Resource Allocation Problems in Port Operations: A Literature Review

To provide a support in suggesting possible research directions on port operations, this paper surveys the current state of the art in relevant literature. Particular focus is put on resource allocation problems in seaport container terminals which involves berth allocation, quay crane scheduling, storage yard allocation, vehicle dispatching, human resources management and so on. As separated problems have been fully studied regarding port operations, this paper reveals the need for integrated optimization on different resource allocation problems under uncertain environment. Online optimization is also an important need in terms of unexpected disruptions.