Carlton Construction Is Supplying Building Materials for a New Mall

question 45

Essay

Carlton construction is supplying building materials for a new mall construction project in Kansas. Their contract calls for a total of 250,000 tons of material to be delivered over a three-week period. Carlton's supply depot has access to three modes of transportation: a trucking fleet, railway delivery, and air cargo transport. Their contract calls for 120,000 tons delivered by the end of week one, 80% of the total delivered by the end of week two, and the entire amount delivered by the end of week three. Contracts in place with the transportation companies call for at least 45% of the total delivered be delivered by trucking, at least 40% of the total delivered be delivered by railway, and up to 15% of the total delivered be delivered by air cargo. Unfortunately, competing demands limit the availability of each mode of transportation each of the three weeks to the following levels (all in thousands of tons):
$\begin{array}{cccc}\text { Week } & \text { Trucking Limits } & \text { Railway Limits } & \text { Air Cargo Limits } \\\hline 1 & 45 & 60 & 15 \\2 & 50 & 55 & 10 \\3 & 55 & 45 & 5 \\\hline \text { Costs (\$ per } 1000 \text { tons) } & \$ 200 & \$ 140 & \$ 400\end{array}$
The following is the LP model for this logistics problem.
What values would you enter in the Risk Solver Platform (RSP) task pane for the cells in this Excel spreadsheet implementation of this problem?
Objective Cell:
Variables Cells:
Constraints Cells:

Grasp the law of increasing costs and its relevance to economic decision-making.

Identify the factors that contribute to the law of increasing costs.

Comprehend the concept of opportunity cost and its critical role in economic choices.

Analyze the implications of moving along the production possibilities curve and understanding increasing opportunity costs.

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Definitions:

Standard Hours Allowed

The number of hours that should have been worked for the units produced, based on preset standards.

Units of Product

The quantity of product items or goods produced.

Actual Hours Worked

This refers to the total hours an employee has been physically present and working at their job within a specific period.

Direct Labor Costs

The wages and benefits paid to employees who are directly involved in the production of goods or services.