Question

A chemical manufacturer produces two products, chemical X and chemical Y. Each product is manufactured by a two-step process that involves blending and mixing in machine A and packaging on machine B. Chemical X provides a $55/unit contribution to profit, while Chemical Y provides a $60 contribution to profit. The processing times for the two products on the mixing machine (A) and the packaging machine (B) are as follows:

1. Product	Machine A	Machine B
   	(hours)	(hours)
   Chemical X	3	5
   Chemical Y	2	3

   For the upcoming two-week period, machine A has available 90 hours and machine B has available 60 hours of processing time. Forecasts of the markets indicate that the manufacturer can expect to sell a maximum of 16 units of chemical X and 18 units of chemical Y.

   How many decision variables does this problem have?

Answer 1

Thank you.