The m-Center Problem: Minimax Facility Location

The m-Center Problem is to locate a given number of (emergency) facilities anywhere along a road network so as to minimize the maximum distance between these facilities and fixed demand locations assigned to them. Fundamental properties of the m-Center Problem are examined. The problem is modeled using integer programming, and is successfully attacked using a binary search technique and a combination of exact tests and heuristics. Computational results are given.

Note--A Note on El-Shaieb's New Algorithm for Locating Sources Among Destinations

The objective of this note is (i) to identify and briefly review some references not included in [El-Shaieb, A. M. 1973. A new algorithm for locating sources among destinations. Management Sci. 20 221-231.] as well as more recent additions and (ii) to give computational comparisons of three other solution methods with that of El-Shaieb on his 30-city test data.

Efficient Production-Distribution System Design

The production-distribution system design is an integral part of the general supply chain design. This paper proposes a novel solution methodology for this problem that is based on Lagrangean relaxation, interior-point methods, and branch and bound. Unlike classical approaches, Lagrangean relaxation is applied in a two-level hierarchy, branch and bound is based on a Lagrangean lower bound and column generation (branch and price), while interior-point methods are used within a cutting-plane context (analytic centre cutting-plane method---ACCPM). Numerical results demonstrate that the two-level approach outperforms the classical approach and provides a very sharp lower bound that is the (proven) optimal in most cases.production-distribution systems, Lagrangean relaxation, nested decomposition, interior-point cutting-plane methods, branch and price

Testing a Flexible Geographic Information System-Based Network Flow Model for Routing Hurricane Disaster Relief Goods

Recent weather events, particularly in the southeastern United States, have brought issues of hurricane disaster planning to the forefront of public policy. Efficient distribution of relief goods to populations after severe weather events is one of many challenges faced by governing bodies. This paper focuses on provision of hurricane disaster relief and develops a flexible network flow model that provides efficient transport linkages between critical elements of the relief goods supply chain. The model identifies accessible locations in which to place intraurban distribution sites for relief goods. Flexibility inherent in the model structure allows the pursuit of multiple policies, including the ability to trade off the costs paid for constructing various components of the goods supply chain. The model is linked to a geographic information system and can be used to visualize relief planning scenarios. The results of model tests with sample spatial data demonstrate how average population time to relief facilities (accessibility) varies substantially depending on the cost structure input into the model. Conclusions and several suggestions for future research are provided

Private transnational governance in the heyday of the nation-state: the Council of European Industrial Federations (CEIF) -super-1

This article examines an example of private transnational governance in the first decades after the Second World War: the Council of European Industrial Federations (CEIF), created in 1949 by the peak-level trade associations in western Europe. Based on this case, the article takes issue with two predominant views in the current literature: a view that sees the European integration process, at least in its early stages, as driven largely by nation-states and political agendas' and another view, widespread among business and economic historians, that contacts between business associations at that time served the main purpose of re-establishing international cartels. The CEIF actually performed a wide variety of functions: it represented organized business at international events and in organizations, acted as a multilateral arena for the exchange of information and for building trust among the businesspeople of various European countries, and, from 1958 onwards, helped bridge the divide between those inside and those outside the Common Market. On occasions, for example, in the case of export incentives, it even managed to forge a consensus for policy action when national governments were unable to agree