Logistics Performance Index-driven in operational planning for logistics companies: A smart transportation approach

The responsibility of Logistics Companies (LCs) extends beyond simply handling logistical processes and choosing transportation routes; they focus on being competitive and efficient in their operations. In multiple origins and destinations networks, LCs attempt to select the most optimal routes from each point. To address this challenge and reduce the time needed to identify potential routes, a novel method has been developed in this research for LCs. In operational planning, additional factors need to be considered to increase efficiency, customer satisfaction, and competitiveness. To confront this issue, the study proposes a novel model and contributions, inspired by the LPI, to apply the transformative impact of smart ports, the integration of smart containers, the choices of clearing and forwarding agents and port operators, and time uncertainty in the multi-objective framework. Specifically, the mathematical model's objectives include cost, time, customer satisfaction, and environmental impact in the periodic multimodal network. An innovative customer satisfaction function is introduced by integrating the selection of smart containers and smart ports, emphasizing their impact on enhancing customer satisfaction, while addressing time uncertainty through a chance-constrained approach and coefficients of variation. The model is solved using goal programming, and the results show that smart ports and smart containers can majorly affect transportation time and customer satisfaction. Furthermore, comparing the results to other studies demonstrates its superiority in decision-making for LCs, particularly by including time uncertainty and the role of clearing and forwarding agents and port operators. Therefore, the model holds practical significance in lowering costs, enhancing customer satisfaction, and facilitating smart international logistics. This research offers insights that are not only useful for the LCs but also for other stakeholders in the transport industry.