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Let’s forget social media and cloud services for a second, and instead of praising another taxi ordering or a picture sharing app, look into something that requires a bit more thinking.

This post is about a B2B software of a mind-boggling complexity. Real time multi-agent optimization is not a subject for a water-cooler conversation. Yet here is an example how Russian rocket scientists integrated their intricate research into a commercial product, with a service element which beats business model of any outsourced software development boutique. Outsourcers, venture investors, production managers and logistics executives and may find this interesting.

Software products which optimize processes and logistics operations have been around for quite some time now. Yet, according to Tom Laine of Smart Logistics, based in Finland, they solved mainly a static problem.

Smart Logistics partners with a Russian company Knowledge Genesis Group, based in Samara, Russia. Whereas the actual technical knowledge and competence comes from KG Group, Smart Logistics helps taking it to the international markets, currently running a pilot project for the first commercial product leveraging the multi-agent technology as a software product. Its software addresses the continuous need to optimize multi-agent operations which change in real time. Perhaps rocket science is a bit of an exaggeration, but it is a fact, that the research work has been  previously applied to cargo operations of the International Space Station.

The world is a dynamic place, where daily disruptions to the normal working order require constant re-optimization and re-scheduling. Take a factory environment, for example. When an urgent order from an important client comes in, or a machine breaks, the interference of operations’ manager is essential to decide the course of action.

What Knowledge Genesis Group suggests, is that the whole factory process must be optimized in real time, to prioritize operations according to the highest total value of the outcome. It reduces the optimization dependence on a human element, by re-ordering tasks to get highest possible value. This also means that optimization occurs in real time ALL the time, as a programmed automatic process without human interaction.

A good example is optimizing operations of oil tankers. The ever changing parameters are a price of oil, new destinations and a location of the tankers. When a price of oil changes to the acceptable level, the sale takes place, and the tanker nearest to the destination will deliver the oil. That is until the next sale, which will shake up the optimum point (taking into account time and cost) and might divert the tanker elsewhere.

In logistics, one must take into account not only the distances as limitation, but also the legally allowed working hours of the truck drivers. If an accident happens, such as a flat tire, the whole delivery schedule might need to be changed.

The customer benefits are cost and time reduction, and a resulting improvement of productivity. A case study provided by Smart Logistics suggests, that just for scheduling tasks the work load can be reduced from days to minutes.

Of course to be effective the system needs to be set up first. So the business model of Knowledge Genesis Group includes consulting services to map and link the workflow chart, followed by software licensing revenue and ongoing support. Over 100 software developers are working in the company.

By the way, this product is also relevant for taxis and when the company gets around offering its software in the cloud, the whole thing will just get hotter.

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