Collaboration ensures more streamlined container handling
The West-Brabant Corridor (hereinafter WBC) was launched in January 2018 as a collaboration between Combined Cargo Terminals Moerdijk, BTT Multimodal Container Solutions and Oosterhout Container Terminal (hereinafter OCT). Modality has developed a dedicated system for the WBC. Using smart EDI interfaces, the various partners use this system to book containers, whereby local customer data remains shielded. According to OCT, this high degree of privacy also contributes to the collaboration’s success. Furthermore, the partnership allows the individual participants to enter into fixed window agreements with the deepsea terminals. This ability to use fixed windows provides the greatest improvement regarding the efficient handling of container flows per barge. Despite this improvement, parties are still frequently communicating with one another in late 2021 though. The planners of the various partners are constantly on the phone to coordinate the distribution of the available barge capacity. Another challenge they face in terms of central planning is the fact that each party has its own specific working method and list of priorities. This is where the Optimizer comes into play.

Benefits of Barge Planning Optimizer for the West-Brabant Corridor
Before further exploring the implementation process of the Optimizer, let’s jump back to the present. At the WBC, the various planning departments have been working with the Optimizer for almost a year already; according to OCT, this has resulted in the following benefits:

• The know-how that was previously stored in the minds of the planners has been recorded in systems. As a result, procedures and working methods are now transparent.
• The central WBC planning is faster and more efficient and requires far less communication. This makes it much easier to combine the WBC planning with the local planning.
• More containers can be planned using the same number of employees.
• The training time for planners has been significantly shortened.
• The number of manual actions has been reduced to a minimum.
• Because planners can schedule further ahead, bottlenecks can be identified sooner.
• Working with the Optimizer ‘compels’ the various participants to provide higher-quality data.

For example, the various procedures and rules of thumb have now been recorded in the Optimizer and different priority categories are used. At OCT, they notice they have more room to handle the local planning and the team can schedule more containers using the same number of people. According to OCT, training a planner used to take six months. With the introduction of the Optimizer, the role of planner has shifted more towards that of system operator and the company has been able to reduce the training time to just two months. To achieve these results, good preparation is key. In the following paragraph, OCT talks about creating the right conditions to successfully implement the Optimizer.

The Barge Planning Optimizer ensures more efficient barge planning

Preparing the implementation of the Barge Planning Optimizer
The various participants in the WBC first discuss the possibilities of the Optimizer in March 2022. Because a collaboration between multiple parties is involved, the preliminary phase takes longer than when implementing for a single party. Most of the preparation time is spent mapping the different working methods of each terminal. Expertise that for the most part used to reside in the minds of the planners now needs to be clearly defined in procedures. OCT warns against underestimating the difficulty of teaching the system to think like a planner. For example, unanticipated knock-on effects need to be taken into account. One example OCT mentions is the option to ‘lock’ containers within the system. When containers are scheduled for collection and the PIN codes have not yet been received, the system normally sees these containers as ‘not in order’ and they are not scheduled. However, if the planner is quite certain that the PIN codes will arrive on time, it is possible to ‘lock’ these containers; even though they do not yet meet the correct requirements, the containers can still be planned. OCT states that it is easy to underestimate just how many factors can potentially affect the planning process and that it can sometimes be useful to include certain contingency measures. Furthermore, the full automation of planning is complicated by the many exceptions, such as customer wishes and continuously changing market conditions.

The implementation process of the Barge Planning Optimizer
The preliminary phase ultimately takes a year. In the spring of 2023, the first version goes live. A start is made with the automated planning of containers for one single deepsea terminal. During this phase, planners again encounter various challenges. It becomes apparent that the quality of the data used in the system is often substandard. For example, date fields are not always updated, and planners have to plan further in advance than they are used to. The system is expanded with additional date fields and ‘error notifications’ are built into the system to force employees to work more carefully and pay attention to the quality of the data they enter. The various participants within the WBC use the summer of 2023 to improve the quality of the data, adjust working methods and make the system more ‘foolproof’. Once the data quality – and therefore also the quality of the automatic planning – has noticeably improved, the number of containers that is automatically planned is slowly scaled up. Plenty of time is taken for this as well. Before planners allow a system to take over part of their work, they must first feel fully confident that the system can generate a 100% reliable planning. This confidence is now there and about 70% of the containers are planned automatically. The remaining 30% often involve shipments that must be collected or returned outside the fixed windows and for which separate calls must be created.

