Distribution Strategy on Resource Groups
The Tank Allocation Strategy field is used to select the strategy that is used during the create flow to distribute tank batches to the resource group. The drop-down list box is only enabled if the category tank group is selected.
You can choose one of these distribution strategies:
- None - this option uses the standard quantities as defined on the process step.
- Fill large, longest empty, tanks first
- Fill small,
longest empty, tanks first
The two options above can be used in case of several similar-sized tanks. Using one of these options, the tank that has not been used for the longest period of time is selected.
- Fill large tank first - The tanks with the largest capacity are filled first. The number of used tanks is minimized.
- Fill small tank first - The tanks with the smallest capacity are filled first.
The following example illustrates the difference between the last two strategies.
This table shows the tanks, their maximum volumes, and the empty period for the example:
| Tank | Max. volume in liters | Empty Period in hours |
|---|---|---|
| T1 | 50.000 | 3x24 |
| T2 | 50.000 | 5x24 |
| T3 | 10.000 | 3x24 |
| T4 | 10.000 | 5x24 |
| T5 | 5.000 | 3x24 |
| T6 | 5.000 | 5x24 |
| T7 | 2.000 | 3x24 |
| T8 | 2.000 | 5x24 |
The tables below show the tanks that will be allocated for both strategies for some sample quantities. This is assuming that all tanks are available.
Expected result
-
Quantity: 9000
a b c d e T1 T2 T3 X X T4 X T5 X T6 X T7 X X T8 X X -
Quantity: 10000
a b c d e T1 T2 T3 X X X T4 X X T5 T6 T7 T8 -
Quantity: 12000
a b c d e T1 X X T2 X T3 X T4 X T5 T6 T7 X T8 X -
Quantity: 15000
a b c d e T1 X X T2 X T3 X T4 X T5 X T6 X T7 T8