Project Description
- EnOrCoS - Energy-oriented crane scheduling in the steelcoil logistics
- Client: Salzgitter Flachstahl GmbH
- Duration: From 2023 to 2024
Responsible
Project Partner
- Kooperationspartner: Salzgitter Flachstahl GmbH - Controlling
Initial Situation and Problem
Overhead cranes are used to transport steel coils as part of the steel production process. These steel coils are produced to customer specifications, weigh up to 35 tons and are stored in steel coil storages between the individual production steps. The cranes are responsible for ensuring that the downstream production systems are supplied with the correct steel coils on-time and that the steel coils produced by the upstream production systems are stored on-time so that production does not come to a standstill. In addition to this time restriction, these overhead cranes consume large amounts of energy for the storage, retrieval, and reshuffle of the heavy steel coils. Furthermore, a number of restrictions have to be taken into account, such as the storage order and the fact that several cranes have to travel together on one crane runway and maintain a certain safety distance from each other. Decisions have to be made as to which crane fulfills the transport orders in which order and where in the storage a coil is to be stored or reshuffled.
Objective and Approach
The aim of the project is to develop a planning process for efficient crane scheduling for the storage, retrieval, and reshuffle of steel coils using overhead cranes. The aim is to ensure that all steel coils are transported on-time so that there are no interruptions to production. This goal is to be achieved with minimum energy consumption. For this purpose, the energy consumption functions of the individual parts of the crane are determined and integrated into the model. A suitable solution method is developed to find a solution that meets the requirements for practical application. This method is evaluated with the help of a simulation model of the warehouse in which the process is to be used. In this way, the use of the method can be comprehensively analyzed before application in a practical setting.