A Queuing Network Model of a Single-Operator Manufacturing Workcell with Machine/Operator Interference

Paul Desruelle and Harold J. Steudel
Additional contact information
Paul Desruelle: European Commission, 200, rue de la Loi, 1049 Brussels, Belgium
Harold J. Steudel: University of Wisconsin-Madison, Dept. of Industrial Engineering, Madison, Wisconsin 53706

Management Science, 1996, vol. 42, issue 4, 576-590

Abstract: We present an analytical approach to evaluate the performance of a manufacturing workcell tended by a single operator when operator-induced machine interference occurs. Each part must be processed at every workstation in the workcell. The fact that one or more machines can request an operator service while the operator is busy at another machine induces machine interference. If the reduction of the workcell's capacity due to this interference becomes too great, then the customer demand may not be satisfied. Our approach determines quickly whether the workcell can meet a required demand under its current configuration and operating parameters. We do this by modeling the workcell as two interacting queuing networks: an open part/machine network, and a closed machine/operator network. In the open network, parts arrive in batches of a fixed size for each part type, but with exponentially distributed interarrival times between parts. In both networks, service times follow general distributions that are characterized by their first two moments.

Keywords: queueing network model; manufacturing workcell; machine/operator interference (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 1996
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

Downloads: (external link)
http://dx.doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.42.4.576 (application/pdf)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:inm:ormnsc:v:42:y:1996:i:4:p:576-590

Access Statistics for this article

More articles in Management Science from INFORMS Contact information at EDIRC.
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Chris Asher ().