Hybrid PSO and ALNS algorithm for software and mobile application for transportation in ice manufacturing industry 3.5

Abstract This paper addresses the vehicle routing problem with consideration of vehicle capacities, time windows, multiple products, fleet sizes, and fleet size limits on roads (VRPTWFS). The mathematical model is developed to find an optimal schedule with minimum transportation costs. Since the problem is NP-hard, metaheuristics are required to find a near-optimal solution for larger, more practical problems. Therefore, this paper presents the hybridization of PSO and ALNS, which is firstly developed, for solving the problem. To help the route planner to decide the best routes and schedules for ice transport, a software tool (IceApp) based on the hybridization of PSO and ALNS is designed and developed. The IceApp has an architecture made of software components, running on the cloud server, where the Web Application, Web Service and Database Management System are installed. To support the transportation decision-makers, by taking advantage of the available demand data input to the IceApp software, a mobile application for a vehicle driver has been introduced for application in the ice manufacturing industry. Knowing exact demand allows logistics staff and route planners to coordinate their logistics and distribution with the right number of vehicles, optimize routes and maintain appropriate inventory by improving the availability of real-time customer information, resulting in lower transportation and holding costs. The mobile application for ice transportation also provides more user-friendly visualization, displaying route maps and route flow obtained from the calculation.