A Graph Model for the Integrated Scheduling of Intermodal Transport Operations in Global Supply Chains

Abstract

Integrated scheduling of intermodal transport operations within global supply chains combines flexible land transport schemes with overseas transport running a given timetable. This paper proposes a heuristic scheduling method based on the construction of a cost-weighted graph for each shipment, containing only feasible paths regarding time and capacity. In this way, the scheduling task is formulated as a shortest path problem which can be solved in polynomial time by the well-known Dijkstra’s algorithm. The approach is also suitable for larger problem instances, which is demonstrated by means of an example scenario.