An Analysis on Some Applications and Theoretical Concept of Operation Research

Exploring the Applications and Concepts of Operation Research in a Competitive Business Environment

by Shashi Sharma*,

- Published in Journal of Advances and Scholarly Researches in Allied Education, E-ISSN: 2230-7540

Volume 15, Issue No. 6, Aug 2018, Pages 428 - 432 (5)

Published by: Ignited Minds Journals


ABSTRACT

In a competitive business environment, it has become essential for the prosperity and growth in the field of Operation Research. The growing importance of new techniques has been emphasized the need for the developing operation to research models to provide practical utility. These Operation Research models which constitute the subject matters to develop in readers an understanding of problem solving methods. O.R. might be seen as a scientific approach to taking care of problems it abstracts the fundamental components of the problem into a model, which is then broke down to yield an ideal solution for execution. The mathematical points of interest and the explicit techniques used to manufacture and investigate these models can be very modern and are tended to.

KEYWORD

applications, theoretical concept, operation research, competitive business environment, prosperity, growth, new techniques, developing, research models, practical utility

INTRODUCTION

The roots of OR are as old as science and society. Though the roots of OR extend to even early 1800s, it was in 1885 when Ferderick W. Taylor emphasized the application of scientific analysis to methods of production, that the real start took place. Another man of early scientific management era was Henry L. Gantt. Most job scheduling methods at that time were rather haphazard. A job, for instance, may be processed on a machine without trouble but then wait for days for acceptance by the next machine. Gantt mapped each job from machine to machine, minimizing every delay. Now with the Gantt procedure it is possible to plan machine loadings months in advance and still quote delivery dates accurately. In 1917, A.K.Erlang, a Danish mathematician, published his work on the problem of congestion of telephone traffic. The difficulty was that during busy periods, telephone operators were many, resulting in delayed calls. A few years after its appearance, his work was accepted by the British Post Office as the basis for calculating circuit facilities. The well known economic order quantity model is attributed to F.W. Harris, who published his work on the area of inventory control in 1915. During the 1930s, H.C. Levinson, an American astronomer, applied scientific analysis to the problems of merchandising. His work included scientific study of customers‘ buying habits, response to advertising and relation of environment to the type of article sold. However, it was the First Industrial Revolution which contributed mainly towards the development of OR. Before this revolution, most of the industries were small scale, employing only a handful of men. The advent of machine toolsthe replacement of man by machine as a source of power and improved means of transportation and communication resulted in fast flourishing industry. It became increasingly difficult for a single man to perform all the managerial functions ( of planning, sale, purchase, production, etc.). Consequently, a division of management function took place. Managers of production, marketing, finance, personnel, research and development etc., began to appear. With further industrial growth, further subdivisions of management functions took place. For example ,production department was sub-divided into sections like maintenance, quality control, procurement, production planning, etc. In 1950, OR was introduced as a subject for academic study in American universities since then this subject has been gaining ever increasing importance for the students of Mathematics, Statistics, Commerce, Economics, Management and Engineering. Today, the impact of operations research can be felt in many areas. This is shown by the ever increasing number of educational institutions offering this subject at degree level. Of late, OR activities have spread to diverse fields such as hospitals, libraries, Planning, transportation systems, management, defense, etc. Numerous operations research techniques have turned out to be extremely valuable by and by. For some genuine problems, operations research gives the method of decision, specifically those problems that coordinate the above portrayals. The field of constraint programming is moderately new; the primary global workshop on "Standards and Practice of Constraint Programming" was held in 1993, while it turned into a gathering in 1995. The essential ideas of constraint thinking were developed in the field of man-made brainpower during the 1970s. Further A constraint can be seen as a confinement on the space of conceivable options. For instance, a constraint of the above truck directing problem is: "visit every customer inside its time span". Frequently one can formulate a combinatorial problem by methods for various constraints. The possibility of constraint programming is to deliberately search through an arrangement of conceivable choices, and to utilize every constraint individually to identify whether a specific arrangement of choices might be overlooked on the grounds that it contains no solution. The last procedure is called constraint propagation. Since the constraints are confirmed individually, constraint programming can be portrayed as being adaptable and nonexclusive. For instance, if a problem transforms, we may just include another constraint without influencing the past model. Another portrayal is that constraint programming is especially appropriate for attainability problems instead of enhancement problems. The all inclusive statement of constraint programming may appear to restrict its practical use. In any case, it has been connected effectively to various genuine problem cases, for instance booking problems. When we need to take care of a problem, we have to pick which method is most suitable to apply. The contrasts between constraint programming and operations research ought to be considered when settling on this decision. For every problem, we should initially recognize its attributes, and after that apply the method that coordinates the problem's qualities best. Shockingly, numerous practical problems are not described to solely coordinate either constraint programming or operations research. Rather, they fit in the configuration of the two fields. Consider for instance again the problem of ideally directing trucks to convey merchandise from a warehouse to customers, where we should visit every customer inside its time period. The streamlining segment of this problem commonly requests an operations research approach, while the planning segment, emerging from the time spans, is most appropriate for constraint programming. The blend of operations research and constraint programming is a characteristic thought, in light of the fact that the two methods can be utilized to take care of similar problems, and they have integral qualities and shortcomings. A wide range of blends have been contemplated before. They run from particular half and half algorithms for explicit problems up to the entire integration of the two fields. In spite of the fact that Operations Research (OR) and Constraint Programming (CP) have diverse roots, the connections between the two communities have become more grounded as of late. For tackling inevitably blend. Obviously, OR being an a lot bigger network, with an any longer history, it appears somewhat brazen to entitle this study "Integrating OR in CP". In any case the title reflects the distinctive research objectives of CP or potentially. Or on the other hand fundamentally ponders models and algorithms, planning to develop all the more incredible, adaptable and particularly more versatile solutions to combinatorial streamlining problems. A solution, in this sense, is eventually an algorithm to take care of a problem. By difference CP addresses issues about algorithms as opposed to the algorithms themselves. The administration study of Operational Research (OR) is completely practical in expectation and its objective is to propose solutions for complex problems emerging toward the path and the executives of huge frameworks of individuals, machines, materials and cash in industry, business, government and network administrations. The particular OR approach is to develop a scientific model of the framework under survey, consolidating estimations of variables, for example, shot and hazard, with which to foresee the results of elective decisions, techniques or controls. Or on the other hand should in this manner empower the executives to decide its approach and activities scientifically. The reason for this standard is to advance the utilization of institutionalized phrasing for Operational Research as a guide to compelling correspondences, especially in business thinks about and where OR techniques have come into more broad utilize.