The positive impact of the Barge Planning Optimizer at the West-Brabant Corridor
Although OCT states that it is difficult to express the positive impact of the Optimizer in numbers, they notice clear improvements in several areas. As mentioned earlier, planners spend less time scheduling containers for the WBC and have more room to focus on local planning. They can also anticipate ‘problem cases’ and exceptions sooner. Moreover, the training time for planners has been significantly shortened and a large part of the internal know-how has been secured in systems. According to OCT, the quality of the data input is crucial to the successful implementation of the Optimizer. In addition, the sheer number of factors and exceptions that must be taken into consideration when mapping the planning process and recording it in systems should not be underestimated. Are these conditions met? Then using the Optimizer can ensure that 70% to 90% of containers can be planned automatically.

Would you like more information about the automatic planning of containers using the Barge Planning Optimizer? Our sales department will gladly discuss the possibilities! Please contact our sales department directly via sales@modality.nl, +31 (0) 180 531 035 or watch our video WBC Barge optimizer – Modality – Nexusz on Vimeo.

Het bericht The positive impact of the Barge Planning Optimizer on the planning of the West-Brabant Corridor verscheen eerst op Modality.

Because the Optimizer synchronises with the Modality system via an API, it automatically has access to the required data. Through continuous updates, the Optimizer always has an up-to-date overview of the containers that require transport. Furthermore, the Optimizer can access master data such as available barges, the opening and closing times of terminals and the sailing schedules of the various barges.

How the Barge Planning Optimizer works
The Optimizer generates a schedule every fifteen minutes. The Optimizer ‘looks’ as far ahead as possible in that respect. Depending on the amount of data available, the Optimizer calculates the most optimal load for the barges. A planner can accept the schedule completely or partially. If a planner partially accepts the schedule, the Optimizer will reassess the most optimal distribution of containers in terms of time and barges in the next round of planning. In addition, looking further ahead allows the Optimizer to provide advice on the barge capacity that is required within a specific time frame.

The Optimizer takes daily practice into account. Is a specific barge always used to call at a specific terminal? Then the Optimizer’s algorithm incorporates this into the schedule. The Optimizer also considers factors such as the minimum or maximum call size at the seaport terminal or restrictions on waterways. This allows every organisation to use specific criteria when drawing up their schedule. These criteria are also referred to as ‘business rules’ and we make a distinction between generic business rules and organisation-specific business rules. Examples of generic business rules are:

• The maximum barge capacity may not be exceeded
• Containers need to be transported within a specified time frame
• The minimum and/or maximum call size at the seaport terminal must be taken into account

Examples of organisation-specific business rules are:

• When unloading containers at the DDE terminal, a maximum of ten containers bound for the DDN terminal may also be unloaded at the DDE terminal without being subject to additional ‘transfer/trucking costs’.
• Consideration must be given to the limitations of a particular waterway. For example, different sections of a waterway may have different maximum capacities.

Based on these business rules and the ‘time window’ within which a container needs to be transported, the Optimizer draws up the schedule. A time window is determined by:

• The earliest pick-up date and latest pick-up date at the seaport terminal versus the expected arrival date at the terminal or the latest unloading date of the container at the unloading destination
• The date the container is loaded at the loading address versus the cargo opening and cargo closing at the seaport terminal

Based on the unloading date at the unloading destination, the Optimizer calculates the latest time at which the container must arrive at the inland terminal in order to be transported by truck for the last mile.

The establishment of a time window makes it possible to prioritise containers. Containers with a larger time window offer a greater degree of flexibility in terms of transport than containers that are registered just prior to transport. By prioritising containers, peaks and troughs in the transport of containers can be flattened as much as possible.

