A multi-criteria assessment of the p-median, maximal coverage and p-center location models

Abstract

Location problems consider locating facilities with the objective of finding their best locations. In most real world problems, it is common that a demand node is required to be covered with multiple facilities in order to ensure a backup supply. The backup supply is necessary especially for public or emergency service location problems where a covered demand may not be serviced if it’s designated facility is engaged serving other demands. In this study we consider three classic location models, i.e. p-median, maximal coverage and p-center, and compare their performances with respect to seven decision criteria under Q-coverage requirement. For this purpose, we generate multiple problem instances and solve each instance with the three models for different Q-values. Our numerical results reveal the pros and cons of each model to assist decision makers in determining the most promising model with respect to each assessment criteria.

Keywords

• backup coverage
• facility location
• maximal coverage
• p-center
• p-median