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1. Model Elements Attribute Name Get Attribute Description Set Type NextDelay Set REAL Change the value of the next delay ONLY AllFutureDelays Set REAL Change the value of all future delays henceforth Assemble Group I II amp UI Activated Get BOOLEAN Checks if the expression is activated ByNoMatch by an Entity exiting through the NoMatch Pad ActivatedByTrig Get BOOLEAN Checks if the expression is activated ger by an Entity entering from the Trig ger Pad Assign Group I II amp MI Batch Group I II amp Il MaxBatchSize Both INTEGER Number of Entities to batch MinBatchSize Both INTEGER Number of Entities must be in a batch before it can be released Max WaitTime Both REAL Time to wait before releasing under size batch Branch Group I II amp I BranchName Set STRING Name of the Connector to be taken by the next Entity Clone Group I II amp UI NumOutEntities Both INTEGER Number of Entities to output per Con nector Delay Group I II amp Hl Dispose Group I amp II MaxCount Both INTEGER Number of Entities disposed to signal End Simulation event SIMPROCESS User s Manual 462 System Attributes SIMPROCESS System Attributes Model Elements Attribute Name Get Attribute Description Set Type NumberDisposed Get INTEGER Number of Entities so far disposed at
2. xi General Downtime Attributes Expressions Cancel Name Product4Personnel Help Units Evi Model NumProdAPersoni x ee eT I Fractional Usage I Consumable Cost I Collect Resource Statistics I Collect Resource by Activity Statistics Comment SIMPROCESS User s Manual Optimization Setup Since OptQuest uses the Integer and Real model parameters as decision variables when OptQuest runs the model as part of the optimization it sets the values of the model parameters for each run Another requirement for optimization is an objective Therefore there must be a performance measure in the model to maximize or minimize This performance measure couldbe one of the standard statistics collected by SIMPROCESS or a specialized statistic which could consist of a linear or non linear combination of various standard statistics Again referring to the Purchasing demonstration model the objective is to minimize the capacity cost of all the resources Since capacity cost is collected automatically this statistic does not have to be created However in the Inventory demonstration model the objective is to minimize inventory and minimize the cycle time of an order Since only one value can be optimized these performance measures must be combined into one In the Inventory demonstration model there is a linear combination of the two performance measures This combination is in the End Simulati
3. SIMPROCESS User s Manual 465 SIMPROCESS System Methods SIMPROCESS System Methods Method Name Arguments Return Description Confirm MasterEditor BOOL Displays a message in the Con Message STRING EAN firm dialog and waits for the user to respond OK returns TRUE CANCEL returns FALSE COS X REAL REAL Returns the COSine of X DateTime None STRING Returns the current date and time of the simulation in MM DD YYYY HH MM SS MSEC USEC NSEC format DecreaseCapacity Resource Name STRING NONE Decreases the capacity of a Re Units INTEGER or REAL source by the units specified DrawIntegerSample Statistical Distribution INTE Draws a sample of type integer STRING GER from the specified statistical dis tribution DrawRealSample Statistical Distribution REAL Draws a sample of type real from STRING the specified statistical distribu tion ElapsedTime Units Optional STRING REAL Returns the amount of time Start STRING End STRING between the Start value and End value The Units is optional and can be any valid time unit Sec onds Minutes etc If omit ted the value returned is in the units set by Simulation Time Unit in Run Settings Start and End use the format MM DD YYYY HH MM SS MSEC USEC NSEC The formats MM DD YY and YYYY MM DD can also be used for the date portion of Start and End The DateTime function can be used for Start or End SIMP
4. s Reserve As Available e Number of Members None z R I Release Entities In Process at Start of Downtime Comment l During the simulation run if the units of Resource requested is larger than the Resource capacity the Entity will not proceed since there will never be more units available than capacity This will not occur when using consumable Resources If the Resource is consumable the Entity will continue when more Resource units are available Also if a fractional number of units is requested and fractional usage was not selected for the Resource an error will occur SIMPROCESS User s Manual 225 Writing Expressions Writing Expressions The previous section discussed how to define user Attributes This section discusses how to use them For Attributes to be useful they must be able to be accessed and changed during a simulation run SIMPROCESS provides opportunities to do this at many points during a simulation The instructions written to process Attributes and SIMPROCESS model elements are called Expressions An Expression is a user defined routine that runs within the larger SIMPROCESS program In effect SIMPROCESS checks at various points during a simulation run to see if there are any special instructions forit If so itruns the code Expressions accomplish simulation and modeling requirements for which standard SIMPROCESS processing does not support The SIMPROCESS Expression language is intr
5. On Entry C On Exit 4 Select either one or more individual Entities or a range of Entities from the list box Check the All Entities box to stamp every entity in the model 5 Choose either the On Entry or On Exit check boxes for the Time Stamp 6 Select a Time Stamp Key in the combo box which contains the predefined time stamp labels 7 Press the OK command button and notice the Time Stamp report name in the Event Logs list box Passing Time Stamps Between Entities When an entity enters a Clone Split or Transform Activity a new instance of an entity type leaves that Activity The Original entity when it leaves a Clone or Split Activity will continue to carry Time Stamps that were defined upstream on the entity The Clone Entities will not by default carry those Time Stamps defined on the Original entity Clone Entities can also inherit the Time Stamps of the Original entity On the Properties dialog of the Clone Activity simply click on the Copy Time Stamps check box This will cause each instance of the Clone Entities to carry the Time Stamp information inherited from the Original entity To specify that the Clone Entities resulting from a Split Activity inherit Time Stamp information from the Original entity edit the Properties of the connector s emanating from the Clone pad Now click on the Copy Attributes button This will open the Copy Entity Fields and Attributes dialog This dialog contains the same Copy Time
6. Comment Modifying a Downtime Schedule Removing existing Schedule items from a Downtime Schedule is simple open the global or local Downtime Schedule highlight the Schedule item to delete and click on Remove Tochangea Schedule item select it from the Schedule list click on Edit and then modify the parameters on the Downtime Schedule dialog Click on OK to accept the changes The Add button updates the Schedule list box to include the schedule just defined The OK button finalizes the changes made to the Downtime Schedule The Cancel button exits the Downtime Schedule dialog without accepting any schedule changes made SIMPROCESS User s Manual 308 Event Logs Event Logs Time Stamps and Recorders are event logs supported in SIMPROCESS Time Stamping is a facility that SIMPROCESS offers for monitoring times between any two events For example start to finish time The three steps for using Time Stamps are e Defining Time Stamps e Adding Entry Exit Event Logs to Processes Activities e Viewing Time Stamp Reports Defining Time Stamps A Time Stamp can be thought of as a label or key that contains the current simulation time This key is added to an entity by an Event Log when it either enters or leaves a Process or Activity Pairs of keys can be specified and Entity cycle times can be computed between them Time Stamping can be performed upon entry and or exit from an Activity Time Stamp specifications c
7. Replication 1 Replication 2 Replication 3 Start Run Ps e End Run rad Warm up Period Steady State Period Start Simulation Start Trial End Trial End Simulation Some events can occur many times during asimulation The Start TrialandEnd Trial events occur once during each replication of a multi replication simulation If the simulation contains only asingle replication these events occurjustonce The Start Simulation andEnd Simulation events occur once during each replication of a multi replication simulation if Reset System is selected in the Simulation Run Setting dialog Otherwise the Start Simulation event occurs just once at the beginning of the first replication The End Simulation event occurs at the end of the last replication These are specified on the Expressions tab of Process Activity Resource and Entity Type dialogs SIMPROCESS User s Manual 236 Expression Activation Events Delay Properties xi General Resources Attributes Expressions EventLogs TextBlock Documentation Help Edit Get Resource Free Resource Remove End Trial Undo End Simulation Cancel Help New Entity New Resource Global Attributes Entity Entity Type Resource Model Comment Start Run and End Run are model Expressions only menu Define Model Expressions These Expressions are executed only once no matter how many replications are run Start Run isthe very
8. Delay Activity Delay Activity Delay Activities common building blocks found in most models have two functions they represent the passage of time during simulation and define the Resources required to perform a task The cycle time of an Entity traversing the model is the sum of the delays it encounters i e the time spent at the Activities in its path plus any hold time for a condition to be met and the wait time for any Resources Delay Properties L Expressions _ _ Event Logs Text Block Documentation OK General Resources Attributes Cancel Name Customer Service v Show Name Use Text Block Help Icon 4t Delay vi At New Entity Icon Set Default z NewResource Global Attributes Entity Entity Type Duration Value Nor 10 0 1 0 1 Resource Units Hours Model Collect Activity Statistics Collect Activity by Entity Statistics Comment The Resources button opens a dialog for specifying the Resources required to perform an Activity See Chapter 5 Resource Modeling Constructs beginning on page 126 for instructions on defining Resource requirements for an Activity Specifying Delay Duration Value represents the amount of time required to perform an Activity This delay time can be expressed as either a constant value or a statistical distribution Time Units determines if the Duration entered is measured as nanoseconds microseconds
9. SIMPROCESS User s Manual 37 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus Background Color Current Layout changes the background color of the visible layout to the selected color All Layouts changes the background color of all layouts in the active model to the selected color Align Ix x dad OK C Bottom Cancel C Left C Right C Center vertical C Center Horizontal Aligns a number of selected objects according to various criteria Top aligns the tops of the selected objects Bottom aligns the bottoms of the selected objects Left aligns the left sides of the selected objects Right aligns the right sides of the selected objects Center Vertical aligns the centers of the selected objects along a vertical line Center Horizontal aligns the centers of the selected objects along a horizontal line The screen shots below show the effect of using Align before and after aligning the horizontal centers SIMPROCESS User s Manual 38 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus wtee 4a Ev 9 OezT Distribute ol OK C Horizontally Cancel C Circular Distributes three or more selected objects so that they are equally spaced vertically horizontally or circularly The screen shots below show the results of using Distribute on some unequally spaced objects Before using Distribute SIMPROCESS User s Manual 39 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus After
10. boolean goodEvent false try spServer SPServerFactory_Stub Naming lookup rmi localhost SPServer SIMPROCESS User s Manual 291 Defining a More Complex Generate Activity catch Exception e e printStackTrace System out try if spServer null for int i 1 i lt 11 i 4 double time spServer getSimTime Remote time time 10 0 IE E 3y lt f goodEvent spServer generateEntity Remote Generatel Externall Entity9 time 0 else if i lt 6 goodEvent spServer generateEntity Remote Generatel Externall Entity6 time 2 else goodEvent spServer generateEntity Remote Generatel Externall null 1 0 end of inner if if goodEvent System out printin Generate event failed try Thread sleep 2000 catch Exception e end of for loop goodEvent spServer generateEntity Remote Generatel StopSim null 1 0 end of outer if end of try block catch RemoteException re re printStackTrace System out end of main end of ExternalApp SIMPROCESS User s Manual 292 Defining a More Complex Generate Activity External Schedule Errors If the call to get SimTime is not successful a 1 will be returned If the callto generateEntity is not successf
11. Clone Activity The Clone Activity generates duplicate Entities Note that this activity is only available from the Create menu This is because the Clone activity exists primarily to support pre SIMPROCESS version 4 0 models Since the cloned entities leaving the Clone activity are of the same type as the entity entering the activity the entity statistics for the type of the entering activity are affected by the creation of the cloned entities The entity statistics are skewed by the Clone activity The Split activity is the recommended activity for entity cloning since the cloned entity can be a different type of entity Thus the statistics for the original entity are not affected by the creation of cloned entities SIMPROCESS User s Manual 117 Entity Control Activities Clone Properties Event Logs Text Block Documentation General Resources Attributes mee Cancel Name Clones M Show Name _ Use Text Block Help leon 4 Clone vate New Entity icon Set Default be New Resource Copies per Connector 1 a L gt Global Attributes Entity Fields and attributes emr All user defined entity attributes will be copied Entity Type Entity priority will be copied Resource Model L Copy Time Stamps Duration Value None Units Hours Fi Collect Activity Statistics O Collect Activity by Entity Statistics Comment Dialog Field Definitions Number of Copies per Connector
12. Color A Black x IV Bold I Italic Angle 0 0 Comment To update a dynamic label using Expressions the dynamic label must have a unique combination of Name and Id number Usually Id number will be 0 unless two dynamic labels have the same Name The name typed into the Name text box will not appear on the layout It will only be used to reference the label from the Expression builder The type of value with which the dynamic label will be updated must also be selected The choice between String Integer and Real is made in the Mode combo box If the value of the dynamic label is Real Width and Precision must be specified in the corresponding value boxes Width is the total number of digits that will be shown for the displayed value including the decimal point while Precision specifies the number of digits after the decimal point that will be displayed If the Width is greater than the value being displayed it will be padded with spaces on the left side If the Mode is Integer then only the Width field needs to be set Note that the Value field does not have to be empty to use UpdateDynamicLabel The same dynamic label can be updated automatically and with UpdateDynamicLabel SIMPROCESS User s Manual 258 Dynamic Labels Once the dynamic label is defined it can be updated by making a function call to the UpdateDynamicLabel method inthe Expression builder This method requires the following five arguments i
13. Plot for InG 0 0 1 0 4 0 1 Probability density function and cumulative density function for an inverse Gaussian distribution with loca tion 0 scale 1 and shape 4 Syntax InG location scale shape stream The inverse Gaussian distribution continuous could be used to model the time required to perform some task SIMPROCESS User s Manual 443 Appendix D Statistical Distributions Inverted Weibull Plot for InVW 0 0 1 0 2 0 1 BRE PDF Inv 0 0 1 0 2 0 1 CDF Invv 0 0 1 0 2 0 1 1 07 0 a F 1 0 8 f oar 1 0 6 f 0 6 1 0 4 f 7 0 3 F 1 0 2 F 1 oiir q 0 0 SS es ee eee a 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 Probability density function and cumulative density function for an inverted Weibull distribution with loca tion 0 scale 1 and shape 2 Syntax InW location scale shape stream The inverted Weibull distribution continuous could be used to model the time required to perform some task The mean and variance are finite only if shape gt 2 If the random variable X has an inverted Weibull distribution with location 0 scale b and shape a then Y 1 X has a Weibull distribution with scale 1 b and shape a The location parameter is 0 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 444 Appendix D Statistical Distributions Johnson Spg Distribution Plot for JSB 0 0 1 0 2 0 2 0 1 BRAME PDF JSB 0 0 1 0 2 0 2 0 1 CDF JSB 0 0 1 0 2
14. SIMPROCESS User s Manual 524 Index in Assign Activity 108 of transformed entity 109 released by Gate Activity 102 removing 72 reports 165 Transform Activity and 108 type defined 70 using entity attributes in an expresssion 233 entities cyclical generation 279 defining 43 generation 276 generation schedule in event file 284 none generated reasons for 276 Recorder 311 Time Stamps vs Recorder Objects 311 tracking arrival and departure times 311 Entities accumulating 101 Entities batching See Batch Activity Entities limiting number in Dispose 69 entity count 166 Entity Related Activities 96 event cycles Repeat Sequence 280 repeating 280 scheduling of 283 284 types 279 280 event files 284 all defined option 285 checking syntax of 285 entity types selecting 285 identifying to SIMPROCESS 285 new entities specified in 286 Event Logs 309 311 Recorders 311 Time Stamps 309 events calendar 278 284 Date field 283 trigger point 283 changing sequence of 280 Count Limit 282 Duration 281 duration of 281 inactive periods 284 Move 280 moving 280 No event 284 number of times executed 281 Repeat Event 282 repeating 281 scheduling of 284 sequence of 280 single event 284 upwards option 280 Experiment Manager 334 Database Tables 335 Experiment Errors 345 Experiment Operation 344 Experiment Setup Form 335 Experiment Trace 344 Generating Standard Reports 347 Interacting With Experiments 346 Run All Experiments 3
15. Version 2 2 1 or 2 2 2 models cannot be opened using File Open Earlier version models must be imported to version 4 This is done using File Import Version 2 2 1 Model Model versions earlier than 2 2 1 cannot be imported These models must be saved in 2 2 1 or 2 2 2 before they can be imported into version 4 However it is recommended that models be saved in 2 2 3 before importing SIMPROCESS 2 2 3 is a special Student version Import Utility that is designed to prepare models for import to version 4 The 2 2 3 Student version can load and save models from versions of SIMPROCESS earlier than 2 2 1 The special Student version of SIMPROCESS 2 2 3 is available at www simprocess com Earlier version models must be imported because the structure of SIMPROCESS and the structure of a SIMPROCESS model file has changed Version 3 and higher model files are XML files Thus they can be read by any XML parser SIMPROCESS User s Manual 400 Appendix A Importing Version 2 2 1 Models Import Procedures To import a model select File Import Version 2 2 1 Model and choose the model to import Import ersion 2 2 1 SIMPROCESS Model xj Look in E models x E c E File name Open Files of type SIMPROCESS Models spm v Cancel If the file selected is a version 3 or higher file it will open However if the file is pre 2 2 1 an error dialog will appear Import Model x x Incorrect model version Model v
16. c ssscscssssssssssssssssecsssscsssssesssssssssccssnesees 128 Adding Resource Requirements to Activities csccseee 131 Explicitly Getting and Freeing Resources scssssesessees 133 Replenishing Consumable Resources ccccssssssessscsescees 137 Preempting Lower Priority Entities ccscccsssssssscssscees 139 CHAPTER 6 Graphical Modeling Constructs cccssscccssssscessssscessssscccsssccees 140 Background Text ssoesssooesesosecssosccesssocesssoosessosecessocosssoosessooe 141 Background GraphiCs esseessocsssccssocesocesoccesocessecssocesoossoosssese 145 Importing Graphics Image Files ccscccssssssssscsssscessecees 146 Post Simulation Animation ccccccccccssssscssssssssscssecssscsseses 149 CHAPTER 7 Activity Based Costing sssssssessesssesesssessseoessooesssoeesssocessoossssseessoo 153 ABC and SIMPROCESS e eeesssssosoososssssosooeessssssosoosossssssssossose 154 Benefits of ABC with SIMPROCESS cccccccssssssssssseees 155 How to Use ABC in SIMPROCESS ccsscsccssssssssssscsseees 156 CHAPTER 8 Outp t IR CDOTES cii dovsdacacucvatasucv eae deauanvddcs tiauandeddissiaascediesh iiss 162 Standard REDOING osssisisesossiscsszsrsssoiesrssisdssesssesestssseso tisrssestssosssvis 163 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 4 Table of Contents Custom Statistics sseoeessoceessececsscscccesscoocesseceessccecessseceesseceessesee 165
17. e Increases the accuracy of experiments e Decreases the time to find the solution to the problem e Provides a statistical software tool tailored to the statistical simulation environment e Provides a unique graphical user interface e Performs data analysis e Models random processes SIMPROCESS User s Manual 314 Model Development Verification and Validation Statistical Experimentation amp Analysis Results ExpertFit is used to analyze data and construct a data model of the random process that generated the data An introduction to the statistical background for data analysis and data modeling is provided in the following paragraph An Introduction to Data Analysis and Modeling SIMPROCESS User s Manual 315 An Introduction to Data Analysis and Modeling An Introduction to Data Analysis and Modeling Introduction Probability distributions are a way of describing the random variations that occur in the real world Although the variations are called random there are different degrees of randomness and the different distributions correspond to how the variations occur Consequently different distributions are used for different purposes Probability distributions are represented by probability density functions Probability density functions show how likely acertain value is The more likely the value the larger the probability density function at that point The total probability at all
18. preceding the equal sign is required An error will occur if it is omitted String values can be concatenated using the operator For example mystringl hello mystring2 dolly mystring3 mystringl mystring2 The string mystring3 now contains the value hello dolly String concatenation can also be used on functions that return string values such as the SUBSTR function For example mystringl SUBSTR 0 5 mystring3 dude The variable mystring1 will now contain hello dude e Compare Operator An equal sign without a preceding colon is used when comparing two values Thus the statement beginning IF assignWeight 1000 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 227 Writing Expressions compares the value of Attribute assignWeight to the number 1000 e Arithmetic Operators used in the SIMPROCESS Expression language are addition subtraction multiplication division DIV integer division and MOD modulus e Relational Operators include lt gt not equal lt lt gt gt Literals e A string of printable characters on a single line is enclosed in quotation marks The plain in Spain looks lovely in the rain e A boolean literal is entered as uppercase TRUE or FALSE myBool TRUE e An integer literal is entered as a whole number myInteger 67 e A real literal is entered as a whole number plus a decimal fraction or whole number plus a fr
19. Edit Remove Help Global Downtimes Comment SIMPROCESS User s Manual 297 Resource Downtime Defining Downtime Schedules of Resources Global and local Resource Downtimes have the same format Both consist of Start and End dates and times and a list of Schedules All schedules in the Schedule list are active only between the times specified in the Start and End fields If no times are specified they will default to the Start and End of the model It is recommended unless the modeling scenario requires specific dates that the Start and End are left empty If the Start and End of the model are changed then the Start and End of resource downtimes are changed without having to re enter the dates and times Dialog Field Definitions e Start specifies the earliest time that the resource s downtime schedules are in effect This field uses a MM DD YY HH MM SS MSS USS NSS format The millisecond microsecond and nanosecond portions may be left blank Endis the time beyond which the downtime schedules are not applicable The same date time format as Start is used After this time the resource will not go down e The Schedules list identifies the downtime periods defined for this resource When a new downtime period is defined it is added to this list Next to the Add button for the Schedule list box is a combo box containing the available down time schedule types There are three bas
20. Example Batching Entities Based on Weight on page 242 describes this Process in detail Not every event is available as an activation point for every model element For example the initial value of an Attribute for an Entity can be set when the Entity is first generated Initialize Entity or when the Entity is released from a Generate Activity Release Entity But the value of an Entity Attribute cannot be set when the simulation first begins to run Start Simulation because no Entities have been generated at that point The table below contains a complete list of activation events Note that the order of the elements is the order in which the Expressions are executed SIMPROCESS User s Manual 238 Expression Activation Events Model Elements ning of each replication Event Name Activation Point and Comments Active For Start Run The beginning of a simulation run Occurs Model only once no matter how many replications Start Simulation The beginning of the first replication before Model the warm up period if any If Reset Entity Types System is selected it occurs at the begin Resources All Activities Start Trial Beginning of a trial within the simulation after the warm up period if any Model Resources Entity Types All Activities Initialize Entity Creation allocation of an Entity This typically occurs in a Generate Activity but may also occur in the Batch
21. Generate Phone Calls Number ef calls om held Call Type of Calls Type A Type B Type GA cP BU amp b gt Post Simulation Animation Toolbar The two buttons on the left are for recording and the remainder are for playback Open File for Playback Set Record File Stop Rewind 4 Roe wre mi a f f t f Record On Off Play Pause Fast Forward Recording an Animation Animation events are recorded in a file for playback In order for the Record On Off button to be active an animation event file must be set using the Set Record File button The Set Record File button brings up a dialog where the name of the file is entered Do not enter the path to the file Animation eventfiles are automatically created in the model s directory The filename is saved with the model If an animation event file had been previously set the Record On Off button will activate when the toolbar is displayed The Record On Off button is a toggle button When the button is selected animation events SIMPROCESS User s Manual 150 Post Simulation Animation are recorded Thus recording can be turned on and off multiple times during a simulation The animation option buttons on the main toolbar or the Animation Settings dialog Simulate Animation Settings menu item control which animation events are recorded Animation On Show Clock and Animation Speed slider do not apply to recording animation events The events rec
22. When two or more graph panels are selected they can be aligned using the Layout Align menu item or by right clicking on a selected graph panel and choosing the appropriate align item When three or more graph panels are selected they can be distributed horizontally vertically or circularly using the Layout Distribute menu item or by right clicking on a selected graph panel and choosing the appropriate distribute item The image below shows a Dashboard with a Line Graph and a Bar Graph that have been moved from the center resized to 350 x 350 pixels and aligned i simprocess Dashboards Dashboard1 5 x File Edit Layout sh aex vw SIMPROCESS User s Manual 383 Defining Dashboards Editing Graph Properties The default properties for graphs can be edited by double clicking a graph panel selecting a panel and choosing Edit Properties from the menu selecting a panel and clicking the properties button on the toolbar or by right clicking and choosing Properties Properties common to all graphs are Name and Background The Name is used to identify the graph to the Dashboard and must be unique Background sets the color of the background or the graph A specific color can be selected from the Background Color list or Use Layout Background Color can be selected Use Layout Background Color sets the background color of the graph to background color of the layout Note that Name and Background cannot be changed when a D
23. 1 07 O97 O77 O47 O17 0 0L 6 8 10 12 14 Probability density function and cumulative density function for normal distribution function with mean 10 standard deviation 1 There are two normal distributions in SIMPROCESS One only returns non neg ative values zero or higher and the other will return negative values Syntax Nor mean standard deviation stream returns only non negative values This distribution is similar to the classical normal distribution but if a negative value is generated it is rejected and new values are generated until a non negative value is generated In general this distribution will not be a good model for the time required to perform some task since task time distributions are almost always skewed to the right Syntax Nrm mean standard deviation stream unbounded This is the classical normal distribution which is found in most statistics books It takes on real values between minus infinity and plus infinity The density functionis the familiar bell shaped curve which is symmetric about the mean The probability that a value is between the mean minus 2 standard deviations and the mean plus two standard deviations is approximately 0 95 This distribution should not be used to model the time required to perform some task since the normal distribution can take on negative values Furthermore as stated above the distribution of the time to perform some task is almost always ske
24. 431 Appendix D Statistical Distributions Beta Distribution Plot for Bet 1 5 5 0 0 0 1 0 1 PDF Bet 1 5 5 0 0 0 1 0 1 m CDF Bet 1 5 5 0 0 0 1 0 1 2 5 2 0 0 5 0 0 00 O02 04 O68 O8 1 0 Probability density function and cumulative density function for a beta distribution with shape 1 5 shape2 5 0 minimum 0 0 and maximum 1 0 Syntax Bet shapel shape2 minimum maximum stream The beta distribution continuous could be used to model the time required to perform some task when the possible values are restricted to the finite interval minimum maximum The density function is skewed to the left symmetric or skewed to the right if shapel gt shape2 shapel shape2 or shapel lt shape 2 respectively A beta distribution with shapel shape2 1 is a uniform distribution with the interval 0 1 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 432 Appendix D Statistical Distributions Erlang Distribution Plot for Erl 1 0 3 1 T T T T PDF Erl 1 0 3 1 CDF Erl 1 0 3 1 a 25 ee a Probability density function and cumulative density function for an Erlang distribution with mean 1 and shape 3 Syntax Erl mean shape stream The Erlang distribution continuous could be used to model the time required to perform some task If an Erlang distribution has parameters mean m and shape a then b m a is a scale parameter An Erlang distribution is just a ga
25. Exporting to UML Files SIMPROCESS models Demos Purchasing spm C Program Files SIMPROCESS models Demos Purchasing Purchasing properties This example shows a file named Purchasing properties that is in the directory of the Purchasing spm model The following is an example of a properties file Three model parameters are set one process alternative is set Purchasing the number of replications is set and the Design and Scenario are set The order is not important Do not include a Design and Scenario if the results of the run should not be committed to the SIMPROCESS database odel NumProdAPersonnel 6 odel NumProdBPersonnel 4 odel NumProdCPersonnel 4 Purchasing Centralized Functional Scenario sl Design New Design Replications 2 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 521 Index activities Activity Browser 27 aligning 38 Assemble 96 98 Assign 107 108 222 Batch 98 100 See also Batch Activity Batch system attributes of 214 Branch 110 111 Clone 117 117 118 Comment dialog field 60 commenting 60 connecting 55 creating from menu 42 defining resource requirements 131 definition of 18 53 54 delay time defining 59 66 68 displaying name under icon 59 distributing 39 Document command 60 documenting 60 entity processing time 59 Free Resource 135 136 Gate 101 104 entity release policies 101 gating policies 101 Generate 276 293 Get Resource 133 134 grouping 40 Hide 41 Hide All Names 41 icons cho
26. Help Clear Fill Reset axes Sample plot e About Lists information on plot developers e Help Limited information on zooming plots e Clear Erases the values plotted e Fill No effect on plot Reset Axes Resets axes ranges to starting values e Sample Plot Displays sample plot Plot Buttons Button functions as seen from left to right are as follows Sr E e Prints the plot Same as File Print e Resets the X and Y ranges to their original values Same as Special Reset Axes SIMPROCESS User s Manual 183 Real Time Plots e Sets the plot format Same as Edit Format e Rescales the plot to fit the data Used after zooming to return to full view of plot Plot Zooming Once the simulation is complete portions of the plot can be zoomed To select the area for zooming left mouse click at one corner of the area and drag over the area When the mouse is released that area will fill the plot The following two plots demonstrate this The first plot is the original plot The second shows the plot with a portion zoomed Eiisimprocess Real Time Graph 1 x File Edit Special Service Call Cycle Times Trace 15 55s i observations Mean 4 4 0 5 10 15 20 25 Simulation Time in Hours ni File Edit Special BRAE Observations Mean m Service Call Cycle Times Trace zor O00 SO E e E Ss a 0 E Simulation
27. Max Count or RunLength Replication is the replication desired or the average or sum of replications Some examples GetActivityByEntityStatistic Process4 Sales Calls bytoken delay Avg 1 returns the average cycle time across replications of the Entity Sales Calls in the Process Process4 GetActivityByEntityStatistic Process4 Sales Calls bytokenin Max 2 returns the number of Sales Calls Entities that entered the Process Process4 in replication 2 Although other Value Types are available the maximum value is the value of interest since the number of Entities entering are just counted GetAttributeStatistic GetAttributeStatistic returns the value of an Attribute that is being monitored for statistics On the Attribute properties either Observation Based or Time Weighted must be selected for Statistics Types and at least one of the Report Requests must be selected See Globally Defining an Attribute from the Menu on page 216 The value returned will be based on the Statistic Type selected on the Attribute properties Observation Based or Time Weighted The Attribute name must be unique among SIMPROCESS User s Manual 268 Accessing Statistics During Simulation the user defined Attributes that are being statistically monitored The syntax is GetAttributeStatistic Attribute Name Value Type Replication where Attribute Name is the name of the Attribute Value Type can
28. System Attributes SIMPROCESS System Attributes Model Elements Attribute Name Get Attribute Description Set Type EndWait Both BOOLEAN TRUE if Entity wait for Resources was interrupted by Max Wait time EnterTime Get REAL Time the Entity instance entered the current Activity HasParent Get BOOLEAN TRUE if the Entity instance was cre ated by a Split Activity Max Wait Both REAL Maximum time Entity will wait for Resource allocation Default is 0 0 unlimited NumberIn Get INTEGER Number of Entity instances of the same type currently in the system NumberCreated Get INTEGER Number of Entity instances of the same type has generated NumberDisposed Get INTEGER Number of Entity instances of the same type has disposed Parent Get OBJECT Returns the Parent Entity instance of this Entity instance An Entity instance only has a Parent when it was created by a Split Activity The original Entity instance entering the Split Activity is the Parent Priority Both INTEGER Priority of this Entity instance SequenceNum Get INTEGER A unique number given to each Entity as it is created Type Get OBJECT Entity Type reference of this Entity instance Interrupt Both BOOLEAN Determines whether this Entity instance will interrupt the processing of a lower priority Entity Resource Name Get STRING Name of the Resource SIMPROCESS User s Manual 460 System
29. Activity diagrams do not provide the dimensions needed to do robust business process analysis such as dynamic modeling entity flow simulations resource utilization queueing theory and cost based business metrics SIMPROCESS User s Manual 512 Appendix I Exporting to UML SIMPROCESS focuses on the functional and business work flow including manual physical processes that have nothing to do with the system but need to be understood and modeled in order to build a system to support the business properly and not just on the system transactions This is made clear when looking at how activities such as delays splits joins batching unbatching assembling etc are described for behavior in a SIMPROCESS model These are representative of business activities that people do in carrying out their jobs regardless of what interaction they have with the system In addition SIMPROCESS looks at the resources entities and workflow as a complete dynamic model that allows visualization of how the business works both from manual steps and system interaction This is important in order to match up the business transactions with the system transactions SIMPROCESS has a more functional and business view and focuses on activity based costing metrics throughput bottlenecks timing re work and other business performance metrics regardless of the system that is supporting the business This is why business and functional representatives prefer SIM
30. ELSIF Entity Name television order Entity applianceWeight 100 0 ELSE Entity applianceWeight 10 0 END IF These instructions check the name of the Entity being released at the Activity The name identifies the type of Entity A value is assigned to applianceWeight based on the Entity type 4 Close the editor SIMPROCESS User s Manual 245 Example Batching Entities Based on Weight 5 Click on Close and then OK Releasing Entities Based on Weight Two more Expressions are needed to complete the model In the first Expression check the weight of the Entities received at the batch Activity and trigger their release if the weight reaches a certain number 1 Double click on the DISTRIBUTE ORDERS Activity 2 In the Batch Activity Properties dialog click on the Expressions tab 3 There are eight activation events listed on the Expressions tab for a Batch Activity Accept Entity occurs when an Entity arrives at the Activity so highlight this event and click on Edit 4 Insert the following code batchWeight REAL batchWeight batchWeight Entity applianceWeight IF batchWeight gt 5000 0 MaxBatchSize NumberIn OUTPUT Batch weight is batchWeight batchWeight 0 0 END IF In this Expression the weight of the just received Entity is added to the total weight of all Entities received If the total weight exceeds 5000 0 a batch release is triggered by resetting MaxBatchSize the A
31. Entity Control Activities Dialog Field Definitions The unique attributes of the Split Connector are e Entity Type is the field where the Split Entity type that will flow along this Connector is selected e Quantity specifies how many of the split Entities will flow along this Connector for each original Entity that enters the Split Activity e Copy Attributes opens a dialog where Global Entity Instance attributes to copy from the original Entity to each of the Split Entities are selected Entity Priority and Time Stamps can also be copied from the original Entity to each of the Split Entities e New Entity button opens the Entity definition dialog for modifying Entity type definitions Clicking on the Entity Type pull down box displays a list of the Entities in the model The Entity to flow along this Connector is selected here For analysis purposes consider using a different name for the children For example if the original Entity type Customer Order is used for each of the paths leading from the Split Activity distortions in the statistics for the Customer Order Entity could occur When all split Entities meet again at the Join Activity the two split Entities are destroyed at the Join while the original Entity continues on When total cycle time for Customer Order Entities is calculated at the end of a simulation those split Entities skew the statistics Cycle times for the split Entities are measured from generation in the S
32. If not using localhost from the directory where SPRemote jar and plot jar are located enter this command jre bin java classpath SPRemote jar plot jar com caci remote SPPlotServer Use colons in the classpath for non Windows systems Once the Java RMI Registry and SPPlotServer have been started load and run the model Note that remote plots are not plotted locally Real time plots are created either locally or remotely but not both Remote real time plots cannot be hidden even if selected in the Real Time Plot Properties That is they will display as soon as simulation data is sent to the plot Also once aremote real time plot has been closed there is no way to reopen it since remote real time plots are not in the list of plots available through the Display Real Time Plots button or menu item SIMPROCESS User s Manual 181 Real Time Plots Automatic Saving of Plots Plots are automatically saved in the plots directory which is created under the SPUser directory at the end of a simulation run Only local plots are saved All plots are saved using the name of the plot as the name of the file When creating the file name some special characters amp and in the name of the plot are replaced by underscores Note that not all special characters are replaced and depending on the system and the special characters special characters that are not replaced with underscores could cause an error during
33. Once Rose is visible the Rose model can be modified as desired and the Rose model can be saved However any new Use Case Diagrams added will not automatically appear in the SIMPROCESS Use Case List window until it is closed and reopened After a Use Case Diagram is selected and the OK button is clicked the Use Case Diagram information will be added into the SIMPROCESS dialog as shown below The Use Case Diagram name and fully qualified name which includes the entire package structure in Rose are not directly editable To clear the Use Case Diagram connection simply select and clear the Selected Rose Model File field in this dialog and click OK To change the Use Case Diagram Selected the node to which SIMPROCESS is connected simply click on the Details button and choose another Rose Use Case Diagram from the Use Case Diagram dialog as described above Rose Use Case Model Selection x OK Selected Rose Model File ipubssampletpubssample mal Browse ance Use Case Diagram Selected Main Help Fully Qualified Name Juse Case View Main An important feature of this Use Case Diagram connection between SIMPROCESS and Rational Rose is that when the Rose model is published to HTML and the SIMPROCESS modelis published to HTML the SIMPROCESS HTML nodes will be automatically linked to the Rose Use Case Diagrams in the HTML For this feature to work the Rose published model must be in a directory named rose within the directory
34. Real Time PIOUS veces cccccsciccsscnssssssesecnecesvedssoossecsessvccsscosssedsenstacesess 176 CUS COM PIOUG sca siscssiesscccssngseclateciscbinesancorvarscassaesaeteceasssetosessenstns 185 Simulation Results File sccsssssscssssssscccsssssccssssscesssssscees 195 Part B Advanced SIMPROCESS Functions and Features cccccccsssscccee 196 CHAPTER 9 Reusable Templates and Libraries ccccsscccssssscsssssscecsssssceeeees 197 Libr ry COMES ioc codcscesscectnnvecionccavensavesevasceensedeanessennsseanccteneseis 198 Defining and Editing Templates sccsssccsssscssscesseccees 199 Editing Templates si scsscisvsassococsecsdecsscuescorsacseseniccbbcvvnsaveveons vnseove 207 Advantage of Templates Over Copy Paste cssccssssseseees 209 CHAPTER 10 Customizing a Model with Attributes and Expressions 210 Introduction to Attributes and Expressions cssccsssscees 212 Using Attributes in SIMPROCESS cccssccsssscssssscssecsees 214 User Defined Attributes cccccccsccssscsssssssscssscsssssssseseeeees 215 ASSIN A COVIEY sccnctessiscdiscedsacvedasnadvecesvecdecssiadcdesssssdetsassdedecavestsaes 222 Variable Resource Usage ccsccccsssssccssssssscccsssscccsscscccessssees 224 Writing Expressions s ccicsisscscctescscecsdersesasdovessacnsacanacosasensecaseasaaes 226 Evaluate Evl FUNCtiOn ccccccccccssscscscssscssscscscsccccccccscsesesees 235 Exp
35. Tae tex ee v The Dashboard GUL is similar to the SIMPROCESS GUI The primary differences are that only one Dashboard can be open at a time and the Dashboard GUI initially opens with an empty Dashboard named Dashboard Dashboard Layout The Dashboard layout is similar to the layout ofa SIMPROCESS model in that its size can be set Layout Size menu item and its background color can be set Layout Background Color menu item Selecting Layout Size brings up the following dialog SIMPROCESS User s Manual 380 Defining Dashboards Dashboard Layout Size x width a00 300 minimum OK Height e00 300 minimum Cancel Snap Help Each Dashboard has a size denoted by a gray line in the editor window This size measured in pixels will be used by the Dashboard Server to build a window in which to display the Dashboard and its Graphs The width and height values must be at least 300 pixels each but are otherwise unlimited in size However when determining the size consideration should be given to the size of the display on which the server will run when a Dashboard is displayed The Snap button will automatically adjust the width and height values to the smallest values required to contain all Graphs currently in the Dashboard Snap will not resize the layout to smaller than 300 x 300 pixels Selecting Layout Background Color sets the color of the layout to the color displayed on the color button on the toolbar
36. The Activity Diagram includes the Diagram information for Rational Rose only The XMI activity information can be imported into any UML tool other than Rational Rose that supports XMI by simply deleting the Diagram information at the bottom of the XMI file that is created from the export process The other type of interface is an active link between activity nodes on a SIMPROCESS model and Use Case Diagrams in a Rational Rose model This interface requires a Microsoft Windows version of SIMPROCESS and a licensed copy of Rational Rose Each type of interface is described in more detail in the following sections SIMPROCESS User s Manual 513 Appendix I Exporting to UML Exporting to UML This capability can be used by selecting File Export UML Activity Model from the SIMPROCESS menus It outputs the model to a UML compatible XML file No dialog is displayed for this export operation The file is created in the model s directory with a xm1 extension and is compatible with Rational Rose including diagram information The XMI file may be compatible with other UML tools as well such as the ArgoUML open source tool but diagram information intended for Rational Rose will not be compatible with other UML tools To import the model into Rational Rose Rational Rose must have the Import Export XMI plug in installed This plug in can be obtained from the Rational Rose web site www rational com Once it is installed simply choose the Impo
37. They are defined by selecting the menu item Define Resource Downtimes x Close Add Edit C opy Remove Undo Add Template SIMPROCESS comes with three predefined Resource Downtime templates that are listed in the Type combo box on the Resource Downtime list dialog e Empty Default Resource Downtime with no Downtime scheduled e Night Shift Includes a Downtime schedule that causes a Resource to only be available from 11 p m to 3 a m and from 4 a m to 8 a m Monday through Friday nights e Standard Shift Includes a Downtime schedule that causes a Resource to only be available from 8 a m to noon and 1 5 p m The Add Template button on the Resource Downtime list dialog creates a Resource Downtime template that can be saved ina library When the library is loaded the Resource Downtime templates in the library are added to the Type list See Adding Resource Downtime Templates beginning on page 206 for more information on creating Resource Downtime templates Selecting Add brings up a global Resource Downtime dialog SIMPROCESS User s Manual 295 Resource Downtime Resource Downtime Properties Xx Name Downtimet OK Cancel mmiddiyyy hh mm ss msec usec nsec Help Start ju z a i a New Resource Schedules Add Periodic R Edit Remove Apply Downtime to Resources Expert Select All Hardware Sales Rep DESSENA Intern Service
38. User Defined Attributes on page 215 This Attribute will be used as a reference to the database connection The syntax for Windows with ODBC is Model ObjectAttribute OpenDatabase DSN UserName Password where DSN is the DSN created in ODBC UserName and Password are optional These are only required if the database requires them for access Alternatively a database properties file can be used This file should be similar to the sProcDB properties file in the SPUser directory This file is used to connect SIMPROCESS to the database that comes with SIMPROCESS Note do not modify sProcDB properties Copy the file before making changes A database properties file must be used when notusing Windows and ODBC however a database properties file can be used with Windows and ODBC instead of the above procedure Below is the contents of sProcDB properties jdbc drivers sun jdbc odbc JdbcOdbcDriver jdbc url jdbc odbc SimProcessDatabase jdbc username jdbc password Simply change each of the properties to reflect the protocols needed for the system If using a database properties file with Windows and ODBC the properties are the same except the end of the ur1 property is the DSN set up in ODBC When using a database properties file the syntax is SIMPROCESS User s Manual 262 Interfacing With A Database Model ObjectAttribute OpenDatabase PropertiesFileName where PropertiesFileName is the
39. Value Type is either Avg StDev Min or Max for Replication 1 If Replication is 1 or greater the maximum value is returned no matter what is entered for Value Type A Replica tion of 1 returns the average of replications and a value of 2 returns the sum of replications GetEntityStatistic Entity Name STRING REAL Returns the value of the Statistic STRING requested Entity Name statistic Value Typ e STRING Statistic is one of the statistics Replication INTEGER types for Entities listed in the Labels column of the table in Appendix G See Statistic Types on page 507 Value Type is either Avg StDev Min Max Count or Run Length A Replication of 1 returns the average of replica tions and a value of 2 returns the sum of replications SIMPROCESS User s Manual 470 SIMPROCESS System Methods SIMPROCESS System Methods Method Name Arguments Return Description GetNext Result Set Name STRING BOOL Used to advance to the next row EAN of a Result Set Returns TRUE if the Result Set has more values GetResource Resource Name STRING NONE Creates a get Resource request Units STRING INTEGER or for an Activity REAL Tag Optional STRING GetResourceStatistic Resource Name STRING REAL Returns the value of the Statistic STRING Value Type STRING Replication INTEGER requested Resource Name statis tic Stati
40. amp Il a System attributes names must be input as shown They are case sensitive b Attributes in this category can be referenced in any expression SIMPROCESS User s Manual 464 SIMPROCESS System Methods SIMPROCESS System Methods SIMPROCESS System Methods Method Name Arguments Description ActivateGenerate Generate Name STRING If not already started starts the generation of Entities by the specified generate activity ACOS X REAL REAL Returns the ACOSine of X Alert MasterEditor NONE Display a message in the Alert di Message STRING alog and wait for the user to close this dialog ASIN X REAL REAL Returns the ASine of X ATAN X REAL REAL Returns the ATAN gent of X ATAN2 Y REAL X REAL REAL Returns the ATANgent of X and Y CEIL X REAL REAL Returns the smallest integer not less than X Beep MasterEditor NONE Makes a beep sound ChangeColor ActName STRING NONE Changes the color of the speci Color STRING fied Activity Entity references are no longer allowed The key words Self Activity and Parent or the name of an activity is al lowed for ActName Note that a keyword must be input as a STRING such as Self CloseDatabase Database Connection OB NONE Closes the specified database JECT connection CloseFile File Stream OBJECT NONE Closes the specified file CloseSpreadsheet File Stream OBJECT NONE Closes the specified spreadsheet file
41. and save the model Thus performing another save is not necessary Cancel closes the dialog and discards any changes SIMPROCESS User s Manual 363 Running an Optimization Running an Optimization To run an optimization if the optimization settings dialog is not already displayed select OptQuest from the Tools menu Once the optimization settings dialog has appeared either define an optimization or select a previously defined optimization Select the Start button At that point a dialog will appear asking for confimation before saving the model and starting the optimization If No is selected the operation is canceled If Yesis selected the dialog closes the model is saved and the optimization starts OptQuest for SIMPROCESS xj 2 Save Purchasing and start optimization OptQuest for SIMPROCESS Interface An OptQuest for SIMPROCESS optimization runs in a separate Java Virtual Machine JVM and uses a separate interface from SIMPROCESS Therefore once an optimization has started SIMPROCESS can continue to be used without affecting the optimization This means multiple optimizations can run simultaneously However that may not be practical since running an optimization is very CPU intensive since it is running a simulation which monopolizes the CPU and depending on the size of the model memory intensive Also it may not be practical to run a simulation with SIMPROCESS while an optimization is running for the same r
42. clicking the Edit button or by double clicking an item The Go To button will activate if the item selected is a Process or Activity Selecting Go To will take you to the level of the model where that item is located Expression Search Expression Search is a quick way of searching for the existence of expressions or for expressions that contain specific text Searching for text can also include replacing text As with Model Search the Expression Search dialog has three areas Search Items Search Criteria and Search Results Erpression searen Search Items Search Criteria r Search Results Close P Process or Activity Search For safe F Entity Type es Resource Ix I Entity Instance Replace With GoTo F Resource D Model I Model T Ignore Case j i Any Find Search Items has six check boxes Process or Activity Entity Type Entity Instance Resource Model or Any default The otheritems become available for selection when Any is deselected Expression Search searches the expressions of the selected Search Items based on the options set in Search Criteria To find items that have expressions no matter what the text of the expressions leave the Search For field SIMPROCESS User s Manual 30 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus empty Note that if the Search For field is empty items that have Expressions stored in files will be located To search for specific text in expressions
43. first Expression executed and End Run is the very last Expression executed These Expressions are particularly useful for opening and closing files that are needed throughout the simulation See Methods OpenFile CloseFile ReadFromFile and WriteToFile beginning on page 484 for information on opening and closing files The Start Simulation and Start Trial model Expressions are executed before the Start Simulationand Start Trial Expressions of Entity Types Resources Activities and Processes The End Simulation and End Trial model Expressions are executed after the End SimulationandEnd Trial Expressions of Entity Types Resources Activities and Processes Events related to Entities and Resources can occur numerous times throughout a simulation trial For example an Entity s arrival at an Activity is a simulation event called Accept Entity so called because the Entity is being accepted into the Activity This can occur thousands of times during a long simulation once for each Entity that arrives at the Activity Activity Process Time gt Accept Entity Get Resource Free Resource Release Entity SIMPROCESS User s Manual 237 Expression Activation Events Every Expression is associated witha specific SIMPROCESS model element Select the model element that requires customized processing specify the event at which the processing is to occur and then write the Expression to do the processing
44. milliseconds seconds minutes hours days weeks months or years Type the value of the delay duration directly in the field or select a value from a pull down list A Delay Activity might be defined to represent the task of processing an order This task takes an average of 30 minutes to perform though it may take as little as 15 minutes or as much as hour SIMPROCESS User s Manual 66 Delay Activity As shown below a Triangular distribution is often used to represent the time required to complete a task 1 Click on the arrow to the right of the Value field to display a list of distributions Delay Properties Event Logs Text Block Documentation General Resources Attributes eae Cancel Name Customer Service M Show Name Use Text Block Help New Entity New Resource Global Attributes Icon at Delay v At Icon Set Default Entity Entity Type Resource Model Duration Value INor 10 0 1 0 1 Units Bet 1 5 5 0 0 0 1 0 C Collect Alceoco 5 Collect Activity by Entity Statistics Comment 2 Scroll through the list to find the default definition for Triangular distributions It reads Tri 0 0 5 0 10 0 Select the distribution 3 Click on the box to the right of the Value field Fill in the following values e Minimum of 15 Mode of 30 and a Maximum of 60 e Select Minutes from the Units field x OK ba
45. stream The hyper exponential distribution continuous is a mixture of two exponential distributions Specifically ahyper exponential distribution with parameters mean1 mean2 and probability1 takes on values from an exponential distribution with parameter mean1 with a probability of probability1 and takes on values from an exponential distribution with parameter mean2 with a probability of 1 probability1 A hyper exponential distribution with probability1 1 is an exponential distribution with parameter meani SIMPROCESS User s Manual 437 Appendix D Statistical Distributions Uniform Integer Distribution 0 3 0 2 0 1 0 0 Plot for Int 7 16 1 UUUUUUU PDF Int 7 16 1 CDF Int 7 16 1 Probability density function and cumulative density function for uniform integer distribution with minimum 7 and maximum 16 Syntax Int minimum maximum stream An uniform integer distribution discrete is equally likely to take on any integer in the finite interval minimum maximum where minimum and maximum are integers with minimum lt maximum SIMPROCESS User s Manual 438 Appendix D Statistical Distributions Geometric Distribution Plot for Geo 0 0 1 0 1 4 PDF Geo 0 0 1 0 1 CDF Geo 0 0 1 0 1 Probability density function and cumulative density function for a geometric distribution with probability 0 5 Syntax Geo probabi
