• Journal of Korean Society of Transportation
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• v.23 no.4 s.82
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• pp.81-91
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• 2005

The Traveling Salesman Problem(TSP) is one of the NP-complete (None-deterministic Polynomial time complete) route optimization problems. Its calculation time increases very rapidly as the number of nodes does. Therefore, the near optimum solution has been searched by heuristic algorithms rather than the real optimum has. This paper reviews the Ant System Algorithm(ANS), an heuristic algorithm of TSP and its applicability in the parcel delivery service in Korea. ASA, which is an heuristic algorithm of NP-complete has been studied by M. Dorigo in the early 1990. ASA finds the optimum route by the probabilistic method based on the cumulated pheromone on the links by ants. ASA has been known as one of the efficient heuristic algorithms in terms of its calculation time and result. Its applications have been expanded to vehicle routing problems, network management and highway alignment planning. The precise criteria for vehicle routing has not been set up in the parcel delivery service of Korea. Vehicle routing has been determined by the vehicle deriver himself or herself. In this paper the applicability of ASA to the parcel delivery service has been reviewed. When the driver s vehicle routing is assumed to follow the Nearest Neighbor Algorithm (NNA) with 20 nodes (pick-up and drop-off places) in $10Km{\times}10Km$ service area, his or her decision was compared with ASA's one. Also, ASA showed better results than NNA as the number of nodes increases from 10 to 200. If ASA is applied, the transport cost savings could be expected in the parcel delivery service in Korea.

• Journal of Digital Convergence
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• v.15 no.10
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• pp.31-43
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• 2017

This study was aimed at analyzing the operational efficiency of DPAs(the delivery and pickup agents), which serve as sub-terminals in parcel delivery services, using CCR/BCC models in DEA. The input variables included the number of employees, and the amount of equipment and the operating expenses. The output variable was revenue value. The efficiency for the period from 2014 to 2016 was analyzed. The results revealed that the operational efficiency improved in 2016, compared with 2014, in both CCR and BCC models. According to the benchmarking analysis, DMU 1 and DMU 7 showed higher efficiency in 2016. The inefficiency analysis based on the BCC model showed increased efficiency of all factors in 2016 when compared with 2014. The Malmquist productivity index (MPI) dropped slightly as a result of technical changes and indicated a declining technical efficiency in all DMUs. This study suggests the need for government-led systematic improvement and support for DPAs by providing current insight into the parcel delivery industry and analyzing DPAs' operational efficiency in Korea for the first time. This research performed efficiency analysis of DPAs located in new town of paju and gimpo cities. In future research, comparative study on efficiency analysis including new town, old town area, and other cities are needed.

• Korean Management Science Review
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.115-127
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• 2004

In this paper, we describe an intelligent monitoring and control system for pick-up/delivery service. This system applies geographical information system(GIS), global positioning system(GPS) and wireless communication technologies for managing pick-up/delivery operations more effectively. It consists of three subsystems, pick-up/delivery sequence planning system, pick-up/delivery monitoring system, and PDA execution system. Pick-up/delivery sequence planning system generates routes and schedules for pick-up/delivery using GIS and optimization techniques. Pick-up/delivery monitoring system monitors current positions of vehicles and actual pick-up/delivery results as compared with planned routes and visit times, while PDA execution system transmits information for vehicles positions and actual pick-up/delivery results using GPS and wireless communication technologies. The intelligent monitoring and control system is currently being used for the pick-up parcel service in a local post office of Korea Post.

• The Journal of The Korea Institute of Intelligent Transport Systems
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.13-24
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• 2017

This paper presents a sequentially combined method of determining location conditions, the number of unmanned parcel service box and their optimal locations. First of all, block, accessibility and main public facilities are considered as location conditions and then set-covering model and p-median model are adopted for deciding the number of unmanned parcel service box and optimal locations, respectively. A case study for a region composed of small housings and multiplex housings in Ansan is conducted to prove the validation and application of the proposed method. The result indicates that 2 unmanned parcel service boxes are necessary in specific public places. The research contributes to resonable choice of unmanned parcel service boxes, crime reduction relevant to delivery man impersonation and economic benefit due to parcel service industry growth.

