There are four categories of scheduling problems:
Strategic
These problems are concerned with the longer term aspects of routing and scheduling. This is particularly evident when there is a regular delivery of a similar product and quantities to fixed or regular customers. Examples include the delivery of products such as bread or milk to supermarkets.
Therefore the main characteristics of strategic problems include
- The need for a regular demand being delivered to the same location
- It may be possible to schedule delivery for a fixed term, such as six months
- Changes will only be necessary if supermarkets open or close or a new product comes to the market,
- Schedules are created from historical demand data, and constantly reviewed using modern computer technology.
Tactical
These problems are primarily concerned with routes that have to be scheduled on a regular daily or weekly basis. This type of scheduling is typically used by parcel delivery companies, or suppliers of spare parts and by contract haulage companies that deliver for some different clients. The main issue is concerned with the demand of the goods where the goods cannot be predicted easily, or the location of the delivery destination can vary, or both.
Characteristics include:
- The planning of delivery schedules cannot be based on historical information.
- It is necessary to look at each series of orders on a daily or weekly basis and plan the routes and schedules by this ever-changing demand.
- This type of scheduling is typically undertaken by a load planner
- Computer technology can allow for ‘live’ scheduling requirements.