Efficient Heuristic Algorithm for Multi-Objective Fire Station Location Problem

Abstract

In this work, a real-life problem of locating a fixed number of fire station at a potential location sites, and allocating the areas to them is considered. In this prioritized bi-criteria problem, one of the constraint is that each area should be allocated to a unique fire station site selected for locating a fire station at it accordance with the capacity of each fire station site. The maximum number of areas that can be allocated to a fire station site is also fixed. The two objective functions are to minimize the total operating cost and the duration of covering the areas from the locations identified for setting up the fire stations at the least setup cost. Each potential location has a capacity to cover up to a fixed number of areas. A heuristic algorithm is proposed to find the set of efficient solution of this problem. The present thesis consists of three chapters. Chapter one is introducing in nature in which multi-objective optimization has been described and brief survey of the literature to the topic has been discussed. In the second chapter an algorithms for multi-objective fire station location problem given by Singh A. (2010) have been reviewed. In chapter three, a heuristic algorithm has been developed for multi-objective fire station location problem which is the combination of an algorithm to convert bi-objective problem to its equivalent single objective problem given by Prakash el. al. (2008) and an algorithm reviewed in chapter second.