An Optimization Procedure for a Multi-Item Multi-Source Materials Acquisition Problen

A materials acquisition planning (MAP) problem that involves the determination of how much to order of a number of different items from a number of different suppliers is considered. This particular problem is modelled as a nonlinear mixed integer programming problem. A solution procedure based upon the partition of variables is developed to handle the MAP problem. This solution procedure utilizes a modified Hooke-Jeeves Pattern Search procedure along with a linear programming simplex algorithm. An example problem is presented and the results of applying the suggested solution procedure to this problem are reported.