการใช้งานของเครื่องจักร มีการวิเคราะห์ผลกระทบของความเสียหาย โอกาสเกิดและความรุนแรง และมีการหาสาเหตุที่ทำให้เครื่องจักรเสีย หลังจากนั้นได้ทำการปรับปรุงแผนการบำรุงรักษาเชิงป้องกันและสร้างแผนการบำรุงรักษาเชิงพยากรณ์ หลังจากที่ดำเนินการตามแผนงานพบว่าสามารถทำให้ค่าความพร้อมใช้งานเพิ่มขึ้นเฉลี่ยเป็น 99.69% ส่วนเบี่ยงเบนมาตรฐานเป็น 0.41% เวลาเฉลี่ยในการขัดข้องของเครื่องจักรลดลง 63.90% จำนวนครั้งที่เกิดการขัดข้องลดลง 40.28% และกำลังการผลิตที่สูญเสียลดลงได้ 28.44%

การวิเคราะห์วอเตอร์ฟุตพรินต์ในกระบวนการผลิตเบนซีนและพาราไซลีน, เรืองรัตน์ เรืองเดช

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

งานวิจัยฉบับนี้เป็นการวิเคราะห์ผลกระทบจากการใช้น้ำ ของกระบวนการผลิตเบนซีนและพาราไซลีน ทั้งการใช้น้ำทางตรงและทางอ้อม การใช้น้ำทางตรงประกอบไปด้วยการใช้น้ำในกระบวนการผลิตซึ่งสามารถวัดได้โดยตรงจากข้อมูลของโรงงาน และการใช้น้ำทางอ้อมประกอบไปด้วยการใช้น้ำในส่วนของการได้มาซึ่งวัตถุดิบ การใช้ไฟฟ้า การผลิตไอน้ำ การผลิตไนโตรเจน รวมถึงการใช้น้ำในกระบวนการขนส่ง ซึ่งโรงงานไม่สามารถวัดโดยตรงได้ต้องมีการเก็บข้อมูลจากแหล่งอ้างอิงอื่นๆที่เชื่อถือได้ วิธีการประเมินผลกระทบการใช้น้ำที่ใช้ในงานวิจัยฉบับนี้ใช้วิธีวอเตอร์ฟุตพรินต์ซึ่งเป็นวิธีที่ทำให้ทราบผลกระทบจากการใช้น้ำที่แท้จริงตลอดวัฏจักรชีวิตของผลิตภัณฑ์ โดยอ้างอิงวิธีการประเมินตามข้อกำหนดและแนวทางของ ISO 14046 ผลลัพธ์จากการประเมินพบว่าผลิตภัณฑ์เบนซีนและพาราไซลีน มีค่าวอเตอร์ฟุตพรินต์ซึ่งวัดผลกระทบในแง่ของการขาดแคลนน้ำ(Water Scarcity Footprint,WSF) ต่อ 1 กิโลกรัมเท่ากับ 0.613 LiterH2Oeq และ 1.432 LiterH2Oeq ตามลำดับ โดยทั้งเบนซีนและพาราไซลีนมีค่า WSF สูงสุดจากการใช้น้ำทางอ้อม ซึ่งมีค่าสูงในการใช้ไฟฟ้าและการได้มาซึ่งคอนเดนเสท และรองลงมาคือ WSF จากการใช้น้ำทางตรงซึ่งมีค่า WSF สูงในส่วนของการระเหยของน้ำในระบบหล่อเย็น แต่เนื่องการลดผลกระทบจากการใช้น้ำจะมีความเป็นไปได้ในการลดจากใช้น้ำทางตรงมากกว่าทางอ้อม เพราะสามารถควบคุมได้โดยตรงจากโรงงานถึงแม้ว่าอาจจะทำให้ผลกระทบลดลงได้ไม่มากก็ตาม จึงเสนอการนำมาตรการในการลดการใช้น้ำทางตรงร่วมด้วย โดยแบ่งมาตรการเป็น 2 ส่วนคือการลดผลกระทบที่เกิดจากการใช้น้ำทางตรง และการลดผลกระทบจากการใช้น้ำทางอ้อม เพื่อให้กระบวนการผลิตเบนซีนและพาราไซลีนเกิดการใช้น้ำอย่างมีประสิทธิภาพสูงสุด

