effective supply chain model for disaster management
TRANSCRIPT
GITAM SCHOOL OF INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
GITAM UNIVERSITY
GLOBAL SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT
TERM PAPER ON
“EFFECTIVE SUPPLY CHAIN MODEL FOR DISASTER
MANAGEMENT”
SUBMITTED TO
Mr Ravi Shankar
Professor
Global Supply Chain Management
SUBMITTED BY
NAME: Arka Jyoti Paul
MBA (IB) Second Year 4th
Trimester
SECTION – B
REGISTRATION NUMBER – 1226110203
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I owe a great many thanks to a great many people who helped and supported me during the
preparation of this report.
I hearty thank our Global Supply Chain Management Professor Mr Ravi Shankar for
guiding us through the project and correcting the various documents with attention and
upmost care. He has taken the pain to go through the report and make necessary adjustment
and correction where required.
I would also thank our Institution and our Faculty members without whom this project would
have been a distinct reality. I would also like to extend my heartfelt thanks to our family and
well wishers.
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ABSTRACT
Disasters recently received the attention of the operations research community due to the
great potential of improving disaster-related operations through the use of analytical tools,
and the impact on people that this implies. In this introductory article, I describe the main
characteristics of disaster supply chains, and I highlight the particular issues that are faced
when managing these supply chains.
In the event of disasters such as hurricanes, earthquakes and terrorism, emergency relief
supplies need be distributed to disaster victims in timely manner to protect the health and
lives of the victims. I develop a modelling framework for disaster response where the supply
chain of relief supplies and distribution operations are simulated, and analytics for the
optimal transportation of relief supplies to various PODS (Points of Distribution) are tested.
This model of disaster response includes modelling the supply chain of relief supplies,
distribution operations at PODs, dynamics of demand, and progression of disaster. The
model analytics optimize the dispatch of relief supplies to PODs and cross-levelling among
PODs. Their effectiveness is estimated by the simulation model. The model can evaluate a
wide range of disaster scenarios, assess existing disaster response plans and policies, and
identify better approaches for government agencies and first responders to prepare for and
respond to disasters.
Key learning’s from the supply chain model are discussed broadly at the end of the report but
for briefing the learnings were:
For a Disaster Management Supply chain model the lead time should be very less or
minimal.
Quick and effective suppliers are required for quick procurement of Emergency food
and medicine.
Concept of Cross Docking and in-transit merging should be used in the model
Human and financial resources need to be mobilized.
Disaster response plans should have the flexibility to handle adverse situations like
low POD (Point of Distribution) throughput and large number of victims.
Centralized Database should be maintained.
Extended Point of Delivery & Relief should be spacious, convenient to reach for the
casualties etc.
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CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION Page No (5 – 6)
DISASTER PREPAREDNESS AND RESPONSE MODEL Page No (7 – 10)
RELIEF CHAIN PROCESSES Page No ( 11)
EMERGENCY LOGISTICS & TRANSPORTATION Page No ( 12 – 13)
MANAGE INFORMATION DURING DISASTER Page No ( 14 – 15)
INFRASTRUCTURE Page No ( 16 )
FINANCIAL SUPPLY CHAIN Page No ( 17 )
LOGISTICS SOFTWARE USED IN DISASTER RELIEF Page No ( 17 - 18)
COMMUNICATION Page No ( 18 - 19 )
KEY LEARNING FROM THE SUPPLY CHAIN MODEL Page No ( 20 – 21)
CONCLUSION Page No ( 21)
REFERENCE Page No ( 22 )
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INTRODUCTION
Recent natural and man-made disasters such as Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Hurricane Gustav
in 2008, flooding in Iowa in 2008, flooding in North Dakota in 2009, earthquake in the
Sichuan Province of China in 2008, U.S. anthrax attack in 2001 and the possibility of a
pandemic of H1N1 influenza in 2009 made us realize how important it is to have effective
disaster preparedness and response planning. Larson et al. (2006) provide a historical review
of five major disasters – the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995, the crash of United Flight 232
in 1989, the Sarin attach in the Tokyo subway in1995, Hurricane Floyd in 1999 and
Hurricane Charlie in 2004 - and stress the need for operations research models to improve
preparedness for and response to major emergencies. One of the responsibilities of federal
and local governments is to distribute emergency relief supplies such as water, meals,
blankets, generators, tarps and medicine to disaster victims in the event of various natural and
man-made disasters such as hurricanes, earthquake, flood and terrorism. Emergency relief
operations may need to cover millions of people in a short period of time. For example, it is
desired that water and meals reach victims within three days to prevent serious health hazard
and death. For a wide-spread smallpox attack, the vaccination of all in potential contact is
recommended within 4 days of exposure, and in the event of an anthrax outbreak, the
distribution of antibiotics is recommended within two days of the event. Adverse
consequences of ineffective distribution planning can include death, sickness and social
disorder. For example, the confirmed death toll from hurricane Katrina in 2005 is over 1,300
victims, in addition to $200 billion of damages. A better response plan would have reduced
the death toll in these disasters. Therefore, careful planning of distribution of emergency
supplies considering various risk factors and uncertainty is important because it will influence
the lives of many people. The task of providing immediate disaster relief and recovery
assistance also requires coordination between local and the federal government.
