IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jmathe/v11y2023i3p510-d1039632.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Lagrangian Heuristic for Multi-Depot Technician Planning of Product Distribution and Installation with a Lunch Break

Author

Listed:
  • Fangzhou Yan

    (School of Electrical Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610064, China)

  • Huaxin Qiu

    (School of Economics and Management, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116023, China)

  • Dongya Han

    (School of Business, Anhui University, Hefei 230039, China)

Abstract

In this paper, we consider a technician planning scheme stemming from product distribution and installation in a manufacturing enterprise that considers factors such as soft time windows, skill areas, lunch breaks, and outsourcing options, among others. The goal is to identify the optimal partition of technicians into groups and assignment of customers to technician groups and find the optimal routes for technician groups to minimize the sum of the travel cost, soft time window violation cost, and outsourcing cost. To address this problem, the study develops a tailored Lagrangian heuristic that incorporates several strategies to speed up convergence and produce sharper bounds. Computational comparisons between the developed heuristic and MIP solver are presented. The results reveal that the bounds found by the developed algorithm outperform those found by CPLEX for large instances, and it is capable of identifying high-quality feasible solutions to large-scale problems.

Suggested Citation

  • Fangzhou Yan & Huaxin Qiu & Dongya Han, 2023. "Lagrangian Heuristic for Multi-Depot Technician Planning of Product Distribution and Installation with a Lunch Break," Mathematics, MDPI, vol. 11(3), pages 1-22, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jmathe:v:11:y:2023:i:3:p:510-:d:1039632
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2227-7390/11/3/510/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2227-7390/11/3/510/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Michel Gendreau & Alain Hertz & Gilbert Laporte, 1994. "A Tabu Search Heuristic for the Vehicle Routing Problem," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 40(10), pages 1276-1290, October.
    2. C. Archetti & M. Bouchard & G. Desaulniers, 2011. "Enhanced Branch and Price and Cut for Vehicle Routing with Split Deliveries and Time Windows," Transportation Science, INFORMS, vol. 45(3), pages 285-298, August.
    3. Huseyin Topaloglu, 2009. "Using Lagrangian Relaxation to Compute Capacity-Dependent Bid Prices in Network Revenue Management," Operations Research, INFORMS, vol. 57(3), pages 637-649, June.
    4. Zamorano, Emilio & Stolletz, Raik, 2017. "Branch-and-price approaches for the Multiperiod Technician Routing and Scheduling Problem," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 257(1), pages 55-68.
    5. Tang, Hao & Miller-Hooks, Elise & Tomastik, Robert, 2007. "Scheduling technicians for planned maintenance of geographically distributed equipment," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 43(5), pages 591-609, September.
    6. Kaj Holmberg & Di Yuan, 2000. "A Lagrangian Heuristic Based Branch-and-Bound Approach for the Capacitated Network Design Problem," Operations Research, INFORMS, vol. 48(3), pages 461-481, June.
    7. Bernard Gendron & Paul-Virak Khuong & Frédéric Semet, 2016. "A Lagrangian-Based Branch-and-Bound Algorithm for the Two-Level Uncapacitated Facility Location Problem with Single-Assignment Constraints," Transportation Science, INFORMS, vol. 50(4), pages 1286-1299, November.
    8. Yufen Shao & Jonathan Bard & Ahmad Jarrah, 2012. "The therapist routing and scheduling problem," IISE Transactions, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 44(10), pages 868-893.
    9. Cortés, Cristián E. & Gendreau, Michel & Rousseau, Louis Martin & Souyris, Sebastián & Weintraub, Andrés, 2014. "Branch-and-price and constraint programming for solving a real-life technician dispatching problem," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 238(1), pages 300-312.
    10. Lee, Der-Horng & Dong, Meng, 2008. "A heuristic approach to logistics network design for end-of-lease computer products recovery," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 44(3), pages 455-474, May.
    11. Wouter Souffriau & Pieter Vansteenwegen & Greet Vanden Berghe & Dirk Van Oudheusden, 2013. "The Multiconstraint Team Orienteering Problem with Multiple Time Windows," Transportation Science, INFORMS, vol. 47(1), pages 53-63, February.
