|
|
|
GIS in logistics and vehicle routing applications
Shubhabrata Marmar
ESRI, New Delhi
Abstract
The routing of vehicles and the management of logistics operations in any company that services a fairly large geographical area can easily become quite a very complex task. The task can be simplified by the applying Geographic Information Systems, which automatically reduce the complexity by bringing out subtle geographic patterns and relationships that can form the basis of good decisions.
Systems like ArcLogistics Route can take pain out of applications like Vehicle Tracking and Dispatch, Route Analysis, Warehouse Operations, Facilities and Depot Management, Routing and Scheduling. The ease of work has to be looked at though in the light that all of the data required for maximum accuracy may not be available. The system's potential would suggest that reasonably accurate decisions can still be arrived at with less that complete data sets and in time, India too would grow into a mature GIS market where data would not longer be a constraint.
Introduction
GISs endeavor to unleash the inherent potential of the geography in most data sets we deal with today. This paper discusses how GIS can help us streamline logistics related business processes like inventory management, fleet/truck management and warehousing applications.
ESRI has always had strong networking and analysis tools with products like ArcNetwork and/INFO.ESRI has expanded this feature-loaded toolkit with other focussed products like ArcLogistics Route, RouteXpert and NetEngine for networking and logistics operations.
Sears Roebuck and Co., one of the largest retail chains in the United States recently put to use ESRI GIS software to take care of in-warehouse routing and direct delivery systems. The system not only functioned well but also received recognition for its efficiency and success at its work.
What is Logistics?
Let us analyze the process of making a sale in company like Sears and Roebuck. The customer could come to one of the retail outlet or pick up a catalog from somewhere or order via one of the direct delivery channels like television, radio or the Internet. In the first case, assuming that the outlet has the stock, the customer will immediately receive the goods he asked for and that would be the end of the process. In the other cases, the transaction generates what is called a sale ticket. This ticket carries the transaction number, the ID number of the good(s) purchased and other details.
The ticket is then processed. A good or the goods matching the description on the ticket must be 'tagged' with the address that it needs to be delivered to, usually as a bar coded address. This 'tagged' good will generally reside in the warehouse at this time. The good will then be picked up and put in to the truck that is going to do the round of a set of address among which the tagged address is one.
Once loaded into the truck, this good will then be offloaded and handed over to the customer at the right address.
The processes that we have not detailed in this simplistic description are the supply chain and its management, the inventory and its management, the routing for the warehouse forklifts (if the warehouse is big enough to warrant it) and the routing for the trucks.
In each case as is evident, geography is the key to cutting costs. Geography determines which truck will go to or be able to service how many address. Geography determines the time taken by the distributor to get new stocks to the retail outlet. Geography determines how much stock can be transported to the truck in one trip from the warehouse to the truck.
The entire process of managing this process is called logistics management.
|
|
|