Otimização da distribuição de carga expressa em uma empresa brasileira de serviços postais

Abstract

This work addresses a Site-Dependent Heterogeneous Fixed Fleet Vehicle Routing Problem with Time Windows and Split Deliveries. It is a combination of vehicle routing problems with time window constraints, where a heterogeneous fleet is used and the deliveries can occur in multiple trips. In addition, it is considered that certain customers are incompatible with the docking of certain types of vehicles. The present study sought to solve the problem through the application of mathematical programming, having as application environment a recognized Brazilian postal services company that has as one of its main operations the distribution of express cargo in the western zone of São Paulo city, which is characterized as a typical case of the aforementioned problem. Therefore, the present study aims to contribute to the advancement of knowledge, besides providing gains to the organization through the best use of the available fleet of vehicles, which implies in reducing the fixed and variable costs involved in the operation. For this purpose, instances were generated from actual data obtained with the company, which considered several scenarios and characteristics of the original problem, in order to verify the effectiveness of the proposed mathematical model in the solution of the problem addressed. As far as it is known, it has not been verified in the literature a mathematical programming applications to solve this particular case of vehicle routing problems. The results obtained showed that it is possible to apply mathematical programming to obtain the exact solution for several scenarios of the studied problem, enabling an average reduction of 16,91% in relation to the costs currently practiced in the company.