Application of the two-stage one-dimensional cutting stock problem in the steel industry

This paper presents a mixed-integer linear programming model for a two-stage one-dimensional cutting stock problem that appears in the make-to-order steel industry. In this problem, the ingots in stock must be cut into intermediate pieces (billets) to be heated in a furnace and then molded into a bar with the section indicated in the production order. This bar is then cut to obtain the final bars with the desired lengths. The main objective is to reduce the waste in the production. A heuristic approach to this problem is proposed that can be easily implemented into the industry and produces solutions with an optimal gap less than 10% in our computational results.