Nynas produces bitumen at two refineries in Sweden. The bitumen is shipped to seven depots along the swedish coast line, and from the depots special trucks handle the transportation to customers. Recently Nynas has transformed its supply chain and closed down a few depots. At the moment the company is considering a further reduction of the number of depots. In connection to these discussions an analyse of the companys distributionsystem and of possible changes is required. In this thesis an optimization model is developed that simulates Nynas distribution of bitumen from the depots to the customers. The model is used to investigate the required vehicle fleet size for a number of different scenarios, that is with different depots closed down. The question to be answered is, thus, what depots could be closed without any dramatic increase in the required vehicle fleet size? Scenarios where customers are allocated an increased storage capacity are also studied. The distribution model that is developed is an inventory route planning problem. It is solved by column generation. Each column represents a route and is generated by a subproblem with restrictions on permitted working hours for the truck drivers. Integer solutions are generated heuristically. Simulations that have been performed with the model reveals interesting differences concerning how the distribution is handled in different parts of Sweden. In western Sweden the transportation planning works well, but the distribution in the central parts of the country could be planned in a better way. Results from simulations also show that the depots in Norrköping and Västerås could be closed down without increasing the vehicle fleet. Probably, the existing vehicle fleet size will be sufficient even with the Kalmar-depot closed down. Nevertheless, Nynas transportation suppliers will have to purchase new vehicles if the Sandarne-depot is to be closed. Another interesting conclusion that can be drawn from this thesis is that there is a potential for reducing ...