The Design, Test And Evaluation Of A Sensing System For Process Analytical Technology (Pat), Trevor Murphy

Theses

Increased globalisation and competitiveness has given rise to a more dynamic and diverse global market that has begun to place incredible strain on manufacturing supply chains. Conventional manufacturing methods such as the batch manufacturing methods employed largely by the materials processing industries i.e. pharmaceuticals, polymers and magnesium processing plants are ill-suited to cope with the demands of today. As products evolve with technological advancements they become more complex to produce and require alternative approaches to manufacturing to ensure product quality while reducing costs and increasing manufacturing efficiencies.

A potential solution to the growing demands on today's supply chain is process …

Regression Analysis Of Factors Impacting Problem Solving Engagement Within Lean Systems Implementation, David M. Parsley Ii

Theses and Dissertations--Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

Organizations around the world have attempted to implement the concepts of the Toyota Production System (TPS), commonly referred to as Lean, with limited sustainable success. The central principles of TPS, continuous improvement and respect for people, are grounded in the Japanese values of Monozukuri and Hitozukuri. Monozukuri deals with creating or making a product, while Hitozukuri conveys the idea of developing people through learning. In order for organizations to adopt these values they must have a system that engages employees at all levels in applying problem solving to improve their work. This research uses organizational assessments obtained from a variety …

Minimizing Commute Distance For Small Groups: A Linear Programming Approach, Kevin Payne, Kritika Kumari, Levi Huddleston, Rabi Hassan

Engineering and Technology Management Student Projects

This paper aims to minimize total drive time between members and their respective group leader. Given a limit on group size and days available, how can a formulation of a group occur such that the sum of the total drive time is minimized. To accomplish this task a Linear Program (LP) is implemented that includes three sets of binary decisions variables summing to 4100 variables and a variety of constraints summing between 4200 and 4341 depending on the constraints enforced. For 200 members and 15 leaders the minimized average commuting time was found to be between 4.99 and 5.36 minutes …

การเพิ่มระดับการยอมรับเทเลเมติกส์สำหรับการประกันภัยรถยนต์ในประเทศไทย, พีระวิช คงเมือง

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

เทเลเมติกส์เป็นเทคโนโลยีใหม่ในอุตสาหกรรมประกันภัยรถยนต์ในประเทศไทย ถือกำเนิดจากความต้องการเปลี่ยนแปลงพฤติกรรมของผู้ขับขี่ให้มีความปลอดภัย ซึ่งยังไม่ได้รับการยอมรับจากลูกค้ามากนัก ผู้วิจัยจึงได้ทำการสำรวจความต้องการของลูกค้าและปัญหาการใช้งาน จากนั้นได้ทำการศึกษาทฤษฎีและงานวิจัยที่เกี่ยวข้องกับการยอมรับนวัตกรรมและเทคโนโลยี เพื่อศึกษาปัจจัยการยอมรับเทเลเมติกส์ โดยทำการวิจัยตามกระบวนการพัฒนานวัตกรรม 5D เพื่อตอบสนองความต้องการของลูกค้าอย่างมีประสิทธิภาพ การวิเคราะห์ข้อมูลและทดสอบสมมติฐาน พบว่า 2 ปัจจัยคือ สภาพสิ่งอำนวยความสะดวกในการใช้งาน และแรงจูงใจภายนอก ส่งผลต่อความตั้งใจในการใช้งาน จากนั้นใช้เทคนิคการแปลงความต้องการเชิงคุณภาพในการออกแบบแนวคิดผลิตภัณฑ์ และนำผลการศึกษาที่ได้มาใช้ในการพัฒนาเทเลเมติกส์ในครั้งนี้ ผู้วิจัยได้ทำการวิเคราะห์สถานการณ์ในปัจจุบัน โดยใช้ทฤษฎีการแพร่กระจายนวัตกรรมและศึกษาข้อกำหนดทางกฎหมายในเรื่องค่าเบี้ยประกันภัยรถยนต์ ทำให้ผู้วิจัยได้ตัดสินใจนำเทคโนโลยี Beacon เข้ามาใช้ร่วมกับแอพพลิเคชั่นเทเลเมติกส์ ซึ่งสอดคล้องกับปัจจัยการยอมรับด้านสภาพสิ่งอำนวยความสะดวกในการใช้งาน ผลการประเมินความคิดเห็นของผู้ทดลองใช้งาน 39 คน พบว่า ความตั้งใจในการใช้งาน ค่าเฉลี่ยอยู่ 3.01 ส่วนเบี่ยงเบนมาตรฐาน 0.95 เมื่อทดสอบสมมติฐานก่อนพัฒนาและหลังพัฒนา สรุปได้ว่า มีความแตกต่างอย่างมีนัยสำคัญทางสถิติที่ระดับความเชื่อมั่น 95%