OPERATIONS RESEARCH

A typical misguided judgment held by many is that O.R. is a gathering of mathematical instruments. While the facts confirm that it utilizes an assortment of mathematical techniques, operations research has an a lot more extensive degree. It is in reality a methodical approach to taking care of problems, which utilizes at least one explanatory devices during the time spent investigation. Maybe the single most concerning issue with O.R. is its name; to a layman, the expression "operations research" does not invoke any kind of significant picture! This is a grievous result of the way that the name that A. P. Rowe is attributed with first allotting to the field was by one way or another never adjusted to something that is more characteristic of the things that O.R. as a matter of fact does. Here and there O.R. is alluded to as Management Science (M.S.) with the end goal to more readily mirror its job as a scientific approach to taking care of the board problems, however it gives the idea that this phrasing is more mainstream with business experts individuals still bandy about the contrasts between O.R. also, M.S. Exacerbating this issue is the way that there is no reasonable accord Churchman who is viewed as one of the pioneers of O.R. characterized it as the application of scientific methods, techniques and devices to problems including the operations of a framework in order to give those responsible for the framework with ideal solutions to problems. This is in reality a fairly extensive definition, however there are numerous other people who will in general head toward the other extraordinary and characterize operations research to be what operations researchers do (a definition that is by all accounts regularly credited to E. Naddor)! Despite the correct words utilized, it is likely protected to state that the moniker "operations research" is setting down deep roots and it is along these lines imperative to comprehend that fundamentally, O.R. may essentially be seen as a methodical and diagnostic approach to decision-production and problem-fathoming. The key here is that O.R. utilizes a methodology that is objective and obviously verbalized, and is worked around the rationality that such an approach is better than one that depends absolutely on subjectivity and the assessment of "specialists," in that it will prompt better and more steady decisions. Be that as it may, O.R. does not block the utilization of human judgment or non-quantifiable thinking; rather, the last are seen as being reciprocal to the investigative approach. One should subsequently see O.R. not as an outright decision making process, but rather as an aidto using sound judgment. O.R. assumes a warning job by displaying a director or a decision-creator with an arrangement of sound, scientifically inferred options. In any case, a ultimate conclusion is in every case left to the person who has information that can't be actually evaluated, and who can temper the aftereffects of the examination to touch base at a sensible decision.