46. swimlane would cause a second swimlane border to appear There is always one less border than swimlanes The borders are evenly spaced down or across for vertical swimlanes on the layout Swimlane Properties x Horizontal vertical 4s Is Process For Staffing Border Properties Lane Widths Once there are at least two swimlanes defined the Move button and the two buttons below the miniature view activate The Move button allows the rearrangement of the order of swimlanes without having to delete and recreate The Move button causes the selected item to move down in the list Move causes the item to go to the top of the list if the selected item is the last item The Border Properties and Lane Widths buttons change the look of the borders and the widths of the swimlanes Border Properties brings up a dialog that sets the Line Width Line Style and Line Color for each of the borders The properties apply to the borders top to bottom for horizontal swimlanes and left to right for vertical swimlanes Since there are only two lanes there is only one border SIMPROCESS User s Manual 35 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus Swimlane Border Properties x Line Width 200 z Cancel Line Style Solid z Help Line Color C Blue x The Lane Widths button changes the widths of the swimlanes The swimlane defaults to evenly spaced widths Each swimlane will be 50 of the layout if there are two
47. this field is labeled Usage Before Downtime and contains either a statistical distribution or a constant Except for the first values values from statistical distributions are obtained at the end of each downtime If Unit Based is selected for Usage Type Time Unit will be disabled This is because time is not considered for Unit Based downtime However units are considered for Time Based downtime For example iftwo units of a resource are in use for the same one hour period then the amount of time the resource was in use is two hours one hour for each unit SIMPROCESS User s Manual 299 Resource Downtime For all other schedules this field is labeled Date and Time or Time and contains a date and or time Date is specified as a 2 digit month 2 digit day and 4 digit year Time of day ranges from 0 to 2400 hours Downtime of the resource begins at the time specified e Number of Units Down is the amount of capacity units to be made unavailable This value can be variable For instance if all the capacity of the resource is to go down and an attribute was used for resource capacity use that same attribute here That way when capacity changes the units down will change as well Alternatively using Ev1 Capacity for the Number of Units Down accomplishes the same thing If the schedule is a global Downtime schedule that will be used with more than one Resource always use Ev1 Capacity since the Resource capacity can vary from R
48. you of happenings in the model but the HALT is there if you need it Example SIMPROCESS User s Manual 488 System Method Examples HALT ends current replication HALT Encountered error in Delay5 terminates simulation Method RemoteCall RemoteCall is a plug in capability that can be licensed separately from CACTI to allow users to make calls toexternal applications from within the expression scripts ofa SIMPROCESS model This feature is apowerful way to make calls to user applications either custom developed or commercial products based on how the business process model and workflow is planned An example of this might be a model that represents a To Be business process flow for Human Resources where you intend to use acommercially available human Resources product such as Peoplesoft Lawson or Oracle Based on specific Activities in the model execution you could make expression script calls to a user written server that would feed the commercial application as a prototype to see if the product will align with the desired business process needs The server program could feed the application either from native calls to the product or via other interface technologies such as XML This capability will support analysis using models between the business functions and the system transactions that are required to support them The RemoteCall provides the mechanisms to make calls to a Java RMI server that
49. 277 entity release begin and end dates 276 events See sequence of events external event file 284 external schedule 286 Hourly schedule 278 inactive periods 284 Interval 64 65 277 limiting number of entities generated 278 Monthly schedule item 278 periodic schedule defining 277 Quantity 63 Release Begin 276 release dates and simulation dates 276 Release End 276 schedule calendar 278 Daily 278 Date 278 defaults 277 file input 284 Hourly 278 number of entities at each release 277 Use default 277 Weekly 278 schedule items adding 277 Both must be reached 278 copying 277 Count 277 Count Limit 278 defining 276 279 deleting 277 editing 277 entity categories 277 Interval 277 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 526 Index limiting number of entities 278 modifying 277 Monthly 278 periodic 277 removing 277 Yearly 278 Summary 293 time between entity generation events 64 65 271 Weekly schdedule 278 Yearly schedule item 278 Get Resource Activity 133 134 gif 146 Global Attributes defining 216 graphics importing 146 grid color 40 grid lines 40 snap to grid 40 spacing 40 Help Menu 52 help getting help topics 52 online help 62 hierarchical models 53 54 hierarchy ascending 81 hierarchy descending 80 historical data See also event files historical data using 284 Hold pad of Gate activity 101 I Icon dialog field 60 Icon Manager 51 icons activity icons 60 adding text to 60 61 entities listing 71 l
50. A Join Phone Orders bah Has Expressions A No Match Time Stamp displays the Time Stamps defined in the model Once a Time Stamp has been selected the only value available for plotting is Cycle Time x Hise Time Stamp alues s start To op Cycle Time Service start To Service stop l a D Addvalues Values Control click to select or deselect multiple values Model Attributes displays a list of the Integer and Real Model Attributes defined in the model Array attributes are listed by element Once an attribute has been selected the values available for plotting appear for that attribute The values that can be plotted are the Value of the attribute and the Mean of the attribute The Mean is the observation mean SIMPROCESS User s Manual 187 Custom Plots ServiceTime SalesTime Mi ean Help Select All Deselect All Add Values Control click to select or deselect multiple values Values can be added to the plot from each type Entity Resource etc However adding values from different types and within types must be done with care The units for each of the values should match For instance a cycle time should not be plotted along with a number of Entities value for example Number In System Those types of values have different units To add values select the item on the left and the values desired on the rig
51. Activity In the Release Entity expression of the selected Generate Activity add the following line UpdateDashboardLabel Call Status localhost 5555 TextLabel4 NumberGenerated While this statement may be used with any TextLabel on any assigned Dashboard it is best used with those that have no Plot Values assigned to it In that way you may be certain that the value you place on the TextLabel via this statement will remain unchanged until a subsequent statement updates it SIMPROCESS User s Manual 483 System Method Examples Method UpdateDynamicLabel To use this method you need to define a dynamic label in the work area first To define a dynamic label refer to Dynamic Labels beginning on page 258 Five arguments are required for this method The first one is MasterEditor This is the key word that must be there and input as shown The next two arguments are the Name and ID of the dynamic label defined in the Background Text Properties dialog The fourth argument is the color to be used in displaying this label The last argument is the value to be displayed It can be a constant or an attribute but the data type must match the Mode defined in Background Text Properties For example you want to display the number of Entities generated at a Generate Activity Assume you have already defined a dynamic label with the name total ID of 0 and data type of INTEGER In the Release Entity event o
52. Attorney amp Finance A Funds Deposit Edit o A Code Enforcement con F Go To 4 Courthouse Police Data 3 Bat Expand All A from Police Dept Parking Collapse Al Photo Radar Process A Activity Ey Uses Resources itt Has Expressions Find ActivityProcess L Named C of Type As E with Icon T Allthe functions of the dialog are the same as the Activity Browser dialog Select the receiving Transfer Activity The Find Activity Process section of the dialog can be used to search for Transfer activities The activity selected when Close is clicked must bea Transfer Activity with Receive and Local selected An error will occur if the activity selected is not a Transfer activity with Receive and Local selected Click Cancel to not make a selection or to keep the current selection Although the selection of Send or Receive and Local or Remote cannot be changed once selected the Connection can be changed once set The Connection button associated with the Receive option displays a list of the Send Transfer Activities routing entities to that Receive Transfer Activity No editing of the connections is allowed The dialog is for informational purposes only SIMPROCESS User s Manual 116 Entity Control Activities Send Transfer Connections x Send to Police Data The Protocol buttons will set the sending and receiving protocols for Remote transfers when the Remote capability is implemented
53. Attributes SIMPROCESS System Attributes Model Elements Attribute Name Get Attribute Description Set Type Activity Get OBJECT Reference of Activity currently trying to assign or free this Resource if any Capacity Get REAL Resource capacity Entity Get OBJECT Reference of current Entity instance being processed by the Activity trying to assign this Resource if any UnitsBusy Get REAL Number of units of the Resource in busy state UnitsDown Get REAL Number of units of the Resource not available because of the application of a downtime UnitsIdle Get REAL Number of units of the Resource in idle state Activity s Group Name Get STRING Name of this Activity I Parent Get OBJECT Reference of this Activity s parent process Entity Get OBJECT Reference of the current Entity Sibling name Get OBJECT It returns the reference to the Activity STRING or process with the specified name in the same hierarchical level Activity s Group NumberAccepted Get INTEGER Number of Entities so far entered this I Activity NumberReleased Get INTEGER Number of Entities exited this Activ ity NumberIn Get INTEGER Number of Entities currently at this Activity Activity s Group LastDelay Get REAL The value of the last delay MI SIMPROCESS User s Manual 461 System Attributes SIMPROCESS System Attributes
54. Balked Calls Edit gt Entity Instance Replace With Completed Calls ie Resource Go To TechX F Resource A amp Techy Model M Model IV Ignore Case amp Techz Mv Any Find Selecting an item will cause the Edit button to activate The properties of the item can be edited by clicking the Edit button or by double clicking an item The Go To button will activate if the item selected is a Process or Activity Selecting Go To will take you to the level of the model where that item is located Properties Selecting Edit Properties will bring up the Properties dialog box for the selected item This has the same effect as double clicking on it Use this menu item most often when you want to edit Hierarchical Processes since double clicking on them will show their internal structure and not bring up their dialog box SIMPROCESS User s Manual 31 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus Layout Menu Size Swimlanes Background Color gt Align Distribute Distribute Pads Group Ungroup Bring To Front Send To Back v Snap To Grid v Grid Lines Grid Spacing Grid Color Size brings up a dialog that allows you to specify the size in pixels used in the drawing of model layouts The layout is the area on the screen where models are built and displayed The default setting is a width of 948 and height of 711 The size can be changed for the current session saved and used for subsequent SIMPROCES
55. Calls E I an L A Select Call Type Close Help th New HE Sales Process Ei HE Service Process Remove CA Log Service Call man Resources Hardware Sales Rep Load 8 Software Sales Rep Unload 8 Service Rep LE intern Save _ Expert E Resource Downtimes THE EntityTypes meor Hardware Sales Call xl Export Adding a Process Activity Template To create a Process or Activity template select the Process or Activity in the model and choose Templates Add from the Define menu PHDES Simulate Report Experiment Tools Help Window Entities Ctrl E Vv Resources Ctrl R a Hv Distributions Functions Seeds Attributes Time Stamps Templates Model Description Library Manager Generate Process Calls Calls Generate Calls Process Calls This brings up a dialog where the template options can be set SIMPROCESS User s Manual 203 Defining and Editing Templates x Lahel Process Calls OK Cancel Layout Icon Z Defaulticon T Help Icon Set Default z V On IV Custom Palette Icon Palette Icon je Process x EJ Icon Set Default x Palette Label Process Calls V On Menu Owner Processes Add to Library Customer Service z Label is the name of the template that will
56. Eventtells SIMPROCESS how many times torepeat execution of this cycle If Infinite is selected SIMPROCESS will keep repeating the cycle until the schedule s Generation End date is reached e The Entity Quantity and Interval fields are used the same way they are in the Periodic Schedule detail dialog see page 277 Defining a Calendar Cycle Acalendarcycle defines entity generation events that repeat on either adaily weekly monthly or yearly basis x Schedule Holiday Rush OK Cancel Entity use default nd Help Quantity fuse default m E Calendar Type Daily v hh mm ss msec usec nsec Time 09 00 00 0 0 0 eal Comment The dialog above shows a calendar cycle representing four days leading up to a festive holiday when people are rushing to buy gifts for their loved ones It s a daily schedule beginning at 9 a m Note that there is no duration on calendar events They will operate as long as possible For the example above since it is a Daily schedule it will generate every day at 9 o clock Thus any events listed after the Daily event in the Cyclical schedule will not execute since the Daily event will keep generating SIMPROCESS User s Manual 282 Defining a More Complex Generate Activity As with the periodic cycle the start time of a calendrical event is determined by the cyclical schedule in which the cycle is defined However entity generation is not triggered until the time that is indicat
57. Highest Priority Value First Lowest Priority Value First e Highest Attribute Value First e Lowest Attribute Value First The Attribute field will be active if Highest Attribute Value First or Lowest Attribute Value First is selected Select the desired attribute from the list If the selected attribute is a local Entity instance or Entity type attribute a run time error will occur if an Entity enters that does not have the selected attribute defined SIMPROCESS User s Manual 105 Entity Related Activities Duration is the time specified for a Synchronize Activity that will be applied to each Entity when the Entities are released SIMPROCESS User s Manual 106 Entity Control Activities Entity Control Activities This section discusses Activities that are used in the control of Entities through the process model e Assign Activity e Transform Activity e Branch Activity e Merge Activity e Transfer Activity e Clone Activity Assign Activity The Assign Activity is one method used to assign values to attributes The Assign Activity can also be used to change the priority of an Entity The Assign Activity is covered in detail in Assign Activity beginning on page 222 Assign Properties Event Logs Text Block Documentation General Resources Attributes Cancel Name Assign30 V Show Name Use Text Block Help Icon a Assign v atb r New Entity Icon Set Def
58. Manual 412 Appendix A Importing Version 2 2 1 Models Properties Import Results If the model has been prepared properly there should be no errors during the import If errors do occur an error dialog will appear gt Model xj Errors encountered during conversion process Model may not be complete If the error dialog appears open the simprocess 1log file in the STMPROCESS SPSYSTEM directory This file will contain more detailed error messages The first error listed is the one to focus on Normally the error messages that follow the first one result from the first error The image below shows the top level of the 2 2 2 demo model Wafer spm This model will be used as an example for diagnosing errors in properties Wafer Fabrication Process Model FURNACE FURNACE METALIZE e PHOTO PHOTO MASK gt ETCH ETCH CUT Stock Wafer Starts Layer 1 Layer 2 Finish As an example an import of the 2 2 2 demo model Wafer spm produced the following error in simprocess log Error in Activity properties of Activity Inspect1 in imported model Wafer This error means the problem occurred somewhere close to the Activity named Inspect1 In theimage below notice the graphics of the imported model The layout shows that the text block is missing from the Process Layer2 Also the Pads are not in the proper place for Layer2 This indicates that the error occurred in the Process Layer sin
59. More Complex Generate Activity e If Calendar Type is Weekly a list of the days of the week is added to the dialog e The heading above the Date and Time field changes to prompt for the information required for the Type schedule selected For example if a Daily entity generation schedule is selected a time of day must be entered in the Date and Time field Any information that does not apply to a Daily schedule such as the date and year is ignored As with all schedules the Generation Start and Generation End dates can be used to further define the effective period for a Calendar generation schedule Defining Cyclical Schedules Use the cyclical schedule to define a detailed sequence of entity generation cycles For example a week day by day or a year month by month could be described A unique period such as the holiday rush leading up to Christmas could be defined where entity generation behavior differs markedly from the rest of the year A cyclical schedule is defined as a series of cycles Each cycle describes a different entity generation sequence In a sense the cycle series is like a schedule of its own But unlike the schedules defined for the Generate Activity as a whole cycle events are processed sequentially not in parallel Since one cycle follows another order is important Cycles can be repeated as many times as is needed The following types of cycles can be defined e Periodic A constant or statistical di
60. Names Connector Names Pad Names Zoom In Ctri Alt D Zoom Out Ctrl Alt U View 1 1 Ctrl V Refresh vvv v v Descend takes the model down one level in the model hierarchy Ascend takes the model one level up in the Process hierarchy Go To Top takes the model to the top of the Process hierarchy Activities Hide hides the selected Activity The Activity and its Connectors to it will not be visible on the layout Show All makes all Activities and their Connectors visible Show Attached makes all the Activities that are connected to a selected Activity visible By Resource allows you to view or edit resource Activity assignments Resources By Activity allows you to view or edit resource usage by Activity Activity Names These menu items only affect the display of Activity names The changes are not saved with the model Show All makes all Activity names visible throughout the model Hide All makes all Activity names invisible throughout the model Local shows or hides Activity names based on their individual properties set with the Properties dialog Show Name checkbox This is the default setting when a model is opened SIMPROCESS User s Manual 41 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus Connector Names These menuitems only affect the display of connector names The changes are not saved with the model Show All makes all connector names visible throughout the model Hide All makes all connector names invisib
61. Parameter and Process Alternative are used Model Parameters are set on the Parameter Setup tab and Process Alternatives are set on the Process Setup tab These tabs are part SIMPROCESS User s Manual 338 Defining Experiments of the Scenario Setup tab Define Experiments x Experiment Setup Model Setup Design Setup Scenario Setup OK A n r Cancel Scenario Centralized Delete Scenario Help Scenario Comment Centralizea Function purchasing department IV Publish Model To HTML Set Directory Publish Directory cxProgram FilesiSIMPROCESS madelsiDemos Purchasing Undo Delete Parameter Setup Process Setup NumProdAPersonnel 7 NumProdBPersonnel 5 NumProdCPersonnel 5 Description Default l Mode Entering Model Parameter Information Reset All Reset The Parameter Setup tab is used to enter Model Parameter values The attributes for the selected model that have been designated as Model Parameters appear in the table When a Model Parameter is selected its description comment from the attribute definition mode Integer Real or String and default value are displayed in the text fields below the table Once selected the value can be changed by typing into the field on the table Values entered that do not match the mode will not be accepted The Reset button will reset the selected Model Parameter to its default value The Reset All button resets all Model P
62. Press Edit 2 Enter the following statement MaxBatchSize 100000 3 Close the editor The model should now be ready to run An Alternative Method Using Entity Types This example works fine but there are alternative approaches as there often are when building models in SIMPROCESS A couple of alternatives have already been described for initializing the value of the applianceWeight Attribute Defining the Expression at Entity Initialization on page 243 versus Defining the Expression When an Entity Is Released on page 245 Another alternative involves defining the applianceWeight Attribute for Entity types instead of Entity instances In this example a weight Attribute was defined for every Entity instance in the model Every refrigerator order was assigned a weight of 5000 every television order 100 etc The assigned weights remained unchanged during the course of the simulation Another approach would be to define an applianceWeight Attribute for each Entity type and initialize it atthe Start Simulation event Then in the Expression defined atAccept Entity for the DISTRIBUTE ORDERS Activity the Entity s weight would be referenced as Entity Type applianceWeight This would work fine for this example But suppose that the weight of an order could be affected by some step in the Process being modeled and this needed to be reflected in the model For example a customer order could include accessories for an
63. Properties Button next to the Run button to View Alternatives SIMPROCESS User s Manual 407 Appendix A Importing Version 2 2 1 Models E sIMPROCESS Professional 5 x File Edit Layout View Create Define Simulate Report Experiment Tools Help Window Dism e slelejx e laje mvi t k Purchas BEE PURCHASING PROCESS PURCHASE REQUESTS PURCHASING PROCESSES Select Purchasing Process amp Click on the Properties Button next to the Run button to View Alternatives Another issue is a change in Pad rules for version 3 A Connector cannot go from the output Pad of an Activity or Process to an input Pad of the same Activity or Process This rule is in place to help prevent infinite loops Thus if a 2 2 2 model had a Connector from an output Pad of a Process to an input Pad of the same Process that Connector will not be in the imported model This is easily fixed by placing another Activity like a Merge between the two or having the loop occur within the Process In the example below the Re scan Connector in the 2 2 2 model is not allowed in 3 0 The solution is to have the loop within the Process Re scan Redo Scan Cards SIMPROCESS User s Manual 408 Appendix A Importing Version 2 2 1 Models Place Loop Within Process Re scan Try better scanning process Z Pat e oe Quick Scan Decision after 1 scan Increment Sta
64. Properties dialogs have the following common input fields Name is the name chosen to identify the Activity This name appears below the Activity and it can be moved on the layout Icon identifies the graphic icon representing the Activity Comment is a one line comment about the Activity This comment appears in the status bar when the Activity is selected Documentation tab contains a Document button that opens an edit window for adding descriptive text about the Activity See document Subdirectory on page 422 for information on customizing headings Also this tab contains a field for adding a link to a URL or another document The link is active only for models that have been published to HTML See Export on page 20 Attributes define custom attributes that the Activity requires This topic is covered extensively in Chapter 10 Customizing a Model with Attributes and Expressions beginning on page 210 Expressions allow customized processing for the Activity at various points during a simulation This topic is covered in detail in Chapter 10 Customizing a Model with Attributes and Expressions beginning on page 210 Event Logs are used for defining timestamps and recorders Text Block is a three line description that appears within the Activity s icon on the layout Help displays information about the Activity The following tabs and fields are found on most Activity Properties dialogs SIMPROCESS
65. RMI registry and SPServer have been started SPServerFactory API When the simulation is running the external or remote application can begin communicating with SIMPROCESS Inordertodothis the application musthave areference to SPServerFactory However since SPServerFactory is remote to the application the Stub class for SPServerFactory must be used Stub classes are created by RMI and contain references to the methods of SPServerFactory that are available remotely The code fragment below is from an example remote application and shows how to get a reference to SPServerFactory_Stub import java rmi import java rmi server import com caci remote SIMPROCESS User s Manual 289 Defining a More Complex Generate Activity public class ExternalApp public static void main String args try SPServerFactory_Stub spServer null try spServer SPServerFactory_Stub Naming lookup rmi localhost SPServer catch Exception e e printStackTrace System out The name localhost can be replaced with any valid entry that will resolve to the system on which SPServerFactory is running Note that the Naming lookup method throws a Not BoundException anda MalformedURLException so this command must be within a try block Theclass com caci remote SPServerFactoryhas three public methods forcommunication with SIMPROCESS models public double getSimTime String modelName thro
66. Server must be initialized before the simulation begins When started the Dashboard Server window appears SIMPROCESS User s Manual 395 Displaying Dashboards SIMPROCESS Dashboard Server 10 x File ashboardServerThread initialization starting ashboardServerThread initialization successful Listening for requests on port 5555 When the simulation is started the Dashboards assigned to the model will initialize if there are any plot values assigned to any Graphs for a Text Label it must also have a Label value as noted above Note that the Dashboard Server window may need to be the active i e frontmost window for the Dashboard windows to appear if running on the same Windows system as SIMPROCESS If the Dashboard files referenced by the model are not located in the dashboards directory on the server no Dashboard window will appear and error messages will be displayed in the Dashboard Server window SIMPROCESS User s Manual 396 Displaying Dashboards sIMPROCESS Dashboard Server i lol x File ashboardServerThread initialization starting ashboardServerThread initialization successful Listening for requests on port 5555 discarded for Truck Status without definition discarded for Truck Status without definition discarded Truck Status without definition discarded Truck Status without definition discarded Truck Status without definition discarded Truck Status without de
67. Set mported E Q Cancel Help ce frok feo ooo C Entity Activity Process noppy2 gif noppy2 Entity mported x Activity Process TREN fionoumoit fightouy C Entity fmoonea l lel Activity Process moveieat moeie iy moea Sd gh Activity Process fests faint C Entity rood ld E ith Export exports images toa directory This is useful when there are imported icons for a specific model Export lists all the icons in SIMPROCESS whether standard to SIMPROCESS or imported The export dialog will list the Icon Name Category Icon Set and whether the icon is Standard or Imported Simply select the Export checkbox next to the icons to export and click OK Using the Browse button select the directory for the exported images SIMPROCESS User s Manual 147 Importing Graphics Image Files Export Icon Images to Files Manage brings up a dialog that lists the imported icons This dialog changes the Icon Name Category Icon Set or Deletes the icon Manage Icon Assignments Imported Imported Tu Note e e o When a graphic is imported into SIMPROCESS a copy of the graphic is placed by SIMPROCESS in the UserFiles jar file located in the SIMPROCESS SPUser directory SIMPROCESS User s Manual 148 Post Simulation Animation Post Simulation Animation Animation is very useful in ver
68. Solution Found Maximum Iterations 100 IV Prompt for more iterations Automatic Stop On Iteration Feasible Objective Value Best Value 8 Yes 34347 3168 Current Value Parameter LowerBound BestValue CurrentValue Upper Bound Model NumProdAPersonnel 1 1 10 Model NumProdBPersonnel 1 3 10 Model NumProdCPersonnel 1 6 10 Constraint Lower Bound Best Value Current value Upper Bound infinity 9 1579 30 0 Expression Constraint Resources 10 LF Lower Feasibility UF Upper Feasibility Best LF Current LF Best UF Current UF 0 0 As B infinity 2 0 B lt C infinity 3 0 34400 34200 B e 34000 t 33800 v i 33600 H e 33400 33200 Stop Restart Best Objective Value gh S y Iteration BR E Infeasible Feasible x The File menu contains other options for examining solutions and it has an option for applying the best solution to the model Help is also accessed from the File menu View Report View Report Create HTML Report Print Graph Apply Best Values to Model Help Fl Close View Report brings up a dialog similar to the Standard Report dialog With this dialog the report can SIMPROCESS User s Manual 369 Running an Optimization be displayed in a text editor or in a spreadsheet Optimization Repo
69. Statistical Simulation Experiments ccssscssseees 319 SIMPROCESS Statistical Distributions scsssssssssssees 320 CHAPTER 13 STMPROCESS Database visiossicccsiossasvevvecestsctecreussseccocvsadasoesderses 322 Committing Results to the Database sscccsssssssscssssseees 323 System Design and Scenario ccsscccsssccsssscssssscesssscessescess 324 Database Table RelationshipS ccsscssccssssssscscesssssccsseces 326 Database Queries 5 ccssccosssiscaccocaseccasocsveassssseteasassssdacteseceabocsseceswes 327 Forms Graphs and Reports csscccssssccssssccssscssssseseesees 329 Launch Database A pplication cccccsssccssssccsssscssssessescess 331 SIMPROCESS and Other Databases sscssssssssssssssssees 332 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 6 Table of Contents CHAPTER 14 Experiment Manager sscisccesvccssinsccccessccsscsecsvcdsscssccacsdadedccavesescacccs 334 Defining Experiments eessooessesssecssocesocesoocsssesssocesocesoosssoeessee 335 Running Experiments eessoessoccssesssocesocesoosesocessecssocesosessesssese 342 Experiment Operation sssesssesssecssocesocesoosesocessccssocesocsssossseee 344 Importing Database Experiments s cccscsscsscescsscesceeees 348 CHAPTER 15 OptQuest for SIMPROTCESS ccsssscscssssscsssssscesssscccessssceeeses 349 Overview of OptQuest for SIMPROCESG ccsssccssseeees 350 Optim
70. Time in Hours SIMPROCESS User s Manual 184 Custom Plots Custom Plots The real time trace plots available from Define Real Time Plots on the Report menu plot one value along with its mean Define Custom Real Time Plots offers the option of selecting more than one value to be on a trace and or histogram plot Thus various values can be viewed in comparison with one another on the same plot Selecting Define Custom Real Time Plots brings up a dialog that lists the custom plots defined in the model Clicking the Add button brings up a dialog that has the trace and histogram plot properties on the left and the list of values to plot on the right Note that if a trace plot and histogram plot are selected the values plotted are the same for both plots Another custom plot must be defined if different values are to be on the trace plot and histogram plot The plot properties on the left are the same as described on page 178 xi OK Custom Plot Name Custom Plott Cancel Help M Real Time Trace Plot Remove All Trace Title Set Plot Group X Axis Label Remove Plot Group Y Axis Label Trace Properties Histogram Properties Select Plot Values Entity Simulation Time Units Hours bs Resource Activity M Hide Plot at Simulation Start Time Stamp I Display Plot on Remote Server Model Attributes Remote Server URL Legends Select All Deselect All Comment Adding Values
71. Transform Copy Split and Assemble Activities Entity Instances Entity Types Accept Entity Arrival of an Entity at an Activity or Pro cess Processes plus all Activities except Generate Entity Instances Get Resource Obtainment of a Resource by an Activity Resources All Activities except Generate Free Resource amp Dispose Interrupt Pro cessing Entity processing is interrupted by a higher priority Entity or by a Resource going down Entity Instances Resume Process ing Entity processing is resumed after interrup tion Entity Instances Free Resource Release of a Resource by an Activity Resources All Activities except Gener ate Get Resource amp Dis pose SIMPROCESS User s Manual 239 Expression Activation Events Model Elements Event Name Activation Point and Comments Active For Release Entity Release of an Entity from an Activity or Processes plus all Activities Process except Dispose Entity Instances Dispose of Dispose of an Entity Entity Instances Entity Entity Types End Trial End of a simulation trial Model Entity Types Resources All Activities End Simulation The end of a simulation replication Model Entity Types Resources All Activities Statistic collection for the replication ends at this point End Run The end of a simulation run Occurs only Model once at the end
72. UpperBound s 0 04 is t 0 02 y 0 00 a 0 02 u 0 04 ere BestValue Current Value Upper Bound 0 06 0 08 0 10 1 0 0 5 0 0 0 5 1 0 Iteration LF Lower Feasibility UF Upper Feasibility Expression Constraint Best LF Current LF Best UF Current UF Status Text The following status text is displayed Model Name name of the model being optimized Optimization Setting the name of the optimization setting selected when the optimization was started Objective Minimize or Maximize e Objective Value the performance measure selected for optimization e Optimization Status Initializing Running Iteration n Complete Stopping Optimization User Terminated or Error e Maximum Iterations number of iterations or Off e Automatic Stop On or Off SIMPROCESS User s Manual 365 Running an Optimization Optimization Status descriptions e Initializing Optimization is in setup stage Running Iteration n Optimization is running the nth iteration e Optimal Solution Found Optimization completed normally with no errors e Stopping Optimization Optimization is in the process of stopping because user selected Stop button User Terminated Optimization stopped by user Error Optimization stopped due to error Status Tables The objective value table lists the Best Value and the Current Value for the Iteration whether the best and current values are Feasible and
73. a Dashboard However due to the size of graph panels movement is difficult with grid lines turned on SIMPROCESS User s Manual 389 Assigning Dashboards Assigning Dashboards To assign a Dashboard to a model select Dashboard Assign from the Report menu For the Assign menu item to be active aSIMPROCESS model must be open and the Dashboard GUI must be closed Assign brings up a list of the Dashboards assigned to the model Use the File button to update the Dashboard file s location if the Dashboard was developed on a different system or moved to a location other than where it was located when originally assigned x Close Add Edit Remove Undo File Adding a Dashboard Assignment Dashboards are assigned to a model by using the Add button on the Dashboard list dialog The New Assigned Dashboard Dialog has four fields Dashboard Name Server Address Server Port and Dashboard File The Dashboard Name defaults to Dashboard plus an internally assigned number This name can be changed to something more meaningful The Server Address defaults to localhost which refers to the same machine on which SIMPROCESS is running and Server Port defaults to 5555 If not using localhost for the Server Address the Server Address must be a fully qualified server name or an Internet Protocol IP address Use the Browse button to locate the Dashboard File that is to be displayed TIP Whenever practica
74. a model begins with defining Attributes These Attributes can represent model element Attributes that are not built into SIMPROCESS such as Entity weight and size or skill level of a Resource Attributes can be defined in association with e Entity types or Entity instances e Processes or Activities e Resources e The Model itself How an Attribute is defined tells SIMPROCESS whether to create an instance of that Attribute for every model element of the same type e g Entities Resources or to just create the Attribute for a particular type of model element customer order Entities truck Resources In SIMPROCESS terminology Attributes are either globally defined or locally defined Model Attributes are only globally defined When an Attribute is defined globally an instance of that Attribute is automatically created for each model element of that class For example if the model contains Entities of different types of appliances refrigerators televisions toasters etc and a weight value needs to be assigned to each Entity a global Entity Attribute could be defined appliance Weight SIMPROCESS creates an instance of that Attribute for every Entity in the model so every Entity has an appliance weight Attribute which can be referenced The only Activity concerned with weight is the Activity where Entities are batched In this case it makes sense to locally define an Attribute for that particular Activity When that s done no
75. allow parameter values to be changed See Running a Simulation with Model Parameters beginning on page 80 for more information on Model Parameters Pause Resume If the simulation is running it pauses the simulation If the simulation is paused it resumes running the simulation Stop stops the simulation and ends the collection of statistics Animation On Animation On turns animation on or off but does not turn on animation that is turned off in the Animation Settings Verify Model Verify Model checks the model to see whether or not all the Activities are connected properly and if the model can be simulated If this option is selected in the Run Settings verification is done automatically when a simulation starts A notification of any problems found will be displayed along with an option to stop the simulation fa verifying Request Processing 4 x Warning Pad outl of Activity Generate Requests is missing an outgoing connector 4 Warning Pad inl of Activity Process Requests is missing an incoming connector Warning Pad outl of Activity Process Requests is missing an outgoing connector Warning Pad inl of Activity Review Requests is missing an incoming connector Warning Pad outl of Activity Review Requests is missing an outgoing connector pee en complete E X Cancel Simulation SIMPROCESS User s Manual 48 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus Report Menu Define G
76. an ASCH file If a word processor is used to create the file make sure the file is saved in text format Note that when using Expression Search if the Search For field is empty the Expression Search will find any item that has an Expression whether stored in the model or stored in a file but searches for specific text ignore Expressions in files To use an external file for an Expression select the Use Expression in File checkbox and enter a file name in the adjoining text field If the file name does not have a path included the file is assumed to be in the model s directory If a path is included it must be a complete path SIMPROCESS will not create the file entered in the text field The file must be created by an editor independent of SIMPROCESS When there is already a file assigned the text of the Expression file is loaded into the Expression editor when the editor opens If the file is assigned after the editor opens the Refresh button can be used to load the Expression Expressions from files are not editable in the Expression editor The text of an Expression in a file is loaded into the Expression editor so the syntax of the Expression can be checked using the Validate button Expressions edited in another editor should always have the syntax checked before running the simulation If the syntax error is caught at run time the simulation will stop If the Validate button shows there are errors the Expression can be modified in another
77. and freeing Resources GetResource and FreeResource SIMPROCESS System Methods on page 465 summarizes the methods These system methods provide the same basic capability as the Get Resource and Free Resource Activities See Get Resource and Free Resource Activities on page 133 The main difference is that with the Get Resource system method the Resource requested can be different for every Entity The Get Resource Activity assumes each Entity entering the Activity requires the same Resources Thus if different Resources are needed the Entity must be routed to a different Get Resource Activity that requests those Resources The demonstration model H20 spm which is included in the SIMPROCESS installation compares the usual method of obtaining resources with the GetResource system method The model is described in Chapter 5 of the SIMPROCESS Getting Started Manual GetResource GetResource can be used in any Activity that can acquire Resources Thus the Merge Free Resource Generate Replenish Resource and Dispose are excluded The Expression to get a Resource must go in the Accept Entity Expression of the Activity Get Resource may not be used in an Entity Entity Type or Resource Expression The full command is GetResource Resource Units Tag The first parameter must be a String and is the Resource name The second parameter can be a String Integer or Real This is the number of units of the Resource t
78. be Avg StDev Min Max Count or RunLength Replication is the replication desired or the average or sum of replications Some examples GetAttributeStatistic ProcessingTime Avg 1 returns average value for the Attribute ProcessingTime for replication 1 GetAttributeStatistic ProcessingTime Max 1 returns maximum value across replications that is the maximum of the averages for each replication for the Attribute ProcessingTime GetCostStatistic GetCostStatistic returns the Capacity or Absorption cost of a cost period See Setting Up Cost Periods on page 156 The syntax is GetCostStatistic Period Name Cost Object 1 Cost Object 2 Cost Type Value Type Replication where Period Name is the name of the period Cost Object 1 is the name of the first cost object Cost Object 2 is the name of the second cost object and Cost Type is either Capacity or Absorption Cost Object 1 can either be a Resource name or an Activity name Cost Object 2can either be an Activity name or an Entity name Thus the possible combinations of Cost Object 1 and Cost Object 2 are Resource Name Activity Name Resource Name Entity Name or Activity Name Entity Name Value Type can be Avg StDev Min or Max for Replication 1 If Replication is or greater the maximum value is returned no matter what is entered for Value Type Some examples GetCostStatistic Week1 Sales Rep
79. be stored in the selected library Layout Icon is the icon that will display when the template is used in a model Palette Parameters determine the User Palette settings If On Off is checked the template will appear on the User Palette The User Palette is on the right side of the screen If Custom Palette Icon is selected the Palette Icon list is active The icon for the template on the User Palette is selected from the Palette Icon list The Palette Label is the tool tip that will appear when the mouse is over the palette icon Menu Parameters determine the menu placement of the template If On Off is selected the template will appear on one of the Create sub menus with the name from the Label field Menu Owner sets the sub menu for the template One of the current sub menus can be used or acustom menu name can be entered The library that this template should be added to is selected from the Add to Library list If no library has been created then the template will be added to a library named Default Adding Resource Templates Resource templates are created from the Resource list box The Resource list box displays all the resources defined in the model It is accessed from Resources on the Define menu The Resource list box has an Add Template button SIMPROCESS User s Manual 204 Defining and Editing Templates Resources Resource Software Sales Rep Customer Service The
80. built in variables of model elements whose values can change during the course of a simulation run For example for a Batch Process where Entity release depends on the weight of the Entities received an Attribute is the total weight of the items accumulated in the Batch Activity To determine the percentage of orders processed within a specified period of time Attributes need to track the processing time for each order the number of orders that meet the promised delivery date and the total number of orders processed Attributes may be used to e Alter the behavior of a Process by changing the value of an Attribute during a simulation e Communicate information such as Attribute values between two Processes in a model e Store data collected during a simulation run There are two categories of SSMPROCESS Attributes built in System Attributes which SIMPROCESS automatically creates and updates and User Defined Attributes which the user creates For example the number of Entities generated for each Entity type e g number of orders is automatically tracked and stored in a built in system Attribute named NumberCreated To track an Attribute such as weight which SIMPROCESS does not know about an Attribute called applianceWeight could be created Some system Attributes can be modified by users These are called Get Set type System Attributes Generally these are variables that control Process parameters such as the number of Entit
81. buttons activate Pressing Play will start the playback from the beginning of the animation event file SIMPROCESS User s Manual 151 Post Simulation Animation Fast Forward Pressing Fast Forward brings up a dialog where an amount of time to skip is entered Note that the value entered must correspond to the Simulation Time Units set in the Run Settings See Setting the Simulation Time Unit on page 78 Thattime unit will display on the dialog If Fast Forward is used before Play the time entered fast forwards the playback from the beginning of the simulation Thus if recording did not begin at the start of the simulation it is possible that the time entered for Fast Forward will still be before recording began So when Play is pressed the playback begins where recording started Rewind Rewind is available once playback has started Pressing Rewind brings up a dialog where the amount of time to back up is entered This time must fall within the model s Simulation Time Units The playback starts over at the beginning if the time entered goes past the beginning of the playback Note Both Fast Forward and Rewind have an advantage over animation during simulation During simulation Activity counts and dynamic labels only update when an entity enters or leaves an Activity Process So when navigating through models during a run there is normally a wait for counts and dynamic labels to display the most current values A Fa
82. collects observation based statistics for the selected Process Activity attributes Real Time Histogram Plot This displays a histogram of the attribute s values Real Time Trace Plot This displays a trace of the attribute s values Standard Report Displays the results in the Standard Report SIMPROCESS User s Manual 175 Real Time Plots Real Time Plots Real Time Plots display the change in value of statistics as the simulation runs for Entities Resources Activities Processes Time Stamps and Attributes Defining Plots Entities Resources and Activities Plots for Entities Resources Activities and Processes are defined on the Report menu xl Cycle Times Trace 0K Wait For Resource Cycle Times Trace Help Hold For Condition Cycle Times Trace Process Cycle Times Trace Select All ala In System Trace Deselect All Wait For Resource Trace Hold For Condition Trace Set Plot Properties Sii Process Trace Delete Properties Cycle Times Histogram Wait For Resource Cycle Times Histogram Control click to select or Hold For Condition Cycle Times Histogram deselect multiple reports Process Cycle Times Histogram Entities In System Histogram Wait For Resource Histogram Hold For Condition Histogram Entities In Process Histogram Sales Calls Selecting Entities Resources or Activities from the Define menu will bring a dialog listing the appropriate type of
83. contents remain intact until changed by a subsequent Cut or Copy action Duplicate is enabled only if one or more Graphs are selected as indicated by a red border Duplicate acts as though Copy was selected followed by Paste That is it copies all selected Graphs onto the clipboard and then immediately pastes them back into the current layout Clear is enabled only if one or more Graphs are selected as indicated by a red border Clear removes SIMPROCESS User s Manual 388 Defining Dashboards the selected Graphs from the layout and does not place them onto the clipboard Select All is enabled only if one or more Graphs appear on the layout Select All selects all Graphs on the layout and displays red borders to indicate their selected status Resize is enabled only if one or more Graphs are selected as indicated by a red border Resize presents a Resize dialog where the width and height of the selected Graphs are specified in pixels If more than one Graph is selected the size entered will be applied to all of them Individual Graphs may also be resized by selecting them and moving the mouse cursor over a portion of the border then dragging when the cursor changes to indicate the direction of the resizing operation Properties is enabled only if one or more Graphs are selected as indicated by a red border Properties presents a Graph Properties dialog for each selected Graph in turn Properties can also be edited by double c
84. decreases in capacity IncreaseCapacity IncreaseCapacity can go in any type of Expression When executed it immediately increases the number of units of the Resources The command is IncreaseCapacity Resourcel 2 The first parameter must be a String It is the name of the Resource to increase The second parameter must be an Integer or a Real Even though the second parameter can be a Real the number of units to increase cannot be fractional even if the Resource is a fractional Resource DecreaseCapacity Just like IncreaseCapacity DecreaseCapacity can go in any type of Expression When executed it decreases the capacity of the Resource as units of the Resource become available If the number of units to decrease are less than the number of units idle then the decrease happens immediately If not then the capacity units are decreased as units go to idle Note that if the request for decrease is larger than the current capacity SIMPROCESS will reduce the capacity to zero However SIMPROCESS will keep track of the number of units not yet decreased For example if Resource has a capacity of 3 and the capacity is decreased by 4 then the capacity of Resourcel is zero Then if the capacity of Resource is increased by one the capacity of Resource will still be zero This is because there was one unit of decrease still not applied to Resource 1 The full command is DecreaseCapacity Resourcel 2 The first parameter must b
85. defined Attributes and Operators that are supported at the Activation Events level described in the next section The Evl function can be found on any of the combo boxes where the standard distributions and User defined Functions are listed An example using the Evaluate function is a system with a processing time Delay that is a function of an Entity Attribute Select the Ev1 1 0 function on the Hours field from the Delay Activity s Properties dialog Clicking the Detail button will open an Evaluate dialog where the Expression describing the processing time is entered This example reads the Entity s processing time given by the Entity Attribute ProcTime and multiplies it by 1 5 This value would then be the delay time for the Activity Distribution Details xj OK Expression lEntity ProcTime s Cancel Help View SIMPROCESS User s Manual 235 Expression Activation Events Expression Activation Events SIMPROCESS has a set of activation points at which it checks for the existence of Expressions and then runs those that it finds An Expression is assigned to an activation point at the time it is defined Each activation point corresponds toa simulation event and has aname identifying it to SIMPROCESS For example the start of a replication is referred to as the Start Simulationevent The Start Trial event marks the beginning of a single trial within a replication after warmup m Total Simulation Time
86. during the run can be accessed using System Methods See Accessing Statistics During Simulation on page 267 The Standard Report can be generated automatically after the run by selecting Generate Standard Report after run on the Statistics Collection dialog See Generating Standard Reports From Experiments on page 347 To run a model with SPRunSimulation either execute commands from a command prompt or create a batch file or a shell script The command must include SPRunSimulation and the complete path to the model that is to be run as shown in this example for Windows SPRunSimulation C Program Files SIMPROCESS models Demos Purchasing spm The above is the simplest form for running a model without the GUI However model parameters see page 216 and process alternatives can be set as well as the number of replications In addition the simulation results can be automatically placed in the SIMPROCESS database and the model can be SIMPROCESS User s Manual 519 Appendix I Exporting to UML saved These options can be set either on the command line or by using a properties file Available Options The following options can be set on the command line or in a properties file The format of the option is always the name of the option followed with no spaces by an equals sign followed with no spaces by the value e Any global attribute designated as a model parameter Model NumResource1 2 e Any process alternat
87. dynamic labels BackgroundGraphic provides an alternative way of changing the background Define Menu Entities Ctrl E Resources CtrlH R Resource Downtimes Distributions gt Functions Seeds Global Attributes Model Expressions Time Stamps Templates Model Description Entities is used for managing Entity Types in the model Entities Name Priority Preempt Entity Stats Close CodeViolation Docket 4 Pages Mgmt Phone Add Misdemeanor i Bug 1 Edit Parking 1 Disk Photo _ OrangeDot_ il i il j l il Copy SupportingCaseDocuments Pages Remove Resources is used for managing Resources in the model SIMPROCESS User s Manual SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus Resources Fractional Consumable Resource Stats Res Act Stats CreditCheckExpert QuotationExpert Add RiskRatingExpert Edit TypingClerk oe Copy Remove Add Template Resource Downtimes is used for managing Resource xj Downtimes in the model Type Empty x Service Downtime Ad Edit Co Remove Undo d it py _Remove_ Yn Template Distributions is used for managing customized Standard and Tabular Distributions Once a Distribution is defined itcan be used throughout the model without the need to redefine the parameters of
88. e Connector txt changes the headings for Connectors e model txt changes the headings for the Model Description Define menu SIMPROCESS User s Manual 422 APPENDIX C SIMPROCESS File Structure The file Activity txt changes the headings for all Activities To change the documentation headings for a specific Activity name the file the same name as the type of the Activity along with the t xt extension Some examples are delay t xt replenishResource txt assem ble txt and getResource txt Notice that the type of the Activity must be spelled out completely with no spaces in the file name Not all files are required If only the document headings for Entity types need to be changed then Entity txt is the only file that needs to exist plots Subdirectory This directory initially does not exist It is created when real time plots are auto saved SampleFiles Subdirectory This directory contains the source code for the files in the com caci demo package in SPRe mote jar Also sample batch files and scripts that start the Java RMI Registry SPServer and SPPlotServer are included which can be copied and used as templates if desired models Directory SIMPROCESS defaults to this directory as its starting point when saving or opening models Demos Subdirectory This directory contains demonstration and reference models As Is spm Assemble spm Airport spm Batch spm CallCenter spm Call Status spd Get
89. e Number of entity types e Entity type names e Number of resources e Resource names e Resource costs e Number of Activities Processes and Process alternatives e Names of Activities Processes and Process alternatives e Activity Process structure e Start and End date e Start and End time e Number of replications e Output time units If any of the above change then a new design name is required For instance assume results have been committed to the database with a design name of Design 1 After that a Process alternative is added to the model and the model is run again If the same design name as before is used SIMPROCESS will prompt for anew design name because the number and names of Process alternatives have changed x x Number of Activities has changed or Process Alternatives have been added or deleted A new Design name is required Note that there will be no prompt for a new design name if a different alternative is run that was already in the model If another alternative is run the design name or scenario name can be changed When a design is deleted from the Design table all records associated with that design are removed from the Access database In order for this to be true in another SQL database appropriate relationships and or constraints must be established when the database is created Therefore to reuse a design name for the same model name and there has been a design change first delete the de
90. each selected Resource Plots may be customized and hidden See Real Time Plots on page 176 Capacity Trace and Capacity Histogram These reports show the capacity of a Resource during the simulation These reports are only useful for consumable Resources Units Idle Trace and Units Idle Histogram These reports show the amount of a Resource s units which are left idle during the simulation Units Busy Trace and Units Busy Histogram These reports show the amount of a Resource s units which are busy during the simulation Planned Downtime Trace and Planned Downtime Histogram These reports show the amount of a Resource s units which are not available due to planned downtime during the simulation Unplanned Downtime Trace and Unplanned Downtime Histogram These reports show the amount of a Resource s units which are not available due to unplanned downtime during the simulation Total Downtime Trace and Total Downtime Histogram These reports show the amount of a Resource s units which are not available due to unplanned and planned downtime during the simulation Units Reserved Trace and Units Reserved Histogram These reports show the amount of a Resource s units which are in reserved state during the simulation Attribute Value Statistics The attribute value statistics must be specified in the dialogs where attributes themselves are defined Ifthe attributes are defined while Resources are being defined then the statist
91. for more iterations is enabled This checkbox defaults to selected When selected the optimization prompts for SIMPROCESS User s Manual 367 Running an Optimization more iterations at the end of the next to the last iteration For instance if the maximum iterations is set to 100 at the end of iteration 99 the optimization will prompt for anew maximum for the iterations A new maximum must be entered not the number of additional iterations So for this example the number entered must be 101 or larger 150 entered If Prompt for more iterations remains selected the optimization will prompt again when the iteration is one less than the maximum 149 in this example Deselect this option to have the optimization complete without interruption Maximum Iterations x Current maximum iterations 100 OK Enter new maximum if more than 100 is desired Cancel Maximum Iterations ft 50 Help Optimization Solution Options The OptQuest for SIMPROCESS interface shows the current status of the optimization while it is running Once the optimization is complete the interface only shows the best values The example below is from the Purchasing model SIMPROCESS User s Manual 368 Running an Optimization doorquestrorsimerocess ol File Model Name Purchasing Optimization Setting Purchasing Optimization Objective Minimize Objective Value All Resources Capacity Cost Optimization Status Optimal
