Performance measurement and lumped parameter modeling of single server flow lines subject to blocking: An effective process time approach

The present paper extends the so-called effective process time (EPT) approach to single server flow lines with finite buffers and blocking. The power of the EPT-approach is that it quantifies variability in workstation process times without the need to identify each of the contributing disturbances, and that it directly provides an algorithm for the actual computation of EPTs. It is shown that EPT-realizations can be simply obtained from arrival and departure times of lots, by using sample path equations. The measured EPTs can be used for bottleneck analysis and for lumped parameter modeling. Simulation experiments show that for lumped parameter modeling of flow lines with finite buffers, in addition to the mean and variance, offset is also a relevant parameter of the process time distribution. A case from the automotive industry illustrates the approach.