Subject Area
Civil Engineering, Computer Science
Abstract
This thesis presents an equilibrium-based modeling framework for emergency response (ER) workload balancing to achieve robust operation in large-scale metropolitan areas. The problem is formulated as a non-linear mathematical program (NLP), which determines the optimal workload cutoff for each ER station such that the weighted sum of the area-wide expected response time and its variation are minimized. The concept of Marginal Cost of Uncertainty (MCU) is introduced to measure the impact of a station’s workload increase on the area-wide service performance. The solution of the NLP is proved to be equivalent to a state of equilibrium in which all stations have a minimum MCU. An iterative solution methodology is developed, which adopts a modified version of the Frank-Wolfe decomposition algorithm for convex optimization. The workload is iteratively shifted among adjacent stations until the state of equilibrium is achieved. At equilibrium, no station can reduce its MCU value by unilaterally shifting a part of its workload to any other station(s) in the area. The developed framework is applied to determine the optimal workload balancing strategy for 58 fire stations serving the City of Dallas. The framework is shown to enhance the robustness of the ER service especially under operation scenarios with imbalanced workloads.
Degree Date
Spring 4-26-2019
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
M.S.
Department
Civil and Environmental Engineering
Advisor
Prof. Khaled Abdelghany
Format
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 License
Recommended Citation
Roustaee, Parya, "Equilibrium-Based Workload Balancing for Robust Emergency Response Operations in Metropolitan Areas" (2019). Civil and Environmental Engineering Theses and Dissertations. 4.
https://scholar.smu.edu/engineering_civil_etds/4