92. generated Entity count statistics for selected Processes Activities Entity Count willnot be collected unless Collect Activity Statistics either global or individual is selected prior to running the simulation Count by Entity Type will not be collected unless Collect Activity by Entity Statistics either global or individual is selected prior to running the simulation The results are not available until the simulation is complete Total Entity Count This report shows the total number of Entities that 1 have arrived at the Process Activity 2 are remaining in the Process Activity at the end of the simulation and 3 have been processed by the Process Activity Count By Entity Type This report shows the average and maximum Entity counts broken down by Entity states that were processed by the selected Activity That is how many were in the Activity Wait For Resource In Process and Hold for Condition states Entity counts for Processes will not be broken down by state Attribute Value Reports The attribute value reports must be specified in the dialogs where the attributes themselves are defined If the attributes are defined locally for a Process Activity then the reports must be selected where those attributes are defined Time Weighted Average This collects time weighted statistics for the selected Process Activity attributes SIMPROCESS User s Manual 174 Custom Statistics Observation Based Average This
93. guiding the management decisions of your business states the Ernst amp Young Guide to Total Cost Management Ernst amp Young 1992 Enterprises use Resources to conduct activities Resources perform activities to add value to products and services The key to understanding cost dynamics in any enterprise is modeling the relationship between activities and their causes and the relationship between activities and costs If cost dynamics are not modeled which is usually the case with traditional management accounting information systems the performance information provided is incomplete or misleading SIMPROCESS User s Manual 153 ABC and SIMPROCESS ABC and SIMPROCESS Activity Based Costing is a technique for accumulating cost for a given cost object i e product service customer that represents the total and true economic Resources required or consumed by the object General Activity Cost Products Ledger Pools Services Activity Based Costing occurs in two phases First cost data is organized into Activity cost pools In other words the costs of significant activities are determined This first phase is sometimes referred to as Activity based Process costing Then the amounts in the cost pools are assigned to products services or other cost objects The second phase is referred to as Activity based object costing The architecture of SIMPROCESS provides an integrating framework for ABC ABC embodies the con
94. how randomness affects the system Turning this option on negates that test RMI Host This indicates the host on which S PServer will be located if the model has an External schedule defined Defaults to localhost See Adding an External Schedule on page 286 RMI Port This indicates the TCP port to use on the RMI Host Defaults to 1099 See Adding an External Schedule on page 286 Cost Periods This tab sets the frequency over which the ABC Reports will be collected The name of the currency that the ABC Reports will use can also be set See Setting Up Cost Periods on page 156 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 9 Run Settings Debug Traces Run Settings Cost Periods Debug Traces ee J Create Entity Debug Traces Help Cancel Remove Undo This tab turns on off debug tracing and defines debug traces If checked Create Entity Debug Traces causes the creation of the debug traces defined in the box to the right If no debug traces are defined no debug traces are created during the simulation run Click the Add button to define a debug trace This brings up a dialog for defining the debug trace xi Debug Trace Name Tracet O00000 oK Debug Trace File Trace1 bt Cancel Entities Help I Initialize End Processing J Hold I Accept I Free Resource J Release From Hold I Get Resource Release I Clone J Begin Processing I Dispose I Assemble I Interrupt
95. in the External File Schedule dialog SIMPROCESS will add it to the model If a record contains any syntax error or undefined model element without using Selected in the list option the entire event record is considered invalid and is bypassed SIMPROCESS User s Manual 502 Appendix H External Events File Examples 1 Generate GreenDot entities at 3 a m on January 1 2005 Generate the number of entities defined in the Generate Activity Properties dialog 01 01 2005 03 00 00 ENTITY GreenDot 2 Generate six RedDot entities 7 hours after the simulation begins 7 0 QUANTITY 6 ENTITY RedDot 3 Generate four RedDot entities 7 hours after the previous entity generation 7 00 QUANTITY 4 ENTITY RedDot 4 Generate a Truck entity at 2 a m on January 3 2005 Assign a value of 50 000 to user attribute Weight and the string Yo Heavy to user attribute Tag 01 03 2005 2 00 ENTITY Truck ATTR Weight 50000 Tag Yo Heavy 5 Generate more Truck entities 4 hours after the previous event Generate the number of entities defined in the Generate Activity Properties dialog 4 0 ENTITY Truck 6 Generate two RedDot entities at 4 a m on January 3 2005 01 03 2005 04 00 00 ENTITY RedDot QUANTITY 2 Notes on the Examples If the examples are processed during a simulation which begins at midnight January 1 2005 the events occur at the following times January 1 2005 3 00 a m January 1 2005 7 00
96. includes the date time and a message SIMPROCESS User s Manual 344 Experiment Operation E Experiment Manager Status Messages x 43 l ni Fri Dec 07 1 11 EST 2001 Current Experiment Purchasing Fri Dec 07 18 43 11 EST 2001 Alert dialogs inactive for Experiment Purchasing Fri Dec 07 18 43 11 EST 2001 Current Model C CACI SIMPROCESS SPUser Purchasing spm Fri Dec 07 18 43 11 EST 2001 Current Design 5 Reps Fri Dec 07 18 43 11 EST 2001 Current Scenario Decentralized Under staffed Fri Dec 07 16 43 15 EST 2001 Alternative for Process Purchasing updated to Decentraliz ed Product based for Scenario Decentralized Under staffed Fri Dec 07 18 43 15 EST 2001 Attribute Model NumProdA Personnel in Experiment Purchasin g Model Purchasing Design 5 Reps and Scenario Decentralized Under staffed chang ed to value 6 Fri Dec 07 18 43 15 EST 2001 Attribute Model NumProdBPersonnel in Experiment Purchasin g Model Purchasing Design 5 Reps and Scenario Decentralized Under staffed chang ed to value 4 Fri Dec 07 18 43 15 EST 2001 Attribute Model NumProdBPersonnel in Experiment Purchasin g Model Purchasing Design 5 Reps and Scenario Decentralized Under staffed chang ed to value 4 Fri Dec 07 18 43 15 EST 2001 Running Scenario Decentralized Under staffed Fri Dec 07 18 43 24 EST 2001 Committing results to database for Scenario Decentralized Under staffed F
97. information about a model The Entity and Resource statistics gathered for the Standard Report will usually be sufficient when starting amodel As the focus of the analysis is sharpened and the model becomes detailed custom statistics will be added to narrow in on the performance measures of most interest Further real time plots see Real Time Plots beginning on page 176 and SIMPROCESS dashboards see Chapter 16 SIMPROCESS Dashboards beginning on page 379 can be viewed a Simulation Results file containing all the statistics gathered from the model can be exported in a tab delimited format see Simulation Results File beginning on page 504 and results can be exported to a database see Chapter 13 SIMPROCESS Database beginning on page 322 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 162 Standard Report Standard Report After the simulation run has completed display the Standard Report to view output statistics for the model From the Report menu bar choose Display Standard Report This will open the Display Standard Report dialog In the Report Replications list box if the model ran for multiple replications an individual Replication the Average of All Replications run or the Sum of All Replications run can be selected Typically for runs of multiple replications the Average of All Replications report is most useful Calculate Confidence Intervals is activated if the Average of All Replications report is selecte
98. interarrival times of customers to some system when the arrival rate is approximately constant over the time period of interest It is also sometimes used to model the time to failure of a piece of equipment The mean of an exponential distribution is a scale parameter An exponential distribution with mean m is a gamma distribution with mean m and shape 1 An exponential distribution with mean m is a Weibull distribution with shape 1 and scale m If interarrival times of customers have an exponential distribution with mean m then the number of arrivals in any time interval of length thas aPoisson distribution discrete with mean t m SIMPROCESS User s Manual 430 Appendix D Statistical Distributions Gamma Distribution Plot for Gam 2 0 5 0 1 1 0 0 9 0 8 0 7 0 6 0 5 0 4 0 3 0 2 0 1 0 0 0 1 2 3 4 PDF Gam 2 0 5 0 1 CDF Gam 2 0 5 0 1 Probability density curve and cumulative density function for a gamma distribution with mean 2 and shape 5 Syntax Gam mean shape stream The gamma distribution continuous could be used to model the time required to perform some task If a gamma distribution has parameters mean m and shape a then b m a is a scale parameter A gamma distribution with mean m and shape 1 is an exponential distribution with mean m When shape is a positive integer the gamma distribution is an Erlang distribution SIMPROCESS User s Manual
99. is the number of Entities that will come out the Clones Pad into each Connector e IfaDurationis defined for the Activity the time specified in the Duration will be applied before the Activity In other words it will be reflected in the Cycle Time of the incoming Entities If Time Stamps are defined for the incoming Entity those values can be passed to the Clones by selecting Copy Time Stamps Split and Join Activities The Split and Join Activities work together to temporarily split the processing of an Entity among parallel Activities Atthe Split Activity an Entity is converted into two or more Entities each of which follows a different path before optionally reuniting at a Join Activity The Split Activity generates child Entities from the parent Entity The children and the parent Entity belong to the same family After going their separate ways the family is reunited at the Join Activity SIMPROCESS User s Manual 118 Entity Control Activities where a single Entity the parent exits for continued processing In the order fulfillment process Split and Join might come into play in the handling of rush orders To speed up processing of rush orders the work might be divided among several clerks at some point Do Paperwork m AE a Delayl Get Order From Inventory In At Pin Delay2 Update Database PL Ping Delay3 The figure above shows how a Split Activity takes a customer order Entity and relea
100. it takes to service customers fulfill demand and develop new products a Me f Process Event driven Activity based i Mapping Simulation Costing j P i ee SIMPROCESS SIMPROCESS integrates Process mapping hierarchical event driven simulation and Activity based costing ABC intoa single tool The architecture of SIMPROCESS provides an integrating framework for ABC The building blocks of SIMPROCESS are Processes resources entities flow objects activities ABC and dynamic Process analysis ABC embodies the concept that a business is a series of inter related Processes and that these Processes consist of Activities that convert inputs to outputs The modeling approach in SIMPROCESS manifests this concept and builds on it by organizing and analyzing cost information on an Activity basis SIMPROCESS User s Manual 15 How Do You Use SIMPROCESS How Do You Use SIMPROCESS SIMPROCESS allows you to create an abstract model ofa Process under study You produce acomputer model of a business Process and documentation diagrams and descriptions to be printed SIMPROCESS is a dynamic modeling tool that simulates the flow of entities through the defined Process Entities could be e proposals e orders e invoices e customers e work in Process e patients Items Entities that a Process receives acts upon or produces should be included in the definition of the business Process Items flow from
101. items defined in the model on the left and the real time plots available for that item on the right Select an item on the left then select the plots desired on the right Multiple items can be selected on the right by holding down the Control key when selecting The Select All button can be used if all plots are desired The Deselect All button deselects all plots Once the desired plots have been selected click OK During the simulation when the first value occurs for a particular plot the plot appears The plot will remain unless minimized or closed Real time plots SIMPROCESS User s Manual 176 Real Time Plots that have been closed can be displayed again NOTE Real Time plots that have been displayed will not automatically disappear at the end of a simulation run Each one must be closed individually Note that all open plots will be closed when SIMPROCESS is closed Time Stamps Plots for time stamps are determined when the time stamp is defined Select Time Stamps from the Define menu and choose Add for a new time stamp or Edit to add plots to an existing time stamp Enter or edit the Start Key and Stop Key x Start Key Begin Processing x OK Stop Key lend Processing x Cancel Help V Collect Statistics Set Plot Properties V Real Time Trace Plot IV Real Time Histogram Plot Comment Select Collect Statistics to report the statistics on the Time Stamp in the Standard Repo
102. jakarta poi jar READ ONLY SIMPROCESS executable jar file java2rei jar READ ONLY SIMPROCESS executable jar file Windows only jcommon jar READ ONLY SIMPROCESS executable jar file jfreechart jar READ ONLY SIMPROCESS executable jar file simprocess err READ ONLY SIMPROCESS application error messages created and or emptied when SIMPROCESS is run simprocess log READ ONLY SIMPROCESS application messages created and or emptied when SIMPROCESS is run timezone dat READ ONLY SIMPROCESS initialization data file timezone err READ ONLY SIMPROCESS initialization error file optQuest log READ ONLY OptQuest for SIMPROCESS application mes sages optQuest err READ ONLY OptQuest for SIMPROCESS application error messages GetStart pdf READ ONLY on line documentation file SPUser pdf READ ONLY on line documentation file ExpertFitGuide pdf READ ONLY On line documentation file RoseExists dll READ ONLY SIMPROCESS Rose library Windows only license dll READ ONLY SIMPROCESS license library Windows only libLinux so READ ONLY SIMPROCESS license library Linux only license dat READ ONLY license file obtained from CACI SIMPROCESS User s Manual 421 APPENDIX C SIMPROCESS File Structure xfit Subdirectory This directory contains the files necessary to run the ExpertFit application included on Windows systems only SPUser Directory sProcDB properties database conne
103. of the SIMPROCESS published model on the disk drive or web server When navigating the SIMPROCESS published HTML model moving the mouse pointer over a SIMPROCESS activity node that has been connected to a Rose Use Case Diagram as described in this section gets a Javascript popup that links directly to the Rose published HTML Use Case Diagram automatically This capability is very useful for wide area review of business process models that have Use Case functional requirements attached to certain nodes in the SIMPROCESS model Hence the business process requirements and the system requirements are in context of each other using this technique SIMPROCESS User s Manual 518 APPENDIX J Running Models Without GUI SIMPROCESS models can be run without the SIMPROCESS Graphical User Interface GUI There are two executables in the SIMPROCESS directory SIMPROCESS and SPRunSimulation any extensions are platform specific The SIMPROCESS program starts the SIMPROCESS GUI required to build and edit models This GUL is typically used to run models as well However SPRunSimulation can be used to run a SIMPROCESS model without the GUI A valid License dat file is required to run SIMPROCESS and SPRunSimulation The same license file is used for both Since access to the GUI is not available results of the run must be automatically output to the SIMPROCESS database see page 322 user created files or a user created database Statistics collected
104. on the Move button three times Each click of Move shifts the item down a row Cycles can be moved up in the list by checking the Upwards option before clicking the Move button Repeat Sequence tells SIMPROCESS how many times to repeat execution of the pattern of cycles If Infinite is checked SIMPROCESS will keep repeating the cycle pattern until Generation End is reached SIMPROCESS User s Manual 280 Defining a More Complex Generate Activity Note about Repeat Sequence A value of 0 in the Repeat Sequence field tells SIMPROCESS to run through the list a single time without repeating it A value of 1 resultsin two passes through the Sequence of Events the initial run through and one repetition Do not confuse the number of repetitions with the number of passes through the list Refer to page 277 for descriptions of the Generation Start and Release End Count Limit and Both must be reached options Defining a Periodic Cycle A periodic cycle defines a constant or statistical distribution of entity generation events To define a periodic cycle in a cyclical schedule select Periodic from the list of Schedule types and then click on Add x Schedule Periodic1 oK Cancel Entity fuse getat HA Help Quantity fuse defaut Fall intewa hoo o S Wd E Time Unit Hours v V Generate at start of first interval Event Duration 24 0 ind ate Time Units Hours bd Count Limit None x a Both must b
105. on the number of each Entity type divided by the total number of Entities The pool of Activity cost is broken out to each Entity type based on the Entity usage of that Activity The Activity cost is displayed in the cost report for the total number of each Entity type not for each Entity instance To calculate the Entity instance cost divide the cost for that Entity type the costnumber displayed in the report by the total number of Entities of that type processed available in the Standard Report Upon completion of these calculations SIMPROCESS resumes the simulation for the next cost period SIMPROCESS User s Manual 160 How to Use ABC in SIMPROCESS Note Get Resource Activities accumulate the costs of Resources obtained at Get Resource Activities This is because the Resource was not actually assigned to any of the activities where processing occurred References Michael R Ostrenga Terrence Ozan Robert Mc Ilhattan Marcus Harwood The Ernst amp Young Guide to Total Cost Management John Wiley amp Sons New York 1992 Douglas Webster Activity Based Costing A Tool for Reengineering the Enterprise Enterprise Reengineering April May 1995 pp 18 23 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 161 CHAPTER 8 Output Reports SIMPROCESS collect statistics by default for all Entities and all Resources for the Standard Report SIMPROCESS also allows the definition of custom statistics to gather more specific
106. option defaults to not selected Not being selected means the event file will be read at simulation time Thus the file is required to run the simulation If the option is selected then the events are saved as a part of the model and the file is not needed for simulation However saving events as a part of the model could significantly increase the size of the model file and increase the amount of time needed to load the model If events are saved the Read Event File button must be exercised if the event file changes Otherwise the simulation will not run with the events from the new file Note that if the events are not saved and the event file changes the events for the simulation will change But doing this without intentionally reading the event file using the Read Event File button assumes that the Entities and attributes used in the new file are the same as the previous file Adding an External Schedule An external schedule allows a remote application to cause the generation of Entities within a SIMPROCESS model This is a plug in capability that can be purchased separately from CACI Typical uses for external schedules include connecting decision support or operational systems to a SIMPROCESS User s Manual 286 Defining a More Complex Generate Activity SIMPROCESS simulation model to see how a model is affected by the randomness of real work applications in use rather than just randomness from statistical distribution funct
107. other variable type Consider the following examples this expression is placed inthe Accept Entity event of an Activity that has two local attributes defined Attributel is a String and Attribute2 is of type Object myobyj ANYOBJ myobjarray 5 ANYOBJ myob j Self SIMPROCESS User s Manual 250 Example Batching Entities Based on Weight points to the Activity the script is in myobjarray 0 Activity Entity points to the current Entity in the Activity myobjarray 1 Sibling Delay6 points to a sibling Activity called Delay6 myobjarray 2 Resource myResource points to a Resource defined in the model Self Attributel hello dolly Self Attribute2 myobjarray 0 points to the Activity Entity object assigned to cell 0 of myobjarray above Self Attribute2 myobjarray 1 now points to the sibling Delay6 assiged above myobj Attributel hey mister replaces the value in attributel with the new string hey mister since myobj also points to self s above myobjarray 4 myobj Entity Type points to the Entity type of the current Entity in the current Activity myobjarry 5 myobj produces an error since myobjarray has only cells 0 4 defined the subscript is out of bounds Type checking is done on the assignment of variables where possible This is to prohibit assigning basic type REAL INT
108. positive integer and probability p can be thought of as the distribution of the number of successes in t independent Bernoulli trials where success occurs on each trial with a probability of p and failure occurs on each trial with a probability of 1 p A binomial distribution with trials 1 is called a Bernoulli distribution with probability p SIMPROCESS User s Manual 44 Appendix D Statistical Distributions Negative Binomial Distribution E FE et Ez PDF NgB 5 0 5 1 CDF NGB 5 0 5 1 Plot for NgB 5 0 5 1 0 9 0 8 0 7 0 6 0 5 0 4 0 3 0 2 0 1 0 0 L L L L 0 5 10 15 Probability density function and cumulative density function for a negative binomial distribution with s 5 and probability 0 5 Syntax NgB s probability stream The negative binomial distribution discrete with parameters s and probability p can be thought of as the distribution of the number of failures before the sth success in a sequence of independent Bernoulli trials where success occurs on each trial with a probability of p and failure occurs on each trial with a probability of 1 p A negative binomial distribution with parameters s 1 and probability p is a geometric distribution with probability p SIMPROCESS User s Manual 442 Appendix D Statistical Distributions Inverse Gaussian Distribution BRAE PDF InG 0 0 1 0 4 0 1 CDF InG 0 0 1 0 4 0 1
109. such as MS Word was used To import these files they must first be saved as RTF This is easily done in MS Word There is also shareware available on the internet that will convert ASCH files to RTF http www jafsoft com asctortf The names of the files converted to RTF are not important to SIMPROCESS Once the files are RTF simply click the Document button on the item for import There is a Document button on all Activity Process entity and resource properties dialogs Also there is Model Documentation on the Define menu Clicking the Document button brings up an RTF editor xi File Edit Format G Gel Monospaced iba fiz gt e z Description Inputs Output Category VA NVA Owner From the File menu choose Read from File This allows you to read in the RTF document files which makes the file a part of your model file This must be done for every documentation file that was created for your 2 2 model All of these files will be located in the model s folder and will have the extension doc SIMPROCESS User s Manual 416 APPENDIX B Activity Summary Table Required Parameters Non standard Options Assemble Receives 2 or more entities Component Entity Resources and assembles them into a Assembled Entity Delay single entity for release Batch Comparients Assign Assigns values to entity Entity Attributes Resources attributes Delay Set Entity Priority B
110. sum of all the waits Selecting the Model Attributes button brings up the list of the Model Attributes in the Purchasing model TotalWait was selected then Value was selected NumProd amp Personnel NumProdBPersonnel NumProdCPersonnel Performance measure constraints appear as the objective except an Upper Bound field a Lower Bound field and a Delete Constraint button are added OptQuest for SIMPROCESS x Delete OK Select Optimization Settings Purchasing Optimization Undo Delete Cancel Objective Decision Variables Constraints Process Alternatives Run Options Help Upper Bound 30 Totalait Value r it a Add Constraint Start Lower Bound DAD GEESE E Delete Constraint Entity Resource Time Stamp Model Attributes Expression As with the decision variables a blank Lower Bound assumes negative infinity and a blank Upper Bound assumes infinity Once a performance measure constraint has been added only the Upper Bound Lower SIMPROCESS User s Manual 357 Optimization Setup Bound and type of statistic can be edited If the type of value chosen needs to be changed the constraint must be deleted and recreated The second type of constraint is an expression constraint An expression constraint defines mathematical relationships between decision variables The Expression button is used to create expression constraints This button displays a dialog
111. swimlanes The dialog allows you to enter relative percentages for all or some swimlanes Entries are not required for each swimlane The minimum swimlane width is 5 of the layout Swimlanes that do not have an entry will be evenly spaced across the remaining area of the layout The Current Unassigned Lane Width Maximum Percentage shows the maximum value that can be assigned to a lane As Is Process for Staffing is assigned 45 of the layout area in the example below This means 55 of the layout area is left for People Soft HR The Clear Widths buttons removes all swimlane width assignments Swimlane Widths OK As ls Process for Staffing Relative Size 45 a i ance People Soft HR Relative Size Hre Current Unassigned Lane Width Maximum Percentage 55 Clear Widths x For the image below adjusting the width removes the overlap of the People Soft HR swimlane title with the dynamic labels SIMPROCESS User s Manual 36 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus Swimlane Properties Horizontal vertical 4s Is Process for Staffing When OK is selected on the Swimlane Properties dialog the swimlanes are drawn on the model layout Note that swimlane borders or titles may not be edited by clicking on the layout All edits must be done from the Swimlane Properties dialog E simprocess Professional Edition ECS AET ee ie Se es eee eee ean Toes Neen ee Doe Ss kemxnwtee Fae BV ie Cont Resourc
112. template properties are simply the Resource properties with the Add to Library option added As with the other template types if there has not been a library defined the Resource template will go into the Default library SIMPROCESS User s Manual 205 Defining and Editing Templates Adding Resource Downtime Templates Resource templates are created from the Resource Downtime list box The Resource list box displays all the resource downtimes defined in the model Itis accessed from Resource Downtimes on the Define menu The Resource Downtime list box has an Add Template button xl Type Empty hd Service Downtime Add Edit Copy Remove Undo Add Template r ew _Remove_ Ta i Select the Resource Downtime and click the Add Template button This brings up the properties of the template Resource Downtime Template Properties x Name Sales Downtime OK Cancel mmiddiyyy hh mm ss msec usec nsec Start C Help lt Add Periodic z Edit Remove Add to Library customer Service x The template properties are the Resource Downtime properties with the Resource assigments removed and the Add to Library option added As with the other template types if there has not been a library defined the Resource Downtime template will go into the Default library SIMPROCESS User s Manual 206 Editing Templates Editing Templates Templates cannot be ed
113. that lists the decision variables on the left and the allowed mathematical operators and functions on the right The example below shows the Purchasing model Note that the decision variable names must be the fully qualified SIMPROCESS attribute name That is the type of the attribute Model Entity etc must be included Constraint Expression x Name OK z MINOF Cancel Hen Model NumProdAPersonnel Model NumProdBPersonnel Model NumProdCPersonnel Roo arna Expression Validate A name must be entered for the constraint in the Name field Names for expression constraints within the same optimization setting must be unique The expression can be typed directly into the Expression text area or by clicking on the decision variable or mathematical operator or function The syntax is the same as used in the SIMPROCESS Expression language Some mathematical functions allowed by OptQuest are not allowed in the SIMPROCESS Expression language therefore all of the functions allowed by OptQuest are listed in the following table along with descriptions Expression Constraint Functions Function Description ABS x Returns the absolute value of x SIMPROCESS User s Manual 358 Optimization Setup Expression Constraint Functions Function Description ACOS x Returns the arccosine of x in the range 0 to n radians x is between 1 and 1 ASIN x Retu
114. the RemoteCall interface The files are located in the SPUser SampleFiles directory SPServerDemo java defines the server class and the methods that will be called from the expression script The Java code is as follows package com caci demo import java rmi import Jjava util import ptolemy plot import ptolemy plot plotml public interface SPServerDemo extends Remote boolean putPlotData double simtime int totalEntities throws RemoteException boolean clearData throws RemoteException SPServerDemolmpl java defines the implementation code for the server class and methods This example instantiates a user defined class that uses the Ptolemy plotting classes This plot is being presented on the screen to the user by the server program separate from the SIMPROCESS simulation The data being fed to the plot is coming from the simulation and the RemoteCall parameters shown above The Java code is as follows package com import java import java import java caci demo rmi rmi server util SIMPROCESS User s Manual 490 System Method Examples import ptolemy plot import ptolemy plot plotml public class SPServerDemoImpl extends UnicastRemoteObject implements SPServerDemo public SPServerDemoImp1 throws RemoteException myplot new SPPlotDemo Number Entities Simulation Time in Hours public boolean putPlotData double simtime in
115. the Scenario combo box The Scenario Comment field is optional At this point no more information is required to run a scenario Publishing the results of this scenario run to HTML is optional If Publish Model To HTML is selected a value for Publish Directory must be entered The Publish Directory is the destination directory for the HTML output The name of the directory created for the HTML files is the model name with any spaces replaced by underscores If a directory with this name already exists within the selected destination directory either select another destination directory or rename move or delete the existing directory For instance in the example below the directory of the model Purchasing spm was selected as the destination directory This means the publish process will create a directory named Purchasing within the Purchasing directory If a directory named Purchasing already existed in C Program File SIMPROCESS models Demos Purchasing an error would occur So for this example the HTML files will go in the C Program Files SIMPROCESS models Demos Purchasing Purchasing directory Thus if multiple runs of the same model are to be published a unique destination directory will need to be assigned for each scenario Usually if used at all only one scenario for each model is published to HTML Setting Model Parameter values and Process Alternatives is optional If these are not set then the last saved value for each Model
116. the automatic save of the plot Trace plots have a t rc extension and histogram plots have an hst extension These plots will be overwritten each time the model is run Thus if a plot file needs to be saved it should be renamed or moved or the plot can be saved using the File Save option Launch Plot Application on the Report menu opens a plot window Saved plots can be opened using the File Open option of the plot window Post Plotting Options Each plot window has a menu and four buttons These provide options to save print and format plots Also the plots have a zoom capability File Menu Open Ctrl 0 Save Ctri S SaveAs Export Print Ctrl P Close Ctrl V Open Opens a previously saved plot e Save Saves a plot in XML format e SavedAs Saves a previously saved plot under a new name Export Saves the plot as an encapsulated postscript file e Print Prints the plot e Close Closes the plot window Edit Menu Format SIMPROCESS User s Manual 182 Real Time Plots Format Changes the format of the plot Set plot format xj Q Title Serice Calls Cycle Times Trace X Label Simulation Time in Hours Y Label value in Minutes Grid o X Range 0 390817401235489 23 740316281819428 aema A Y Range 7 6614476623226135 51 28149513119014 Comet e Marks none points C dots C various C pixels Use Color X Ticks Y Ticks Apply Cancel Special Menu About
117. the database Nothing is returned The syntax is WriteToDatabase Model ObjectAttribute SQLQuery Model ObjectAttribute is the Object Attribute that was used in the OpenDatabase system method that created the connection SQLQuery is a string and is the query that modifies the tables of the database This query can start with INSERT UPDATE or DELETE Note that WriteToDatabase can slow the simulation as table sizes increase Also be careful when using WriteToDatabase if there is the possibility the simulation will be stopped early by user SIMPROCESS User s Manual 263 Interfacing With A Database intervention Updates to the database can lag behind the simulation Thus if the simulation is stopped early there is the potential that the CLloseDatabase command would be executed before all the WriteToDatabase commands have finished The consequence would be an error that could possibly crash SIMPROCESS Omit the CloseDatabase command if this scenario might occur If the CloseDatabase command is omitted SIMPROCESS will not release the database until SIMPROCESS is closed GetNext GetNext controls the position within a Result Set Result Sets are simply tables of data The columns are the fields requested in the SQL query For instance if the query was SELECT CallTime WrapUpTime FROM Times thecolumns inthe ResultSet wouldbe Cal1TimeandWrapUpTime GetNext sets the row of the Result Set So GetNext is used in conjunction with Ge
118. the distribution Standard Distributions x Tutorial Dist 2 Undo SIMPROCESS User s Manual 44 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus Functions is used for managing Functions Mathematical functions defined here can be used throughout the model Seeds is used for viewing therandom number stream seeds Global Attributes is used for globally defining attributes for Entity instances Entity Types Resources Activities and the Model See Introduction to Attributes and Expressions beginning on page 212 for more information on Attributes Model Expressions defines customized Processing for the model at various points during a simulation This topic is covered in detail in Chapter 10 Customizing a Model with Attributes and Expressions beginning on page 210 Time Stamps manages Time Stamps Time Stamps can x be used as event logs See Event Logs on page 309 Begin Review To Approval Close Edit Copy Remove HeH Unda Templates defines and edits Templates This option also allows saving templates to a library or loading a new library See Chapter 9 Reusable Templates and Libraries beginning on page 197 Model Description provides aplace to document the model See document Subdirectory on page 422 for information on customizing the headings SIMPROCESS User s Manual 45 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus Simulate Menu Run Se
119. the same as Process__ two or more spaces between Process and 1 Required Fields Some Activities have required fields For instance the Generate Activity needs an entity to generate Notice the Generate Properties Dialog below If no entities have been defined in the model and thus the Entity field in the Generate is blank errors will occur This same type of error could be caused by Assemble Batch and Transform Activities not having an entity type selected Also a Branch Activity with no attribute selected when branching by attribute has been set could cause errors during import SIMPROCESS User s Manual 403 Appendix A Importing Version 2 2 1 Models Generate Activity Properties x Name Generate V Show Name Icon Generate z Cancel Help Entity H og Quantity 1 0 2 ea Attributes Interval ho x e Expressions Time Unit Hours __Event Logs Schedule Start End Bat Peo I Newent Document Text Block J Collect Activity Statistics J Collect Activity by Entity Statistics Comment Graphics If bitmaps were imported for the model gi f jpeg or png versions of these bitmaps must be imported before importing the model SIMPROCESS User s Manual 404 Appendix A Importing Version 2 2 1 Models Graphical Import Results If there are no errors all properties willimport However the screens will look different This is because version
120. value of 1 stopSimulation returns a boolean indicating success or failure modelName is the only parameter All methods throw a RemoteException External Application Example The code below is a simple example of an external application communicating with SIMPROCESS In this example Remote is the name of the model Remote spm The for loop runs from 1 to 10 For and 2 the generateEntity method specifies all the parameters except quantity The generateEntity method for 3 4 and 5 specifies all the parameters The generateEntity method for 6 through 10 only specifies the model generate and schedule parameters The remaining parameters are set for defaults The generateEntity method after the for loop calls the StopSim schedule This schedule is set to generate a StopSim entity which enters a Dispose Activity with a maximum entity count of 1 thus stopping the simulation See Chapter 5 of the SIMPROCESS Getting Started Manual for instructions on running this example The code ExternalApp java is in the SPUser SampleFiles directory Also in the SPUser SampleFiles directory is ExternalApp2 java This application is exactly the same as ExternalApp java butit uses stopSimulation to end the simulation package com caci demo import java rmi import java rmi server import com caci remote public class ExternalApp public static void main String args SPServerFactory_Stub spServer null
121. was preempted Also if the Resume Processing Entity instance expressions has statements it is executed See page 247 for information on Entity instance expressions SIMPROCESS User s Manual 139 CHAPTER 6 Graphical Modeling Constructs Graphical constructs in SIMPROCESS include e Background Text static and dynamic e Background Graphics In addition graphics can be imported for use as backgrounds or icons and animation can be recorded for playback SIMPROCESS User s Manual 140 Background Text Background Text There are two types of background text in SIMPROCESS static text and dynamic labels Static text is used for annotating the model layout and does not change during simulation Dynamic labels are updated during simulation and are used to display information about changing properties of model elements Several text labels can be grouped together on the layout and their horizontal and vertical alignment can be set using the Align option Dynamic labels can be updated automatically or by using the SIMPROCESS Expression Language The SIMPROCESS Expression Language is an advanced feature found in SIMPROCESS Professional Updating dynamic labels using expressions is covered in Chapter 10 Customizing a Model with Attributes and Expressions This topic begins on page 210 Properties are specified in the Background Text dialog invoked by selecting a text tool from the palette marked by a capital T and clickin
122. when the resource goes down all resources in use at that Activity are released The resource that is scheduled to go down is placed in a down state and the other resources are available for another entity to use Note that this applies only to resources assigned at the Activity that is interrupted If a resource was obtained at another Activity such as a Get Resource Activity that resource will not be released That resource will remain in a busy state during the time the resource that is down remains down If Release All Resources is not selected none of the other resources in use at the Activity will be released They will remain in a busy state while the resource that went down remains down Note that the Release Entities In Process at Start of Downtime option on the Activity resource usage dialog overrides the Release All Resources option If the Release Entities In Process at Start of Downtime option is selected the entity is released from the Activity at the start of the downtime causing the release of all other resources in use by the entity at that Activity Note about Release All Resources Care should be used when selecting this option If more than one resource is being used at the Activity and one of these resources that has the Interrupt Activities option and Release All Resources option turned on goes down several actions occur e Allresources being used by the entity that were obtained at the Activity are released This allows th
123. 0 schedule of Generate activity 276 Selected Field 336 sequence of events Both must be reached 282 calendar 282 entity generation start time 283 entity generation start of 283 start time 283 definition periodic 281 282 Both must be reached 282 start time 281 Set Entity Priority To on Assign activity 108 Set Entity User Attributes on Assign activity 108 Show Name checkbox 59 Show Text checkbox 61 Simluation Output displaying cost results 159 Simulate Menu 46 48 Animation On 48 Animation Settings 47 Change Model Parameters 48 Pause Resume 48 Run 48 Run Settings 46 Stop 48 Verify Model 48 simulation animation options 81 settings 81 showing entities 70 changing animation options 81 duration of 69 77 End Date 77 ending 69 length of in calendar time 77 Max Count and 69 options run time 77 Pause 81 pausing 81 restart after pause 81 resuming after pause 81 run dates 77 run time settings 77 running 77 82 Start Date 77 starting 80 stopping 69 stopping temporarily 81 Simulation menu item 81 Simulation Output Display Standard Report 163 single event 284 Split Activity 118 119 122 Standard Output Report 163 StatFit 314 Static Text 141 Statistical Distributions 425 statistical distributions 320 specifying 64 65 Statistical Output Custom Plots 185 Define Global Statistics Collection 49 Define Real Time Plots 49 176 Display Standard Report 82 Displaying Real Time Plots 179 Entity Statistics 165 Process Activity
124. 0 00 o0 End 01 01 2005 00 00 00 000 a Fi Warmup Every Replication Number of Replications C Reset Random Number Streams Warmup Length V Reset System Warmup Time Unit Hours M Verify Model on Run Simulation Time Unit Hours RMI Host localhost emer a SIMPROCESS User s Manual 156 How to Use ABC in SIMPROCESS Then click on the Cost Periods tab This will display the Cost Periods definition tab as shown below Run Settings Run Settings Cost Periods Debug Traces ox Week2 Week3 n kap Weeks x Currency Name Dollars Period Fregency Weekly The list in the upper left of this dialog shows the currently defined cost periods The default periods are Week1 Week2 Week53 At the bottom of the dialog is the Period Frequency selection list with the default Weekly selected Click the down arrow button to see all of the Period Frequencies that SIMPROCESS offers Weekly Monthly Quarterly Half Yearly and Yearly Notice that if a new Period Frequency is selected SIMPROCESS will create a new set of periods in the period list and assign each a default name Month1 Month2 or Quarter1 Quarter2 Notice also that SIMPROCESS will automatically create and name enough cost periods to span the currently specified run length The simulation Start Time and End Time are set from the Run Settings tab This dialog also sets the name of the Currency used on the cost reports This is a s
125. 0 2 0 1 00 O02 04 06 O08 1 0 Probability density function and cumulative density function for a Johnson Sg distribution with minimum 0 maximum 1 shapel 2 and shape2 2 Syntax JSB minimum maximum shapel shape2 stream The Johnson Sg distribution continuous could be used to model the time required to perform some task when the possible values are restricted to the finite interval minimum maximum The density function is skewed to the left symmetric or skewed to the right if shape1 gt 0 shape1 0 or shapel lt 0 respectively The Johnson Sx distribution is closely related to the classical normal distribution see the book Simulation Modeling and Analysis Third Edition by Law and Kelton 2000 for details SIMPROCESS User s Manual 445 Appendix D Statistical Distributions Johnson Sy Distribution Plot for JSU 0 0 1 0 2 0 2 0 1 BIRME 4 PDF JSU 0 0 1 0 2 0 2 0 1 T CDF JSU 0 0 1 0 2 0 2 0 1 Probability density function and cumulative density function for a Johnson Sy distribution with location 0 scale 1 shape1 2 and shape2 2 Syntax JSU location scale shapel shape2 stream The Johnson Sy distribution continuous could be used to model a random variable that can take on any value between minus infinity and plus infinity The density function is skewed to the left symmetric or skewed to the right if shape1 gt 0 shape1 0 or shape1
126. 15 OptQuest for SIMPROCESS In today s highly competitive global environment people are faced with many difficult decisions such as allocating financial resources building facilities managing inventories determining product mix strategies and more Modeling a decision problem in SIMPROCESS discovers what performance measures can be expected using a certain strategy A strategy can be defined as a certain set of values for the model parameters Other words for strategy include scenario and solution Note that solution refers to the model parameter values inputs to the simulation not the resulting values of the performance measures Suppose the goal was to find the best strategy without using OptQuest Model parameter values for a strategy being considered would have to be entered into SIMPROCESS and the results analyzed Then this process would have to be repeated for every strategy under consideration Experiment Manager automates running models with various values for model parameters See Experiment Manager on page 334 Often it would not be clear how to adjust the model parameters from one simulation to the next This type of search is tedious and in problems with thousands or millions of potential alternatives impractical OptQuest enhances SIMPROCESS by automating the search for an optimal strategy Note that OptQuest for SIMPROCESS is licensed separately from SIMPROCESS SIMPROCESS User s Manual 349
127. 3 0 uses a different coordinate system from earlier SIMPROCESS versions There are several areas that will be quite noticeably different e Activity Process location e Activity Process size e Connectors not connected to Pads e Specially drawn Connectors not correct e Text Blocks Static labels and Dynamic labels smaller Activity Process Location The drawing area for earlier versions of SIMPROCESS was a square The drawing area for version 3 is arectangle and is related to your screen size typically 1024 x 768 Thus Activities and Processes will be in positions relative to where they were in 2 2 1 or 2 2 2 The change from a square area to a rectangular area will cause some Activities or Processes to be out of place The two images below demonstrate this The first is from a 2 2 2 version model The second is after importing to version 3 Notice that the two delay Activities are higher in relation to the Process Pads in the imported model Check Credit ae AN tak h Out Check Credit Write Request Carry Checked Request Check Credit In Out In Out Check Credit Write Request Cany Checked Request SIMPROCESS User s Manual 405 Appendix A Importing Version 2 2 1 Models Activity Process Size The changes in size are due to changes in the coordinate system and changes in the icons In version 3 an icon for an Activity or Process cannot be smaller than the graphic for that icon If the default graphic file
128. 42 Run Selected Experiments 342 Run Specific Experiment 342 Experiment Menu 50 Define Experiments 50 Run All Experiments 50 Run Selected Experiments 50 Run Specific Experiment 50 Experiments Defining Experiments 335 Entering Design Information 337 Entering Experiment Information 335 Entering Model Information 336 Entering Model Parameter Information 339 Entering Process Alternative Information 340 Entering Scenario Information 338 Running Experiments 342 Starting Experiments 342 ExpertFit 50 525 SIMPROCESS User s Manual Index Exporting Activity List 20 Graphics Image File 20 Simulation Results 20 UML Activity Model 20 Expressions 213 226 247 Language Basics 226 Using Attributes in 232 external data using 284 external files 284 F File Menu 19 21 Close 19 Exit 21 Export 20 Import 20 New 19 Open 19 Print 20 Save 19 Save As 19 file input to Generate activity See event files Free Resource Activity 135 136 Functions defining 45 G Gate Activity 101 104 entity release policies 101 gating policies 101 Threshold Release 104 Trigger Release Quantity 104 used as a buffer 102 Generate Activity 57 63 65 276 293 active period of entity release 276 Both must be reached 278 calendar schedule defining 278 complex defining 276 293 Count Limit 278 cyclical schedule defining 279 281 Daily schedule 278 Date schedule 278 Define Entity 63 defining 63 65 defining complex 276 293 entities generated 63 65
129. 65 rank method 97 100 103 105 Real Time Plots 166 170 173 plot group 190 saving 182 Setting Plot Properties 178 zooming 184 Recorder Objects output file recorder msg 311 Recorders Definition of 311 Release Begin 276 277 Release End 276 277 Release pad of Assemble 96 removing objects 58 Repeat Sequence events 280 Replenish Resource Activity 137 138 Report Menu 49 Commit to Database 49 Define Custom Real Time Plots 49 Define Global Statistics Collection 49 Define Real Time Plots 49 Display Real Time Plots 49 Display Standard Report 49 Launch Database Application 49 Launch Plot Application 49 Reports ABC 161 activities 172 175 attributes 171 Costs 161 default 163 entities 165 169 resources 169 171 Standard 163 Resize 22 Resource Downtime adding template 206 Resources 126 130 activities and 54 adding 73 adding template 128 204 allocation policy 127 consumable 130 cost 130 defining 43 73 128 defining requirements for activities 131 definition of 19 downtime 130 Downtime Schedule 298 308 entities and 54 fractional usage 130 replenishing consumable 137 usage combinations 132 variable usage 131 224 viewing by activity 41 Retain Batched Entity 101 Run Settings 46 77 90 Cost Periods 46 529 SIMPROCESS User s Manual Index running a simulation 80 Running a Simulation with Model Parameters 80 Running an Optimization 364 S scenario 325 Schedule of events 28
130. 94 Simulation Results File Simulation Results File The Simulation Results file is generated from the File menu Select File Export Simulation Results to open the Save Statistics dialog The Simulation Results file will by default have an xpt fileextension and be saved to the current model directory This file is tab delimited and can be opened using a text editor or spreadsheet The file will contain the complete statistical measures corresponding to the reports selected for the current model This file contains raw statistical data that is displayed in the Standard and Custom Reports in a standard format that can be opened by many different applications For a complete listing of the format of the Simulation Results file see Simulation Results File beginning on page 504 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 195 Part B Advanced SIMPROCESS Functions and Features The chapters in this section describe the advanced functions and features available in SIMPRO CESS Professional SIMPROCESS User s Manual 196 CHAPTER 9 Reusable Templates and Libraries One of the most powerful features of SIMPROCESS is the reusable Template A template is an Activity hierarchical Process Resource or Resource Downtime that is defined and reused over and over A template library is a collection of templates that can be saved and loaded before starting a modeling session The SIMPROCESS Template Library contains many model building and a
131. Activities coordinate groups of Entities and includes Assemble Receives two or more Entities and assembles them into a single Entity and releases the Entity Branch Routes Entities through different Connectors of the model network Merge Routes Entities from different Connectors onto one Connector Batch Stores Entities until conditions set by the user are met and then releases the Entities in one batch The Entities emerge as a single unit but retain their individual idEntity Unbatch Separates a batched Entity into its constituent parts Entities Split Divides an Entity into parent and child Entities that can undergo parallel processing Join Reunites families of Entities that were created in Split Activities Transform Transforms an arriving Entity into a different Entity type and releases one or more Entities of the new type SIMPROCESS User s Manual 94 e Transfer Routes an entity from one model layout to another model layout without using a connector or transfers an entity to another model e Clone Makes duplicate copies of Entities e Gate Accumulates Entities until a condition is met and then releases a specified number of them e Assign Assigns values to global Entity and model attributes and sets Entity priorities e Synchronize Coordinates the release of various Entities Resource Related Unlike other SIMPROCESS Activities these Activities affect Resources not Entities e Replenish R
132. Activity Statistics Requests IV Collect Entity Statistics Clear Individual Entity Statistics Requests IV Collect Resource Statistics Clear Individual Resource Statistics Requests I Collect Resource by Activity Statistics Clear Individual Resource by Activity Statistics Requests I Collect Activity by Entity Statistics Clear Individual Activity by Entity Statistics Requests Output Time Units Hours 7 OK Cancel Help SIMPROCESS User s Manual 347 Importing Database Experiments Importing Database Experiments Experiments that were defined in earlier versions of the SIMPROCESS database can be imported into Experiments xml Experiments that are imported from the database are not removed from the database There are three options for importing e All e Selected e Specific Allimports all experiments that are in the database Selected imports those experiments in the database that have Selected checked Specific brings up a dialog in which an experiment name is specified During import the message Importing Experiments appears in the status bar When complete the message Experiment Import Complete appears If errors occurred during the import procedure the message Experiment Import Failed appears Errors that cause the import procedure to fail include not being able to contact the database or some type of SQL error SIMPROCESS User s Manual 348 CHAPTER
133. Attribute representing an Attribute Owner Name This is the full hierarchical name of the specific object that owns this statistic record Name This is the name of the specific object that owns this statistic record Stat Type This is the type of statistic displayed Contained in the third column from the left the Stat Type is an abbreviation for the name of the performance measure whose parameters follow to the right See Statistic Types beginning on page 507 for a complete description of the types of statistics Replication This number is the replication that the statistic was collected from Any number or greater refers to a specific replication SIMPROCESS User s Manual 505 Appendix G Simulation Results File If the replication number is 0 the statistics are sum of all replications An 1 means that this statistic is the average of all replications Minimum This is the smallest value that has been recorded for this statistic Maximum This is the largest value that has been recorded for this statistic Sum It is the total of all observed values for the statistic i e X if this is observation based For time weighted it is the total of each observed value multiplied by the time that this value has persisted in i e X AT Sum of Squares It is the summation of the square of each observed values i e EXD if this is observation based For time weighted it is the summation of th
134. BSTR position1 position2 INTE GER String STRING STRING Returns the substring of String from position to position2 in clusive SystemTime None Returns the current system time in milliseconds TAN X REAL Returns the TANgent of X TRUNC number REAL Returns the integer part of the number UpdateDashboardLa bel Dashboard Name STRING Host or IP Address STRING Port INTEGER TextLabel Name STRING Value INTEGER REAL STRING or BOOLEAN Update the specified TextLabel with the given value UpdateDynamicLa bel MasterEditor Label Name STRING Label ID INTEGER Font Color STRING Value Same as Label s Mode Update the specified dynamic la bel with the given value WriteToDatabase WriteToFile Database Connection OB JECT SQL Statement STRING File Stream OBJECT list of variables Used to modify tables of the data base specified by the connection The SQL Statement should be of type INSERT DELETE or UP DATE Write the values of the listed vari ables to the output file specified by the File Stream SIMPROCESS User s Manual 478 SIMPROCESS System Methods SIMPROCESS System Methods Method Name Arguments Return Description WriteToSpreadsheet File Stream OBJECT NONE Writes the value of Variable to Sheet Name STRING the specified sheet row and col Row INTEGER umn of the output spreadsheet Column INTE
135. Background Text or Connector is identified by an icon to the left of the name Process Activity or Entity Type items display a scaled down version of their assigned icons Resource Global Attribute Background Text or Connector display an icon based on the legend to the right of the list The example below shows a search on the CallCenter spm demonstration model The search was a case sensitive search for any names containing Type Four background text items four activities three entity types one global entity attribute and three connectors were found SIMPROCESS User s Manual 29 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus Moder searen x Search Items r Search Criteria gt r Search Results Close ss or Activity T Type c C Equals T Twe B Ee Resource Help F Entity Type T Type A el Edit J3 Resource Downtime F Resource cs T Call Type Go To Starts With EE check Type Solio F Resource Downtime fl Type A Get Tech Pei Entity Attribute F Global Attribute C Ends with Ei Type B Get Tech ea 5 5 tee on El type C GetTech E Entity Type Attribute jackground Tex z TypeA It SPA activity Attribute F Connector Contains TypeB Typec 2a p IV Any fre 23 TechType Resource Attribute a typec Call FE Model Attribute LL TypeB Calls I Ignore Case TypeA Calls T Background Text ma L Connector Selecting an item will cause the Edit button to activate The properties of the item can be edited by
136. CESS model The entities only appear on the layout while the simulation is running The layout can be made to resemble the physical layout of a system or it can be closer in appearance to a flow diagram Model is a representation of the system being studied It is not intended to be an exact duplicate of the system but rather a simplified version that captures the relevant features Pads are small triangular graphic objects located along the border of an Activity or Process Pads are used for connecting connectors to the inputs and outputs of the Activity Process Entities enter and exit Activities through input and output pads Alternative Process Sub Process Alternative Processes define alternative behaviors or flows of a SIMPROCESS User s Manual 18 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus Process Multiple alternatives can be associated with a Process but only one can be active at a time Resources are the agents required to perform an Activity People computers and trucks are all examples of Resources Resources may be consumable e g oil or paper or reusable e g trucks Simulation is defined as the reproduction of the dynamic and random behavior of a business Process with the goal of quantifying some key characteristics of the business Process Templates of Activities Processes and Resources can be stored in a library for reuse SIMPROCESS Menus File Menu New Ctrl N Open Ctrl O Close Properties Save
