A Robust Model for the Bases Location and Ambulances Allocation Problem

In this work, a robust model is developed for the problem of locating bases and allocating ambulances in a fire department. The time of an emergency, which begins when a phone call is received and ends with the arrival of the ambulance at the base, is an uncertain parameter since this time may be influenced by the nature of the emergency, traffic conditions, distance to the emergency, immediate availability of ambulances, among others. A case study was performed with data from a fire department in the state of Goiás, Brazil. Results of the nominal model indicate that the current number of ambulances in the fire department can serve almost the double of the current number of emergencies. However, the results of the robust model suggest this number is not sufficient, depending on the level of uncertainty that is imposed.