In today’s market, there are many programs that help those involved in distribution to best select means of transport, routes, reduce transport and distribution costs, etc. One such application used at BOC Gazy is the VISIT program.
BOC Gazy is involved in the production and distribution of technical gases. It has its own fleet of vehicles – 34 trucks of various sizes in eight small and three large distribution centers. The packaging in which the gases are transported is cylinders. These transports are subject to ADR regulations, as the gas in the cylinder is under very high pressure, reaching up to 300 bar. The cylinders are transported in metal pallets measuring 1280 by 780 mm, with a maximum of 15 pieces, forming a rigid package used during transport and storage of the cylinders. The weight of a pallet with 15 cylinders is approximately 1500 kg. What distinguishes this product from others is that the mass of the gas in the entire pallet of cylinders accounts for only a few percent of the total weight of the shipment. Additionally, the cylinders are returnable packaging, which means that in the distribution planning phase, one must take into account not only the number of full cylinders ordered by customers but also the number of empty cylinders to be returned, and this is exactly where the Visit+ program becomes a very helpful planning tool.
Of course, for the planning process to be as good as possible, one must have information about the points to which deliveries are made.
Basic data includes:
Basic data includes:
– geographical coordinates of the warehouse
– information on whether unloading is done using a forklift or a tail lift
– information on how large a vehicle can reach the destination
– and information about the warehouse opening hours.
The article comes from the magazine “Logistyka” 2003/6.