Transcript project proposal reva.ppt

Discrete Event Simulation Project Proposal
Class:
Name:
Date:
To:
DSES - 6620 Simulation Modeling And Analysis
Kevin Lewelling
February 17, 2002
Professor Ernesto Butierrez-Miravete
Background:
Over the past year, the Super Stop & Shop store on the corner of Skiff St. and Dixwell Ave. in
Hamden, CT has installed two new self-service systems. The first system was installed in the deli
department and allows shoppers to place orders using an interactive touch screen computer system.
The second self-service system allows shoppers to self-serve themselves through the checkout
process.
Two systems have been implemented for the self-service checkout system. The earliest system
targetted shoppers with 20 items or less. This system was configured with four checkout stations
with a single customer service associate located in a central location as shown in Figure 1.
Following what appeared to be a successful trial period, Stop & Shop imstalled a new self-service
checkout system, shown in Figure 2, which was re-oriented to the traditional isle type configuration.
The new system not only has two isles designated for shoppers with 12 items or less but also has
three new isles that can accommodate as many groceries as you care to scan. For the new system,
S&S has hired two customer service associates that circulate between the checkout isles to aid
shoppers in their checkout process. None of the checkout systems have employees dedicated to
bagging groceries
Figure 1 - Stage I Self-Service Checkout System
Station 1
Scan
Pay &
Bag
Station 2
Scan
Pay &
Bag
Customer
Service
Desk
Waiting Area for
Shoppers Ready
for Checkout
Scan
Arrivals
Pay &
Bag
Station 3
To Processing at Customer Service Desk
Exit
Scan
Pay &
Bag
Station 4
Pay
Bag
Scan
Pay
Bag
Scan
Pay
Bag
Scan
Pay
Bag
12 Items
or Less
Scan
No
Limit
Waiting Area for Shoppers Ready for checkout
Figure 2 - Stage II Self-Service Checkout System
Problem Statement:
Stop & Shop grocery stores have implemented the use of self-service checkout lines to reduce
operating costs. This is accomplished by eliminating both a cashier and a food packaging associate
normally required in each checkout line. Furthermore, by removing the cashier, who is typically
located in part of the isle, the new self-service checkout systems can be narrower and therefore
require less floor space. Although the self-service lines process shoppers a bit slower than the
conventional checkout line, due to shoppers being unfamiliar with the system and inevitable hangups, total shopper throughput may be increased by being able to add more checkout lines in the same
amount of space. Stop & Shop wants to know if they should install more self-service checkout lines
to maximize shopper through put based on the floor space available. The focus of this study will be
to determine the optimum number of self-service lines required to maximize shopper through put
based on the floor space available in the checkout area.
Approach:
An initial visit will be made to the Stop & Shop super market to accurately document the
configuration of each checkout line. A Pro-Model simulation model will then be created based on
the configuration schematic. A separate visit will be made to collect arrival and processing data for
each checkout line configuration. This will include data from both of the full service checkout lines,
12 items or less and the unlimited lines, as well as data from both self-service checkout lines, again
12 items or less and the unlimited lines. Roughly 1 hour of data will be collected for each checkout
line for a total of 4 hours of data. Data will be collected on a weekend to ensure minimal idle time in
each of the checkout lines. A simulation will be run to baseline the current configuration and to
determine the current maximum customer through put. An optimization routine will then be run,
varying the number of individual checkout line configurations, to determine the optimum
combination of full and self-service checkout lines.