Network planning and contract design for cross-chain control in cash networks

In this project we develop methods for network planning and contract design to control the cash supply chains of banks. Banks traditionally manage their own cash supply chain but more and more cross chain control centres such as Geldservice Nederland take over that role. Cash supply chains are important worldwide but remain virtually unexplored in literature. In this project we aim to develop strategies and supporting tools for generating increased efficiencies in cash supply chains by (i) integrating transportation, inventory and preventive maintenance decisions, (ii) integrating depot location, assignment and routing decisions, (iii) supporting real-time decision making for emergency requests and breakdowns while seeking sufficient unpredictability in the routes for safety reasons. We furthermore identify and translate operational guidelines in elements of contracts that are put in place to govern cross-chain control in a cash supply chain. We have defined four work packages, aimed at (1) analyzing the performance of the Dutch cash supply chain, (2) investigating the effect of combining spatial and temporal coordination in cash supply chain routing decisions, (3) integrating maintenance decisions in cash distribution decisions and (4) contracts to improve cross-chain coordination in the cash supply chain. Our project is supported by software provider ORTEC and by Geldservice Nederland. It is furthermore backed by three large Dutch banks and the Dutch central bank (DNB).