LOGISTICS SYSTEMS ANALYSIS Logistics, the subject of this monograph, is narrowly defmed here to be the science that studies how to convey items from production to consumption in cost effective ways; some subjects of interest to logistics managers such as reliability and maintenance are not addressed. The theories that are covered, on the other hand, apply to generic items that can represent people, as well as freight; they should be of interest to passenger transportation firms and agencies. Besides'transportation, a logistics system usually includes other activities such as inventory control, handling, and sorting, which must be carefully coordinated if cost-effectiveness is to be achieved. Yet, both in theory and practice these activities are often examined separately. The operations research field includes sub-fields with specialized journals in inventory control, transportation, warehousing, etc ... Over the years, these sub-fields have evolved into disciplines that have developed their own specialized conventions and jargon, as a result making it increasingly difficult for researchers to communicate across disciplinary boundaries. Something similar happens in practice when firms become compartmentalized; if responsibilities for different logistical activities are allocated to different managers, decisions in the best interests of the firm are difficult (if not impossible) to make. This book examines logistics systems in an integrated way. Its goal is to describe and show how to find rational structures for logistics systems considering all the relevant aspects. Building on an understanding of the simplest logistical system with only one origin and one destination, the book treats problems with many origins and one destination, many destinations and one origin, and many origins and many destinations; this is done for systems with and without transshipments. The solutions and methodologies presented in the book are particularly helpful in instances where detailed data are not available and when time is of the essence. Front Matter....Pages i-xvi The Use of Succinct Models and Data Summaries....Pages 1-17 Cost....Pages 18-57 Optimization Methods: One-to-One Distribution....Pages 58-110 One-to-Many Distribution....Pages 111-188 One-to-Many Distribution with Transshipments....Pages 189-246 Many-to-Many Distribution....Pages 247-311 Back Matter....Pages 312-343
