Flash Animations
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Integer Programming
Integer programming is concerned with optimization problems in which some of the variables are required to take on discrete values. Rather than allow a variable to assume all real values in a given range, only predetermined discrete values within the range are permitted. In most cases, these values are the integers, giving rise to the name of this class of models. The integrality requirement underlies a wide variety of applications. There are many situations, such as distributing goods from warehouses to factories or finding the shortest path through a network, where the flow variables are logically required to be integer valued. There are also situations that require logical decisions of the form yes/no, go/no go, assign/don’t assign. These decisions can be modeled with binary variables that assume values of zero or one. The power and usefulness of these models in representing real-world situations cannot be overstated, but along with modeling convenience comes substantial computational difficulty. Only relatively small problems that contain integer variables can be solved to optimality in most cases.

Nonlinear Programming
Much of the world is nonlinear so it is natural to pursue optimization of nonlinear models. Economies of scale in manufacturing, for example, lead to decreasing costs, while biological systems commonly exhibit exponential growth. In the design of a simple hatch cover, the shearing stress, bending stress and degree of defection are each polynomial functions of flange thickness and beam height. Similar relationships abound in engineering design, economics, and distribution systems, to name a few. The appeal of nonlinear programming (NLP) is strong because of the modeling richness it affords. Unfortunately, NLP solvers have not yet achieved the same level of performance and reliability associated with LP solvers. For all but the most structured problems, the solution obtained from an NLP solver may not be globally optimal. This argues for caution. Before taking any action, the decision maker should have a full understanding of the nonlinearities governing the system under study.

Dynamic Programming
Many planning and control problems in manufacturing, telecommunications and capital budgeting call for a sequence of decisions to be made at fixed points in time. The initial decision is followed by a second, the second by a third, and so on perhaps infinitely. Because the word dynamic describes situations that occur over time and programming is a synonym for planning, the original definition of dynamic programming was “planning over time.” Dynamic programming has been described as the most general of the optimization approaches because conceivably it can solve the broadest class of problems. In many instances, this promise is unfulfilled because of the attending computational requirements. Certain problems, however, are particularly suited to the model structure and lend themselves to efficient computational procedures; in cases involving discontinuous functions or discrete variables, dynamic programming may be the only practical solution method.

Probability Models
In this tour, we examine models that explicitly include some aspects of uncertainty and describe analytic techniques for dealing with decision problems in this environment. The tour consists primarily of PDF supplements. The first is a complete chapter that establishes the language of probability, describes the named discrete or continuous random variables, provides formulas for obtaining probabilities and moments for the distributions and introduces Monte Carlo simulation. Other supplements are chapter length descriptions of applications of OR that include probability models. Two important add-ins are included in the tour, the random variables add-in and the decision analysis add-in.

Discrete -Time Markov Chains
The discrete-time Markov Chain (DTMC) is a finite-state stochastic process in which the defining random variables are observed at discrete points in time. A feature of the process is that the future probabilistic behavior of the process depends only on the present state regardless of the path by which the present state was reached. Unlike most stochastic processes, the DTMC has very agreeable properties allowing for easy study. Often they are used to approximate quite complex physical systems, even when it is clear that the actual behavior of the system being analyzed may depend on more than just the present state, or when the number of states is not really finite.

Continuous -Time Markov Chains
A natural extension of a discrete-time Markov chain occurs when time is treated as a continuous parameter. For continuous time stochastic processes, the Markovian property is only satisfied if all activity durations are exponentially distributed. Although this may sound somewhat restrictive, many practical situations can be modeled as continuous-time Markov chains and many powerful analytical results can be obtained. A primary example is an M/M/s Queuing system in which customer arrivals and service times follow an exponential distribution. Because it is possible to compute the steady-state probabilities for such systems, it is also possible to compute many performance-related statistics such as the average wait and the average number of customers in the queue. In addition, many critical design and operational questions can be answered with little computational effort.

Queuing
This tour considers situations that can be modeled as single Queuing stations or networks of queues. For the single Queuing station having one or more servers, a variety of analytical results are available when the arrival and service processes are Markovian. Formulas are available to compute statistical estimates for such measures as the average number in the queue, the average waiting time for a customer, and the probability that the service mechanism is busy. Some results are also available for models that are not Markovian. When several Queuing stations are interconnected, we have a network of queues. Many decision situations arise in this context. For Jacksonian networks, accurate analytical results are available. Otherwise some approximate results estimate performance measures. An add-in is provided to analyze both single Queuing stations and networks of queues.

Simulation
Of the analytic methods that comprise operations research, simulation stands in sharp contrast to the mathematical programming algorithms and stochastic models. With simulation, the analyst creates a model of a system that describes some process involving individual entities such as persons, products or messages. The components of the model try to reproduce, with varying degrees of accuracy, the actual operations of the real components of the process. Most likely the system will have time-varying inputs and time-varying outputs that are affected by random events. The components of the simulation are interconnected and can often be viewed as a network with complex input-output relationships. Moreover, the flow of entities through the system is controlled by logic rules that derive from the operating rules and policies associated with the process being modeled. Because the model takes the form of a computer program, which operates as a facsimile of its real-world counterpart, it is much less restricted than analytical models. A skilled programmer can duplicate with a high level of accuracy, most systems that can be observed and rationalized. Because of this capacity for detail, simulation has become a very popular method of analysis. Particularly appealing is its ability to model random variables with arbitrary probability distributions and systems that have a variety of interacting random processes. Modern simulation languages are very powerful tools, allowing even a beginner to create representations of complex systems.

Operations Management/Industrial Engineering
This tour follows a trail through a series of computational methods that are useful for the analysis of manufacturing systems. The computations often use the techniques of operations research, but they are adapted to specific applications. The topics considered are often taught in an academic programs for Operations Management and Industrial Engineering, but are useful in a variety of applied fields.