A Hybrid Approach for Solving the Capacitated Vehicle Routing Problem

Industrial transportation problems, such as the distribution of petroleum products, industrial gases, merchandise, and waste management, are critical challenges in operations research. These issues often involve high costs and complex logistics, making efficient solutions essential for businesses. The routing problem, a well-known optimization challenge, focuses on minimizing transportation costs while satisfying vehicle capacity. In this research, we propose an innovative approach Hybrid Artificial Bee Colony (HABC), which combines the Artificial Bee Colony (ABC) algorithm with the Genetic Algorithm (GA). The ABC algorithm is recognized for its rapid convergence, whereas GA is effective at diversifying the search space through genetic operators such as crossover and mutation. By integrating these two metaheuristics, HABC aims to exploit their complementary strengths, thereby improving both solution quality and computational performance. In addition, we introduce a heuristic for random population initialization, which ensure a balance between quality and diversity in the initial solutions. This strategy helps avoid premature convergence and explores a broader solution space. Simulation results demonstrate that HABC achieves significant improvement in solution quality, outperforming existing methods in several instances of the CVRP. This approach not only reduces trans-portation costs but also offers a scalable and efficient framework for solving complex industrial logistics problems. By optimizing routes and resource allocation, HABC contributes to more sustainable and cost-effective operations, offering tangible benefits to industries that depend on reliable transportation systems. The proposed method underscores the potential of hybrid AI techniques in addressing real-world operational challenges.