QM For Business LECTURE NOTE Chapter 13 Waiting Line and Queuing Theory Models

CHAPTER 13
Waiting Lines and

Queuing Theory Models
© 2018 Slidefabric.com All rights reserved.

Introduction
• The study of waiting lines = Queuing theory
• One of the oldest and most widely used Operations Research techniques.
• An everyday occurrence, affecting people shopping for groceries, buying
gasoline, or making a bank deposit,… or machines waiting to be repaired, trucks
in line to be unloaded, airplanes lined up on a runway waiting for permission to
take off,…
• The three basic components of a queuing process are arrivals, service facilities,
and the actual waiting line.
• Analytical models of waiting lines can help managers evaluate the cost and
effectiveness of service systems.
© 2018 Slidefabric.com All rights reserved. 2
Quantitative Method_ Ms. Dang Thi Uyen Thao
Waiting Line Costs
• One of the goals of queuing analysis is finding the best level of service for an
organization
• In most cases, this level of service is an option over which management has
control. This may not always be the case, though.
• When an organization does have control, its objective is usually to find a happy
medium between two extremes:
1. Retain a large staff and provide many service facilities => excellent customer
service and high cost
2. Have the minimum possible number of service facilities => service cost down
and customer dissatisfaction.
Waiting Line Costs
Þ Managers must deal with the trade-off between the cost of providing service and the
cost of customer waiting time. The latter may be hard to quantify.
• Evaluating a service facility? Total expected cost = service costs + waiting costs.
"The goal is to find the service level that minimizes total expected cost"

Waiting Line Costs
• Service costs increase as a firm

attempts to raise its level of
service.
• As service improves in speed,

the cost of time spent waiting in
lines decreases.

Three Rivers Shipping Company
• Three Rivers run a huge docking facility

• Approximately 5 ships arrive to unload their cargoes of steel and ore during every
12-hour work shift.
• Each hour that a ship sits idle in line waiting costs about $1,000
• If 1 team of stevedores is on duty to handle the unloading work, each ship will wait
an average of 7 hours to be unloaded.
• If 2, 3 and 4 teams are working, the average waiting time drops to 4, 3, 2 hours,
respectively.
• Each additional team of Stevedore costs $6,000 salary
• The objective is to minimize total expected costs

Three Rivers Shipping Company
Number of Stevedore Teams

1 2 3 4
Avg. number of ships arriving
per shift 5 5 5 5
Average waiting time per ship

7 4 3 2
Total ship hours lost

35 20 15 10
Est. cost per hour of idle ship
time $1,000 $1,000 $1,000 $1,000
Value of ships' lost time
35,000 29,000 $15,000 $10,000
Stevedore team’s salary $6,000 $12,000 $18,000 $24,000
Total Expected Cost

$41,000 $32,000 $33,000 $34,000

Characteristics of a Queuing System
Three parts of a queuing system:

• The arrivals or inputs to the system (the calling population)
• The queue or the waiting line itself System
• The service facility

Processing Order
Calling
population
Arrivals Waiting Service Exit
line

¥
1. The arrivals or inputs to the system (the calling population)
• the size of the calling population: either unlimited (essentially
infinite) or limited (finite)
• the pattern of arrivals at the queuing system: either arrive
according to some known schedule or randomly (can be
estimated by Poisson distribution)
• the behavior of the arrivals: assumed to be patient
customers (most likely), however, there are Balking
(customers refuse to join the waiting line because it is too
long to suit their needs) and or Reneging (ones become
impatient and leave without completing their transaction)
customers.
Poisson Distribution for Arrival Times
-l
e l x
P(X) =
X!
For X=0,1,2,3,4,……..
P(X)= probability of X arrivals
X= number of arrivals per unit of time
l = average arrival rate

e= 2.7183
2. The queue or the waiting line itself

• Length of the queue: either limited or unlimited
• Service priority/Queue discipline: the rule by which customers in the line
are to receive service: most common First-in, First-out rule (FIFO), Priority
discipline, Last-come First-served (LCFS) or Service in random order (SIRO)

