OR 6205: Deterministic Operations Research

CRN 13795 Section 4

Total Credit Hours: 4

Term: Fall 2019
Location: Snell Library 033
Instructor: Dr. Himlona Palikhe
Office: Snell Engineering Center, Room 259
Class Meeting Times: Tuesdays & Fridays 1:35 - 3:15 pm
Office Hours: Thursdays 11 am - 1 pm
Email: h.palikhe@northeastern.edu (Email is the best way to contact me)

Course Description: Introduces the theory, computation, and application of deterministic models to
represent industrial operations. Includes linear programming formulation and solution using
spreadsheet and algebraic languages software; simplex, big-M, revised simplex, and dual simplex
algorithms for solving linear programs; introduction to the theory of simplex, fundamental insight,
duality, and sensitivity analysis; transportation, assignment, and transshipment problems; shortest
path, minimum spanning tree, maximum flow, minimum cost network flow problems and project
networks; and discrete-state and continuous-state dynamic programming models and applications.

Course Format & Methodology: This course runs for a total of 14 weeks and is delivered on-
ground. The course materials will be accessible via Blackboard (Bb) at: blackboard.northeastern.edu.
Each week, a module is covered. Each module contains one or more lessons, which are organized
around specific course topics. Please note that all due dates and times are specified according to the
Eastern time zone (ET); plan to complete and submit all assignments accordingly.

Textbook: Hillier F.S. and G.J. Lieberman, Introduction to Operations Research, 10th Edition,
McGraw Hill, 2015.

Course Outcomes: By the end of this course the students will be able to:
1. Formulate linear optimization models of operational and planning problems and solve them with
existing software
2. Solve two-variable linear programming problems with the graphical method
3. Understand the theory behind the simplex algorithm
4. Describe, compare, and use different algorithms based on the simplex method to manually solve
small-size linear programming problems
5. Understand the concept of computational complexity and use it to classify algorithms for linear
programming problems
6. Convert a linear programming problem to its dual and describe the relationships between a linear
program and its dual

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7. Understand the sensitivity of problem solutions to changes in input parameters and perform
sensitivity analyses of a linear program
8. Describe the various classes of network optimization models, their relationships, and their solution
algorithms
9. Formulate dynamic programming problems and manually solve small-size problems

Participation and Engagement: Your presence in the class, class participation, peer-to-peer
activities, and your performance on assignments, serve as indicators of your level of engagement and
effort throughout the course. Frequent opportunities to receive feedback, help, and/or clarification on
course material from the instructor are provided throughout the term. Those students who struggle
with the material, but take advantage of opportunities provided for instructor help and/or peer-to-peer
mentoring, can be successful in this course.

Communication/Submission of Work: Guidelines for completing and submitting each assignment

are posted along with the assignment in Blackboard. Please note that if you are unable to take an
examination on the scheduled date, a documented compelling excuse (such as hospitalization) is
required.

Course Activities and Assignments: This course includes the following required activities and
assignments:
• Weekly Reading and Lectures: Weekly readings and lectures in class provide the
background knowledge, terminology, and practical examples you need in order to understand
and correctly apply fundamental concepts in operations research. You are responsible for
completing the assigned textbook and other readings before you come to class.
• Homework: Problems, from the textbook and other sources, are required every week, and
the specific details are found within each week in Blackboard. You must submit your
homework in class on the specified day (see below class schedule), and no late submissions
are allowed. You will receive your graded submission plus any comments from the professor
within one week of each due date. You may be awarded partial credit if you make a mistake
but correctly apply a concept, so show your work for all problems. The lowest homework
grade will be dropped from your overall grade for this portion of the course.
• Examinations: Since the concepts in this course are interrelated and often build off each
other, at three points during the term, you will be assessed on your cumulative understanding
of course topics.

Student Accommodations: Northeastern University and the Disability Resource Center (DRC) are
committed to providing disability services that enable students who qualify under Section 504 of the
Rehabilitation Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act (ADAAA) to
participate fully in the activities of the university. To receive accommodations through the DRC,
students must provide appropriate documentation that demonstrates a current substantially limiting
disability. For more information, visit http://www.northeastern.edu/drc/getting-started-with-the-drc/.

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Grading/Evaluation Standards: Please refer to the following link for guidelines on the grading
system. https://www.northeastern.edu/registrar/gradingsystem.html

Grading Criteria:
Weekly Assignments: 20%
Exams: 2 x 25 = 50%
Final Exam: 30%

Class Schedule / Topical Outline: Please note: for more information about specific assignments
and due dates, please see instructions in your course site.

Assignments
Week Module Dates Topic
(Textbook Problems will be assigned every week)
Practice the Gauss-Jordan method to solve a
Introduction to
system of three simultaneous linear equations in
9/6 Operations
1 1 three unknowns.
9/10 Research & Linear
HW 1 is due on 9/13 (all HW are due at 1:35 pm in
Programming
class)
Generalized LP Solve a product mix problem using LINGO’s
9/13
2 2 Model and modeling language
9/17
LINGO Software HW 2 is due on 9/20
9/20 Introduction to Case study: Forest Pest Control Program
3 3
9/24 Simplex HW 3 is due on 9/27
Briefly describe why you break ties in the simplex
Simplex,
method, and how to recognize certain problem
continued:
9/27 characteristics from the simplex tableau.
4 4 Breaking Ties and
10/1 The Kommet Machine Tool Company question
Dealing with Non-
The Ford Motor Company question
Standard Forms
HW 4 is due on 10/8
5 5 10/4 Exam #1 in class Exam #1
Theory of the
10/8
6 6 Simplex HW 5 is due on 10/15
10/11
Algorithm
10/15 Staffing and Scheduling Problem;
7 7 Duality Theory
10/18 HW 6 is due on 10/22
10/22 Sensitivity Product mix problem
8 8
10/25 Analysis HW 7 is due on 10/29

9 9 10/29 Exam #2 in class Exam #2 on 11/1

Transportation and
11/1 Case Study: Redesigning a Warehouse Network;
9 10 Transshipment
11/5 HW 8 is due on 11/8
Problems
11 11/8 Assignment A Job Shop Scheduling Problem
10
11/12 Problem HW 9 is due on 11/15

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 Week Module Dates Topic Assignments
12 11/15
11 Network Optimization HW 10 is due on 11/22
11/19
Project Networks and
13 11/22
12 Introduction to HW 11 is due on 12/3
11/26
Dynamic Programming
Continuous State
14 12/3 Dynamic Programming Knapsack problem; Capacity expansion
13
12/6 and Additional problem; Machine replacement problem;
Applications
14 15 TBD Final Exam Final Exam

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