Coursework 2 (individual report & simulation model)

Read the case study description below. Develop and run Arena simulation model for the current system. Analyse the results and then modify the system to identify optimal level of resources required. Note that only the changes identified below are possible. Write a technical report (1,500 words ±10%) that analyses the alternatives and makes clearly justified recommendations for the company. You are required to submit your report in PDF or MS Word format through Turnitin via UniHub by the deadline of 9pm on Sunday 12 January 2020 (end of learning week 12). You must also submit your Arena model (.doe file) through a drop-box via UniHub by the same deadline). Late submissions or submissions through other methods will not be accepted.

Your report should include the following:

1. Introduction (5 marks)

2. Brief discussion on the suitability of computer simulation and Arena software to address the case study problem. Justify. (5 marks)

3. Analysis of the simulation results. (20 marks)

4. Experimentation with the model to identify viable alternatives for process improvement with justification for the experiments conducted and analysis of the results. (40 marks)

5. Recommendations and discussion on the implications. (10 marks)

6. List of references

** Arena model (.doe file) submitted via the drop-box. (20 marks)

Keep the submission receipt and a copy of your assignment in a safe place. Note that Turnitin could get very busy near the deadline. It is advised that you plan your submission well in advance to avoid any last minute panic. If you are unable to submit your work on time, you must seek a deferral/extension via UniHub using the Extenuating Circumstances Policy (please note that module leader/tutor will not be able to grant extensions). If you have acceptable extenuating circumstances and satisfy the requirements for a deferral or extension, a new deadline will be granted to you for submission. If you are unable to submit the report on time and do not have a deferral, you will be given 0% marks for this assessment component. Any grades you see on myUniHub will be unconfirmed grades, as grades can only be confirmed at the assessment board, and these grades may change. You will receive feedback within 3 weeks of the submission deadline.

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MGT4540/4641 Operations Management 2019-20

Case Study: Country Coffee

A coffee shop called Country Coffee located at London airport departure lounge wants to analyse its service counter performance and identify ways to improve customer experience. The company has collected information about its current service process and customer demand. The information is as follows:

• Service process has the following steps: 1) Take customer order and payment Tria(0.5,1,2) – requires one cash machine and one employee, 2) Deliver the order to the drink machines Constant(0.5) – requires one employee, 3) Make the purchased drink Tea: Tria(0.5,1,3), Coffee: Tria(1,2,6) or Hot chocolate: Tria(1.5,3,5) – requires the appropriate machine (one Tea Pot, one Coffee Machine or one Hot Chocolate Machine) and one employee, 4) deliver the drink to the customer Expo(0.5) – requires one employee. Same employee completes the order from Taking order to Delivering the drink.

• Company has one machine for making tea, one for making coffees and one for hot chocolates. Each machine can only be used to make one drink at the time.

• Company has two cash machines and two employees

• Company sells three different types of hot drinks; 30% of customers order Tea, 50% order coffee and 20% order hot chocolate.

• Time between customer arrivals follow Expo(3) distribution

• The number of customers arriving at the same time follows Poisson(1) distribution

• When a customer arrives and if both cash machine and employee are idle the customer will be served immediately, otherwise the customer waits in a First-InFirsts-Out (FIFO) queue

• Each customer orders only one drink.

• 5% of orders are identified as faulty after delivery to customer and need to be remade (order needs to be redelivered to drink machines (by an employee) with delay of Expo(0.5), purchased drink remade and then redelivered to customer with resources and times as specified earlier)? All times are given in minutes.

• The system starts at time zero minutes with no products present and the machine(s) idle.

• Run the simulation for 120 hours.

• Perform multiple replication runs.

• Add animation to your model.

After completing the simulations, study the Reports to analyse the performance. Make modifications to the system to improve performance. Only the following modifications to the system are possible: unlimited changes to the number of cash machines, employees and drink machines. In the current process same employee completes the order from Taking order to Delivering the drink. Would dividing the process between employees improve the process? Experiment.