Empty Container Repositioning With Consideration Of Free Detention Time And Liner Carrier Cooperation

We study empty container repositioning between hinterland and seaports considering both free detention time and liner carrier cooperation. Aiming at minimizing the cost of empty container repositioning, we propose a nonlinear mixed integer programming model to obtain optimal free detention time of liner carriers and optimal time to dispatch empty containers from hinterland to seaports. Meanwhile, under the cooperation of liner carriers, the optimal quantities of empty containers repositioned from surplus ports to deficit ports are derived. To solve this model, we use CPLEX solver to get the optimal results. It is shown that when a port is judged to be a deficit port in a certain period, the liner carrier will set a shorter free detention time; otherwise, a longer free period will be set at a surplus port. Sensitivity analysis is also conducted in this paper. Results show that the increase of storage cost leads to the increase of total cost, while total cost decreases with the expansion of demand for empty containers. And poor hinterland transportation condition extends free detention time, which in turn reduces the liner carriers' profits. Liner carriers should integrate hinterland transportation when they are short of empty containers.