The Linear Ordering Problem

Complex optimization problems abound in the real world. In the face of these challenges, established methods often fall short of providing solutions. However, ‘exact’ and ‘heuristic’ techniques are dramatically enhancing our ability to solve significant practical problems in the world of optimization. They are changing the landscape in the field, broadening the frontiers of the possible, and allowing us to engage effectively with a whole new range of challenges. This monograph sets out state-of-the-art optimization methods for tackling the ‘linear ordering problem’ (LOP). Whereas important applications in business, engineering and economics lie beyond the reach of methodologies that have been the focus of academic research for three decades, the fresh approaches set out in this volume provide practical solutions to the LOP. The focus on the LOP does not limit the monograph’s scope and applicability, however. The exact and heuristic techniques outlined in these pages can be put to use in any number of combinatorial optimization problems. While the authors employ the LOP to illustrate cutting-edge optimization technologies, the book is also a tutorial on how to design effective and successful implementations of exact and heuristic procedures alike. The information in these pages provides readers with a toolkit that can be employed in a variety of settings. As a result, the book will be of great interest to researchers and practitioners in a number of fields, including computer science, mathematics, operations research, management science, industrial engineering, and economics. It is also suitable for use as a textbook on issues of practical optimization in a masters course, or as a reference book for engineering optimization algorithms. The authors have sought to make the book accessible to as wide an audience as possible by providing the reader with basic definitions and concepts in optimization. In addition, the numerous tutorials aid speedy assimilation, while the coverage given to the next generation of Flash software prepares readers for future developments.

‘Exact’ and ‘heuristic’ techniques are enhancing our ability to overcome intractable obstacles in the world of optimization. Using the linear ordering problem as an illustration, this text provides a toolkit for tackling a variety of combinatorial dilemmas.

Faced with the challenge of solving the hard optimization problems that abound in the real world, existing methods often encounter great difficulties. Important applications in business, engineering or economics cannot be tackled by the techniques that have formed the predominant focus of academic research throughout the past three decades. Exact and heuristic approaches are dramatically changing our ability to solve problems of practical significance and are extending the frontier of problems that can be handled effectively. This monograph details state-of-the-art optimization methods, both exact and heuristic, for the LOP. The authors employ the LOP to illustrate contemporary optimization technologies as well as how to design successful implementations of exact and heuristic procedures. Therefore, they do not limit the scope of this book to the LOP, but on the contrary, provide the reader with the background and practical strategies in optimization to tackle different combinatorial problems.

1 Introduction.- 2 Heuristic Methods.- 3 Meta-Heuristics.- 4 Branch-and-Bound.- 5 Branch-and-Cut.- 6 The Linear Ordering Polytope.- 7 Further Aspects.- References.- Index.