• KOREAN JOURNAL OF PACKAGING SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.91-96
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• 2015

Fruit and vegetables are subjected to complex dynamic stresses in the transportation environment. During a long journey from the production area to customers using parcel delivery service, there is always some degree of vibration present. Vibration inputs are transmitted from the vehicle through the packaging to the fruit. Inside, these cause sustained bouncing of fruits against each other and container wall. These steady state vibration input may cause serous fruit injury, and this damage is particularly severe whenever the fruit inside the package is free to bounce, and is vibrated at its resonance frequency. The determination of the resonance frequencies of the fruit and vegetables may help the packaging designer to determine the proper packaging system providing adequate protection for the fruit, and to understand the complex interaction between the components of fruit when they relate to expected transportation vibration inputs. Instrumentation and technologies are described for determining the vibration response characteristics of the fruits with frequency range 3 to 150 Hz. The resonance frequency of the pear ranged from 53 to 102 Hz and the amplitude at resonance was between 1.08 and 2.48 G. The resonance frequency and amplitude at resonance decreased with the increase of the sample mass, and they were slightly affected by mechanical properties such as bioyield deformation and rupture deformation. Regression analysis was performed among the relatively high correlated parameters from the results of correlation coefficient analysis.

• Proceedings of the Safety Management and Science Conference
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• 2010.04a
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• pp.415-421
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• 2010

Door to door service is a typical method for individual parcel deliveries. In the current delivery information system, a delivery person manually input the information of many delivery results, which causes inefficiency and difficulties of tracking deliveries. This study suggests an enhanced delivery information system which has the following two characteristics. Firstly, a tagged RFID transmits the delivery result information to the main server by just collecting RFID at a place of destination. Secondly, with the characteristics of rewritable method, the collected RFID is to be input new information and tagged to other parcels.

• Journal of Distribution Science
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• v.10 no.5
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• pp.45-55
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• 2012

In Korea, the parcel delivery service was launched officially in 1992, and the market has grown to 13.2 billion units, or 3.5 trillion won, as of 2011. The service companies accept small packages under 30 kg and deliver them on the next day in most domestic areas. This service plays an important role in business and personal activities. The parcel service companies have themselves designed the tariff for the delivery service based on two criteria: weight and the sum of three side lengths. Further, the tariff is graded in steps of three or four rate structures based on size (small, medium, large, and extra-small). However, the basic freight rate is generally decided according to the cargo's weight or measurement size, and an extra rate is added according to some factors (handling, stowability, liability, and so on). The parcel service tariff adopted by the companies is illogically designed, and this study was carried out to assess the need for redesigning the tariff structure. The cargo volume cannot be logically reflected by three side lengths. For example, two parcels measuring 160 cm based on three side lengths may have different volumes, one measuring 0.152 cbm (53.33 cm × 53.33 cm × 53.34 cm) and the other 0.05 cbm (100 cm × 50 cm × 10 cm). A small package of less than120 cm (sum of three side lengths) may have a volume of as much as 0.064 cbm (40 cm × 40 cm × 40 cm). Sample comparison showed that 17% of medium-size parcels (based on the sum of three side lengths) are small-volume packages, 24% of large-size parcels are small- or medium-volume packages, and 40% of extra-big-size parcels are big- or under-size packages. Therefore, if parcel service companies rate their services for volume cargo based on the three side lengths standard, users may have to pay higher than normal rates, particularly because a large percentage of parcels are volume cargo. According to this study, the average weight per 1 cbm is less than 300 kg. Therefore, users face an increasing risk of paying higher than logical freight charges. Generally, transportation companies are called "public interest enterprises," and parcel service companies operate as postal services. Public interest enterprises must provide the delivery service to all customers without discrimination at a reasonable service level and logical service charges. Therefore, parcels service tariffs must be designed and adopted logically. In this study, freight theories and prior research findings were used to consider the importance of freight rates, and distortion of parcel service rates based on the three side lengths system was verified through regression analysis of a parcel sample and sample comparison. In conclusion, volume sizes based on three side lengths have a higher correlation to the rate level than does the sum of three side lengths. Further, compared to the sum of three side lengths, volume size has a higher correlation to cargo weight, which is the most basic factor determining transportation cost. Therefore, the existing parcel service tariff should be changed to weight- and volume-based rates, and the tariff must be graded in steps of 8 to 10 higher rate structures for a logical freight schedule based on service cost.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Safety
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• v.38 no.2
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• pp.52-59
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• 2023

