The generalized maximal covering location problem

We consider a generalization of the maximal cover location problem which allows for partial coverage of customers, with the degree of coverage being a non-increasing step function of the distance to the nearest facility. Potential application areas for this generalized model to locating retail facilities are discussed. We show that, in general, our problem is equivalent to the uncapacitated facility location problem. We develop several integer programming formulations that capitalize on the special structure of our problem. Extensive computational analysis of the solvability of our model under a variety of conditions is presented. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.