Optimal scheduling of a flexible-duration rest period for a work group

Optimal scheduling of a flexible-duration rest period for a work group

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Article ID: iaor1995125
Country: United States
Volume: 41
Issue: 6
Start Page Number: 1046
End Page Number: 1054
Publication Date: Nov 1993
Journal: Operations Research
Authors: ,
Keywords: programming: nonlinear, simulation: applications
Abstract:

All previous modeling research involving optimization of performance associated with work-rest cycles has focused upon individual employees working independently. The authors extend this earlier research by considering the choices of placement for an duration of a single rest period that must be taken simultaneously by all employees in a work group. Assuming linear work-rate decay and recovery functions for individual employees within the group, they show that an appropriate model can be formulated as a mixed-binary, cubic programming problem. The authors develop an efficient optimal solution procedure with a computational time that appears to be a linear function of the number of employees considered. They report on a preliminary simulation experiment that evaluates the productivity loss that occurs when the rest break policy is determined based on the work characteristics of a randomly selected subset of employees in the work group, and provides an initial exploration of the nature of optimal policy variables. Finally, the authors offer suggestions for future research.

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