Many numerical computations reported in the literature show only a small difference between the optimal value of the one-dimensional cutting stock problem (1CSP) and that of the corresponding linear programming relaxation. Moreover, theoretical investigations have proven that this difference is smaller than 2 for a wide range of subproblems of the general 1CSP.
This paper is devoted to the exact resolution of a strongly NP-hard resource-constrained scheduling problem, the Process Move Programming problem, which arises in relation to the operability of certain high-availability real-time distributed systems. Based on the study of the polytope defined as the convex hull of the incidence vectors of the admissible process move programs, we present a branch-and-cut algorithm along with extensive computational results demonstrating its practical relevance,...
In this article we study the realistic network topology of Synchronous Digital Hierarchy (SDH) networks. We describe how providers fulfill customer connectivity requirements. We show that SDH Network design reduces to the Non-Disjoint m-Ring-Star Problem (NDRSP). We first show that there is no two-index integer formulation for this problem. We then present a natural 3-index formulation for the NDRSP together with some classes of valid inequalities that are used as cutting planes in a Branch-and-Cut...
In this paper, we propose an exact solution method for the windy rural postman problem (WRPP). The motivation to study this problem comes from some real-life applications, such as garbage collecting in a predefined sector with hills, where the traversing or the servicing speed can change following the direction. We present a Dantzig-Wolfe decomposition and a branch-and-price algorithm to solve the WRPP. To the best of our knowledge, Dantzig-Wolfe decomposition has never been used to solve that problem....
In cutting stock problems, after an optimal (minimal stock usage) cutting plan has been devised, one might want to further reduce the operational costs by minimizing the number of setups. A setup operation occurs each time a different cutting pattern begins to be produced. The related optimization problem is known as the Pattern Minimization Problem, and it is particularly hard to solve exactly. In this paper, we present different techniques to strengthen a formulation proposed in the literature....
In cutting stock problems, after an optimal (minimal stock usage) cutting plan has been devised, one might want to further reduce the operational costs by minimizing the number of setups. A setup operation occurs each time a different cutting pattern begins to be produced. The related optimization problem is known as the Pattern Minimization Problem, and it is particularly hard to solve exactly. In this paper, we present different techniques to strengthen a formulation proposed in the literature....
A lower bound for the number of comparisons is obtained, required by a computational problem of classification of an arbitrarily chosen point of the Euclidean space with respect to a given finite family of polyhedral (non-convex, in general) sets, covering the space. This lower bound depends, roughly speaking, on the minimum number of convex parts, into which one can decompose these polyhedral sets. The lower bound is then applied to the knapsack problem.
This paper presents a heuristic approach combining constraint satisfaction, local search and a constructive optimization algorithm for a large-scale energy management and maintenance scheduling problem. The methodology shows how to successfully combine and orchestrate different types of algorithms and to produce competitive results. We also propose an efficient way to scale the method for huge instances. A large part of the presented work was done to compete in the ROADEF/EURO Challenge 2010, organized...
Fixed charge transportation problem (FCTP) is a supply chain problem. In this problem, in addition to the cost per unit for each transported product, a fixed cost is also required. The aim is to carry out the transportation process at the lowest possible cost. As with all supply chain problems, this problem may have one, two, or three stages. An algorithm that can find the optimal solution for the problem in polynomial time is not known, even if it is a single-stage problem. For this reason, new...
Clique family inequalities a∑v∈W xv + (a - 1)∈v∈W, xv ≤ aδ form an intriguing class of valid inequalities for the stable set polytopes of all graphs. We prove firstly that their Chvátal-rank is at most a, which provides an alternative proof for the validity of clique family inequalities, involving only standard rounding arguments. Secondly, we strengthen the upper bound further and discuss consequences regarding the Chvátal-rank of subclasses of claw-free graphs.