A two-phase coordinated logistics planning approach to platelets provision in humanitarian relief operations

Abstract

For provision of platelets in humanitarian relief operations, due to the excessive number of non-coordinated organizations, relief response times and corresponding costs of platelets sharply increase. This article proposes a two-phase mechanism to coordinate two heterogeneous relief organizations (i.e., relief and rescue organization of the Red Crescent Society and a blood transfusion organization) in a decentralized network in such a way that its own interests and objectives are also satisfied. The blood transfusion organization tries to minimize the wastage level of platelets considering related total costs. At the same time, the relief and rescue organization decides on the selection of shelters where the platelets can be administered to injured people, while minimizing total relief time. Thus, first a bi-level mixed integer linear model under the demand and supply uncertainties is developed (phase 1), and then a capacity-sharing coordination mechanism based on the collaborative control theory is proposed (phase 2). To solve large-scale instances, a fuzzy K^th-Best algorithm is developed to solve the first phase and then phase 2 is solved by the proposed coordination mechanism. We compare our model to centralized relief logistics model using a data set for a possible earthquake in Tehran, Iran. Results show that our model reduces shortage and wastage compared with the centralized model

KEYWORDS:

• Humanitarian relief logistics
• platelets
• coordination
• capacity sharing
• uncertainty
• bi-level model

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Afshin Kamyabniya

Afshin Kamyabniya is a Ph.D. student at Yazd University. He received his M.Sc. from Iran University of Science and Technology in the field of industrial engineering. His research interests are operations management and its applications in the context of humanitarian relief logistics, disaster relief operations, and blood supply chain. In 2015, he was granted a research scholarship by the Ministry of Science, Research, and Technology of Iran to perform research for several months as a visiting researcher at Purdue University, Indiana, under the supervision of Prof. Yuehwern Yih and Dr. Hua Cai. He has worked in different capacities in the field of logistics and supply chain network design for telecommunication industries for 5 years in Iran.

M. M. Lotfi

Mohammad Mehdi Lotfi is an associate professor of industrial engineering at Yazd University. His areas of expertise are operations management and project scheduling. His research interests include optimization, decision tools and quantitative methods in operations management & logistics (especially humanitarian logistics), energy efficiency, and healthcare. He has been a project manager for many projects and has published more than 40 journal papers. He received his B.Sc. from Sharif University of Technology, and both M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Tehran.

Hua Cai

Hua Cai is an assistant professor at Purdue University. She holds a joint appointment in industrial engineering and in environmental and ecological engineering. She has expertise in analyzing large-scale data, modeling heterogeneous individual behaviors, and optimizing complex systems to inform policy decisions. Her research interests include quantifying the environmental impacts of emerging technologies, sustainable cyber-physical systems, food-energy-water nexus, and decision making for sustainable consumptions. Prior to joining Purdue, Dr. Cai was an environmental engineer and laboratory manager at CDM Smith. She received her Ph.D. from the University of Michigan, M.S. from the Pennsylvania State University, and B.S. from Tsinghua University. Dr. Cai is a licensed Professional Engineer (P.E.).

Hasan Hosseininasab

Hasan Hosseininasab received his Ph.D. in cost estimation at the early stage of design at the University of Bath, UK, in 2001. As a professor at the University of Yazd, he has taught plant layout and location methods, maintenance planning and strategic planning. He has been the project manager for many projects and published more than 100 journal papers and 200 conference papers. He has authored six books in the field of industrial engineering (advanced manufacturing systems- plant layout and location- manufacturing engineering-expert systems and applications- machining and metalworking and - hub location problems).

Saeed Yaghoubi

Saeed Yaghoubi is an assistant professor of industrial engineering at Iran University of Science and Technology, Tehran, Iran. He obtained his Ph.D. degree in industrial engineering in 2012 from the Iran University of Science and Technology. His current research interests include dynamic approaches in supply chains, stochastic processes and their applications. He has contributed articles to different international journals such as European Journal of Operational Research, Transportation Research: Part E, Computer and Chemical Engineering, Computers & Industrial Engineering, International Journal of Systems Science, International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, etc.

Yuehwern Yih

Yuehwern Yih is a professor of industrial engineering and the Associate Director of the Regenstrief Center for Healthcare Engineering at the Discovery Park at Purdue University. Her expertise resides in system and process design, monitoring, and control to improve the quality and efficiency of complex systems, such as health systems, manufacturing, and supply chains. She has published over 150 scientific articles and book chapters, four edited books, and holds a patent on system engineering and management. Her Handbook of Healthcare Delivery Systems is the first handbook to cover a wide array of sectors in healthcare delivery systems in order to provide a holistic view of healthcare delivery as an integrated system. Her contributions in this area have been recognized by a National Science Foundation Young Investigator Award (NYI), a Dell K. Allen Outstanding Young Manufacturing Engineer Award, GE Faculty Fellow, NEC Faculty Fellow, Institute for Industrial (and Systems) Engineers (IISE) Fellow, Purdue Engagement Faculty Fellow Award, and Executive Leadership in Academic Technology and Engineering (ELATE) Fellow. Dr. Yih received the highest honor at Purdue in engagement, the Faculty Engagement Fellow Award, based on her work at AMPATH that has designed and implemented a nutrition information system and a food distribution system for supporting HIV patients and their families in Western Kenya.