Container inventory imbalances (CII) can primarily be attributed to global trade imbalances that cause a substantial indirect cost in shipping. Therefore, it is imperative that carriers adopt highly efficient and effective container inventory management (CIM) systems to overcome the CII issues. This research intends to develop realistic guidelines for CIM that minimise CII costs. The components of the 3F model are chosen based on the rating scores given by the experts for 22 common CIM strategies followed by a standard filtration process. It ultimately comprises six strategies, namely: reduce import freight; reduce export freight; service agreements; synchronised budget; agile inventory; and export priority. These variables are rooted in three dimensions namely: freight, forecasting and flexibility. To identify the relative contribution by each component, this paper proposes a double weight allocation procedure for each strategy. The 3F model helps managers to think beyond traditional container reposition and increased profits.

中文翻译：

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集装箱库存管理：引入3F模型

集装箱库存不平衡（CII）主要归因于全球贸易不平衡，这导致了运输的大量间接成本。因此，运营商必须采用高效且有效的集装箱库存管理（CIM）系统来克服CII问题。这项研究旨在为CIM制定切实可行的指南，以最大程度地降低CII成本。3F模型的组成部分是根据专家对22种常见CIM策略所给出的等级评分以及随后的标准过滤过程选择的。它最终包括六个策略，即：减少进口货运；减少出口货运；服务协议；预算同步；敏捷库存；和出口优先权。这些变量植根于三个维度，即：货运，预测和灵活性。为了确定每个组成部分的相对贡献，本文提出了每种策略的双重权重分配程序。3F模型可帮助管理人员思考传统集装箱重新定位和增加利润之外的问题。