Advances in Manufacturing ›› 2014, Vol. 2 ›› Issue (3): 203-211.doi: 10.1007/s40436-014-0074-1

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Tackling the storage problem through genetic algorithms

  

  1. L. Chirici
    Department of Computer Science, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
    e-mail: lapochirici@gmail.com
    K.-S. Wang
    Department of Production and Quality Engineering, Norwegian
    University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
  • Online:2014-09-25 Published:2014-09-25
  • Contact: L. Chirici Department of Computer Science, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy e-mail: lapochirici@gmail.com
  • About author:L. Chirici Department of Computer Science, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy e-mail: lapochirici@gmail.com K.-S. Wang Department of Production and Quality Engineering, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway

Abstract: The capability of a company to implement an automated warehouse in an optimized way might be nowadays a crucial leverage in order to gain competitive advantage to satisfy the demand. The order picking is a warehouse function that needs to deal with the retrieval of articles from their storage locations. Merging several single customer orders into one, a picking order can increase efficiency of warehouse operations. The aim of this paper is to define throughout the use of ad-hoc genetic algorithm (GA) how better a warehouse can be set up. The paper deals with order batching, which has a major effect on
efficiency of warehouse operations to avoid wastes of
resources in terms of processes and to control possibility of
unexpected costs in advance.

Key words: Genetic algorithms (GA) , Warehouse management , Order batching , Optimization