3. The service facility

• Basic configuration of the service system: are usually classified in terms of
number of channels and number of phases
o Number of channels: A single-channel system (with one server) is quite
common, or A multi-channel system (multiple servers are fed by one common
waiting line)
o Number of phases: A single-phase system (customers receive service from only
1 server), or A multiphase system (customers go through more than 1 server)
• The pattern of service times: either constant (it takes the same amount of time
to take care of each customer) or random (more often) described by the
negative exponential probability distribution
Basic Queuing System Configurations



Poisson Distribution for Arrival Times

Identifying Models Using Kendall Notation
• D.G. Kendall developed a notation for specifying the pattern of arrivals, the service
time distribution, and the number of channels in a queuing model.
• The basic three-symbol Kendall notation is in the form:
A/B/s
Where A: Arrival distribution
B: Service time distribution
S: number of service channels open
• Specific letters are used to represent probability distributions:
M- Markovian (Poisson or exponential distribution)
D= Constant (deterministic) rate
G= General distribution with mean and variance known
Kendall Notation
• M/M/1: a single channel model with Poisson arrivals and exponential service times
• M/M/2: a two-channel model with Poisson arrivals, exponential service times
• M/M/m: a m-channel service with Poisson arrivals and exponential service times
• M/D/3: a three-channel system with Poisson arrivals and constant service time
• M/G/4: a four-channel system with Poisson arrivals and service times that are
normally distributed

Single-Channel Queuing Model With Poisson Arrivals
And Exponential Service Times (M/M/1)
Assumptions of the Model
1. Arrivals are served on a FIFO basis
2. No balking or reneging
3. Arrivals are independent of each others, but the arrival rate is constant
4. Arrivals follow Poisson probability distribution
5. Service times also vary and are independent of one another, but their average
rate is known.
6. Service times follow the negative exponential probability distribution
7. The average service rate is greater than the average arrival rate.
When these 7 conditions are met, we can develop a series of equations that define
the queue's operating characteristics
We let
o λ = number of arrivals per time period (for example, per hour)
o µ = number of people or items served per time period
o When determining the arrival rate (λ) and the service rate (µ), the same time
period must be used.
The queuing equations follow:
1. The average number of customers or units in the system, L, that is, the number in
line plus the number being served:
l
Average number in system, L =
µ -l
2. The average time a customer spends in the system, W, that is, the time spent in
line plus the time spent being served:
1
Average waiting time in system, W =
µ -l
3. The average number of customers in the queue, Lq:
l2
Average number in queue, L q =
µ (µ - l )
4. The average time a customer spends waiting in the queue, Wq:
l
Average waiting time in the queue, Wq =
µ (µ - l )
5. The utilization factor for the system, that is, the probability that the service facility
is being used:
l
Utilization Factor, r =
µ
6. The percent idle time, Po, that is, the probability that no one is in the system:
l
Percent Idle, P0 = 1 -
µ
7. The probability the number of customers in the system is greater than k, P(n>k):
k +1
ælö
Pn > k = çç ÷÷
èµø
Introducing Costs into the Model
Requirement: make trade-off between the increased cost of providing better service and
the decreased waiting costs derived from providing that service. These two costs are called
the waiting cost and the service cost.
• The total service cost is = (number of channels) x (cost per channel) = mCs
where m = number of channels; Cs = service cost (labor cost) of each channel
• Total waiting cost (based on time in the system)
= (total time spent waiting by all arrivals) x (cost of waiting)
= (number of arrivals) x (average wait per arrival) x (cost of waiting) = λWCw
• Total waiting cost (based on time in the queue)
= (number of arrivals) x (average wait in the queue) x (cost of waiting) = λWqCw
Total cost = total service cost + total waiting cost
= mCs + λWCw
(waiting time is based on the time in the system)
= λ WqCw
(waiting time is based on the time in the queue)
Arnold's Muffler Shop
• Arnold provides muffler installation services in New Orleans. Customers needing this
service arrive at the shop on the average of 2 per hour. Arnold's mechanic, Reid Blank, is
able to install new mufflers at about 1 every 20 minutes. The only other cost that Larry
Arnold (the manager) can identify in this queuing situation is the pay rate of Reid Blank, the
mechanic Blank is paid $7 per hour. Arnold estimates that the cost of customer waiting time,
in terms of customer dissatisfaction and lost goodwill, is $10 per hour of time spent waiting
in line.
• Now comes a decision. Arnold finds out through the muffler business grapevine that the
Rusty Muffler, a cross-town competitor, employs a mechanic named Jimmy Smith who can
efficiently install new mufflers at the rate of 4 per hour. Larry Arnold contacts Smith and
inquires as to his interest in switching employers. Smith says that he would consider leaving
the Rusty Muffler but only if he were paid a $9 per hour salary.
• Arnold feels that all seven of the conditions for a single-channel model are met. He
proceeds to calculate the performance measures of the systems. There are 8 working hours
per day.
? Arnold, being a crafty businessman, decides that it may be worthwhile to fire Blank and
replace him with the speedier but more expensive Smith.
λ = 2 cars arriving per hour
The operating characteristics (in case Reid Blank)
µ = 3 cars serviced per hour
2 l
L= = = 2 cars in the system on the average
µ -l 3-2
1 1
W= = = 1 hour that an average car spends in the system
µ -l 3-2
2
l2 2 4
Lq = = = = 1.33 cars waiting on line on the average
µ (µ - l ) 3(3 - 2) 3
l 2 2
Wq = = = hour = 40 minutes average waiting time per car
µ (µ - l ) 3(3 - 2) 3
l 2
P0 = 1 - = 1 - = 0.33 probability that there are 0 cars in the system
µ k +1 3 3+1
ælö æ2ö
Pn > k = çç ÷÷ = ç ÷ = 0.198 chance that more than three cars are in the system
èµø è3ø
λ = 2 cars arriving per hour
The operating characteristics (in case Jimmy Smith)
µ = 4 cars serviced per hour
l 2
L= = =1 cars in the system on the average
µ -l 4-2
1 1 1
W= = = hour that an average car spends in the system
µ -l 4-2 2
2
l 2 2 4 1
Lq = = = = cars waiting on line on the average
µ (µ - l ) 4(4 - 2) 8 2
l 2 2 1
Wq = = = = hour = 15 minutes = average waiting time per car
µ (µ - l ) 4(4 - 2) 8 4
l
P0 = 1 - = 1 - 0.5 = 0.5 probability that there are 0 cars in the system
µ
=> Smith's speed has shorter queues and waiting times
For Reid Blank

