Make-Up Test

The University of the West Indies

St. Augustine

Department of Mechanical Engineering

 ME30B: Engineering Management II

Supplemental In-Course Test:  April 23, 2004, 4-6pm

1. Highland Appliance must determine how many colour TVs and VCRs should be stocked. It costs Highland $300 to purchase a colour TV and $200 to purchase a VCR. A colour TV requires 3 sq yd of storage space and a VCR requires 1 sq yd. The sale of color TV earns Highland a profit of $150 and the sale of a VCR earns $100. Highland has $20,000 available for purchasing stock and only 400 sq yd of space. Highland must have at least 10 VCRs in stock to meet its demand. Highland has set the following goals (listed in order of importance):

Goal 1: A maximum of $15,000 can be spent on purchasing colour TVs and VCRs

Goal 2: Highland should earn at least $11,000 in profits from the sale of colour TVs and VCRs.

Goal 3: Colour TVs and VCRs should not use up more than 200 sq yd of storage space

a) Formulate a goal programming model that Highland can use to determine how many color TVs and VCRs to order.                                                                           [5]

b) Solve this model graphically as a linear programming model where Highland’s only Goal is to maximize profit only (i.e. Goals 1-3 are ignored).                                     [5]

2. At the UWI cafeteria, students form a single line from which they are either served their food by Assistant 1 or Assistant 2. After being served, the student cashes their food at a single cash register. UWI has hired you to simulate/ model this queuing behavior.

a) What variables will you measure? Give appropriate explanations.                   [3]

b) Briefly explain what methodology you will implement for measuring the variables and for ensuring the measured variables represent the system adequately.                       [3]

c) Why would this research be beneficial to UWI/ the cafeteria?                                    [2]                               

3. What do you understand by the term certainty equivalence?                          [2]