Vehicle Routing Problem for delivering industrial gas case study: sovigaz - industrial gas and walding electrode co., ltd

Abstract

This thesis is about the Vehicle Routing Problem (VRP) which has been concerned for years by many researchers and entrepreneurs. Three common extensions of VRP, Heterogeneous Fleet Capacitated Vehicle Routing Problem (HFCVRP), Heterogeneous Fleet Vehicle Routing Problem with Time Window (HFVRPTW) and Heterogeneous Fleet Split Delivery Vehicle Routing Problem (HFSDVRP) are studied on the case of a Vietnamese industrial gas and welding electrode company – SOVIGAZ. The objective is to improve the distribution system of the company by minimizing the total travelling distance and vehicle acquisition or set-up cost. Then the problem is solved by an exact method – mix integer linear programming with the support of an optimization solving tool, CPLEX. The most appropriate model to the company delivery system will be chosen under Multiple Attribute Decision Making (MADM) method. Results are validated and compared with current situation of the company, to evaluate the effectiveness of the model in making vehicle routing decisions. Keywords: Capacitated vehicle routing problem, vehicle routing problem with time window, split delivery vehicle routing problem, heterogeneous fleet, mix integer linear programming.