Due to the routine nature of social distancing in accordance with the COVID-19 pandemic, the logistics industry is under rapid development, given that offline demand is focused on online platforms. The number of warehouse workplaces and workers are steadily increasing per annum, and the industrial accident rate of transportation, warehouse, and telecommunication industries to which warehouse employees belong is higher than the total industrial accident rate in Korea. In previous studies, warehouse workers reported exposure to health hazards such as musculoskeletal disorders due to the handling of heavy objects and improper working postures. Accordingly, in this study, a survey was conducted to investigate symptoms of musculoskeletal disorders with focus on parcel delivery workers nationwide. The questionnaire included a musculoskeletal disorder symptom survey table to identify information such as worker occupational history, work type, and signs or symptoms of musculoskeletal disorders. Survey response data from 453 people were obtained to determine the influence of delivery business characteristics on occupational musculoskeletal disorders, and the influencing factors were analyzed. Based on the results, in the analysis of pain with respect to body part, the duration, degree, and frequency of pain were highest in the leg part, and as a result, the average value for the leg part exhibited a significant difference from those of other body parts. In addition, 52.32% of workers exhibited symptoms of musculoskeletal disorders, and a high number of patients with musculoskeletal disorders was observed in the work group with less than three years of service and with ages ranging from 30-39. The results of this study can serve as basic data for the derivation of a management plan that meets the characteristics of musculoskeletal disorders that impact logistics workers overburdened with work due to the rapid increase in parcel delivery volume in accordance with an increase in online consumption.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
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• v.45 no.4
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• pp.811-821
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• 2018

This study focused on the improvement of blueberry delivery service using pre-cooled ice and $SO_2$ pads to prevent an increase in the fruit temperature as well as decay. To maintain the fruit quality during low temperature storage, the effect of a $SO_2$ pad and modified atmosphere packaging was also examined. Harvested blueberries were precooled at $15^{\circ}C$, sorted, and packaged. And the fruits were placed in a similar environment as that for the parcel service. Part of the fruits were stored at $0^{\circ}C$ for long term storage. The air temperature in the delivery box increased along with an increase in the simulated delivery time regardless of the treatment. However, the rate of temperature increase was lower in the ice pad treatment. No significant difference was not found after 48 h. The oxygen concentration in the box ranged between 10.5 - 14.5% in the ice pad treatment, which was higher than that of the untreated control (7.5 - 11.9%) whereas the $CO_2$ concentration was lower in the ice pad treatment. No differences were found in the occurrence of off-flavor, decay, and sensory quality loss during the 48 hours of the parcel service simulation. The combined treatment of the $SO_2$ pad and modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) using a perforated film increased the shelf-life of the blueberry fruits, the overall quality such as firmness, and the soluble solid content was not different between the treatments except for the decay incidence. No decayed fruit was found in the combined treatment. However, the percentage of decayed fruit in the control was 25% on day 15 of storage and 75% on day 33 of storage, respectively.

• Journal of Korean Society of Industrial and Systems Engineering
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.133-141
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• 2013

The revitalization of e-business via Internet brings big changes to the postal business, and leads to a tremendous increase of heavy and large sized postal mails with continuing growth of home delivery business. Thus, even though the number of intermediate storages for mail delivery that mailmen use for picking up mails in the middle of mail delivery has been being increased, it has still many problems such as insufficient number and size of the storages as well as avoidance of mail keeping of trust agents. It is necessary that safety of mail keeping, seamless mail delivery, and individual parcel pick-up process reestablishment should be made through an improved counter plan for the problems described previously. This study presents the efficient and right operational plan for the intermediate storage for mail delivery with providing the number and size of intermediate storages per mail delivery sequence according to four different types of post offices.