News

Route Optimization for multiple vehicle profiles

Companies with a mobile workforce have moved from simply putting everybody in the same van type. These organizations now use different types of vehicles that fit best with the job to be done an the environment in which they operate. Think of getting around in inner-city traffic versus driving through rural areas or rolling over the highway. The optimal vehicle to service each of these areas will be different. (Electrical) Bicycles are increasingly used for service and deliveries in dense cities. Not only for ecological reasons but also because they are often quicker around town and can take shorter routes. At the same time, trucks are kept out of the city at specific times. All of this makes route optimization even more complex than it was before.

By
Bert Van Wassenhove
on
28/06/2024

Our VRP solver, with the ability to accommodate different vehicle profiles and heterogeneous fleets, is the solution to this increased routing complexity. 

Solvice customers, whether in field services or last-mile delivery, are increasingly using different types of vehicles to complete their missions. Whether your field team travels by car, truck, or bicycle translates into different travel times per route and other possible routes overall. By selecting one of the vehicle types we have integrated into our route optimization API, they can cater to the specific needs of these modes of transportation. The multiple vehicle profiles can then be combined with over 50 other constraints to match business needs.

And there is more than having the option to schedule for different vehicle types. The Solvice route optimization API also offers a solution for heterogeneous fleets. Imagine you have both cars and bicycles delivering packages or finishing service tasks in a city. It’s impossible for a human planner to figure out which case to schedule a car or bicycle ride and select the most optimal route. Our route optimization algorithm handles mixed fleet scheduling without a problem. The solver will decide which resource (vehicle or person) to schedule on which jobs, ensuring the whole fleet is used optimally. 

Scheduling a mixed fleet of service vehicles is exactly the problem our customer Swapfiets faced. Just imagine the logistics nightmare of servicing bicycle owners spread throughout Amsterdam, a city famous for being the world's cycling capital. Our OnRoute route optimization API provides the answer on a minute-to-minute basis by calculating optimal routes for their mixed fleet of service vehicles. By having an AI constantly assessing which person/vehicle combination is the most efficient choice for the next service order, Swapfiets can deliver optimal customer service at every given moment.

How to work with multiple vehicle profiles in route optimization.

Integrating multiple vehicle profiles with the Solvice route optimization API is as straightforward as using any other constraint. Simply add a “category” to the resources you are scheduling, and the solver will deliver an optimized schedule that considers the different categories of vehicles in your fleet. This seamless integration process is designed to make your workflow more efficient and less complicated.

Check our extensive documentation here.

News

Optimization AI: A Strategic Lever for Competitive Advantage

News

Moving Up the Optimization Maturity Ladder in Three Phases

News

Unlocking the Black Box: Explainable AI in Resource Scheduling