137. CESS will start collecting statistics after the Warmup Length has expired for each replication Warmup Length If a Warmup Length is entered SIMPROCESS will start the collection of statistics for the model run after the end of the Warmup Length This gathers information on your system after it has reached Steady State Warmup Time Unit The Warmup Time Unit specifies the time unit for the Warmup Length It defaults to Hours Simulation Time Unit The Simulation Time Unit specifies the time unit for the simulation clock It defaults to Hours SIMPROCESS User s Manual 90 Run Settings Reset System Resets the system to the initial conditions before each replication Verify Model on Run Turns the automatic model verification on or off at the beginning of a simulation The verification process checks to make sure all pads are connected Number of Replications When the model contains randomness represented by statistical distributions the model should be runfor multiple replications This averages theresults and gives amore accurate picture of mostlikely outcome of the scenario being modeled Reports are gathered for each replication and the Total and Average of all runs Reset Random Number Streams This option resets the Random Number Stream before starting each new replication Typically this should not be selected In general terms the reason for running the model for multiple replications is to test
138. Collect Activity Statistics on the Define Global Statistics Collection dialog is selected The global Collect Activity Statistics should not be selected and the local Collect Activity Statistics on the Activity properties dialog should be selected if only statistics for selected Activities are desired Similarly Cycle Time by State by Entity and Entity Count by State by Entity are selected globally from the Define Global Statistics Collection dialog by choosing Collect Activity by Entity Statistics or locally by choosing Collect Activity by Entity Statistics on the appropriate Activity WARNING Collect Activity Statistics and Collect Activity by Entity Statistics should NOT be selected from the Global Statistics Collection dialog for large models This could cause memory problems and would lead to much unneeded information Itis recommended that Activity statistics always be selected at the appropriate Activity SIMPROCESS User s Manual 172 Custom Statistics Delay Properties Event Logs Text Block Documentation Expressions L General Resources Attributes Cancel Name Delay1 v Show Name Fi Use Text Block Help Icon 4t Delay v at Beatle New Entity Icon Set Default New Resource Global Attributes y Entity Duration Entity Type Value None Resource Units Hours Model Collect Activity Statistics Collect Activity by Entity Statistics Commen
139. Connectors or Pads have the same name as another Connector or Activity Process Pads cannot have duplicate names on the same Activity or Process but they can have duplicate names across Activities Processes A Pad cannot have the same name as an Activity or Connector Finally make sure everything Activity Process Connector or Pad has a name Version 2 2 2 and earlier will allow you to have Connectors without names Noticeintheexample below there are duplicate Connector names One set of these names will need to be changed for the model to import correctly A simple solution would be to add a 1 to each Connector name on the right Note that once the model has been imported the names can be changed back to the original Connection Req Transport Ack The next example shows a Process with a Pad that has the same name The Process Send Queue has a Pad named Send Queue This will cause errors during import SIMPROCESS User s Manual 402 Appendix A Importing Version 2 2 1 Models Batching ending Queue Send Queue Trigger Send Queue Special Characters Names of Activities Processes Connectors or Pads cannot have single quotes These characters will causes errors in the XML parser For instance the name Can t Process will cause errors Other characters to avoid are lt gt and In general spaces are not a problem However extra spaces will be ignored Therefore Process_I one space between Process and 1 is
140. Ctrl 5 Save As Import gt Export gt Print Exit New creates a new model file Open loads a previously saved model Close closes the active model Properties opens a dialog that tracks the edit history of a model Save saves the model NOTE It is a good idea to save a model any time you make changes to it and to save a model under a different name any time you extensively change a model SIMPROCESS saves your models with the extension spm and at the same time also saves a backup with the extension bck To save anew model or to save an existing model under anew name use File Save As For information on automatic saving see Other Preferences on page 26 Save As is used to save a model for the first time or to save a model with a new name SIMPROCESS User s Manual 19 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus Import Version 2 2 1 Model lets you import a SIMPROCESS version 2 2 1 or 2 2 2 model Due to changes in the graphical coordinate system from earlier versions of SIMPROCESS to the current version some cleanup may be required See Importing Version 2 2 1 Models beginning on page 400 for more information Background imports a Graphics Interchange Format GIF Joint Photographic Experts Group JPEG or JPG or Portable Network Graphics PNG file for use as a background image Export Graphics Image File creates a JPEG image of the current layout Simulation Results exports the
141. E ORDERS PROCESS ORDERS DISTRIBUTE ORDERS Appliance orders are received from customers This is the Generate Activity Each appliance order is an Entity The orders are processed and eventually make their way to a distribution center in the form of appliances This takes place within a subprocess The details are not important for this example Appliances are shipped to customers from the distribution center A Batch Activity is used to ship appliances as a group Shipments are released when the total weight of all appliances awaiting delivery reaches 5000 pounds In order to accomplish the objective of releasing the batch when a certain weight is accumulated do the following 1 Define Attributes to represent the weight Attribute of Entities define global Entity Attribute applianceWeight Assign values to the weight Attributes Accumulate and track the weight of Entities received at the Batch Activity define local Attribute at Batch Activity named batchWeight Trigger the release of Entities if a specified weight is reached and prevent the release of Entities otherwise SIMPROCESS User s Manual 242 Example Batching Entities Based on Weight Build Process Flow Open a new model and place a Generate Activity Process Batch Activity and Dispose activity on the layout Connect the Activities Descend into the Process and connect the incoming Input Pad to the outgoing Output Pad The details of the Process are
142. EGER STRING etc variables to Object type variables Likewise it precludes assigning object references to basic types The following lines in the same script above would produce errors and the simulation would terminate myobj hello dolly SIMPROCESS User s Manual 251 Example Batching Entities Based on Weight produces an error because myobj is of type ANYOBJ and hello dolly is of type String Self Attributel Entity produces an error because Attributel is of type String and Entity is of type object Note as seen in the examples above that type checking is not done between object type variables For example if an Entity object is assigned to a variable defined as an object an Activity or Resource object can be assigned to that same variable without causing any errors However the Expression may not work properly if the variable should contain an Entity object reference and another object type has been assigned to it There are a few special rules on object references Self and Model object references can only be used as the first reference in an Expression statement Something like myobj Self Activity Self results in an error since Self can only appear as the first object reference qualifier for the statement SIMPROCESS User s Manual 252 Getting and Freeing Resources Using Expressions Getting and Freeing Resources Using Expressions There are two system methods for getting
143. ENDIX C SIMPROCESS File Structure ccccccccccsscssssssssssssssscccccecsscseess 420 APPENDIX D Statistical Distributions sa scscsssucivvccedseetas Avie sadcedcsvsavsivnastasneeinionds 425 Uniform Distribution cccccccsssssscccssssscccsssssessssssssscsssscees 427 Normal Distribution iincssssissccasesoscecssooscsoessicvetaccsseesusdivendedsseceosss 428 Triangular Distribution cccssccsssscssssccsssccssssscssssscsssssees 429 Exponential Distribution soseosssssocesssoosssoossssosecessscsssssosesesoo 430 Gamma Distribution e ssesesseseessesecesssoceessoceessoceessssecsesseceesseces 431 Beta DIStriDuUtlOnis cccccsiesesscceisscssencssescesdecesisvsnvadetedeocsssseseareccsese 432 Erlang Distribution eessesssessocesooessscsssccssocesocesoosesocsssecssocssoose 433 Weibull Distribution cssccccsssssssssssssssscsssssscssssscccssssscees 434 Lognormal Distribution ccsscccsssscssssccssssscssssscsssssssssees 435 Poisson DistributioNn cccsssssscssssscsccsssssscsssscccsssssssssscssssees 436 Hyper Exponential Distribution scccssssssccssscssecssseees 437 Uniform Integer Distribution ccsssccssssccsssccsescessssees 438 Geometric Distribution ccsssscccsssssssccssssssscsssssccsssssscees 439 Pareto DiStriPUllOM disscsvesdecceccsssssarsccdsceccessdsvesdsecdooessssdevetsdssoseess 440 Binomial Distribution sscccccssssssscs
144. ESS User s Manual 217 User Defined Attributes Model Parameter when checked means that every time the model is run a dialog will open allowing new initial values to be entered for the Attribute Only global user defined Attributes can be set as Model Parameters If a Comment is entered for the Attribute this will appear in the Description field of the Model Parameters dialog when the Attribute is selected Model Parameters can be changed during a simulation run by selecting Change Model Parameters from the Simulate menu Note that changing the value of Model Parameters during a simulation run may or may not affect the simulation For instance if the Model Parameter is used to set the number of units of a Resource changing the value of the Model Parameter will have no affect on the simulation since the units of a Resource are set at the beginning of asimulation run However changes to Model Parameters used to control entity flow or used for time durations will affect the simulation If the Model Parameter is an Entity instance attribute only Entities created after the change will reflect the change There is another option that does not appear on the properties dialog for global Entity Attributes Do Not Reset Before Each Replication is a property of global Entity Type Resource Activity and Model Attributes If Reset System is selected on the Run Settings page 90 all Attributes other than Entity Attributes are reset to their in
145. GER file specified by the File Stream Variable STRING REAL INTEGER or BOOLEAN a System methods names must be input as shown They are case sensitive b This argument i e MasterEditor must be the first argument inside the parentheses of this method It is required by the method and must be input as shown It is case sensitive c Since this method does not require any argument do not include empty parentheses when using this method SIMPROCESS User s Manual 479 System Method Examples System Method Examples Method Alert and Beep For example to display a message and sound alarm when an Entity enters an Activity put the following lines in the Activity s Accept Entity event Beep MasterEditor Alert MasterEditor Press OK to continue Method Confirm DrawRealSample MINOF MAXOF and REALTOSTR This example demonstrates the syntax and usage of the listed methods It draws a number from a Uniform distribution whose minimum and maximum parameters are results from an Exponential distribution with a mean of 30 The result is displayed in a message box with OK and Cancel buttons Pressing OK will continue this process again while Cancel will end the process fContinue BOOLEAN valuel value2 maxval minval REAL fContinue TRUE WHILE fContinue valuel DrawRealSample Exp 30 0 value2 DrawRealSample Exp 30 0 maxval MAXOF valuel value2 min
146. GER values can be returned Also the value received by the caller is always a REAL even if an INTEGER value followed the RETURN The Name entered for the User defined Function will appear in every combo box of every Activity in the model where a statistical distribution can be entered Also User defined Functions can be used in Expressions by using the Function system method See SIMPROCESS System Methods on page 465 The text of a function can be stored in an external file See Expression Editor beginning on page 231 for a discussion of that option SIMPROCESS User s Manual 257 Dynamic Labels Dynamic Labels There are two types of background text in SIMPROCESS static text and dynamic labels Static text is used for annotating the model layout and does not change during simulation Dynamic labels as their name implies are updated during simulation and are used to display information about changing properties of model elements One way to update dynamic labels is through an UpdateDynamicLabe1 method in the Expression builder See Background Text on page 141 for a discussion of the other way to update dynamic labels x Static Label fe OK Dynamic Label Properties Cancel Name Jnumwaiting Id bo Set Value Help Mode nteger Width fho Entity Value a Precision 3 Resource Activity Time Stamp Model Attributes Font Attributes Font Name SansSerif x Size hi 2 x
147. HILE loop in the Start Simulation example was not performed SQLQuery STRING IF GetNext Times Entity Delaytime GetResult Times CallTime ELSE will read again to start over if no more times are found SQLQuery SELECT CallTime WrapUpTime FROM Times Table WHERE Month 12 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 265 Interfacing With A Database ReadFromDatabase Model DatabaseConn Times SQLQuery IF GetNext Times Entity Delaytime GetResult Times CallTime END IF END IF Release Entity Example This example shows writing to a database The processing time of the Entity for the Process is placed in the database in a table named ProcessTimes The simulation time the Entity entered the Process was stored in an Entity instance Attribute called StartTime SQLString STRING time REAL time SimTime Entity StartTime SQLString INSERT Into ProcessTimes ProcessTime VALUES REALTOSTR time WriteToDatabase Model DatabaseConn SQLString SIMPROCESS User s Manual 266 Accessing Statistics During Simulation Accessing Statistics During Simulation There are times when it is useful to obtain the value of statistics during a simulation For example the value of certain statistics can be used to alter simulation flow values can be placed into a user defined database or statistical values can be used in optimization Any statistic collected during the s
148. IMPROCESS User s Manual Entity Control Activities same model Local or to other models Remote with theTransfer Activity NOTE Although the Remote capability is discussed this capability has not yet been implemented The Transfer Type for a Transfer activity can be Send or Receive A sender routes entities to a receiver Thus Transfer Activities should be used in pairs Every sender should have an associated receiver A sender can only connect with one receiver but areceiver can have multiple senders connected to it Each Transfer Type designates a Connection Type of Local or Remote Local means the entity transfer will occur within the same model A Send Transfer Activity that is designated Local can only connect witha Receive Transfer Activity in the same model that has also been designated Local Remote means the entity transfer will occur between models A Send Transfer Activity designated Remote can only connect with a Receive Transfer Activity in a different model that is also designated Remote When the activity is placed on the layout it does not have an input pad or output pad Selecting Send causes an input pad to be added to the activity Selecting Receive causes an output pad to be added to the activity Once the combination of Send or Receive and Local or Remote has been set it cannot be changed The activity must be deleted and recreated if either option needs changing The default combination for a new Transfer Activi
149. Join Activity SIMPROCESS releases the original Entity through the Join Pad By default All Family Members Required is not selected When the original Entity enters a Dispose Activity or is otherwise destroyed before it reaches a Join SIMPROCESS releases one of the child Entities at the Join Activity Which child Entity is released cannot be specified SIMPROCESS selects it Note that if any of the child Entities are disposed before they reach their Join Activity the rest of the family still reunites at the Join if the rest of the family is already at the Join Activity at the moment the child Entity is destroyed SIMPROCESS processes and releases the original SIMPROCESS User s Manual 124 Entity Control Activities If All Family Members Required is selected then no Join will occur until all family members children and parent arrive at the Join Activity Thus if any members of the family are disposed before the Join then the remaining family members will remain queued in the Join Activity SIMPROCESS User s Manual 125 CHAPTER 5 Resource Modeling Constructs A Resource is an agent that is required to perform the tasks associated with an activity People equipment vehicles money and space can be modeled as Resources The limited availability of Resources is an important constraining factor in business processes A bank customer requires the help of a loan officer in order to submit a loan application e Ona
150. MPROCESS Activities An Activity is a basic step ina model where an operation is performed onan entity Examples of Activities are Generate Delay and Dispose An Activity may or may not involve passage of time or requirements Attributes are system and user defined variables of model elements whose value can change during the course of a simulation run Attributes may be used to alter the behavior of a Process by changing their value during a simulation They can also be used to communicate information such as system time between two Processes in a model or store data collected during a simulation run Connectors link Activities and Processes together and are paths used by entities to flow through the model Cycle time An Entity s cycle time is the sum of the Processing times and delays it encounters as it is processed in the model Entities represents people goods or information Most are produced as aresult ofa Process or Activity Entities are generally created at the Generate Activity although other Activities e g Batch Assemble may produce entity instances as well Entities must enter a Dispose Activity to ensure statistics collection Hierarchical Processes The concept of a Process provides hierarchical modeling capabilities A Process is a collection of Activities and sub Processes organized as a model network Layout contains graphical representations of the Activities Processes and Connectors that make up a SIMPRO
151. More Complex Generate Activity day week month etc Note that the database can also be read directly by SIMPROCESS See Interfacing With A Database on page 260 Eachrecord in an event file defines one entity generation event To learn how to define entity generation events see Appendix G External Event Files on page 498 Use the External File schedule to identify an event input file to SIMPROCESS File Schedule for Generate1 xj Schedule fFile2 OK Event File Browse Cancel Read Event File Hee Entities in File StarvEnd Generate Entities Selected in the list C Defined in the model I Save events in model Comment To identify the event file click on the Browse button to the right of the Event File box Use the resulting dialog to find and select the file The Read Event File button causes SIMPROCESS to read the event file checking for syntax errors and building a list of the entity types and attributes referred to in the file The Read Event File button must be clicked to complete the definition of the event file Identifying Entity Types to be Generated An event file can contain records referring to many different entity types An event record can even refer to a type of entity that has not yet been defined in the model and to entity instance attributes that have not been defined in the model Which entity types SIMPROCESS should generate during simulation can be specified precisely Selec
152. No Event schedule 284 o activity objects adding to draw space 57 58 deleting 58 removing from draw space 58 selecting several 58 OptQuest for SIMPROCESS 349 379 Constraints 356 Decision Variables 355 Defining An Optimization 354 Objective 354 Preparing for Optimization 352 Process Alternatives 362 Run Options 362 Running an Optimization 364 Tips and Suggestions 371 Output Entity Assemble activity 98 P pads Assemble and Release Assemble Activity 96 connecting levels in model hierarchy 75 defined 55 distributing 40 Hide All Names 42 Hold and Trigger pads Gate Activity 101 input pads 104 number of in Synchronize activity 104 Show All Names 42 Show Local Names 42 Palette bar contents 57 using 57 58 parent entities 98 99 parent entity 99 103 PDF manuals 52 periodic schedule 277 png 146 Print Layout 20 Model 20 Model Documentation 20 Process Documentation 20 priority of transformed entity 109 priority of entities 71 108 branching on 111 probability branching on 111 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 528 Index Probability distributions 316 Process Modeling 13 processes and model hierarchy 53 54 creating from menu 42 defining 73 definition of 18 53 sub processes 74 76 activating 75 active 74 75 alternatives 74 copying 75 deleting 75 modifying 75 Queue Gate activity 102 hold for condition 96 wait for resource 55 96 R random distributions specifying 64 65 random number stream
153. OCESS as well as their required parameters Most of the parameters for continuous distributions can be classified on the basis of their physical or geometric interpretation as being one of three basic types location scale or shape parameters The following discussion is taken from the book Simulation Modeling and Analysis Third Edition by Law and Kelton 2000 A location parameter specifies an abscissa x axis location point of a distribution s range of values usually is the midpoint e g the mean of a normal distribution or lower endpoint e g location for a Pearson type V distribution of the distribution s range As changes the associated distribution merely shifts left or right without otherwise changing Also if the distribution of the random variable X has a location parameter of 0 then the distribution of the random variable Y X I has a location parameter of A scale parameter b determines the scale or unit of measurement of the values in the range of the distribution The standard deviation is a scale parameter for the normal distribution A change in b compresses or expands the associated distribution without altering its basic form Also if the random variable X has a scale parameter of 1 the distribution of the random variable Y bX has a scale parameter of b A shape parameter a determines distinct from location and scale the basic form or shape of a distribution with the general family of distrib
154. OK button is clicked x OK Selected Rose Model File l Browse Cancel Help Details x Use Case Diagram Selected Fully Qualified Name Once a Rose model is connected to the SIMPROCESS model the Details button will connect SIMPROCESS to a licensed copy of Rational Rose using the Rational Rose Automation capability If a successful connection and load of the Rose model is completed this occurs in the background a window like the one shown below is presented listing all the Rose views and subordinate packages that contain Use Case Diagrams Note that ifa package or view does not contain any Use Case Diagrams it is not included in the window since the SIMPROCESS connection is to Use Case Diagrams only Utilizing this window a Use Case Diagram can be navigated to and selected to associate with the SIMPROCESS activity node Note that the structure in the dialog is a simple Tree structure that works like other graphical file directory trees fuse Case List E x TH Rose Views B S Use Case View a m OK Cancel Help lt Bysrowirte nose A single Use Case Diagram can be selected by clicking on it and then clicking the OK button This SIMPROCESS User s Manual 517 Appendix I Exporting to UML action will assign that Use Case Diagram to the SIMPROCESS activity node Optionally the Show Hide Rose button can be selected to bring the Rose tool and model up on the screen so that it is available
155. Overview of OptQuest for SIMPROCESS Overview of OptQuest for SIMPROCESS Since OptQuest is an optimization tool it is attempting to minimize or maximize the value of a performance measure based on limits constraints upper bounds and lower bounds OptQuest automatically runs SIMPROCESS models varying the values for the model parameters searching for optimum results within the specified limits When the optimization runs OptQuest feeds a potential solution into SIMPROCESS model by setting the decision variable model parameter values SIMPROCESS runs one simulation which may include multiple replications to evaluate the solution OptQuest takes the resulting response values from SIMPROCESS OptQuest analyzes the results of the simulation and uses its intelligent search procedures to gen erate a new potential solution which it then sends to SIMPROCESS OptQuest repeats this process Its ultimate goal is to find the solution that optimizes maximizes or minimizes the value of the model s objective Elements of an OptQuest Optimization Optimizations consist of an objective minimize or maximize decision variables and constraints constraints are optional Objective An expression that represents the model s objective such as minimizing queues or maximizing profits Decision Variables Variables that can be meaningfully manipulated to affect the performance of a simulated system The model parameters in SIMPROCESS a
156. PROCESS for the business modeling it speaks their language SIMPROCESS focuses on the business concerns and not all the system modeling notations and methods which often confuses functional people The dynamic modeling capabilities for business metrics are non existent in UML modeling tools This is appropriate since UML tools are system analysis design and development tools not process and workflow modeling tools There is a clear gap between business analysis and systems analysis SIMPROCESS focuses on the business analysis and UML tools focus on the systems analysis Clearly both are needed from business requirements to systems requirements to system design to system development They work hand in hand and not in opposition to each other This gap in business analysis and systems analysis is the basis for the SIMPROCESS to UML interfaces These interfaces use the complementary strengths of both UML and SIMPROCESS to provide customers a complete toolset for business and systems modeling SIMPROCESS has two basic interfaces to UML One is the ability to export a SIMPROCESS model to a UML Activity Diagram The export to Activity Diagrams is based on the standard UML XMI specification and provides a transfer of the SIMPROCESS activities and connections to UML activities and transitions In addition SIMPROCESS Entities and Resources are exported as UML Classes with attributes included however the classes are not accompanied by a UML Class Diagram
157. PROCESS invokes a cycle entity generation may not occur For example assume a cyclical schedule with a Generation Start date of January 1 2004 and a Generation End date of March 31 2004 The schedule contains the following Schedule of Events cycles e A periodic cycle event beginning on January 1 with a duration of 48 hours e A calendar cycle which is triggered monthly on the 2nd of the month The simulation begins at midnight January 1 The periodic cycle starts right away and lasts for 48 hours At this point it is midnight January 34 and the calendar cycle is implemented What happens during this period No Entities are generated by the calendrical event for January Here is why SIMPROCESS User s Manual 283 Defining a More Complex Generate Activity 1 OnJanuary 3 of simulation time SIMPROCESS acts on the calendrical cycle It checks the Date and Time value which is set to the 2 of the month at midni ght and compares it to the current date SIMPROCESS determines that the trigger date has already passed and bypasses entity generation The next possible trigger point is on February gd 2 The calendar cycle continues until the end of the simulation or until the end of the active period for the Cyclical schedule Note that the Calendar event maintains control of the Cyclical schedule since there is no duration for the Calendar event Defining a Single Event Cycle A Single Event cycle describes a one time
158. Pads e Connections e Toolbars Processes Activities Show Name specifies to show the name on the layout by default for newly created Activities Confirm Delete causes a confirmation dialog to appear when you delete an Activity or a Process Auto Connect Activities causes new activities placed on the layout to automatically connect if possible with any previously selected activities The type of connector to use Bent or Straight is set on the Connections tab This option can also be turned on off on the pop up menu Activity Width Height sets the default width and height of new Activities Process Width Height sets the default width and height of new Processes Text Block Show Text Block displays the text blocks for the Activities on the layout The Font Attributes set the default Font Name Size Color Bold and Italic SIMPROCESS User s Manual 25 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus Text Label The Text Label preferences are for text labels that are created from the Text Block of a Process See Labeling with Text Blocks beginning on page 60 for information on how to use these Horizontal Text Label sets whether the label should be horizontal selected or vertical not selected on the layout The Font Attributes set the default Font Name Size Color Bold and Italic Background Text The Font Attributes set the default Font Name Size Color Bold and Italic Pads Show Name shows the pad names on the lay
159. Plots If selected real time plots display statistics while the simulation is running This may slow the simulation but real time plots give a running view of the performance metrics during the simulation If multiple real time plots are selected they will be stacked on top of each other Real time plots can be minimized moved resized or closed while the simulation is running Real time plots that have been closed can be displayed again See Displaying Real Time Plots on page 179 There are two types of real time plots traces and histograms Traces display the instantaneous value of a particular statistic along with a running mean Histograms display the number of occurrences of values of a statistic These are grouped into value ranges called bins The bin size is set automatically by SIMPROCESS Traces and histograms for the same statistic do not have to be displayed together Individual charts may be selected Real time plots are selected under the Report menu item Define Real Time Plots Entities Plots may be customized and hidden See Real Time Plots on page 176 Cycle Times Trace and Cycle Times Histogram These reports show the individual cycle time measurements for each Entity ofa given type Charts are generated for each Entity type that is selected The charts are updated as each Entity of the given type completes its cycle time This occurs when the Entity is transformed or disposed in the model The observation points on t
160. Process At A Select Call Type Expand All EMESS Process Ai Collapse All LA service Proces p iA Log Service Call aE Process3 Process itt Has Expressions Find ActivityProcess named Find Activity As an example all the plots chosen to be hidden in the Customer Service model are shown below This list was displayed after the model was run using the Display Real Time Plots button on the tool bar SIMPROCESS User s Manual 19 Custom Plots Display Real Time Plots bx Sales Calls Entities In System Service Calls Entities In System Sales Time vs Service Time Sales Rep Units Busy Service Process Cycle Times Trace Sales Process Cycle Times Trace Service Process Entity Count Histogram Sales Process Entity Count Histogram Help Select All Deselect All lit Control click to select or deselect multiple reports By selecting the Sales Process this list can be restricted to the plots in the Sales Process group isplay Real Time Plots Exi Sales Calls Entities In System Sales Process Entity Count Histogram Sales Process Cycle Times Trace OK Help Select All Deselect All Control click to select or deselect multiple reports Sales Process Service Process The list includes one custom plot Sales Calls Entities In System and two Activity plots from Define Real Time Plots on the Report m
161. Processing J Batch I Split I Resume Processing J Unbatch I Transform Debug Trace Name is the name of the trace that will appear in the list of traces Debug Trace File is the name of the debug trace file to be created If no path is included the file will be created in the directory of the model Select the Entities to be included in the trace Entity types to be included should be moved SIMPROCESS User s Manual 92 Run Settings from the list of entities on the left to the list of entities on the right The checkboxes at the bottom are the entity actions that can be included in the trace Note that the Clone Assemble Split and Transform actions apply to the entity that initiates the action not the entity or entities that result from the action Each debug trace file is a tab delimited file The replication is added to the file Replication 1 Replication 2 etc and then a header line consisting of Action Activity Entity SequenceNum and SimTime Each action added to the file consists of the action name Initialize Accept etc the name of the activity the name of the entity the sequence number of the entity and the simulation time SIMPROCESS User s Manual 93 CHAPTER 4 Activity Modeling Constructs The SIMPROCESS Activities that were not covered in Chapter 2 SIMPROCESS Basics beginning on page 53 can be divided into two categories Entity Related and Resource Related Entity Related These
162. ROCESS User s Manual 466 SIMPROCESS System Methods SIMPROCESS System Methods Method Name Arguments Return Description EXP X REAL REAL Returns e raised to the power of X ExternalCall Class Name STRING BOOL Executes a method of an external Method Name STRING EAN Java class Assumes the class is in Method Parameters as re REAL the ext directory or in a properly quired by external method INTE constructed jar file in the jre INTEGER REAL STRING GER or 1ib ext directory Errors in the BOOLEAN STRING calls will result in an aborted sim ulation Note To use this call you must have purchased the External Ap plication Interface plug in license from CACI FireTrigger Activity Name STRING NONE Fires the trigger of the specified Gate or Assemble Activity FLOAT Number INTEGER REAL Converts the argument to REAL FLOOR X REAL INTE Returns the largest integer not GER greater than X FreeResource Resource Name STRING NONE Creates a free Resource request Tag Optional STRING Consume Optional BOOL EAN for an Activity Function Function Name STRING REAL Returns the value of a User defined Function SIMPROCESS User s Manual 467 SIMPROCESS System Methods SIMPROCESS System Methods Method Name Arguments Return Description GenerateEntity Generate Name STRING NONE Generates Entities from the spec Entity Name Optional ified Generate Activ
163. Rep Software Sales Rep z The Downtime s Schedules must be defined and the Resources can be selected that will use this Downtime Global Resource Downtime properties include a list of the Resources defined in the model Apply the global Resource Downtime to Resources by selecting the appropriate Resources in the list Control click to select multiple Resources or click Select All to select all the Resources Resource Downtime Properties xj Name sales Downtime OK Cancel rmiddiyyy hh mm ss msec usec nsec Help Start ji g a E New Resource lt Add Periodic x Edit Remove Select All Deselect All SIMPROCESS User s Manual 296 Resource Downtime Selecting the New Resource button displays the dialog that manages the Resources of the model Type Resource Service Rep Software Sales Rep Edit Copy Remove Undo Add Template fe AEE Note that when a Resource is edited from the Resource Downtime Properties dialog the Global Downtimes button on the Downtime tab is disabled This is because the global Resource Downtime list is already open Note that the Global Downtimes button will also be disabled when defining a Resource template Resource Properties xj General Downtime Attributes Expressions mmddyy hh mm ss msec usec nsec Cancel SERE oo Help End 7 Document Schedules Add Periodic
164. Resource any resource M Consumable resource Trucks Diesel Fuel Stock Person A tag may be selected from the listbox or any tag may be specified which causes the free action to ignore the tag assigned at the Get Resource activity If more than one Get Resource activity was used separate free actions can be defined for each set of Resources to be freed 2 Use the Resource pull down list to specify the Resource being freed or select any Resource to free all Resources allocated for the Entity Resources are only freed if they were obtained in the activities specified in the Tag field To release more than one Resource but not all the listed Resources create a separate action for each 3 Select OK to accept the definition The action now appears in the List of Actions schedule You can add additional actions to the list by clicking on Add and defining the action To modify the definition for an action item highlight it in the listbox and click on Edit To remove the action click on Remove SIMPROCESS provides the option of whether or not to deduct the amount acquired from consumable Resources when those Resources are freed Click on the Consumable Resources will be consumed check box in order to decrement consumable Resources For example a Get Resource activity obtains 50 gallons of Diesel Fuel in anticipation of shipping merchandise to a customer Before reaching the shipping activity the Entity enters a branc
165. S sessions saved with the currentmodel layoutand always used to display it or saved and used with all layouts in a model Each time a layout is displayed its stored size will be used The session setting will be used if there is not a stored size The ratio of height to width is 0 75 This ratio is enforced whenever a change is made to the height or width If the height were changed to 712 for example the width would automatically change to 952 and the entered value of 712 would change to 714 Thus both values are updated to the next higher values that meet the 0 75 ratio Deselecting Enforce Aspect Ratio disables the enforcing of the aspect ratio Layout Size x Width 948 640 minimum OK Height 711 480 minimum Cancel IV Enforce Aspect Ratio Hip IV Default Setting Setas Default C Remove Default Setting IV Apply to Current Model Current Layout Only C All Layouts in Current Model C Clear Current Layout Setting C Clear All Layout Settings SIMPROCESS User s Manual 32 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus Width is the width of the layout in pixels 640 minimum Height is the height of the layout in pixels 480 minimum Default Setting either saves the entered width and height as the session default Setas Default and causes this size to be saved for use in future SIMPROCESS sessions or it removes the saved session setting Remove Default Setting so that future SIMPROCESS sessions will use
166. SS User s Manual 264 Interfacing With A Database Database Example The following are several examples on how to use the database System Methods They are categorized by Expression type Start Simulation Example This example assumes two real Model Attributes CallTime and WrapUpTime have been defined Each of the Model Attributes have an array size that is equal to or larger than the number of values returned by the query The values are placed in array Model Attributes because the values need to be referenced throughout the simulation Also an object Model Attribute DatabaseConn was defined for the connection Note that in the SQL query double quotes are required around the table name Times Table for MS Access Double quotes can be placed in strings by using SQLString STRING count INTEGER Model DatabaseConn OpenDatabase MyDatabase SQLString SELECT CallTime WrapUpTime FROM Times Table WHERE Month 12 ReadFromDatabase Model DatabaseConn Times SQLString count 0 WHILE GetNext Times Model CallTime count GetResult Times CallTime Model WrapUpTime count GetResult Times WrapUpTime count count 1 END WHILE End Simulation Example This example just shows closing a connection CloseDatabase Model DatabaseConn Accept Entity Example In this example an Entity enters an Activity and gets its delay time from the database This assumes the W
167. STEM SPRemote jar com caci remote SPServer use backslashes and semicolons on Windows Once the command has been executed SPServerFactory is available through the Java RMI Registry using its bound name of SPServer SIMPROCESS User s Manual 288 Defining a More Complex Generate Activity To run RMI Registry and SPServer on a host other than the host on which SIMPROCESS is running and or to specify a TCP port other than the default 1099 make the appropriate changes in the Run Settings The sample files to start RMI Registry and SPServer can be copied from SPUser SampleFiles to the appropriate system Run Settings Run Settings Cost Periods Debug Traces r Simulation Period mimiddiyyyy hh mm ss msec Start 01 01 2004 00 00 00 End 01 01 2005 00 00 00 000 gt 000 000 000 gt 000 000 a SHl Sji Warmup Every Replication Number of Replications Reset Random Number Streams Warmup Length v Reset System Warmup Time Unit Hours V Verify Model on Run Simulation Time Unit Hours RMI Host localhost RMI Port 1099 Running The Simulation With the above steps complete the simulation can be started The simulation must be started before the external application attempts to communicate with SIMPROCESS If not an error will occur and the simulation will be terminated Remote Server Error xj Q Error connecting to remote server Make sure
168. Sales Capacity Max 1 returns the maximum Resource by Activity capacity cost across replications for the cost period Week1 Sales Rep is a Resource and Sales is an Activity GetCostStatistic Week1 Sales Rep Sales Calls Capacity Min 1 returns the minimum Resource by Entity capacity cost across replications for the cost period Week Sales Rep is a Resource and Sales Calls is an Entity GetCostStatistic Week1 Sales Sales Calls Absorption SIMPROCESS User s Manual 269 Accessing Statistics During Simulation Avg 1 returnsthe Activity by Entity absorption cost for replication 1 forthe cost period Week1 Sales is an Activity and Sales Calls is an Entity Since this is the value for a replication the maximum value is returned even though Avg is the Value Type GetEntityStatistic GetEntityStatistic returns the value of a statistic for an Entity that has Collect Entity Statistics selected either globally or on the Entity type properties See Default Performance Measures on page 163 The syntax is GetEntityStatistic Entity Name Statistic Value Type Replication where Entity Name is the name of the Entity and Statistic is the statistic type desired The key words for the statistics available are found in Appendix G See Statistic Types on page 507 Value Type can be Avg StDev Min Max Count or RunLength Replication is the replicati
169. Set Default v Find Activity SIMPROCESS User s Manual 27 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus The Activity Browser can be used to search for specific Processes or Activities There are three search criteria Activity name Activity type or Activity icon Eachcan be used individually orin combination Search criteria that are combined are combined using and logic The asterisk can be used as a wildcard for name searches The asterisk can go at the beginning of the search string the end of the search string or both Wildcards cannot be used in the middle of a search string Select Ignore Case to perform case insensitive searches Selecting Find Activity finds the first Activity in the model hierarchy that matches the search criteria Subsequent clicks of Find Activity will continue the search for the next match CallCenter Close EHE TopProcesso ry EHA ain mp EHE Get Tech EHE ati Edit AMS Check Queue A Check Type GoTo A EDAG A Type B Get Tech A amp Type C GetTech Espace A Response Collapse All A Error A Generate Phone Calls Process HA Answer Questions A Reneged Calls A Activity AS Balked Calls iti A 5 Completed Calls ee EE itt Has Expressions Find ActivitwProcess V Named Fteh sts IV Ignore Case IV Of Type S GetResource x J7 with Icon f Allocicon icon Set Peat z Find Activity Model Search Model Search is a
170. Show Name Fi Use Text Block Cancel Icon FreeResource v pa Help Icon Set Default v New Entity New Resource C Release all Allocated Resources Global Attributes List of Actions Entity Add Entity Type Resource ie Model FI Collect Activity Statistics F Collect Activity by Entity Statistics Comment All Resources that have been allocated for this Entity can be freed by clicking on the Releaseall Allocated Resources box Anexplicit set of Resources to be freed can be defined by clicking on the Add button in the FreeResource Activity Properties dialog box The Add button brings up the following dialog Release Action Properties x Name Release Operation oK Free All Allocations With Cancel rap a ae and Resource fnn o e New Resource V Consumable resources will be consumed Assign a Name to the action being defined This name will be displayed in the List of Actions field of the FreeResouce Properties dialog box The Tag and Resource fields combine to define free Resource actions SIMPROCESS User s Manual 135 Explicitly Getting and Freeing Resources 1 Tag indicates the Get Resource activities whose Resources will be released The pull down list contains all the Get Resource tags in the model Release Action Properties E xj Name Free Clerks oK Free All Allocations With Cancel Tag any tag zi and Resource any resource 7 X New
171. Stamps check box described above x Copy Global Entity Instance Attributes au Cancel e Do H D omme e I Copy Creation Time M Copy Time Stamps I Copy Entity Priority SIMPROCESS User s Manual 310 Event Logs The Properties dialog of the Transform Activity has a Copy Attributes tab that works the same as the dialog from the Copy Attributes button on the Split connector When an entity carrying a Time Stamp is Batched or Assembled the output entity will not be aware of the Time Stamp The output entity must be unbatched in order to register the endpoint of the Time Stamp to do this for an Assembled entity turn on the Batch Component Entities check box on the Properties dialog of the Assemble Activity Differences Between Time Stamps and Recorder Objects Time Stamps measure time delays during a simulation How much time an entity spends at one or more Processes Activities is captured using Time Stamp keys Recorder Objects measure arrival departure rates at Processes Activities by recording how many Entities arrive depart a Process Activity over time The time between arrivals and departures can also be calculated using Recorders Recorders In addition to Time Stamps Recorders will write the arrival or departure time of an entity at a Process Activity into a file called recorder txt The file can be examined after the simulation to observe the actual times a specific Entity arrived or depar
172. Statistics 172 Resource Statisitcs 169 Simlation Results File 195 Statistical Simulation Experiment 319 Experimental Data 319 Mean Value Analysis 319 Stream 65 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 530 Index Sub Processes 74 76 definition of 18 See also processes sub processes Swimlanes 33 Synchronize Activity 104 106 System Attributes 214 T Tabular Distributions Procedures 88 Template defining 199 template for Document file 60 Templates adding 203 Defining and Editing Templates 199 editing 207 resource 204 resource downtime 206 structure 201 Terminology 18 Text Block 61 Show Text 61 Threshold Quantity of Gate activity 104 Threshold Release option of Gate activity 104 Time Stamps Assembled Entities 310 assigning 309 Batched 310 Definition of 45 309 passing to an output entity 310 Transformed Entities 310 Viewing Reports 310 Tools Menu 50 Transfer Activity 114 2 Transform Activity 108 110 Number of Entities Output 109 Output Entity Type 109 Trigger Assemble option of Assemble activity 96 98 Trigger pad of Gate activity 101 trigger point of calendar event 283 Trigger Release Quantity of Gate activity 104 Triggered Release Gate activity policy 102 104 U Unbatch Activity 100 100 101 Unbatch Nested Batches 100 Use default 277 User Defined Attributes 215 and Assign Activity 107 222 assigning values to 107 222 Branch On 111 copying in Transform activity 110 globally defining 216 220 initiali
173. The arrow to the right of the color button brings up a color chooser to select the desired color Dashboard Graphs The toolbar on the left contains the graph types that can be added to the layout The types of graphs that can be displayed on a Dashboard are e Line Graph Bar Graph Horizontal or Vertical 2D or 3D e Meter Thermometer Pie Chart 2D or 3D e Text Label Line Graph The Line Graph displays one or more X Y series where the X axis represents simulation time The Bar Graph displays one or more values The Thermometer Thermometer and Meter display one value each The Pie Chart displays two Meter or more values The Text Label can be static or it can display one value dynamically Bar Graph Pie Chart Note that the values to be displayed are not assigned while defining Dashboards The properties that can be set while defining are appearance and eg E Text Label SIMPROCESS User s Manual 381 Defining Dashboards location related properties The properties set while defining a Dashboard are considered to be the default properties of the Dashboard Most appearance properties not location can be changed when using a Dashboard with a model Adding a Graph Selecting a graph on the graph toolbar causes a new panel that represents a graph of that type to appear in the center of the layout The graph itself does not appear on the layout Once on the layout the graph panel can be moved and resized Als
174. The final steps in preparing a model for optimization apply whether or not OptQuest is intended to be used Make sure the model is complete That is all required fields in properties dialogs have been defined especially if portions of the model have come from other models and all activities and processes are connected Run the model for several replications to ensure there are no errors Determine the appropriate number of replications needed to achieve statistical significance Finally and most importantly make sure the model accurately reflects the system being modeled SIMPROCESS User s Manual 353 Optimization Setup Defining An Optimization Optimizations can only be defined for the currently active model in SIMPROCESS Thus ifthe model to optimize is not loaded load it or if already loaded make sure the model to optimize is the active model Select Tools OptQuest If OptQuest is not enabled contact the SIMPROCESS Sales Manager to purchase a license for OptQuest for SIMPROCESS This brings up the OptQuest for SIMPROCESS setup dialog xi Delete OK Select Optimization Settings z Undo Delete Cancel Objective Decision Variables Constraints Process Alternatives Run Options Help Set Objective Value Enti Set Objective Value to Optimize Entity Start Resource Maximize an ctivi Time Stamp Model Attributes C Minimize avg StDev C Min C Max If no o
175. This optimization takes from 5 to 7 hours to run possibly longer depending on system memory and processor speed SIMPROCESS User s Manual 378 CHAPTER 16 SIMPROCESS Dashboards SIMPROCESS Dashboards are collections of dynamic graphs that can be displayed locally orremotely by a Dashboard Server The graphs contained by Dashboards can be of the same type or of differing types Dashboards are defined independent of SIMPROCESS models Thus a Dashboard can be used with multiple models or multiple models may use a single Dashboard To use a Dashboard with a model the Dashboard must be Assigned to a model The Assign process links the Dashboard to the model indicates the location of the Dashboard Server for display host or IP address and port and sets the values that will be displayed on the graphs defined for that Dashboard During a simulation Dashboards can only be displayed by using a Dashboard Server A copy of the Dashboard file must be located with the Dashboard Server SIMPROCESS User s Manual 379 Defining Dashboards Defining Dashboards Dashboards are defined independent of SIMPROCESS models Thus no model needs to be open to define a Dashboard The Report menu contains a Dashboard item with a submenu that has two items Define and Assign Selecting Define brings up the SIMPROCESS Dashboard graphical user interface GUI simprocess Dashboards Dashboard1 a 10l x File Edit Layout
176. To Custom Plot The buttons located under Select Plot Values of the Custom Plot Properties dialog determine which values will be plotted in the trace and or histogram plots The buttons are Entity Resource Activity Time Stamp and Model Attributes buttons These buttons bring up the appropriate list of items along with the values that can be plotted Entity displays a list of Entities defined in the model Once an Entity has been selected the values for plotting appear The values that can be plotted are Number Created Number Disposed Number In System Number Processing Number Waiting Number On Hold Cycle Time Processing Time SIMPROCESS User s Manual 185 Custom Plots Wait Time and On Hold Time Hardware Sales Call Software Sales Call Hardware Service Call Software Service Call Number Created Number Disposed Number In System Number Processing Invoice Number Waiting Number On Hold Cycle Time Processing Time Wait Time On Hold Time Help SelectAll Add Values Control click to select or deselect multiple values Resource displays a list of Resources defined in the model Once a Resource has been selected the values available for plotting appear The values that can be plotted are Capacity Units Idle Units Busy Units Down Units Planned Down Units Unplanned Down and Units Reserved Hardware Sales Rep Software Sales Rep Service Rep Inte
177. Trace and Hold For Condition Cycle Times Histogram These charts show the time spent holding for a condition to be met Entities In Process Trace and Entities In Process Histogram These charts show the current number of Entities that are in the Process Process Cycle Times Trace and Process Cycle Times Histogram These charts show the time Entities spend processing Entity Count by State Statistics These statistics present the simulation generated Entity count statistics for selected Entity types Statistics are time weighted for Entity counts These statistics show the average number of Entities in the system broken down by three states waiting for Resource holding for condition and in process Entity Count will not be collected unless Collect Entity Statistics either global or individual is selected prior to running the simulation The results are not available until the simulation is complete Cycle Time by State Statistics Cycle Time statistics present the simulation generated cycle time statistics for selected Entity types The cycle time calculations are based on the number of Entities that were processed at the end of the simulation These statistics show the breakdown of the Cycle Time by state The three states that an Entity may be in are waiting for Resource holding for condition and in Process Cycle Time will not be collected unless Collect Entity Statistics either global or individual is selected prior to running t
178. User s Manual SIMPROCESS Release 4 Copyright 2004 CACI Products Company January 2004 All rights reserved No part of this publication may be reproduced by any means without written permission from CACI The information in document is believed to be accurate in all respects However CACI cannot assume the responsibility for any consequences resulting from the use thereof The information contained herein is subject to change Revisions to this publication or new editions of it may be issued to incorporate such change SIMPROCESS is a registered trademark of CACI Products Company Table of Contents Organization of the SIMPROCESS Documentation Set 10 SIMPROCESS Functions and Features cccssssssssccsssssssscccsssssssceees 12 CHAPTER 1 Process Modeling and Analysis with SIMPROCESG 00 13 What is SIMPROCESS siccuisscccanccsacscansasnasesdshentantetinabsnneoeertsases 15 How Do You Use SIMPROCESS ccssccsssssssssscsssccesssssees 16 SIMPROCESS Editions eessesoosseessesoesocsscescesoosscescseccoesocsseesoesoe 17 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus scccssccssssceseees 18 CHAPTER 2 SIMPROCESS Basics sesesssssssseeseseoeeseecessssssssesooeoocescessssssssseseooe 53 Using the Palette Bar to Create Activities ssesssesssecssocssoeesse 57 Ge nerat Activity sisciccsivssnivsncessciesssvnncssccpetavensbutecstevexsvactosadeesveeed 63 Delay Activity s sssissessissesss
179. User s Manual 58 Using the Palette Bar to Create Activities Resources defines the Resources required to process Entities arriving at the Activity The Entity waits in a queue until the Resource or Resources can be obtained e Duration Value is the amount of time it takes the Activity to process an Entity once the required Resources are obtained Time can be defined as a constant or as a Statistical distribution Duration Time Units specifies the units and measure for duration time in nanoseconds microseconds milliseconds seconds minutes hours days weeks months or years The following buttons are found on all Activity Properties dialogs except Background Text These buttons allow the creation of items that are then available throughout the model e New Entity creates new Entity types e New Resource creates new Resource types e Entity creates new global Entity instance attributes e Entity Type creates new global Entity Type attributes e Resource creates new global Resource attributes e Model creates new Model attributes Attributes are covered extensively in Chapter 10 Customizing a Model with Attributes and Expressions beginning on page 210 Naming Activities Use the Name field to assign a name to an Activity This name is shown below the Activity icon in the model if the Show Name checkbox is selected SIMPROCESS assigns new Activities a default name It is a good idea to change this to a nam
180. When this menu item is selected SIMPROCESS attempts to run the experiments in which the Selected field is checked Run Specific Experiment This menu item specifies one experiment to run When selected enter the experiment name in the dialog CS xi Q Enter Experiment Name Purchasing Cance If no match occurs an error message appears stating the experiment could not be found in the database Case does matter when selecting a specific experiment The case and spelling must match SIMPROCESS User s Manual 342 Running Experiments x Experiment purchasing not Found SIMPROCESS User s Manual 343 Experiment Operation Experiment Operation The Experiment Manager operates as follows when running experiments Once an experiment begins SIMPROCESS begins a sequence of steps Each step occurs if the previous completes successfully The steps to running experiments are 1 Load Experiments xml 2 Prompt to save current work if necessary 3 Enter a loop with sub loops Find Experiment Find Model Find Design Find Scenario Find Parameters Find Process Alternatives Load Model Verify Design Run Model Commit results to database End loop End loop End loop End loop 4 Display status message on success of experiments Experiment Trace During experiment execution the Experiment Manager displays a trace showing the steps that have been completed and the current step The trace
181. a m January 1 2005 2 00 p m 14 00 January 3 2005 2 00 a m January 3 2005 6 00 a m Never The specified time is earlier than the time of the previous event so the record is discarded O OT BO NS SIMPROCESS User s Manual 503 APPENDIX H Simulation Results File The Simulation Results file is generated from the File menu Select File Export Simulation Results to open the Save Statistics dialog The Simulation Results file will by defaulthavea xpt file extension and be saved to the current model directory This file is tab delimited and can be opened using a text editor or spreadsheet The file will contain the complete statistical measures corresponding to the reports selected for the current model This file give you raw statistical data that is displayed in the Standard and Custom Reports in a standard format that can be opened by many different applications SIMPROCESS User s Manual 504 Appendix G Simulation Results File Format of the Simulation Results File Each line of the exported simulation results file is a statistic recorded for objects such as Entity Types Activities or Resources Each record contains the following fields or columns Owner Type This is the type of the object that owns this statistic record The four types are e Entity representing an Entity Type e Activity representing an Activity e Resource representing a Resource e TimeStamp representing a Time Stamp e
