Comparative Analysis of Methods for Solving Transportation Problems: A Study on Efficiency and Effectiveness

This research evaluates five different methods for solving transportation problems: the Average Cost Method, ASM Method, Improved Vogel’s Approximation Method (IVAM), Column Minimum Method and NEWA Method. Each method is deeply discussed in the research, as well as implementation processes and mathematical formulas involved. The research demonstrates the usability of each method in real-world scenarios through the provision of calculations for balanced, unbalanced, and profit transportation issues. The research also analyzes these methodologies’ computational performance and efficiency as a function of overall cost, quality of solutions, and simplicity of implementation. The five methods are compared by using plots and an Excel table in the analysis and findings section to illustrate each methodology’s strength and weakness. The suggestions in the conclusion of the paper for selecting the optimal approach are grounded in the nature of the problem and identifies areas of future research to enhance transportation problem-solving methodology.