South Korean Study on Automated Guided Vehicles Assessed Productivity and Environmental Impacts.
Nationwide, South Korea
Automatic Guided Vehicles Introduction Impacts to Roll-On/Roll-Off Terminals: Simulation and Cost Model Analysis
Summary Information
Automatic Guided Vehicles (AGVs) have been successfully used at cargo terminals to reduce operating costs and improve productivity. This study focused on automating Roll-On/Roll-Off (RORO) terminal operations by using AGVs, and evaluated the impact of AGVs on the productivity, cost efficiency, and environment. For this purpose, a series of simulation models were developed in 2021 based on the current loading system (non-AGV) at an existing port in South Korea. In addition, a cost model was developed to analyze the economic and environmental benefits of AGVs compared with the current loading system.
METHODOLOGY
As part of the simulation modeling effort scenarios were developed to demonstrate improvements to the loading system considered in this study. A total of three different loading systems were compared:
- Current loading system
- AGV loading system Scenario-1
- AGV loading system Scenario-2
In AGV loading system Scenario-1, AGV follow the same path as the current loading system: one-way movement within the external ramp. If vehicles entering from different sides meet at the ramp, the first one to enter the ramp takes precedence. AGV loading system Scenario-2 allows two-way movement, which meaning AGV can bypass each other on the ramp. The number of AGVs varied from 10 to the maximum number. A cost model was used to calculate the total operating costs of the port for a 15-year period with the optimal number of AGVs (the minimum number of AGVs that matched the productivity of the current loading system). The cost of CO2 emissions was considered to evaluate the environmental impacts: 1) operation of vehicles and the van in the current system, and 2) emissions from AGV electricity production.
FINDINGS
- Results revealed that a system using 29 AGVs (AGV Scenario-2) matched the productivity of the current loading system and using more AGVs increased the productivity.
- The maximum AGV use for Scenario-1 was 40 AGVs, and its loading time was 87,394 seconds with a 54.296 second average waiting time. This translates into a six percent reduction in loading time compared to the current system’s loading time of 93,099.70 seconds.
- The maximum AGV use for Scenario-2 was 70 AGVs, and its loading time was 44,869 seconds with 55.365 seconds average waiting time. This translates into a 52 percent reduction in loading time compared to the current system’s loading time of 93,099.70 seconds.
- AGV system also showed great potential for improving the environmental friendliness of terminal operations. Total CO2 emissions from the AGV loading system per loading process was estimated to be almost 65 percent less compared to the total CO2 emissions produced from the current loading system per loading process (236,000 grams versus 664,340 grams, respectively).
- In terms of cost efficiency, the total operating cost for the AGV loading system (€ 17,021,863) was estimated to be about three times less than that of the current human-operated loading system (€ 53,558,339) despite the high initial capital costs for AG vehicles.
