Business Risk and Simulation Modelling in Practice: Using Excel, VBA and @RISK

CHAPTER 13 Using @RISK for Simulation Modelling

This chapter covers the core aspects of using @RISK to design and build simulation models. We assume that the reader is a beginner with the software, and have designed this chapter so that it is self-contained from the point of view of the basic mechanics and features. However, the reading of this chapter alone would not be sufficient to build value-added risk models; the required concepts to do so are covered earlier in the text. The chapter aims to provide a basis to learn the core features of the software, rather than to cover the associated modelling and organisational alignment issues dealt with elsewhere. We do not aim to cover all aspects of the software; rather, we emphasise those topics that are required to work with the models in this text, as well as those features that are generally important from a modelling perspective. Thus, we do not cover the full set of graphics options, the detailed mechanics of formatting them, nor do we cover all of the results analysis possibilities, functions or other features; a reader wishing for more complete coverage can refer to the manual that is provided within the software, as well as to the Help features, other documentation and examples provided with the software (including its trial versions), and the Palisade website. As described at the beginning of the text (see Preface), readers who are working with a trial version of the software (which is time limited) may choose to skim-read ...