Abstract
This work addresses a variant of the job shop scheduling problem in which jobs need to be transported to the machines processing their operations by a limited number of vehicles. Given that vehicles must deliver the jobs to the machines for processing and that machines need to finish processing the jobs before they can be transported, machine scheduling and vehicle scheduling are intertwined. A coordi-nated approach that solves these interrelated problems simultaneously improves the overall performance of the manufacturing system. In the current competitive business environment, and integrated approach is imperative as it boosts cost savings and on-time deliveries. Hence, the job shop scheduling problem with transport resources (JSPT) requires scheduling production operations and transport tasks simultane-ously. The JSPT is studied considering the minimization of two alternative performance metrics, namely: makespan and exit time. Optimal solutions are found by a mixed integer linear programming (MILP) model. However, since integrated production and transportation scheduling is very complex, the MILP model can only handle small-sized problem instances. To find good quality solutions in reasonable com-putation times, we propose a hybrid particle swarm optimization and simulated annealing algorithm (PSOSA). Furthermore, we derive a fast lower bounding procedure that can be used to evaluate the perfor-mance of the heuristic solutions for larger instances. Extensive computational experiments are conducted on 73 benchmark instances, for each of the two performance metrics, to assess the efficacy and efficiency of the proposed PSOSA algorithm. These experiments show that the PSOSA outperforms state-of-the-art solution approaches and is very robust.(c) 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ )

Abstract
Sea port container terminals play an important role in the national and regional economy. The integrated scheduling of handling equipment has been recently investigated in literature to improve the performance of the container terminals. In this paper, an integrated scheduling of quay cranes and automated guided vehicles is formulated as a mixed integer linear programming model. This model minimizes the makespan of all the loading and unloading tasks for a set of cranes in a scheduling problem. Based on the simulated annealing (SA) algorithm, a scheduling method is proposed to solve the problem in a relatively short period of time. Comparison of the respective results of the mathematical model and the SA algorithm evidently shows acceptable performance of the proposed SA algorithm in finding good solutions for practical scheduling problems. Moreover, the effects of three cooling processes and two sets of control parameters on the best solution of the SA are investigated. © 2011 Academic Journals.

Abstract
Containers have been used in past decades increasingly as one of the most important transportation tools. Containers have revolutionized cargo shipping and thus changed the world trade systematically. Container terminals as the transhipment facility play a valuable role in performance of this transportation system. Improvement of this facility has been widely considered in literatures. Automated container terminals (ACTs) have been introduced to pursue this purpose. In ACTs various transport vehicles are automated and integrated to each other. Automated guided vehicles (AGVs) are used in ACTs to handle containers between quay cranes and storage yards. Usually scheduling of the AGVs is known as the key factor to improve the performance of ACTs. This paper proposed a heuristic algorithm to schedule the AGVs concurrently with quay cranes. A genetic algorithm is proposed to optimize the simultaneous scheduling of AGVs and QCs. The results showed that proposed genetic algorithm can be used in practical implications while its running time is reasonably low.

Abstract
Genetic distributed fuzzy (GDF) controllers are proposed for multi-part-type production line. These production systems can produce more than one part type. For these systems, "production rate" and "priority of production" for each part type is determined by production controllers. The GDF controllers have already been applied to single-part-type production systems. The methodology is illustrated and evaluated using a two-part-type production line. For these controllers, genetic algorithm (GA) is used to tune the membership functions (MFs) of GDF. The objective function of the GDF controllers minimizes the surplus level in production line. The results show that GDF controllers can improve the performance of production systems. GDF controllers show their abilities in reducing the backlog level. In production systems in which the backlog has a high penalty or is not allowed, the implementation of GDF controllers is advisable. © World Scientific Publishing Company.

Abstract
In the previous paper of this series [Vasili et al., 2006. Comparison of different dwell point policies for SP-AS/RS. Int J of Eng and Tech, 3(1):91-106], two reliable travel time models for SP-AS/RS under return to middle and return to start, dwell point policies were developed and presented based on the continuous rack approximation approach. In this paper, the authors present an alternative configuration for the input/output (I/O) station in SPAS/ RS, in order to reduce average handling time of this system. A travel time model is developed for this new configuration and the accuracy of the model is validated by Monte Carlo simulation. The results of new model and previous models are compared and the best policy is introduced. The results show that in a range of shapes (when shape factor is less than or equal to 2), new configuration of SP-AS/RS is more preferable.

Abstract
Customers gain their own experiences and knowledge through using products or services. This knowledge is recognized as one of the most important competitive resources for the companies in recent years. However the models were introduced in the literature for customer knowledge management (CKM) focused on the human based interaction with customers to exchange the knowledge. The aim of this paper is to propose the applicability of agents in knowledge exchange between customers and companies. Autonomy, reactivity and pro activity of agents aid CKM to response the customers as quickly as possible and to customize their services for individuals. The abilities of agents cover the requirements of CKM models. An introductory model is proposed to show the abilities of agents in CKM system. A comparison between agents' abilities and CKM is provided as final goal of this paper. Copyright © (2008) by Computers & Industrial Engineering.