Category Archives: Logistics

As you know the exam will be Friday December 15 in class, or Monday December 18 at 4pm in TEC146, whichever you choose. There will be a take home case given out Wednesday December 13 and brought to your exam. The take home case is to be worked alone; it is not a team exercise.

The exam will cover chapters 7,8,9,10, and the material we are covering now from chapters 11 and 13, plus the extra material I am giving you.

Chapter 7: functions of transport, who are the participants and what do they do, the modes of transport and how they compare along important logistics dimensions. types of carriers.

Chapter 8: Transportation operations– what are the cost drivers; know the special terms such as deadheading, etc. How are rates set? what is freight classification? How are standard rates figured? Be prepared to work an example using the classification, the rate base, and the tariff table. What types of activity pay ancillary rates? What is consolidation and what kinds should we be looking for? Can you do it in a given example situation? What are the required documents, and what is on them? How is freight paid for and audited?

Chapter 9: What are the benefits of warehousing? How can it add value? What is cross-docking? types of warehouses and their features. How can we select the site of a warehouse (location problem)– could be a computational problem.  What does a WMS do?

Chapter 10: What are the roles of packaging in the supply chain? Wht is unitization and how can we exploit it to optimize a supply chain’s performance? What are the four types of wrehouse systems, and how do they differ in technology. information requirement, and cost? What are the capabilities and the downsides?  Examples from materials provided on Web-ct.

Chapters 11 and 13: Operational integration.  Why (or how) does integration create value? What processes are good targets for integration?  What is an APS and why is it an important advancement? What are some of the goals and issues of pricing in the supply chain?  What are some possible objectives of logistical integration?

A lot of what we covered in chapter 13 was done early in the class.  We learned a few optimization techniques appropriate for network integration, including location analysis (the CG method), the Clarke-Wright vehicle routing technique, and some elements of waiting line modeling (to be presented this week), as well as  some investigation of simulation as a possible planning technique.

I will summarize  the class a bit by presenting a bit about chapter 16 (measuring operational performance) next Monday. It won’t be on the exam.

This week (November 27-December 1) I am going to start by presenting a vehicle routing algorithm and you will get to try it in class. There is a presentation I will post.

Then we will be discussing chapter 11. I will post a presentation on operational integration and we can use that as a starting point. there are only 3 main points I want you to take from this chapter.

We will be omitting chapter 12 altogether.

Next week, December 4 thru December 8, we will move to chapter 13 and 14 with some examples only, no extensive presentation.  On Friday December 8 you will have a case due. Section 1 (0950-1040 class) will do the AML case, and Section 2 (1430-1520 class) will do the Alberta Highway Case. All teams that have not talked will do so in this class.

On Monday December 11 I will present the first part of Chapter 16 slides as my concluding remarks about logistics, (NOT ON THE EXAM) and we will let it go at that. Wednesday December 13 we will have our review of the simuilation outcome. I may ask a couple of teams to talk about their strategy. We also can discuss the exam and I will hand out the take-home part.

Here is what we talked about before the break.  Let me know if this is workable.

I know some of you expressed an interest in having a final on Monday, which I am certainly willing to do.

The final exam will be offered at two times, for both classes – in class on Friday December 15th, and on Monday December 19 in TEC 146 at 1PM (1300 hours).  The exam will be set for one period– but there may be a part that will be handed out Wednesday December 13 and brought with you to turn in at the exam. You may attend either session but if you plan to come on the Monday session let me know– I dont want to go if no one takes advantage of it.

We can talk about this on Monday and should make our plans concrete so you can make travel plans and I can make grading plans.