On the Optimization of Transportation Problem

The Transportation Problem which deals with the distribution of commodities from a variety of sources to a variety of destinations was considered in this research. In this work, existing theorems such as the duality theorems and complementary slackness theorem were used to analyse the transportation problem and their applicability was observed. Illustration was made with data gathered from a real-life production company (Owerri, Port-Harcourt and Enugu plants). The data collected was modeled as a Linear Programming Problem of the transportation type and solved with TORA optimization software (VAM-MODI Method) to generate an optimal and feasible solution. It was observed that the cost of transportation of finished Returnable Glass Bottle products of the company for a month was in general reduced by 11.58%.