182. a solution with a larger expected return e Jumps to the range of high quality solutions faster Below is the Performance Graph for the two hypothetical methods Method A Method B Expected Profit ar a ar 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Time Minutes The figure above shows that although both methods find solutions with a similar expected profit after 10 minutes of searching method A jumps to the range of high quality solutions faster than B For the criteria listed above method A performs better than method B OptQuest will obtain performance profiles similar to method A OptQuest s search methodology is very aggressive and attempts to immediately find high quality solutions causing large improvements with respect to the initial solution early in the search This is critical when OptQuest can perform only a limited number of simulations However several factors affect OptQuest s performance and the importance of these factors varies from one situation to another This section reviews these factors and offers tips and suggestions on how to achieve maximum performance Factors that affect search performance Any heuristic method for solving problems cannot guarantee that it will find the optimal solution It SIMPROCESS User s Manual 371 Tips and Suggestions might only find a solution that is close to the optimal solution usually referred to as the best solution this is why maximizing perfo
183. abeling 60 61 showing object name under 59 Importing Background 20 Icon 146 Version 2 2 1 Model 20 Importing graphics 146 Initializing attribute values 241 interval between entity generations 64 Interval dialog field 64 J Java RMI 288 Join Activity 118 122 125 jpeg 146 jpg 146 L Launch Database Application 325 331 Layout Menu 32 40 Align 38 Background Color 38 Bring To Front 40 Distribute 39 Distribute Pads 40 Grid Color 40 Grid Lines 40 Grid Spacing 40 Group 40 Send To Back 40 Snap To Grid 40 Swimlanes 33 Ungroup 40 Library Concepts 198 Management 199 Library Manager 199 limiting entities in Dispose activity 69 Local Attributes defining 221 527 SIMPROCESS User s Manual Index M Manage Results form 325 331 Maximum Batch Size of Batch activity 99 Maximum Entity Count Dispose parameter 69 Maximum Wait Time of Batch activity 100 Merge Activity 114 Minimum Batch Size of Batch activity 100 model adding objects to 57 58 checking for errors 80 components 53 55 hierarchical structure 53 54 55 removing objects from 58 selecting objects in 58 using Model Attributes in an expression 233 Verify Model 80 verifying 80 Model Attributes defined 215 using in an expression 233 model design 324 Model Parameters 80 218 Move command events 280 moving down a level in hierarchy 80 moving up a level in hierarchy 81 N Name dialog field 59 naming activities 59 no entities generated reasons 276
184. able The column under Parameter gives the name of the User defined Attribute The Value column shows the value the attribute will have at the start of the simulation run To change the value of a Model Parameter select it in the table The Description of the selected parameter will be displayed below the table along with its default value and the mode of its value integer real etc The next step is to enter the desired value of the Model Parameter in the Value field If Reset is pressed the selected Model Parameter will return to its default value The Reset All button under the Help button will set the value of all the Model Parameters back to their defaults Creating Model Parameters from User defined Attributes is covered in Chapter 10 Customizing a Model with Attributes and Expressions beginning on page 210 Model Parameters can be changed during a simulation run by selecting Change Model Parameters from the Simulate menu Allowable Actions During a Simulation While a simulation is running a Process can be descended into to view Entity movement within the Process hierarchy Descending into a Process is done by using Descend on the View menu clicking SIMPROCESS User s Manual 80 Running a Simulation the down arrow on the tool bar right clicking on a Process and choosing Descend or by double clicking on a Process Choose Ascend on the View menu to ascend to a higher level of the model hierarchy Click t
185. action myReall 67 myReal2 67 133 myReal3 0 345 Type Checking e The use of variables both those defined locally in the Expression and those defined as Attributes in Expressions will be checked for correct type on assignment statements For example the following code will produce a type mismatch by the Expression interpreter myReal REAL myString STRING myString Hello Dolly myReal myReal myString Object Generate Phone Calls Add expression parameters not of same type SIMPROCESS User s Manual 228 Writing Expressions System Methods System methods are commands which result in a system action or return a value from the underlying system One commonly used function is SimTime which returns a Real number containing the current simulation time For a list of System Methods available in SIMPROCESS refer to page 465 Expression Language Statements IF condition ELSIF condition ELSE condition END IF WHILE condition END WHILE FOR expression TO DOWNTO expression BY expression END FOR RETURN possible return value EXIT with WHILE or FOR loops OUTPUT SIMPROCESS Expression language syntax 1 The SIMPROCESS Expression language is case sensitive An Attribute named Applianceweight is not the same Attribute as the Attribute referred to as applianceWeight All built in language elements are in capital letters IF END WHILE etc Each Expression la
186. agLayout import java awt GridBagConstraints import javax swing JFrame public class SPPlotDemo extends JFrame Plot myPlot null boolean first true SPPlotDemo String yLabel String xLabel Instantiate the plot myPlot new Plot Set the size of the toplevel window this setSize 600 600 myPlot setSize 550 550 myPlot setButtons true SIMPROCESS User s Manual 493 System Method Examples myPlot setTitle My Plot myPlot setXLabel xLabel myPlot setYLabel yLabel myPlot setYRange 0 0 1 0 myPlot setXRange 0 0 20 0 myPlot setMarksStyle none myPlot setImpulses false 1 myPlot setConnected true 1 myPlot setBars false myPlot setSize 350 300 GridBagLayout gridbag new GridBagLayout GridBagConstraints c new GridBagConstraints getContentPane setLayout gridbag c gridx 0 c gridy 0 c gridwidth 1 gridbag setConstraints myPlot c getContentPane add myPlot show public void putTicks double time int num myPlot addPoint 1 time num first first false myPlot fillPlot SIMPROCESS User s Manual 494 System Method Examples public void clearData myPlot clear true myPlot f i1l1Plot You should reference your RMI programming documentation for details on how to compile and start the server code as well as the RMI registry on a server computer Di
187. ained in String1 it returns 0 POWER X REAL Y REAL REAL Returns X raised to the power of Y READ INTEGER REAL STRING INTE Reads a single variable into an or BOOLEAN GER identifier from a dialog prompt REAL The name of the identifier will be STRING presented in the dialog for the or BOOL user and the value entered will EAN be validated i e INTEGER type must be an integer value ReadFromDatabase Database Connection OB NONE Reads values based on the SQL JECT Statement from the database Result Set Name STRING specified by the connection The SQL Statement STRING values are placed in a Result Set with the given Result Set Name The Result Set Name should be unique for each ReadFromData base unless a Result Set is to be replaced ReadFromFile File Stream OBJECT NONE Read values for the listed vari List of variables ables from the input file associat ed with the specified File Stream SIMPROCESS User s Manual 475 SIMPROCESS System Methods SIMPROCESS System Methods Method Name Arguments Return Description ReadFromSpread File Stream OBJECT NONE Read a value from the specified sheet Sheet Name STRING sheet row and column of the in Row INTEGER Column INTEGER Variable STRING INTE GER REAL or BOOLEAN put spreadsheet file associated with the specified File Stream The value is assigned to Variable REALTOSTR number REAL STRING Converts a real number to a p
188. al Java program from an Expression via the RemoteCall statement or exter nal Java classes via the ExternalCall statement it may be necessary to add compiled Java class files to the classpath used by SIMPROCESS Typically SIMPROCESS must be able to find a class file for the Interface defining the available method s in your Java class if it s to be used via RMI and the RemoteCall statement and it must be able to locate the Stub class file to act as a local repre sentation of the actual Java object which implements the method s to be called In order to make sure that SIMPROCESS can resolve those classes when attempting to execute your RemoteCall or ExternalCall statement copy the class files into this location If your classes do not contain a package statement you can place them directly into ext If organized as a package simply cre ate the needed directory structure for the package inside ext Then start or restart SIMPRO CESS and it will include these classes in its classpath Note that SIMPROCESS will not recognize jar files placed in this directory Jar files must be placed in the jre 1lib ext directory dashboardserver Directory This directory contains the files required to run a Dashboard Server See Displaying Dashboards on page 395 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 424 APPENDIX D Statistical Distributions The following pages give a brief description of the standard statistical distributions available in SIMPR
189. al sub range Upper Critical Bound default upper bound for the Critical sub range e Critical Color default color for the Critical sub range xi x Name fThermometert Name Meter2 Cancel Cancel Title Tite Title Title Help Help Background Background I Use Layout Background Color I Use Layout Background Color Background Color White z Background Color White ka Mercury Color cu Needle Color white O Value Color Yellow O a Meter Color E saco pele Value Color Yew wy Lower Bound fo 8 Range Upper Bound hooo Lower Bound bo 8 IV Use Subranges Upper Bound hoo Normal IMV Use Subranges 0 Lower Normal Bound 0 0 r Normal M Upper Normal Bound 50 0 Lower Normal Bound foo Normal Color I Green Upper Normal Bound feo marning Normal Color E Green x Lower Warning Bound 50 0 Warning a Upper Warning Bound 85 0 Lower Warning Bound 50 0 Warning Color Yellow z Upper Warning Bound 85 0 i Warning Color Yellow Critical Lower Critical Bound 85 0 Critical Upper Critical Bound 100 0 Lower Critical Bound fas Critical Color Red Upper Critical Bound fi 00 0 Critical Color WM rea Pie Chart Properties Title and Dimension Type are additional properties for the Pie Chart These default properties can be overridden when the Dashboard is assigned to a model Title default title for the Pie Chart e Dimension Type 2 Dimen
190. alHello java In order to compile you must have a Java 2 Software Development Kit J2SDK installed In a model you can call any of the methods to test ExternalCall stringvar ExternalCall ExternalHello getHello Method ActivateGenerate ActivateGenerate starts the generation of Entities by a Generate Activity For this method to work correctly the Generate Activity must not be active This is accomplished by setting the start date Start End tab to a date that is past the end date of the simulation For instance if the simulation is scheduled to end on 1 1 2005 then the start date of the Generate Activity must be 1 1 2005 or later Note that this is the start date of the Generate Activity not the start date of a particular schedule within the Generate Activity When the appropriate conditions are met in the simulation for the Generate Activity to start issue the command along with the name of the Generate Activity It is important that the name of the Generate Activity be unique ActivateGenerate Generate2 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 497 SIMPROCESS Color Table SIMPROCESS Color Table 0 Black Default 33 SandyBrown 1 White 34 Gold 2 Red 35 Goldenrod 3 Green 36 LightGrey 4 Blue 37 MediumGoldenrod 5 Yellow 38 DarkOliveGreen 6 Cyan 39 ForestGreen 7 Magenta 40 LimeGreen 8 DarkG
191. ame EnttyNeme _ StatType Replication Table Sn Sort Ascending Ascending Ascending Show MT M Criteria Total entities generate or Even though the whole criteria cannot be seen note that the StatType field from the Statistics table is SIMPROCESS User s Manual 327 Database Queries a Entity Count Select Query restricted by Total Entities generated or Entities remaining in system or Total Entities disposed These are the statistics types that make up Entity Count Other fields could be restricted as well For instance the SystemName field from the System table could be restricted so only one model s results would be available In the example below the query to the demonstration model CallCenter is restricted by placing CallCenter in the Criteria row of the query under SystemName i SystemName DesignName ScenarioName EntityName StatType Design Scenario Entity Statistics Statistics Ascending Ascending Ascending Ascending Ascending l l CallCenter Total entities generate The queries that generate results across replications were developed using the queries that give results by replication So if the Entity Count query is restricted to CallCenter then the Entity Count Across Replications query will also be restricted to CallCenter Looking at the Design View for Entity Count Across Replications the only data source for the query is the Ent
192. ame Generate Show Name Use Text Black Help Icon pe Generate e New Entity Icon Set Default New Resource Entity BJ Global Attributes Quantity 1 0 ha Entity Entity Type FJ Collect Activity Statistics d Collect Activity by Entity Statistics Comment Click on the Entity pull down arrow to select the default type of Entity to be generated by this Generate Activity The default Entity type can be overridden in each schedule Entities may be defined using the New Entity command button on this dialog Use the Quantity field to specify the default number of Entities to be generated each time Entities SIMPROCESS User s Manual 63 Generate Activity are released A specific number or probability distribution can be entered in the Quantity field or a selection may be made from the Quantity pull down list The default quantity can be overridden in each schedule A periodic schedule is the default schedule The periodic schedule sets the interval and the time unit It will default to an interval of 1 0 and time unit of Hours These defaults can be changed by selecting the schedule Periodic1 and choosing Edit Change the name of the schedule override the default Entity type and quantity and set the interval and time unit with this method The Interval field defines the time between Entity generation events Enter a constant value or a statistical distribution Entities are generated at the end of eac
193. ame of the Dashboard s file without any path and without the spd extension although this is not recommended since it negatively impacts performance The second argument is the Host or IP Address where a Dashboard Server is expected to be receiving messages for the assigned Dashboard This value must match the one entered when the Dashboard was assigned It is important to note that SIMPROCESS compares the values and not their meanings While localhost and127 0 0 1 refer to the same system i e they have the same meaning they are not the same values to SIMPROCESS The third argument is the port on which a Dashboard Server is expected to be receiving messages for the assigned Dashboard This value must also match the one entered when the Dashboard was assigned The fourth argument is the name of a Graph on the assigned Dashboard of type TextLabel The name is anuneditable field displayed on the properties dialog for the TextLabel when assigning a Dashboard and will be unique for that Dashboard The fifth argument is the value to be displayed on the TextLabel It can be of type INTEGER REAL STRING or BOOLEAN For example the Call Center model has assigned the Call Status spd Dashboard file using the name Call Status The assigned Dashboard designated a Server Address of Localhost and port 5555 This Dashboard contains a TextLabel by the name of Text Labe14 During simulation you want to display the number of Entities generated at a Generate
194. an be defined between two stamp keys enabling the monitoring of cycle time amp counts between two Time Stamps 1 Select Time Stamps from the Define pull down menu 2 Select Add to define Time Stamp requirements 3 Define Start and Stop keys select the whether or not to Collect Statistics results available in Standard Report and select plot options Real Time Trace Plot Real Time Histogram Plot 4 The Set Plot Properties button brings up a plot properties dialog for each plot selected See Setting Plot Properties on page 178 5 Define as many Start and End keys as desired Press the Close button when finished Entry and Exit Event Logs to Processes Activities Once Time Stamps have been defined specify the Process or Activity where they will be attached to the Entity The Time Stamp can be added to the Entity upon entry into and or exit from the Process Activity Time stamps are then added to Entities that traverse this process during simulation execution To add a time stamp 1 A Time Stamp must first be defined using the procedures starting on page 309 2 Using an Activities Process Properties dialog select the Event Logs tab SIMPROCESS User s Manual 309 Event Logs 3 Using the Type combo box select Time Stamp and press the Add button The Time Stamp Properties dialog appears as shown below TimeStamp Properties Time Stamp Start Calls aa VM All Entities Cancel Select Help
195. analysis because statistical fluctuations almost always need to be taken into account Expertise in statistics or modeling is not needed to use SIMPROCESS though just having some idea of how things vary is enough If data shows it usually only takes 5 minutes for a clerk to process some paperwork but it can take as long as 15 that is the beginning of a statistical model of that clerk Exact answers are not necessary just general behavior Introducing a small amount of randomness through simulation can be all that is needed to transform a simplistic mean value analysis into a realistic model SIMPROCESS provides a visual flow through the system in addition to being able to model SIMPROCESS User s Manual processes statistical nature It is very difficult to know how people machinery deliveries and resources are going to interact in a proposed system SIMPROCESS shows how these interactions might occur while still in the planning stage Animation provides valuable insight into how things work and how they could work SIMPROCESS User s Manual 84 Random Number Generation and Standard Distributions Random Number Generation and Standard Distributions Random Number Generation SIMPROCESS contains 215 random number streams each having a different random number seed You can view the seeds available from Seeds on the Define menu bar The purpose of using different random number streams in the model is to control vari
196. ance This is an advanced topic well beyond the scope of this manual Please refer to texts on statistics and ran domness including Simulation Modeling and Analysis by Law and Kelton McGraw Hill Standard Distributions SIMPROCESS includes many standard probability distributions built in You can also create empirical distributions from your own data The following pages provide brief descriptions of each standard distribution Choosing the Right Distribution for Your Data It is not always clear which of the standard distributions should be used Fortunately simulation results are usually not highly dependent on the choice of distributions A distribution with approxi mately the right shape should be adequate Here are some guidelines which can help you choose the right distribution ExpertFit uses sophisticated statistical tests to determine the best fit distribution to a set of experi mental data Additional information on ExpertFit is covered in the ExpertFit documentation Poisson Used to model arrivals where the quantity within a time frame is known Parameter Mean Exponential Used to model the time between arrivals Parameter Mean Normal Bell shaped curve avoid when mean is near zero Also the normal distribution is not usu ally a good distribution for service times since service times are usually skewed to the right Param eters Mean Standard Deviation Lognormal Can be good distribution for data that is skewed P
197. and one local Resource Downtime Each global Resource Downtime for a particular Resource and the local Resource Downtime for the Resource operate independently Thus each can have different Start and End dates and times and each can have different Schedules Local Resource Downtime Local Resource Downtime is defined on the Downtime tab of the Resource properties dialog Downtime defined on the Downtime tab of a Resource properties dialog will only apply to the Resource currently being edited General Downtime attributes Expressions mmddyy hh mm ss msec usec nsec Schedules Add Perioaic x Edit Remove Hep Global Downtimes Downtimes The global Resource Downtimes can be accessed while defining a local Resource Downtime There is a Global Downtimes button on the Downtime tab of the Resource Properties dialog that displays a dialog that lists the global Resource Downtimes defined in the model The global Resource Downtimes that are applied to the Resource are selected and can be modified The global Resource Downtimes can be edited by selecting the Edit Downtimes button Global Downtimes Downtimes Applied i mesati fa Select All Cancel Deselect All Help Edit Downtimes x Sales Downtime Service Downtime ddi SIMPROCESS User s Manual 294 Resource Downtime Global Resource Downtime Global Resource Downtimes can be applied to any Resource in the model
198. and plus or minus three standard deviations corresponds to about a 99 7 confidence interval SIMPROCESS User s Manual 318 Why Statistical Simulation Experiments Why Statistical Simulation Experiments Mean Value Analysis Mean value analysis is a simple although often quite useful approach to modeling The basic philosophy is to model processes by their average output For example suppose there is a station that can process five parts per hour and on average four parts arrive every hour Mean value analysis shows that the station should be able to handle the expected load However in the real world there might be some hours the station may process only three parts and other hours it may process seven Likewise there may not be a perfectly steady flow of four parts into the station every hour Sometimes there may be more and sometimes less This statistical nature of the real world will lead to a diminished throughput for there will be times when the station is idle and other times when it is backed up disrupting the flow to and from it in the rest of the factory This is the limitation of mean value analysis and the reason that simulation is necessary for accurate predictions The Importance of Experimental Data It is very important to have experimental data as the basis of a model This may seem like a paradox If I am modeling something that does not exist where will I get the experimental data This is not as b
199. appliance e g cables and remote control for a television adding tothe weight of the order In that case attaching the applianceWeight Attribute to each Entity instance allows the weight of each television order to vary which cannot be done if the Attribute belongs to the Entity s type SIMPROCESS User s Manual 247 Example Batching Entities Based on Weight Using Object Attributes in Expressions The code in this example uses an Expression language construct referred to as a qualified reference For instance Entity Name refers to an object named Entity and an Attribute Name An object Attribute leads SIMPROCESS to the model element containing the Attributes of interest Unlike other Attributes the value of the object is not of interest only the values of its system or user Attributes In step 3 the type of Entity being released by the Generate Activity was identified The System Attribute Name identifies the Entity type But a Name Attribute also identifies Resources and Activities So referring to Name alone is ambiguous In fact SIMPROCESS assumes the reference is to the model element that called the Expression the RECEIVE ORDERS Activity To avoid confusion in the Expression always qualify Attributes with the object name such as Entity Name Self Name Activity Name Self myattribute etc That is where object Attributes come in They identify the model element of interest e The Entity object Attribute tel
200. arameter a determines distinct from location and scale the basic form or shape of a distribution with the general family of distributions of interest A change in a generally alters a distribution s properties e g skewness more fundamentally than a change in location or scale Some distributions e g exponential and normal do not have a shape parameter while others e g beta and Pearson type VI may have two A probability density function is a representation of a statistical distribution The probability density SIMPROCESS User s Manual 317 An Introduction to Data Analysis and Modeling function is large for likely values sampled from a distribution and is small for unlikely values The maximum value for the probability density function is equal to the mode for that distribution The area under the probability density function curve within a certain range of values gives the probability of sampling from that distribution and getting a number within that range Of course the total area under the curve must be equal to one since a number from the distribution must be less than or equal to one A confidence interval is the range of values a certain percentage of the population would be expected to fall into if the sample were drawn from a normal distribution Plus or minus one standard deviation corresponds to about a 68 confidence interval plus or minus two standard deviations corresponds to about a 95 confidence interval
201. arameters Mean Standard Devia tion SIMPROCESS User s Manual 85 Random Number Generation and Standard Distributions Triangular Useful distribution for data that has the least amount of time the most likely time and the most amount of time it takes to perform a task Parameters Minimum Mode Maximum A complete listing of the statistical distributions available in SIMPROCESS is available in Appen dix D See Statistical Distributions on page 425 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 86 User Defined Distributions User Defined Distributions There are two methods for creating User Defined Distributions listed on the Define pull down menu The first Standard customizes an existing SIMPROCESS distribution The second Tabular creates a statistical distribution from discrete data points using a table format These User Defined Distributions can be used anywhere in the model where a statistical distribution is specified User Defined Distributions Procedures 1 Using the Define Distributions pull down menu select Standard Use this dialog to Add Edit Copy or Remove User Defined Distributions found in the list box Undo retrieves a distribution that has been removed Standard Distributions x Close Edit Copy Remove Undo 2 Choosing the Add or Edit button brings up another dialog as shown below where you type in the Name and distribution Name is any unique non blank use
202. arameters to their default values In this example there are three Model attributes that can be changed for a scenario When changing selected scenarios there may be a slight lag for the Model Parameter values to update This is due to the processing required to update the values SIMPROCESS User s Manual 339 Defining Experiments xi Experiment Setup Model Setup Design Setup Scenario Setup OK 3 7 z Cancel Scenario Centralized z Delete Scenario Help Scenario Comment Centralized Function purchasing department IV Publish Model To HTML Set Directory Publish Directory oaProgram Files SIMPROCESS modelsiDemos Purchasing Undo Delete Parameter Setup Process Setup Resetall NumProdAPersonnel Reset NumProdBPersonnel 5 NumProdCPersonnel 5 Description Number of Product A Personnel Default Mode Integer NOTE If no Model Parameter information is entered for a scenario then the model will run with the last saved values for the Model Parameters If a parameter has been changed for a scenario and the next scenario uses the same model that is a new model is not loaded then the Model Parameter will have the same value as the previous scenario It will not reset to its default value Entering Process Alternative Information The Process Setup tab is used to set the active alternatives for processes that have more than one alternative The panel on the left disp
203. arges or service call charges are based on this kind of charging scheme e Cost Per Unit This cost is applied to each Entity that is Processed based only on the amount of the Resource s capacity that is used to Process the Entity The cost is not calculated based on the time that the Activity takes to complete Example Fuel may be defined as a consumable Resource and cost per unit may be 1 50 per gallon Every time a gallon of fuel is consumed it will cost 1 50 e Cost per Time Unit This cost is calculated based on the amount of Resource capacity used and the time used Example Machine rental charges or hourly salary paid to employ ees are a common example of this type of cost Time Unit Time unit that applies to the Cost per Time Unit Defaults to Hours Fixed Costs Fixed Costs are defined in the box below the Variable Costs box Enter the fixed cost amount in the Per Unit value box and select the time basis for the cost from the selection list below Machine depreciation or fixed salaries are common examples of this type of cost To specify the fully burdened cost of a set of salaried employees represented by this Resource and the cost per employee is 50 000 per year enter 50000 in the Per Unit box and select Yearly from the list below Click the down arrow tothe right of thelist to see the available items The list contains the same time intervals that are available for the Cost Period Frequency These do not have to be the sam
204. ary that has been previously saved into the current SIMPROCESS session The templates can then be used to build models All libraries that have been saved will be shown in the Library Manager A dot by the library means the library has not been loaded A folder by the library means that it has been loaded Simply select the desired library and click Load SIMPROCESS User s Manual 200 Defining and Editing Templates Ix Library Manager 9 Libraries Close 9 customer Service Help New Edit Remove Load Unload Save Import Export te eal BE rama sm meor Eer Unload removes a library from the current SIMPROCESS session Save saves a template library for future use When the Library Manager or SIMPROCESS is closed there will be a prompt to save libraries if there are libraries that have not been saved unsaved Library Changes xj 2 Save changes to Libraries No cancel Import imports a library file that was exported by another SIMPROCESS user Export exports a library file that another SIMPROCESS user can import Template Structure All elements of a Process or Activity template can be viewed from the Library Manager Process templates include all the Processes and Activities that were a part of the Process Activity templates include the Activity itself Both types of templates contain other elements that were referenced by the Process or Acti
205. ashboard is assigned to a model Line Graph Properties Title X Axis Y Axis and Use Date Axis for X Axis are additional properties for the Line Graph These default properties can be overridden when the Dashboard is assigned to a model e Title default title for the Line Graph e X Axis label for the x axis e Y Axis label for the y axis Use Date Axis for X Axis if selected the x axis displays times and dates instead of a number xi Name LineGraph1 Cancel Title Title Help X Axis Label x Axis Y Axis Label lv Axis I Use Date Axis for X Axis Background M Use Layout Background Color Background Color White x Bar Graph Properties Title X Axis Y Axis Dimension Type and Bar Orientation are additional properties for the Bar Graph These default properties can be overridden when the Dashboard is assigned to a model e Title default title for the Bar Graph e X Axis label for the x axis e Y Axis label for the y axis Dimension Type 2 Dimensional or 3 Dimensional SIMPROCESS User s Manual 384 Defining Dashboards Bar Orientation Horizontal or Vertical x Cancel Title Title Help X Axis Label x axis Y Axis Label value Background M Use Layout Background Color Background Color White v Dimension Type 2Dimensional 3 Dimensional Bar Orientation C Horizontal Vertical Meter and Thermometer Properties The Meter and Ther
206. atch Stores entities until a condi Quantity to Batch Resources tion is met then releases Min Batch Size Delay them as one while retaining Max Hold Time their individual identity Batch Entity Type Branch Routes entities to different Branch Type Resources paths in the model network Delay SIMPROCESS User s Manual 417 Appendix B SIMPROCESS Activity Summary Required Parameters Non standard Options Clone Clones entities Number of Entities Resources Delay Delay General purpose activity Delay Time Resources Dispose Disposes of entities Maximum entity Count Free Releases resources obtained Release actions Release all allocated Resource by Get Resource activities resources Gate Accumulates entities untila Threshold Release ON OFF Resources condition is mer then Threshold Release Quantity Delay releases a specified number if Threshold Release ON Batch released entities of them We Trigger Release Quantity if Trigger Release ON Generate Generates entities Entity type Start and End dates Quantity Schedule Type Interval Schedule Items Get Obtains resources to be held Resources Resource during several activities Tag attached to allocation Join Reunites entities divided ata Family Name Batch family members Split activity Resources Delay Merge Merges entities and routes them in a single stream Replenish Adds units to consumable Replenish actions Resour
207. ate automatically every time the selected value changes The five buttons to the right Entity Resource Activity Time Stamp and Model Attribute are used to set the Value for the dynamic label These buttons are active when a valid Name and Id has been entered and the Mode is not String Each button brings up a dialog that lists each modelelement of thattype Entity Resource etc onthe left Once a value is selected on the left the values available are listed on the right Only one item can be selected on each side Selecting the Entity button displays the following dialog SIMPROCESS User s Manual 142 Background Text Number Created Number Disposed Number In System Cancel Number Processing Help Service Calls xi Static Label fe OK M Dynamic Label Properties Cancel Name numwaiting Id fo rSetYaue Mode integer Width fi 0 Help Value Sales Calls Number Waiting Precision 13 Resource Clear Value Activity Time Stamp Model Attributes r Font Attributes Font Name SansSerif Size fi 2 ba Color EM Black x Bold I Italic Angle 0 0 X Comment The Value field can be changed by selecting a different value using one of the five Set Value buttons Select the Clear Value button to clear the Value field As stated earlier leaving the Value field empty means the dynamic label can only be updated using expressions Al
208. ate the goodness of fit The 2 goodness of fit test creates an empirical distribution for the data The empirical distribution used is a histogram The height of each bin of the histogram is equal to the number of points in the data set that fall between the lower and upper bounds of the bin The y statistic is computed as the sum of squared differences of the values observed for each bin of the histogram to the number of observations expected from the probability distribution over the same range as the bin Confidence Interval An interval that contains the true value of a parameter with a given probability Continuous Domain A domain whose variables can take on any value in an interval real numbers Integer domains are sometimes interpreted as continuous domains with the implicit assumption that the integers represent an underlying continuous domain Data Set A vector or equivalently an array or column of data points that are the realization of a random process Degrees of Freedom The number of independent elements in a statistical computation The degrees of freedom must be known to compute the probability of a test statistic such as the y statistic Dof Acronym for degrees of freedom Enumeration Domain A domain whose range is the set of elements in the enumeration SIMPROCESS User s Manual 453 Appendix E Statistical Tools Glossary Goodness of fit test A Statistical test used to determine the proba
209. ated e Dispose Activities show how many Entities have been disposed e All other Activities and Processes show how many entities are in that Process or Activity Show Entities turns the display of Entities on or off during the animation Showing Entities assists with visualizing the workflow Update Dynamic Labels turns the display of dynamic labels on or off during the animation Animation Speed Changes the Animation Speed during the simulation The fastest value is 100 and the default is 20 A smaller value is better while debugging the model The animation setting can also be changed by using the buttons and slider on the tool bar A depressed button means the item represented by the button is turned on Going from left to right the buttons are Animation On Show Clock Show Entities Show Counts and UpdateDynamicLabels The slider is for Animation Speed The final button displays the post simulation animation controls See Post Simulation Animation on page 149 Update Dynamic Labels Animation On Off Post Simulation Animation I I 9 Ov27T EB L l l Show Clock Show Counts Animation Speed Show Entities SIMPROCESS User s Manual 47 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus Run Run verifies the model if selected and then starts the simulation running Change Model Parameters This item available only while running a model which has attributes identified as Model Parameters will pause the simulation and
210. ated statistics for the time that the number of units of the selected Resources spent in each state The average number of units and percentages that were idle busy planned downtime unplanned downtime and reserved are shown in the Standard Report Also included in the Standard Report are the percentages that a Resource was idle busy or reserved given the Resource was available Thatis downtime planned or unplanned is not included The time available is considered to be the total time for the Resource Thus if a Resource has no downtime defined then the percentages for idle busy and reserved will be the same forthe calculations including downtime and the calculations not including downtime Utilization by Activity Statistics These statistics show the average number of units that were busy by Activity Real time Plots These reports display the simulation generated instantaneous capacity allocations for each of the five Resource states The reports present their data while the simulation is running This may slow the simulation but they provide arunning view of the Resource s behavior throughout the simulation Real SIMPROCESS User s Manual 170 Custom Statistics time plots are selected under the Report menu item Define Real Time Plots Resources All report data is shown on an X Y plot where the horizontal X Axis represents simulation time and the vertical Y Axis shows the Resource s units One chart is produced for
211. ault y Set Entity Priority None IES Set Attributes New Resource Global Attributes Entity Entity Type Resource Model Duration Before Assigning Value None Units Hours Collect Activity Statistics _ Collect Activity by Entity Statistics Comment SIMPROCESS User s Manual 107 Entity Control Activities Dialog Field Definitions and Buttons Set Entity Priority sets or changes the Priority of an Entity The priority defaults to None which means the Entity priority is not changed Entity priority must be within the range to 100 Ifa value less than 1 is returned from the distribution then the Entity priority is not changed If a value greater than 100 is returned from the distribution then a warning is displayed and the Entity priority is set to 100 NOTE Entities with a higher priority use available Resources first Set Attributes lists existing attribute assignments e Use Add to set values for Entity attributes e Use Edit to modify existing assignments Select the attribute assignment you want to modify from the Set Attributes list e Use Remove to delete a previously defined assignment Duration is used as in other SIMPROCESS Activities Transform Activity The Transform Activity changes one type of Entity into another type A single arriving Entity can be changed into many output Entities all of the same type Transform Pr
212. bility that an observed data set came from a probability distribution The null hypothesis is that the data set is drawn from the probability distribution The alternate hypothesis is that the data set is not drawn from the probability distribution A test statistic is computed to evaluate the hypothesis If the probability of observing the test statistic is small less than alpha the fit is rejected IID Identically and independently distributed In simulation identical means that observations are made from a hypothesized distribution of values that does not change over simulated time Independent means that observations of one replication are not correlated with other observations i e if one observation has a value of X then the next observation is probably close to X Image Editor An editor that contains graphs tables or text for viewing the results of a statistical analysis Integer valued Domain A domain whose range is the set of integer numbers KS Acronym for Kolmogorov Smirnov KS goodness of fit test A goodness of fit test that uses the D statistic to evaluate the goodness of fit The KS goodness of fit test creates an empirical distribution for the data The empirical distribution assigns a probability of 1 N to each data point where N is number of data points in the data set The D statistic is computed as the maximum difference between the cumulative distribution function of the empirical distribution and the cumulati
213. bservation Statistics Across Replications Entity Level Peak Forms Entity Absorption Costs Across Periods E Entity Level Across Replications Avera p Y p i7 Reports Entity Absorption Costs Across Replications Entity Level Across Replications Peak Pages Entity Capacity Costs Across Periods a Entity Level By State Across Replication Es Entity Capacity Costs Across Replications E Entity Level By State Across Replication Macros 0 E Manage Results c Modules E amp Resource Absorption Costs Across Peric Entity Cycle Time Peak Resource Absorption Costs Across Repl fa Favorites Entity Cycle Time Across Replications Average E Resource Capacity Costs Across Period Entity Cycle Time Across Replications Peak Resource Capacity Costs Across Replice Po E Entity Count Across Replications Form Entity Count Across Replications 6000 5000 4000 3000 2000 1000 0 TypeA TypeB Typec Record AI 1 eib of 1 ZA The Reports tab contains the predefined reports Like the graphs the reports are based on the predefined queries Therefore the Entity Count report is based on the Entity Count query In order to restrict the SIMPROCESS User s Manual 329 Forms Graphs and Reports report to only certain records go to the original query in this case Entity Count and restrict it E nProcDB Database e Preview BE Desion Y new X 22 we Entity Absorption Costs Across Periods Table
214. butes SIMPROCESS User s Manual 219 User Defined Attributes Globally Defining Attributes from Dialogs All global Attributes other than Model Attributes can also be accessed from the properties dialog of the appropriate model element Entity Resource or Activity For example assume a model has three Entities defined refrigerator order television order and toaster order Selecting Entities from the Define menu brings up the list of defined Entities Entities Priority Preempt Entity Stats J Close refrigerator order BlackDot television order BlueDot 1 ltoaster order GreenDot Add Editing the refrigerator order brings up the properties dialog The image below shows the Entity Attributes tab selected Entity Type Properties Entity Expressions j j General Entity Attributes Name Value N Her Add Comment There are no local Entity Attributes defined for this Entity The Global button brings up the Global Attribute Definitions dialog with the appropriate tab active Since the Entity Attribute tab is selected on the Entity properties dialog the Entity tab will be active on the Global Attribute Definitions dialog Note that the Local button is missing since the Global Attribute Definitions dialog was opened from the properties dialog of a model element SIMPROCESS User s Manual 220 User Defined Attributes Global Attribute Definitions Entit
215. butes Entity Entity Type Resource New Entity Model Rank Method sets the rank method of the queue for the Entities to be assembled There is a separate queue for each component Entity type The rank method is the same for all queues The default is First In First Out The rank methods are e First In First Out e First In Last Out e Earliest Created First e Latest Created First e Highest Priority Value First Lowest Priority Value First e Highest Attribute Value First SIMPROCESS User s Manual 97 Entity Related Activities 7 Lowest Attribute Value First Selecting Highest Attribute Value First or Lowest Attribute Value First will cause the Attribute field to be active Select the desired attribute from the list If the selected attribute is a local Entity instance or Entity type attribute aruntimeerror will occurifan Entity enters that does not have the selected attribute defined Component Entities is a list of component Entities to be converted to assembled Entities Entities on the list are queued until the specified quantity of each Entity type has entered the Assemble Activity e Add Opens a dialog to define component Entities e Edit Opens a dialog to modify the component Entity definition e Remove Removes the selected component Entity Batch Components Releases the assembled Entity as soon as all component Entities are available for assembly e Hold for Trigger Holds output Entitie
216. bution from a table of discrete data points 1 Select Tabular from the Define Distributions pull down menu Use this dialog box to Add Edit Copy or Remove Tabular Distributions in the list box 2 Choosing the Add or Edit button brings up another dialog as shown below SIMPROCESS User s Manual 88 User Defined Distributions Table Properties x Name abularDist OK n Cancel Type Discrete x Help Stream fi view Import Add Row Delete Row Erase Cell 3 Type in the Name as any unique non blank User Distribution name 4 Typeis selected from the list box Choose either a Discrete or Continuous probability distribution function If Discrete is chosen only the exact values indicated in the right column will be chosen when the distribution is sampled If Continuous is chosen SIMPROCESS will interpolate from the specified Values and the probabilities associated with them 5 To update the table point and click on the cell you wish to modify Type the number in the table cell directly Rows may be added and deleted by clicking on a cell and then choosing the appropriate button on the right The row will be added above the one selected The Erase Cell button causes the entry in the selected cell to be erased A table may also be populated by importing data from a text file using the Import button Choose the View button to see the PDF and CDF plotted The graph can be saved to a file Sel
217. bution is closely related to the beta distribution see the book Simulation Modeling and Analysis Third Edition by Law and Kelton 2000 for details SIMPROCESS User s Manual 450 Appendix D Statistical Distributions Random Walk Distribution BRAE PDF RnwW 0 0 1 0 3 0 1 CDF RnW 0 0 1 0 3 0 1 Plot for RnW 0 0 1 0 3 0 1 m T T T T 1 07 0 9 f 0 87 0 7 f 0 6 f O57 0 4 f 0 37 0 27 Probability density function and cumulative density function for a random walk distribution with location 0 scale 1 and shape 3 Syntax RnW location scale shape stream The random walk distribution continuous could be used to model the time required to perform some task SIMPROCESS User s Manual 45 APPENDIX E Statistical Tools Glossary Absolute Deviation The average deviation of the data set from the mean It is computed using the absolute value of the difference between a data point and the mean rather than squared differences used in computing the variance Alpha The probability that an estimate of a parameter does not contain the true value In statistics this is referred to as Type I error Alternate Hypothesis The complement of the null hypothesis Cdf Cumulative distribution function SIMPROCESS User s Manual 452 Appendix E Statistical Tools Glossary y goodness of fit test A goodness of fit test that uses an x statistic to evalu
218. cation Launch Database Application This menu item on the Report menu only enabled on Windows systems brings up a dialog that selects the database and database application to use SimProcDB mdb and Microsoft Access are the defaults The remaining portion of these instructions assume MS Access is the database application If the database field is blank then Access will start and prompt to open a database If only a database is in the field with no path SIMPROCESS assumes the database is inthe SPUser directory If this is not the case Access will start and prompt for a database When the database desired is notin SPUser enter the full path and Access will open with that database If SimProcDB mdb is entered in the database name field the Manage Results form will launch automatically when the database opens If other actions are desired simply close the form and continue Always use the Manage Results form to delete records from SimProcDB If the tables are edited directly they could become corrupted and run results placed in the database would be lost The Manage Results form can be launched from the Forms tab Copies of SimProcDB mdb may be used for results However the Manage Results form will not launch automatically x Database name SimProcDB mdb i Cancel Application prt Office Office MSACCESS EXE Browse SIMPROCESS User s Manual 331 SIMPROCESS and Other Databases SIMPROCESS and Other Databases Most of t
219. ce If a required Resourceis not available whenan Entity arrives atan activity the Entity waits forthat Resource in a queue This state is defined as Wait for Resource in the SIMPROCESS Standard Report Ifan activity requires units from two different Resources and units from only one Resource is available SIMPROCESS may or may not obtain the Resource units that are available It depends on the rules defined for the model Any Resource units an activity holds are unavailable to other activities SIMPROCESS attempts to satisfy Resource requirements in the order of the priority of Entities queued for the Resource Priority is an Entity attribute assigned when the Entity is defined All Entities with the same priority are treated ona first come first served basis A higher priority Entity may optionally preempt a lower priority Entity when the Resource units needed are not available See Preempting Lower Priority Entities on page 139 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 127 Defining Resources Defining Resources Use the Resource option from the Define pull down menu to define Resources in a model In the following discussion Resources for an order distribution Process will be used sales representatives to Process the orders trucks to deliver merchandise and fuel to power the trucks 1 On the Define pull down menu select Resources Resources Name Fractional Consumable Resource Stats Res Act Stats Add Add Te
220. ce Resource resources and Units Split Divides one entity into sev Family name Copy Priority eral to model the division of Resources pe among several Delay Synchronize Coordinates the release of Number of Pads Resources various entities Delay SIMPROCESS User s Manual 418 Appendix B SIMPROCESS Activity Summary Required Parameters Non standard Options Transfer Transfers entities from one Send or Receive Most standard options are portion of a model to another Local or Remote not available without a connector or trans Connection or Protocol fers an entity to another SIM PROCESS model Transform Transforms arriving entities Number of Output Entities Copy Attributes from one type to another and Output Entity type Resource releases one or more of the Delay new type Unbatch Separates a batched entity Resource into its constituent parts Delay Retain Batched Entity Unbatch Nested Batches SIMPROCESS User s Manual 419 APPENDIX C SIMPROCESS File Structure The SIMPROCESS installation program creates a directory called SIMPROCESS unless you chose a different name during installation In this directory there are a number of important files and seven subdirectories The primary subdirectories are the System Directory named SPSYS TEM the User Working Directory named SPUser and the models directory This appendix briefly describes the structu
221. ce and Entity Type Attributes Once an Attribute has been selected clicking on the Add button will open up the Assign Attribute Properties dialog Assign Properties Expressions Event Logs Text Block Documentation OK General Resources Attributes Cancel Name Assign3 Show Name Use Text Black Help Icon Assign v atb New Entity New Resource Global Attributes Icon Set Default o amp Set Entity Priority gl Set Attributes jee Entity BREEN eReIn lt Add Model applianceweight es sa _ Model app s athena Remove _ Resource a Model r Duration Before Assigning Value None Units Hours _ Collect Activity Statistics _ Collect Activity by Entity Statistics Comment The combo box in the Set Attributes field contains the names of all the Attributes that the Assign Activity can access Selecting an Attribute from the pull down list and then clicking on the Add button will open the Attribute Assignment dialog where the Attribute value is specified Likewise by selecting an Attribute from the left side of the Set Attributes list and clicking on the Remove or Edit buttons an Attribute assignment can be removed or changed SIMPROCESS User s Manual 222 Assign Activity The Operation field contains the operators that can be used to change the value of the selected Attribute The supported operators are and equals addition subtraction multiplicati
222. ce in this example that the putPlotData method expects a Java double parameter and an int parameter The following is a mapping of the SIMPROCESS data types that are allowed on the RemoteCall parameters and how they map to Java data types SIMPROCESS Java REAL double STRING String INTEGER int BOOLEAN boolean Method ExternalCall ExternalCall is a plug in capability that can be licensed separately from CACTI to allow users to make calls to external Javaclasses from within the expression scripts ofa SIMPROCESS model The classes to be called should be in the ext directory directly in a package structure in the ext directory or in a properly constructed jar file in the jre 1lib ext directory Since ExternalCall is a function a value will be returned If the method called in the external class does not return a value return type is void SIMPROCESS will return the value TRUE thus the method should be assigned to a BOOLEAN local variable or attribute Only valid SIMPROCESS data types can be returned STRING BOOLEAN INTEGER REAL See previous table in RemoteCall section for comparable Java data types Any other type returned will cause a run time error Method names should be unique That is SIMPROCESS looks for the appropriate method by name only The number of parameters is not considered Also when getting a reference to the requested class SIMPROCESS will only use constructors with no parameters The ExternalCall function require
223. ce no properties for Layer2 were imported SIMPROCESS User s Manual 413 Appendix A Importing Version 2 2 1 Models ioixi File Edit Layout View Create Define Simulate Report Experiment Tools Help Window Dsm s xla selale Me jl or hk El Hlwafer EER a Wafer Fabrication Proc e a FURNACE PHOTO Wafer Starts ETCH Layer 1 Layer 2 To solve this open the model in SIMPROCESS 2 2 2 or 2 2 1 If you do not know exactly where the Activity named is you can use the Find Activity feature of the Activity Browser to find it Notice that there is a Connector named InspectJ as well as the Activity named Inspect This is the cause of the problem Changing the name of the Connector or the Activity is the solution In this particular model this same Activity Connector combination is in Layer2 and needs to be changed there as well This error caused by duplicate names will not occur with models saved in 2 2 3 At i Diffuse Inspect Reject Import Troubleshooting The table below gives sample error messages from the simprocess log file along with possible causes SIMPROCESS User s Manual 414 Appendix A Importing Version 2 2 1 Models If the error message gives a specific Activity type such as Assemble Batch etc there is usually something missing from the properties for that Activity The errors listed below are the most common The last four are not specific to a
224. cept that a business is aseries of inter related Processes and that these Processes consist of activities that convert inputs to outputs The modeling approach in SIMPROCESS manifests this concept and builds on it by organizing and analyzing cost information on an Activity basis Resources Activities One of the major challenges in successful implementation of ABC is finding the appropriate level of detail for the business Process analysis The organization of business Processes is critical to reorganizing the cost data into Activity pools The hierarchical modeling approach of SIMPROCESS facilitates this organization and accommodates varying levels of detail for ABC analysis Another significant value of the ABC analysis in SIMPROCESS comes from the dynamic analysis of costs based on the event driven simulation Because SIMPROCESS tracks Resource interdependencies and captures the random nature of Processes the cost statistics provided by SIMPROCESS are far more accurate than results obtained from static analysis SIMPROCESS User s Manual 154 Benefits of ABC with SIMPROCESS Benefits of ABC with SIMPROCESS Focus on Cost Drivers One of the most important benefits of ABC is the focus it provides for estimating the key causes of costs Executives can use these estimates to prioritize and monitor improvement efforts For example understanding the cost of poor quality can justify the investment in a quality program Likewise understan
225. cess the Entity If the required Resource or Resources are not available the Entity waits until the Resources become available When processing is completed the activity releases the Entity and frees the Resources This is an implicit way to get and free a Resource However some business processes require more control over resource allocation The Get Resource and Free Resource options allow the model to explicitly control the allocation of Resources Aclerk may perform a series of activities and itis necessary that the same clerk execute all the activities in a given order Therefore the model should Get the Resource perform all the activities and then Free the Resource The remainder of the section will describe how to model this series of actions with SIMPROCESS Clerk Receives Order Clerk Releases Order Receive Reserve or Order Process Ship Order Customer Merchandise Payment Order Process Process Process Process Get Resource and Free Resource Activities Get Resource Activity The Get Resource activity obtains a Resource and holds on to it across multiple Processes and activities Assign a unique Tag to each Get Resource activity Although it is possible to use the same Tag twice at different levels of the model hierarchy it is highly discouraged In the Get Resource Activity Properties dialog click on the Resources tab to specify the Resources to be allocated Fill out the Resource
226. contains the Name of the Connector Comment the Line Width and Line Style and Branching Parameters To display the Connector Properties either double click on the Connector right click on the Connector and choose Properties click to select the Connector and click the Properties button on the tool bar or click to select the Connector and choose Properties on the Edit pull down menu Connector Names A default Connector name e g Conn44 is assigned To change the Connector Name edit the Name field in the Connector properties The AutoLabel check box is discussed below Displaying Connector Names The Edit Preferences option on the Edit pull down menu determines if Connector names are displayed in the model However individual Connector dialogs have Show Name check boxes that will override the model default The Name field is displayed across the middle of the Connector if Show Name is selected The Auto Label check box applies only to Connectors from Branch Activities The Name will be generated by SIMPROCESS SIMPROCESS uses entries in the Connector Detail dialog box depending on the Entity Type SIMPROCESS User s Manual 112 Entity Control Activities Connectors and Branch Activities There are additional fields that appear in the Connector detail dialog box when the Connector is connecting a Branch Activity to another Activity or Process When a Connector emanates from a Branch Activity use the Branch Connector Pr
