LT.20.003 – Self-organizing logistics

Nature is full of self-organizing (SO) systems as they are robust, flexible and effective. More and more, man-made systems are also being designed to function according to this paradigm. In the logistics and transportation industry, with technology-heavy visions like physical internet, Industry 4.0 and cyber-physical systems, the design of fitting organizational and governance arrangements is an underdeveloped topic. Self-organization provides a clear perspective that can be integrated well into these systems, but requires explicit design decisions and is not trivial in terms of complexity and impacts. The program aims to address these design decisions and complexities. For example, advantages and disadvantages of distributed systems (blockchain, IoT) for robustness of logistics processes are not yet well understood. Also, the economics of self-organizing systems are intricate as they can contain unwanted distributive, sustainability or social impacts. In addition, the translation of self-organization principles into daily management decisions deserves attention, to make these systems implementable. The program will operationalize the approach of self-organization in different areas within the logistics sector (city logistics, warehousing, (air)ports) and experiment with solutions in a living lab setting. Ultimately its ambition is to act as a platform for launching new SO-systems in logistics.

Keywords

biomimicry, Governance, logistics, self-organization

Other organisations

BUAS, Primevision, TNO