The supply chain of the relief supplies differs from commercial supply chains in many ways
including the following factors; a huge surge of demand with a short notice,
damaged/congested roadways, chaotic behaviour of demand (victims), breakdown of
infrastructure such as communication networks, short lead times, and many other unknowns
and uncertainties. Preparing for a large disaster such as a hurricane is difficult because
predicting where it will strike with accuracy is impossible. For example, based on the
National Hurricane Centre’s (NHC) average forecast error, the highest probability that a hur-
ricane is expected to make landfall within 65 nautical miles radius of a certain area in 48
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hours is only 20-25% (NHC, 2009). Therefore, for the HCLP (high-consequence, low-
probability) events, a new breed of analytical models is needed to better understand the
disasters and to better prepare for and respond to disasters.
Disaster Management
A crisis, resulting in extensive human suffering, property damage, and a disruption of society,
stretches the community's coping mechanism beyond the breaking point. The event becomes
a disaster when the community's capacity to cope is overwhelmed and the status quo becomes
untenable.
To improve this situation, we need a strong and robust supply chain. To be effective in a
disaster situation, the supply chain needs to encompass the following features:
1. Agility
Agility is the capacity to adjust rapidly to and respond to changes in the distribution process
at any point in the operation in order to rationalize and harmonize emergent requirements and
priorities.
2. Value
Value means to have the best possible synergy of effectiveness and efficiency to provide the
most responsive support for the least cost.
3. Velocity
Velocity is the speed at which requirements are fulfilled by the distribution system.
Synchronizing the velocities of the various global distribution aspects maximizes total system
effectiveness.
4. Visibility
Visibility is required to have the accurate and timely monitoring and managing of flow by all
parties. Supply chain visibility applications enable the management to extract data from
multiple platforms and applications and share that up and down the supply chain. It allows
the distribution managers to optimize the distribution capacity to anticipate logistic
bottlenecks, disruption, and changes in the distribution operational scheme.
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DISASTER PREPAREDNESS AND RESPONSE MODEL
Disaster preparedness and response modelling consist of four areas: supply chain model,
POD distribution model, demand model and disaster model. The supply chain model
describes the flow of disaster relief supplies from federal government suppliers to distribution
centres (DC), to federal staging areas to staging areas of local governments, and finally to the
points of distribution (POD). The POD distribution model describes how relief supplies are
distributed to victims who come to a POD to receive supplies. The demand model describes
the occurrence of disaster victims needing relief supplies with respect to time and location.
The disaster model describes the arrival and progression of disasters with respect to time and
location. The disaster model affects the other three models. It influences the number of
victims (i.e., the demand model) and activation of supply chain nodes and transportation (i.e.,
the supply chain model) and the efficiency of POD operations (i.e., POD distribution model).
