Relief Supply Chain Planning

The purpose of this chapter is to provide a framework for the development of relief supply chain systems. An illustrative case study is presented in order to help relief supply chain decision makers in their relief supply chain planning process. Developing simulation models to test proposed relief supply chain response plans is much less risky than actually waiting for another disaster to happen and test the proposed relief supply chain model in a real life situation. The simulated outcome can then be used to refine the developed relief supply chain response model.

Developing and Maintaining Trust in Hastily Formed Relief Networks

Although there is a vast body of academic and practitioner literature championing the importance of trust in long-term business relationships, relatively little has been written discussing the development and maintenance of trust in networks that are formed at short notice and that often operate for a limited period of time. However, some models of trust and trusting behavior in such “hastily formed relief networks” (HFRN) do exist, and the aim of this chapter is to consider the theoretical application of one of the most prominent examples – that known as “swift trust” – to a post-disaster humanitarian logistics scenario. Presented from the perspective of a HFRN, this chapter presents a discussion of the practical application of the swift trust model.

The Application of Value Chain Analysis for the Evaluation of Alternative Supply Chain Strategies for the Provision of Humanitarian Aid to Africa

The chapter also gives a more general consideration to the potential of value chain analysis concepts and techniques to the measurement, evaluation, and improvement of humanitarian supply chain operations in locations and scenarios beyond that described in the current case study.

Challenges of Civil Military Cooperation / Coordination in Humanitarian Relief

The term civil military coordination (CIMIC) suggests the seamless division of labor between aid workers and international military forces. The images of humanitarian organizations distributing food and medicines under the protection of military forces, or aid workers and military working together to construct refugee camps, set up field hospitals, provide emergency water and sanitation, et cetera, has become more frequent. The media coverage from crises such as New Orleans, Kosovo, the tsunami in Asia, Pakistan, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Chad, and more recently Haiti and Japan, has heightened the expectation of a smooth interaction between humanitarian organizations and military forces. Due to fundamental differences between international military forces, humanitarian and development organizations (in terms of the principles and doctrines guiding their work, their agendas, operating styles, and roles), the area of civil military coordination in disaster relief has proven to be more difficult than other interagency relationships. This chapter will identify the many factors that render integration and collaboration problematic between diverse organizations, and especially so between civilian and military agencies. The chapter will conclude with proposals to improve CIMIC within disaster relief.

Local Sourcing in Peacekeeping

This case study explores the Swedish armed forces’ sourcing from local suppliers in the area of the peacekeeping operation in Liberia. The chapter discusses why, what, and how the Swedish armed forces develop local sourcing. For the study, a theoretical framework was developed with an industrial network perspective based on three cornerstones: supplier buyer relation development, internationalisation, and finally, souring and business development in a war-torn country. The results of the study show that both implicit and explicit reasons to source locally exist. Every operation is unique, and therefore the sourcing needs to be tailored for each operation. Local sourcing was developed in the country based on existing needs and when opportunities arise. Theoretically, new insights of differences between business relations in military operations and normal business to business relations were gained. Practically, this study illustrates the importance to develop and diversify sourcing in international operations.

Strategic Partners and Strange Bedfellows

This chapter is about relationship building in relief supply chains. Its primary purpose is to present and discuss the author’s actor-based typology of humanitarian relationships. The framework includes relationships among NGOs, as well as between NGOs and UN agencies, military units, and business firms. Examples are used to explore unique issues in the various types of relationships. One particular NGO, Airline Ambassadors International, is offered as an example of an NGO that builds relationships with a wide variety of humanitarian actors. The chapter also examines compatibility and complementarity of organizations across the three phases of humanitarian work: preparation, response, and recovery or development. Research opportunities are discussed in the concluding comments.

A Study of Barriers to Greening the Relief Supply Chain

Relief supply chain (SC) management is a relatively unexplored field. In this field, practitioners have shown some interest in greening practices, but little practical or academic literature exists to help provide insights into combining the two fields. Adoption of green SC principles in the relief SC requires a systematic study of existing barriers in order to remove these barriers and allow introduction of green practices. The aim of this chapter is to explore barriers to implementation of green practices in the relief SC. Expert opinions and literature from humanitarian logistics and green supply chain management are used to establish a list of barriers and to propose a categorization of barriers. Further research to evaluate the relationships and importance of these barrier factors is identified.

Military Involvement in Humanitarian Supply Chains

The purpose of this chapter is to demonstrate the multitude of activities that military logisticians can provide throughout the various stages in relief supply chains. Most military joint doctrine identifies humanitarian assistance (HA) as one of the “Military Operations Other Than War” (MOOTW) that military personnel are trained to undertake. Part of this HA involves contributing to humanitarian supply chains and logistics management. The supply chain management processes, physical flows, as well as associated information and financial systems form part of the military contributions that add to other aid in the relief supply chain. The main roles of the military to relief supply chains include security and protection, distribution, and engineering. Examples of these key contributions will be provided in this chapter.

Humanitarian Aid Logistics

This chapter contrasts the response to the Wenchuan earthquake (May 2008) which took place in a landlocked region of China with that of the January 2010 earthquake in Haiti, which as an island nation, was theoretically easily accessible to external aid provision via air or sea. In the initial period following the Wenchuan earthquake, the response was wholly internal as a detailed needs assessment was carried out. Once the Chinese authorities had established the scale of response required, international assistance was quickly allowed into the country. Several multimodal solutions were devised to minimize the risk of supply breakdown. Haiti required substantial external aid and logistics support, but severe organizational and infrastructural weaknesses rendered the supply chain extremely vulnerable locally. This translated to a mismatch between the volume of aid supplied and logistics capability, highlighting the importance of “last-mile” distribution management. The two earthquakes posed extreme challenges to the logistics operations, though both required a mix of military and non-military input into the logistics response. Nonetheless, in each case the non-standard logistics solutions which were devised broadly met the requirements for effective aid distribution in extreme environments.

Disaster Impact and Country Logistics Performance

The study in this chapter seeks to answer the question whether a country’s logistics performance has a correlation with the impacts of a disaster; impact being measured in average amount of affected, the average amount of deaths, the average amount of injured in a disaster or the average amount of economic damage. This is a quantitative study where the EM-DATs disaster data is analyzed through correlation analysis against the World Bank’s logistics performance index (LPI). The findings do not show a significant relationship between countries LPI and the average number of deaths or injured persons in a disaster. A positive correlation between the variable LPI and the variable economic damage can be found. A negative correlation between the LPI and the average amount of affected can be found for countries with an average ranking LPI. Countries with low LPI and high disaster occurrence are further identified. Findings encourage the identified countries to take into consideration their logistics performance when planning and carrying out humanitarian response operations. Results also encourage humanitarian organizations to pay attention to the receiving countries’ logistics performance in planning and carrying out humanitarian response operations.