Computer Science and Information Technologies Vol. 6, No. 1, March 2025, pp. 40~47 ISSN: 2722-3221, DOI: 10.11591/csit.v6i1.pp40-47  40 Journal homepage: http://iaesprime.com/index.php/csit Quay crane assignment in container terminals using a genetic algorithm Aidi Sanaa, Torbi Imane, Mohamed Mazouzi Mechanics, Engineering and Innovation Laboratory, ENSEM, Hassan II University, Casablanca, Morocco Article Info ABSTRACT Article history: Received Oct 7, 2024 Revised Dec 10, 2024 Accepted Feb 20, 2025 Ports are essential for international trade, connecting production areas to consumer markets. However, port operations often face delays, disrupting supply chains and increasing transit times. To address this, mathematical modeling, particularly through genetic algorithms, offers a solution for optimizing processes like container unloading. This paper presents a model predicting and optimizing unloading times by considering factors such as crane types, schedules, and environmental conditions. Focusing on the Casablanca port, the model addresses scheduling for two gantry and two mobile cranes, treating each bay as a unique task handled by one crane type to avoid conflicts. Using genetic algorithms, the goal is to create efficient schedules that minimize waiting times and maximize crane utilization. The expected outcome is a detailed timetable enabling effective gantry crane use or simultaneous multi-crane operations, enhancing unloading efficiency. This approach can be adapted to other ports with similar challenges, highlighting the model's broader applicability. Keywords: Container unloading times Container Genetic algorithm Modeling and optimization Quay crane This is an open access article under the CC BY-SA license. Corresponding Author: Aidi Sanaa Mechanics, Engineering and Innovation Laboratory, ENSEM, Hassan II University Casablanca, Morocco Email: sanaa.aidi@gmail.com 1. INTRODUCTION Streamlining import, export, and international transit procedures is one of the primary suggestions of the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) [1], which was drafted by the World Trade Organization (WTO) during the 9th Ministerial Conference in Bali in November 2013. The TFA encourages nations to take three actions: enhancing international trade, streamlining procedures, and promoting transparency. Digital technology must be considered in the management of procedures if these three suggestions are to be implemented and directly impact the facilitation of international trade, especially regarding transit time and quality. Moreover, the World Customs Organization (WCO) has adopted coordinated border management (CBM) [WCO guide] as one of its tenets for the twenty-first century [2]. As a component of the global supply chain, the port area is dealing with the global digital transformation. The competitive role of global digital transformation contributes to the port area's rise to prominence in the supply chain. In this case, the demands of the port authorities force a modernization of ports that guarantees access to port services under equitable terms and with continuous availability, while also controlling transit costs and quality of service. In [1] unloading time for import containers is one of the criteria used to assess the efficiency of the container terminal, as the main benchmark in the port. The waiting time corresponds to the period during which an import container remains in a sea terminal (terminal waiting time) or a rail terminal (rail waiting time) before leaving on its journey within the country [2]. Container unloading time is therefore the time between when the containers are removed from the ship and when they take up a place in the port terminal. Prolonged unloading