Distribution and Network Models Project Description (1)

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Harvard University *

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E 5060

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Industrial Engineering

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Apr 3, 2024

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2

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Case Problem SOLUTIONS PLUS – PROBLEM DESCRIPTION Solutions Plus is an industrial chemicals company that produces specialized cleaning fluids and solvents for a wide variety of applications. Solutions Plus just received an invitation to submit a bit to supply the Great North American railroad with cleaning fluid for locomotives. Great North American needs the cleaning fluid at 11 locations (railway stations); it provided the following information to Solution plus regarding the number of gallons of cleaning fluid required at each location (see Table 1). Location Gallons Required El Paso 16,550 San Francisco 118,010 Portland 78,923 Chicago 23,565 Los Angeles 66,740 Pittsburgh 111,475 Houston 101,762 Las Vegas 38,973 Jacksonville 65,436 Little Rock 149,462 San Diego 20,590 Table 1. GALLONS OF CLEANING FLUID REQUIRED AT EACH LOCATION Solutions Plus can produce the cleaning fluid at its Cincinnati plant for $1.20 per gallon. Even though the Cincinnati location is its only plant, Solutions Plus has negotiated with the industrial chemical company located in Oakland, California, to produce and ship up to 500,000 gallons of the locomotive cleaning fluid to selected Solutions Plus customer locations. The Oakland company will charge Solutions Plus $1.65 per gallon to produce the cleaning fluid, but Solution Plus thinks that the lower shipping costs from Oakland to some customer locations may offset the added cost of producing the product. The president of Solutions Plus, Charlie Weaver, contacted several trucking companies to negotiate shipping rates between the two production facilities (Cincinnati and Oakland) and the location where the railroad locomotives are cleaned. Table 2 shows the quotes received in terms of dollars per gallon. The “ -- ” entries in Table 2 identify shipping routes that will not be considered because of the large distances involved. These quotes for shipping rates are guaranteed for one year.
Facility Location Cincinnati, OH Oakland, CA El Paso 0.72 0.72 San Francisco -- 0.17 Portland 0.83 0.45 Chicago 0.25 -- Los Angeles -- 0.22 Pittsburgh 0.22 -- Houston 0.62 0.72 Las Vegas -- 0.25 Jacksonville 0.35 -- Little Rock 0.42 -- San Diego -- 0.25 Table 2. FREIGHT COST ($ PER GALLON) To submit a big to the railroad company, Solutions Plus must determine the price per gallon it will charge. Solutions Plus usually sells its cleaning fluids for 15% more than its cost to produce and deliver the product. For this big contract, however, Fred Roedel, the director of marketing, suggested that maybe the company should consider a smaller profit margin. In addition, to ensure that if Solutions Plus wins the bid, it will have adequate capacity to satisfy existing orders as well as accept orders for other new business, the management team decided to limit the number of gallons of the locomotive cleaning fluid produced in the Cincinnati plant to 500,000 gallons at most. SOLUTIONS PLUS – MANAGERIAL REPORT You are asked to make recommendations that will help Solutions Plus prepare a bid. Your report should address, but not be limited to, the following issues: 1. Draw the network that shows the origin and destination points, routes, and costs associated with each route. ( 10 points) 2. Formulate and solve the distribution network problem using Excel Solver and answer the following questions. ( 15 points) a. If Solutions Plus wins the bid, which production facility (Cincinnati or Oakland) should supply the cleaning fluid to the locations where the railroad locomotives are cleaned? How much should be shipped from each facility to each location? ( 7 points) b. What is the breakeven point for Solutions Plus? That is, how low can the company go on its bid without losing money? ( 6 points) c. If Solutions Plus wants to use its standard 15% markup, how much should it bid? ( 4 points) d. Freight costs are significantly affected by the price of oil. The contract on which Solutions Plus is bidding is for two years. Discuss how fluctuation in freight costs might affect the bid Solutions Plus submits. ( 3 points)
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