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1 – 10 of 189Michael Morales and Doral Edward Sandlin
The purpose of this paper is to highlight the need for an entity to manage airborne relief when a nation’s civil aviation authorities are overwhelmed or incapacitated due to a…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to highlight the need for an entity to manage airborne relief when a nation’s civil aviation authorities are overwhelmed or incapacitated due to a major rapid-onset disaster.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper examines why relief airflow management was so vital during the 2010 Haiti earthquake and how this management was accomplished. The author uses a case study methodology that includes interviews with logistics and aviation experts within the humanitarian and military communities involved in the Haiti relief effort.
Findings
The research highlighted an airflow management capability gap within the humanitarian community. The author sets forth several possible alternatives for resolving this gap.
Research limitations/implications
The research is a single case study of the 2010 Haiti earthquake. While performing a multiple case study may have provided more widely applicable conclusions, this case study provides in-depth information applicable to the worst of disasters, where an airflow management capability is most likely to be needed.
Practical implications
While host nation civil aviation authorities retain responsibility for airspace/airflow management after a disaster, these can oft be overwhelmed by the volume of airborne relief flooding the area. Without an entity to assist the affected nation with airflow management, smooth logistical flow of relief goods to those in need can be catastrophically impeded.
Originality/value
Little research exists on disaster relief airflow management or the legitimate need for this capability to be developed within the humanitarian community.
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– The purpose of this paper is to examine the nature service operations management (OM) and its application to the field of humanitarian operations.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the nature service operations management (OM) and its application to the field of humanitarian operations.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper serves as the editorial for this issue of JHLSCM.
Findings
The paper suggests that there is an opportunity for service OM academics to apply their knowledge and skills to answer fundamental questions in the humanitarian OM field.
Research limitations/implications
There is a need for a re-conceptualization of the term “humanitarian operations” to include services. Humanitarian OM is not just products but also services.
Originality/value
The paper contributes to the knowledge and applications of services OM in humanitarian operations research. This is the first work to identify how services OM theories can be adopted for humanitarian OM research. This research should serve as a foundation for future research.
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Timo Gossler, Tina Wakolbinger and Christian Burkart
Outsourcing of logistics has great importance in disaster relief. Aid agencies spend several billion US dollars every year on logistics services. However, the concept of…
Abstract
Purpose
Outsourcing of logistics has great importance in disaster relief. Aid agencies spend several billion US dollars every year on logistics services. However, the concept of outsourcing has not been established adequately in literature on humanitarian logistics, leading to a fragmented view of the practice. This paper provides a holistic perspective of the concept by constructing a conceptual framework to analyze both practice and research of outsourcing in humanitarian operations. Based on this analysis, we explore future trends and identify research gaps.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper is based on a structured review of academic literature, a two-round Delphi study with 31 experts from aid agencies and a complementary full-day focus group with twelve experts from aid agencies and logistics service providers.
Findings
The paper systemizes the current practice of outsourcing in humanitarian logistics according to a conceptual framework of five dimensions: subject, object, partner, design and context. In addition, it reveals ten probable developments of the practice over the next years. Finally, it describes eight important research gaps and presents a research agenda for the field.
Research limitations/implications
The literature review considered peer-reviewed academic papers. Practitioner papers could provide additional insights into the practice. Moreover, the Delphi study focused on the perspective of aid agencies. Capturing the views of logistics service providers in more detail would be a valuable addition.
Originality/value
The paper establishes the academic basis for the important practice of outsourcing in humanitarian logistics. It highlights essential research gaps and, thereby, opens up the field for future research.
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Seyed Mahdi Shavarani and Bela Vizvari
The purpose of this paper is to deal with the transportation of a high number of injured people after a disaster in a highly populated large area. Each patient should be delivered…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to deal with the transportation of a high number of injured people after a disaster in a highly populated large area. Each patient should be delivered to the hospital before the specific deadline to survive. The objective of the study is to maximize the survival rate of patients by proper assignment of existing emergency vehicles to hospitals and efficient generation of vehicle routes.
