Course Unit / Operational Research

Operational Research

Year
2
Academic year
2019-2020
Code
01620126
Subject Area
Management
Language of Instruction
Portuguese
Mode of Delivery
Face-to-face
Duration
SEMESTRIAL
ECTS Credits
6.0
Type
Compulsory
Level
1st Cycle Studies

Recommended Prerequisites

Course unit “Model Building in Management”.

Basic linear algebra.

Practical skills in Microsoft Excel.

 

Teaching Methods

Theoretical lessons: lectures, using the blackboard and visual aids (slides/cloud-based presentations) and resolution of exercises.

Practical lessons: use of computational tools to solve problems, to support exercise solving activities and to illustrate theoretical concepts.

Learning Outcomes

Overall objectives

This course aims to prepare students to solve optimization problems in the field of Management.

Specific objectives

It is intended that the students be proficient in one of the most important areas of OR, the linear programming, and acquire skills in multi-objective linear programming.

By dealing with both single and multi-objective problems, it is also intended to show the differences between decision processes in which the analysis of the problem is mainly technical and decision support on multiple objective problems, in which there are unavoidable qualitative issues.

Generic competencies

  • Methodological and technical competences
  • To be able to analyse problems and understand results

Specific competencies

  • To be able to apply algorithms, in particular using solving schemes based on spreadsheets; to develop the capacity to “build” such solving schemes.

Capacity to use specialized computational tools for solving problems

Work Placement(s)

No

Syllabus

  • Introduction to Operational Research. Overview of the scope and applications
  • Linear programming:
    • revision of problem modeling;
    • basic concepts and the graphical method;
    • the simplex method;
    • duality theory and economic interpretation of duality;
    • sensitivity analysis.
  • Introduction to multiobjective linear programming:
    • reasons for considering explicitly more than one objective function;
    • fundamentals of multiobjective optimization
    • techniques for computing efficient solutions:
      • weighted sum method
      • constraint method

                             reference point methods

Head Lecturer(s)

Maria João Teixeira Gomes Alves

Assessment Methods

Assessment A
Exam: 100.0%

Assessment B
Or: periodic assessment composed of tests which include a practical component using the computer and a written component. The tests are performed during the classes, organized by shifts : 100.0%

Bibliography

CLÍMACO, João Namorado ; ANTUNES, Carlos Henggeler ; ALVES, Maria João Gomes - Programação linear multiobjectivo : do modelo de programação linear clássico à consideração explícita de várias funções objectivo. Coimbra : Imprensa da Universidade de Coimbra, 2003. [BP 519.8 CLI]

COSTA, João Paulo ; ALVES, Maria João ; CLÍMACO, João Namorado — Exercícios para as aulas de Investigação Operacional. Coimbra : FEUC, 1996. [BP 519.8 COS] . Versão revista em 2012.

COSTA, João Paulo ; MELO, Manuel Paulo de Albuquerque — Investigação Operacional : passo a passo em Excel. Coimbra : FEUC, 2006. [BP 519.6 COS]

HILLIER, Frederick S. ; LIEBERMAN, Gerald J. — Introduction to operations research. 8th ed.. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2005. [BP 519.8 HIL] [Também ed. portuguesa]

RAGSDALE, Cliff. — Spreadsheet modeling & decision analysis : a practical introduction to management science. 6th ed.. Mason : South Western/Cengage Learning, 2012. [Ed. de 1998: BP 519.8 RAG]