1.
11EMERGENCY LOGISTICS : emergency logistics is usually a process of
planning, managing and controlling the efficient flows of urgent relief,
information and services from the origin point to the destination points to meet
the urgent needs of the affected
1.2Planning of Emergency Logistics:
a. Analyse infrastructure vulnerability : Vulnerability assessment is needed also
for logistic planning. The OHT lists a series of activities for vulnerability
analysis. Ask the audience to add or delete items from the list so to make it
applicable to their countries/ regions.
b. Strategic Resources: Discuss the resources and information about resources
that may be available. Discuss transport options and alternatives.
c. Strengthening Local Infrastructure and Institutions: Ask the participants to
list ways in which local infrastructure and institutions can be strengthened in
their regions for easy distribute logistic supply
d. The Flow of Transport and Goods: analysisThe concept of a supply chain is
applicable to all relief programs.the difference between the long haul and
forward supply divisions (short haul) of the supply chain.
e. Field Distribution: Distribution is the "end of the chain". Distributing
commodities to people in need is distinct from transporting and handling other
bulk consignments. how to control distribute, etc
f. Facilities, Equipment, Operational and Support Functions: both large and
small-scale relief logistics operations and the extent of the facilities needed to
manage them and how do to operational all of system
2.1 Challenges for Emergency Logistics
1. Problem Scale and Complexity
Emergency logistics tasks are very complex and complicated, involving
overwhelming damage assessment and demand estimation, allocation of variety of
resources, complicated resource distribution in short period of time, organizing
rescue operation and mass evacuation, etc. Moreover, these tasks are interrelated to
each other and cannot be solved individually without considering their mutual
impact. There are also existing hard-to-measure factors like unanticipated surge of
local demand, transportation infrastructure damage as well as possibility of
secondary disaster occurrence, etc. These features making the problem structures
in emergency logistics are inherently chaotic and complex.
2. Critical Time Requirement and Real-Time Decision Making
Disasters usually happen suddenly and develop rapidlyOn one hand, we need to
speed up the response operation such as quick transportation of humanitarian aid
through better scheduling., we need to speed up the decision-making process in
order to reduce unnecessary delay. Real-time information gathering and decision
support therefore is very critical.
3. Allocation of Scarce Resources
Large-scale disasters may create a sudden huge demand for emergency resources
which greatly exceeds resource availability.. Emergency resource allocation needs
to consider many factors simultaneously, such as damage scenarios, number of
casualties, priority of demand fulfillment, urgency level of needs, as well as delay
consequence of humanitarian aids. However, how to set up allocation principles
and measure resource allocation performance is a subject of much debate, since
besides efficiency and effectiveness, it unavoidably involves questions of justice
and fairness. With urgent needs and insufficient resources,.
4. Stochastic and Scenario-Based Modeling
Large catastrophic disasters usually have little precursory features before their
occurrence, which make them highly uncertain and difficult to predict. In the large-
scale emergency response practice, it is usually hard to predict the scope and
progress of a disaster situation, to assess the damages and to estimate the resource
requirement accurately To cope with these uncertainties, it is necessary to establish
stochastic or scenario-based emergency logistics models
5. Logistics with Damaged Infrastructure
Large-scale disasters may cause extensive damage to communications, power
supplies, and transportation infrastructures, and make them unavailable for
emergency relief operations. For example, disrupted transportation facilities
including ports, airports, roads and bridges may limit the humanitarian aids access
to disaster attacked regions; destroyed communication infrastructures such as
telephone and radio towers can hamper information collection and transmission of
the catastrophe so as to slow down the responsiveness. Hence, these additional
constraints need to be taken into consideration for emergency logistics operations
1. Current Studies & Limitations:
• Most studies focused on decomposition to a specific or simplified decision
problem, such as demand assessment, resource allocation, emergency
distribution, and emergency evacuation
• Most studies focused on traditional logistics objectives (minimization of
distribution time, cost and shortest path selection, etc);
• Most studies assumed a single authority to deal with emergency response
• The repair of damaged roads was incorporated into the distribution model
2. Future Research Directions
• Develop integrated models that address the entire emergency logistics
process for large scale problems.
• Investigate task, resource, and workflow interdependency across different
stakeholders.
• Improve resilience capability of emergency logistics network
• Combine scenario technique with optimization model
Table 4
Current studies and future research directions in emergency logistics.
Current Studies &
Challenges Future Research Directions
Limitations
▪ Most studies focused on ▪ Develop integrated
Problem scale decomposition to a specific models that address the
and complexity or simplified decision entire emergency logistics
problem, such as demand process for large scale
assessment, resource problems.
allocation, emergency
distribution, and emergency
evacuation;
▪ Few studies considered an
integrated model.
Different ▪ Most studies focused on ▪ Make objectives more
objectives and traditional logistics directly link to end results
decision criteria objectives (minimization of such as life- saving and
distribution time, cost and damage reduction;
shortest path selection, etc); ▪ Develop a uniform
▪ Few studies considered metric framework to guide
emergency specific decision emergency relief
criteria such as minimizing operation.
number of fatalities,
maximizing demand
fulfillment, and minimizing
unsatisfied demand.
Multiparty ▪ Most studies assumed a ▪ Investigate task,
collaboration single authority to deal with resource, and workflow
problem emergency response; interdependency across
▪ Some studies considered different stakeholders.
the coordination of multiple
decision problems such as
the integration of resource
allocation and distribution,
but did not consider
different objectives by
different parties.
Critical time ▪ Current studies tended to ▪ Explore the measurement
requirement and focus on minimizing of critical time
real-time distribution time and setting requirement;
decision making time windows as a ▪ Develop more adequate
constraint; quantitative metrics
▪ Some papers enabled real- linking life- saving with
time decision making response time;
through continuously ▪ Make more efforts to
updating the information address the decision
used in decision models; support user interface
▪ Few researches linked issue for real-time
human survival possibility application of decision
with emergency response models;
time; ▪ Explore dynamic
▪ Lack of study on real-time relationship between
decision-making disaster scenarios and time
implementation issues. criticality.
Allocation of ▪ Resource allocation was ▪ Develop more dynamical
scarce resources usually based on a given priority metrics to allocate
priority, and seldom relief resources;
consider the priority ▪ Combine priority setting
changed over time; and demand fulfillment as
▪ Lack of consideration on the criteria for resource
multi-type resource allocation;
allocation; ▪ Achieve a balance
▪ Few studies considered between priority and
the balance between equality.
efficiency and equality.
Stochastic and ▪ Most papers investigated ▪ Combine scenario
scenario-based deterministic models, with technique with
modeling the assumption that data optimization model;
were known for the given ▪ Deal with the difficulties
situation; of unprecedented
▪ Few studies developed emergency situations (no
stochastic, fuzzy, and probability distributions
simulation models to tackle are available).
the uncertainties in disaster
relief operations.
Logistics with ▪ The repair of damaged ▪ Use combinatorial choice
damaged roads was incorporated into of multi-mode
infrastructure the distribution model; transportation to cope with
▪ Traffic capacity infrastructure
constraints were added into damage/availability;
distribution networks; ▪ Improve resilience
▪ Traffic capacity constraint capability of emergency
was treated static, not logistics network.
dynamic during emergency
response.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6427432/