Design/methodology/approach
The concepts of non-fixed multiple depot pickup and delivery vehicle routing problem (MDPDVRP) is utilized to capture an image of the problem encountered in real life. Due to NP-hardness of the problem, a hybrid genetic algorithm (GA) is proposed as the solution method. The performance of the developed algorithm is investigated through a case study.
Findings
The proposed hybrid model outperforms the traditional GA and also is significantly superior compared to the nearest neighbor assignment. The required time for running the algorithm on a large-scale problem fits well into emergency distribution and the promptness required for humanitarian relief systems.
Originality/value
This paper investigates the efficient assignment of emergency vehicles to patients and their routing in a way that is most appropriate for the problem at hand.
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Marianne Jahre and Nathalie Fabbe-Costes
– The purpose of this paper is to increase understanding of the use of standards and modularity for improving responsiveness in the humanitarian context.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to increase understanding of the use of standards and modularity for improving responsiveness in the humanitarian context.
Design/methodology/approach
Based on a conceptual framework and a systematic literature review, the authors conducted a longitudinal, explorative case on the Emergency Response Unit (ERU) concept in the International Federation of Red Cross Red Crescent Society (IFRC), focussing particularly on the Health ERU in the Norwegian Red Cross.
Findings
The authors found that the ERU concept makes use of many types of standards that complement and influence each other, and that the focus on modularity is increasing due to a growing need for responsiveness. Main challenges are trade-offs between autonomy and adaptability to the context resulting in more modularization which may be in danger of breaking the concept.
Research limitations/implications
Results from this study could be refined by surveying staff involved in all types of ERU deployments. To explore the generalizability of the findings and test the propositions developed, more studies should be conducted.
Practical implications
The study provides more understanding of the use of standards and modularity for improving responsiveness. Practitioners can use the framework as a check-list to identify potential means for improvements. The case can be used for training, discussions, and reflections. The research feeds into IFRC’s and NORCROSS ongoing work to their global response tools.
Social implications
The results of the study can support improvements in humanitarian supply chains, thereby providing affected people with cost-efficient, rapid, and better-adapted responses.
Originality/value
The authors develop a framework for categorization of standards and modularity in the humanitarian context. The authors provide the first empirical study on how humanitarian organizations use standards and modularity to improve responsiveness concluding with a set of propositions on how the concepts are linked.
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Considered a strong method for exploratory investigations, case study research has become part of the mainstream approach, particularly in the field of humanitarian logistics (HL…
Abstract
Purpose
Considered a strong method for exploratory investigations, case study research has become part of the mainstream approach, particularly in the field of humanitarian logistics (HL) and supply chain management. Nevertheless, similar to other logistics and SCM-related fields, rigor is not at its best. The purpose of this paper is to propose a framework for crafting case study research in HL, based on an analysis of published case study-based research.
Design/methodology/approach
The study classifies and compares the use of case studies in HL research, based on criteria developed from the methodology literature including purpose, type and volume of data, and type of analysis.
Findings
While case studies become more frequent, the results point out a lack of rigor, particularly regarding chain of evidence and the use of frameworks for case study rationale and analysis.
Research limitations/implications
The study proposes a framework for case study design, based on four “check questions” that can help researchers to go through the process of crafting a case study.
Practical implications
The study provides practitioners with more understanding of case studies in HL research, which they can use when calling for or evaluating such studies in their organizations.
Originality/value
This paper offers an initial framework for conducting case studies in HL.
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James Rayawan, Vinit S. Tipnis and Alfonso J. Pedraza-Martinez
The authors investigate the role of community engagement in the connection between disaster mitigation and disaster preparedness. Using a vulnerability-to-hazard framework built…
Abstract
Purpose
The authors investigate the role of community engagement in the connection between disaster mitigation and disaster preparedness. Using a vulnerability-to-hazard framework built by the European Union, the authors study the case of Aceh province, Indonesia, which was hit hard by Asian tsunami in 2004.
