Hybrid GAs for Solving the Simultaneous Discrete Berth Allocation and Dynamic Quay Crane Assignment Problems

Abstract

This research proposes a hybrid approach, combining a GA with an event-based heuristic, to deal with the discrete berth allocation problem (DBAP) and dynamic quay crane assignment problem (DQCAP) simultaneously. Three hybrid GAs, each using a same crossover operation but different mutation operations, were developed. A two-stage procedure was used to develop solutions for the simultaneous DBAP and DQCAP. Firstly, a berth and an initial number of QCs are assigned to a ship by the GA. Subsequently, the assigned number of QCs to a ship can be adjusted by the event-based heuristic. Experimental results showed that these HGA have a better performance than a traditional GA in terms of fitness value. Especially, the HGA with Thoros mutation operation outperform the others.