A SPLIT TASK SOLUTION FOR QUAY CRANE SCHEDULING PROBLEM IN MID-SIZE CONTAINER TERMINALS

A solution for quay crane scheduling problem with unchanged number of cranes during container vessel handling process is explored to minimize a vessel handling time and optimize quay crane utilization. Targets are small and mid-size terminals where high reliability of forecasted scenario is requested by the shipping companies while, at the same time, terminal resources are limited. Two models for the problem solution are proposed based on the full task and split task algorithms; in both cases grouping of tasks into clusters and operation zone limits are considered. Comparison of two models shows that split-task algorithm may improve crane utilization rate and vessel handling time in many cases. Proposed solutions combine existing research achievements with authors own approach in container terminal optimization development.