Transshipment Problem As A Multi-Level Metalogistic System

Transshipment as a type of transport has multiple advantages that need to be exploited in today's circumstances of ever increasing competition. Many producers do not have sufficient experience, competencies or a developed organizational structure that would allow them speedy and successful delivery directly to the customer. Big losses can occur due to breakage, damage or quality deterioration when products are handled and transported unprofessionally, which could seriously hurt the customer’s trust in the company. Such indirect costs can in the end rise to significant amounts, and over a longer period even exceed direct costs. It is therefore advisable to distribute the products through intermediaries and distributors who specialize in goods handling and transportation. Transshipment problem is a multi-phase transport problem in which between the supply point (which can deliver goods to a particular point, but cannot receive goods from another place) and point of demand (which can only receive goods but cannot send them to other points) there is at least one transshipment point which can both deliver goods to a particular point and receive them from another place. The management of flows from the delivery point (producer, harbour, terminal) via transshipment point to the point of collection (warehouse, consumers, users) involves important logistic functions between numerous macrologistic and micrologistic agents through specialized logistic operators. The paper will use mathematical and computer modelling methods to present the transshipment problem on a concrete example. Furthermore, the paper will present the process of designing the optimal plan which helps in achieving minimum total transportation and warehousing costs, which will in turn minimize costs throughout the logistic system.