Assessing flood recovery of small businesses using agent-based modelling and simulation

In developed countries, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) represent the majority of all businesses, e.g. 99.9% in the UK. Given this significant proportion, any disruption to the operation of SMEs will have a negative impact on a nation's economy. In the context of flooding, this paper reports on the use of agent-based modelling and simulation (ABMS) to assess SMEs immediate response and short-term recovery. In particular, it focuses on the interactions between manufacturing SMEs and mutual aid partners, and retail SMEs and companies specializing in refurbishing premises. Results show that a manufacturing SME with a mutual aid partner can reduce loss in production by approximately 6% over a 7 working day period. In relation to retail SMEs, those with employees able to be allocated to refurbish its premises recovered faster than SMEs employing a refurbishment company, potentially one day earlier.