• The average a car has a 2/3 hour wait and there are 16 cars serviced per day (2 per
hour times 8 working hours per day)
Þ The total number of hours that customers spend waiting for mufflers to be installed
each day is 2/3 *16=32/3 hours
Þ Total daily waiting cost = (8 hours per day) WqCw = (8)(2)(2/3)($10) = $106.67
• Total daily service cost = (8 hours per day) mCs = 8(1)($7)=$56
Þ The total daily cost of the system = $106.67 + $56 = $162.67
For Jimmy Smith
• Total daily waiting cost = (8)(2)(1/4)($10)=$40
• Total daily service cost = 8 hours/day * $9/hour = $72
• The total daily cost of the system = $40 + $72 = $112
Arnold may very well decide to fire Black and replace with Smith and reduce costs by
$162.67-$112=$50.67 per day.
Multiple-Channel Queuing Model With Poisson
Arrivals And Exponential Service Times (M/M/m)
• Two or more servers or channels are available to handle arriving customers.

• Customers awaiting service form one single line and then proceed to the first
available server.
• An example of a multichannel, single-phase waiting line is found in banks today.
• Assumption: arrivals follow Poisson probability distribution and that service times
are distributed exponentially.
• Service is FCFS, and all servers are assumed to perform at the same rate.
• Other assumptions listed earlier for the single-channel model apply as well.

We let
o m = number of channel open
o λ = average arrival rate
o µ = average service rate at each channel
The queuing equations follow:
1. The probability that there are zero customers or units in the system:
1
P0 =
é n = M -1 1 æ l ö n ù 1 æ l ö m mµ
ê å çç ÷÷ ú + çç ÷÷
êë n =0 n! è µ ø úû m! è µ ø mµ - l
2. The average number of customers or units in the system:
M
lµ æç l µ ö÷
è ø l
L= P +
(M - 1)!(Mµ - l )2 0 µ
3. The average time a unit spends in the waiting line or being serviced (in the system):
L
W=
l
4. The average number of customers or units in line waiting for service
l
Lq = L -
µ
5. The average time a customer or unit spends in the queue waiting for service
1 Lq
Wq = W - =
µ l
6. Utilization factor
l
r=
Mµ

