Shared Storage Policies Based on the Duration Stay of Unit Loads

TLDR

The study proposes duration‑of‑stay‑based shared storage policies for unit‑load warehouses. An optimal travel‑time‑minimizing storage policy for balanced input/output systems is derived, and two heuristic policies are formulated for more complex systems. Simulation results show that duration‑of‑stay‑based policies can markedly reduce travel time compared to dedicated, random, and turnover‑based storage classes.

Abstract

This paper addresses duration-of-stay-based shared storage policies for a unit load warehouse. We show that, for single command storage and retrieval, shared storage policies based on duration of stay of individual unit loads have the potential to significantly decrease travel time. An optimal storage policy with respect to travel time and storage space is developed for systems with balanced input and output. Based on the same principles, two heuristic policies are developed for more complex systems. Simulation results are provided which compare travel times for dedicated storage, random storage, turnover-based storage classes, and duration-of-stay-based storage classes.