Track: Operations Research

Abstract

This paper aims to study a cutting problem inherent to the modelling process of a textile company and find a solution that minimizes fabric waste. Thus, several heuristics were adopted, whose results allowed inferring about the company’s current condition, i.e., whether the current solution adopted is effective in minimizing fabric waste. The heuristics have been tested, analyzed, and compared using a pre-existing database. Following this hypothetico-deductive method, the initial heuristic and its improvements were subsequently applied to the real problem. Regarding the solutions, the 1st heuristic presented the worst solution, as expected, and the subsequent heuristics (2nd-5th) presented continuous improvements of approximately 5% compared to their predecessors. Based on the results, it was found that the created heuristics did not generate better solutions than the current one adopted by the company (H = 4.04m), i.e., its solution is robust and effective, considering the company's objective. However, the successive improvements made to the heuristics allowed generating of good solutions comparable to the ones given by the specialized software.