Assignment:
Multiple queues—The order-fulfillment process of an entrepreneurial catalog business operates as follows. Orders arrive with exponential interarrival times with a mean of 10 min. A single clerk accepts and checks the orders and processes payment. These activities require a random time that is uniformly distributed between 8 and 10 min. Upon completion of these activities, orders are assigned randomly to one of two inventory workers, who retrieve the orders from the warehouse. The time to retrieve an order randomly varies between 16 and 20 min. The inventory workers retrieve only their assigned orders:
a. Develop a simulation model that is capable of running 5000 min of this process.
b. Assess the performance of the process using measures such as cycle time, queue statistics, and resource utilization.
c. A manager points out that the assignment of orders should not be made at random. Instead, the manager suggests that the next order should be assigned to the inventory worker with the shortest queue. He also suggests breaking ties arbitrarily. Follow these recommendations and change your model accordingly. Compare the performance of this process with the original.
d. A bright young “reengineer” recommends that the company eliminate the assignment of an order to a specific person and allow both inventory workers to select their next order from a single queue. Modify your model to simulate this suggestion. Compare the performance with the previous two configurations.
Provide complete and step by step solution for the question and show calculations and use formulas.