Sequencing approaches for multiple-aisle automated storage and retrieval systems

Abstract

Automated storage and retrieval systems (AS/RS) are used in high velocity distribution centres to provide accurate and fast order processing. While almost every industrial system is comprised of many aisles, most of the academic research on the operational aspects of AS/RS is devoted to single-aisle systems, probably due to the broadly accepted hypothesis proposing that an m aisles system can be modelled as m 1-aisle independent systems. In this article, we present two multi-aisles sequencing approaches and evaluate their performance when all the aisles are managed independently first, and then in a global manner. Computational experiments conducted on a multi-aisle AS/RS simulation model clearly demonstrate that a multi-aisle system cannot be accurately represented by multiple single-aisle systems. The numerical results demonstrate that, when dealing with random storage, globally sequencing multi-aisle AS/RS leads to makespan reductions ranging from 14 to 29% for 2- and 3-aisle systems, respectively.

Keywords:

• automated storage and retrieval systems
• multi-aisle
• sequencing
• simulation

Acknowledgements

This research was partially funded by grants [OPG 0293307 and OPG 0172633] from the Canadian Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC). This support is gratefully acknowledged. The authors are grateful to two anonymous referees for their useful and constructive comments and suggestions.

Additional information

Funding

This research was partially funded by grant numbers [OPG 0293307], [OPG 0172633] from the Canadian Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC).