Service Operations and Waiting Lines

Dr. Everette S. Gardner, Jr.

Case study: Single-server model

Reference Vogel, M. A., Queuing Theory Applied to Machine Manning, Interfaces, Aug. 79. Company Becton - Dickinson, mfg. of hypodermic needles and syringes Bottom line Cash savings = $575K / yr. Also increased production by 80%. Problem High-speed machines jammed frequently. Attendants cleared jams. How many machines should each attendant monitor? Model Basic single-server: Server Attendant Customer Jammed machine
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Case study (cont.)

Solution procedure Each machine jammed at rate of = 60/hr. = 60M

With M machines, arrival rate to each attendant is Service rate is = 450/hr.

Utilization ratio = 60M/450 Experimenting with different values of M produced an arrival rate that minimized costs (wages + lost production) M = 5 was optimal, compared to M = 1 before queuing study

Waiting Lines

Case study: Multiple-server model

Reference Deutch, H. and Mabert, V. A., Queuing Theory Applied to Teller Staffing, Interfaces, Oct., 1980. Company Bankers Trust Co. of New York Bottom line Annual cash savings of $1,000,000 in reduced wages. Cost to develop model of $110,000. Problem Determine number of tellers to be on duty per hour of day to meet goals for waiting time. Staffing decisions needed at 100 branch banks. Model Straightforward application of multi-channel model in text.
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Case study (cont.)

Analysis Development of arrival and service distributions by hour and day of week at each bank. Arrival and service shown to be Poisson / Exponential. Experimentation with number of servers in model showed that full-time tellers were idle much of the day. Result Elimination of 100 full-time tellers. Increased use of part-time tellers. Today, the multi-channel model is a standard tool for staffing decisions in banking.

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Queuing model structures

Single-server model
Source pop. Service facility

Pop. can be finite or infinite

Arrival rate must be Poisson

Queue capacity can be finite or infinite

Service time usually exp., but can be anything

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Queuing model structures (cont.)

Multiple-server model
Source pop. Pop. must be infinite Arrival rate must be Poisson Queue capacity must be infinite Service facility #1 Service facility #2

Note: There is only one queue regardless of nbr. of servers

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Service time for each server must have same mean and be exp.

Applying the single-server model

1. Analyze service times. - plot actual vs. exponential distribution - if exponential good fit, use it - otherwise compute of times 2. Analyze arrival rates. - plot actual vs. Poisson Distribution - if Poisson good fit, use it - if not, stop only alternative is simulation 3. Determine queue capacity. - infinite or finite? - if uncertain, compare results from alternative models
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Applying the single-server model (cont.)

4. Determine size of source population. - infinite or finite? - if uncertain, compare results from alternative models 5. Choose model from SINGLEQ worksheet.

SINGLEQ.xls
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Applying the multiple-server model

1. Analyze service times. - Must be exponential 2. Analyze arrival rates. - Must be Poisson 3. Queue capacity must be infinite. 4. Source population must be infinite. 5. Apply MULTIQ worksheet.

MULTIQ.xls
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Single-server equations
Arrival rate Service rate Mean number in queue Mean number in system Mean time in queue Mean time in system Utilization ratio (Prob. server is busy) = = = = =
2/(

( - ))

/( - ) /( ( - ))

= 1/( - ) = /

SINGLEQ.xls
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Utilization ratio vs. queue length

5 10 15 19 19.5 19.6 19.7 19.8 19.9 19.95 19.99 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 / .25 .50 .75 .95 .975 .98 .985 .99 .995 .997 .999 1.000 Queue length 0.08 people 0.50 2.25 18.05 38.03 48.02 64.68 98.01 198.01 398.00 1,998.00

g
SINGLEQ.xls
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Single-server queuing identities

A. Number units in system = arrival rate * mean time in system B. Number units in queue = arrival rate * mean time in queue C. Mean time in system = mean time in queue + mean service time

Note: Mean service time = 1/ mean service rate If we can determine only one of the following, all other values can be found by substitution: Number units in system or queue Mean time in system or queue

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State diagram: single-server model

A # in system
0 1

A
2

A
3

S # in system also called state.

To get from one state to another, an arrival (a) must occur or a service completion (s) must occur. In long-run, for each state: Rate in = Rate out Mean # A = Mean # S
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Balance equations for each state

State 0 Rate in SP1 Probability in state 1 The only way into state 0 is service completion from 1 = Rate out AP0 Probability in state 0 The only way out of state 0 is to have an arrival

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Balance equations for each state (cont.)

State 1 Rate in AP0 + SP2 Can arrive state 1 by arrival from 0 or service completion from 2 2 3 etc.
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= =

Rate out AP1 + SP1 Two ways out of state 1, arrival or service completion

AP1 + SP3 AP2 + SP4

= =

AP2 + SP2 AP3 + SP3

Solution of balance equations

Expected number in system = nPn

Solve equations simultaneously to get each probability. Given number in system, all other values are found by substitution in queuing identities.

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