RutaRep: a computer package to design dispatching routes in the meat industry

In this paper we present a computer program that has been developed to design the dispatching routes of a medium-sized meat company in Spain. We have modelled the real problem as a variant of the vehicle routing problem with Time Windows and implemented a number of heuristic algorithms based on the most advanced solution techniques for this problem. These algorithms have been embedded in a computer package that is intended to be used as a decision support system for the distribution manager. The program runs under Windows System and is straightforward to use. We also present some computational experiences based on real instances provided by the company. This experience shows important improvements, in both global distance and customer service.