Linear Programming: Exercises

1.

The Holiday Meal Turkey Ranch is considering buying two different brands of turkey feed and
blending them to provide a good, low-cost diet for its turkeys. Each brand of feed contains, in
varying proportions, some or all of the three nutritional ingredients essential for fattening turkeys.
Each kilogram of brand 1 contains 5 grams of ingredient A, 4 grams of ingredient B and 0,5
grams of ingredient C. Each kilogram of brand 2 contains 10 grams of ingredient A, 3 grams of
ingredient B, but nothing of ingredient C. The brand 1 feed costs the Ranch 20c a kilogram,
while the brand 2 feed costs 30c a kilogram.
The minimum monthly requirement per turkey is: 90 grams of ingredient A; 48 grams of
ingredient B and 1,5 grams of ingredient C.
Formulate an LP model to help the rancher decide how to mix the two brands of turkey feed so
that the minimum monthly intake requirement for each nutritional ingredient is met at minimum
cost.
Use the graphical approach to solve this model.

2.

Giapettos Woodcarving, Inc., manufactures two types of wooden toys; soldiers and trains. A
soldier sells for R27 and uses R10 worth of raw materials. Each soldier that is manufactured
increases Giapettos labour and overhead costs by R14. A train sells for R21 and uses R9 worth
of raw materials. Each train built increases Giapettos labour and overhead costs by R10. A train
requires one hour of carpentry and one hour of finishing. A soldier requires two hours of
finishing and one hour of carpentry. Only 100 finishing hours and 80 carpentry hours are
available each week. Demand for trains is unlimited, but at most 40 soldiers are bought each
week. Giapetto wishes to maximise weekly profits.
Use the graphical approach to find the optimal solution.

3.

The ACE Manufacturing Company produces two lines of its product, the Super and the
Regular. Resource requirements for production are as follows:
Product line

Profit
(R/unit)

Assembly time
(hours)

Paint time
(hours)

Inspection time
(hours)

Regular

50

1,0

0,4

0,2

Super

75

0,8

0,5

0,4

There are 160 hours of assembly time and 80 hours of paint time available per week. The
inspection on each product is done by a team of quality controllers who work 40 hours per week.
From past data ACEs management knows that the demand for their products always exceeds the
production, but they also know that they usually sell at least double as many Regular as Super
products.
Formulate as an LP model and use the graphical approach to solve it.

4.

Solve the following LP models graphically. For each solution state clearly whether it is
infeasibile, multiple, unbounded or degenerate and which constraints are binding, non-binding or
redundant.
a)

Maximise C = 3A + 5B
subject to

(1)

B 10

(2)

A + 2B 10

(3)

B
b)

0.

Maximise Z = P + Q
subject to
P + 2Q 6

(1)

Q 8

(2)

(3)

2P +
P

Q 0.
c)

Maximise PROFIT = M + 2N
subject to
M + N 25

(1)

2M + N 30

(2)

N 35

(3)

M, N 0.
d)

Maximise PROFIT = 5X + 2Y
subject to
Y 15

(1)

5X + 2Y 20

(2)

7,5X +
X, Y 0.

Solutions to Exercises
1.

Holiday Meal Turkey Ranch data:

Composition of each kg of feed
(grams)

Ingredient

Brand 1

Minimum monthly
requirement (grams)

Brand 2

10

90

48

0,5

1,5

Cost per kg

20c

30c

Let ONE = number of kg of brand 1 feed purchased monthly, and

TWO = number of kg of brand 2 feed purchased monthly.
Minimise COST = 20ONE + 30TWO
subject to
5ONE +

10TWO 90

(Ingredient A)

4ONE +

3TWO 48

(Ingredient B)

1,5

(Ingredient C)

0,5ONE
ONE, TWO 0.
Graphical solution:
TTW
WOO

22 0
0
In g r C
1 55

1 00

In g r B

55

In g r A

1 00

1 55

22 0

OONNEE

Isocost lines

The isocost lines enter the feasible area at X, i.e. the point (8,4; 4,8). To find the exact
coordinates of this point, solve the equations representing the constraints intercepting in this point
simultaneously.
The optimal solution:
The rancher must buy 8,4 kg of the brand 1 feed and 4,8 kg of the brand 2 feed monthly for a
minimum cost of R3,12 per turkey.