    12. Marius M. Solomon, 1987. "Algorithms for the Vehicle Routing and Scheduling Problems with Time Window Constraints," Operations Research, INFORMS, vol. 35(2), pages 254-265, April.
    13. Leandro C Coelho & Jean-Philippe Gagliardi & Jacques Renaud & Angel Ruiz, 2016. "Solving the vehicle routing problem with lunch break arising in the furniture delivery industry," Journal of the Operational Research Society, Palgrave Macmillan;The OR Society, vol. 67(5), pages 743-751, May.
    14. Hideki Hashimoto & Sylvain Boussier & Michel Vasquez & Christophe Wilbaut, 2011. "A GRASP-based approach for technicians and interventions scheduling for telecommunications," Annals of Operations Research, Springer, vol. 183(1), pages 143-161, March.
    15. Gerardo Berbeglia & Jean-François Cordeau & Gilbert Laporte, 2012. "A Hybrid Tabu Search and Constraint Programming Algorithm for the Dynamic Dial-a-Ride Problem," INFORMS Journal on Computing, INFORMS, vol. 24(3), pages 343-355, August.
    16. Asvin Goel & Stefan Irnich, 2017. "An Exact Method for Vehicle Routing and Truck Driver Scheduling Problems," Transportation Science, INFORMS, vol. 51(2), pages 737-754, May.
    17. Bruno E. Demantova & Cassius T. Scarpin & Leandro C. Coelho & Maryam Darvish, 2023. "An improved model and exact algorithm using local branching for the inventory-routing problem with time windows," International Journal of Production Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 61(1), pages 49-64, January.
    18. J. Arturo Castillo-Salazar & Dario Landa-Silva & Rong Qu, 2016. "Workforce scheduling and routing problems: literature survey and computational study," Annals of Operations Research, Springer, vol. 239(1), pages 39-67, April.
    19. Gang Chen & Wen He & Lawrence C. Leung & Tian Lan & Yingying Han, 2017. "Assigning licenced technicians to maintenance tasks at aircraft maintenance base: a bi-objective approach and a Chinese airline application," International Journal of Production Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 55(19), pages 5550-5563, October.
    20. Marius M. Solomon & Jacques Desrosiers, 1988. "Survey Paper---Time Window Constrained Routing and Scheduling Problems," Transportation Science, INFORMS, vol. 22(1), pages 1-13, February.
    21. Chen, Xi & Thomas, Barrett W. & Hewitt, Mike, 2016. "The technician routing problem with experience-based service times," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 61(C), pages 49-61.
    22. Fang Huang & Juhong Chen & Linhui Sun & Yaqi Zhang & Shujun Yao, 2020. "Value-based contract for smart operation and maintenance service based on equitable entropy," International Journal of Production Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 58(4), pages 1271-1284, February.
    23. Samer Takriti & John R. Birge, 2000. "Lagrangian Solution Techniques and Bounds for Loosely Coupled Mixed-Integer Stochastic Programs," Operations Research, INFORMS, vol. 48(1), pages 91-98, February.
    24. Biao Yuan & Ran Liu & Zhibin Jiang, 2018. "Daily scheduling of caregivers with stochastic times," International Journal of Production Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 56(9), pages 3245-3261, May.
    25. Adem Örsdemir & Vinayak Deshpande & Ali K. Parlaktürk, 2019. "Is Servicization a Win-Win Strategy? Profitability and Environmental Implications of Servicization," Manufacturing & Service Operations Management, INFORMS, vol. 21(3), pages 674-691, July.
    26. Mohamed Cissé & Semih Yalçindag & Yannick Kergosien & Evren Sahin & Christophe Lenté & Andrea Matta, 2017. "OR problems related to Home Health Care: A review of relevant routing and scheduling problems," Post-Print hal-01736714, HAL.
    27. Ran Liu & Biao Yuan & Zhibin Jiang, 2017. "Mathematical model and exact algorithm for the home care worker scheduling and routing problem with lunch break requirements," International Journal of Production Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 55(2), pages 558-575, January.
    28. Sanjay Dominik Jena & Jean-François Cordeau & Bernard Gendron, 2017. "Lagrangian Heuristics for Large-Scale Dynamic Facility Location with Generalized Modular Capacities," INFORMS Journal on Computing, INFORMS, vol. 29(3), pages 388-404, August.
    29. Aidin Delgoshaei & Mohd Khairol Anuar Ariffin & Ahad Ali, 2017. "A multi-period scheduling method for trading-off between skilled-workers allocation and outsource service usage in dynamic CMS," International Journal of Production Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 55(4), pages 997-1039, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Paraskevopoulos, Dimitris C. & Laporte, Gilbert & Repoussis, Panagiotis P. & Tarantilis, Christos D., 2017. "Resource constrained routing and scheduling: Review and research prospects," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 263(3), pages 737-754.
