This article introduces for the first time a study of several mathematical programming models for

the JOBPRP and the JOBSPRP in manual order picking systems, considering the real environments

of warehouses and distribution centers. We proposed four models, called OBRMH, OBSRTD,

MOBSRTD and MOBSRTDH, based on the calculation of minimum distances and minimum travel

time between two storage positions for multi-block 2D and 3D warehouses, in order to formulate the

picker routing problemas an STSP.

We hope that this study will be useful for researchers in the area of manual order picking

systems, to facilitate the creation and adaptation of mathematical models to address joint order

picking problems considering the real environments of warehouses and distribution centers, including

factors such as multiple pickers, heterogeneous vehicles (loading capacity, vertical velocity, horizontal

velocity), multi-block 2D and 3D warehouses, due windows and multi-objective approaches to

optimizing operational efficiency (minimizing total traveled distance or total travel time) and customer

service (minimizing tardiness and/or earliness).

To address problems with a multi-objective approach, we recommend using the a priori method,

where the decision maker establishes the weightings or priorities for the operational efficiency and

customer service in accordance with supply-chain strategies, to ensure that the proposed models can
be executed multiple times in a work shift, obtaining a single solution.

Furthermore, this study shows the magnitudes of the JOBPRP and the JOBSPRP, which

increase exponentially when the number of storage locations increases and increase linearly when

the number of customer orders increases. This situation turns the JOBPRP and JOBSPRP into

NP-hard problems, so that it becomes impossible to solve the proposed models using exact solution

methods, at least for large instances. Therefore, we suggest continuing with optimal solution

approaches for the JOBPRP and JOBSPRP and developing metaheuristics providing high-quality

solutions in short computing times, to satisfy the requirements of a real warehouse.

As future research, we recommend including parameters, variables and constraints in order to

consider congestion and picker blocking, online customer order arrivals and inventory availability, in

the mathematical models presented in this study. Additionally, it is important to develop exact solution

methods for small and medium instances, and to apply them to the proposed models in order to

provide a benchmark for the metaheuristics developed for addressing these problems. Finally,

researchers interested in joint order picking problems are invited to modify the OBRMH, OBSRTD,

MOBSRTD and MOBSRTDH models based on the formulations proposed in Scholz et al. (2016,

2017) and Valle et al. (2017) .