Location problems solving by spreadsheets

Location problems have been the focus of considerable attention both in research and practice for many years. Numerous extensions have been described to broaden its appeal and enhance its applicability. This study proposes a spreadsheet approach for three well-known facility location problems, the p-median problem (PMP), capacitated p-median (CPMP), and maximal covering location problem (MCLP). The advantages of the method are not only relatively simple but are also effectively used, maintained and updated by users. The results show that the spreadsheet approach can generate good solutions, including conditions descriptions of location and allocation, within a reasonable process time. For some instances, the solutions obtained by this method are better than those by state of the art approaches. In addition, most location problems can also apply this approach. Key-Words: location problems, p-median problem, capacitated p-median problem, maximal covering location problem, spreadsheets