Design and Control of Integrated Logistics Distribution Systems

提出了一种综合研究计划，以建立物流系统战略规划的数学模型，在该系统中，中央仓库对车辆进行路线选择，以补充空间分散的客户的耗尽库存。这些模型将包含诸如概率客户需求、当地库存保有量、车辆容量、替代车辆类型的成本、点对点行程时间以及非线性“装货”和“卸货”时间等系统复杂性。这项工作旨在帮助系统设计者解决重要的战略问题，如：1)车队规模和组合；2)确定车辆容量；3)确定本地库存保有量；4)研究“装货”和“卸货”的替代技术；5)设计有或没有中转点的物流系统；6)设计分层分销网络。这项工作旨在赞扬过去五年在战术库存/路线问题方面所做的重要工作。新的方法将用来自操作系统的数据进行测试。迪克·拉森非常有资格，基于过去的表现，他很可能在建模集成系统方面取得突破，这将是运筹学的基础。

An integrated research program is proposed to develop mathematical models for strategic planning of logistics systems in which a central depot routes vehicles to replenish depleting inventories of spatially dispersed customers. The models will incorporate such system complexities as probabilistic customer demands, local inventory holding capacities, vehicle capacities, cost of alternative vehicle types, point-to-point travel times, and nonlinear "loading" and "off loading" times. The effort is directed to assist system designers to address important strategic problems such as: 1) fleet sizing and mix; 2) determining vehicle capacities; 3) determining local inventory holding capacities; 4) investigating alternative technologies for "loading" and "off loading"; 5) designing the logistics system with or without transhipment points; 6) designing hierarchial distribution networks. The work is directed at complimenting important work done over the past five years in tactical inventory/routing problems. The new methodologies will be tested with data from operating systems. Dick Larson is extremely qualified and based on past performance is very likely to provide breakthroughs in modeling integrated systems that will be fundamental to operational science.