Predictive Logistics & Route Optimization (DHL)

PythondbtSQLLinear ProgrammingXGBoostPowerBIOperations Research

Business Impact

+30% efficiency, +5% backhaul

Scale

500+ shipments/day optimized

Predictive Logistics & Route Optimization (DHL)

The Challenge

DHL's logistics operations suffered from inefficient route planning and underutilized backhaul capacity. Manual forecasting led to poor resource allocation, with trucks returning empty 20% of the time, wasting fuel and revenue opportunities.

The Architecture

Built predictive logistics pipeline: Historical Shipment Data (SQL Database) → Feature Engineering (dbt transformations) → XGBoost Demand Forecasting → Linear Programming Optimization (PuLP/OR-Tools) → Route Assignment Engine → PowerBI Dashboard for Operations Team. Daily batch pipeline orchestrated with Airflow, generating optimized routes 24 hours in advance.

System Architecture Diagram

graph LR
    A[Shipment Data<br/>SQL Database] --> B[Feature Engineering<br/>dbt Transformations]
    B --> C[XGBoost<br/>Demand Forecast]
    C --> D[Linear Programming<br/>PuLP/OR-Tools]
    D --> E[Route Assignment<br/>Engine]
    E --> F[PowerBI<br/>Operations Dashboard]

    G[Airflow<br/>Orchestration] -.->|Daily Batch| B
    H[Backhaul<br/>Optimizer] -.->|5% Increase| D

    style A fill:#0066ff,stroke:#0052cc,stroke-width:2px,color:#fff
    style B fill:#4C9AFF,stroke:#0066ff,stroke-width:2px,color:#fff
    style C fill:#0066ff,stroke:#0052cc,stroke-width:2px,color:#fff
    style D fill:#4C9AFF,stroke:#0066ff,stroke-width:2px,color:#fff
    style E fill:#0066ff,stroke:#0052cc,stroke-width:2px,color:#fff
    style F fill:#4C9AFF,stroke:#0066ff,stroke-width:2px,color:#fff
    style G fill:#666,stroke:#444,stroke-width:1px,color:#fff
    style H fill:#666,stroke:#444,stroke-width:1px,color:#fff

The Impact

Improved operational efficiency by 30% through optimized route planning. Increased backhaul identification by 5%, reducing empty truck miles and fuel costs. System deployed across multiple distribution centers, processing 500+ daily shipments with <10-minute computation time.

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