Development of the Optimization Models and Solution Algorithms for the Vessel Schedule Recovery Problem in Liner Shipping

Over 80% of the global trade tonnage and 70% of global trade value are carried by oceangoing vessels around the world. However, vessel routing and scheduling is a challenging exercise in liner shipping because of uncertainties that may affect the planned operations. Delays caused by uncertainties, such as weather, natural hazards, labor strikes, and others, increase the complexity of liner shipping, related to schedule adherence and reliability of service. In the event of a delay, liner shipping companies take decisions to recover the schedule, aiming to deliver cargoes in a timely manner. Vessel operators may decide to increase the sailing speed of the ship, which will further increase bunker fuel consumption and the total operational cost of liner shipping operations. The vessel schedule recovery problem becomes even more difficult if the delay is large. The contributions of this dissertation to the state-of-the-art are as follows: 1) a set of operational-level vessel schedule recovery models in liner shipping; 2) the vessel schedule recovery models for the liner shipping routes that pass through Emission Control Areas; 3) consideration of multiple vessel schedule recovery alternatives (e.g., port skipping with and without cargo diversion, speed adjustment, handling rate adjustment); 4) application of the appropriate solution approaches for solving the vessel schedule recovery problem; 5) identification of the key factors that may influence vessel schedule recovery; and 6) presentation of the managerial insights and benefits of the developed vessel schedule recovery optimization models.