Solving Fixed-Charge Network Flow Problems with a Hybrid Optimization and Constraint Programming Approach

We apply to fixed charge network flow (FCNF) problems a general hybrid solution method that combines constraint programming and linear programming. FCNF problems test the hybrid approach on problems that are already rather well suited for a classical 0–1 model. They are solved by means of a global constraint that generates specialized constraint propagation algorithms and a projected relaxation that can be rapidly solved as a minimum cost network flow problem. The hybrid approach ran about twice as fast as a commercial mixed integer programming code on fixed charge transportation problems with its advantage increasing with problem size. For general fixed charge transshipment problems, however, it has no effect because the implemented propagation methods are weak.