Title: The multi-vehicle travelling purchaser problem with priority in purchasing and uncertainty in demand

Authors: Zahra Hasanpour Jesri; Kourosh Eshghi

Addresses: Department of Industrial Engineering, Sharif University of Technology, Tehran, Iran ' Department of Industrial Engineering, Sharif University of Technology, Tehran, Iran

Abstract: The multi-vehicle travelling purchaser problem with priority in purchasing (MTPP-PIP) is a new variant of the classic travelling purchaser problem (TPP) in which the set of products is divided into different priority groups. The purpose of this article is to find the least cost cycles in which each product should be purchased according to its predefined priority. To fit the model with the real world further, multiple purchasers (multi-vehicle) and uncertainty in the products demands are assumed. In this paper, a mathematical programming formulation is developed based on a clustered supplier graph whereby the suppliers are categorised into different clusters according to their corresponding products. A genetic algorithm is also proposed to solve the model drawing on a multi-feature chromosome. The efficiency of the genetic algorithm has been tested over a modified set of instances against the benchmark of an asymmetric TPP.

Keywords: travelling purchaser problem; TPP; priority in purchasing; clustered supplier graph; multi-vehicle; demand uncertainty; genetic algorithm.

DOI: 10.1504/IJLSM.2021.115793

International Journal of Logistics Systems and Management, 2021 Vol.39 No.3, pp.359 - 389

Received: 21 Feb 2019
Accepted: 15 Jun 2019
Published online: 23 Jun 2021 *

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