227. csssssssesosassssssssosss ssstssri sossssssoossssesssoss 66 Dispose ACUVILY vacseccdsncessenevserancdenssuvcodcsesnencheenossuddestuncessunsoeredentese 69 PVG AN Entity oss sos cog Sess cawncs cess cecevaeas caneeseisencesvnnaee aneenartiones 70 Defining Resources and Processes ssscccsssscssssscssscsssssseees 73 Simulation Setup vessssac sss csssvecs seceesssenusseeccsteseesevsvevvenensvencnsvescveesaes 77 Running a Simullation cccscccsssscssssccsssccesesccessccesseccsssescoees 80 Standard Repot ssiscciveszesseceecdsicacsvelessscavestevaceducceuei roort seene i arsenas 82 CHAPTER 3 Statistical Modeling Constructs cccccsssccssssssscsssssccsssscccessssscees 83 Random Number Generation and Standard Distributions 85 User Defined DistributionS esssesssecssecesoossooessocesoeessocesocesoossoo 87 Run CULITI So csectesscaseavexcedasvesnedassvaccdudneedua taceasvassocsnevanspanetoucensoecs 90 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 3 Table of Contents CHAPTER 4 Activity Modeling Construct ssccccsssccsssssscssssscccsssssccesssssceceees 94 Entity Related Activities scccsssssccsssssssccsssssscccsssssccsssssees 96 Entity Control Activities sccsscccsssscsssssssscsssssssssssssssesees 107 CHAPTER 5 Resource Modeling Construct sscccssssccsssssscesssssccssssscceeeees 126 Resources and Simulation cccccccsssssssssssssssssssssssssscscseces 127 Defining Resources
228. ction properties required to use a SIMPROCESS database mysql sProcDB properties sample database connection properties for use with a MySQL database may serve as a template for other database tools SimProcDB mdb MS Access database Windows only simprocessdb sql sample DDL statements to create a Simprocess data base in MySQL for storing Experiment results may serve as a template for other database tools UserPreferences xml created on first run user preferences stored here UserFiles jar created when importing graphics and icons or when saving Libraries Experiments xml created when experiments are defined or imported document Subdirectory This directory is used to customize headings for Activity Entity Connector Resource and model documentation Document button on properties dialogs The directory is empty initially The headings are customized with the use of text files that have the extension txt Each line of a file is considered a heading For instance the lines Activity Name Resources Used in a file would be considered two separate headings The contents of the txt files completely replace the default headings Listed below are the names that can be used for the txt files e Activity txt changes the headings for all Activities e process txt changes the headings for processes e Entity txt changes the headings for Entity types e Resource txt changes the headings for Resources
229. ctive for Experiment Purchasing Fri Dec 07 18 57 41 EST 2001 Current Model C CACI SIMPROCESS PUser Purchasing spm Fri Dec 07 18 57 41 EST 2001 Current Design 5 Reps Fri Dec 07 18 57 41 EST 2001 Current Scenario Decentralized Under staffed Fri Dec 07 16 57 46 EST 2001 Scenario Decentralized Under staffed for Design 5 Reps land Model Purchasing is already in the database A new Scenario name is required Fri Dec 07 18 57 46 EST 2001 Scenario Decentralized Under staffed not completed succes sfully due to error in Design or Scenario setup Fri Dec 07 18 57 46 EST 2001 Experiment Purchasing not completed successfully Fri Dec 07 18 57 46 EST 2001 Experiments terminated SIMPROCESS User s Manual 345 Experiment Operation E Experiment Manager Status Messages x zi Fri Dec Fri Dec Fri Dec Fri Dec Fri Dec Fri Dec 07 07 07 07 07 07 19 19 19 19 19 19 03 03 03 16 EST 2001 Current Experiment Purchasing 16 EST 2001 Alert dialogs inactive for Experiment Purchasing 03 03 16 EST 2001 Current Model C CACI SIMPROCESS SPUser Purchasing spm 16 EST 2001 Current Design 5 Reps 16 EST 2001 Current Scenario Decentralized Under staffed 03 21 EST 2001 Alternative Decentralized Product base for Process Purch asing in Experiment Purchasing Model Purchasing Design 5 Reps and Scenario Dece ntralized Under staffed was not f
230. ctory used by a Dashboard Server for it to be displayed To use a directory other than dashboards modify the server properties file to reference the alternate directory The port for the Dashboard Server can also be changed in this file Multiple Dashboard Servers on the same system can use the same dashboards directory but they must have different ports Note There is one exception to this last item Multiple Dashboard Servers on one system may listen on the same port if subscribing to multicast groups even if all subscribe to the same one If there are multiple Dashboard assignments in the model with different server addresses and or ports a Dashboard Server must be started on each Server Address and Server Port referenced or subscribe tothe multicast group Ifthe Server Address for any assigned Dashboardsis 1ocalhost aDashboard Server can be started from SIMPROCESS by selecting Tools Remote Start Local Dashboard Server On Windows the server bat file can be used to start a Dashboard Server The server sh file is for Linux systems though it will also work on other Unix systems Note that these files specify a path to the JRE installed with SIMPROCESS If the system does not have a version 1 4 or later JRE the JRE installed with SIMPROCESS in the j re directory can be copied if ithas the same or acompatible operating system or a JRE can be downloaded from java sun com for most platforms or from the appropriate vendor for others The Dashboard
231. d 01 01 2005 00 00 00 000 000 _ Warmup Every Replication Number of Replications _ Reset Random Number Streams Warmup Length V Reset System Warmup Time Unit Hours V Verify Model on Run Simulation Time Unit Hours RMI Host localhost RMI Port 1099 Setting the Start and End Dates The values chosen for the Start and End fields determine how long the simulation runs in calendar time A simulated month of processing can be specified as Start 1 1 2004 00 00 00 000 000 000 End 2 1 2004 00 00 00 000 000 000 This indicates a starting date of January 1 2004 at midnight and an end date of February 1 2004 at midnight The simulation terminates as soon as the clock strikes midnight at the end of January 31 A time must be entered or the hours minutes seconds nanoseconds microseconds and SIMPROCESS User s Manual 77 Simulation Setup milliseconds fields default to zero NOTE Remember that Start and End dates for objects in the model must be coordinated those with the simulation run dates For example a Generate Activity with Start and End dates that fall outside of the simulation Start and End dates will not generate Entities during the simulation Or a Resource Downtime with Start and End dates outside of the simulation Start and End dates will not be applied Run Dates and the Real Calendar Both entity generation schedules and resource downt
232. d Calculate Confidence Intervals allows selection of 90 95 or 99 confidence intervals for each performance measure Next select to view the Standard Report with a Text Editor Wordpad by default on Windows or with a Spreadsheet Press the Display Report button to open the report Standard Report E x Sum of All 5 replications Close Average of All 5 replications a 7 Help Display Report F Calculate Confidence Intervals jeen Text Editor Set Text Editor Application lis NTAccessoriesiwordpad exe Browse C Spreadsheet To view the Standard Report with a spreadsheet select Spreadsheet then use the Browse button to point to its executable i e Excel exe Once the spreadsheet is open the Standard Report data is best viewed in the left justified mode and with AutoFit checked for the columns Default Performance Measures SIMPROCESS will collect by default the following performance on Entities and Resources e For each Entity defined in the model Cycle Time and Count statistics are displayed e For each Resource defined in the model average and maximum number of units busy is measured and shown as a percent of capacity SIMPROCESS User s Manual 163 Standard Report ABC reports for each Resource with cost defined in the model The ABC reports have three sections that are broken down by cost period and total cost These sections are Resource by Entity Resource by Activity and Activity b
233. d Name Server Address and Server Port Below those fields is a view of the Dashboard that was assigned to the model The example below contains a Text Label Line Graph and Meter SIMPROCESS User s Manual 39 Assigning Dashboards Truck Status Properties x Dashboard Name Truck Status OK Server Address localhost Cancel Hel Server Port 5555 mee Selecting a Graph causes the Edit button to activate Edit displays a dialog with the default properties of the Graph The Graph properties can also be accessed by double clicking the Graph These properties other than Name and Background can be customized for the model Also the values to be plotted are added to the Graph Customizing Properties Editing the Text Label brings up the dialog below The left side of the dialog contains the same properties that are editable when defining Dashboards Note that Name and Background cannot be changed Any changes made in this dialog will override the default properties in the Dashboard file when the Dashboard is displayed The properties of the other Graphs are customized in the same manner The right side of the dialog contains the value to display Since the right side is empty this Text Label is a static label Although Text Labels can display one value dynamically they are best used as static labels Important Note If you are planning to have multiple models referring to the same Dashboard while it is displayed you can preven
234. d be considered in the management of any selected SQL database The DDL statements in this example name the database tables and columns using the same case that SIMPROCESS User s Manual 332 SIMPROCESS and Other Databases SIMPROCESS uses in its internal SQL statements though not all databases will require or respect case For instance testing showed that MySQL server 3 23 52 insisted that table names in SQL statements match the case used in the DDL while MySQL server 4 0 14 standard allowed the use of all lower case names irrespective of the DDL used The included MySQL examples were tested with SIMPROCESS in the following environments e SIMPROCESS on Linux MySQL server 3 23 52 on the same Linux host e SIMPROCESS on Windows MySQL server 3 23 52 on a Linux host via LAN e SIMPROCESS on Windows MySQL server 4 0 14 standard on a Mac OS X host via LAN SIMPROCESS users are encouraged to send information to the SIMPROCESS Technical Support team about their own experiences with other non Access SQL databases Reports of good or bad JDBC drivers for various databases are welcomed Please send compressed example files similar to these to simprocess caci com When sending such reports and or examples please be sure and provide as much detail as possible about any special circumstances platforms involved etc and indicate whether it s all right to share any samples with others SIMPROCESS User s Manual 333 CHAPTER 14 Exp
235. d depending on the result In the Branch Activity detail dialog you select the type of branching criteria to use Probability Entity Type Attribute value or priority The precise criteria are specified on the Connectors associated with the Branch Consider the case where the order fulfillment process for new customers requires a step that is not needed for repeat customers such as creating a customer profile Use different Entities for new customers and repeat customers and branch on Entity Type Or use a single Customer Order Entity and assume that a certain percentage of customers are new and acertain percentage are repeats Select Branch Type Probability and then set the probability ofeach event on the Connectors leading from the Branch output Pad Create Customer Profile New Customer Yes No Access Customer Profile SIMPROCESS User s Manual 110 Entity Control Activities Branch Properties Event Logs Text Block Documentation General Resources Attributes Cancel Name Branch Show Name Use Text Block Help Icon Branch v a i New Entity Icon Set Default New Resource Select Branch Type Global Attributes Probability Stream Entity O Attribute Entity Type O Entity Type Resource _ O Priority L__Model__J Duration Value None Units Hours Collect Activity Statistics __ Collect Activity by Entity Statistics Comment Dialog Field Definitio
236. del below is a 2 2 2 model The image that follows shows the imported model Notice that for the outer two Processes the text blocks are too large and for the Process in the middle the text block is too small Also notice the location difference of the center Process For the Processes where the text block is too large either the Process can be sized larger or the text block can be sized smaller The third image shows the corrections The two outer Processes were sized larger The font size was set larger for the text block for the center Process and the font style was set to bold Finally the Align option on the Edit menu was used to line up the Processes SIMPROCESS User s Manual 411 Appendix A Importing Version 2 2 1 Models GENERATE PURCHASING COMPLETE PURCHASE PROCESSES PURCHASING REQUESTS PROCESS GENER One PURCHASE PURCHASING REQUESTS PROCESS PURCHASING PROCESSES PURCHASING GENERATE COMPLETE PURCHASE PROCESSES PURCHASING REQUESTS PROCESS Static and dynamic labels can experience the same results during conversion Although labels do not overlay a Process or Activity like a text block the imported labels may be smaller than desired Again this is due to vector fonts being eliminated To change a label just open up the properties and change the font attributes M Font Attributes Font Name Arial z Size 12 v Color Black ai v Bold 7 Italic SIMPROCESS User s
237. del of the business Process Bottlenecks can be seen as they occur when simulations are run on this model Reports and statistics may be generated describing the flow of people materials and information and quantifying how Resources are used The model may continue to be modified in order to experiment with different scenarios A simple model can be built with just three Activity objects Generate Delay and Dispose Connl Conn2 e at gt gt gt gt Generatel Delay2 Dispose3 All models require a Generate Activity to generate Entities and a Dispose Activity to end the processing of Entities Delay Activities are used to represent actions There are some things that are common to most Activities such as the Activity name and Resources required by the Activity This chapter begins with a discussion of the input fields and command buttons used to define these items The remainder of the chapter describes the core SIMPROCESS Activities in detail with particular attention devoted to the Generate Activity and the Entities The remaining SIMPROCESS Activities are described in Chapter 4 Activity Modeling Constructs beginning on page 94 and in Explicitly Getting and Freeing Resources on page 133 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 56 Using the Palette Bar to Create Activities Using the Palette Bar to Create Activities The Palette bar is the two columns of buttons running down the left margin of the SIMPROCESS window Th
238. detail The format would be similar for an Entity Type Attribute If the Attribute to be referenced was named TypeTime it would be used in the Expression of a construct other than an Entity as Entity Type TypeTime The same holds true for Attributes of other SIMPROCESS constructs as well An Activity Attribute called Act ivAttr that is referenced in an Expression on a construct other than an Activity would be referred to as Activity ActivAttr A Model Attribute called ModAttr would be referred to as Model ModAttr User defined Resource Attributes can be accessed by an Expression from any other construct in SIMPROCESS and values can be assigned to those Attributes by using the syntax described above However User defined and System Attributes for Resources must be accessed by using the Resource System Method For instance to reference the number of units currently busy of the Resource called Resource1 use SIMPROCESS User s Manual 233 Writing Expressions Resource Resourcel1 UnitsBusy These are just some basics of the SIMPROCESS Expression language See System Method Examples on page 480 for more detail SIMPROCESS User s Manual 234 Evaluate Evl Function Evaluate Evl Function The simplest use of an Expression is with the Evaluate Evl function This function supports a single line Expression That Expression can contain any of the System Methods System Attributes User
239. ding the cost of complex or diverse products and services can help streamline the product and service offerings Strategic Pricing Life cycles of product and services are becoming shorter and shorter The up front costs of developing testing and marketing are not recouped until revenue is generated Understanding the cost trade off between life cycle stages is critical to strategically pricing the products i e understanding when the total investment in product development can be recouped is valuable information for strategic pricing ABC with SIMPROCESS allows simulation of the Process changes during the life cycle of a product service for strategic or time based pricing Evaluation of Capital Investments Reengineering business Processes requires a trade off between the benefits and costs ofmaking Process improvement changes Without the trade off executives and managers are faced with making large investment decisions based on gut feel SIMPROCESS User s Manual 155 How to Use ABC in SIMPROCESS How to Use ABC in SIMPROCESS To get Process cost information from a SIMPROCESS model first to define the costs of the model s Resources and the cost periods to be analyzed SIMPROCESS will distribute these costs to activities and to Entities as the simulation proceeds and provide extensive reporting of the results based on user specified cost reporting periods In order to provide a comprehensive cost analysis SIMPROCESS differ
240. down into the Entities that comprised it Statistics can be collected for the batched Entity separately from its constituent members Batch Properties Event Logs Text Block L Documentation Expressions L General Resources Attributes Cancel Name Batch19 M Show Name Use Text Black Help Icon fu Batch Rae NTEP New Entity Icon Set Default v Quantity to Batch U 0 v lica Global Attributes Batched Entity Entity Entity Type Rank Method Resource Ranked As First In First Out L Model Release Threshold Maximum Hold Time Value 0000 0 Units Weeks And Minimum Quantity h al Duration Value None Units Hours F Collect Activity Statistics Fi Collect Activity by Entity Statistics Comment Dialog Field Definitions Batched Entity is the type of Entity that will serve as the container or parent Entity An Entity of this type is created and all other Entities become children of the parent Quantity to Batch is the maximum number of Entities that fit in one batch SIMPROCESS User s Manual 99 Entity Related Activities Maximum Hold Time is the maximum amount of time to hold before a batch that has met the Minimum Quantity requirement is released Minimum Quantity is the minimum number of Entities that must be in a batch before it can be released Duration is the time specified for a Batch Activity tha
241. ds 45 Templates 45 Time Stamps 45 Delay Activity 66 66 68 Delay Duration for Assemble activities 98 for Unbatch activities 101 Delay Time field 66 delay time specifying 66 68 deleting objects 58 Display Error Alerts 345 Display Error Alerts Field 336 Displaying ABC Reports 161 Dispose Activity 69 Distribution Beta 432 Erlang 433 Exponential 430 Gamma 431 Geometric 439 Hyperbolic 440 Lognormal 435 Normal 428 Poisson 436 Triangular 429 Uniform 427 Weibull 434 distributions defining standard and tabular 44 viewing graphically 65 Document command template for 60 Documentation Model Description 45 printing 20 21 Downtimes defining 44 Duplicate 22 Duration for Assemble activities 98 Duration field 281 Dynamic Label 141 Edit Activity Brower 27 Edit Menu 21 31 Clear 22 Copy 22 Cut 21 Duplicate 22 Model Search 28 Paste 22 Preferences 23 Properties 31 Resize 22 Select All 22 Undo 21 Entities adding 70 72 assembling 96 branching on priority 111 branching on type of 111 changing type of Transform Activity 108 combining 96 coordinating release of 104 copying 72 cycle time 69 defined 54 defining 63 70 72 deleting 72 destruction of 69 100 disposal of 69 100 duplicate Clone Activity 117 Generate activity and 63 icon selecting 70 71 input to Gate Activity 101 instance defined 70 parent entities 98 99 103 preempting lower priority 139 priority 71 113 changing 108
242. e Times Histogram These charts show the individual cycle time measurements for each Process Activity Wait For Resource Cycle Times Trace and Wait For Resource Cycle Times Histogram These charts show SIMPROCESS User s Manual 173 Custom Statistics the individual wait for Resource time measurements for each Activity These charts are not available for Processes Hold For Condition Cycle Times Trace and Hold For Condition Cycle Times Histogram These charts show the hold for condition time measurements for each Activity These charts are not available for Processes Process Cycle Times Trace and Process Cycle Times Histogram This chart shows the processing time measurements for each Activity These charts are not available for Processes Entity Counts Trace and Entity Counts Histogram These charts show the number of Entities in each Process Activity Wait For Resource Trace and Wait For Resource Histogram These charts show the number of Entities waiting for Resources for each Activity These charts are not available for Processes Hold For Condition Trace and Hold For Condition Histogram These charts show the number of Entities holding for a condition for each Activity These charts are not available for Processes Entities In Process Trace and Entities In Process Histogram These charts show the number of Entities processing for each Activity Entity Count Reports These reports present the simulation
243. e a String It is the name of the Resource to decrease The second parameter must be an Integer or a Real Even though the second parameter can be a Real the number of units to decrease cannot be fractional even if the Resource is a fractional Resource DecreaseCapacity is not a substitute for the consuming of consumable Resources Consumable Resources will be consumed when released It is not necessary to use a system method DecreaseCapacity is intended for non consumable Resources SIMPROCESS User s Manual 256 User Defined Functions User Defined Functions A User defined Function will return the value of an Expression each time it is called from within the model This allows re use of a single function in multiple places in the model The value returned must be a real number To create a User defined Function go to the Define menu and select Functions This opens a list box displaying any previously defined functions The Function Definition dialog opens for Add and Edit Enter a meaningful Name for the function The Expression button will open up the Expression editor dialog as for any SIMPROCESS Expression Type in the Expression here The final line of the Expression should be a RETURN statement such as RETURN Entity Time Activity Factor where Entity Time and Activity Factor are Attributes Each time this function is called it will return the value of the multiple of the two Attributes Note that only REAL or INTE
244. e does not have to be qualified Object references can be stacked to gain access to variables that may not be within the scope of the current object but may still be of interest in an Expression For example the following Expression snippets are valid uses of object references from within an Activity Expression under the Accept Entity event OUTPUT In Self Name Entity Entity Name produces the name of the Activity and the name of the current Entity OUTPUT In Self Name Entity Type Entity Type Name produces the name of the Activity and the name of the current Entity s type OUTPUT In Self Activity Name Entity Activity Activity Entity Name produces the name of the Activity and the name of the current Entity Notice in the third OUTPUT example the object reference to the current Activity is stacked In other words the Object Self points to itself and the Activity object also points to the current Activity This is basically a circular reference and does not really do anything other than slow down the simulation and confuse anyone that may read the Expression something like Activity Activity Activity Entity Name could also have been used which is the same result but is even more confusing The Expression language allows this feature so that access can be gained to certain objects when appropriate Consider the following example from within a Resource Expressi
245. e files can be imported Icon Manager Functions x Singlelcon C Multiple Icons Export Export an icon to a file Manage Assign Icons to Categories and Sets Close Choose Single Icon and click Importto import a single image for use as an icon Use the Browse button to locate the Image File to import Once selected enter the Icon Name which must be SIMPROCESS User s Manual 146 Importing Graphics Image Files unique among all icons no matter what category or set Select the Icon Category and Icon Set If the Icon Set needed is not listed create a new set by typing it in the Icon Set field Click OK to finish the import Import Icon Image x Image File C images lightbulb gif Browse OK Icon Name Lightbulb Cancel Icon Category C Entity ActivityProcess Icon Set imported 7 A directory of images can be imported by choosing Multiple Icons and clicking Import Using the Browse button select the directory that contains the images to import Only directories will be listed in the file chooser Files will not be visible All gif jpg and png files in the directory will be imported The Icon Name for each will default to the name of the file minus the extension These names can be changed as long as they remain unique among all the standard and imported icons An error message will appear listing the names that are not unique x Import Icon Images File Name Icon Name Category Icon
246. e goal is to minimize the amount of inventory held without impacting the customer negatively increase order cycle time This can be done by finding the optimal Reorder Points and Quantities SIMPROCESS User s Manual 377 OptQuest Demonstration Models for each node in the supply chain Using OptQuest the optimal Reorder Points and Reorder Quantities can be found Thus the decision variables for the optimization are the model parameters and the default values for the attributes are the Starting Values for the decision variables See Decision Variables on page 355 The objective is twofold minimize inventory FinProduct resource and minimize the amount of time it takes to fill a customer order See Preparing for Optimization beginning on page 352 for a discussion on how these dual objectives are combined into one objective The performance measure for the amount of inventory and the performance measure for the amount of time it takes to fill a customer order are used as performance measure constraints These values are obtained using the GetResourceStatistic and GetEntityStatistic expression statements in the End Simulation expression for the model Define Model Expressions These values are assigned to Model Attributes which are used as constraints The number of replications per simulation is set to 5 the maximum number of iterations is 100 and the automatic stop feature is turned on with a precision of 0 1
247. e has not been previously used for another Attribute of the same class of model element For new Attributes SIMPROCESS initializes the field with a default name Value is the default initial value of this Attribute The value must correspond to the data type specified in the Mode field For instance 1 0 cannot be entered if the Mode is Integer If the Mode is Object the Default value is undefined An Object Attribute s value can only be set during a simulation run Anything entered in the Default field is ignored See Mode types below Mode is the data type of the Attribute Click on the arrow button to select either Integer Real String Boolean or Object Integer values are numbers without fractional or decimal parts Real values can contain fractional parts A String is any series of alphanumeric characters Boolean values can be either TRUE or FALSE An Object is a reference to another model element in the model For example during a simulation an Object Attribute to point to another Activity in the model Array Dimension allows for Attributes to be set up as an array The default value of 0 means the Attribute is not an array If an array dimension is provided and the user wishes to reference the Attribute in the Expression language it must be done using an integer subscript e g myattribute 2 value The subscripted arrays are zero based meaning that a subscript of 0 refers to the first item in the array SIMPROC
248. e in both places SIMPROCESS will perform all the necessary conversions automatically For example annual salaries can be specified and the simulation run with weekly cost periods SIMPROCESS will convert the annual salary costs to weekly costs when generating the cost data After a simulation is completed reports of the costs are available The total cost and the cost by period can be seen by choosing Display Standard Report from the Reports menu These costs are divided into three categories Resource by Activity Resource by Entity and Activity by Entity Cost Calculations When a simulation is run SIMPROCESS pauses at the end of each cost period to calculate the period costs SIMPROCESS tracks all the activities that used the Resource and all of the types of Entities SIMPROCESS User s Manual 159 How to Use ABC in SIMPROCESS processed For each Resource that has specified costs and that is set to calculate costs SIMPROCESS will distribute the Resource s fixed and variable costs for the period to all of the activities that made use of the Resource during the period This distribution is based on the amount of the available capacity used by the Activity during the period For example suppose that a Resource is used evenly by two activities and was busy 50 of the time for the cost period Further suppose that during the period each Activity processed five Entities two of type A and three of type B SIMPROCESS will calculate the co
249. e in the table are direct changes to the properties of the Entity and cannot be canceled Also the table can be sorted by a particular column by clicking on the column header Holding the Shift key while clicking on a column header causes the table to sort in the reverse order Copy the properties of an existing Entity such as the one just defined by selecting the Entity in the table and click on the Copy button Enter a different Entity Name and make any other changes on the Entity Type Properties screen and then click on OK Remove an existing Entity by selecting the Entity and clicking on the Remove button The Undo button restores Entity definitions that have been removed Click on Close when Entities are defined SIMPROCESS User s Manual 72 Defining Resources and Processes Defining Resources and Processes Resources The next thing to define in the model are the Resources required to process Customer Order Entities To keep things simple define just one Resource the clerks needed to process customer orders 1 Select Resources from the Define pull down menu 2 Select Add to define a new Resource Resource Properties x General Downtime Attributes Expressions Cancel Name Resource Help Units 1 z r l Document I Fractional Usage I Consumable Cost I Collect Resource Statistics I Collect Resource by Activity Statistics Comment See Chapter 5 Resource Modeling Constr
250. e is a local Entity instance or Entity type attribute a run time error will occur if an Entity enters that does not have the selected attribute defined Threshold Release e On Off Enables disables the Threshold Release feature Threshold Release is on when the check box is selected e Threshold Quantity The threshold number of Entities to accumulate and release when the Threshold Release is checked on Trigger Release Release All Releases all the accumulated Entities when a Trigger Entity has been received on the Trigger Pad e Quantity The number of Entities to release when a Trigger Entity has been received on the Trigger Pad This is used with the Trigger Release policy The value can be a constant integer or can be derived from a statistical distribution The Trigger can be released by using the FireTrigger System Method instead of having an Entity enter the trigger Pad The name of the Activity must be unique within the model for the system method to work properly See SIMPROCESS System Methods on page 465 Duration is the time specified for a Gate Activity that will be applied when the Entities are released Each Entity released will have a duration unless the Entities were batched and then only the Batched Entity will have a duration Synchronize Activity A Synchronize Activity coordinates the release of many Entities which may be of various types The number of input output Pads for a Synchronize Activity is s
251. e model This is optional The Entity document headings can be customized See document Subdirectory on page 422 Comment is used to enter brief text describing the purpose of the Entity 4 Clickon OK when data entry is completed The defined Entity is added to the table in the Entities dialog Entities Name Icon Priority Preempt Entity Stats CustomerOrder BlackDot Remove 5 Add another Entity and name it Shipment Click on the pull down arrow next to the Icon field to get a list of Entity icons SIMPROCESS User s Manual 71 Defining an Entity Entity Type Properties i tity Type Attributes Entity Type Expressions General Entity Attributes shipment acioni a A BlackDot _ BlackSquare A BlackTriangle BlueDot W Biuesquare BlueTriangle GreenDot F GreenSquare Comment The list may be a lot longer than it first appears Click near the top of the scroll bar to see more list items Select GreenDot Then click on OK The icon selected will appear on the button next to the icon list Clicking the button will bring a dialog that shows the default size of the icon Entities Name eon Priority Preempt Entity Stats Close 1 CustomerOrder BlackDot Shipment GreenDot L Add Edit Copy Remove Note that the basic properties of Entities added to the model can be edited directly from the table However changes mad
252. e name of the Entity Attribute Using the duration example above for an Entity Attribute called TimeFactor the duration that each Entity that carries the TimeFactor Attribute will spend at a Delay Activity can be set with the following statement NextDelay Entity TimeFactor By placing the above statement in the Accept Entity activation event for a listing of activation events see Expression Activation Events beginning on page 236 on the Delay Activity the value of the system Attribute NextDelay will take the value of the TimeFactor Attribute The result is for each instance of an Entity reaching this Activity its processing time at that Activity is determined by the value of the Entity Attribute TimeFactor that each instance of the Entity carries However this assumes that there is no wait for Resources If an Entity has to wait another Entity could enter and change NextDelay before the first Entity is able to process The preferred method is to use the Evaluate function in the Duration Value field on the Delay Activity to return the value of the Attribute TimeFactor This method is better since the duration of each Entity at the Delay Activity is calculated from the TimeFactor Attribute This is visible on the Properties dialog of the Delay rather than in an Expression Also there is no possibility of another Entity changing the value of the delay See the Evaluate Evl Function on page 235 for more
253. e next Undo action Undo Clear Undo Cut Undo Align Undo Distribute Undo actions are active in the reverse order of the editing actions that created them For instance if Activities are aligned then an Activity is deleted the order of Undo actions would be Undo Clear followed by Undo Align Cut Cut cuts the selected object from the model layout The cut object is copied to the clipboard and the object may be pasted onto a different part of the layout or into another open model using Edit Paste Connectors and Pads cannot be cut They can only be cleared SIMPROCESS User s Manual 21 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus Copy Copy places a copy of the selected object in the clipboard It will remain there until replaced by another object that is cut or copied Once a copy is made it can be pasted on the layout or into another model by using the Edit Paste command Paste Paste makes a copy of the object in the clipboard and pastes it onto the layout Multiple copies of an object can be pasted without additional copies being made Pasting items into a model different from the model where the copy or cut occurred can cause loss of entity attribute resource function or distribution references See Advantage of Templates Over Copy Paste on page 209 for more information Duplicate Duplicate is a shortcut that copies a selected object from the layout and then does a paste to a position selected on the layo
254. e path If no path separators are detected in the file name the Model s folder is where the files will reside Note that double backslashes must be used in file paths instead of a single backslash OpenSpreadsheet Mode STRING OBJECT Open the specified spreadsheet File Name STRING file and return the file stream ob ject Mode can be input or out put The File Name String can contain physical path names if the user wants to explicitly tell SIMPROCESS where the file re sides If path separators e g or x in Windows are used the pro gram assumes the user is provid ing a complete and valid physical file path If no path separators are detected in the file name the Model s folder is where the files will reside Note that double backslashes must be used in file paths instead of a single back slash SIMPROCESS User s Manual 474 SIMPROCESS System Methods SIMPROCESS System Methods Method Name Arguments Return Description OUTPUT Takes zero or more arguments NONE Display the specified arguments separated by commas Type in the Output dialog Functions can be REAL BOOLEAN including nested functions that INTEGER or STRING result in any of the argument types can be used in the OUT PUT statement POSITION Stringl STRING INTE This method returns the starting String2 STRING GER position of String2 in String1 If String2 is not completely con t
255. e reached Repeat Event 0 Pas Infinite Comment Defining aperiodic cycleis similar to defining a periodic schedule see page 277 Themajor difference is that duration of the cycle is not defined in terms of start and end dates That is because the start time is under the control of the cyclical schedule of which the cycle is a part Duration is how long this cycle is in effect A number can be entered or a value selected from the pull down list for this field Time Units specifies the time unit of the Duration SIMPROCESS User s Manual 281 Defining a More Complex Generate Activity The starting time of the event is determined by the following factors e The Generation Start date of the cyclical schedule e The position of this cycle in the Schedule of Events in the Cyclical Schedule detail dialog e The Duration of the cycles that precede this one Count Limit sets a maximum number of Entities that may be generated during this cycle A value of 0 indicates no limit The Both must be reached checkbox if marked specifies that both the Duration and Count Limit must be reached before the cycle completes Note that selecting Both must be reached can result in a cycle of unknown duration This happens if the Count Limit is not reached before the end of the Duration period In that event the cycle continues until either the Count Limit is attained or the Generate Activity Generation End is reached Repeat
256. e resource going down to go down and the remaining resources are available for another entity to use The entity is placed at the head of the wait queue for each resource When the resource is available again the entity attempts to get all the needed resources If all are available the entity will continue processing with the remaining time If the current Activity is the only Activity where the resources that did not go down are used then all the resources should be reacquired immediately If not then it is possible that the resources that did not go down were obtained by an entity at another Activity and are not available Thus the entity must wait until the other resources are released SIMPROCESS User s Manual 301 Resource Downtime Creating a Downtime Schedule To demonstrate the creation of a downtime schedule some of the periods during which a sales clerk is not available for work will be defined Note that this is a local Resource Downtime schedule If multiple resources followed the same downtime schedule then the Resource Downtime should be defined globally This downtime will account for e Daily off hours the 16 hours of each 24 hour day that a person is not scheduled to work e Weekends e Sick days A complete model would also need to account for lunch hours vacation time and unplanned time off jury duty personal days acts of nature etc For this example assume that sales clerks operate in tw
257. e sets of decision variables values that are constraint infeasible before it runs the simulation Limiting the optimization by defining constraints on decision variables is extremely time effective If a constraint contains a performance measure a simulation must be run to determine whether the suggested solution satisfies the constraint The search process benefits from the use of constraints on decision variables and tight bounds on decision variables However performance generally suffers when performance measure constraints are included in the optimization model for two reasons e Performance measure constraints are very time consuming to evaluate since OptQuest must run an entire simulation before determining whether the results are constraint infea sible e To avoid running constraint infeasible simulations OptQuest must identify the character istics of solutions likely to be constraint feasible this makes the search more complex and requires more time Even though performance measure constraints can greatly decrease the number of feasible simulations performed during an optimization performance measure constraints can focus the search to effectively rule out undesirable solutions If there are lots of performance measure constraints that OptQuest can t easily satisfy consider combining the output constraints into one multi objective function Feasibility OptQuest makes finding a feasible solution its highest priority Once
258. e square of each observed value multiplied by the time that this value has persisted in i e Y X AT Count This is the number of observations recorded when the statistic was collected Average This is the average of the statistic SIMPROCESS User s Manual 506 Appendix G Simulation Results File Std Deviation This is the standard deviation of the statistic Statistic Types The table below gives the descriptions of the statistic types within SIMPROCESS Type of Labels Statistics Descriptions Entities tokendelay Observation Total cycle time i e sum based of wait hold and pro cess tokenwaitdelay Observation Time waiting for avail based able resource tokenholddelay Observation Time waiting for condi based tion to be reached tokenprocessdelay Observation Time processing i e at based specified duration tokenlevel Time weighted Number of entities in system tokenwaitlevel Time weighted Number of entities wait ing for available resource tokenholdlevel Time weighted Number of entities wait ing for condition to be reached tokenprocesslevel Time weighted Number of entities in process i e at duration tokentotalborn Only the last Number of entities being value is generated recorded SIMPROCESS User s Manual 507 Appendix G Simulation Results File Type of Labels Statistics Descriptions tokentotalal
259. e that is meaningful one that indicates what occurs at this Activity Activities can be named just about anything as long as the same name is not used twice in the same level of the model hierarchy Change the name of an existing Activity by clicking in the Name field and typing the new name The contents of the Text Block can be used as the Name by selecting the Use Text Block check box The lines of text are appended together with a space between each line to create the Name When Use Text Block is selected the Name field is not editable The values on the Text Block tab must be changed to change the Name SIMPROCESS User s Manual 59 Using the Palette Bar to Create Activities Choosing an Icon The Icon field identifies the graphical icon used to represent the Activity in the model layout All Activity icons are arranged into sets The set consists of predefined sets and user defined sets See Importing Graphics Image Files on page 146 The Icon Set field lists the sets of icons available The set All lists all icons regardless of set Every Activity has several icons from which to choose The names of the standard icons differ slightly for each Activity because they include the name of the Activity Point and click on and icon s name to select it The icon button on the right gives a reduced view of the icon Click the icon button to see the actual size GIF JPG and PNG files may be imported and used as custom icons fo
260. easons Running multiple optimizations and or simulations will often perform better on non Windows systems The OptQuest for SIMPROCESS interface primarily consists of text tables and a graph to monitor the optimization There is a button to stop the optimization and there are reporting options on the File menu once the optimization is complete When the interface appears all status objects are empty except for the Optimization Status field which displays Initializing The tables show the status of the objective value the decision variables the performance measure constraints and the expression constraints The objective value table and the decision variables table will always appear The performance measure constraints table and the expression constraints table will only appear if those types of constraints exist The graph plots the best objective value based on whether or not the best is feasible The example below is from the Purchasing model SIMPROCESS User s Manual 364 Running an Optimization Flee File Model Name Optimization Setting Stop Restart Objective Objective Value Optimization Status Initializing Maximum Iterations M Prompttor more iterations Automatic Stop allel Best Objective Value Iteration Feasible Objective Value Ba infeasible Best Value Feasible x Current Value 0 08 B 0 06 e Parameter Lower Bound BestValue Current Yalue
261. ect Close from the graph s File pull down menu to continue 6 Once the data is entered choose OK and the Tabular Distribution is added to the list box This Tabular Distribution can now be used anywhere in the model where a statistical distribution is specified 7 To copy an existing Tabular Distribution select the distribution choose the Copy button and enter another Name for the distribution 8 To remove an existing Tabular Distribution select the distribution and choose the Remove but ton 9 Choose the Close button when the Tabular Distributions are complete SIMPROCESS User s Manual 89 Run Settings Run Settings Run Settings Run Settings Cost Periods Debug Traces OK Simulation Period L_cancel_ mimiddiyyy hh mm ss msec 01 01 2004 00 00 00 ooo 000 01 01 2005 00 00 00 ooo 000 __ Warmup Every Replication Number of Replications _ Reset Random Number Streams Warmup Length Reset System Warmup Time Unit Hours V Verify Model on Run Simulation Time Unit Hours RMI Host localhost RMI Port 1099 Run Settings Simulation Period The Simulation Period determines how long the simulation will run It is given in calendar and time format Choose an appropriate time span to see all aspects of the system Warmup Every Replication When selected and the values for both the Number of Replications and Warmup Length are greater than 0 SIMPRO
262. ed in the Date and Time field If the trigger point is not reached while the cycle is in effect no Entities are generated For a further explanation see SIMPROCESS Scheduling of Event Cycles on page 283 The Date and Time needed depends on the Calendar Type schedule selected e Yearly Enter a date and time of day but do not specify a year Entity generation begins if the simulation reaches the specified date and time during this cycle e Monthly Specify a day of the month and time of day e g the first of the month at noon Entity generation begins if the simulation reaches the specified day and time while the cycle is in effect e Weekly Select a day of the week from a list that appears when Weekly is checked off and atime of day Entity generation begins if the simulation reaches that day and time during the cycle e Daily Specify a time of day Entities are released if the simulation reaches this time of day while the cycle is in effect e Hourly Specify the minutes and seconds of an hour Entities are released if the simulation reaches this time of day while the cycle is in effect e Date Specify a specific date and time Entities are released if the simulation reaches this date and time while the cycle is in effect SIMPROCESS Scheduling of Event Cycles Calendar cycles must be carefully placed within the Sequence of Events If the trigger time specified in the Date and Time field has already passed when SIM
263. editor the file re saved and then the Expression reloaded using the Refresh button Clicking the Done button checks the syntax before closing the Expression editor However unlike when the expression is stored in the model the option to close with errors is available If the Use Expression in File checkbox is deselected the text of the Expression becomes editable However if the editor is closed with Use Expression in File deselected the Expression becomes a part of the model If Use Expression in File is reselected before closing the editor any changes made are lost since Expressions are only read from the specified file Changes to the Expression must be done and saved to the file in another editor Expressions can be copied from the SIMPROCESS Expression editor and pasted into another editor by highlighting the desired text and using the keyboard equivalents of Copy and Paste Using Attributes in Expressions The value of an Attribute may be useful in the calculation of an Expression for a different construct than that for which the Attribute was defined For instance the duration of a Delay Activity could take SIMPROCESS User s Manual 232 Writing Expressions the value of an Attribute of the Entity currently at the Delay Activity To do so the Expression on the Activity must access the value of the Attribute on the Entity This is accomplished by referring to the Entity Attribute with the prefix Ent ity followed by th
264. efined or setting a value of 0 or none indicates that there is no limit SIMPROCESS User s Manual 69 Defining an Entity Defining an Entity A particular type of Entity or a particular instance of an Entity may be referred to in the model When an Entity type is referred to all Entities of a particular type e g customer orders are also referred An Entity instance refers to an individual Entity a single customer order Defining Entities in SIMPROCESS defines a type SIMPROCESS generates instances of that Entity during a simulation run Define Entities in the following manner 1 Click on Define on the SIMPROCESS menu and then select Entities from the pull down menu 2 Click on Add to define a new Entity xi Entitv Tyne Attributes Entity Type Expressions General Entity Attributes Entity Expressions caei Name Customer Order Help Icon BlackDot x Document Icon Set Default x Priority 1 I Preempt Lower Priority Entities I Collect Entity Statistics Comment 3 Specify the Entity Type Properties e Entity Name identifies the type of Entity Name can be any unique entity name Double click on the default name supplied by SIMPROCESS and enter Customer Order as the Entity Name e Entity Icon is the icon which will represent this Entity during a simulation run The icon appears during simulation if the Animation option is on Click on the downward pointi
265. egend hides the plot at the start of the simulation and depending on plot type sets the units for the X axis and Y axis If the plot properties are not set defaults will apply to the plots The default title is the item name plus the plot name For instance the default title for a trace of cycle times for an Activity named Delay 1 would be Delay 1 Cycle Times Trace The default units for the X axis of trace plots is the Simulation Time Unit selected in the Run Settings See Setting the Simulation Time Unit on page 78 The default units for the Y axis of trace plots depends on the type of value being plotted If the value is a cycle time total processing wait for Resource or hold for condition the default unit is the Output Time Units selected in the Define Global Statistics Collection dialog If the value is not a cycle time then the Y axis is set according to the values plotted Histograms follow the same rules for the X axis since the X axis plots the values in a histogram To change any of the defaults or to hide the plot choose the Set Plot Properties button This button will display a dialog for each plot selected SIMPROCESS User s Manual 178 Real Time Plots Graph Name X Axis Label hy Cancel Y Axis Label Help Simulation Time Units Hours Value Time Units Hours V Hide Plot at Simulation Start Ix ith Display Plot on Remote Server Remote Server URL Comment Default
266. el Documentation prints the description of all elements of the model This includes Name Path and Comment field entries of all Activities Processes Entities and Resources in the model Any information you have added using the Document button is also included SIMPROCESS User s Manual 20 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus List of Most Recently Used Models The File menu contains a list of the most recently used models Open any of these models by clicking on its name The number of recent files is set on the Edit Preferences dialog Exit quits SIMPROCESS If you have made edits since you last saved the open models you will be prompted to save your models before exiting Edit Menu Undo Cut Copy Paste Duplicate Clear Select All Resize Switch Activity To Preferences Activity Browser Model Search Expression Search Properties Undo chi chi Ctrl ch Z X C Y Delete ctl ct Alt Enter A F Undo restores Activities Processes and Connectors that have been cut or cleared deleted It also reverses Align and Distribute actions The Undo is only active at the hierarchical level where the Cut Clear Align or Distribute occurred A maximum of 10 Undo actions can be active at any one time As editing events occur that create Undo actions the most recent 10 actions are the ones that are kept The Undo menu and the tool tip for the Undo button will update to show th
267. en Downtimes field If the Schedule Type is calendar the downtime occurs at the time specified e For Time Between Downtimes in a Periodic schedule specify a statistical distribution or constant For a Calendar schedule specify a date and or time e If Schedule Type is Weekly a list of the days of the week appears Selecta day from this list Periodic Downtime Schedule x Schedule Name Periodic1 OK r Schedule Cancel Time Between Downtimes 24 0 gt an Help Time Unit Hours Number of Units Down fi 0000 J Downtime Duration 16 0 v Duration Units Hours V Planned I Interrupt Activities Release Comment e Schedule Name is the name assigned to the downtime period This name appears in the Downtime list box e Time Between Downtimes defines the time at which the resource becomes unavailable For Periodic schedules this field is labeled Time Between Downtimes and contains either a statistical distribution or a constant If a distribution is specified the resource will be unavailable at random intervals based on the distribution sampling If a constant is specified the resource enters a period of Downtime every n time units For example to model a dayshift that works from 9 am to 5 pm and is off the rest of the day specify 24 in this field and select Hours for the Time Unit This means that every 24 hours i e every day at 5 pm the resource becomes unavailable For Usage schedules
268. endix G See Statistic Types on page 507 Value Type can be Avg StDev Min Max Count or RunLength Replication is the replication desired or the average or sum of replications Some examples SIMPROCESS User s Manual 267 Accessing Statistics During Simulation GetActivityStatistic Process4 tokenlevel Avg 1 returns the average number of Entities in Process4 for replication 1 GetActivityStatistic Process4 tokendelay Max 1 returns the maximum Entity cycle time for Process4 for replication 1 GetActivityStatistic Sales tokenwaitdelay Avg 1 returns the average across replications of the Entity wait for Resources in the Activity Sales GetActivityByEntityStatistics GetActivityByEntityStatistic returns the value of a statistic for an Activity and that has Collect Activity By Entity Statistics selected either globally or on the Activity properties See Default Performance Measures on page 163 The syntax is GetActivityByEntityStatistic Activity Name Entity Name Statistic Value Type Replication where Activity Name is the name of the Activity or Process Entity Name is the name of the Entity and Statistic is the statistic type desired The key words for the statistics available are found in Appendix G See Statistic Types on page 507 All the statistic types for Activity by Entity statistics start with by Value Type can be Avg StDev Min
269. ent Double click on the Replenish Resource icon to define this action SIMPROCESS User s Manual 137 Replenishing Consumable Resources ReplenishResource Properties General Attributes Expressions Event Logs Text Black Documentation K Name ReplenishResource8 Show Name Use Text Block Cancel Help Icon kg ReplenishResource Icon Set Default New Entity List of Replenish Actions New Resource lt Add Diesel Fuel xi mE Entity Entity Type Resource Q f a I amp 3 gt Z T o FI Collect Activity Statistics Fi Collect Activity by Entity Statistics Comment Select the consumable Resource on the drop down menu and then click on Add to define a replenish action x Resource DieselFuel z OK Units 1000 0 z E Carei I Replenish To Capacity The Resource field identifies the Resource to be replenished The pull down list shows all the consumable Resources defined in the model Units indicates the quantity of the Resource to be added either in a real number or a statistical distribution The distribution can be selected from the pull down list of the Units field The Replenish to Capacity box indicates that a Resource should be replenished only up to the value specified in its Units field when the Resource was defined Note thatResources can also be replenished using expressions See Changing Resource Capacit
270. ent PileS ceased ore aeesectetcihteeonkcteeate rsa iene 498 General Rules for Event Files scssssccssssscsssscsssccssscsses 499 Event Record Description ccscccssssccsssssssssssssssssssssssseesees 501 RAR IES ss saisissd da viteicaCaneduiaahonsinds siuneasssandesibsarieiasbendladinivecnatesadanaiens 503 APPENDIX H Simulation Results File 1 cccccccsssesccccesssssecccccssssssscccccsssssscecees 504 Format of the Simulation Results Fille ccssccssssssssseees 505 APPENDIX UME Interfaces sicsssssnssosassisvesvenniacosetnsssessarsessasasnssenstasvsstavesvennene 512 Exporting to UML sssecescicssccacaccatccaicasnciesscavecaceccasetateseceancsseceoines 514 Rose Use CASES Sssicsdccedecscdecedecssiedcecedacecvesseskentaiscateshvieueveesioencbias 516 APPENDIX J Running Models Without GUI sscccssssccsssssccessssccessesscceeees 519 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 9 Organization of the SIMPROCESS Documentation Set The SIMPROCESS documentation set consists of three manuals e Getting Started With SIMPROCESS e SIMPROCESS User s Manual e ExpertFit for SIMPROCESS User s Guide Getting Started The Getting Started With SIMPROCESS manual is a must for first time SIMPROCESS users This manual can also be used for evaluation purposes Chapter 1 provides an overview of Process Modeling and Analysis and the SIMPROCESS product Chapter 2 provides system requirements and installation instructions C
