Planning & Scheduling

Lecture Slides

LP Graphical

LP EXCEL

In Class Lab  Files & Info

Blue Ridge Hot Tubs Shell

Sunsoak Case: description | influence shell | EXCEL shell | solution

Aggregate Planning Problem & Shell

McDonald's: description | chart |full chart

Rangely Case: description | influence shell | spreadsheet

Textbook Downloads (optional)

Textbook Examples (Monet and Pigskin)

Textbook Examples (Postal, Surestep and Repco)

LP Method (Product Mix)

Graphical Solution

Multi-period Model

Employee Scheduling Model

Related Sites

Frontline web site -- the developer of the optimizer in EXCEL.

INFORMS: web site of The Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences

Key Points / Outline

We will use optimization as a tool for planning and scheduling applications.

• LP Concepts:  Graphical & EXCEL (Blue Ridge & McDonald's)

• LP Application:  Product Mix (Sunsoak)

• LP Application:  Aggregate (Multi-period) Planning

• LP Application:  Employee Scheduling

Before Class

1.  Read Thomson Chapters: TBD.

Digging Deeper

"What is the Right Supply Chain for Your Product?" by Marshall L. Fisher, Harvard Business Review, March-April 1997, pp. 105-116.

"The Super-efficient Company" by Michael Hammer, Harvard Business Review, September 2001, pp. 82-91.

"Distance Still Matters: The Hard Reality of Global Expansion" by Pankaj Ghemawat, Harvard Business Review, September 2001, pp. 137-147.

"Integrated Production, Distribution, and Inventory Planning at Libby Owens Ford" by C. Martin, D. Dent and J. Eckhart, Interfaces 23:3, May-June 1993, pp. 68-78.

Pioneer Hi-Bred, HBS 9-898-238.

"Do You Have a Well-Designed Organization?" by Michael Goold and Andrew Campbell, Harvard Business Review, March 2002, pp. 117-124.

"Improving Performance and Flexibility at Jeppesen:  The World's Leading Aviation Information Company" by Elena Katok, William Tarantino and Ralph Tiedeman, Interfaces 31:1, January - February 2001, pp. 7-29. 

"Managing Supply Chain Inventory:  Pitfalls and Opportunities" by Hau L. Lee and C. Billington, Sloan Management Review, Spring 1992, pp. 65-73.

"What Really Makes Factories Flexible?" by David M. Upton, Harvard Business Review, July-August 1995, pp. 74-84.

"The Customization-Responsiveness Squeeze" by David M. McCutcheon, Amitabh S. Raturi and Jack Meredith, Sloan Management Review, Winter 1994, pp. 89-99.

In the News

"A Better Way to Size Up Your Nest Egg" by Christopher Farrell, Business Week, January 22, 2001, pp. 100-1.

"Monte Carlo Financial Simulator May Be a Good Bet for Planning" by Karon Hube, Wall Street Journal, April 27, 2000, pp. C1,C19.

"Higher Math Delivers Formula for Success," Kevin Maney, USAToday, December 31, 1997, pp. 1B-2B.

Article Links

"A Match Made in Heaven" by Monmohan S. Sodhi, OR/MS Today, February 2001, pp. 30-33.

A Business Executive's Guide to Modern OR by Randy Robinson, OR/MS Today, June 2000.