Spreadsheet Analysis of Linear Programs With Uncertainty

Abstract

For a decade spreadsheets have provided an intuitive interface and accepted environment for modelling increasingly sophisticated applications. Due to dramatic improvements in technology, end user decision makers have increasingly powerful operations research tools at their disposal, with real life successes documented in the literature. This paper presents a framework for describing linear programs with uncertainty and describes how the spreadsheet medium can be used to enhance their analysis. Procedures for analysis are discussed for the cases of prior resolvability and recourse availability and illustrated by example. A postoptimality analysis approach for the recourse problem which applies simulation to an optimization model is detailed using a spreadsheet template.