Waiting Line Models

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reid_suppC_001-020hr.qxd 9/4/09 11:17 AM Page C1 SUPPLEMENT Waiting Line Models C Before studying this supplement you should know or, if necessary, review 1. Competitive advantages, Chapter 2. 2. Priority rules, Chapter 16. LEARNING OBJECTIVES After completing this supplement you should be able to 1 2 3 Describe the elements of a waiting line problem. Use waiting line models to estimate system performance. Use waiting line models to make managerial decisions. SUPPLEMENT OUTLINE Elements of Waiting Lines C2 Waiting Line Performance Measures C7 Single-Server Waiting Line Model C7 Multiserver Waiting Line Model C9 WHAT’S IN ACC Changing Operational Characteristics C13 Larger-Scale Waiting Line Systems C14 Waiting Line Models within OM: How It All Fits Together C15 OM FOR ME? FIN MKT OM HRM MIS C1 reid_suppC_001-020hr.qxd 9/4/09 C2 • SUPPLEMENT C 11:17 AM Page C2 WAITING LINE MODELS aiting in lines is part of everyday life. Some estimates state that Americans spend 37 billion hours per year waiting in lines. Whether it is waiting in line at a grocery store to buy deli items (by taking a number) or checking out at the cash registers (finding the quickest line), waiting in line at the bank for a teller, or waiting at an amusement park to go on the newest ride, we spend a lot of time waiting. We wait in lines at the movies, campus dining rooms, the registrar’s office for class registration, at the Division of Motor Vehicles, and even at the end of the school term to sell books back. Think about the lines you have waited in just during the past week. How long you wait in line depends on a number of factors. Your wait is a result of the number of people served before you, the number of servers working, and the amount of time it takes to serve each individual customer. Wait

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