A Tree Search Algorithm for the Manufacturer’s Pallet Loading Problem

Transportation and warehouse costs are the two major components of the total logistics cost. To increase the material handling efficiency both in transit and in the warehouse, pallets have been used widely in logistics systems. The manufacturer’s pallet loading problem (MPLP) is to pack identical smaller boxes onto a rectangle pallet to maximize the pallet utilization. In this research, we solve the MPLP based on a twophase algorithm. In the first phase, the maximum number of items is found by solving a mathematical model. In the second phase, a tree search algorithm is proposed to obtain a feasible layout. The tree search algorithm is to move sets of boxes that may be in different orientations instead of moving individual boxes during the search process. The idea here is to reduce the possible loading combinations and only find a feasible pattern for given number of boxes. Different data sets from the literature are tested. The results show that the proposed tree search algorithm can find feasible layout efficiently.