Date of Graduation
5-2014
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering
Degree Level
Undergraduate
Department
Industrial Engineering
Advisor/Mentor
Milburn, Ashlea B
Committee Member/Reader
Root, Sarah E.
Abstract
In the aftermath of a natural disaster the efficient planning of humanitarian relief efforts, e.g., delivering supplies to locations in need, can often mean the difference between lives being saved and lives being lost. In this paper we focus on two things: (1) appropriate objectives for routing problems in the context of delivery of relief supplies, and (2) how to handle the uncertainty associated with delivery of relief supplies after a disaster. Through applying uncertainty to parameters such as travel time between locations, we seek to examine if/how optimal routes change as a result of different objectives and the presence of uncertainty. After discussing various different parameters and examining the effects of uncertainty in these cases, we then offer up an algorithmic process that could be used in the formation of these routes using the uncertain information. Finally, we analyze the results of a simulation model that ran different routes using information known with certainty and uncertain information, and see what light it sheds on the disaster response discussion.
Citation
Bayles, C. A. (2014). Uncertainty in relief supply distribution. Industrial Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses Retrieved from https://scholarworks.uark.edu/ineguht/24