Balance of investment in armoured combat support vehicles: an application of mixed integer programming

Operational analysis techniques are used extensively by the Ministry of Defence to inform their decision-making process. One particular type of OA study frequently undertaken is a balance of investment study. This paper focuses on a recent BoI study whose aim was to identify the optimum mix of vehicles that should be procured to fill a large number of identified requirements/roles. There will be a description of the methodology employed, highlighting the formulation and application of mixed integer linear programming techniques, alongside a brief discussion of the impact of the results and the influences made on the decision-making process. In this paper, we stress the degree of information that can be built into processes to aid decisions concerning the suitability of vehicles to perform a variety of different roles.