Jacobus Franciscus (Jacques) Benders (1 June 1924 – 9 January 2017) was a Dutch mathematician and Emeritus Professor of Operations Research at the Eindhoven University of Technology.
He was the first Professor in the Netherlands in the field of Operations Research[1] and is known for his contributions to mathematical programming.
In 1955, he moved to Shell laboratory in Amsterdam, where he researched mathematical programming problems concerning the logistics of oil refinery.
He developed the technique known as Benders' decomposition, and used the results in his doctoral thesis.
[4] In 2009 he was awarded the EURO Gold Medal, the highest distinction within Operations Research in Europe.