NWAC Electronics manufactures four types of simple cables for a defense contractor.

Each cable must go through four sequential operations: splicing, soldering, sleeving, and inspection. The following table gives the pertinent data of the situation:

Minutes per unit Cable Splicing Soldering Sleeving Inspection Unit revenue ($)

SC320 10.5 20.4 3.2 5.0 9.40 SC325 9.3 24.6 2.5 5.0 10.80 SC340 11.6 17.7 3.6 5.0 8.75 SC370 8.2 26.5 5.5 5.0 7.80 Daily capacity (minutes) 4,800.0 9,600.0 4,700.0 4,500.0 The contractor guarantees a minimum production level of 100 units for each of the four cables.

(a) Formulate the problem as a linear programming model, and determine the optimum production schedule.

(b) Based on the dual prices, do you recommend making increases in the daily capacities of any of the four operations? Explain.

(c) Does the minimum production requirements for the four cables represent an advantage or a disadvantage for NWAC Electronics? Provide an explanation based on the dual prices.

(d) Can the present unit contribution to revenue as specified by the dual price be guaranteed if we increase the capacity of soldering by 10%?