Multi-day Bulk Plan Use Case for Network Modeling

Different options are available for setting up logistics network modeling (LNM) based on the scenario that you want to model. This use case, we'll look at a scenario with a multi-day bulk plan. It will be modeled using Bulk Plan Specification.

This project helps you analyze the cost impacts by modeling different scenarios for running your day to day plans. In this use case, you can model running one bulk plan every day and compare the results with another scenario that lets you run couple of bulk plans every day. For this project, we'll create two scenarios. Both scenarios take one week's worth of orders, and runs the plans in a different way. Then you can analyze the results and compare the two. This then allows you to decide how frequently you want to perform the planning.

• Scenario 1: One bulk plan per day – This scenario runs the bulk plan every day for 6 days. Six bulk plans will be executed.
• Scenario 2: One bulk plan every two days – This scenario runs the bulk plan every 2 days for a total of 6 days. Three bulk plans will be executed.

We'll setup the modeling project and the two scenarios. A modeling bulk plan specification needs to be created and associated to the scenarios to create and execute multiple bulk plans for each of them.

About Bulk Pan Specification

As the name says, it is a specification of the bulk plan/set of bulk plans invoked for the scenario.

The following specification attributes play a key role in defining the bulk plans created for the scenario.

• Order Query (at Bulk Plan Specification level)
• Parameter Override
• Start Time, Time Zone
• Order Time Window Type
• Group By
• Run in Series
• Bulk Plan Specification Details including Start Time Offset,  Period, Number of Periods and Order Time Span

If there are no specifications defined on the scenario, only one bulk plan will be initiated for the scenario.

In the scenario, you can associate multiple bulk plan specifications. Each specification can lead to a creation of single or multiple bulk plans based on other parameters defined.

The scenario planner, takes a scenario bulk plan specification association record and forms a bulk plan template using the saved query, parameter override provided in the association record level or scenario/project level. The bulk plan template is also populated with the parameter set defined at the scenario/project level.

Say, the scenario has the order saved query with orders OR1, OR2, OR3… through OR10.

And the specification has the order saved query with orders OR1, OR2 and OR3.

The bulk plan template for that specification will have only the orders OR1, OR2 and OR3.  

After creating the template for a specification, LNM will look at other specification attributes, form sub groups of orders and create bulk plans for each sub group.

Sub-groups can be formed the following ways:  

Lets say the "Group By" is selected as source location. The orders considered in the bulk plan template are OR1, OR2 and OR3. Lets says orders OR1 and OR2 have a source of BALTIMORE and OR3 has a source of PHILADELPHIA. The group by source location will form 2 sub groups for the orders in bulk plan template (one with orders starting from Baltimore and other with the order from Philadelphia). So now there will be 2 bulk plans created for this specification based on this group by.

Lets say OR1 has a start time of December 1st 8 am, OR2 and OR3 have a start time of December 2nd 8 am. If the periods defined are one day long, then there will be two sub groups in this case. One bulk plan will pickup the Dec 1st order OR1 and other one will pickup the December 2nd orders OR2 and OR3.

1. Group by: (Attribute at specification level)
2. Periodic bulk plan. The attributes that contribute to the periodic bulk plans are:
   1. Order Time Window Type
   2. Start Time, Time Zone
   3. Bulk Plan Specification Details including Start Time Offset,  Period, Number of Periods and Order Time Span
3. Use both Group By and Periodic Bulk Plan: LNM first groups based on the group by attribute. As defined above in Group By, LNM will create two bulk plans; one with OR1 and OR2 and other with OR3 based on the group by attribute. When the periodic attributes are considered, the order set in the first is further split and sub-grouped based on the period. So there will be three bulk plans created for this case; one with OR1, other with OR2 and third with OR3.  

Creating the Multi-day Bulk Plan Use Case Project

Scenario 1 - One bulk plan per day

This scenario creates one bulk plan per day. Each bulk plan considers orders that start in that day of the execution of bulk plan.

Here are the details needed to create bulk plans for this case:

Scenario and Bulk Plan Specification association attributes:

Start Time: Dec 1st 00:00 hrs

Time Zone: EST

Order Time Window Type: Early pickup date

Bulk plan Specification level attributes:

Start Time Offset: 6 hrs

Period: 1 Day

Number of Periods: 6

Order Time Span: 1 Day

LNM creates different time buckets and then fills those buckets with feasible orders. Then LNM will create a bulk plan for each bucket that has feasible orders.

Formula used to create the buckets:

First bucket start time = Start time specified + start time offset = Dec 1st 6 am.

Order time range considered in first bucket = (Start time of bucket) to (Start time of the bucket + Order Time span) = Dec 1st 6 am to Dec 2nd 5:59 am.

Number of buckets created = number of periods (6 in this case)

LNM adds the duration mentioned in the period (1D) to figure out the start time of subsequent buckets. Also the order time range of subsequent buckets are calculated accordingly.

Fill orders on these buckets:

LNM uses the date on the order (based on the order time window type defined) and fills the bucket with the orders whose dates fall in the bucket’s order time range.

Note: If the period is less than the order time span, there can be an overlap of orders that can possibly get into the available buckets. If the bulk plans are run in series, then the same order can be part of multiple buckets. If they fail to plan in the current bucket’s bulk plan, they will be considered in the next bucket. However, if they are planned onto a shipment, they will not be considered in subsequent buckets. If the plans are not run in series, there will not be any overlap of orders in the buckets. If the period is larger than the order time span, there may be some orders that are not planned if they are not feasible in any bucket.

Six bulk plans will be initiated in this case. One for each bucket.

 

Scenario 2 - One bulk plan every 2 days.

Following are the period bulk plan attributes required for this scenario:

Scenario and Bulk plan Specification association attributes:

Start time: Dec 1st 00:00 hrs

TimeZone: EST

Order Time Window Type: Early pickup date

Bulk plan Specification level attributes:

Start Time Offset: 6 hrs

Period: 2 Day

Number of Periods: 3

Order Time Span: 2 Day

 

The three buckets created in this case:

Three bulk plans will be initiated in this case. One for each bucket.