    2. Ehsan Pourjavad & Eman Almehdawe, 2022. "Optimization of the technician routing and scheduling problem for a telecommunication industry," Annals of Operations Research, Springer, vol. 315(1), pages 371-395, August.
    3. Nasir, Jamal Abdul & Kuo, Yong-Hong, 2024. "Stochastic home care transportation with dynamically prioritized patients: An integrated facility location, fleet sizing, and routing approach," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 184(C).
    4. Neda Tanoumand & Tonguç Ünlüyurt, 2021. "An exact algorithm for the resource constrained home health care vehicle routing problem," Annals of Operations Research, Springer, vol. 304(1), pages 397-425, September.
    5. Guastaroba, G. & Côté, J.-F. & Coelho, L.C., 2021. "The Multi-Period Workforce Scheduling and Routing Problem," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 102(C).
    6. Nowak, Maciek & Szufel, Przemysław, 2024. "Technician routing and scheduling for the sharing economy," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 314(1), pages 15-31.
    7. Zamorano, Emilio & Stolletz, Raik, 2017. "Branch-and-price approaches for the Multiperiod Technician Routing and Scheduling Problem," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 257(1), pages 55-68.
    8. Pahlevani, Delaram & Abbasi, Babak & Hearne, John W. & Eberhard, Andrew, 2022. "A cluster-based algorithm for home health care planning: A case study in Australia," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 166(C).
    9. Tilk, Christian & Goel, Asvin, 2020. "Bidirectional labeling for solving vehicle routing and truck driver scheduling problems," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 283(1), pages 108-124.
    10. Zhang, Jian & Woensel, Tom Van, 2023. "Dynamic vehicle routing with random requests: A literature review," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 256(C).
    11. Fleckenstein, David & Klein, Robert & Steinhardt, Claudius, 2023. "Recent advances in integrating demand management and vehicle routing: A methodological review," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 306(2), pages 499-518.
    12. Jalel Euchi & Malek Masmoudi & Patrick Siarry, 2022. "Home health care routing and scheduling problems: a literature review," 4OR, Springer, vol. 20(3), pages 351-389, September.
    13. Si, Guojin & Xia, Tangbin & Li, Yaping & Wang, Dong & Chen, Zhen & Pan, Ershun & Xi, Lifeng, 2023. "Resource allocation and maintenance scheduling for distributed multi-center renewable energy systems considering dynamic scope division," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 217(C).
    14. Vincent F. Yu & Yueh-Sheng Lin & Panca Jodiawan & Shih-Wei Lin & Yu-Chi Lai, 2023. "The Field Technician Scheduling Problem with Experience-Dependent Service Times," Mathematics, MDPI, vol. 11(21), pages 1-17, November.
    15. Si, Guojin & Xia, Tangbin & Zhu, Ying & Du, Shichang & Xi, Lifeng, 2019. "Triple-level opportunistic maintenance policy for leasehold service network of multi-location production lines," Reliability Engineering and System Safety, Elsevier, vol. 190(C), pages 1-1.
    16. Ostermeier, Manuel, 2024. "The supply of convenience stores: Challenges of short-distance routing within the constraints of working time regulations," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 314(3), pages 997-1012.
    17. Emilio Zamorano & Annika Becker & Raik Stolletz, 2018. "Task assignment with start time-dependent processing times for personnel at check-in counters," Journal of Scheduling, Springer, vol. 21(1), pages 93-109, February.
    18. Ines Mathlouthi & Michel Gendreau & Jean-Yves Potvin, 2021. "Branch-and-Price for a Multi-attribute Technician Routing and Scheduling Problem," SN Operations Research Forum, Springer, vol. 2(1), pages 1-35, March.
    19. Chen, Xi & Li, Kaiwen & Lin, Sidian & Ding, Xiaosong, 2024. "Technician routing and scheduling with employees’ learning through implicit cross-training strategy," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 271(C).
    20. Mahyar Mirabnejad & Hadi Mohammadi & Mehrdad Mirzabaghi & Amir Aghsami & Fariborz Jolai & Maziar Yazdani, 2022. "Home Health Care Problem with Synchronization Visits and Considering Samples Transferring Time: A Case Study in Tehran, Iran," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(22), pages 1-25, November.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jmathe:v:11:y:2023:i:3:p:510-:d:1039632. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.