Resource scheduling problems are increasingly being solved using Al te
chniques. Solving real-life versions of these problems demands the abi
lity to model a range of constraints and, at the same time, to be flex
ible enough to make revisions to these constraints. In this paper, we
outline the pipeline schedule generation problem, where the task is to
generate a pumping schedule for a single-source multiple-destinations
oil pipeline carrying multiple products. The schedule must take into
account product availability and requirements while satisfying a wide
variety of domain constraints, including tankage constraints, product
sequencing constraints, quality control constraints, delivery constrai
nts, etc. We describe an approach based on heuristic search, which we
have adopted for solving it. The system has been successfully implemen
ted and is in use. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science B.V.