OPS.14:5.3 - One resource can still require a discrete choice

Suppose two indivisible jobs compete for three usable machine-hours. Under the stated contribution model, job A yields 70 currency units and needs two hours; job B yields 100 and needs three. Demand exists for one of each, both are otherwise feasible, and partial jobs have no accepted result.

A has the higher ratio: 35 per hour versus approximately 33.33. Choosing A leaves one unusable hour and yields 70. Choosing B yields 100. The feasible alternatives, not the ratio order alone, settle this decision.

With several scarce resources or service obligations, the practitioner uses the appropriate scheduling or optimization method. This small example establishes the effect of indivisibility; it supplies no general optimal scheduling algorithm.