Performance of Bucket Brigades When Work Is Stochastic

John J. Bartholdi (), Donald D. Eisenstein () and Robert D. Foley ()
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John J. Bartholdi: School of Industrial and Systems Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332-0205
Donald D. Eisenstein: Graduate School of Business, The University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60637
Robert D. Foley: School of Industrial and Systems Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332-0205

Operations Research, 2001, vol. 49, issue 5, 710-719

Abstract: “Bucket brigades” are a way of sharing work on a flow line that results in the spontaneous emergence of balance and consequent high throughput. All this happens without a work-content model or traditional assembly line balancing technology. Here we show that bucket brigades can be effective even in the presence of variability in the work content. In addition, we report confirmation at the national distribution center of a major chain retailer, which experienced a 34% increase in productivity after the workers began picking orders by bucket brigade.

Keywords: Probability; stochastic model/applications: stochastic model of bucket brigade; Production; stochastic: bucket brigade order picking (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2001
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (36)

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