All four models together contribute to the impact of disasters and overall effectiveness of
disaster preparedness and response plans and operations. For comprehensive analysis of
disaster preparedness and response, any potentially useful analytic models should also be
evaluated and tested in the simulation environment where all four areas are modelled.
It has four components; supply chain model, POD distribution model, demand model and
disaster model. Although the simulation model described here is for scenarios of hurricane,
the framework can be customized to other disaster responses. For the supply chain model, we
simulate the flow of disaster relief supplies from suppliers of federal government to
distribution centres (DC), to staging areas of federal government, to staging areas of local
government, and finally to the point of distribution (POD). The disaster relief supplies I am
focusing here is water and MREs (Meal-Ready-to-Eat).
Depending on the type, location and severity of disaster, selected supply chain nodes, i.e. a
certain number of suppliers, DCs, staging areas and PODs, are activated to handle the
required supply chain. The POD distribution model describes how relief supplies are
distributed to victims who come to PODs to receive the supplies. PODs for commodity
supplies can be parking lots of schools or stores, and victims typically drive up and pick up
boxes of supplies and drive away. PODs for medical supplies can be buildings such as
schools, recreation centres, theatres, stadium and medical facilities etc. PODs require a
number of workers (typically volunteers), machines such as folk lifts, triage for medical
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supplies and service queue lines etc., and the overall throughput rate (processing rate for
distribution or dispensing) depends on all the resources and setups. The demand model
describes the occurrence of disaster victims needing relief supplies with respect to time and
location. Depending on disasters, severity and response, the profiles for victims can have
different peaks and durations. The demand model can also include modelling of evacuation,
which describes number of victims leaving the disaster area. For hurricane, most coastal
locations need to start evacuations by 48 hours in order to have them completed before the
tropical storm-force winds arrive. The victims who need emergency relief supplies are those
who stay in the affected area and be impacted by the disaster. The disaster model describes
arrival and progression of disasters with respect to time and location. The disaster model
affects the other three models. It influences the number of victims (i.e., the demand model)
and activation of supply chain nodes and transportation (i.e., the supply chain model) and the
efficiency of POD operation (i.e., POD distribution model). The balance between supplies of
disaster relief and demand of disaster victims are manifested as the coverage (i.e., percentage
of victims receiving emergency supplies over time). All four models (supply chain, demand,
POD distribution and disaster model) together influence the impact of disasters and overall
effectiveness of disaster preparedness and response plans and operations. For a
comprehensive analysis of disaster preparedness and response, any potential analytic models
developed should be evaluated and tested in the simulation environment where all four areas
are modelled.
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Figure 1: DISASTER PREPAREDNESS AND RESPONSE MODEL
.
SUPPLIERS SUPPLIERS
DC DC DC
REGIONAL STAGING
AREA
REGIONAL STAGING
AREA
REGIONAL STAGING
AREA
LOCAL
STAGING AREA
LOCAL
STAGING AREA
POD POD POD POD
NEEDS
DEMAND
MODEL
DISASTER MODEL
Proximity
of disaster
Population
Severity of
Disaster
POINT OF
DISTRIBUTION
MODEL
(PODs)
SUPPLY CHAIN
MODEL
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Various analytic tools can be useful in the supply chain. For instance, an optimal resource
planning model can compute optimal levels of resources such as number of storage and
staging facilities and number of trucks. An optimal pre-stocking model can compute pre-
stocking levels of supplies at various DCs and staging areas. An optimal dispatching model
can determine the destination POD of each truck that leaves the local staging area. An
optimal routing model can determine optimal routes of trucks when delivering supplies to
more than one PODs. An optimal cross shipping model can compute optimal time and
quantities of cross shipping among PODs.
In addition to the flow of emergency supplies, there also is a flow of information among the
hierarchy of command centers, which may include a central government command center
(e.g., NRCC – National Response Coordination Center), regional commend centre (e.g., JFO
– Joint Field Office) and local command center (e.g., EOC– Emergency Operating Center).
The command centers exchange information on supplies (inventory level, dispatching and
arrival of trucks) and demand (number of victims and queues) throughout the relief
operations. Communication is a key factor for effective response operations. Even if the
supply chain is setup effectively, if incorrect or delayed information are communicated, the
overall effectiveness of the disaster response operation will suffer.
