LOG307

Optimisation and Simulation for Decision-

Making

Group-based Assignment

January 2024 Presentation

LOG307 Group-based Assignment

GROUP-BASED ASSIGNMENT

This assignment is worth 20% of the final mark for LOG307 Optimisation and Simulation for
Decision-Making.

The cut-off date for this assignment is 8 March 2024, 2355hrs.

This is a group-based assignment. You should form a group of 4 members from your seminar
group. Each group is required to upload a single report via your respective seminar group site
in Canvas. Please elect a group leader. The responsibility of the group leader is to upload the
report on behalf of the group.

It is important for each group member to contribute substantially to the final submitted work.
All group members are equally responsible for the entire submitted assignment. If you feel that
the work distribution is inequitable to either yourself or your group mates, please highlight this
to your instructor as soon as possible. Your instructor will then investigate and decide on any
action that needs to be taken. It is not necessary for all group members to be awarded the same
mark.

Note to Students:

Please note that you are required to submit only an Excel File for your GBA.

For submission of Excel File for GBA:

• Please name your excel file in this format: Course Code, SUSS PI No., Student Name,
and Submission Date.
• Use separate sheets to answer different questions and name the sheets accordingly.
• No Word file is required.
• Use a textbox to write your answers in the Excel sheet.
• The Excel file will go through Turnitin.
• Incorrect file submissions will not be graded.

Use of Generative AI Tools (Allowed)

The use of generative AI tools is allowed for this assignment.

• You are expected to provide proper attribution if you use generative AI tools while
completing the assignment, including appropriate and discipline-specific citation, a
table detailing the name of the AI tool used, the approach to using the tool (e.g. what
prompts were used), the full output provided by the tool, and which part of the output
was adapted for the assignment;

• To take note of section 3, paragraph 3.2 and section 5.2, paragraph 2A.1 (Viva Voce)
of the Student Handbook;

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LOG307 Group-based Assignment

• The University has the right to exercise the viva voce option to determine the authorship
of a student’s submission should there be reasonable grounds to suspect that the
submission may not be fully the student’s own work.

• For more details on academic integrity and guidance on responsible use of generative
AI tools in assignments, please refer to the TLC website for more details;

• The University will continue to review the use of generative AI tools based on feedback
and in light of developments in AI and related technologies.

Important Note: Grading of GBA Submissions

Marks awarded to your assignment are based on the following guidelines:

Component Description Marks

1. Content • Identifies key points correctly and comprehensively; applies 80
relevant knowledge to solve the problem or address the issue
• Provides supporting reasons drawn from course materials and
other credible sources, wherever relevant
• Shows a good grasp of the problem/issue with critical insight
• Provides a mature response with feasible recommendations
2. Quality of • Demonstrates highly original writing* 10
Writing • Constructs sentences that are grammatically and syntactically
correct, and are free from spelling mistakes
• Uses, wherever relevant, specialised vocabulary and
terminology related to the subject matter
• Provides proper in-text citation and referencing to content
drawn from course materials and other credible sources that
follow APA formatting and style guidelines**
3. Quality of • Presents key points, workings, numerical formulations and 10
Presentation results in a clear, logical and succinct manner
• Presents well-annotated tables and figures, wherever relevant,
that follow APA formatting and style guidelines**
• Provides a reference list at the end of the main report
• Includes less relevant details in an Appendix, if necessary
• Shows proper formatting that may include:
o a properly formatted cover page and numbered pages
o adherence to the specified word count, where applicable
o paragraphs with proper spacing and page margins
Total 100
Notes:
* Reports with high Turnitin similarity and/or AI writing percentage, especially when the
matching content is not cited and referenced, can attract further penalties.
** See https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines for tutorials and webinars on the
APA formatting and style guidelines. See also Purdue University's Online Writing Lab
https://owl.purdue.edu/ for information on APA formatting and style guide.

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LOG307 Group-based Assignment

Question 1

Mr Goh is the managing director at PC4U, a Singapore-based company selling computers to

business customers. Mr Goh has a team of 12 sales representatives who cover 4 regions in
Singapore. He needs to decide on the allocation of his sales force to different regions so that
they maximise daily sales revenue for PC4U. Total sales for each region increase as the number
of salespersons assigned to the region increases. However, they do so at a declining rate
according to the below formula:
𝑏𝑏
Total sales at region i = 𝑎𝑎 − 𝑋𝑋
𝑖𝑖

where Xi is the number of salespersons allocated to region I, while a and b are constant
parameters for each region, as indicated in the table below. The table also shows the daily
expenses per salesperson for each region. Assume that Mr Goh has a daily expense budget of
$4,900, and he has to allocate at least one salesperson to each region.

Expense
a b
($/day/salesperson)
1 $16,000 4,800 $330
2 $10,000 9,500 $450
Region
3 $22,000 5,400 $510
4 $12,000 10,100 $270

(a) Formulate a nonlinear programming model to maximise daily sales at PC4U.

(15 marks)

(b) Develop a spreadsheet model for this problem and solve it to find the optimal sales
force allocation at PC4U. Comment on your findings.
(15 marks)

Question 2

Joshua, who serves as the manager at Enterprise, a car distributor, is currently in the process of
determining the best quantity of cars of a new model to procure for the CNY. The current cost
of each ordered car stands at $25,000. An increase in car prices next week, estimated to be in
the range of 5-10%, is expected. The demand for cars for this model has the probability
distribution below:

Demand Probability
20 0.15
25 0.20
30 0.30
35 0.20
40 0.15

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LOG307 Group-based Assignment

The anticipated revenue per car for this model during the new year week is projected to be an
average of $35,000. The company wants to satisfy all the demand, but should Joshua decide to
acquire additional cars just before the new year, there is an additional cost of $2,000 per car.
In the event of surplus cars at the company, he can sell these extra cars at a rate between $20,000
and $22,000 per car.

(a) Analyse to find out the number of cars Joshua should order now to maximise the
expected profit. The management of the company wants him to buy the cars now or just
before the new year. Use the built-in Excel functions for your analysis and check at
least 5 different options. Explain your answer.
(25 marks)

(b) Determine the 95% confidence interval for the expected profit.
(5 marks)

(c) If the demand for the car follows a normal distribution instead, with a mean of 35 and
a standard deviation of 10, determine the “best” order quantity with the largest mean
profit. Use @ RISK functions to develop your simulation model. Check at least 5
different options for order quantity.
(15 marks)

(d) Discuss whether this order quantity would be considered best by the car dealer based
on the idea that the decision-maker may use criteria other than profit to make the
decision. You may use any statistics and/or graphs from @RISK.
(5 marks)

In your answer, clearly show the input parameters, decision variable(s), output variable(s) and
any other simulation parameters and formula you used for your analysis. Submitting only an
Excel sheet is not sufficient.

---- END OF ASSIGNMENT ----

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