Claudio Sterle – författare

This book investigates the role of optimization methods and data science techniques in improving both internal and external logistics operations, with particular emphasis on last-mile logistics. It explores mathematical models, heuristics, and data-driven approaches for enhancing routing, inventory management, resource allocation, and operational planning under real-world constraints. Special attention is given to the civil applications of emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence, IoT, AGV and UAV, as key enablers of more efficient and sustainable logistics processes. The book also examines the environmental and organizational challenges facing contemporary logistics, with the objective of reducing emissions, congestion, energy consumption, and operational inefficiencies across both urban and rural contexts. By integrating methodological perspectives with practical case studies, it provides a rigorous framework for the design of smarter and more sustainable systems.

This proceedings volume highlights the state-of-the-art knowledge related to optimization, decisions science and problem solving methods, as well as their application in industrial and territorial systems. It includes contributions tackling these themes using models and methods based on continuous and discrete optimization, network optimization, simulation and system dynamics, heuristics, metaheuristics, artificial intelligence, analytics, and also multiple-criteria decision making. The number and the increasing size of the problems arising in real life require mathematical models and solution methods adequate to their complexity. There has also been increasing research interest in Big Data and related challenges. These challenges can be recognized in many fields and systems which have a significant impact on our way of living: design, management and control of industrial production of goods and services; transportation planning and traffic management in urban and regional areas;energy production and exploitation; natural resources and environment protection; homeland security and critical infrastructure protection; development of advanced information and communication technologies. The chapters in this book examine how to deal with new and emerging practical problems arising in these different fields through the presented methodologies and their applications. The chapter topics are applicable for researchers and practitioners working in these areas, but also for the operations research community. The contributions were presented during the international conference “Optimization and Decision Science” (ODS2017), held at Hilton Sorrento Palace Conference Center, Sorrento, Italy, September 4 – 7, 2017. ODS 2017, was organized by AIRO, Italian Operations Research Society, in cooperation with DIETI (Department of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology) of University “Federico II” of Naples.