INFORMATION FLOW
MATERIAL FLOW
FIGURE 2: Material and Information Flow
SUPPLIERS
WAREHOUSE
REGIONAL STAGING
LOCAL STAGING
DISTRIBUTION POINT VICTIMS
COMMAND
CENTRE
COMMAND
CENTRE
COMMAND
CENTRE
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RELIEF CHAIN PROCESSES
Planning and
Preparation
During pre-disaster, proper planning and preparedness for logistical
procedures and activities must be done.
Assessment Assessment comprises of activities like preparedness planning, survey and
data collection, interpretation and forecasting, reporting and monitoring
Resource
Mobilization
Human and financial resources need to be mobilized by various
humanitarian organisation
Procurement This is emergency supplies which can be done locally or globally and can
be acquired in different ways such as bulks or stored at the vendor until
needed
Transportation It involves shipment, logistics, transportation etc, through which the goods
are brought into a country at an entry point and then moved to collection
sites run by relief organisation
Tracking &
Tracing
It means keeping track of what has been ordered, promised, things on its
way and already arrived, etc.
Stock Asset
Management
The stock should be inspected and accounted, and if there is any flaw
should be sent back.
Extended Point
of Delivery &
Relief to
Beneficiaries
An extended delivery point is an inland destination close to the affected
area where goods can be staged before the final distribution of relief to
beneficiaries. Finally, distribution should be carried out in proportion to
the requirement and all the affected gets there share
Monitoring,
Evaluation &
Reporting
During implementation, monitoring and evaluation create the information
base for decision making. It is also used to formulate conclusions and
recommendations for the supply chain.
Communication
& Collaboration
In disaster, setting communication is quite a difficult task, but quite
helpful. Between different agencies working for relief should have proper
cooperation
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LOGISTICS
Logistics is central to humanitarian relief. The speed and efficacy of relief programs depends
on the ability of logisticians to procure, transport, receive, and distribute supplies to the site
of relief efforts. An effectively structured and managed relief supply chain can save lives.
Logistics would need to have following characteristics: -
1) It must move freight and people by multiple modes (Land, Sea, Air), through different
terminals.
2) Distance travelled is often long.
3) Transportation needs to be fast and flexible.
The network design that would be suitable in disaster management is a variant of, "All
shipment via Central DC (Distribution Center)". In this model, suppliers send their shipment
to the DC and the DC then forwards appropriate shipments to the retail store. Generally DCs
served the purpose of warehouse and transfer location. This model saves on both outbound
and inbound costs.
In case of disaster management, we'll use a variant of this model. In this all shipments would
be routed through a sequence of DCs. It would have following nodes:
1. Point of Origin / Source
This node refers to the actual source of all the material, people, etc. Generally, there are
numerous such nodes.
2. Point of Collection
All the material from various sources would be collected here. This would work as our first
DC. This is generally in proximity of the sources itself and located at some transportation
terminal. From here, material is now transferred to the point of extended delivery.
3. Point of Extended Delivery
This point would works as second DC and it would be in proximity to the disaster area. This
point would normally be the nearest airport or any other transport terminal.
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4. Disaster Area
Disaster area is, in most of the cases, cut-off from the rest of the world. Facilities would be
transported here from the point of extended delivery. Air is most commonly used route of
transportation to this area.
FIGURE 3
In the above model with 2 DCs, there is a need to store inventory only at one center, either at
DCs or PoDs, other place would work as transfer location. Here, we could introduce the
concept of Cross Docking and in-transit merging. In Cross-docking, the inventory does not
get stored, but only passes by and goes through rapid unloading,
deconsolidation/reconsolidation and reloading. In in-transit merging the pipeline is still in
place as well, but individual shipments are grouped on the way to the point of delivery.
DCs are a transfer location, where no inventory is stored, instead cross docking is employed.
Material from inbound transportation is simply mixed and transferred into outbound
transportation. This calls for painstakingly synchronizing and coordinating the activities.
