Addressing the Challenges of Last-mile: The Drone Routing Problem with Shared Fulfillment Centers

With the easing of restrictions worldwide, drones will become a preferred transportation mode for last-mile deliveries in the coming years. Drones offer, in fact, an optimal solution for many challenges faced with last-mile delivery as congestion and emissions and can streamline the last leg of the supply chain. Despite the common conviction that drones will reshape the future of deliveries, numerous hurdles prevent practical implementation of this futuristic vision, among which the limited drone range and payload. To overcome this issue, big companies such as Amazon, are already filing up patents for the development of fulfilment centers where drones can be restocked before flying out again for another delivery, effectively extending their range. Only a few authors have addressed the joint problem of operating these facilities and providing services to retail companies. This paper addresses this problem and proposes a mathematical formulation to show the viability of the proposed approach.