Berth planning and resources optimisation at a container terminal via discrete event simulation

A queuing network model of the logistic activities related to the arrival, berthing, and departure processes of vessels at a container terminal is presented in this paper. Non-standard service stations, time-dependent priority mechanisms, and complex resource allocation policies prevent the use of analytical approaches to the solution. By adopting the process approach, a simulation model for the above queuing network has been developed. This requires a limited effort when using graphical objects of the Visual SLAM language for discrete-event simulation. Good validation results, against response measures on a real system, are obtained using aggregated data related to a finite time horizon. Steady-slate simulation results illustrate the use of the model for a "what if" optimisation approach to the berth planning problem. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.