Optimal humanitarian warehouses location considering vulnerability previous condition

Goal: This study tackles on location problem, analyzing the urban shape base on vulnerability previous conditions in affected areas. Design / Methodology / Approach: A numerical analysis is performed using an integer programming model to find optimal preposition warehouses location. Results: The minimum cost is reached when the needs of all the people affected by the natural disaster are met. Excess construction of warehouses implies additional maintenance and administration expenses, while lack of construction of warehouses implies expenses originated by unsatisfied demand. Limitations of the investigation: Among the main limitations found in this study were the lack of updated data and few studies related to natural disaster prevention in the case study. Practical implications: Organizations should implement the recommendations given by the new model. This is because the model minimizes the cost, since the damage caused by a natural disaster is much more expensive than preventing it. Originality / Value: The novelty in this study is the creation of a punishment factor based on the level of vulnerability of the routes used in transportation. This is to simulate the impact the deterioration of routes has on the response time of sending aid supplies.