Abstract
Consider a firm that operates a make-to-order serial production system and employs a cross-trained workforce. We model such a firm as a tandem queuing system in which flexible servers can be allocated across stations, and assume that a switching cost is charged when servers move between stations. We show that even in the two-station two-server case the optimal policy follows a complex state-dependent structure that may be difficult to implement in practice. We propose three alternate heuristic policies and assess their performance. We show that a simpler policy which only moves one server can achieve close to optimal results.
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Mayorga, M.E., Taaffe, K.M. & Arumugam, R. Allocating flexible servers in serial systems with switching costs. Ann Oper Res 172, 231–242 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10479-009-0575-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10479-009-0575-7