Contribution Of Physical Internet Containers To Mitigate The Risk Of Cargo Theft, Yanyan Yang, Eric Ballot, Miguel Gaston Cedillo-Campos

15th IMHRC Proceedings (Savannah, Georgia. USA – 2018)

Different from current dedicated goods distribution solutions, the goods in the Physical Internet are encapsulated in modular dimensioned standard easy-to-interlock smart containers in an open interconnected logistic system. This paper aims to study the performance of the application of this cross-chain innovative packaging solution, especially its potential against cargo theft risks. To attain this, both qualitative and quantitative studies are carried out. With a scenario-based cost-justification model, different case studies are examined. Results suggest that through the modularity and standardization, the application of Physical Internet Containers will significantly improve the logistics performance and reduce cargo theft risks.

A Framework For Modeling Material Handling With Decentralized Control, Kai Furmans, Kevin R. Gue

15th IMHRC Proceedings (Savannah, Georgia. USA – 2018)

Despite decades of research in material handling, the academic community still has no accepted way of describing material handling requirements in a way that machines and algorithms can process them. Such a “way of describing” requires a language with which to describe requirements, objects, relationships between objects, and so on. We propose a modeling framework that differs from existing research in two ways: First, we address material handling modeling from the bottom up rather than from the top down, meaning we define a set of elementary functions and then combine them into processes and more complex relationships that allow us …

Pull-Driven Order Fulfillment In Distribution Centers, Dima Nazzal, Shankar Shanmugasundaram, Sung Kim, Russell D. Meller

15th IMHRC Proceedings (Savannah, Georgia. USA – 2018)

One of the challenges facing e-commerce fulfillment is the rigidity of the wave management system that often dictates a fixed batch size that must be processed before the next wave of orders is released. As a result, operation managers usually push multiple waves, which lead to accumulation at bottleneck resources, and poor synchronization at sortation engines. We demonstrate the power of operating an order fulfillment engine using the “pull” paradigm. We hypothesize that a pull-driven order fulfillment can meet the same throughput requirements achieved by the push-driven wave-based order fulfillment, but with higher speed, higher service levels, more level resource …

A Motion Capture System Framework For The Study Of Human Manufacturing Repetitive Motions, Francis Mendez, David Wierschem, Jesus Jimenez

15th IMHRC Proceedings (Savannah, Georgia. USA – 2018)

Our research proposes a framework to obtain and analyze real time data concerning the dynamic and natural motion of individuals in manufacturing-like processes that involve human labor. The framework that we propose consists of five main components: a tracking system, a system of sensors, a processor that collects time series data, data processing and discovery module, and an alert or reporting component. Using motion capture cameras, data is collected on a variety of human subjects performing simulated labor-intensive manufacturing operations. This data is analyzed for identification of actual and optimal activity motions. This project has significant potential impact for contribution …