Optimization Challenge

Optimization Challenge is an undergraduate student competition organized by Sabancı University Industrial Engineering Program. In the inaugural edition, the student teams will be asked to solve logistics optimization problems in two rounds. After the remote first round, the finalist groups will be invited to the campus for the final round. The top three groups will earn awards together with the bragging rights as the best undergrad optimizers!

Delivering goods efficiently is a pivotal challenge in urban logistics, particularly within the rapidly growing domain of online grocery shopping. FreshCart is a popular online grocery delivery service that prides itself on delivering fresh produce and pantry staples right to its customers' doorsteps. With a fleet of delivery vehicles and a network of suppliers, FreshCart has revolutionized the way people shop for groceries. However, ensuring timely deliveries in a city teeming with traffic and diverse delivery locations is not an easy task.

Every morning, FreshCart's operations team faces the daunting task of planning efficient delivery routes for their fleet of delivery vehicles. Each vehicle has a limited capacity and must adhere to strict time windows for each delivery. For example, perishable items like dairy and meat must be delivered within a specific timeframe to maintain freshness. Moreover, customers can state preferences on when they would like to receive their orders. The team analyzes orders received overnight, taking into account delivery addresses, time windows, and product availability. The information gathered by this analysis serves as an input when planning the vehicle routes.

Suppose that you are a member of FreshCart's operations team and that you are responsible for determining the delivery routes having all the necessary information about the customer orders to be fulfilled on a given day. For more details, please download the full problem description here. You need to register to access the problem instances.

Undergraduate students are eligible to apply.

Groups of size 2-4 are allowed.

There are two rounds in the Optimization Challenge.

In the first round, the group is expected to solve multiple instances of the problem explained in Problem - Data and submit their solutions online until the deadline of the first round.
In the final round, the finalists will be invited on campus where they will be given a similar challenge and a new dataset. Then, they will be asked to solve this challenge on campus. Finally, they will give a brief presentation to the evaluation committee. Further details will be announced later.
- Two-night accommodation in the hotel on campus, meals and limited travel support will be provided to finalists for their campus visit.

First Round Deadline: 19 April

Final Round: 18-19 May (on campus). Accommodation in the hotel on campus will be provided for the nights of 17 and 18 May.

Please fill this form for registration. We expect one submission per group.

Note that you need to register in order to access the problem instances.

Registration Form

No, only undergraduate students are eligible.

Yes, but only travel support cannot be guaranteed to international applicants.

No, undergraduate students from any major are eligible.

Please see Problem - Data

(TBA) The groups will be given a similar challenge and a new dataset, and they will be asked to solve this challenge on campus. Then, they will give a brief presentation to the evaluation committee. Further details will be announced later.

No, you are completely free to choose your own setup as long as the format of your submission files matches the requirements in Problem - Data

The groups will need to submit their reports in the first round and deliver their presentations in the final round in English.

Before the first round deadline, you can change the group composition by sending an email to opt-challenge@sabanciuniv.edu. You cannot change your group composition after the first round and we expect the whole group to show up for the final round if the group qualifies to the final round.

You can send an email to opt-challenge@sabanciuniv.edu. If the answer is not already provided on our website, we will update this FAQ section.

First Place	Second Place	Third Place
20.000 TL	12.000 TL	8.000 TL

^{Awards will be given as gift cards.}

The final round of Optimization Challenge 2024 was held on the Tuzla Campus between 18-19 May. 19 undergraduate students in seven groups worked on a logistics optimization problem for 24 hours before presenting their work to the jury composed of Dr. Duygu Taş Küten, Dr. Ehsan Sedati and Dr. Tevhide Altekin. The top three groups received gift cards along with certificates presented by Dean Erkay Savaş.

Please fill this form for registration. We expect one submission per group.

I am not an undergraduate student. Can I still apply?

I am not in Turkey. Can I still apply?

Do I need to be a student in a specific major to participate?

What will be the format of the first round?

What will be the format of the final round?

Is there a specific programming language, software, method I am expected to use?

What is the language of this competition?

Is it possible to change the group composition?

Who should I consult if I have any questions?

First Place

Second Place

Third Place