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Whereas at PoDs, material is stored and broken down into appropriate lot sizes and based on
demand transfer it to the disaster-strike area.
MANAGE INFORMATION
Disasters, both natural and man-made, can strike anytime or anywhere. There are two ways to
overcome disasters: the first is to prevent them from occurring, and second to have an
emergency system and plan of operation prior to the occurrence of any crisis. In either
approach, communications play an important role in disaster management.
Disaster management demands for some design principles in an information system.
1. Information processing should be done in a prognostic manner.
2. It should be done in a case-based model.
3. The system should be automated as much as possible but with constant human monitoring
and the ability to override.
Information System Architecture
Based on above requirements, an information system is proposed. Key characteristics of the
proposed model are listed below.
1. Web Based
Web based information system is best means of sharing information in real-time scenarios. It
provides instant access to information to all concerned parties, thus reducing response time to
a great extent.
2. Centralized Database
Centralized Database means that there would be a single database of information that
everybody would have access to. Information that would need to be stored in it would be:
Inventory details
This includes inventory details at each point in the whole chain, i.e., at Point of extended
delivery, with sources and in transit.
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Requirements at disaster site
This data would be fed in by PoED operator, basically in the form of order.
Tracking information
Material movement should be kept track of. This would include details like no. of vehicles,
transportation schedule and inventory-in-transit etc.
Disaster related information
This information is basically meant for projecting demand and proactive decision making.
Extent of destruction, recovery process etc would come under this head.
Requirements
Inventory details and Requirements Tracking information
Delivery notification
Instruction All tracking information
FIGURE 4: Information System Design
INFORMATION
SYSTEM
PoC SOURCES
CONTROLLING
AUTHORITY
PoEDs 3PL PROVIDERS
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INFRASTRUCTURE
In relief work, both in disasters and complex humanitarian emergencies, damaged
infrastructure, inaccessible infrastructure, and the lack of infrastructure needed for large-scale
assistance lead to bottlenecks, delays, and congestion at entry points to the disaster area. As
goods flood into a region, they can be held up at the ports, border crossings, and airports due
to lack of transportation, permission to enter certain areas, or even roads. This is a problem
across all relief chains, and those employed during the Tsunami were no exception. As the
water rushed ashore, it damages the entire infrastructure in its path. This included coastal
roads, bridges, warehouses, airports, ports, vehicles, and communications infrastructure. As
the water receded, it left debris covering everything, both infrastructure it damaged and
infrastructure it left intact. The infrastructure that was in place before the Tsunami was
rendered useless until repair and clean up operations could be completed. As aid began to
arrive in the region, the lack of infrastructure prior to the Tsunami exacerbated the problems.
The demands placed on this infrastructure by the relief chains revealed deficiencies in the
undamaged infrastructure: a lack of available vehicles, insufficient fiuel storage, runways too
small to manage cargo planes, inadequate warehouse space, and scarce air traffic control. The
lack of infrastructure appropriate for a large-scale relief operation coupled with damage to a
portion of the infrastructure that did exist produced one of the biggest challenges -
congestion. In Sumatra, for example, the major airports and seaports were open; the
infrastructure beyond them was damaged. Banda Aceh's small airport went from three flights
a clay before the disaster to round-the-clock traffic. Undamaged vehicles were in short supply
and had difficulty moving through the region. The few vehicles that could get through were
large trucks that traveled on cleared roads and hence, could not reach those most in need. As
a result, helicopters became a much-coveted asset. This is also true in Darfur and the high
plateau region of Ethiopia. It is easier to fly in supplies than to get them there overland.
Insufficient ground crews to handle goods slowed the unloading of planes. At one point, a
cargo plane hit a cow at the only airport in Aceh and damaged the plane, blocking the runway
and halting relief flights for a day (Djuhari, 2005). Limited storage space led to offloaded
cargo that quickly filled available tarmac space. Communication problems and poor
information technology infrastructure caused very limited visibility into incoming shipments.
It was hard to know what is in a shipment, when it was coming, and who was coming to pick
it up.
