Application of Genetic Algorithm for Scheduling Transit Mixer Delivery of Ready Mixed Concrete (RMC)

Abstract

Systematic model of delivering ready-mixed concrete becomes a prime factor for the developing infrastructure sectors like India. Generally, the commercial RMC plant operators have limited numbers of transit mixers to facilitate the increasing demand from different construction sites. Hence there is a need to develop the ultimate dispatching schedule that minimizes the total waiting duration of RMC trucks at construction sites and increases the productivity of plat a well as sites. The output can be obtained in terms of total waiting duration, sequence having least total waiting duration would be consider as an ultimate dispatching sequence. This study proposed a systematic model of delivering Ready Mixed Concrete (RMC) that optimizes the schedule of dispatching RMC transit mixers. Firstly, the factors that impact the RMC delivery process are analyzed called as key performance indicators. Secondly, a model based on Genetic Algorithm (GAs) need to develop in order to find the best dispatching schedule that minimize the total waiting duration of RMC trucks at construction sites. Required input parameters would be required quantity of concrete on each site, number of transit mixers that plant have, travel time from plant to site and vice versa, casting duration at site, buffer duration (duration that site can wait for transit mixer). To demonstrate its efficiency, the genetic algorithm will be applied to solve single commercial batching plant to multisite dispatching RMC problems.