Name: WESLEY PEREIRA PIMENTEL
Publication date: 10/11/2025
Examining board:
Name |
Role |
|---|---|
| ANDRE RENATO SALES AMARAL | Presidente |
| LUCIANO LESSA LORENZONI | Examinador Externo |
| MARIA CLAUDIA SILVA BOERES | Examinador Interno |
Summary: This work introduces and formalizes the Three-Dimensional Loading Vehicle Routing
Problem with Time Windows and Hierarchical Objectives (3L-VRPTWH). The singularity
of the problem lies in its lexicographical objective function, which successively prioritizes
the minimization of the number of vehicles, total distance, and waiting time, and in the
integration of a robust set of operational constraints. Such constraints include meeting
pre-defined time windows, vehicle weight capacity, LIFO (Last In, First Out) unloading
policy, and load stability requirements, such as minimum support area and maximum
stackable weight. The proposed method consists of a two-stage hybrid heuristic: a pre-
packing phase with Simulated Annealing to estimate the length space occupied by each
customer, followed by an Adaptive Large Neighborhood Search for route optimization.
The approach is enhanced by mechanisms such as Adaptive Container Length and the
Total Compaction Algorithm, which intensify the search for solutions with more customers
per route. Computational experiments, carried out on a set of instances adapted from the
literature, confirmed the relevance of the hierarchical formulation, evidencing consistent
trade-offs between objectives. The results demonstrate that the method is capable of
generating robust and adaptable solutions, reconciling operational efficiency and practical
feasibility in complex logistical scenarios. The main contribution of this work is, therefore,
the formalization as an optimization problem and the proposal of a solution method,
offering a robust tool for logistical scenarios that demand the optimization of multiple
criteria with well-defined strategic priorities.
