Short-Term

Scheduling
15
PowerPoint presentation to accompany
Heizer, Render, Munson
Operations Management, Thirteenth Edition, Global Edition
Principles of Operations Management, Eleventh Edition

PowerPoint slides by Jeff Heyl

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 Learning Objectives
When you complete this chapter you
should be able to:
15.1 Explain the relationship among
short-term scheduling, capacity
planning, aggregate planning, and a
master schedule
15.2 Draw Gantt loading and scheduling
charts
15.3 Name and describe each of the
priority sequencing rules
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 Short-Term Scheduling

The objective of scheduling is to

allocate and prioritize demand
(generated by either forecasts or
customer orders) to available
facilities

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 Importance of Short-Term
Scheduling
▶ Effective and efficient scheduling can be a
competitive advantage
▶ Faster movement of goods through a facility
means better use of assets and lower costs
▶ Additional capacity resulting from faster
throughput improves customer service
through faster delivery
▶ Good schedules result in more dependable
deliveries

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 Scheduling Issues
▶ Scheduling deals with the timing of
operations
▶ The task is the allocation and prioritization
of demand
▶ Significant factors are
1) Forward or backward scheduling
2) Finite or infinite loading
3) The criteria for sequencing jobs

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 Experiential Exercise 1
▶ Select an organization of your choice and
discuss the scheduling issues experienced
by this organization.

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 Forward and Backward
Scheduling
▶ Forward scheduling starts as soon as the
requirements are known
▶ Produces a feasible schedule though it
may not meet due dates
▶ Frequently results in
buildup of work-in-
process inventory
Due
Now Date

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 Forward and Backward
Scheduling
▶ Backward scheduling begins with the due
date and schedules the final operation first
▶ Schedule is produced by working
backwards though the processes
▶ Resources may not
be available to
accomplish the
schedule Now
Due
Date

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 Forward and Backward
Scheduling
▶ Backward scheduling begins with the due
date and schedules thesfinal a r e operation first
o a c h e -
▶ Schedulethis a p p r r a d e
e s produced
e
e l o p abyt working
O f t e n o d e v i t y
backwards b in e d though
t
n c the
a p a cprocesses r
co m t w e e s t o m e
▶ Resources may ff b e d c u
o
i nt s anot
n
s
n s t r a t a t i o n
co
be available etoxpec
accomplish the
schedule Now
Due
Date

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 Finite and Infinite Loading
▶ Assigning jobs to work stations
▶ Finite loading assigns work up to the
capacity of the work station
▶ All work gets done
▶ Due dates may be pushed out
▶ Infinite loading does not consider
capacity
▶ All due dates are met
▶ Capacities may have to be adjusted
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 Scheduling Criteria

1. Minimize completion time

2. Maximize utilization of facilities
3. Minimize work-in-process (WIP)
inventory
4. Minimize customer waiting time

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 Scheduling Process-
Focused Facilities
▶ Intermittent or job-shop facilities
▶ High-variety, low volume
▶ Production items differ considerably
▶ Schedule incoming orders without
violating capacity constraints
▶ Scheduling can be complex

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 Loading Jobs
▶ Assign jobs so that costs, idle time, or
completion time are minimized
▶ Two forms of loading
▶ Capacity oriented
▶ Assigning specific jobs to work centers

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 Input-Output Control
▶ Identifies overloading and underloading
conditions
▶ Prompts managerial action to resolve
scheduling problems
▶ Can be maintained using ConWIP cards
that control the scheduling of batches

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 Input-Output Control
Example
Options available to operations
personnel include:
▶ Correcting performances
▶ Increasing capacity
▶ Increasing or reducing input to the
work center

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 Gantt Charts
▶ Load chart shows the loading and idle
times of departments, machines, or
facilities
▶ Displays relative workloads over time
▶ Schedule chart monitors jobs in
process
▶ All Gantt charts need to be updated
frequently to account for changes

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 Assignment Method

▶ A special class of linear programming

models that assigns tasks or jobs to
resources
▶ Objective is usually to minimize cost
or time
▶ Only one job (or worker) is assigned
to one machine (or project)

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 Assignment Method
1. Create zero opportunity costs by repeatedly
subtracting the lowest costs from each row
and column
2. Draw the minimum number of vertical and
horizontal lines necessary to cover all the
zeros in the table. If the number of lines
equals either the number of rows or the
number of columns, proceed to step 4.
Otherwise proceed to step 3.

