Collaborative vs. non-collaborative container-vessel scheduling

In this study, we mathematically model and empirically investigate the operational performance of container-vessel schedules under three management policies: the non-collaborative policy, the slot-sharing policy, and the total-sharing (the total collaboration) policy. A hypothesized shipping process based upon the practice of a real-life container shipping company is used in the experiments. Empirical results observed under different problem settings and from 2040 randomly generated test cases are reported. The study reveals that without partner carriers’ full commitment to share the demand and the resources in a flexible manner, the advantage of collaborative planning cannot be fully exploited.