271. ent process Unlike Processes and Activities which appear as icons in the model layout Entities aren t visible until a simulation is run During the simulation they emerge as icons flowing through the model if animation is turned on Resources Resources are the agents that add value to Entities or perform work at Activities Examples include e A customer calls in an order which requires a clerk to handle it Order entry is the Activity the order is an Entity and the clerk is a Resource e A truck is required to deliver merchandise to the customer the truck is a Resource SIMPROCESS User s Manual 54 The way to minimize cycle time and Activity costs is by experimenting with different levels of Resources and different costs The availability of a Resource affects the amount of time it takes an Entity to flow through the Process Lack of Resources can be a cause of bottlenecks in a business Process A customer order might arrive while two clerks are busy handling other tasks Order fulfillment is delayed until a clerk becomes available The amount of time the customer order spends waiting for an available clerk is shown in the Entity Cycle Time by State output report as Wait for Resource Another way to describe this situation is that the order waited in a queue for the available Resource Knowing how Resources are used is a key factor in understanding and improving upon the way a business operates Connectors Connect
272. enter the search text in the Search For field All searches are contains searches That is there is a match if the text in the Search For field is contained within any line of an expression Select Ignore Case to perform a case insensitive search If the Replace With field is not empty the text in the Search For field found in expressions will be replaced with the textin the Replace With field There is no undo forreplace actions Also replace actions arecase sensitive only Selecting Ignore Case will empty and disable the Replace With field Expressions stored in files are not included in searches when the Search For field contains text Once the Search Criteria has been set click the Find button to perform the search Search Results displays the items found The type of each item found Process or Activity Entity Type Resource or Model is identified by an icon to the left of the name Process Activity or Entity Type items display ascaled down version of their assigned icons Resource and Model display an icon based on the legend to the right of the list The example below shows a search on the CallCenter spm demonstration model The search was a case insensitive search for any expressions containing type Four activities and three resources were found Expression Search Search Items Search Criteria Search Results Close x F Process or Activity Search For Check Queue aa 5 Help I Entity Type type Reneged Calls URE iB
273. entiates between fixed costs and several types of variable costs that can be assigned to a Resource SIMPROCESS allows multiple cost periods to be analyzed simultaneously and allows model level definition of costing periods These features help to bridge the gap between an accountant s view anda manager s view of abusiness Process provide an effective communication vehicle for the participants in a Process reengineering project and make SIMPROCESS a complete business Process analysis tool SIMPROCESS costing facility is very simple to use Prior to running a simulation define the cost periods for cost calculation purposes or accept the default cost periods which are based on calendar weeks Also define costs for at least some of the Resources in the model presumably those that represent the most significant costs in the business Process hourly payroll salaries capital equipment depreciation etc The following describes how to complete these two steps Setting Up Cost Periods Pick the cost periods that are most suitable for the system under study SIMPROCESS selects weekly cost periods as the default but allows monthly quarterly half yearly and yearly cost periods The following example demonstrates how to set cost periods for the calendar year 2004 Select Simulation Run Settings from the main menu Run Settings Run Settings Cost Periods Debug Traces ox Simulation Period mmddyy hh mm ss msec Start 0110112004 00 0
274. entity generation event Single Event Event for Cyclical2 xj Schedule Valentine s Day Sale OK Cancel Entity use default Help Quantity fuse default Duration 4 0 Time Units Hours Repeat Event 0 lie I Infinite Comment A single event has the same parameters as a calendar cycle except that when the event begins cannot be specified A single event s starting date and time is dependent on the cycles that precede it in the pattern of cycles Once the event is active the generation occurs at the end of the duration Defining Inactive Time Periods The No Event cycle defines a period of time during which no Entities are generated for example a holiday or weekend The period of inActivity begins at whatever time SIMPROCESS invokes the No Event cycle Defining Specific Entity Generation Events in a File Entity generation events can be specified in an event file An event file is created with a text editor or some other means independent of SIMPROCESS such as a user written program With an event file a simulation can be run using data captured outside of SIMPROCESS For example most mail order businesses use computer systems to track customer sales information This information is storedin some kind of database This information can be extracted from the database and a series of entity generation events defined that precisely matches customer activity for an actual SIMPROCESS User s Manual 284 Defining a
275. enu Sales Process Entity Count Histogram and Sales Process Cycle Times Trace SIMPROCESS User s Manual 192 Custom Plots Selecting the Sales and Service Processes causes the list to include plots assigned to both Processes Display Real Time Plots a xj Sales Calls Entities In System OK Sales Process Entity Count Histogram Hel Sales Process Cycle Times Trace Hep Service Calls Entities In System Select All Sales Process Service Process Entity Count Histogram Deselect All Service Process Cycle Times Trace Control click to select or deselect multiple reports Service Process Removing Plot Group A plot can be removed from a plot group by either changing the assignment using the Set Plot Group button or using the Remove Plot Group button on the Custom Plot Properties dialog The Remove Plot Group button simply removes the plot from the group and no reassignment occurs The button does nothing if the plot is not assigned to a group Setting Legends The legends on custom plots default to the names of the values in the plot for instance Software Sales Calls Entities In System The Set Legends button allows the legend title to be changed Also the color of the trace line can be changed When one or more values in the custom plot have been selected the Set Legends and Reset Legends buttons become active The Select All button selects all values in the custom plot and the Deselect All butto
276. eports once complete Also if selected OptQuest will prompt for more iterations when approaching the maximum iteration Interpret the results SIMPROCESS User s Manual 351 Optimization Setup Optimization Setup Preparing for Optimization In order to use OptQuest with a model the model must have model parameters of type Integer and or Real Model parameters are user controlled values that typically set some of the initial conditions of a simulation For instance if Truck is a resource in the model a model parameter could be used to set the number of the resource Truck available In the Inventory demonstration model see SIMPROCESS Getting Started Manual reorder levels are controlled by model parameters When a model is run that has model parameters a dialog appears that allows values of the model parameters to be changed before the run begins The image below shows the model parameter dialog from the Purchasing demonstration model There are three model parameters NumProdAPersonnel NumP rodBPersonnel and NumProdCPersonnel All three of these are Model Attributes and their Mode is Integer These model parameters set the number of units of the resources ProductAPersonnel ProductBPersonnel and ProductCPersonnel Model Parameters x Run NumProdAPersonnel F Cancel NumProdBPersonnel NumProdCPersonnel 5 Help Reset All Description Number of Product A Personnel Reset Default ir Mode Integer
277. eriment Manager The Experiment Manager sets up model runs that SIMPROCESS will run automatically and optionally after each run place the results in the database This is accomplished by defining experiments in SIMPROCESS which are stored in SIMPROCESS reads the information from Experiments xml inthe SPUser directory Experiments xml loads the appropriate model runs the model then optionally commits the results to the database The five items on the Experiment menu control the operation of the Experiment Manager Define Experiments Run All Experiments Run Selected Experiments Run Specific Experiment Import Database Experiments SIMPROCESS User s Manual 334 Defining Experiments Defining Experiments An experiment can have multiple models a model can have multiple designs a design can have multiple scenarios and a scenario can optionally have multiple Model Parameters page 215 and Process Alternatives page 73 Selecting Define Experiments Using SIMPROCESS brings up a dialog experiment information is entered LT xX Experiment Setup i Scena fu OK i Cancel Experiment id Help V Selected rc Ondo Delete jispla rror Alerts JV Turn Of Animation J Commit Results To Database If no experiments have been defined everything is disabled except the Experiment combo box If there are already experiments defined the first experiment appears in the Exper
278. ersion must be 2 2 1 2 2 2 or 2 2 3 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 401 Appendix A Importing Version 2 2 1 Models Preparing Your Model For Import The import procedure reads a 2 2 1 2 2 2 or 2 2 3 model file and converts the information to XML that can be read by SIMPROCESS version 3 or higher However due to limitations in 2 2 1 and 2 2 2 files some preparation may be required For larger models it is recommended that they be opened and saved in 2 2 3 Without being saved in 2 2 3 importing the properties of an Activity Connector Pad etc from earlier version models depends upon the name of that item Therefore if there are duplicate names at the same level errors will occur and the conversion will not be complete Depending on the version of your model there are three or four primary steps in preparing your model for import The first item only applies to models that have not been saved in 2 2 3 e Make sure there are no duplicate names at the same level 2 2 1 and 2 2 2 only e Make sure certain special characters are not in names e Make sure all required fields are complete e Make sure all special graphics are imported before importing the model Duplicate Names 2 2 1 and 2 2 2 When checking the names be concerned with names that are at the same level of hierarchy First make sure no Activities or Processes have the same name this should have already been enforced by SIMPROCESS 2 2 Second make sure no
279. ertFit executes ExpertFit a data analysis application from Averill Law amp Associates which can be used to analyze data to determine the best standard statistical distribution fit OptQuest executes OptQuest optimization from OptTek See Chapter 15 OptQuest for SIMPROCESS beginning on page 349 for more information Remote has four submenus SIMPROCESS User s Manual 50 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus Start Local Dashboard Server starts the Dashboard Server to run Dashboards locally See Displaying Dashboards on page 395 Start RMI Registry starts the Java RMI Registry Start SPServer will not activate until the Java RMI Registry has been started Start SPServer starts SPServer SPServer must be started for External schedules to operate See Adding an External Schedule on page 286 Stop SPServer stops SPServer Repair Cross References Cross references are used in SIMPROCESS models to track Entities Resources and Attributes so items cannot be deleted that are in use Models developed in releases 3 0 through 3 1 1 could have invalid cross references Recommend running this utility on models developed in release 3 0 through release 3 1 1 The action is applied to the active model Collect Model Metrics displays a list of metrics for the active model The metrics can be saved to a file Metrics include Model Name Number of each type of Activity Delay Generate etc Number of Process Alternati
280. es 4 Make sure the Show Text Box is checked The text entered is not displayed in the model unless this box is not checked 5 Click on OK Note The Text Block is best used with blank box icons Icons with a picture on them will not show the Text Block properly Process properties include an additional option on the Text Block tab The Add Text Label check box places a label that contains the text of the Text Block inside each alternative of the Process SIMPROCESS User s Manual 61 Using the Palette Bar to Create Activities Process Properties General Attributes Expressions Event Logs Text Block Documentation Line 1 Text Wait for Line 2 Text Available Line 3 Text Technician Font Attributes Font Name Serif Size ho Color ET Bold C ttatic Show Text V Add Text Label Cancel Help New Entity Global Attributes Entity New Resource Entity Type Resource Comment Model The lines of text are appended together with a space between each line to create the label Select the Properties button to set whether the label should be displayed horizonally or vertically and to set the Font Attributes of the label Text Label Properties Label Orientation Horizontal O Vertical Font Attributes v Font Name Times New Roman Size 24 Color Black V Bold Italic The label will be cen
281. es and Methods Each are listed along with a description Also there are examples for several of the System Methods SIMPROCESS User s Manual 458 System Attributes System Attributes This section lists all the SIMPROCESS system attributes in a table and provides examples of system methods Model Elements SIMPROCESS Sysiem Aitributes Attribute Name Attribute Type Description System Level Model Get OBJECT Reference of the Model being simu lated Self Get OBJECT Reference of the Model Element itself Replication Get INTEGER Current replication number Entity Type Name Get STRING Name of the Entity Priority Both INTEGER Default priority for Entity instances of this type NumberIn Get INTEGER Number of Entity instances of this type currently in the system NumberCreated Get INTEGER Number of Entities instances gener ated for this type NumberDisposed Get INTEGER Number of disposed Entities instances of this type Interrupt Both BOOLEAN Determines whether Entity instances of this type will interrupt the processing of a lower priority Entity Entity instance Name Get STRING Name of this Entity Activity Get OBJECT Reference of Activity this Entity instance resides in BatchSize Get INTEGER Number of Entity instances in this Entity s batch CreateTime Get REAL Time the Entity instance was created SIMPROCESS User s Manual 459
282. es are displayed on the right In this example All Resources is selected on the left and Capacity Cost on the right When OK is selected All Resources Capacity Cost appears in Value to Optimize Set Objective Value to Optimize C Maximize All Resources Capacity Cost Minimize avg StDev C Min C Max In the Inventory model the Value to Optimize is Model InventoryPlusOrderTime Value There are four options for the Value to Optimize Avg Average StDev Standard Deviation Min Minimum and Max Maximum For this example the average capacity cost for all the resources is needed Since stochastic random simulation models should be run for more than one replication the capacity cost of all resources for each replication is averaged Note about Min and Max Min or Max should only be used when the constraints should bring convergence For instance if minimizing the maximum wait time was the goal Max should be chosen for the Value to Optimize Doing that though assumes there are constraints that would limit the maximum Decision Variables The Decision Variables tab contains a table similar to the table on the Model Parameters dialog This table lists all the model parameters in the model no matter what Mode However only those model parameters whose Mode is Integer or Real are decision variables The Starting Value is the value OptQuest will use on the first iteration If new values are not entered the Starting Value is
283. ese buttons are used to place model building blocks on the SIMPROCESS layout the central region of the SIMPROCESS window Hierarchical Select ii 3 ES Process Connector ig Connector Input Pad gt I gt Output Pad Generate e a Dispose o Delay At ane Assemble Branch L He Merge Ta oa Batch a l Unbatch 3 a Split 2Bs aJa Join Transform 2 m gt Transfer 1 Gate aa atb Assign Synchronize oy 4 Replenish oe Resource Get 4 h Free Resource Resource Background T 2 Background Text Ea Graphic Begin by adding a Generate Activity to the model Click once on the Generate Activity Palette bar button Next point and click on the SIMPROCESS layout A Generate Activity icon is added at that location Press and hold the Shift key while clicking on the layout to add several activities of the same type i e Generate Each time the layout is clicked a Generate icon is added to the layout Release the SIMPROCESS User s Manual 57 Using the Palette Bar to Create Activities Shift key before dropping the last icon or click once on the Select tool to deactivate the Generate button Removing Objects from the Layout Select an object such as an Activity icon from the layout and press the Delete key Several items may be removed at one time by drawing a rectangle around the objects and pressing Delete or selecting Edit Clear from the menu or the popup menu Common Activity Input Fields Activity
284. esource Adds capacity to consumable Resources e Get Resource Obtains a Resource and holds on to it across several Processes and Activities e Free Resource Releases Resources obtained by Get Resource Activities Resource related Activities are described in Chapter 5 Resource Modeling Constructs beginning on page 126 The Entity Related Activities are covered in this chapter SIMPROCESS User s Manual 95 Entity Related Activities Entity Related Activities Activities that are used to coordinate grouping of Entities are addressed here The type of coordination to be done is specified at the Activity Entities are queued up in these Activities except for unbatch split until the conditions are met This queueing time is reported as Hold for Condition in the reports This is reported separately from the Wait for Resource queueing time which can accumulate at any Activity for which a Resource requirement has been specified e Assemble Activity e Batch Activity e Unbatch Activity e Gate Activity e Synchronize Activity e Split Activity e Join Activity Assemble Activity The Assemble Activity is used to build several Entities into a single output Entity Consider a case where two approvals and a check are required to form one approved loan An Assemble Activity can be used to model this process Assemble has two input Pads Component and Trigger and two output Pads Out and NoMatch that determine E
285. esource to Resource See Evaluate Evl Function on page 235 for a discussion of Ev 1 and see System Attributes on page 459 for a description of the Resource System Attribute Capacity IMPORTANT The Number of Units Down should not be larger than the number of units defined for the Resource Downtime Duration is the length of time that the resource is unavailable In the above daytime shift example 16 would be specified in this field Duration Units is the time unit that applies to the Downtime Duration e Planned specifies that the period of unavailability is planned For example a vacation may be planned whereas sick time is not planned If unchecked then the statistics for downtime display as Unplanned downtime e Interrupt Activities signals SIMPROCESS to interrupt the processing of any Activities that are currently using this Resource What happens to the Entities that are processing at an Activity that is interrupted is determined by the resource usage dialog of the Activity See Adding Resource Requirements to Activities on page 131 If Release Entities In Process at Start of Downtime is not selected at the Activities Entities using the resource at these Activities have their remaining processing time saved and are placed at the head of the wait queue for the resource The entity does not leave the Activity and will remain there until all of its processing has completed Note that the Get Resource and Free Re
286. esrcbusy Max 1 returns the maximum number of Sales Rep units busy for replication 1 GetResourceByActivityStatistic GetResourceByActivityStatistic returns the value of a statistic for a Resource that has Collect Resource By Activity Statistics selected either globally on the Resource properties See Default Performance Measures on page 163 The syntax is GetResourceByActivityStatistic Resource Name Activity Name Value Type Replication where Resource Name is the name of the Resource and Activity Name is the name of the Activity Value Type can be Avg StDev Min Max Count or RunLength Replication is the replication desired or the average or sum of replications Some examples GetResourceByActivityStatistic Sales Rep Sales Avg 1 returns the average number of Sales Rep units busy at Activity Sales across replications GetResourceByActivityStatistic Sales Rep Sales Max 1 returns the maximum number of Sales Rep units busy at Activity Sales for replication 1 GetTimeStampStatistic Get TimeStampStatistic returns the value ofa time stamp that has either Collect Statistics Real Time Trace Plot or Real Time Histogram Plot selected on the time stamp definition See Time Stamps on page 177 The syntax is GetTimeStampStatistic Start Key Stop Key Value Type Replication where Start Key is the starting key of the time stamp and Stop Key is the st
287. ext Block Text Label M Show Name M Confirm Delete C Auto Connect Activities Apply Show Name Activity Width 32 Apply Activity Size Activity Height 32 C Apply Process Size Process Width 68 Process Height 44 Time Between Auto Saves Mins a 0 Maximum Number of Files on Recent File List 4 i Adobe Acrobat Reader crobat 6 0 AcrobatiAcrobat exe Email contact for published models aa 0 Maximum Number of Edit Log Entries 0 unlimited Preferences selected for application to the active model are applied when OK is clicked Before the selected actions are applied to the active model a dialog confirming that these actions should occur appears 24 SIMPROCESS User s Manual SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus Confirm Apply x 2 Apply selected actions to whole model Time required depends on size of model and actions selected If No is selected the active model is not updated It may take a few minutes to apply updates to a large model Other editing actions are not allowed while the update occurs Note that these updates actually change the properties of the active model The options to display or not display Activity Pad and Connection names on the View menu do not change the model properties just what is currently visible See page 41 There are seven tabs on the Preferences menu e Processes Activities e Text Block e Text Label e Background Text e
288. f All Replications report is selected which allows selection of 90 95 or 99 confidence intervals for each performance measure Select to view the Standard Report with a Text Editor Wordpad by default or with a Spread Sheet and press the Display Report button to open the report See Chapter 8 Output Reports beginning on page 162 for more detail on the Standard Report SIMPROCESS User s Manual 82 CHAPTER 3 Statistical Modeling Constructs SIMPROCESS allows the analyzing of processes using discrete event simulation This means that SIMPROCESS models systems by taking the processes that happen in the real world and breaking them down into the key events that occur Parts move to a station in a factory are processed and then move to the next station If one part goes into a station and one part comes out then the most important aspect of modeling the station would be to capture the processing time which in the real world will vary due to any number of fac tors by a statistical distribution A Statistical distribution is used to give the model the randomness that always occurs in the real world Of course if things in the real world never varied simulation would not be needed Mean value analysis of your system would suffice Mean value analysis is a sim ple way of predicting system performance by looking only at average rates Unfortunately the real world almost never matches the performance predicted by mean value
289. f models can be copied from one model and pasted into another model However the copy action only copies the Activity Connector structure References to Entities Resources Resource Downtimes user defined distributions Functions or Attributes within the Activities are not carried because those items may or may not exist in the model in which the paste occurs This means all those references must be redefined in the new model When this occurs a dialog will appear after the paste that lists the items that have invalid references Those items can be edited from the list Templates also allow portions of one model to be used in another model However since templates carry references to the Entities Resources and Attributes used those items remain referenced in the Activities Those references do not have to be redefined in the new model SIMPROCESS User s Manual 209 CHAPTER 10 Customizing a Model with Attributes and Expressions SIMPROCESS provides a wide range of predefined model elements and statistical options but every business Process is unique in some way There will be times when flexibility is needed to model complex situations and the built in functions of SIMPROCESS may be inadequate In those cases Attributes and Expressions can be defined For example a typical SIMPROCESS model for an appliance manufacturer s distribution Process might include a batch Activity where customer orders are collected for shipment Product
290. f the Generate Activity add the following line UpdateDynamicLabel MasterEditor total 0 DarkBlue Num berGenerated The first parameter of this method must be MasterEditor and input as shown SIMPROCESS User s Manual 484 System Method Examples Methods OpenFile CloseFile ReadFromFile and WriteToFile OpenFile opens the file specified in the Filename field for either input or output The mode must be either input or output not case sensitive Input opens a file to read while output opens a file to write Any other specifications will lead to an error message Both arguments are STRING type i e they must be surrounded by quotation marks OpenF i le returns an Object type value which is required in CloseFile ReadFromFile and WriteToFile methods OpenFile Mode Filename OBJECT By default SIMPROCESS will look for either input or output files in the directory of the active model Either file can be placed elsewhere as long as the path is specified in the OpenFile statement Note that double backslashes must be used instead of single backslashes in file paths The following example opens a file nyout put dat for output First define a Model Attribute MyOut Stream that is type Object If the file is to be opened in the Start Run expression make sure that Do Not Reset Before Each Replication is selected onthe attribute properties dialog Ifthe fileis opened in the Sta
291. fault name assigned by SIMPROCESS is the same as the schedule type in this case Periodic Entity specifies the type of entity to be generated by this schedule Use default tells SIMPROCESS to generate the type of entity indicated in the Generate Activity Properties dialog To specify a different type click on the pull down arrow for a list of entity types to choose from Quantity is the number of Entities to be produced at each entity generation by this schedule Again use default refers back to the value in the Generate Activity Properties dialog See page 63 of the SIMPROCESS User s Manual for additional details on this field Interval defines the time between entity generation events for this schedule Schedule Start and End define the effective period for this schedule The times in the Start and End fields apply just to this schedule The Start and End dates for the schedule SIMPROCESS User s Manual 277 Defining a More Complex Generate Activity must be within the Start and End dates specified on the Generate Activity Properties dialog If a date is not entered for either Start or End the corresponding value if any in the Generate Activity Properties applies Count Limit sets the maximum number of Entities that can be generated by this schedule A Count Limit value of 0 indicates that there is no limit If the Count Limit is reached the Generate Activity may stop generating Entities for this schedule This depend
292. finition discarded Truck Status without definition discarded Truck Status without definition discarded Truck Status without definition discarded Truck Status without definition discarded Truck Status without definition discarded Truck Status without definition discarded Truck Status without definition discarded Truck Status without definition discarded Truck Status without definition discarded Truck Status without definition discarded Truck Status without definition discarded Truck Status without definition discarded Truck Status without definition discarded Truck Status without definition Note that it is possible for messages to not be received by the Dashboard Server or to be received out of order To minimize this risk and improve performance it is suggested that Dashboards not display a large more than 10 number of values on a large number of Graphs more than 4 For example one Line Graph can plot multiple values no limit as far as the Line Graph is concerned However this means that messages for 10 different values must be received by the Dashboard Server Alternatively there could be 10 Meters which each take one value Again 10 different values must be received by the Dashboard and the Dashboard must update 10 different Graphs If possible keep the number of values to 10 or less on 4 or less Graphs Also it is suggested that the simulation be run with the animation turned on This slows down the s
293. following x Expressions EventLoas TextBlock Documentation General Resources Attributes Caneel Copy Global Entity Instance Attributes Help aye New Entity _NewResource_ gt gt Remove All Global Attributes Enti I Copy Creation Time Entity i Entity Type I Copy Time Stamps Resource I Copy Entity Priority Model Comment The following options on the Copy Entity Fields and Attributes tab can be selected e Copy Creation Time copies the simulation creation time of the original Entity to the transformed Entities e Copy Time Stamps applies the list of predefined timestamps carried by the arriving Entity to transformed Entities e Copy Entity Priority applies the priority of the arriving Entity to transformed Entities SIMPROCESS User s Manual 109 Entity Control Activities The transformed Entity receives the default Priority value defined in the Entity Library unless it is copied User Defined Entity Attribute values associated with the incoming Entity may also be copied During simulation different variable types Integer Real Boolean and String can be added to an Entity Click on OK when finished to leave the dialog confirming your current selections The Cancel button cancels the current dialog selections Branch Activity A Branch Activity routes Entities to different paths of the process model It allows modelling decision processes with alternative pathways selecte
294. g Highlight the resource allocation to be modified and press Edit Units may be a constant or a distribution Resource requirements can also be set by using the Evl function with User defined Attributes See Variable Resource Usage on page 224 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 131 Adding Resource Requirements to Activities If the units requested are larger than the defined capacity of the Resource and the Resource is not a consumable Resource aruntime error will occur However if the Resource is aconsumable Resource the Entity will remain in the wait for Resource queue Entities remain in the wait for Resource queue until the consumable Resource has been replenished to a level at or above the required allocation Remove deletes the requirement highlighted in the Requirements box Once a list of Resources has been chosen for the activity the combination of Resources in the Requires area may be specified Requires defines the combination of Resources required to perform this activity e Any One Member any one of the Resources listed is sufficient to perform the task All Members all members in the Requirements list are needed in order for this activity to Process an Entity SIMPROCESS does not obtain any member until all the required Resources are available e Reserve As Available all listed Resources are required and will be reserved as they become available e Number Of Members A certain number of members
295. g business processes Why Dynamic Modeling A computerized dynamic model simulates the flow of materials and information through the Process The dynamic model accounts for the random variations in how work is done and the way materials and information flow through the real world Simulation offers several advantages over a simple pictorial abstraction ofa business Process SIMPROCESS employs discreteevent simulation tocapture the time varying nature of the Process under study SIMPROCESS advantages include e First the analyst can correlate the data produced by the model with measurements taken from the real Processes to increase certainty that the model has adequately captured the essential features of the real Process e Second the model will generate quantified Process measurements such as excess capacity or bottlenecks the time it takes work items to flow through the Process and the percentage of time expended in value adding Processes versus non value adding Processes e Third the model allows the analyst to evaluate in quantified terms the effects of reengineering the Process SIMPROCESS User s Manual 14 What is SIMPROCESS What is SIMPROCESS SIMPROCESS is a hierarchical and integrated Process simulation tool that radically improves your productivity for Process modeling and analysis SIMPROCESS is designed for BPR and IT professionals of industrial and service enterprises who need toreduce the time and risk
296. g it in favor of anew Dashboard created from the selected file Save saves the current work area into its Dashboard file If no file has yet been associated with it this behaves the same as Save As Save As saves the current Dashboard to a new file If an existing file is selected SIMPROCESS will question whether to overwrite that file Preview will be enabled when the Dashboard in the work area contains one or more Graphs It will open a separate window with the specified layout size Layout Size containing actual sample graphs configured with the properties set in each graph panel This is how the actual Dashboard will look when shown by a Dashboard Server Close closes the SIMPROCESS Dashboards window If the current Dashboard has been changed SIMPROCESS will prompt to save those changes Edit Menu Cut is enabled only if one or more Graphs are selected as indicated by a red border Cut removes the selected Graphs from the layout and places them onto the clipboard where they may later be pasted back into the current or a different Dashboard Copy is enabled only if one or more Graphs are selected as indicated by a red border Copy places a copy of the selected Graphs onto the clipboard where they may later be pasted back into the current or a different Dashboard Paste is enabled only if one or more Graphs has been placed via Cut or Copy onto the clipboard Paste places Graphs from the clipboard onto the layout The clipboard s
297. g on the background in the location where text is to be placed Text can be moved by clicking and dragging The following shows a static label Note that the Static Label field and Font Attributes are all that are required for a static label xi Static Label As ls Call Proessing OK Dynamic Label Properties Cancel Name Id SetValue F Help Mode String Width fio Entity Value Precision 5 lime Stamp Model Attributes Font Attributes Font Name SansSerif ss se f2 o Color Black V Bold I Italic Angle 0 0 z Comment The dialog is divided into two sections the top group of controls designated as Dynamic Label Properties is only applicable to dynamic text the bottom group Font Attributes is used to specify all text properties Defaults for the Font Attributes can be set on the Background SIMPROCESS User s Manual 141 Background Text Text tab of the Preferences dialog Edit Preferences SIMPROCESS provides a list of the available fonts Some fonts will not properly display their names in the combo box if the Java environment is unable to handle them Avoid using these fonts All rotation settings in the Angle combo box can be used with any font settings Note that once the text is placed on the layout the selection box around it has no handles The only way to resize font text is to change its point size in the Fonts dialog Once the text is placed on
298. ge values sometimes occur It is always skewed to the right and it has a longer right tail than the gamma or Weibull distributions The lognormal distribution is closely related to the classical normal distribution see the book Simulation Modeling and Analysis Third Edition by Law and Kelton 2000 for details Furthermore the parameters of the lognormal distribution namely mean and standard deviation correspond to the lognormal distribution and are not the mean and standard deviation of the corresponding normal distribution SIMPROCESS User s Manual 435 Appendix D Statistical Distributions Poisson Distribution Plot for Poi 2 0 1 0 9 0 8 07 0 6 0 5 0 4 0 3 0 2 PDF Poi 2 0 1 CDF Poi 2 0 1 0 1 i 0 0 Mm m 4 2 9 4 5 Poisson distribution with mean 2 Syntax Poi mean stream The Poisson distribution discrete with mean m is the distribution of the number of customers that arrive to some system in any time interval of length 1 when the interarrival times have an exponential distribution continuous with mean 1 m SIMPROCESS User s Manual 436 Appendix D Statistical Distributions Hyper Exponential Distribution Plot for Hex 5 0 10 0 0 5 1 T T T 1 0 PDF Hex 5 0 10 0 0 5 1 CDF Hex 5 0 10 0 0 5 1 4 L 1 Hyper exponential distribution with mean1 5 mean2 10 and probability1 0 5 Syntax Hex mean1 mean2 probability 1
299. ger Distribution Int minimum maximum stream Johnson Sz Distribution JSBGninimum maximum shape shape2 stream Johnson Sy Distribution JSU location scale shapel shape2 stream Log Logistic Distribution LL g location scale shape stream Log Laplace Distribution LLp ocation scale shape stream Lognormal Distribution Log mean standard deviation stream Negative Binomial Distribution NgB s probability stream Normal Distribution non negative Nor mean standard deviation stream Normal Distribution unbounded Nrm mean standard deviation stream Pareto Distribution Par location shape stream Poisson Distribution Poi mean stream SIMPROCESS User s Manual 320 SIMPROCESS Statistical Distributions Pearson Type V Distribution PTS location scale shape stream Pearson Type VI Distribution PT6 location scale shapel shape2 stream Random Walk Distribution RnWi location scale shape stream Triangular Distribution Tri minimum mode maximum Uniform Distribution Uni minimum maximum stream Weibull Distribution Wei shape scale stream SIMPROCESS User s Manual 32 CHAPTER 13 SIMPROCESS Database The Windows version of SIMPROCESS includes a Microsoft Access 2000 database SimProcDB mdb designed to hold simulation results from simulation
300. h interval Simulation First Entity Begins Generated _ _ _ Midnight 1 00 2 00 3 00 4 00 Entity Generation at Intervals of 1 hour For example assume Customer Orders to arrive at an exponential rate with an average of 20 arrivals per hour Click on the Interval pull down arrow and find the definition for Exponential Distributions It reads Exp 10 0 Select the distribution Then click on the details button to the right of the pull down arrow This displays a dialog for defining the parameters of the distribution x OK Mean 10 0 Cancel i Help Stream view SIMPROCESS User s Manual 64 Generate Activity Set the Mean value to indicate an average Entity generation rate of 20 per hour Assume that Quantity is 1 meaning that only one Entity is produced at each Entity generation event e Generate an Entity every 3 minutes to get 20 Entities in an hour 60 minutes The View button displays a graphical representation of the distribution BB distribution Plotter xi File Edit Special BR fet Plot for Exp 10 0 1 BIRME 10H i i i 1 PDF p40 0 1 CDF Exp 10 0 1 oat 4 osr 7 Stream identifies the random number stream used to seed the distribution More can be learned about statistical distributions and random number streams in Chapter 3 Statistical Modeling Constructs beginning on page 83 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 65
301. h node in which the merchandise order is canceled In this situation one branch of the path leads to a Free Resource activity where the consumable Resource is not consumed since it was not used The other path continues on to the shipping activity and then to a Free Resource activity in which the fuel Resource is consumed Getting and freeing Resources can also be accomplished using expressions See Getting and Freeing Resources Using Expressions on page 253 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 136 Replenishing Consumable Resources Replenishing Consumable Resources The Replenish Resource activity is used to replenish a consumable Resource during a simulation Diesel fuel is a consumable resource used when shipping merchandise Once an order is made the truck and a quantity of fuel will be allocated as Resources to perform the shipping The fuel quantity is deducted from the inventory and gets replenished by a daily shipment received each morning x Expressions EventLoas TextBlock Documentation OK General Resources Attributes Cancel Help New Entity New Resource Global Attributes Entity Entity Type Resource Model Requirements Diesel Fuel 200 0 i Clerks x Remove Edit Help p Requires Any One Member c All Members C Reserve As Available C Number of Members fi Jone T Release Entities In Process at Start of Downtime Comm
302. h will cause an error The following table shows the valid types for different value types Integer and real are any SIMPROCESS User s Manual 485 System Method Examples valid numerical values ReadF romF ile will either truncate areal value to integer for an Integer type variable or float an integer value to real for a Real type variable String is a sequence of characters If spaces are included surround the whole string with l Boolean can only be either TRUE or FALSE Any other value will cause an error Boolean values are not case sensitive Value Types in File Variable Types Integer Real String Boolean Integer OK Truncated Error Error Real FLOATed OK Error Error String OK OK OK OK Boolean Error Error Error OK Object Error Error Error Error Example The input file contains This is a test for ReadFromFile 123 67 89 TRUE The expression reads as StrVal STRING IntVal INTEGER RealVal REAL BoolVal BOOLEAN ReadFromFile Model MyInStream StrVal IntVal ReadFromFile Model MyInStream RealVal BoolVal The expression will read in the following StrVal has the value This is a test for ReadFromFile IntVal has the value 123 RealVal has the value 67 89 BoolVal1 has the value TRUE WriteToFile writes the values of the specified variables to a file that is open for output The first argument is the output stream that is the returned value f
303. h3 to Delay2 overlays the Connector from Delay2 to Branch3 This is because the Connector from Branch3 to Delay2 took the default path Thus this Connector will need to be deleted and redrawn Converting Connectors using the vertices of the corners created strange results due to the change in coordinate systems Using the default Connector between Activities means only special Connectors need to be redrawn SIMPROCESS User s Manual 410 Appendix A Importing Version 2 2 1 Models sImPROCESS Professional E 5 x File Edit Layout View Create Define Simulate Report Experiment Tools Help Window Osal el zls x e lale m H HlFeedback MEIE e Generatel At Delay2 Branch3 os Disposed A Text Blocks Static Labels and Dynamic Labels Text blocks are labels that can display on Processes or Activities In earlier versions of SIMPROCESS the font used for text blocks was a vector font The font would scale as the Process or Activity was resized InSIMPROCESS 3 the text blocks were improved to allow the font attributes font type color size and style to be set This requires using the fonts native to your system Therefore the font will not scale as a Process or Activity is resized During conversion the default font attributes are used The default font attributes may not fit the Process or Activity or the default font attributes may be too small for the Process or Activity The mo
304. hapters 3 and 4 of the Getting Started With SIMPROCESS manual provides a tutorial and Chapter 5 provides a description of the demonstration and reference models User s Manual The User s Manual is distributed in electronic format with SIMPROCESS It can be opened directly from the SIMPROCESS Installation CD or from the Help On line Documentation menubar option SIMPROCESS User s Manual 10 Organization of the SIMPROCESS Documentation Set The User s Manual is divided into three parts Part A is an excellent reference for beginners and casual users This part contains a detailed documentation of the basic and intermediate functions of SIMPROCESS Chapters 1 and 2 provide SIMPROCESS terminology and basics Chapter 3 provides a detailed description of SIMPROCESS Statistical Constructs and their use Chapter 4 describes in detail how the SIMPROCESS Activity Modeling blocks are used Chapter 5 describes the use of Resources Graphical Modeling Constructs are covered in Chapter 6 Chapter 7 is dedicated to Activity Based Costing and Chapter 8 covers the Output Reports for analysis Part B is a reference intended for advanced users of SIMPROCESS This part contains a detailed documentation of the programming and library management functions in SIMPROCESS Professional Chapter 9 provides documentation of the Reusable Templates and Library Management Chapter 10 covers the advanced SIMPROCESS constructs such as attributes expressions and
305. has been registered using the Java RMI Registry It is the responsibility of the user to develop the RMI server program and start the application The expression script method simply has to have the name of the server computer could be the same computer that the model is running on or could be a separate server over the network the server object to be called the remote method to call and the parameter list that matches the remote procedure in the user written server Example mybool BOOLEAN mybool RemoteCall rmi localhost server demo putPlot Data SimTime Self NumberAccepted In the example above aremote server application this one happens to be running on the same computer as the model hence the localhost URL address called server demo is looked up using the Java RMI registry and the putPlotData method is called with two parameters SimTime and NumberAccepted where NumberAccepted is the number of Entities accepted in the Activity See System Attributes on page 459 The following is a description of the server application showing the actual Java code needed to implement this example This textisnotacomplete reference to RMI programming and we recommend SIMPROCESS User s Manual 489 System Method Examples you reference any of the many Java published materials on RMI java sun com is a good place to start The following is a list of the source Java programs that demonstrate
306. he simulation The results are not available until the simulation is complete Attribute Value Statistics The attribute value statistics must be specified in the dialogs where attributes themselves are defined If the attributes are defined while Entity types are being defined then the statistics must be selected where those attributes are defined SIMPROCESS User s Manual 168 Custom Statistics x Name Totatime oK Mode Re o Cancel Value ob Help Array Dimension fo Set Plot Properties J Model Parameter l Do Not Reset Before Each Replication Comment Statistics Types r Report Requests Observation Based IV Real Time Histogram Plot C Time Weighted IV Real Time Trace Plot IV Standard Report Time Weighted Average This collects time weighted statistics for Entity attributes Observation Based Average This collects observation based statistics for Entity attributes Real Time Histogram Plot This displays a histogram of the attribute s values Real Time Trace Plot This displays a trace of the attribute s values Standard Report Displays the results in the Standard Report Set Plot Properties Displays a plot properties dialog for each type of plot selected Resource Statistics Resource statistics provide detailed information about the amount of time Resources spend in possible states during a simulation SIMPROCESS provides four types of sta
307. he trace are connected only to improve their visibility and are not meant to suggest continuity Entities in System Trace and Entities in System Histogram These charts show the individual Entity count measurements that is the number of Entities that exist in the model for each Entity type Charts are generated for each Entity type that is selected The charts are updated as each Entity of the given type is created and disposed in the model SIMPROCESS User s Manual 166 Custom Statistics E SIMPROCESS Real Time Graph lo0l x File Edit Special Sales Call Entities In System Trace BIRME Observations Mean U i j pi i yi it 0 5 10 15 20 25 Simulation Time in Hours M smprocEsS Real Time Graph l0 x File Edit Special Sales Call Entities In System Histogram ERME rae Wait For Resource Trace and Wait For Resource Histogram These charts show the current number of Entities that are in the waiting for Resource state SIMPROCESS User s Manual 167 Custom Statistics Wait For Resource Cycle Times Trace and Wait For Resource Cycle Times Histogram These charts show the time spent waiting for Resources Hold For Condition Trace and Hold For Condition Histogram These charts show the current number of Entities that are in the holding for condition state that may be associated with Activities such as assemble gate and batch Hold For Condition Cycle Times
308. he up arrow on the tool bar right click on blank area and choose Ascend or double click on any blank area of the model layout Choose Go To Top instead of Ascend to ascend to the top level of a model The Simulate option on the menu bar causes the following options to occur e Pause the simulation e Resume simulation after a pause e Stop the simulation before its scheduled end e Click on Animation Settings to change animation options The simulation pauses while this is being done Changing the animation options using the tool bar does not pause the simulation Double click on an Activity icon to bring up its properties dialog However any changes made will not be reflected in the running simulation Animation can be recorded for playback after the simulation ends See Post Simulation Animation on page 149 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 8l Standard Report Standard Report After the simulation run has completed the Standard Report may be displayed to view output statistics for the model From the Report menu bar choose Display Standard Report This will open the Display Standard Report dialog In the Report Replications list box if the model ran for multiple replications select an individual Replication the Average of All Replications run or the Sum of All Replications run Typically the report of interest will be the Average of All Replications report Calculate Confidence Intervals is activated if the Average o
309. hic while editing or navigating Turning the On Top option on brings the Background Graphic to the front of the layout display Typically this option is left off so that the Process Activities and Connectors on the screen will appear on top of the Background Graphic SIMPROCESS User s Manual 145 Importing Graphics Image Files Importing Graphics Image Files A Graphics Interchange Format gif Joint Photographic Experts Group jpeg or jpg or Portable Network Graphics png graphic can be imported into SIMPROCESS An imported graphic can be used as a Background Graphic as an icon representing a Process or Activity or as an icon representing an Entity Importing Background Images Select Import Background from the File menu to use an imported graphic as a background This will open the Import Background Image dialog x Image File Browse ir Background Name Cancel Select the Browse button and choose a graphics file Enter a name in the Background Name field This is the name that will display in the list ofavailable backgrounds Select OK to import the graphics file for use in SIMPROCESS Importing Activity Process and Entity Images Use the Icon Manager Tools Icon Manager to import a graphics file for use as a Process Activity or Entity The Icon Manager is used to import export and manage image files A single image file can be imported for use as an icon or multiple files such as a directory of imag
310. his chapter assumes the use of the Microsoft Access database with SIMPROCESS Those not using Windows will be compelled to use another database and Windows users may wish to have the flexibility to do so This section will provide information which those users must know to employ another database for analyzing results To store results in any database SIMPROCESS must have the file sProcDB properties in the SPUser directory The one provided by the installer is configured for use with the Access database Also included there are two example files which can aid in using another SQL database e mysql sProcDB properties e simprocessdb sql The mysql sProcDB properties file is an example of what needs to be put into the sProcDB properties file in order to use MySQL a popular open source database with SIMPROCESS It contains two required properties and others that are commented e jdbc drivers This property must provide the fully qualified name of a Java class which is a JDBC driver compatible with the database to be used The one in this example is from the MySQL Connector J driver available with MySQL at www mysql com The driver must be in the SIMPROCESS classpath at runtime so the jar file containing it should be placed into the jre lib ext directory under the SIMPROCESS installation directory e jdbc url This property identifies a specific database and is used to connect to it via the driv er named above Details on the possible forms and
311. his means the constraint SIMPROCESS User s Manual 366 Running an Optimization was feasible and was satisfied exactly Notice that the Best Value column and the Current Value column of the decision variable table sum to 10 Expression Constraint Best LF Current LF Best UF Current UF_ 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Resources 10 As B infinity infinity 1 0 1 0 Be C infinity infinity 5 0 5 0 Objective Graph The graph of the objective value plots the best objective value for each iteration Infeasible values are plotted with dots in red and feasible values are plotted in blue with Xs In the example below from the Purchasing model the first three values were infeasible and the remaining feasible Remember once the best value is feasible the best value will not be infeasible again To zoom in on a portion of the graph click and drag over the portion of the graph to enlarge The buttons above the graph do the following e Print the plot e Reset the X and Y ranges to their original empty plot starting values e Set the plot format e Rescale the plot to fit the data Used after zooming to return to full view of plot A fy EZ Best Objective Value BIRME 34400 aiaa infeasible Feasible x 34200 B e 34000 t 33800 y i 33600 u e 33400 33200 e gt U 4 a a Iteration Maximum Iterations Prompt When a maximum number of iterations has been set for the optimization the checkbox Prompt
312. hrough the Join Activity and exit through the NoMatch Pad No processing time will apply even if a delay duration is specified SIMPROCESS User s Manual 123 Entity Control Activities Join Properties L Expressions EventLogs Text Block Documentation General Resources Attributes Cancel Name Join19 M Show Name Use Text Black Help F 2 Icon i Join v ope New Entity Icon Set Default v New Resource Global Attributes Entity Batch Family Members Entity Type Family Name All Family Mernbers Required a We 3 Resource Model Duration Value None Units Hours d Collect Activity Statistics F Collect Activity by Entity Statistics Comment Dialog Field Definitions Family Name identifies the Entity family to be joined The pull down list for Family Name contains the names of all families that have been defined in the model Family names do not have to be unique in Join Activities i e two Join Activities could use the same family name This would be done if the same split Entities needed to be joined twice The exiting Entity could be a batch that could be later unbatched and joined again after further processing Batch Family Members tells SIMPROCESS to batch the child Entities with the original Entity The Entity could be separated into its components at an Unbatch Activity Otherwise all the child Entities are disposed in the
313. ht Only one item on the left can be selected at a time However multiple values on the right can be selected If all are desired the Select All button can be used Once selections are made click the Add Values button If the Add Values button is not clicked no values for plotting are added Thus multiple values from the items on the left Entity Resource etc can be added to the trace before clicking OK Note that statistics do not have to be collected on the values selected for the values to plot The custom plot below plots three values two Entity and one Activity Hardware Sales and Software Sales are Entities The value Entities In System is being plotted for both Sales Process is a Process The value Number Entities In Process is being plotted for it All three of these values have the same units number Only a trace plot is defined Following the dialog is the actual plot SIMPROCESS User s Manual 188 Custom Plots custom Plot Properties xi OK Hardware Sales Call Number In System Custom Plot Name Sales Calls Plots Sales Process Number Entities In Process Cancel Help Software Sales Call Number In System Trace Properties Histogram Properties Remove aa h e Real Time Trace Plot Remove All __SetPietGroup_ _Remove Plot roup_ Trace Title sales Calls In System Set Plot Group X Axis Label Time In Hours Remove Plot Group Y Axis Label Number of Entities Select Plot Values En
314. hundred points the T50 percentile 75 point is the data point that is in the 75 position when ranked by value Quartile Range Difference between the 25 percentile value and pe percentile value of the data set Range Difference between the minimum and maximum values of a data set Real valued Domain A domain whose range is the set of real numbers Residuals The differences between the actual values observed and the expected values as computed by astatistical test Sample Domain A domain whose range is the set of probability distributions supported by SIMPROCESS Skewness Characterizes the degree of asymmetry of a distribution around its mean A data set with positive skewness has a long tail to the right of its mean A data set with negative skewness has a long tail to the left of its mean SIMPROCESS User s Manual 456 Appendix E Statistical Tools Glossary Standard Deviation Square root of the variance Standard Error A measure of the spread of the data set about the mean Typically standard error is the one sigma error about the mean of the data set computed as the standard deviation divided by the square root of the number of data points Variance Variability of data set about the mean SIMPROCESS User s Manual 457 APPENDIX F SIMPROCESS System Attributes and Methods Chapter 10 discussed user defined attributes SIMPROCESS also includes numerous predefined System Attribut
315. ic schedule types Periodic Calendar and Usage Calen dar and Usage downtime schedules have variations A Periodic schedule of downtime is one that occurs at intervals of time The interval may be fixed every n time units or random sampled from a statistical distribution The Calendar schedules are calendar based with downtime occurring on particular dates or days of the week time of day etc Types are Yearly Every year on a particular date and time Monthly A specific day in each month e g 1 of the month Weekly A certain time of day on the specified day of the week e g Monday Tuesday Daily Every day beginning at the specified time Hourly Every hour beginning at n minutes past the hour Date A specific date and time There are two types of Usage downtime Unit Based and Time Based A Unit Based schedule is based on the number of units of the resource that have been used The amount of time the units were used is not considered The Time Based schedule considers the amount of time the resource has been busy When adding a new downtime schedule or editing an existing one a dialog will display that contains the parameters for that downtime schedule type SIMPROCESS User s Manual 298 Resource Downtime The Downtime Schedule dialog changes in appearance depending on the Schedule Type selected e If Schedule Type is periodic the downtime occurs at intervals of time indicated in the Time Betwe
