Abstract
Delivery companies are offering an increasing number of time-definite services. Yet, little research has been done that explores the design of delivery networks that can support these types of services. In this paper, we explore such design problems for networks with a specified number of edges \(B > n-1\), where \(n\) is the number of nodes in the problem. We present a two-phase heuristic solution approach that first constructs a network and then improves the network via local search. For the improvement phase, we extend neighborhood structures that have proven effective for tree-structured solutions and also identify a new search neighborhood that takes advantage of specific features of subgraph solutions. We present a computational analysis of our solution approach as well as managerial insights.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Caccetta L, Hartman IBA, Huang J (2001) Concerning the number of edges in a graph with diameter constraints. J Comb Math Comb Comput 36:161–173
Chen H (2008) Network-design for time-constrained delivery. PhD thesis, The University of Iowa, Tippie College of Business
Chen H, Campbell AM, Thomas BW (2008) Network-design for time-constrained delivery. Naval Res Logist 55(6):493–515
Chen H, Campbell AM, Thomas BW, Tamir A (2009) Minimax flow tree problems. Networks 54(3): 117–129
Chen H, Campbell A, Thomas B (2012) Online supplementary materials for network design for time-constrained delivery using subgraphs. Online at Computational Management Science website
Daskin MS (1997) 150 U.S. largest cities. http://users.iems.northwestern.edu/msdaskin/
Datamonitor (2010) Express logistics in the united states. http://www.fastmr.com/prod/66006_logistics_in_the_united_states.aspx
Johnson DS, Lenstra JK, Kan AHGR (1978) The complexity of the network design problem. Networks 8:279–285
Li CL, Mccormick ST, Simchi-Levi D (1992) On the minimum-cardinality-bounded-diameter and the bounded-cardinality-minimum-diameter edge addition problems. Oper Res Lett 11:303–308
Maurits de Jonge J (2008) No break in the storm. Traffic World
Plesník J (1981) The complexity of designing a network with minimum diameter. Networks 11:77–85
Plesník J (1984) On the sum of all distances in a graph or digraph. J Graph Theory 8:1–21
Rosenberg E (2005) Hierarchical topological network design. IEEE/ACM Trans Netw 13:1402–1409
Thuermer KE (2008) Tweaking the supply chain to optimize value and minimize cost. World Trade 21(10):24
United Parcel Service (2011) U.S. ground maps for calculating service time and cost. http://www.ups.com/maps?loc=en_US&WT.svl=SubNav, accessed on June 23, 2011
Wu BY, Chao KM, Tang CY (2002) Light graphs with small routing cost. Networks 39:130–138
Acknowledgments
We would like to thank an Editor-in-Chief and two anonymous reviewers for their useful comments.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Electronic supplementary material
Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Chen, H., Campbell, A.M. & Thomas, B.W. Network design for time-constrained delivery using subgraphs. Comput Manag Sci 9, 531–542 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10287-012-0154-2
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10287-012-0154-2