Real-Time Route Optimization for Construction Logistics

In the construction industry, logistics is often the hidden engine behind on-time delivery and project success. Our client, a large construction group managing hundreds of truck deliveries per day, needed a smart system to manage both their own and third-party fleet.

The Challenge

The client struggled with:

• Manual route planning for dozens of daily deliveries
• Unreliable schedules due to traffic, delays, or truck breakdowns
• Difficulty prioritizing internal vs. subcontracted trucks
• No real-time visibility or dynamic reallocation capability

Our Approach

We built and deployed a real-time, constraint-aware route optimization engine:

• Demand Aggregation

  • Combined planned construction site deliveries with last-minute requests
  • Prioritized deliveries based on construction stage and site urgency

• Dynamic Routing Engine

  • Used OR-Tools and a custom constraint solver to calculate optimal routes across the fleet
  • Considered truck type, subcontractor constraints, site time windows, and service level agreements

• Live Status Monitoring

  • Integrated with GPS trackers and incident reporting (breakdowns, delays)
  • Triggered automatic re-routing in seconds if a truck was reported out of service or delayed

• Control Dashboard

  • Provided dispatchers with a live view of routes, truck status, ETAs, and alerts
  • Allowed for manual overrides with AI-suggested alternatives

Results and Impact

• 22% reduction in fuel and subcontractor costs
• 95% delivery punctuality, even in dynamic disruption scenarios
• Real-time re-routing in <20 seconds upon incident detection
• Enhanced visibility and reduced dispatcher workload

Key Learnings

• Real-time routing requires both robust optimization and fast data integration
• Subcontractor variability must be modeled explicitly for realistic planning
• Dispatcher trust increased when the system offered explanations behind decisions

Looking Forward

The solution is being extended to include CO₂ footprint tracking and predictive maintenance alerts based on truck telemetry.

Smart logistics is not just about shorter routes — it's about resilient, data-driven planning that adapts instantly when reality changes.