Primäres Ziel dieser Arbeit war die Entwicklung neuer heuristischer Lösungsverfahren für die logistische Tourenplanung bei restringierendem Anhängereinsatz (engl. Truck and Trailer Routing Problem). Kennzeichnend für dieses kombinatorische Optimierungsproblem ist, dass Fahrzeuge einen...

Since the early 1960s, the Beer Distribution Game (BDG) has been used to characterize the various instabilities that arise in multi-stage supply chains. Although an appreciable body of research exists for the BDG and its inherent nonlinear instabilities, there are three apparent technical voids...

In the first part of this thesis, we consider a manufacturer who has a process with an increasing failure rate over time. In order to improve the performance of the process, the following two types of maintenance activities are outsourced to an external contractor: (a) Preventive maintenance...

In most organizations the decision making processes associated with the development of new products are broken down into three hierarchical levels: strategic, tactical and operational; that use data and decision support tools individually tailored. In each level, only the part of the process...

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the cost and production structure of mass transit systems using both panel and time series data. Accepting cost minimization (subject to a set of constraints that reflect demand, regulatory, and urban setting conditions) as the economic...

This dissertation develops optimal/near-optimal allocation and replenishment policies for a multi-level, periodic-review, fixed-route logistics system which is comprised of a Logistics Center and several non-identical retailers located along a fixed route. The Logistics Center coordinates the...

Infrastructure design is a critical first step towards the long term success of any business. A well-planned supply chain design for example, is important for efficient flow of goods and information between the producers and the consumers. Similarly a well laid out electricity transmission grid...