Evaluating handling equipment operating systems in container yard

In this article, a fuzzy analytic hierarchy process method is presented to evaluate handling equipment operated in a container yard. To begin with, there were 19 criteria established for the evaluation, and then, a factor analysis was used to extract five dimensions, namely, operating environment, reliability, productivity, storage capacity and managing costs. Furthermore, an expert questionnaire of analytic hierarchy was established based on the 5 dimensions, 19 criteria and 5 alternative solutions. Finally, the proposed fuzzy analytic hierarchy process was used to verify the evaluation model, with handling equipment operated in Container Center A of Kaohsiung Harbor taken as an illustration. The research results showed that the storage capacity was the most important factor to the evaluation. Among the 19 criteria, the first 5 were a 20-foot container ground slot, the acquisition cost of the handling equipment, annual handling capacity of the storage yard, handling methods and the equipment failure rate, in the ascending order of precedence, and the handling equipment best fits Container Center A of Kaohsiung Harbor was rail-mounted gantry cranes. It is hoped that the proposed evaluation model will help container yard operators select the most suitable handling equipment for their operations.