What'sBest! 11.0

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Introduction

What'sBest! is an add-in to Excel that allows you to build large scale optimization models in a free form layout within a spreadsheet. What'sBest! combines the proven power of Linear, Nonlinear (convex and nonconvex/Global), Quadratic, Quadratically Constrained, Second Order Cone, Stochastic, and Integer optimization with Microsoft Excel -- the most popular and flexible business modeling environment in use today.

What'sBest! 11.0 incorporates several enhancements including improved handling of optimization models that incorporate uncertainty, a number of solver enhancements, and expanded function support.


Stochastic Solver Improvements:

  • Improved warm-start in solving multistage Stochastic Programming models.

  • Improved method to induce correlations among stochastic parameters.

MIP Solver Improvements:

  • Significant improvements in root node heuristics for quickly finding good, integer-feasible solutions.

  • Improved identification of special structures in certain classes of models, as in multi-period models, and the ability to exploit this structure to achieve significant reductions in solve times.

Global Solver Improvements:

  • Improved heuristics for finding a good, feasible solution quickly.

  • Constraints may now be flagged as being convex, in cases where the constraint's complexity makes it impossible for the global solver to automatically determine convexity. This speeds the proof of global optimality.

  • Improved ability to identify constraints that can be reformulated as conic (i.e., second-order cone) constraints and thus be solved by the faster conic solver.

  • Improved ability for efficiently handling polynomial terms.

  • Improved bounds for non-convex quadratic terms using SDP and eigenvalue reformulations.

Support of Additional Excel's Functions

Support has been added for the array function MMULT as well as several additional Cumulative Distribution and Probability Density functions.

New Tool to Help Translate Models

A feature has been added to assist you in translating models set up for competing optimization solvers working in Excel into a format you can use with What'sBest!.

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