Humanitarian Logistics

The role of humanitarian logistics in disaster relief efforts

• Losses of buildings, highways and other infrastructure;
• Losses in output and reductions in employment and tax receipts;
• Losses due to the increase in the price of consumable and construction materials; and
• Losses of millions of lives because of the scarcity of food and accidents.

The process of humanitarian logistics

• The flow of material: the flow of products from donors to beneficiaries, including food, blankets, medicines, and water, and the reverse flow of returned products after disasters.
• The flow of information: includes demand forecasts, order transmissions, and order status reports, to ensure preparedness and communications.
• The flow of money: includes checks, cash, and payment documents such as Letters of credit, invoice, and commercial contracts.

  Storage

Types of [warehouse]

• General Delivery Warehouses: where products are stored for a long time or until they are sent to secondary warehouses or distributed in the field. General delivery warehouses are more common in the capital of beneficiary or donor countries or at strategic points of a given region.
• Slow Rotation Warehouses: where non-urgent or reserve stockpiles are kept, including goods that are not in frequent demand such as spare parts, equipment, and tools.
• Quick Rotation Warehouses: where emergency supplies quickly move in and out, on a daily or at most weekly basis. Such warehouses are situated near the heart of affected zones and hold items that require prompt distribution among the affected population, including food, blankets, and hygiene items.
• Temporary Collection Sites: where incoming supplies are stored until a more appropriate space can be found. Temporary collection sites include yards, offices, meeting rooms, and garages of disaster relief organizations.

Choices of warehouses

• Type of supplies: Pharmaceutical products and foods require a well-ventilated, cool, dry place. Some of these products may even need temperature control. Other items, such as clothing or equipment, have more flexible requirements.
• Size and access to warehouses: the size of the storage site is significantly important. One must take into account not just its current capacity but also the potential for expansion of the storage area. Accessibility is another key issue, particularly for large vehicles.

  Inventory management

• Single-period inventory model/News-vendor model
• Base-stock model
• Periodic review model
• Dynamic lot-size model

Transport

Characteristics of different means of transport

Considerations of different means of transport

• The nature of supplies to be transported: Different categories of products requires different handling methods as well as temperature control. For example, hazardous materials must be stored separately from pharmaceutical products and food.
• The weight and volume of the load: Both are critical factors that determine the capacity of vehicles and the type of transport.
• The destination: distance, form of access to the delivery point. This factor should be taken into consideration because mobilizing the goods from the ports to the final destinations is often constrained by poor local infrastructure and unexpected events such as floods, landslides, and storms.
• The urgency of the delivery: In most emergency situations, needed goods, particularly food and fuels, are sent by air to destinations although this option is expensive. In humanitarian logistics, the priority is to save more lives.
• Alternative means, methods, and routes: Depending on one option represents a risk, especially there are some force majeure.

Types of transport contracts

New technologies in humanitarian logistics

AMS Cards

• Stock number;
• Requisition number;
• Shipment date;
• Quantity;
• Consignee.

Radio Frequency Identification Tags and Labels

Bar Codes

• Product packages;
• Identification cards;
• Catalogs or price lists;
• Product labels;
• Forms, receipts, and invoices.