Operations Management: An Integrated Approach, 5th Edition

Examining the Formulation

The formulation is a concise mathematical description of the problem. It indicates that we want to find the values of C and G that produce the largest value of the objective function while satisfying all the constraints. In this formulation all of the relationships among the variables are linear. That is, all expressions involving the variables C and G consist of a constant multiplied by the variable itself. Combinations of variables can be added (or subtracted) to one another, but there are no nonlinear expressions involving variables, such as C², G/C, or √C. Thus, this formulation is referred to as a linear program (LP), or an LP formulation. A linear program (LP) is an optimization problem in which all of the relationships among the decision variables are linear. LPs are much easier to solve, in general, than problems involving nonlinear expressions. The solver built into Excel has the capability to solve both linear and nonlinear problems, but if your problem can be formulated as an LP, it is best to do so because its solution algorithm is faster and more reliable.

Linear program (LP)

A constrained optimization problem in which all the functions involving decision variables are linear.

Feasible solution

A specific combination of values of the decision ...