The Rising Demand for Route Optimization within the Transport/Warehouse Industry
The rising demand for route optimisation within the transport/warehouse industry is the sign of huge demand for software-based solutions that can handle complicated things and manage the company on-the-go.
In this article, we are going to discuss everything about route optimisation and how a software can be beneficial for such purposes.
What is Route Optimization?
Route Optimization (RO) in simple words is a process of finding the best route for logistics that includes the quickest and most cost-effective way to make sure a warehouse could be a good fit for delivery. It is the process of optimizing routes (or transportation paths) between points of origin and destination. This can include things like:
- Reducing the number of stops along a route
- Increasing the speed of a route
- Even adding additional stops at strategic locations
How Route Optimization Works in Logistics
Developing a route optimization solution is the only best way to increase your ROI and stay ahead of competitors. Warehousing and transporting is not easy when you don’t know about RO.
However, delivery route optimization is a simple thing, all you have to do is just make sure you are assigning the shortest route possible to the vehicles and they are reaching the destinations before deadlines. To further improve the logistic and supply chain of your business consider working with the Leading Material Handling Equipment Supplier Sitecraft.
As this looks easy, it is not that simple for a startup company and not too complicated to think that new people can’t crack it. At the first, you can do it manually with route optimization algorithms and then there are many software solutions available for this. These are the most common algorithms (if you can understand):
1. Route Optimization Algorithm (ROA)
The ROA is a mathematical model that can be used to determine the optimal route between two points. This algorithm was developed by Dr. David M. Levinson at the University of California, San Diego. He created this algorithm to help people find the shortest path from point A to point B.
2. Dijkstra's Algorithm
Dijkstra's algorithm is a method to solve the problem of finding the shortest path between two nodes in a graph. It works by assigning each node a distance value based on how many edges are needed to get from the current node to the destination node.
3. Bellman-Ford Algorithm
Bellman-Ford is a dynamic programming algorithm that solves the single-source shortest paths problem using a simplex tableau data structure. It is commonly used to calculate the shortest path between any two nodes in a network.
If you are weak in mathematics and don't want to waste your time going back to school, you can simply put this work to automation by using route optimization software for your warehouse or a transportation company. Keep on reading:
Benefits of Route Optimization Software
Since computers are taking over everything humans were doing and having hard times, this is helping all of us to spend more time with our families and do less work. Here’s a list of a few of the many benefits that you can avail using a route optimization software:
- Reduce your carbon footprint (saving the earth)
- Complete more orders per day
- Win customer's trust back with on-time deliveries
- Reduce operational costs to the lowest possible
- Give manageable time to drivers of the vehicles
- Avoid extra hours being spent on the wrong routes
- Easily Manage Last-Mile Routing Challenges
And a lot more, but let's talk about some challenges of using route optimization software (mostly for beginners):
When you are not familiar with computers and software/apps, you could have a hard time using a route optimization software as it could be not easy for a beginner. Here's a list of challenges you may face when using software for route optimizations:
- You may need to hire an expert who can use a software
- You will have to arrange teams of employees who can use the software for 24 hours
- The Internet can be slow and you can't connect to the cloud infrastructure of the software
- Updates to the software may reduce the efficiency of your routing systems
- A bad software company can damage your business
Although to cope with these challenges, all you have to do is just make sure the software you are buying for route optimization is coming from a reputable software house.
That's all for now.