Arnold's Muffler Shop (multichannel)
Suppose that Arnold opened a second garage bay in which mufflers can be
installed. Instead of firing his first mechanic, Blank, he would hire a second worker.
The new mechanic would be expected to install mufflers at the same rate as Blank-
about µ = 3 per hour. Customers, who would still arrive at the rate of λ = 2 per hour,
would wait in a single line until one of the two mechanics is free.
To complete his economic analysis, Arnold assumes that the second mechanic would
be paid the same as the current one, Blank, namely, $7 per hour.
To find out how this option compares with the old single channel waiting line system,
Arnold computes several operating characteristics for the m=2 channel system

Arnold's Muffler Shop (multichannel)
1
P0 = = 0.5
é n =1
1 æ2ö
n
ù 1 æ2ö 2
2(3)
êå ç ÷ ú + ç ÷
êë n =0 n! è 3 ø úû 2! è 3 ø 2(3) - 2
• The total daily waiting time cost
2(3)(2 )
2
3 2 = (8 hours) λWqCw
L= (0.5) + = 0.75 =(8)(2)(0.0415)($10)= $6.64
1!(2(3) - 2 )
2
3
0.75
• Total daily service cost
W= = 22.5 minutes = (8hours)mCs= (8)(2)($7)=$112
2
0.083 • Total expected cost
Wq = = 0.0415 hour = waiting cost + service cost
2
= $6.64 + $112= $118.64
2
L q = 0.75 - = 0.083
3
Effect of service level on Arnold’s Operating Characteristics
Level of Service
Operating
characteristics One Two One
mechanic mechanics mechanic
(Blank)µ=3 µ=3 for each (Smith)µ=4
P0 0.33 0.50 0.50
L 2 cars 0.75 car 1 car
W 60 minutes 22.5 min 30 min
Lq 1.33 cars 0.083 car 0.50
Wq 40 minutes 2.5 min 15 min
Total costs $162.67 $118.64 $112

• Constant Service Time Model (M/D/1)
• Some service systems have constant service times instead of exponentially

distributed times.
• When customers or equipment are processed according to a fixed cycle, as in
the case of an automatic car wash, constant service rates are appropriate.
• Because constant rates are certain, the values for Lq, Wq, L, and W are always
less than they would be in the models we have just discussed, which have
variable service times.

• Constant Service Time Model (M/D/1)
l2
Lq =
2 µ (µ - l )
l
Equations for the Constant Service Time Model Wq =
2 µ (µ - l )
l
L = Lq +
µ
1
W = Wq +
µ
Grocia-Golding Recycling
• GGR collects and compacts aluminum cans and glass bottles in New York city.
Their truck drivers, who arrive to unload these materials for recycling, currently
wait an average of 15 minutes before emptying their loads. The cost while waiting
in queue is $ 60 /hr.
• A new automated compactor can be purchased that will process truck loads at a
constant rate of 12 trucks / hr.
• Trucks arrive according to a Poisson dist. at an average rate of 8 /hr. If the new
compactor is put in use, its cost will be amortized at a rate of $3 /truck unloaded.
Evaluate the costs versus benefits of the purchase.
Grocia-Golding Recycling
• Current waiting cost/trip=(1/4 hour waiting now)($60/hour cost)

= $15/trip
• New system: λ = 8 trucks/hour arriving
µ = 12 trucks/hour served
Average waiting time in queue = 1/12 hour

Waiting cost/trip with new compactor= (1/12 hour wait) ($ 60/hour cost) = $5/trip
Savings with new equipment = $15 (current) - $5 (new system) = $ 10/trip
Cost of new equipment amortized =$3/trip
Net savings = $10 - $3 =$7/trip

Finite Population Model (M/M/1 with finite source)
• There is a limited population of potential customers for a service facility

• The limited population model permits any number of servers to be considered.
• There is a dependent relationship between the length of the queue and the arrival
rate In general, as the waiting line becomes longer in the limited population model,
the arrival rate of customers or machines drops lower.
• A finite calling population model that has the following assumptions:
1. There is only one server
2. The population of units seeking service is finite
3. Arrivals follow a Poisson distribution, and service times are exponentially
distributed.
4. Customers are served on a first-comes, first-served basis.
Finite Population Model (M/M/1 with finite source)
Equations for the Finite Population Model