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FINANCIAL SUPPLY CHAIN
The financial response from public and private donors to the Tsunami was unprecedented.
However, before relief can begin to flow, the financial supply chain must be put into place.
This is a difficult process in the beginning and takes time. Meanwhile, available cash reserves
are quickly depleted. Before the processes for money transfers are in place and agreements
with local banks and merchants are formalized, organizations can struggle.
In the first few days, cash flow problems abound. In areas with less developed banking
infrastructure, organizations have used their creativity. Workers for CARE brought in
suitcases of cash into Southern Sudan to prime the relief efforts in that region (Martha
Thompson, personal communication, October 8, 2004). In response to the survey, two NGOs
reported difficulties during the early stages of their Tsunami response. They wrote that while
financial resources were available, they encountered problems with cash availability.
Immediately after the Tsunami, banks were closed in Jakarta due to Christmas holidays and
weekends. This complicated cash transfers from Europe and made it difficult to enter into
agreements with merchants. Competition can hinder progress in this arena as well. World
Vision reported a problem hiring local staff as the cost of hiring labour off the local market
was higher than they could offer.
LOGISTICS SOFTWARE USED IN DISASTER RELIEF
Relief logisticians must procure and track supplies from appeal to delivery while observing
financial information and the movement of goods along the relief pipeline. The availability of
accurate and pertinent information is crucial. Despite their role in providing relief to
beneficiaries, logisticians are rarely incorporated in the purchase and development of
information technology solutions relating to relief operations (Lee & Zbinden, 2003). Many
organizations have been providing relief for decades. As the information technology
revolution overtook them, they developed ad-hoc systems to help manage the logistics of
disaster relief. Yet, most relief activities are coordinated using only Microsoft Excel. Because
there are, few technical systems experts on staff and focus on overhead reduction, software
development has been left by the wayside. Consequently, these systems are short on
historical data, poorly connected, lacking integration across functions, error prone, poor at
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reporting, and not able to handle food, non-food, and gifts-in-kind all in one system. Recently
the Fritz Institute, along with help from researchers at the University of Washington,
investigated this problem. First, they performed an analysis of the logistic systems in use by
leading NGOs.
COMMUNICATIONS
During a disaster, communication is as important as food and water. A disaster can damage
telecommunication infrastructure. If an event happens in a densely populated area, thousands
of people can try to make calls at the same time overloading the system. NGOs recognize the
importance of communication. Those with sufficient resources have developed internal
communication solutions. For example, the American Red Cross, through its Disaster
Services Technology Integration Project, has created mobile communication trucks. The
telecom trucks, once positioned, provide "48 phone lines, high-speed internet access, e-mail
and satellite-enabled communication with national headquarters" (Larkin, 2001). These
trucks were deployed during the response to the 9/11 attacks and during Hurricane Lili in
2002. The ability to have real time information on victims, volunteers, logistics, and financial
information allows the American Red Cross to respond in an efficiently coordinated manner
(Rudduck, 2002). Organizations operating in more remote locations or on smaller budgets
must rely on other options. Figure 4 is a list of currently available communication options.
Short Wave or
HFRadio
VIHF Radio
High Frequency (HF) radio allows voice communication over medium to
long range. It can connect to mobile phones and the international
telephone network. Peripheral units connect with the international
network via fixed short-wave radio stations. These systems can call other
stations, link with Global Positioning Systems, provide FTP like data
transfer, e-mail using true TCP/IP, and fax between stations. It is also
possible to set up local radio-to-telephone links that in the medium to
long term are cheaper to run than using the ground stations. Software
systems do require experienced installation and operation, antennas, and
significant electric current - normally a local main, generator battery
power supply.
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VIHF Radio Very High Frequency (VHF) is a short-range system for "line of sight"
links, suitable for voice communication between mobile or hand portable
transceivers over limited distances, and between mobiles and permanent
sites. There is no access to international telecommunications networks.
Setting up and operating a VHF system does not require prior
knowledge. The transmitters use little power and can be operated from a
vehicle battery.
