Optimization of Fire Brigade Deployment by Means of Mathematical Programming

Abstract

The content of this research paper is focused on the applications of selected operation research methods in the field of rescue services. The first theoretical part aims at identifying the most important aspects of the real system, which should be taken into account whenever a rescue system is to be redesigned or optimized. It also contains an in-depth description of system performance. Based on the found criteria, a mathematical model for a new system design is proposed. The second part of this paper is practically oriented. A short case study performed with real data on the rescue service system in Slovakia is reported herein, and the obtained results are compared with current fire brigade deployment. We concentrate on improving the most important criteria of the real system. If the suggested mathematical model proves to be hard to solve with common optimization tools, we will develop an efficient solving algorithm. From a general point of view, the main scientific goal of this research article is to summarize current trends in location science, which could be useful for the optimization of fire brigade deployment. Since the strategic decisions in location service centers to some nodes of the network are usually made for long periods, different properties and possible failures are discussed to be considered with the mathematical models and associated solving tools.