ABSTRACT

The Company manufactured in a single factory situated in the Midlands and supplied 7,000 retailers via twelve Company-owned depots, spread throughout the country. The method of distribution was by road, using company transport, hired transport or local carrier. The usual advantages of bulk delivery are in vehicle packing and the use of large vehicles. In transporting the products concerned, the difference between depot and retailer deliveries was that for the latter units must be loaded in drop order. The routes of vehicles were represented by a cord running from a depot, around the relevant number of pins and back to the depot. The problem was to appraise the distribution system and determine whether it could be made more economic by changing the number of depots and/or changing the method of transportation. The approach of operational research has been very successful, and for this reason it is sometimes selected as a first application of operational research in a company.