Professor Sunderesh S. Heragu, University of Louisville, USA

30-06-2006

11:00 p.m. to 12:00 noon

Faculty of Engineering, Seminar Room EA-06-02, NUS

In this talk, we cover several promising analytical models for the proper design, analysis and operation of manufacturing and logistical systems. Simulation has been widely used to analyze such systems, but it is well known that the time and cost of developing, validating and running simulation models is significant. When several alternative designs must be evaluated early in the design stage or sensitivity analysis must be performed, simulation may not be the most suitable modeling tool. One could argue that it is impractical to develop simulation models to study more than two or three alternate design configurations.

Analytical queuing network models, on the other hand, allow much faster and reasonably accurate analysis of a wide variety of complex systems. Although the exact analysis of complex, real-world queuing networks is difficult, some relatively new approximate methods have been developed to study these systems effectively and efficiently.

We will provide an overview of analytical queuing network models, including open queuing network models, closed queuing network models and semi-open queuing network models. We highlight some of the powerful techniques to study these models and their applications in the study of design and operational problems in manufacturing and logistical systems. In addition, we also provide an overview of linear and mixed-integer programming models to address specific design problems as well as intelligent agent based decision making techniques that are useful in making real-time decisions in the face of constantly changing information.

Sunderesh S. Heragu is Professor and the Mary Lee and George F. Duthie Chair in Engineering Logistics in the Industrial Engineering department at the University of Louisville. Previously he was Professor of Decision Sciences and Engineering Systems at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He has taught at State University of New York, Plattsburgh and held visiting appointments at State University of New York, Buffalo, Technical University of Eindhoven and University of Twente, in the Netherlands. He is author of a book titled Facilities Design (currently in its second edition) and has authored or co-authored over one hundred articles many of which have appeared in journals, magazines, books and conference proceedings. He serves on the editorial board of IIE Transactions (as Department Editor for Facilities Layout and Material Handling), International Journal of Operations and Quantitative Management (as Area Editor) Asia Pacific Journal of Operational Research and International Journal of Industrial Engineering.

His current research interests are in supply chain management, design of next generation factory layouts, intelligent agent modeling of automated warehouse systems, application of RFID technology to improve intra-plant and inter-plant logistics, and integration of design and planning activities in advanced logistical systems. Dr Heragu is a Fellow of the Institute of Industrial Engineers (IIE).