摘要：Abstract In drop-ship based B2C E-commerce distribution, consumer order delivery is generally the sequential responsibility of E-vendors and 3PLs. In the first phase, each E-vendor (e.g. manufacturers such as South Shore) is responsible for getting the consumer orders transmitted by E-clients (e.g. Amazon.com, Walmart.com), consolidated at its distribution centers, to their assigned 3PL drop-off locations. In the second phase, each 3PL (e.g. Fedex, UPS) dispatches the orders, dropped by the E- vendors, across its hub-and-spoke network and delivers them to the E-consumers. Order delivery cost for E-Clients is thus induced from the combined efforts of E-vendors and 3PLs. According to current best practice, here termed myopic consolidation, E-vendors are requested by their E-clients to consolidate their orders and drop them to the nearest node of the E-client's partnered 3PL, resulting in the 3PLs having the bulk of the transportation responsibility. This paper presents an optimization model for E-vendor's consumer order consolidation, assuming agreements between the E-vendor and its partner E-clients, to reduce the total consumer order delivery cost through integrated consolidation. The model consolidates consumer orders into vehicles and assigns these vehicles to drop-off locations within the 3PL networks, so as to minimize the total transportation cost. The paper highlights the benefits from optimized integrated consolidation through a case study from the South Shore furniture manufacturer.
