Operations Management: An Integrated Approach, 5th Edition

SOLVER SOLUTION REPORTS

Three reports are available when Solver has successfully found an optimal solution. These are the Answer Report, the Sensitivity Report, and the Limits Report. They are shown as choices when Solver completes its work and displays the Solver Results box (Figure B-10). To generate these reports, select them and then click “OK.” Solver inserts three new worksheets in the workbook. A detailed discussion of these reports is beyond the scope of this supplement, but an overview is provided of the Answer and Sensitivity Reports. Refer to one of the management science texts listed at the end of this supplement for more detailed information.

The Answer Report for this problem is shown in Figure B-12. It contains three sections, one each for the Target Cell, Adjustable (Changing) Cells, and the Constraints. Shown in this report are the “original” and “final” values. The original values are the values that were in the cells when Solver started its calculations, and the final values are the optimal values. By looking at the Target Cell and Adjustable Cells sections, you can identify that the optimal solution contains 100 camshafts and 350 gears and yields $8800 in profit. The Constraint section contains the cell value (the LHS value) of the constraint, the actual constraint itself as specified to Solver (the Formula column in the report), whether the constraint is binding or nonbinding, and the slack value. Two constraints are shown as binding, as we have already discovered ...