Please note: Generally speaking, 80 to 90% of containers can be planned with the Optimizer. However, there will always be exceptions. Containers that are not registered in a timely manner or for which the information has not yet been provided, for example, or containers that arrive too late to be transported by barge. Because most containers can be planned automatically, planners are able to fully direct their attention to finding solutions for these specific ‘problem cases’. These specific cases are listed in a ‘not assigned list’. This list is presented to the planners in an easily surveyable manner, allowing them to quickly identify and focus on containers that require attention.

Automated planning with the Barge Planning Optimizer

Features of the Barge Planning Optimizer
The Optimizer offers the following features:

• Continuously updated schedules
  Every fifteen minutes, the Optimizer retrieves the most recent data from the Modality system and recalculates the distribution of containers. It takes into account containers that have already been planned and the preferences of a planner.
• Schedules involving multiple inland terminals
  Organisations may have several inland terminals where barges collect or deliver containers before they depart for the seaport terminal or call at the ‘final’ inland terminal.
• Schedules for visiting multiple terminals in the port on time
  A barge often calls at several terminals in the seaport. The Optimizer ensures that these visits are performed in the most efficient (sequential) route.
• Schedules based on Modality calls and provisional Optimizer schedules
  Normally, a planner – and therefore also the Optimizer – mainly plans based on calls that are generated in Modality. Since the Optimizer can look further ahead than Modality in this respect, it creates provisional schedules for calls that are further in the future. These provisional schedules are only listed in the database of the Optimizer, not within Modality. The provisional schedules generated by the Optimizer are included in the aforementioned ‘not assigned’ list. As soon as the call is next created in Modality, it replaces the provisional Optimizer schedule.
• The Optimizer makes it possible to indicate the proximity of terminals to one another
  This information is used for advice regarding the expansion of a rotation with a visit to a terminal that is close to a terminal that is already being visited if this positively impacts the schedule.
• Time windows
  The Optimizer plans containers based on the time window during which the container needs to be transported.
• Prioritisation of containers
  Establishing a time window for each container makes it possible to prioritise containers. As a result, peaks and troughs in the transport of containers can be absorbed/flattened as much as possible.
• Business rules
  The Optimizer uses time windows and business rules to draw up the most efficient and realistic schedule, in line with daily practice.

Benefits of using the Barge Planning Optimizer
Using the Barge Planning Optimizer results in considerable time savings and ensures that planners can work with maximum efficiency. Consequently, planners are able to flexibly respond to unexpected situations and ‘problem containers’. The barge capacity is used as optimally as possible and peaks and troughs in transport are absorbed and distributed more evenly. Furthermore, planners enjoy a more balanced workload. These benefits are possible because:

• Most containers (about 80-90%) are automatically planned by the Optimizer. Planners only need to verify the schedule.
• All exceptions are presented to the planner in a clear ‘not assigned list’, so that they can easily identify containers that require attention.
• The Optimizer presents a proposal that the planner can adopt completely or partially. The containers accepted by the planner are recorded within the Optimizer. During the next round of planning, the Optimizer will consequently only focus on those containers for which the planning proposal has not yet been accepted.
• Containers can be prioritised, making it possible to distribute them more evenly/better over a longer period of time. In addition, it becomes apparent at an early stage whether more barge capacity is required for a certain period.
• Planners only need to focus on the exceptions and confirm the proposed schedule. Activities such as checking the arrivals and departures of ships, compliance with all business rules, etc. are performed by the Optimizer.

Integration with Modality
Modality and NexusZ have an exclusive cooperation agreement, which yields the following benefits:

1. Synchronisation of master data
   When a new address is added in Modality or the name of a deepsea vessel is changed, this change immediately becomes apparent in the Barge Planning Optimizer as well. Changes to the master data are always made in Modality and synchronised with the Barge Planning Optimizer.

2. Synchronisation of container data
   Modality and the Barge Planning Optimizer are in continuous communication. The Optimizer receives container updates from Modality, meaning any proposed schedule is always based on the current status of the container.

3. Direct lines of communication
   In the event of technical issues, there is always direct coordination between NexusZ and Modality. The customer uses an integrated system and enjoys total support.

For more information about the Barge Planning Optimizer or to request a demo, please contact Modality directly via sales@modality.nl or at +31 (0) 180 531 035.

Het bericht Automated planning with the Barge Planning Optimizer verscheen eerst op Modality.