λ = mean arrival rate, µ = mean service rate, N= size of the population
P0 =
1 Lq
n Wq =
N! æ l ö (N - L )l
N
å çç
n = 0 ( N - n )! è µ
÷÷
ø
1
W = Wq +
æl+µ ö µ
Lq = N - ç ÷(1 - P0 )
è l ø
n
N! æ l ö
P(n, n £ N) = Pn = çç ÷÷ P0
L = Lq + (1 - P0 ) (N - n )! è µ ø
Department of Commerce
Past records indicate that each of the five high-speed “page” printers at the U.S.
Department of commerce, in Washington, needs repair after about 20 hours of use.
Breakdowns have been determined to be Poisson distributed. The one technician on
duty can service a printer in average of 2 hours, following an exponential dist.
To compute the system’s operation characteristics we first note that the mean arrival
rate is λ = 1/20=0.05 printer/hour. The mean service rate is µ = ½=0.50 printer/hour.
Then:
1 1
P0 = n
= 5
= 0.564
N! æ l ö 5! 0.05 n
å
N
å çç ÷÷
n = 0 ( N - n)! è µ ø
(
n = 0 (5 - n)! 0.5
)

Department of Commerce
æl+µ ö 0.05 + 0.5

Lq = N - ç ÷(1 - P0 ) = 5 - ( )(1 - 0.564) = 0.2 prin.
è l ø 0.05
L = Lq + (1 - P0 ) = 0.2 + (1 - 0.564) = 0.64 prin.
Lq
0.2
Wq = = = 0.91hr
(N - L )l (5 - 0.64)(0.05)
1 1
W = Wq + = 0.91 + = 2.91hr
µ 0.5
If printer downtime costs $ 120/hr and the technician is paid $ 25/hour:
Total hurly cost = (average number of printers down) (cost per downtime
hour) + cost / technician hour
=(0.64)($ 120) + $25= $101.8

QM For Business LECTURE NOTE Chapter 13 Waiting Line and Queuing Theory Models

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

QM For Business LECTURE NOTE Chapter 13 Waiting Line and Queuing Theory Models

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

CHAPTER 13

Waiting Lines and

© 2018 Slidefabric.com All rights reserved.

© 2018 Slidefabric.com All rights reserved. 4

• Service costs increase as a firm

• As service improves in speed,

© 2018 Slidefabric.com All rights reserved. 5

• Three Rivers run a huge docking facility

© 2018 Slidefabric.com All rights reserved. 6

Number of Stevedore Teams

Average waiting time per ship

Total ship hours lost

Stevedore team’s salary $6,000 $12,000 $18,000 $24,000

Total Expected Cost

© 2018 Slidefabric.com All rights reserved. 7

Three parts of a queuing system:

• The service facility

© 2018 Slidefabric.com All rights reserved. 8

P(X)= probability of X arrivals

X= number of arrivals per unit of time

l = average arrival rate

2. The queue or the waiting line itself

© 2018 Slidefabric.com All rights reserved. 11

3. The service facility

© 2018 Slidefabric.com All rights reserved. 13

© 2018 Slidefabric.com All rights reserved. 14

© 2018 Slidefabric.com All rights reserved. 15

© 2018 Slidefabric.com All rights reserved. 16

© 2018 Slidefabric.com All rights reserved. 18

The queuing equations follow:

For Reid Blank

• Two or more servers or channels are available to handle arriving customers.

© 2018 Slidefabric.com All rights reserved.

The queuing equations follow:

© 2018 Slidefabric.com All rights reserved.

© 2018 Slidefabric.com All rights reserved. 33

Total costs $162.67 $118.64 $112

© 2018 Slidefabric.com All rights reserved. 35

• Some service systems have constant service times instead of exponentially

© 2018 Slidefabric.com All rights reserved.

• Current waiting cost/trip=(1/4 hour waiting now)($60/hour cost)

Average waiting time in queue = 1/12 hour

© 2018 Slidefabric.com All rights reserved. 39

• There is a limited population of potential customers for a service facility

Equations for the Finite Population Model

© 2018 Slidefabric.com All rights reserved. 42

æl+µ ö 0.05 + 0.5

You might also like