Best Location For A New Happy Buns Restaurant

Purpose: Introduction/background of problem

The purpose of this report is to determine the best location for a new Happy Buns Restaurant. A prospective franchisee has suggested that the Columbus, Ohio, area might be a great location for a new Happy Buns Restaurant. The Happy Buns Restaurant chain has developed a standard template with predetermine criteria that is utilized in the evaluation process. There are five potential location to choose from and the VP has to determine which location meets all the necessary requirements for a new restaurant. In this scenario the Multi Attribute Decision Making (MADM) model is a helpful tool in helping us determine the best location. This model is a branch of a general class of Operations Research (or

The raw data spreadsheet utilized predetermined criteria provided by Happy Buns to determine what information was essential in comparing the suggested locations. This predetermine criteria was weighed against a utility table from 0 to 1 to determine the values of the information provide. The number 1 is utilized as the most optimal choose and 0 the least.

In the chart below the information is organized in six categories traffic count, NPV of investment, building size, lot size, insurance, and access. On the left you will find each of the locations that are being considered for a new location of Happy Buns. The percentage above is the weight assigned to each category in order to help determine the best solution. The total score is determined by multiplying the weights by the locations average and adding up the

Traffic and NPV where given a weight of 30%. The weight assigned to traffic count was given in hopes that the more traffic that passes through the location the better it will be for business. The weight assigned to NPV was given with the assumption that it had the best potential for future cash flow. While the other criteria are important they where not weighted as heavily. The assumption was that the resturant would still be successful if they where weighed equally. The 10 perecent weight given to the additional criteria was a starting point to see how the weights would affect the overall balance. The limited information provided did not indicate how big the building or lot size need to be resulting in a lower weight being assigned. The assumption is that the sensitiviy analysis will help determine if the assigned weights are balance properly.

In the sensitivy analysis below the weights assigned to the criteria was adjusted in order to determine the best weight to utilize. In the first chart the traffic and NPV was reduced in order to place more emphasis on lot size and access. Again on the next chart, the traffic and NPV was reduced in order to place more emphasis on building size and