Question: Sycamore Plastics (SP) is a manufacturer of
Sycamore Plastics (SP) is a manufacturer of polyethylene plastic pellets used as a raw material by manufacturers of plastic goods around the U.S. SP currently operates four manufacturing centers in Philadelphia, PA; Atlanta, GA; St. Louis, MO; and Salt Lake City, UT. The plants have different capacities and production costs, as indicated in the following table.
SP currently has six contract customers located in New York City; Birmingham, AL; Terre Haute, IN; Dallas, TX; Spokane, WA; and San Diego, CA. Transportation costs between the plants and various customers, as well as contracted demand from each customer, are shown in the following table.
a. Create a solver model and find the optimal solution to help SP develop a distribution plan that will minimize costs to supply the customers’ demand.
b. Commen t briefly on your solution. Beyond the obvious, does your proposed solution have any other implications for SP?
Transcribed Image Text:
Maximum Capacity (x 100,000 ibs.) Prod. Costs Plant (per 1,000 Ibs.) 7.5 $325.00 $275.00 $305.00 $250.00 Philadelphla Atlanta 9.0 St. Louis Salt Lake City 12.0 10.3
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