Design/methodology/approach
The research design uses a single case study research. The authors study the case of Aceh province, Indonesia, by comparing improvements in disaster mitigation and disaster preparedness in a period longer than ten years beginning in 2004, right before the Asian tsunami that devastated the province. Aware that the connection between mitigation and preparedness is a broad research topic, the authors focus on the domain of pre-disaster evacuation.
Findings
The authors find that Aceh province has made substantial improvements in healthcare facilities and road quality (mitigation) as well as early alert systems and evacuation plans (preparedness). Socio-economic indicators of the community have improved substantially as well. However, there is a lack of safe sheltering areas as well as poor road signaling maintenance, which threatens the effectiveness of infrastructural improvements. The authors propose that community engagement would connect disaster mitigation and disaster preparedness. The connecting element is community-based maintenance of critical infrastructure such as road signals, which the government could facilitate by leveraging on operational transparency.
Research limitations/implications
The findings open avenues for future research on the actionable engagement of communities in disaster mitigation and disaster preparedness.
Originality/value
This paper contributes to three areas of humanitarian logistics research: disaster management cycle (DMC), pre-disaster evacuations and community engagement in disaster management.
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– This paper aims to discuss search and rescue (SAR) and disaster relief robot developments, trials and applications and to answer the question posed in the title.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to discuss search and rescue (SAR) and disaster relief robot developments, trials and applications and to answer the question posed in the title.
Design/methodology/approach
Following a short introduction, this first describes Integrated Components for Assisted Rescue and Unmanned Search operations, a recent, collaborative, European research project, and euRathlon, a major robotics competition. It then highlights the role of the centre for robot-assisted search and rescue, and provides examples of the deployment of terrestrial, marine and airborne robots in real SAR and disaster relief situations. It concludes with a brief discussion.
Findings
This shows that SAR and disaster relief robots are the topic of an extensive development effort, and many have performed well in simulated disaster scenarios. Terrestrial, marine and airborne robots have been used in many real disaster relief situations since 2001, and the use of unmanned aerial vehicles has proliferated due to recent technological developments. Robots now play an important role in supporting SAR teams, and this will certainly increase as the technologies are developed further.
Originality/value
In an era characterized by extreme weather events and continuing military conflicts, robots play an increasingly important role in supporting human disaster response teams. This article provides details of developments, trials and real-world deployments of such robots.
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François-Xavier Delmonteil and Marie-Ève Rancourt
The devastating impact of catastrophic disasters on terrestrial infrastructure requires the adoption of alternative technology solutions among humanitarian organizations. The…
Abstract
Purpose
The devastating impact of catastrophic disasters on terrestrial infrastructure requires the adoption of alternative technology solutions among humanitarian organizations. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the role of the most commonly used satellite technologies in relief logistics: imagery and mapping, portable global positioning system (GPS) positioning devices, telecommunications, and GPS vehicle tracking.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper examines both the benefits and limitations of satellite technologies in light of the existing literature and through a complementary questionnaire survey with field workers involved in humanitarian operations in the aftermath of the 2010 Haiti earthquake.
Findings
The results show that the use of satellite technologies can facilitate most of the key logistics challenges encountered by relief actors. However, they also highlight important barriers within humanitarian organizations such as the lack of skilled workers and high costs, underlining the need for long-term training, resource investments, and cooperation between users and technology providers.
Research limitations/implications
The research findings remain valid only in the context of catastrophic disaster responses, which lead to similar destructions, logistical problems, and needs for satellite technologies.
Practical implications
This paper shows how satellite technologies can support humanitarian professionals in the field. It also provides policy recommendations that can facilitate the use of these technologies.
Originality/value
The applications of satellite technologies within humanitarian supply chains are not well-defined in the literature. This paper is the first to be dedicated to analyze the role of the main satellite technologies used in a relief logistics setting.
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