Satellite The InMarSat constellation of four geostationary satellites is used to
provide high-quality direct-dial voice, fax, and telex communications to
and from the international public telecommunications networks. Mobile-
to-mobile calls may also be made; but as this involves two satellite
'hops', the quality will be reduced and the charges will be higher.
Recently, InMarSat has offered a service called Regional Broadband
Global Area Network, or RBGAN. This is a satellite terminal allowing
internet access.Iridium uses a constellation of 66 satellites in a near polar Low
Earth Orbit (LEO) with cross-link architecture. Iridium services include
worldwide voice, paging, Short Message Service (SMS), and data
communications using lightweight, handheld phones and paging devices.
Cellular Phones Cellular phones are increasing prevalent the world over. If a disaster
happens in an area with cell infrastructure, but does not damage it, cell
phones can be the most cost effective means of communication. If an
event damages cellular towers, temporary towers can be erected. They
can also be placed in refugee camps. During the tsunami, Nortel installed
a system such as this to enable cellular communications in a ten-mile
radius of Banda Aceh
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KEY LEARNING FROM THE SUPPLY CHAIN MODEL
From this Supply chain model, it can be derive that the following are the key features
of a Supply Chain necessary during a Disaster Situation
- Robust and Strong Supply Chain
- Agility (adjust & respond)
- Value (synergy of effectiveness & efficiency)
- Velocity (speedy recovery)
- Visibility
For a Disaster Management Supply chain model the lead time should be very less or
minimal
Logistics would need to have following characteristics: -
- It must move freight and people by multiple modes (Land, Sea, Air), through
different terminals.
- Distance travelled is often long.
- Transportation needs to be fast and flexible.
Procurement: The emergency suppliers should be always ready for delivering bulk
emergency goods for disaster emergency. So here the concept of quick and effective
supplier requirement is vital.
Concept of Cross Docking and in-transit merging should be used in the process of
transportation so as to save time and delivering adequate food and medical good to the
casualties
During a Disaster the main disturbance comes in the communication supply chain. So
an efficient communication process should be used. Currently available
communication options are Short Wave or HFRadio, VIHF Radio, Satellite
Communications etc. These options should be used to provide channel of
communication for the panicked people.
Disaster response plans should have the flexibility to handle adverse situations like
low POD throughput and large number of victims because the variability of POD
throughput and victims’ demand can be very high.
It is very much important to use effective logistics software to keep track of the
goods and progress of the rescue work.
Extended Point of Delivery & Relief should be spacious, convenient to reach for the
casualties
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Centralized Database means that there would be a single database of information
that everybody would have access to. Information that would need to be stored in it
would be:
- Inventory details
- Requirements at disaster site
- Tracking information
- Disaster related information
Human and financial resources need to be mobilized by various humanitarian
organisations.
Effective Assessment is also very much necessary. It comprises of activities like
preparedness planning, survey and data collection, interpretation and forecasting,
reporting and monitoring
CONCLUDING REMARKS
The effectiveness of disaster preparedness and response is difficult to estimate due to many
uncertainties and dynamics involved in the supply chain, POD operations, progression of
disasters and behaviour of disaster victims. Simulation is a useful tool for analyzing, testing
and developing effective emergency response plans. Disaster relief supplies should be pre-
positioned close to the potential disaster area in order to have fast response and improved
coverage. Disaster response plans should have the flexibility to handle adverse situations like
low POD throughput and large number of victims because the variability of POD throughput
and victims’ demand can be very high. There should also be a capability of handling
shortage and surplus situations among PODs through more effective RSA dispatching and/or
cross levelling among PODs. An effective communication and information system is also
very much vital of effective disaster management.
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REFERENCES
Proceedings of the 2009 Winter Simulation Conference M. D. Rossetti, R. R. Hill, B.
Johansson, A. Dunkin and R. G. Ingalls, eds. SIMULATING DISTRIBUTION OF
EMERGENCY RELIEF SUPPLIES FOR DISASTER RESPONSE OPERATIONS
By Young M. Lee, Soumyadip Ghosh, Markus Ett.
AHRQ. 2004. Bioterrorism and Other Public Health Emergencies: Tools and Models
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