Title: Optimising online order batching operations in a manual order picking warehouse: a genetic algorithm approach

Authors: Md. Saiful Islam; Md. Kutub Uddin

Addresses: Department of Industrial Engineering and Management, Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET), Khulna, 9203, Bangladesh ' Department of Mechanical Engineering, Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET), Khulna, 9203, Bangladesh

Abstract: This study is significant in the field of warehouse management and logistics. In manual order picking, online order batching requires balancing between order processing costs and customer expectations. The purpose of this research is to address the challenges associated with online order batching, batch sequencing, and picker routing in a consistent manner, with the objective of minimising both order processing and tardiness expenses of customer orders that arrive dynamically over time. This paper suggested a solution approach for the associated problems and combined a genetic algorithm (GA) with the variable time window batching method. The experimental findings indicate that the GA-based approach yields promising results within a reasonable computational timeframe. This significant development has the potential to transform traditional warehouse management procedures by making them more adaptable, flexible, and capable of addressing the dynamic demands of modern business environments.

Keywords: online order batching; order picking; variable time window batching; genetic algorithm; greedy routing.

DOI: 10.1504/IJADS.2025.149524

International Journal of Applied Decision Sciences, 2025 Vol.18 No.6, pp.645 - 669

Received: 21 May 2024
Accepted: 17 Jul 2024
Published online: 05 Nov 2025 *

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