Aplicação do método multicritério AHP-processo de análise hierárquica no apoio à tomada de decisão no transporte rodoviário de cargas fracionadas

Abstract

The global trend in logistics and the distribution chain is the pressure to reduce costs, delivery times, environmental impacts, and increase the safety of people and cargo, driven by the growth of e-commerce. The use of e-commerce transactions through the hiring of road freight carriers for less-than-truckload (LTL) cargo has grown exponentially in Brazil, fueled by the advent of the internet, market globalization, and the new post-COVID-19 pandemic reality. As a result, organizations involved in road transport of less-than-truckload (LTL) cargo face enormous difficulties in dealing with complex logistical problems of a subjective nature. This research seeks to answer the question: "How to evaluate opinions, experiences, and expectations regarding the resolution of a logistical problem, according to its level of importance, expert judgments, to support decision-making in the management of road transport of LTL cargo?" The main objective of the research was to apply the AHP (Analytic Hierarchy Process), the most widely used multicriteria method in publications from 2014 to 2024, to complex logistical problems, evaluating criteria and alternatives, generating a final priority for planning actions and supporting decision-making in the management of road transport of LTL cargo. For the selection of publications in the literature review, research programs such as Scopus, Google Scholar, ANPET journals, CAPES, Prisma 2020, and the Rayyan software were used. In choosing the AHP method to be applied in the case study, publications from authors in European and Asian countries (2014–2024) stood out, with methods based on the conversion of subjective values into numerical values for final classification and decision-making support in managing logistical problems. The main national publications considered that applied AHP were extracted from editions of the Revista Transportes and the CAPES Journal, comprising eight scientific articles and one doctoral thesis. As a result of the research on publications in Europe and Asia, AHP emerged as the most widely used method over the years, indicating its popularity and continued applicability in logistics and decision-making research. The presence of combined methods such as AHP-GIS, AHP-TOPSIS, AHP-VIKOR, and AHP-WASPAS suggested a trend towards integrating multiple techniques to address complex logistical problems in a more holistic and accurate way. The application of AHP in the case study resulted in the prioritization of the best alternatives, offering transparency, justification of decisions, simulation of new scenarios, integration of opinions from multiple experts, applicability in various contexts, and ease of use.