Spatial Analysis Based Method to Determine the Optimal Locations for Asphaltic Concrete Plants: Case Study in Karbala Governorate of Iraq

The construction of a new capital improvement facility is a significant and long-term investment. Site selection is a crucial decision made by that has an impact on a wide variety of activities, from land use planning to industrial facility siting. The location of facilities is crucial to the success or failure of such investments. The location of an asphaltic concrete plant is determined by a complicated set of elements that include economic, social, technological, and environmental considerations. The process of selecting locations that fulfill the selection criteria's desired parameters is known as site selection. Handling of geographical data and fulfilment of various criteria are critical to the effectiveness of decision-making in such a process. Geographic information systems and cost breakdown methodologies are incorporated systematically in solving asphalt concrete plant site selection challenges in this study, which was carried out in Karbala governorate of Iraq. Finally, combining a GIS model with a cost breakdown technique allowed for the discovery of optimal asphaltic concrete plant locations that balanced economic, environmental, and social factors. According to the study, there are around 120 potential asphaltic concrete plant locations, each with a minimum area of 40,000 square meters.

I. Introduction

In the long run, owners and investors will have to invest a lot of money to build a new capital improvement facility. Capital project owners/investors must make a key decision that has a big impact on their profits and losses. A community's lifestyle is affected by decisions made about where industrial facilities should be located. Therefore, industrial site location study is significant business, whether evaluated in terms of money invested, decision makers involved, employees affected or the economies of the area impacted. In the selecting process, many potential sites could be considered. (Weber, 1929). As part of his work on location theory, Thunen used the ‘least-cost’ method and produced a basic framework for economic study of (Thunen, 1875; Isard, 1956). To explain the disparities in the location of industry, Launhardt employed cost variance and demand considerations in different places (Launhardt, 1885; Miller, 1977). Transportation costs were highlighted by him, for the placement of manufacturing operations, (Weber, 1909) formulated a comprehensive theory (Weber, 1929; Isard, 1956). As a way to better understand the decision-making process, several location studies apply the Weberian theory (Tellier and Vertefeuille, 1995). In their research, (Roudsari and Wong, 2014) looked at two factors: proximity to customer locations and the number of competitors near the new location. (Anand et al, 2012) employed a 40- factor analytic network technique to explain location decision-making. It's a critical decision with long-term consequences. No plant can be placed in a location that meets all of the criteria for a perfect setting. The goal should be to get the most out of the situation (Sharma, 2004). Some factors were compromised in order to benefit from the other factors. For example, if the raw material is large and difficult to transport, the factory may be positioned closer to the source of the raw material.