At first glance, container management may not seem like the most obvious association, apart from the fact that container managers run after their load carriers every day just like professional athletes run after their soccer. On closer inspection, however, the analogy does reveal certain strengths that could serve as inspiration in logistics: In both cases, there is a need for a central bird's eye view of the entire playing field. And in both cases, the quote from cult coach Jürgen Klopp is true: "How good you are shows on bad days."

Getting containers out of the offside

The primary task of container management is to supply each stakeholder - whether customers, partners, the company's own production or a warehouse - with load carriers as required at all times. In practice, however, getting an overview of the status and location of each container and then keeping track of it is usually associated with enormous effort, as their data is often stored in several systems across different companies. Any misplaced data can throw the whole team into disarray. And so boxes, pallets and containers disappear far too often, are stored in large numbers in the wrong place and are missing where they are urgently needed. On a bad day - thank you, Mr. Klopp - the volatility of logistics is added to the mix: transport delays, incoming rush orders or other last-minute changes make planning more difficult.

If you only have a very manageable number of resources and a limited number of locations, spreadsheets and Excel calculations may still be able to help. In most cases, for example when hundreds of thousands of containers are involved across Europe, even the greatest spreadsheet experts and rule-based approaches reach their limits. Based on the experience that containers could run out at peak times, those responsible overstock high safety stocks. But even if these scheduling decisions have been centralized, the day-to-day complexity is almost impossible to keep track of. Every decision has an impact on future decisions. Getting the right number of the right containers to the right place at the right time can be a real challenge. The latest tracking technologies appear to be the solution, but even simply tracking the bins does not initially have any influence on their availability.

These complex environments require algorithmically supported planning software in order to make the best possible decisions or even automated scheduling. In the words of former Dutch professional player Dennis Bergkamp: "There has to be a thought behind every kick of the ball." Intelligent demand forecasts, dynamic optimization logic and holistic transparency are needed. Practical experience shows that considerable results can be achieved in container management using modern algorithms based on operations research and artificial intelligence: On average, this results in a 5 to 25 percent reduction in container losses, a 25 to 500 percent increase in the circulation frequency of load carriers and an 8 to 45 percent reduction in last-minute transports.

Algorithms reduce transportation costs by a third

The effects are even greater if container management is carried out in close interaction with other logistics systems and these are also controlled using intelligent algorithms. Transport management systems (TMS) have proven to be the strongest players here: Inform carried out a project study for a European pooling operator, with real data from various depots and load carriers as well as thousands of demand reports, locations and transports. The algorithms simulated optimized scheduling decisions and transport orders across the entire container cycle. A key finding was that the company was operating with a total surplus of 150,000 containers of two load carrier types - a huge amount of unused working capital. Although these two types were the company's most used resource, they were overstocked due to the unoptimized processes. In this case, the algorithmic optimization of the processes had the potential to increase the service level from 60 to 90 percent, while at the same time reducing transport costs and kilometers driven by almost a third each.

Focus on sustainability

With the kilometers saved, the possibilities for improving the ecological footprint have not yet been exhausted. Intelligent planning software helps to consolidate shipments between depots and other locations, which improves vehicle utilization. In particular, however, optimized, demand-driven container cycles reduce the following_{CO2 traps}: That companies buy too many new containers, schedule them incorrectly and lose them early. In contrast to the upcoming soccer World Cup in the desert - who would store refrigerated containers in the blazing sun? - the ecological added value is fortunately far less controversial.

The article appeared in materialfluss 10/22.