2.

Let

SOLDIER = number of soldiers produced each week, and

TRAIN = number of trains produced each week

Total weekly revenue = revenue from soldiers + revenue from trains

= 27SOLDIER + 21TRAIN.
Weekly raw material costs

= 10SOLDIER + 9TRAIN.

Other weekly variable costs = 14SOLDIER + 10TRAIN.

Total weekly costs = 24SOLDIER + 19TRAIN.
Giapetto wishes to maximise profit, with
PROFIT =
=

(27SOLDIER + 21TRAIN) (24SOLDIER + 19TRAIN)

3SOLDIER + 2TRAIN.

The LP model is:

Maximise PROFIT = 3SOLDIER + 2TRAIN
subject to
2SOLDIER + TRAIN 100

(Finishing)

SOLDIER + TRAIN

80

(Carpentry)

40

(Demand)

SOLDIER
SOLDIER, TRAIN 0.
TRAIN
100

FINISHING

80
60

DEMAND

40
CARPENTRY

20

20

40

60

80

SOLDIER

The optimal solution is at point X, that is the point (20; 60).

The optimal solution is to produce 20 soldiers and 60 trains per week to make the maximum
profit of R180.

3.

Let

SUP = number of units of the Super product to be manufactured, and

REG = number of units of the Regular product to be manufactured.

Maximise PROFIT = 50REG + 75SUP

subject to
REG + 0,8SUP 160

(1. Assembly)

0,4REG + 0,5SUP 80

(2. Paint)

0,2REG + 0,4SUP 40

(3. Inspection)

REG 2,0SUP

(4. Demand)

REG, SUP 0.
Consider the demand constraint: If ACE knows that they usually sell at least double as many
Regulars as Supers, it means that the selling ratio of Regular to Super is 2 to 1, that is
REG
SUP

= 21 or

REG = 2 SUP .

And, because of the at least, it becomes REG 2SUP.

The line representing this constraint passes through the point (0, 0). To determine another point,
let REG take on any value, say 50, and find the value of SUP.
We now have two points (0, 0) and (50, 25) and we can draw the line.
To find the area satisfying the inequality, substitute any point, say (150; 50), into REG 2SUP
which is 150 > 2 50. The inequality holds and we know that all the points on the same side as
this point will satisfy the constraint.
SUP
200
(1)
150
(4)

100
(3)
50

(2)
50

100

150

200

REG

The optimal profit is found where the isoprofit lines leave the feasible area. This is the point
where the inspection and assembly constraints intersect.
To find the exact value of this point, solve the simultaneous equations which represent constraints
(1) and (3) to get SUP = 33,3 and REG = 133,3.
The optimal solution is to produce 33,3 units of the Super model and 133,3 units of the
Regular model. The maximum profit is R9 162,50.
Constraint (2), the paint constraint, doesnt contribute to the feasible area in fact, it doesnt
touch it at all. This constraint is therefore redundant.

4.a) The graphical solution of the LP model:

B
(1)
15

10

(2)

(3)

10

15

The solution area is unbounded to the right and the value of the objective function can increase
indefinitely without ever reaching a maximum. The solution is unbounded.
b)

The graphical presentation of the feasible area:

Q

(3)

(2)

6
4
2

(1)
2

P
There is no area satisfying all the inequalities simultaneously and we say the LP model (or the
problem) is infeasible. There is no solution to this LP model.

c)

The graphical solution to the LP model:

N

N = 35

30
2 M + N = 30
X

20
10

M + N = 25

10

20

30

The optimal solution is at the point X. No units of M and 25 units of N should be produced for a
maximum profit of 50 units.
Constraint N 35 is redundant - it does not influence the feasible area at all.
Constraint M + N 25 is binding - it passes through the optimal point. (No slack).
Constraint 2M + N 30 is non-binding - it does not go through the optimal point. (Slack of 5
units.)
d)

The graphical solution:

Y
15
10

A
B

5
(1 )

(2 )

The isoprofit lines are parallel to constraint (2). The optimal solution is therefore found on the
line segment AB. Any point on the line segment AB gives the maximum profit of 20 units. The
endpoints are (0, 10) and (1, 7,5).
This LP model has multiple optimal solutions.