Proposed: Forecasted service calls for the next several weeks are estimated to be:
|
Day of the Week
|
Mon
|
Tues
|
Wed
|
Thur
|
Fri
|
Sat
|
Total
|
|
No. of Requests
|
29
|
25
|
19
|
30
|
33
|
40
|
176
|
Each service request is expected to average 2 hours of service time. The company wants to plan work shifts to approximately match the requests for service, but is concerned about how this will affect the utilization of personnel time, group morale and time required to perform customer service.
Question 1: What is the minimum number of service personnel required?
Question 2: Use a work shift heuristic procedure to develop work shift schedules for the service personnel. Work shift heuristic rule: choose 2 consecutive days with least total number of work shifts required. In the case of ties, arbitrarily select a pair and continue.
Question 3: How much slack per week is present in the work shift schedules?
Question 4: What ways could be used to reduce the amount of slack in your work shift schedules?
Question 5: What factors should be considered in changes in work schedules such as the one under consideration? Which of these factors are most important? Can you suggest how one should go about making the schedule changes being considered?
To: Debbie
From: Warren
Subject: Scheduling Heuristic
I found the heuristic that I mentioned in the other day in my old Operations Management notes. The heuristic was originally developed by two academics Kenneth Baker and Michael Magazine. The heuristic is relatively straight forward and works like this:
Let N = the total number of workers (10 if we schedule by shift)
And Ri = the required number of workers on day i.
1) Assign the first N - R1 workers to days off on the first day. The R1 workers are assigned to work that day (indicate a day off with an O and a assigned work day with an X).
2) Assign the next N-R2 workers to days off on the second day. Repeat this process for each additional day cycling back to the first worker whenever you reach the last one.
3) If there are any workers with fewer than five working days they can be assigned based on other considerations. I would recommend assigning them so that the workers have consecutive days off if possible.
Why don't you try this method on the first shift and let me know how it looks.