The more complex the circumstances, the more challenging it is to identify an optimal solution. Salzburg Research developes at the Center for Logistics Optimization (LOGO) pioneering optimization technologies that directly benefit domestic companies.

Increased competition and increasing customer demands call for flexibility and efficiency in order to successfully survive in the market. Operational decisions must therefore be as “optimal” as possible – decision making for complex problem situations in logistics planning is now largely computer-based. But because there is no silver bullet in the form of a universally applicable optimization process, many companies are reaching their limits – valuable optimization potential is unfulfilled.

The ever increasing volume of freight traffic increased the need for effective optimization solutions. Therefore, the Centre for Logistics Optimization LOGO was set at Salzburg Research. The focus is on two main areas: On the one hand, so-called “hybrid” methods are used, where different optimization methods are combined – each method complement each other, benefits be enhanced and individual weaknesses eliminated. On the other hand, optimization methods are developed for the execution on massively parallel supercomputers and tested. “Calculations that previously took two days or more, can now be done within half an hour,” explains Günter Kiechle, head of the research unit “CLL – Computational Logistics Lab”.

LOGO is funded by the Federal Ministry for Transport, Innovation and Technology (BMVIT) and the Province of Salzburg.