The Applications of Operations Research in E-Commerce Logistics

This study set out to understand how research on operations research (OR) in e-commerce logistics has developed, what it has focused on, and where it needs to go next. It combined a systematic literature review with a bibliometric analysis of 851 peer-reviewed journal articles drawn from Scopus, selected through a PRISMA-guided screening of 2,681 initial records. The sections below state how far the objectives were met, what the findings mean for different groups, and where the study falls short. The study met most of its five objectives. Two were met only in part. Objective 1: publication trends by journal, time, author, institution and country. This was largely achieved. Annual output was small between 2015 and 2018, at roughly 15 to 22 papers a year. It rose sharply from 2019 to about 55 in 2020 and 79 in 2021, and peaked at more than 83 papers in 2023, which coincides with the COVID-19 surge in online shopping. The author analysis showed a broad international community led by Huang George Q (16 publications), followed by Pratap Saurabh (9) and Zhang Mengdi (6). Authors came from both engineering and operations management backgrounds, which shows how interdisciplinary the field has become. Sustainability (Switzerland) was the leading journal with 29 articles, alongside core OR journals such as Transportation Research Part E and the European Journal of Operational Research. The breakdown by institution and country was not carried out, so this part of the objective was only partly achieved. Objective 2: the most influential studies, models and methods. This was achieved mainly through the thematic map and keyword network rather than citation rankings. The methodological backbone of the field consists of vehicle routing, mixed-integer programming, genetic algorithms and other metaheuristics, multi-criteria decision models such as TOPSIS, AHP and DEA, game-theoretic models and agent-based simulation. Predictive analytics and machine learning have been added more recently. A ranking of the most-cited papers would strengthen this objective further. Objective 3: how the research has evolved and its current trends. This was achieved. The research moved from theoretical modelling in 2015 to 2017 toward applied algorithmic work in 2020 to 2023, covering crowd-sourced delivery, parcel lockers, real-time routing and electric delivery fleets. The rise of Sustainability (Switzerland) shows that logistics optimization now has to balance cost against environmental goals. Objective 4: whether past studies lean toward particular segments of e-commerce logistics. This was achieved. The thematic map showed motor themes (e-commerce platforms, reverse logistics, cross-border logistics), niche themes (multi-criteria decision models, urban parcel logistics, game-theoretic fulfilment), basic themes (sustainability and urban logistics, optimization algorithms) and emerging or declining themes (richer routing variants and uncertainty methods). The keyword network confirmed four clusters: optimization and decision-making, digital platforms and cross-border logistics, green and urban logistics, and advanced algorithms and AI. Last-mile delivery and sustainability dominate, while rural logistics, customer-centred models and integrated forward-and-reverse flows are comparatively underdeveloped. Objective 5: research gaps and future directions. This was achieved through the future research agenda in Section 6. It proposes eight directions: ·        integrating AI with OR through hybrid learning-and-optimization models; ·        green and sustainable logistics through multi-objective models; ·        dynamic routing and delivery planning with real-time data; ·        smart warehousing and automation, including whether it is feasible for small and medium-sized enterprises; ·        reverse logistics and returns management through combined forward-and-reverse models; ·        customer satisfaction and logistics service quality; ·        cross-border logistics under uncertainty; ·        rural and inclusive distribution networks. Directions for further bibliometric work were also suggested. Taken together, the study achieved its aim of giving an integrated picture of the field. Its main message is that OR in e-commerce logistics has moved from abstract mathematical modelling to practical tools for omni-channel distribution, urban delivery, automated fulfilment and green logistics. The remaining gap is in how well these methods work in real operating conditions.

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