Delft University of Technology
Faculty Mechanical, Maritime and Materials Engineering Transport Technology
G.J.M. van der Wielen Aspecten van magazijnmodellering.
Literature survey, Report 95.3.LT.4548, Transport Engineering and Logistics.
In this report a survey is given of aspects which come up for discussion when modelling warehouses. Types of warehouses and operational activities in the warehouse are outlined. The focus is on the storage system and orderpicking system, which together form the storage and handling system. The system principles, the orderpicking principles and the layout aspects are extensively described. Selection criteria for storage and handling systems are considered. Performance indicators, which are used in the physical distribution sector are also outlined. Important aspects of warehouse modelling are considered with the help of two models.
The first model, based on a PhD-thesis of Park [Y.H. Park "Modeling of three dimensional warehouse systems" (1986), PhD thesis Auburn University, Alabama], is a model that can be used to design integrated warehousing operations. The model selects on the basis of overall system costs and warehousing operations the optimal palletized storage system. Handling equipment alternatives, handling equipment movement patterns, single and dual control procedures and storage rules are alternatives, which are compared to eachother in the selection stage. The model is applied to a case-study of a warehouse for storing and retrieving finished palletized goods.
The second model, based on a Working Paper of Gray, Karmarkar and Seidmann [A.E. Gray, U.S. Karmarkar en A. Seidmann "Warehouse design and operation. Models and applications." (1990) CMOM working paper, William E. Simon Graduate School of Business Administration, University of Rochester, Rochester N.Y.], is a model that formulates a hierarchical decision structure for the design and operation of an order consolidation warehouse. The model reduces the decision space of the warehouse problem, and identifies and evaluaties the superior design alternatives. The emphasis in this model is on warehouse layout, equipment and technology selection, item allocation, zoning, picker assignment, pick-list generation, and orderbatching. The application of the hierarchical approach to a case-study, including a description of a simulation study that verifies the results of the formal analysis, is also outlined.
Reports on Transport Engineering and Logistics (in Dutch)
