Abstract Purpose – A program of shipment consolidation (SCL) is the purposeful intervention by management to regularly combine several small shipments so that a larger load may be dispatched on the same vehicle. SCL decisions traditionally have been based upon minimization of total logistics costs (inventory plus transportation). The paper aims to answer the following research question: give…
Aprogramof shipment consolidation (SCL) is the purposeful intervention by management to regularly combine several small shipments so that a larger load may be dispatched on the same vehicle. SCL decisions traditionally have been based upon minimization of total logistics costs (inventory plus transportation). The paper aims to answer the following research question: given the environmental impl…
Decision analysis in management science employs concepts from economics such as utility functions and indifference curves. A utility function U models the “satisfaction” that a customer obtains from logistics service. Here U depends on two attributes (lead time, fill rate) whose values more directly represent customer service. The shipper can, at additional cost, improve either or both of t…