FOLPI, A Forestry-Oriented Linear Programming Interpreter

FOLPI is a Linear Programming-based planning system that can be used by forest managers without a detailed knowledge of Linear Programming (LP). It is compatible with IFS, an interactive forest simulator widely used by the New Zealand Forest Service. The system allows the user to state the problem in forestry terms, within a framework similar to that used by IFS. The problem statement is automatically translated into the format required by an LP package, using the same input data files as IFS, and an optimal solution is found. The LP output is then interpreted in terms of the original problem and reports identical to those produced by IFS can be generated interactively. The simulator can be used to explore the effect of deviations from the “optimal” solution.