Construction of multi-product, multi-period aggregate production planning models and application of developing alternative strategies for decision making

ABSTRACT Aggregate Production Planning is a middle-range planning technique which can be used to determine the optimum levels of the production rate, work force levels, and inventory. Operations manager try to determine the best way to meet forecasted demand by adjusting production rates, work force levels, inventory levels, overtime or undertime work, subcontracting rates, and the other controllable variables (for example; backlog of orders, or lost of orders, etc.). The objective of the process usually is to minimize costs related above variables over the planning period. In the production planning process, only one strategy is applied at Production Planning and Stock Control Department in Vestel Company where I had worked for five and a half years. ** This thesis aims to demonstrate alternative strategies which if applied would improve middle-range production planning and also provide better management information with in a multi-product, multi-period business environment. Each of alternative strategies are analyzed fully and modelled theoretically in order to find the optimum levels of the variables.