OPERATIONS RESEARCH DEVELOPMENT: SOME STAGES

The phases of development of O.R. are otherwise called stages and procedure of O.R, which has six essential advances. These six stages are masterminded in the accompanying request: Step I: Observe the problem condition Step II: Analyze and characterize the problem Step III: Develop a model Step IV: Select suitable information input Step V: Provide a solution and test its sensibility Step VI: Implement the solution Step I: Observe the problem condition - The initial phase during the time spent O.R. development is the problem condition perception. This progression incorporates distinctive exercises; they are meetings, formulate the problem. Step II: Analyze and characterize the problem - This progression is examining and characterizing the problem. In this progression notwithstanding the problem definition the objectives, uses and restrictions of O.R. study of the problem likewise characterized. The yields of this progression are clear handle of requirement for a solution and its inclination understanding. Step III: Develop a model - This progression develops a model; a model is a portrayal of some unique or genuine circumstance. The models are essentially mathematical models, which depicts frameworks, forms as conditions, recipe/connections. The diverse exercises in this progression are factors definition, figuring conditions and so on. The model is tried in the field under various natural constraints and changed with the end goal to work. A few times the model is adjusted to fulfill the administration with the outcomes. Step IV: Select suitable information input - A model works fittingly when there is proper information input. Consequently, choosing fitting info information is imperative advance in the O.R. development stage or process. The exercises in this progression incorporate inner/outside information examination, actuality investigation, and accumulation of conclusions and utilization of PC information banks. The objective of this progression is to give adequate information contribution to work and test the model developed in Step_III. Step V: Provide a solution and test its sensibility - This progression is to get a solution with the assistance of model and information. This solution isn't executed quickly, rather the solution is utilized to test the model and to discover there is any restrictions. Assume if the solution isn't sensible or the conduct of the model isn't appropriate, the model is refreshed and altered at this stage. The yield of this stage is the solution(s) that underpins the current hierarchical objectives. Step VI: Implement the solution - At this progression the solution acquired from the past advance is actualized. The usage of the solution includes mo numerous social issues. In this manner, before execution the usage specialist needs to determine the issues. A legitimately actualized solution results in nature of work and gains the help from the administration.

CHARACTERISTICS OF OPERATION RESEARCH

System Orientation of Operation Research - One of the most important characteristics of Operations Research study is its concerned with problem as a determine their impact on the organization as a whole. The Use of Interdisciplinary Team - Operations Research study is performed by a team of scientists whose individuals members have been drawn from different scientific and engineering disciplines. For example, one may find a mathematician, statistician, physicist, psychologist, economist and engineers working together on an Operations Research problem. Application of Scientific Method - Sometimes, we have to use the scientific method for solving the problem of Operations Research. It is not related to laboratories experiment like physics or biology or chemistry but it related by to the real life experiment. For example, no company can risk its failure in order to conduct a successful experiment. Though, experimentations on subsystem is some time resorted to, by and large, a research approach that does not involve experimentation on the total system is preferred. Quantitative Solutions - It provides the management with a quantitative basis for decision making. Human Factor - Human factor is an important component of the Operations Research study. Without human factor Operations Research study is incomplete.

APPLICATIONS OF OPERATION RESEARCH

Some of the industrial/government/business problems which can be analysed by OR approach have been arranged by functional areas as follows; 1) Finance and Accounting 2) Marketing 3) Production Management 4) Personnel Management 5) Techniques and General Management 6) Stock re-ordering policies 7) Transport schedules 8) Product mix and Production flows 9) Allocation problems i.e. which jobs should be allocated to which machines 10) Time wasted queuing at issuing, counters 11) Scheduling of activities in a complex project 12) General congestion problem. Various operations research (OR) methods have discovered their way into constraint programming (CP). This development is totally normal, since OR and CP have comparative objectives. Or then again is basically a minor departure from the scientific routine with regards to mathematical modeling. It depicts wonders in a formal dialect that enables one to derive outcomes thoroughly. In contrast to a run of the mill scientific model, be that as it may, anOR model has a prescriptive and in addition a spellbinding reason. It speaks to a human movement with some opportunity of decision, as opposed to a characteristic procedure. The laws of nature move toward becoming constraints that the action must watch, and the objective is to amplify some objective subject to the constraints. CP's constraint-situated approach to problem tackling represents a prescriptive modeling undertaking fundamentally the same as that of OR. CP truly has been less worried about finding ideal than achievable solutions, however this is a shallow contrast. It is not out of the ordinary, in this way, that OR methods would discover application in understanding CP models. There remains a major distinction, be that as it may, in the way that CP as well as comprehend constraints. CP regularly observes a constraint as a strategy, or if nothing else as summoning a methodology, that works on the solution space, typically by diminishing variable domains. Or on the other hand observes a constraint set overall fabric; the solution algorithm works on the whole problem instead of the constraints in it. The two approaches have their points of interest. CP can configuration specific algorithms for individual constraints or subsets of constraints, consequently misusing substructure in the problem that OR methods are probably going to miss. Or then again algorithms, then again, can misuse worldwide properties of the problem that CP can just mostly catch by propagation through factor domains.

CONCLUSION

This study displays a survey of improvement techniques: CP, OR techniques and local Search. CP and Integer Programming are correct advancement methods to combinatorial streamlining problems. Worldwide constraints, together with their propagation algorithms, fill in as building obstructs for both the problem modeling and the problem illuminating. They can be all around used to model and unravel the perplexing and substantial arrangement of constraints displayed in genuine combinatorial streamlining problems. The OR techniques, e.g. Linear Programming, can perform optimality thinking through the solution to the casual utilized to decrease the search space of the problem. Numerous approaches have been contemplated in the field of Operations Research, such as testing that utilizes an estimation of the normal incentive with its normal incentive over a given example; the l-formed method which faces two stage problems and depends on Benders Decomposition. An alternate method depends on the branch and headed reached out for managing stochastic factors.

REFERENCES

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Corresponding Author Shashi Sharma* Mathematics Department, DAV College, Muzaffarnagar-251001