Logistically-constrained asset scheduling in maritime security operations

Abstract

Operational commanders and planners are challenged with maintaining fleet presence in many environments with limited resources. To add to this challenge, there are further constraints placed upon assets allocated to a given operational commander such as replenishments at sea, multinational exercises, diplomatic port visits, and predetermined in-chop and out-chop dates. In the case of the Combined Maritime Force (CMF), which operates in the FIFTH FLEET Area of Responsibility, these constraints are further magnified by the fact that ships under his or her operational command are from as many as ten different coalition nations at any given time. Furthermore, command of the CMF rotates between these coalition nations, increasing the propensity for inconsistent and sub-optimal resource allocation. This thesis develops a scheduling tool, Coalition Resource Allocation for Maritime Security (C-RAMS), that is capable of quickly producing a schedule that optimizes a given measure of effectiveness for assets assigned to the CMF. This C-RAMS tool accounts for logistics requirements and allows a commander to set priorities within various sub-regions, types of assets, and specific time periods. We illustrate how C-RAMS provides such an optimal schedule and also provides insights into interactions between different priorities and ship types, including those which may be interpolated for future force configurations, through the use of Visual Basic with an Excel 2003 user interface.