Development of Rice Seedling Bank Location Method using Fuzzy-VIKOR-TOPSIS Hybrid Approach

Introduction To successfully provide and distribute agricultural services throughout the supply chain and enhance efficiency in this sector, selecting the right locations for service centers is a crucial and complex challenge. One of the ways to develop rice mechanization infrastructure is to establish rice seedling banks. A rice seedling bank is a specialized facility dedicated to the large-scale industrial production of rice seedlings, utilizing seedling trays to optimiz space, resources, and labor. The primary aim of this research is to identify the most suitable location for establishing a rice seed bank by employing multiple-criteria decision-making (MCDM) methods.Materials and MethodsThe present research was conducted in Fuman County, Guilan Province, Iran. The main objective of identifying a location for the seedling bank in the studied area is to minimize transportation costs for the seedling trays while selecting a site with the greatest potential for successfully establishing the seedling bank. To achieve this, we analyzed the location criteria for the seedling bank at the district level during the early stages of the research. The selection criteria for identifying a suitable district include several factors, such as the number of farmers, land leveling, area under cultivation, the number of agricultural machines, the level of mechanized transplanting and harvesting, and the number of seed banks in each district. Subsequently, the best village in the district, chosen in the prior step, was evaluated using several key criteria: total cultivated area, number of farmers, cultivated area per farmer, and total distance from other villages within the district. Shannon's entropy method was employed to estimate the weight and rank for the location criteria in both stages. The districts were ranked using the Fuzzy VIKOR method, while the TOPSIS method was used to prioritize villages within the selected district.Results and DiscussionAccording to the results of the Fuzzy VIKOR method, among the five studied districts in Fuman County, Lulaman rural district stands out as the best location for establishing a seedling bank. Furthermore, based on the results obtained from the TOPSIS method, Khoshknudhan-e Bala village is identified as the most favorable site for establishing a seedling bank within the Lulaman district, among the fifteen alternatives considered. The VIKOR model excels in ranking alternatives due to its ability to generate ideal positive and negative maps, making it particularly well-suited for location and spatial analysis. By utilizing this model, we can assess not only the locations themselves but also evaluate how each alternative measures up against both positive and negative ideals. In contrast, other models lack this capability, as they merely identify the optimal location without providing a comprehensive understanding of each alternative's standing.ConclusionThe purpose of this research is to provide a suitable algorithm for locating a seedling bank in Fuman County. Given the numerous influencing factors and available options, the integration of the VIKOR MCDM model with fuzzy numbers to identify the most suitable district, followed by the TOPSIS MCDM model to determine the best village, yielded promising results. The findings indicate that several factors play a crucial role in identifying the optimal location for the seedling bank. However, integrating all these elements through traditional methods—such as manual map analysis—proves impractical due to the sheer volume of data involved. Furthermore, neglecting these factors in site selection leads to substantial waste of material resources, energy, and environmental resources. Overall, the results of the Fuzzy VIKOR analysis revealed that Khoshknudhan-e Bala village in the Lulaman district is the best option for establishing a seedling bank in Fuman County.