Multi-Echelon freight distribution systems: A smart and innovative tool for increasing logistic operations efficiency

The introduction of smart distribution systems, able to improve the efficiency of freight movements, has become a crucial issue in logistic operations planning. To achieve this goal it is necessary to avoid considering each firm, shipment or vehicles individually,starting to look at them as components of an integrated logistic system. Such kind of approach implies the consolidation of loads of different shippers and carriers on thesame vehicle, or, more generally, on the same service, and an efficient coordination ofthe resulting freight transportation activities. Multi-Echelon distribution systems allowto split the transportation chains in different legs, in each one of which goods areconsolidated at facilities, where they are sorted and carried on other vehicles, whichperform the delivery to the customers or to another set of facilities. Depending on thecontext analyzed, facilities may vary from parks, where the loading/unloading operationsare performed, to true intermodal exchanging centers. The aim of this chapteris to review problems recently introduced in literature, arising in different distributioncontexts, spacing from urban operations to worldwide shipment, in which multiechelon distribution systems are involved and to critical analyze the economic and environmental advantages obtained by following this kind of approach with respect tostandard distribution systems, commonly used in practice. Several examples will bepresented, and particular cases, in which, due to geographic or political constraints,there are access limitations to the customers area for vehicles which do not respectgiven requirements.