This master's seminar delves into the application of Operations Research (OR) models and methods to optimize various processes in modern warehouses. Throughout the seminar, we will explore the pivotal role OR plays in order fulfillment, focusing on its practical applications and benefits. Students will gain insights into how OR methodologies can address complex problems and enhance performance in different areas, such as receiving of goods, storage assignment, order picking, or batching and sorting.

As a first step, each seminar group will be assigned a topic from the abovementioned fields. Provided with a basic optimization model, the task is to enhance the model in a way that it can be applied to even more complex problem settings. Each group is then asked to implement and solve the model with a standard solver. The developed model and the computational results will be presented in a seminar presentation as well as a seminar paper. Furthermore, each participant gets assigned an optimization model from another research paper and needs to explain the problem setting as well as the model in an individual summary paper.

The seminar will be rounded off with an excursion to KION, where we will be able to see state-of-the-art warehouse solutions in action.

Further information can be found in the summary slides attached to this page.