An investigation into yard allocation for outbound containers

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to propose a yard allocation model via objective programming. This is initially postulated based on a rolling-horizon strategy, which aims at allotting outbound containers into yard. Design/methodology/approach - To resolve the NP-hard problem regarding the yard allocation model, a hybrid algorithm, which applies heuristic rules and distributed genetic algorithm (DGA), is then employed. Findings - It could be observed from the case study that this proposed approach is proven effective for resolving the container yard allocation problem. The total loading time onto vessels, the total horizontal transportation distance and the imbalance among blocks are improved. Research limitations/implications - This paper does not deal with equipment scheduling. Practical implications - This approach helps to minimize turnaround time; handling cost of vessels; the workloads among blocks are balanced for each vessel; and the total distance of container transportation. Originality/value - This paper designs a hybrid algorithm, which integrates heuristic rules and DGA. In details, the heuristic rules are developed for generating feasible solutions, while the DGA was applied for optimizing these solutions.