Showing papers by "André Langevin published in 2011"

Collaboration for a two-echelon supply chain in the pulp and paper industry: the use of incentives to increase profit

Abstract: In our research, we study the case of a pulp and paper producer who decides to establish a partnership with one buyer. Using two different types of relationship, namely a traditional system without any collaboration scheme and Collaborative Planning, Forecasting and Replenishment, we develop decision models describing the producer and the buyer planning processes. We also identify which approach is more profitable for each actor as well as for the network, based on real costs and parameters obtained from the industrial case. We then test how different incentives can improve the traditional system and provide higher gains for each partner. Our results show that using incentives increases the system's profit by up to 4% if parameters are well defined.

Multiple yard cranes scheduling for loading operations in a container terminal

Abstract: The efficiency of yard crane scheduling is critical in increasing the throughput of a maritime terminal. This article studies the problem of scheduling multiple yard cranes in loading operations. The movements of yard cranes among container blocks and the sequencing of yard cranes within each block are studied at the same time. Potential interferences between yard cranes are considered. A mixed integer programming model is developed to formulate the problem. A genetic algorithm and a tabu search algorithm are proposed to obtain near-optimal solutions. Experimental tests are conducted to evaluate the performance of the two algorithms based on various data settings.

An adaptive large neighborhood search heuristic for a snow plowing problem with synchronized routes

Abstract: A synchronized arc routing problem (SyARP) for snow plowing operations is introduced. Given a network of streets and a fleet of snow plowing vehicles, the SyARP consists of determining a set of routes such that all streets, some of which have multiple lanes, are plowed by using synchronized vehicles, and the ending time of the longest route is minimized. A mathematical formulation and an adaptive large neighborhood search heuristic are proposed. The performance of the proposed solution procedure is evaluated over a large set of instances. Computational results reveal that the proposed procedure yields good quality feasible solutions.

Methodology for Assessing Collaboration Strategies and Incentives in the Pulp and Paper Industry

Abstract: Under current economic conditions, several companies have decided to implement collaborations with their suppliers, distributors, and retailers, in order to share products and information efficiently as well as reduce their operational costs. Even traditional industries such as the forest industry are now seeking for new business relationships to outperform the competition. In this article, we propose a case study of collaboration between a pulp and paper producer and a wholesaler. In particular, we describe a methodology used to compare different collaborative approaches. We show that this methodology is useful to take multiple operational parameters and constraints into account, as well as to update planning decisions over time. We also discuss the different results obtained for the case study. We demonstrate that collaborative approaches such as CPFR and VMI may reduce network costs, but the savings obtained with these strategies must be distributed fairly. Furthermore, we analyze the use of several incentives to increase the value and strength of the collaboration.