Solution approaches to the blood distribution problem of the Turkish Red Crescent

Kurt A., AZİZOĞLU M., ÇETİNKAYA F. C.

EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERING, vol.12, no.3, pp.405-441, 2018 (SCI-Expanded) identifier identifier

  • Publication Type: Article / Article
  • Volume: 12 Issue: 3
  • Publication Date: 2018
  • Doi Number: 10.1504/ejie.2018.092008
  • Journal Name: EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERING
  • Journal Indexes: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus
  • Page Numbers: pp.405-441
  • Keywords: blood distribution system, humanitarian logistics, vehicle routing, mixed integer linear programming model, heuristic solution approaches, CHAIN NETWORK DESIGN, INVENTORY, PRODUCTS, DISASTERS, ALGORITHM, LOCATION, SYSTEM, MODEL
  • Middle East Technical University Affiliated: Yes

Abstract

This paper considers the blood distribution problem that includes irradiation centres, urgent demands, and product availability in Turkey, Central Anatolian Regional Blood Center of the Turkish Red Crescent. To address the problem, we develop a mixed integer linear program with two objectives: maximising the demand satisfaction and minimising total time travelled by the vehicles. We propose two decomposition-based heuristic solution approaches. The results of our experiments have revealed that the model cannot solve even small sized instances in reasonable times; however, the heuristic solution approaches are appropriate for solving complex real life problems.