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 Assignment Method
3. Subtract the smallest number not covered by
a line from all other uncovered numbers. Add
the same number to any number at the
intersection of two lines. Return to step 2.
4. Optimal assignments are at zero locations in
the table. Select one, draw lines through the
row and column involved, and continue to the
next assignment.

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 Sequencing Jobs
▶ Specifies the order in which jobs should
be performed at work centers
▶ Priority rules are used to dispatch or
sequence jobs
▶ FCFS: First come, first served
▶ SPT: Shortest processing time
▶ EDD: Earliest due date
▶ LPT: Longest processing time

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 Comparison of
Sequencing Rules
▶ No one sequencing rule excels on all criteria
1. SPT does well on minimizing flow time and number
of jobs in the system
► But SPT moves long jobs to
the end which may result
in dissatisfied customers
2. FCFS does not do especially
well (or poorly) on any
criteria but is perceived
as fair by customers
3. EDD minimizes maximum
lateness

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 Critical Ratio (CR)
▶ An index number found by dividing the time
remaining until the due date by the work time
remaining on the job
▶ Jobs with low critical ratios are scheduled
ahead of jobs with higher critical ratios
▶ Performs well on average job lateness criteria

Time remaining Due date – Today's date

CR = =
Workdays remaining Work (lead) time remaining

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 Critical Ratio Technique
1. Determine the status of a specific job
2. Establish relative priorities among jobs
on a common basis
3. Adjust priorities automatically for
changes in both demand and job
progress
4. Dynamically track job progress

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 Sequencing N Jobs on
Two Machines: Johnson's Rule
▶ Works with two or more jobs that
pass through the same two
machines or work centers
▶ Minimizes total production time and
idle time
▶ An N/2 problem, N number of jobs
through 2 workstations

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 Johnson’s Rule
1. List all jobs and times for each work center
2. Select the job with the shortest activity time.
If that time is in the first work center,
schedule the job first. If it is in the second
work center, schedule the job last. Break ties
arbitrarily.
3. Once a job is scheduled, it is eliminated from
the list
4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 working toward the
center of the sequence
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 Limitations of Rule-Based
Dispatching Systems
1. Scheduling is dynamic and rules
need to be revised to adjust to
changes
2. Rules do not look upstream or
downstream
3. Rules do not look beyond due dates

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 Finite Capacity Scheduling
▶ Overcomes disadvantages of rule-based
systems by providing an interactive,
computer-based graphical system
▶ May include rules and expert systems or
simulation to allow real-time response to
system changes
▶ FCS allows the balancing of delivery
needs and efficiency

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 Scheduling Services
Service systems differ from manufacturing

MANUFACTURING SERVICES
Schedules machines Schedule staff
and materials
Inventories used to Seldom maintain inventories
smooth demand
Machine-intensive and demand Labor-intensive and demand may
may be smooth be variable
Scheduling may be bound by Legal issues may constrain
union contracts flexible scheduling
Few social or behavioral issues Social and behavioral issues may
be quite important

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 Scheduling Services
▶ Hospitals have complex scheduling
systems to handle complex processes and
material requirements
▶ Banks use a cross-trained and flexible
workforce and part-time workers
▶ Retail stores use scheduling optimization
systems that track sales, transactions, and
customer traffic to create work schedules in
less time and with improved customer
satisfaction

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 Scheduling Services
▶ Airlines must meet complex FAA and union
regulations and often use linear programming
to develop optimal schedules
▶ 24/7 operations like police/fire departments,
emergency hot lines, and mail order
businesses use flexible workers and variable
schedules, often created using computerized
systems

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 Scheduling Service Employees
With Cyclical Scheduling
▶ Objective is to meet staffing
requirements with the minimum number
of workers
▶ Schedules need to be smooth and keep
personnel happy
▶ Many techniques exist from simple
algorithms to complex linear
programming solutions

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