316. ics must be selected where those attributes are defined Time Weighted Average This collects time weighted statistics for Resource attributes Observation Based Average This collects observation based statistics for Resource attributes Real Time Histogram Plot This displays a histogram of the attribute s values Real Time Trace Plot This displays a trace of the attribute s values Standard Report Displays the results in the Standard Report SIMPROCESS User s Manual 171 Custom Statistics Process Activity Statistics Process Activity Statistics provide detailed information about the numbers of Entities entering and leaving particular Processes Activities during a simulation SIMPROCESS provides seven types of Activity statistics e Cycle Time by State e Real time Plots e Total Entity Counts e Entity Count by State e Cycle Time by State by Entity e Entity Count by State by Entity e Attribute Values The Process Activity statistics are limited in scope to specific Processes Activities in contrast to Entity statistics whichencompass the entire model Cycle Time by State Total Entity Counts and Entity Count by State are selected globally from the Define Global Statistics Collection dialog by choosing Collect Activity Statistics or locally by choosing Collect Activity Statistics on the individual Activity properties dialog Activity statistics will be in the Standard Report for every Activity defined if
317. ied type that recorded entered the activity bytokenhere Only the last Number of entities of the value is specified type still resid recorded ing in the activity bytokenout Only the last Number of entities of the value is specified type that have recorded left the activity bytokenoutearly Only the last Number of entities of the value is specified type that left recorded the activity without pro cessing tokendelay Observation Total cycle time i e sum based of wait hold and pro cess at this activity tokenwaitdelay Observation Time waiting for avail based able resource at this activity tokenholddelay Observation Time waiting for condi based tion to be reached at this activity SIMPROCESS User s Manual 509 Appendix G Simulation Results File Type of Labels Statistics Descriptions tokenprocessdelay Observation Time processing entities based i e in the specified dura tions at this activity bytoken delay Observation Total cycle time i e sum based of wait hold and pro cess for the specified entity type at this activity bytokenwait delay Observation Time waiting for avail based able resource for the specified entity type at this activity bytokenhold delay Observation Time waiting for condi based tion to be reached for the specified entity type at this activity bytokenprocess delay Observation Time processing entities based i e in the specified dura tion
318. ies and steps that are automated with information technology This capability ties the manual process steps and the automated process steps supported by Use Case links together so that the system requirements are in complete context with the business process This feature is licensed by CACI separately from SIMPROCESS and is only available with the Windows version of SIMPROCESS For this feature to be active the additional license must be purchased and Rational Rose must be installed Rose Use Case links are added by selecting the Rose Use Case button on the Documentation tab on any activity properties dialog This button will only be enabled if the above criteria are met x General Resources Attributes Expressions EventLogs Text Block Documentation Bae Document Help URLFile Browse T Is URL New Entity Link Name New Resource Global Attributes Rose Use Case Entity Entity Type Resource Model Comment Clicking Rose Use Case brings up the following dialog The path to a Rose model file can be entered or the Browse button can be used to select a Rose model file Once a Rose model has been selected a reference to it is stored in the SIMPROCESS model file for subsequent use this reference will be invalidated if the file is later moved or renamed The connection to a Rose model remains until the SIMPROCESS User s Manual 516 Appendix I Exporting to UML model file name is cleared and the
319. ies to batch or amount of time of the next delay By modifying these system Attributes the behavior of the simulation can be affected System Attributes that cannot be changed include those that monitor statistics such as the number of Entities generated during the simulation These are called Get Only type System Attributes Information on the status of a simulation such as which Activity is processing an Entity or what type of Entity is being processed is also available through Get Only system Attributes See SIMPROCESS System Attributes and Methods beginning on page 458 for a complete list of System Attributes SIMPROCESS User s Manual 212 Introduction to Attributes and Expressions Expressions Attributes are a powerful simulation feature when used in conjunction with SIMPROCESS Expressions Expressions are user written statements that SIMPROCESS executes during a simulation run Expressions are defined at the point at which the Expression is to be evaluated for example at the beginning of the simulation or at the moment an Entity e g a customer order is received by an Activity e g order distribution In the case of the model where releasing of shipments depends on the total weight of orders such as appliances the following could be done 1 An Attribute called applianceWeight could be defined and its value set whenever an appliance order Entity is generated by SIMPROCESS The value to assign ap
320. ifi2 Then click on OK 5 Define downtime periods to account for the weekend Begin with Shift 1 For Schedule Name call it WeekendShift1 Schedule Type is Calendar The Type is Weekly A weekend occurs once every week When adding a Weekly schedule a list box with the days of the week appears on the dialog Day of Week is Saturday For Date and Time enter 9 under HH and 0 under MM and SS Again Milliseconds Microseconds and Nanoseconds may be left blank If a typical weekend begins after work on Friday remember that the time between 5 p m Friday and 9 a m Saturday was accounted for in the OffShift period In the Number of Units Down enter the number 3 This is the number of clerks on Shift 1 Downtime Duration is 48 0 Select the Planned check box xi Schedule Name fWeekendshitt OK Schedule Cancel Type weeky x Help rer hhimm ss msec usec nsec Date and Time Frere foacoooo a Day of Week Saturday z Number of Units Down 3 0 x Downtime Duration 48 0 z es Duration Units Hours Planned Interrupt Activities Release Al Resources Comment Click on OK when finished 6 Add the weekend Downtime period for Shift 2 Change Downtime to 74 00 Number of Units Down to 2 and name the schedule Weekend Shift2 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 304 Resource Downtime 7 Finally time unavailable due to illness will be defined Illness is more complex to model than weekend
321. ifying and validating a model as well as communicating a model to management or customers Normally when turned on animation displays while a model is simulating which causes the simulation to slow significantly In addition only the animation for the current simulation time can be viewed In other words something in the past cannot be viewed again without restarting the simulation and waiting through the simulation to get to the point of interest Post simulation animation displays an animation from a simulation without the simulation running During a simulation the animation is recorded for playback Animations can be recorded without displaying the animation during a simulation Playback of animations that have been recorded can be paused fast forwarded and rewinded Post Simulation Animation Toolbar Post simulation recording and playback is controlled by the post simulation animation toolbar The post simulation animation button displays and hides the post simulation animation toolbar The button is to the right of the Animation Speed slider on the main SIMPROCESS toolbar highlighted in red below The toolbar displays at the bottom of the SIMPROCESS layout Post Simulation Animation SIMPROCESS User s Manual 149 Post Simulation Animation GG simprocess Professional Edition File Edt Layout View Creste Define Simulste Repon Expenment Tools Window Help Dae a XmeaxnHwtFe t 4 Ew r A Eels Help Desk Staffing Levels
322. ig a problem as it sounds The individual components of a similar existing system will probably be close enough to ones in the proposed system to be useful in the model The data do not have to be exhaustive any data is much better than no data In fact a good test of the model building process is to build a model of an existing system and check how closely the model and the system match up This can often be a key to convincing others of the validity of the simulation modeling approach SIMPROCESS User s Manual 319 SIMPROCESS Statistical Distributions SIMPROCESS Statistical Distributions The following table contains the statistical distributions available in SIMPROCESS Other distributions can be created from these using the Define Distributions function See Statistical Distributions on page 425 for descriptions of each distribution Beta Distribution Bet shapel shape2 minimum max imum stream Binomial Distribution Bin trials probability stream Erlang Distribution Erl mean shape stream Exponential Distribution Exp mean stream Gamma Distribution Gam lt mean shape stream Geometric Distribution Geo probability stream Hyper Exponential Distribution Hex mean1 mean2 probability1 stream Inverse Gaussian Distribution InG location scale shape stream Inverted Weibull Distribution InW location scale shape stream Uniform Inte
323. imal point SIMPROCESS User s Manual 499 Appendix H External Events File e Records beginning with an asterisk are considered comments and are ignored by SIMPROCESS SIMPROCESS User s Manual 500 Appendix H External Events File Event Record Description In the following syntax diagram e Items in BOLD face must be entered exactly as shown e Items in italic face represent variables for which you must substitute a value e Items enclosed in brackets are optional Syntax time QUANTITY value ENTITY type ATTR name value Parameters Indicates that the ensuing value is to be added to the time of the last event processed time The time at which entities are to be created for this event record Specify either a specific date and time or a relative value Use the following format for a specific date and time mmlddlyyyy hh mm ss Where for example January 15 2007 at noon is represented as 01 15 2007 12 00 00 You can enter either real numbers or integers to indicate relative values real numbers are assumed to refer to hours while integers refer to days Forty eight hours after the start of simulation is shown as 48 0 Which is the same as two days after the start of the simulation 2 Forty eight hours after the previous entity generation event 48 0 0r 48 00 or 2 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 501 Appendix H External Events File Notes on specifying eve
324. ime schedules can be based on a day of the week SIMPROCESS calculates the day of the week as well as the month year and time of day at any moment in a simulation It maps the simulation dates to the real calendar For example in 2004 the year begins on a Thursday Setting the Simulation Time Unit SIMPROCESS allows the Simulation Time Unit to be set which is the time unit of the simulation clock The simulation clock must maintain a constant time unit The default is Hours Even though each individual time unit can be different those times are converted to the time unit of the simulation clock The default time units for simulation time on real time plots is set Also this is important for reducing rounding errors If the primary delays in the model are in seconds or less the time unit of the simulation clock should be set to Seconds or less Converting a delay in nanoseconds or even seconds to hours could result in rounding errors whereas converting a delay in nanoseconds to seconds or less would not SIMPROCESS User s Manual 78 Simulation Setup Animation Settings Animation 7 OK M Show Clock Cancel M Show Counts Help M Show Entities V Update Dynamic Labels Animation Speed 1 100 20 0 Show Clock turns the simulation time clock on or off while the simulation is running Show Counts If Show Counts is turned on each Activity or Process will display anumber above its icon e Generate Acti
325. iment combo box and all appropriate items are active To add to or modify an experiment already defined select an experiment from the Experiment combo box There may be aslight delay when a predefined experiment is selected This is because the first model for the experiment must be loaded and then processed Entering Experiment Information There are five fields that require entries for each experiment Experiment Selected Display Error Alerts Turn Off Animation and Commit Results To Database This shows an example experiment called Purchasing Type the name in the Experiment combo box then press Enter If not already active entering an experiment name causes the remaining items on the Experiment Setup tab and the Model Setup tab to activate SIMPROCESS User s Manual 335 Defining Experiments xi Experiment Setup Model Setup it Ste tip OK pA Cancel Experiment Purchasing y Cei Help V Selected Tl Display Error Alerts M Turn Off Animation Undo Delete M Commit Results To Database Delete Experiment Copy Experiment Once the experiment has been named then check or uncheck Selected The default is checked Selected is used as an option for running experiments Display Error Alerts defaults to unchecked If unchecked then SIMPROCESS will run the experiment without stopping to notify of errors This means SIMPROCESS will run every combination of model design and scenario that it can Th
326. imple label used in the reports SIMPROCESS provides no currency conversion facilities and assumes that all cost amounts are in the same currency e g Dollars or Euros When a particular cost period is selected and the View button is clicked SIMPROCESS will display the Cost Period detail dialog which shows the start and end dates and times for the cost period and the name of the period The name of each cost period can be changed to be more descriptive in the context of the cost report For example the cost periods could be called Spring Summer Fall and Winter rather than Quarter Quarter2 etc Click the OK button to alter the cost period name or the Cancel button to discard any changes Setting Up Resource Costs Costs can be specified foreach Resource in the model All Resources do nothave to have costs specified SIMPROCESS will generate cost reports only for those Resources that have costs assigned Both fixed and variable costs can be assigned to non consumable Resources and variable costs can be assigned to consumable Resources These costs are specified as part of defining each Resource SIMPROCESS User s Manual 157 How to Use ABC in SIMPROCESS Select the Define Resource option from the menu bar Then pick a previously defined Resource from the list for editing or add a new one using the Edit or Add buttons This will display the Resource Properties dialog as shown below x General Downtime Attributes Ex
327. imulation Simulations that are run with the animation off run extremely fast so that messages sent to Dashboards could very well arrive faster than the Dashboard Server can handle them resulting in packet losses It s usually not necessary to turn on entity movement although that helps Turning on Activity Counts normally slows the simulation enough to minimize loss of messages to the Dashboard Server Running a Dashboard Server across a network can sometimes impose sufficient delay to reduce the chances of message overload as well This is the recommended way to use Dashboards These suggestions may or may not be applicable to your environment depending on a wide range of factors You should experiment in your own environment as needed The image below shows the Truck Status Dashboard during a run Note that a Dashboard window cannot be closed Closing the Dashboard Server s main window closes all associated Dashboard SIMPROCESS User s Manual 397 Displaying Dashboards windows and shuts down the server IMPROCESS Dashboard Truck Status FuelUsed Value Current Value 629 0 Meter Graph Range 0 0 to 0 0 and 1000 0 to 1000 0 W Critical Range 850 0 to 1000 0 Warming Range 500 0 to 850 0 W Large Truck Transit Time W Small Truck Transit Time W Normal Range 0 0 to 500 0 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 398 Appendices SIMPROCESS User s Manual 399 APPENDIX A Importing Version 2 2 1 Models
328. imulation run can be accessed This is done using various System Methods See SIMPROCESS System Methods on page 465 There are nine System Methods for accessing statistics e GetActivityStatistic e GetActivityByEntityStatistic e GetAttributeStatistic e GetCostStatistic e GetEntityStatistic e GetResourceStatistic e GetResourceByActivityStatistic e GetTimeStampStatistic e GetTotalCostStatistic The value of the statistic can be obtained for a specific replication or the average or sum of replications can be obtained The value of a specific replication can only be obtained if that replication has been run oris inthe process of running For example the value for replication 2 is not available if replication 1 is the replication currently running Also the average and sum of replications are not available if only one replication is run A value of 1 returns the average of replications and a value of 2 returns the sum of replications GetActivityStatistic GetActivityStatistic returns the value of a statistic for an Activity that has Collect Activity Statistics selected either globally or on the Activity properties See Default Performance Measures on page 163 The syntax is GetActivityStatistic Activity Name Statistic Value Type Replication where Activity Name is the name of the Activity or Process and Statistic is the statistic type desired The key words for the statistics available are found in App
329. inue a record on the following line The keywords ENTITY QUANTITY etc followed by a colon or equals sign must nothave any spaces between the colon or the equals sign and must not have any spaces between the colon or equals sign and the value associated with the keyword The keywords and values are case sensitive Records must be ordered by entity create time SIMPROCESS will not generate entities for any eventrecord whose entity create time is earlier than that of the previously processed event For example in the following sequence of creation dates 1 01 02 2005 2 01 04 2005 3 09 11 2004 4 10 30 2004 5 01 12 2005 Records 1 and 2 are processed Record 3 is bypassed because its creation date is earlier than that of record 2 Record 4 is also bypassed because its date is earlier than that of record 2 the last record for which entities were generated Entity create time must be the first field in the event record The remaining keyword parameters may be entered in any order The entity type you specify in an event record must be defined to the model before it can be generated However you can refer to a new type in the event file and select the Selected in the list option in the External File Schedule dialog SIMPROCESS will automatically add it to the model wow Any literal values with imbedded blanks must be enclosed in quotation marks when included in event records Real numbers must include a dec
330. io etc will be deleted from the experiment the next time Define Experiments Using SIMPROCESS User s Manual 336 Defining Experiments SIMPROCESS is selected Define Experiments xi Experiment Setup Cancel Model caProgram FilesiSIMPROCESS tmodelsiDemosiPurchasing spm 7 ___Cancel__ Help Add Model Delete Model Undo Delete Entering Design Information The Design Setup tab is active when a model is selected in the Model combo box on the Model Setup tab At least one design name is required for each model The Design Comment and Number of Reps fields are optional If no value integer only is entered for Number of Reps the last saved model value will be used for each scenario in this design unless there was a previous design for the same model One design called 5 Reps is entered for the model C Program Files SIMPRO CESS models Demos Purchasing spm SIMPROCESS User s Manual 337 Defining Experiments x Experiment Setup Model Setup Design Setup scenario Setup OK Cancel Help Undo Delete Design 5 Reps hd Design Comment Run 5 replications for each scenario Number of Reps 5 Delete Design Entering Scenario Information The Scenario Setup tab is active when a design is selected in the Design combo box on the Design Setup tab At least one scenario must be entered for each design If creating a new scenario a name for the scenario must be entered in
331. ion B fet E PDF PT5 0 0 1 0 2 0 1 CDF PT5 0 0 1 0 2 0 1 Plot for PT5 0 0 1 0 2 0 1 T T T TA Probability density function and cumulative density function for a Pearson type V distribution with location 0 scale 1 and shape 2 Syntax PT5 location scale shape stream The Pearson type V distribution continuous could be used to model the time required to perform some task The mean and variance are finite only if shape gt 2 The Pearson type V distribution is closely related to the gamma distribution see the book Simulation Modeling and Analysis Third Edition by Law and Kelton 2000 for details SIMPROCESS User s Manual 449 Appendix D Statistical Distributions Pearson Type VI Distribution Plot for PT6 0 0 1 0 3 0 4 0 1 BIRME PDF PT6 0 0 1 0 3 0 4 0 1 oe CDF PT6 0 0 1 0 3 0 4 0 1 0 9 0 8 0 7 0 6 0 5 0 4 0 3 0 2 0 1 0 0 0 2 4 6 Probability density function and cumulative density function for a Pearson type VI distribution with location 0 scale 1 shapel 3 and shape2 4 Syntax PT6 location scale shape1 shape2 stream The Pearson type VI distribution continuous could be used to model the time required to perform some task The density function can take ona wide variety of shapes because it has two shape parameters shapel and shape2 The mean and variance are finite only if shape2 gt 2 The Pearson type VI distri
332. ions Other uses may include custom training software that allows students to interact with the simulation based on things they see occurring in the model hence influencing the remaining simulation An external schedule changes the normal operation of a simulation If SIMPROCESS detects an external schedule within a model and the appropriate license has been purchased then the ending date and time specified in the Run Settings page 90 is no longer active Normally if there are no more simulation events to process then the end simulation event which is based on the ending date and time specified in the Run Settings is executed When an external schedule is present and there are no more simulation events to process the simulation suspends execution until an external schedule is signaled to generate Entities Note that simulation time does not advance while simulation processing is suspended There are three ways to stop a simulation that contains an external schedule The first is to manually stop the simulation using the Stop button the F9 key or Simulate Stop The second way is to route Entities to a Dispose Activity that has amaximum entity count set page 69 When the maximum has been reached the simulation will stop The final way is to call the stopSimulation method of SPServerFactory page 289 Three actions must be accomplished before the start of the simulation in order to use an external schedule The last two can be done bef
333. ions of files referenced by server processes Here are some examples of what should be contained in those files In a Windows batch file set CLASSPATH SPSYSTEM simprocess jar SPSYSTEM SPRemote jar rmiregistry In a UNIX shell script using the Bourne shell or a derivative CLASSPATH SPSYSTEM simprocess jar SPSYSTEM SPRemote jar export CLASSPATH rmiregistry In a UNIX shell script using the C shell or a derivative setenv CLASSPATH SPSYSTEM simprocess jar SPSYSTEM SPRemote jar rmiregistry Sample batch files and scripts are located in the SPUser SampleFiles directory SPUser is located in the SIMPROCESS installation directory The sample batch and script files are intended to be run from the SIMPROCESS installation directory SPServer SPServer instantiates a single object called SPServerFactory SPServerFactory creates instances of aserver for each simulation that has an external schedule SPServerFactory keeps track of which server instance is associated with which simulation Thus the user only needs to interface with SPServerFactory through a set of public methods The user is responsible for creating the interface to SPServerFactory If RMI Registry is running on the same system as SIMPROCESS select Tools Remote Start SPServer to start SPServer To start SPServer from a command line in the directory in which SIMPROCESS was installed type the command jre bin java classpath SPSYSTEM simprocess jar SPSY
334. is a 32 x 32 image in pixels the Activity or Process using that graphic as its icon will not be smaller than 32 x 32 Thus if your 2 2 model has Activities or Processes sized very small they will be larger in 3 Also even if they were not sized smaller in 2 2 they could be larger due to changes in the icons In the example below there is a Dispose Activity that has been sized small to catch entities that come out of the NoMatch Pad of the Join Activity The imported model shows that the Dispose is much larger Process3 ais 3o IR a Split Join al Process4 Process3 PJ 2 z neal L Split Join gt gt Process4 Connectors And Pads Connectors may not be attached to the Pads This is due to the changing size of the icons This is easily fixed by simply slightly moving one of the Activities or Processes The images below demonstrate SIMPROCESS User s Manual 406 Appendix A Importing Version 2 2 1 Models this The first shows the model as imported Notice that the Connectors do not connect with the Pads The second image shows that after a slight movement of one of the Processes the Connectors jump into place sImMPROCESS Professional ox File Edit Layout View Create Define Simulate Report Experiment Tools Help Window Osla e x e x s 4 aje mM p N Purchas PURCHASE gt gt PURCHASING REQUESTS PROCESS i Select Purchasing Process amp Click on the
335. is either Avg StDev Min Max Count or RunLength The value for Replication cannot be larger than the current replication simulating A Replication of 1 returns the average of replica tions and a value of 2 returns the sum of replications GetAttributeStatistic Attribute Name STRING Value Type STRING Replication INTEGER REAL Returns the value of the requested Attribute Name Attribute Name must be unique among the attributes that are being statistically monitored Value Type is either Avg StDev Min Max Count or RunLength A Replication of 1 returns the aver age of replications and a value of 2 returns the sum of replica tions SIMPROCESS User s Manual 469 SIMPROCESS System Methods SIMPROCESS System Methods Method Name Arguments Return Description GetCostStatistic Period Name STRING REAL Returns the value of the Cost Object 1 STRING requested Period Name Cost Cost Object 2 STRING Cost Type STRING Value Type STRING Replication INTEGER Object 1 and Cost Object 2 Cost Object 1 can be the name of a Resource or an Activity Cost Object 2 can be the name of an Activity or an Entity Thus the combination of Cost Object 1 and Cost Object 2 can be Resource and Entity Resource and Activity or Activity and Entity Cost Type options are Capacity or Absorption
336. is to systems analysis SIMPROCESS is used for the business process models and UML tools are used for the systems models These tools work together in documenting the operational architecture of a business They communicate the content of the business requirements and the systems requirements and designs by using both notations in combination UML based tools suchas Rational Rose focus on Systems Modeling to help define requirements model designs and develop object oriented code such as Java Rational Rose is one of the leading tools on the market for system modeling activities in a software development life cycle but other capable tools support the UML standard UML tools do not fully address the functional business process modeling requirements For example Use Cases and Activity Diagrams are the only views UML has for modeling any part of the business process but they still focus on the system needs in the models rather than the function or business steps For instance Use Cases show Actors usually people interacting with objects usually realized as object oriented components such as Java classes This helps to understand the system transactions but does not model the full breadth of the business workflow or process Activity diagrams similarly model activity steps that can be used to model business flow diagrams but typically focus on objects and transition of states between objects based on changes to the objects in asystem transaction
337. it finds a feasible solution it then SIMPROCESS User s Manual 374 Tips and Suggestions concentrates on finding better solutions The fact that a particular solution may be infeasible does not imply that the problem itself is infeasible However infeasible problems do exist For example suppose that in a Job Shop problem a foreman insists on finding an optimal configuration with the following constraints drills grinders lt 4 drills grinders gt 5 Clearly there is no combination that will satisfy both of these constraints Or for this same example suppose the bounds for a decision variable were 3 lt saws lt 5 And a constraint was saws lt 2 This also results in an infeasible problem OptQuest will display an error message and terminate infeasible optimizations Optimization Error x x Constraints are infeasible Infeasible problems can be made feasible by fixing the inconsistencies of the relationships modeled by the constraints OptQuest detects optimization models that are constraint infeasible and reports them Ifamodelisconstraint feasible OptQuest will always finda feasible solution and search for the optimal solution i e the best solution that satisfies all constraints Number of Replications and Simulations When OptQuest runs an optimization it runs a simulation to evaluate each set of decision variable model parameter values Therefore the quality of the optimizatio
338. ited directly from the Library Manager However template library parameters can be edited from the Library Manager Editing Templates Templates can only be edited when they are part of a model Thus the way to change a template is to open a new model place the template within the model make the necessary changes then add the changed template to the library If the template is added with the same name it replaces the original Editing Library Parameters To change the library options for a template select the template in the Library Manager and click the Edit button This will bring up the same properties dialog that appeared when the template was added to its library The only difference is that the library for the template cannot be changed Library Manager x Libraries m Customer Service _ Senice Process Ta Sales Process Generate Calls Process Calls Edit Remove Unload Save Import Below are the template properties for Sales Process Any property can be changed except the library owner That field is missing To place the template in a different library it must be added to that library SIMPROCESS User s Manual 207 Editing Templates Fragment Properties Exi Sales Process ___ Default SIMPROCESS User s Manual 208 Advantage of Templates Over Copy Paste Advantage of Templates Over Copy Paste Portions o
339. itial value This does not happen if Do Not Reset Before Each Replication is selected The Attribute maintains its current value Statistics Types refer to statistics collected for Attributes during a simulation run These Statistics are used in SIMPROCESS reports Note that no statistics can be collected for Entity instance Attributes Observation Based and Time Weighted refer to the way statistics are collected Observation Based tells SIMPROCESS to collect statistical data without considering the amount of time an Attribute maintains a particular level Each time the value of an Attribute changes the new value is added to a running total Time Weighted provides time weighted statistics That is the length of time an Attribute remains at a particular value is factored into the statistical data when the average value is calculated Real Time Histogram Plot tells SIMPROCESS to plot the Attribute value changes as they occur during the simulation run Real Time Plot using a Histogram type graphic The plots can be saved printed resized and re read from prior saves using the menu on the Plot dialog Real Time Trace Plot tells SIMPROCESS to plotthe Attribute value changes as they occur during the simulation run to a trace type graphic The trace plots can be manipulated similar to the Histogram Plots Standard Report tells SIMPROCESS to write the statistics to the standard report file Click on OK to accept the options selected or click o
340. ity If Entity STRIN G Name is not specified the default Quantity Optional INTE defined for Entity Type in the GER a Beis specified Generate Activity is used If Quantity is not specified the default Quantity in the speci fied Generate Activity is used Quantity can be specified with out an Entity Name and Entity Name can be specified without a Quantity GetActivityStatistic Activity Name STRING REAL Returns the value of the Statistic STRING requested Activity Name statistic Value Type STRING Replication INTEGER Statistic is one of the statistics types for Activities listed in the Labels column of the table in Appendix G See Statistic Types on page 507 Value Type is either Avg StDev Min Max Count or Run Length A Replication of 1 returns the average of replica tions and a value of 2 returns the sum of replications SIMPROCESS User s Manual 468 SIMPROCESS System Methods SIMPROCESS System Methods Method Name Arguments Return Description GetActivityByEnti tyStatistic Activity Name STRING Entity Name STRING Statistic STRING Value Type STRING Replication INTEGER REAL Returns the value of the requested Activity Name and Entity Name statistic Statistic is one of the statistics types for Activities listed in the Labels column of the table in Appendix G See Statistic Types on page 507 Value Type
341. ity Count query as Entity Count Across Replications Select Query m oj x z a Field Table Total Sort Show Criteria or erty Counk Enty Cour Enti oa Ent Entity Count Entity Count Entity Count Entity Count Entity Count a Count oer Count _ Count Entity Count E The average standard deviation minimum and maximum were determined by selecting the appropriate statistic in the Total row for the field from the Entity Count query that was to be summarized across replications This was accomplished by not including the Replication field from the Entity Count query SIMPROCESS User s Manual 328 Forms Graphs and Reports Forms Graphs and Reports The Forms tab contains the predefined graphs plus the Manage Results form These graphs are based on the predefined queries Therefore the Entity Count Across Replications form or graph is based on the Entity Count Across Replications query In order to restrict the graph to only certain records go to the original query in this case Entity Count since Entity Count Across Replications is based on it and restrict it g SimProcDB Database GBjoren BE pesin new X 22 Attribute Level Statistics Entity Cycle Time By State Across Replic HB Tables Attribute Level Statistics Across Replications Entity Cycle Time By State Across Replic P Attribute Observation Statistics Entity Level Average a Queries Attribute O
342. ity To Switch Activity To changes an activity from one type to another This menu item is only displayed when one and only one activity is selected on the layout Processes do not activate this menu item Items that are in common between the old activity type and the new activity type are transferred to the new activity Since some activities allow multiple connections to output pads and some do not all connections to the old activity may not transfer to the new activity This menu item also displays on the pop up menu Preferences Preferences allows the setting of personal preferences for various options in SIMPROCESS These SIMPROCESS User s Manual 23 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus preferences take effect after the dialog is closed Preferences Background Text Pads Connections Toolbars ProcessesiActivities Text Block Text Label M Show Name M Confirm Delete C Auto Connect Activities Activity Width 32 Activity Height 32 Process Width 68 Process Height Time Between Auto Saves Mins 10 Maximum Number of Files on Recent File List 4 Adobe Acrobat Reader crobat 6 0VAcrobattcrobat exe Browse Email contact for published models Maximum Number of Edit Log Entries 0 unlimited o Ifa modelis open when the Preferences menu item is selected check boxes appear that allow selection of preferences to be applied to the active model Preferences Connections Toolbars Processes Activities T
343. ive Process name Alternative name e Number of replications Replications 5 e Design for committing the results to the SIMPROCESS database Design My Design e Scenario for committing the results to the SIMPROCESS database must be used if Design is used Scenario My Scenario e Option to save the model after the parameters are set thus the next time the model is opened in SIMPROCESS the model parameters set by command line or properties file retain their latest value Save True the absence of this option is equivalent to Save False Setting Options on Command Line Any parameters to be set must follow the model on the command line For example SPRunSimulation C Program Files SIMPROCESS models Demos Purchasing spm Model NumProdAPersonnel 6 Model NumProdBPersonnel 4 Purchasing Centralized Functional Replications 2 Design 2 Reps Scenario Scenario 1 Save True Parameters that have spaces must be in quotes The order of the parameters following the model is not important If Design and Scenario are omitted then the results are not committed to the database Setting Options Using Properties File The preferred method for setting parameters is to use a properties file The file can have any name as long as the extension is properties When using a properties file the properties file name follows the model on the command line SPRunSimulation C Program SIMPROCESS User s Manual 520 Appendix I
344. ive Only the last Number of entities still value is residing in the system recorded tokentotalkilled Only the last Number of entities value is destroyed recorded UDV delay Observation Statistic of the specified based attribute UDV level Time weighted Statistic of the specified attribute Resources resrccap Time weighted Units of resources i e capacity resrcidle Time weighted Units of idle resources resrcbusy Time weighted Units of busy resources resrcmaintenance Time weighted Units of resources not available Unplanned Downtime resrcdown Time weighted Units of resources not available Planned Downtime resrcreserved Time weighted Units of reserved resources byactivitybusy level Time weighted Units of busy resources at the specified activity Activities tokentotalin Only the last Number of entities value is entered this activity recorded SIMPROCESS User s Manual 508 Appendix G Simulation Results File Type of Labels Statistics Descriptions tokentotalhere Only the last Number of entities still value is residing in this activity recorded tokentotalout Only the last Number of entities that value is have left this activity recorded tokentotalearlyout Only the last Number of entities that value is left the activity without recorded processing bytokenin Only the last Number of entities of the value is specif
345. ization Setup csscccsssccsssscsssssccssssscsssscesssssssssscessseees 352 Running an Optimization ccccsccssssccssscccsssccssssscssssssseesees 364 Tips and Suggestions ssccssscsssssccssscccsssscessccssseccssscsssecsess 371 OptQuest Demonstration Models ccssscccssssssssssessscceees 377 CHAPTER 16 SIMPROCESS Dashbodrds ccccssscccssrssscssssccssssscccsssssceceesnees 379 Defining Dashboards essoesoessesooesoessesoossosssesoossosssessoesossoesses 380 Assigning Dashboards sesseoesooescosesscessocesocesooessoesssecssocesoossse 390 Displaying Dashboard sscccssssssccssssssccssssssccscsscsssecseees 395 Appendics 22s ses Seseehedescte sce ode chet extendas cuause teas cacsocteaueeasacusoebskscaussedeveatavseee 399 APPENDIX A Importing Version 2 2 1 Models u ssccccsssscsssssccessssccssssscceeees 400 Import Procedures wcsectescecssstersecsecisicecedaasasscaelisseaterstocceasasbeanest 401 Preparing Your Model For Import cccccsssccsssssssccssseees 402 Graphical Import Results eeesooesosessocsssecssocsoosssocesocessocesooseo 405 Properties Import Results cccscccccssssscccssssscccssssssccsssssees 413 Importing Document Files eesosooesssoossssoocessosecesssosssssooesesoo 416 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 7 Table of Contents APPENDIX B Activity Summary Table sccccessssccessrseccsssscccssnsccesssssccessssecees 417 APP
346. l 2 Select the User DSN tab and click on Add 3 Select the appropriate driver for the database for example Microsoft Access Driver and click Finish Clicking Finish brings up a dialog where the DSN is entered The example below shows a DSN called MyDatabase SIMPROCESS User s Manual 260 Interfacing With A Database ODBC Microsoft Access Setup Once a DSN has been entered click the Select button Browse to the location of the database and when found click OK The database will appear above the Select button ODBC Microsoft Access Setup Continue to click OK until ODBC is closed The DSN created will be used by SIMPROCESS to communicate with the selected database A unique DSN is required for every database that will interface with SIMPROCESS SIMPROCESS User s Manual 261 Interfacing With A Database Database System Methods There are six database related System Methods which can be used in Expressions See SIMPROCESS System Methods on page 465 e OpenDatabase e CloseDatabase e ReadFromDatabase e WriteToDatabase e GetNext e GetResult OpenDatabase OpenDatabase is used to create a connection between SIMPROCESS and a database This must be done before any other database System Methods are used Start Simulation Expression is a good place to use it Before using the method an Attribute must be defined normally a Model Attribute of type Object See
347. l the file should be in the same directory with the SIMPROCESS model or in a directory below the one where the SIMPROCESS model resides This allows the stored reference to be relative so that moving both the SIMPROCESS model and the Dashboard file to a new location where their relative positions are unchanged will still maintain a correct reference Note that Add does not complete the assignment of a Dashboard to a model The Graphs must be edited as described below to customize the way they appear and plot values to them SIMPROCESS User s Manual 390 Assigning Dashboards New Assigned Dashboard 7 x OK Dashboard Name Truck Status Server Address flocalhost Help Server Port 5555 Dashboard File ip devmodelsiTruck Status spd Browse Editing and Removing a Dashboard Assignment Selecting a Dashboard assignment in the list causes the Edit and Remove buttons to activate Remove removes the Dashboard assignment from the model A Dashboard assignment that has been removed can be restored with the Undo button Edit displays a Dashboard Edit dialog that allows customization of the Dashboard for the model and assignment of plot values to any of the graphs on the Dashboard The File button presents a dialog that allows selecting the Dashboard file for the selected Dashboard assignment and should normally only be needed if its location has changed The properties dialog contains three fields that can be edited Dashboar
348. l Time Plots dialog The latter can be valuable if there are many custom plots and or Activity plots defined in a model Display Real Time Plots on the Report menu or the tool bar brings up a dialog that lists all of the hidden plots in the model This list can be restricted by assigning custom plots to groups For instance below is a portion of a model that models hardware and software sales and hardware and software service There are two subprocesses Sales Process and Service Process Hardware Sales Call Software Sales Call Sales Process Select Call Type Hardware Service Calls Software Service Calls Service Process Plots can be assigned to these Processes so that when one of the Processes is selected only the plots assigned to its group appear when Display Real Time Plots is selected SIMPROCESS User s Manual 190 Custom Plots To set the plot group click the Set Plot Group button on the Custom Plot Properties dialog This opens a dialog that has the hierarchical view of the Activities and Processes in the model similar to the Activity Browser dialog from the Edit menu The item selected when OK is clicked is the group to which the plot is assigned Plots cannot be assigned to the model TopProcess or a Process alternative If one of those is selected when OK is clicked the plot is not assigned to a group xi Customer Service OK amp TopProcesso Att Cancel H E Process Help E
349. l entity cycle times without restriction will be displayed Copying a query and restricting its search is one example of tailoring a query for analysis 6 SimProcDB Database AE Goren BE Desion new X 2a Te Attribute Observation Statistics Across Replications Entity Cycle Time Across Replications Tables FS Capacity Costs Entity Cycle Time By State Al Gare Designs H Entity Cycle Time By State Across Re Entity Absorption Costs Across Periods Entity Cycle Time By State Across Re ote Entity Absorption Costs Across Replications Entity Level Reports fe Entity Absorption Costs By Period Entity Level Across Replications Ave fa Pages Entity Capacity Costs Across Periods Entity Level Across Replications Pee Macros Entity Capacity Costs Across Replications Entity Level By State EH Entity Capacity Costs By Period H Entity Level By State Across Replicati Modules fat Entity Level By State Across Replicati Groups Entity Count Across Replications Raw Activity by Entity Statistics fa Favorites Fe Entity Cycle Time fel Raw Activity Statistics H Entity Cycle Time Across Replications Average fey Raw Attribute Statistics Doo All of the queries were created in Access Design View rather than SQL Shown below is the Design View of the Entity Count query a Entity Count Select Query EntityName SystemName SystemID i i j DesignID OwnerID Field Systemiiame Systenflame DesignNeme _ ScenarioNl
350. l fis Cancel Mode Bo Max leo View 4 Click on View to see what the curve looks like SIMPROCESS User s Manual 67 Delay Activity 5 Click on OK to accept the definition See Chapter 3 Statistical Modeling Constructs beginning on page 83 to learn more about these parameters and the topic of statistical distributions SIMPROCESS User s Manual 68 Dispose Activity Dispose Activity A Dispose Activity disposes of Entities when they are no longer needed in the simulation The Dispose marks the end of an Entity s cycle time for the purpose of statistic collection e g cycle times and counts Dispose Activity Properties Dispose Properties General Attributes Expressions Event Logs Text Block Documentation Name Dispose Show Name _ Use Text Block cancel Help Icon l Dispose wile icon Set Default New Entity Global Attributes Maximum Entity Count None i Entity _ Collect Activity Statistics Mower C Collect Activity by Entity Statistics Comment The Dispose Activity Properties dialog contains only one unique field Maximum Entity Count Use this field to set a limit to the number of Entities that can be disposed of at the Dispose during a simulation The simulation ends if this limit is reached End a simulation after 1 000 customer orders are processed by setting Maximum Entity Count to 1 000 Leaving Maximum Entity Count und
351. lays the processes in the selected model that have more than one alternative Since processes are displayed by name it is recommended that process names not be duplicated within a model Once a process is selected the alternatives for that process will appear in the panel on the right If an alternative has already been selected that alternative will be highlighted If no alternative is highlighted then the model will run with the alternative that was active during the last save of the model Select the alternative to be active for the current scenario SIMPROCESS User s Manual 340 Defining Experiments x Experiment Setup Model Setup Design Setup Scenario Setup OK 7 z Cancel Scenario Centralized z Delete Scenario Help Scenario Comment Centralized Function purchasing department S o Undo Delete IV Publish Model To HTML Set Directory Publish Directory oaProgram FilesiSIMPROCESS models iDemos Purchasing Parameter Setup Process Setup Select Process Select Alternative Centralized Functional Decentralized Product based Hybrid In this example the Centralized Functional alternative for the Purchasing process will be active for the current scenario NOTE If no process alternative information is entered for a scenario then the model will run with the last saved active alternative for each process If an alternative has been changed for a scenario and the next scenario use
352. le throughout the model Local shows or hides connector names based on theirindividual properties set with the Properties dialog Show Name checkbox This is the default setting when a model is opened Pad Names These menu items only affect the display of Pad names The changes are not saved with the model Show All makes all Pad names visible throughout the model Hide All makes all Pad names invisible throughout the model Local shows or hides Pad names based on their individual properties set with the properties dialog Show Name checkbox This is the default setting when a model is opened Zoom In magnifies a section of the layout to see more detail Select Zoom In and click and drag the mouse to define the area on the layout to zoom Zoom Out is the reverse of Zoom In View 1 1 returns the layout window to its original size Refresh redraws the current screen Create Menu Activities v Processes BackgroundText BackgroundGraphic Activities provides an alternative way of creating Activities rather than graphically dragging and dropping them from the palette Activities added to a library will be added to this menu even if they are not added to the palette Processes provides an alternative way of creating Processes SIMPROCESS User s Manual 42 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus Processes added to a library will be added to this menu BackgroundText provides an alternative way of creating static or
353. licking any Graph clicking the properties button on the toolbar or right clicking and choosing Properties Layout Menu Size is always enabled since a Dashboard is considered to be open in the work area at all times Size displays the Dashboard Layout Size dialog Background Color is always enabled since a Dashboard is considered to be open in the work area at all times Background Color sets the background color of the Dashboard layout to the currently selected color on the Dashboard Color button on the toolbar Align is enabled only if two or more Graphs are selected as indicated by a red border Align presents a dialog with Top Bottom Left Right Center Vertical and Center Horizontal Selected Graphs will be repositioned so that they align as directed Alignment can also be set by right clicking on a selected Graph Distribute is enabled only if three or more Graphs are selected as indicated by a red border Distribute presents a dialog with Vertically Horizontally and Circular Selected Graphs will be repositioned so that they are distributed within the available space the layout size as directed much like the equivalent function in the SIMPROCESS model editor Selected Graphs can also be distributed by right clicking on a selected Graph Snap to Grid Grid Lines Grid Spacing and Grid Color work like their counterparts in the SIMPROCESS model editor They allow the optional use of grid lines to help in placement of Graphs in
354. lity stream The geometric distribution discrete with probability p can be thought of as the distribution of the number of failures before the first success in a sequence of independent Bernoulli trials where success occurs on each trial with a probability of p and failure occurs on each trial with a probability of 1 p SIMPROCESS User s Manual 439 Appendix D Statistical Distributions Pareto Distribution Plot for Par 1 0 2 0 1 T T aa si a 0 8 f 0 6 f 0 4 f 0 27 1 2 3 4 5 6 ff BRE PDF Par 1 0 2 0 1 CDF Par 1 0 2 0 1 Probability density function and cumulative density function for a Pareto distribution with location 1 and shape 2 Syntax Par location shape stream The Pareto distribution continuous could be used to the model interarrival times of customers e g messages when the traffic is bursty The mean and variance are finite only if shape gt 2 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 440 Appendix D Statistical Distributions Binomial Distribution Plot for Bin 5 0 5 1 0 9 0 8 0 7 0 6 0 5 0 4 0 3 0 2 0 1 0 0 0 1 2 3 4 5 PDF Bin 0 5 1 CDF Bin 6 0 5 1 Probability density function and cumulative density function for a binomial distribution with trials 5 and probability 0 5 Syntax Bin trials probability stream The binomial distribution discrete with parameters trials t a
355. lobal Statistics Collection Display Standard Report Define Real Time Plots gt Define Custom Real Time Plots Display Real Time Plots Launch Plot Application Dashboards Commit to Database Launch Database Application Define Global Statistics Collection sets which statistics are collected during the model execution See Default Performance Measures on page 163 Display Standard Report views reports that contain the statistical results of the simulation run See Standard Report on page 163 Define Real Time Plots sets which real time plots to display during or after the simulation run See Defining Plots on page 176 Define Custom Real Time Plots creates plots with multiple values to view during or after the simulation run See Custom Plots on page 185 Display Real Time Plots selects real time plots for viewing See Displaying Real Time Plots on page 179 Launch Plot Application opens a blank plot window Saved plots may then be opened for viewing See Displaying Plots Remotely on page 180 Dashboards Defines new dashboards for use with models or Assigns previously defined dashboards to a model See SIMPROCESS Dashboards on page 379 Commit to Database saves simulation results in the SIMPROCESS database SimProcDB Commit to Database is described in detail in Chapter 13 SIMPROCESS Database on page 322 Launch Database Application starts the database application fro
356. ls SIMPROCESS to look at the Entity being processed in the current Activity e An Attribute called Self points at the current model element that is the model element the Expression has been invoked from So Entity Name returns the type name of the Entity instance being processed at the RECEIVE ORDERS Activity while Self Name returns the name RECEIVE ORDERS A qualified reference is also employed to set the User Defined Attribute applianceWeight Entity applianceWeight 5000 0 Now applianceWeight was specifically defined as an Attribute of Entities However this does not mean that any reference to this Attribute would be unmistakable that it can only refer to one thing But in fact the reference to applianceWeight must be qualified by an object reference This is because without specifying a qualifier SIMPROCESS assumes the reference is to an Attribute of the current model element In this case the current model element is the Generate Activity RECEIVE ORDERS since it is the model element which invoked the Expression There is no Attribute named applianceWeight associated with this Activity and an unqualified reference to applianceWeight would result in an error Note that an unqualified reference to the Attribute Name refers to the name of the current model element SIMPROCESS User s Manual 248 Example Batching Entities Based on Weight RECEIVE ORDERS If that is the Attribute of interest the Attribut
357. lt 0 respectively The Johnson Sy distribution is closely related to the classical normal distribution see the book Simulation Modeling and Analysis Third Edition by Law and Kelton 2000 for details SIMPROCESS User s Manual 446 Appendix D Statistical Distributions Log Logistic Distribution Em fet E PDF LLg 0 0 1 0 3 0 1 Plot for LLg 0 0 1 0 3 0 1 T T T T Probability density function and cumulative density function for a Log Logistic distribution with location 0 scale 1 and shape 3 Syntax LLg location scale shape stream The log logistic distribution continuous could be used to model the time required to perform some task The mean and variance are finite only if shape gt 2 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 447 Appendix D Statistical Distributions Log Laplace Distribution Plot for LLp 0 0 1 0 2 0 1 0 9 0 8 0 7 0 6 0 5 0 4 0 3 0 2 0 1 0 0 PDF LLp 0 0 1 0 2 0 1 CDF LLp 0 0 1 0 2 0 1 Probability density function and cumulative density function for a log Laplace distribution with location 0 scale 1 and shape 2 Syntax LLp location scale shape stream The log Laplace distribution continuous could be used to model the time required to perform some task The mean and variance are finite only if shape gt 2 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 448 Appendix D Statistical Distributions Pearson Type V Distribut
358. lternative to be selected that will be active for the optimization If no alternative is selected for a process the alternative that was active the last time the model was saved will be active for the optimization In the Purchasing model the Purchasing process is the only process that has more than one alternative thus it is the only process listed on the left The Purchasing process three alternatives are listed on the right x Delete OK Select Optimization Settings Purchasing Optimization x Undo Delete Cancel Objective Decision Variables Constraints Process Alternatives Run Options Help Select Process Select Alternative Purchasing S l l Centralized Functional Start Decentralized Product based Run Options The Run Options tab sets the number of replications for each simulation and the optimization stopping criteria Unless the model is discrete itis recommended that each simulation be run for more than one replication The number of replications needed should be determined before setting up the optimization If no value is entered each simulation run will run with the number of replications last saved in the model If a value is entered that value will be reflected in the Number of Replications in the Run Settings of the model the next time the model is opened after the optimization In the Purchasing model the Number of Replications per Simulation is set to 2 This was set to a small number for demonstratio
359. m Attributes and Methods beginning on page 458 Note that both dynamic and static text font Attributes can be changed during simulation by selecting the text and editing its properties The change will take effect immediately after the Background Text dialog is closed and the simulation is resumed SIMPROCESS User s Manual 259 Interfacing With A Database Interfacing With A Database Expressions can retrieve information from an SQL database and can modify an SQL database by inserting into tables deleting from tables and updating tables Knowledge of SQL is required since all queries to the database are SQL queries Setting Up Database Using Windows and Open Database Connectivity ODBC When using Windows the database must have a Data Source Name DSN specified in ODBC before SIMPROCESS can communicate with a database Chapter 2 of the Getting Started Manualhas detailed instructions on creating a DSN for the database that comes with SIMPROCESS A similar procedure is followed forevery database that is to communicate with SIMPROCESS inthis way However instead of using the DSN SimProcessDatabase which is for the database that comes with SIMPROCESS another must be created Note the OpenDatabase command on page 262 contains information on how to set up database connections for non Windows systems To create the DSN 1 Open the ODBC control panel on Windows 2000 and XP it is under the Administrative Tools control pane
360. m attributes for any Entity or Resource ele ments will also be included in the Output dialog ShowUserAttributes None NONE Display all the User Defined Attributes evaluated for the call ing elements and any related ele ments that are within scope i e if this function is called on the Activity expression then the user defined attributes for any Entity or Resource elements will also be included in the Output dialog SimTime Timeunit Optional STRING REAL Return current simulation time in Valid time units are Years time units specified If no Months Weeks Days Hours parameter is provided time unit Minutes Seconds defaults to the Simulation Time Milliseconds Microseconds Unit set in the Run Settings Nanoseconds Time unit strings are case sensitive SIN X REAL REAL Returns the Sine of X SQRT X REAL REAL Returns the square root of X STATUS Same as OUTPUT NONE Display the specified arguments in status bar STRLEN inString STRING INTE Returns the length of the string GER inString SIMPROCESS User s Manual 477 SIMPROCESS System Methods Method Name SIMPROCESS System Methods Arguments Return Description STRTOINT inString STRING INTE GER Converts a string consisting only of numbers with no decimal in the string to an integer STRTOREAL inString STRING REAL Converts a string of numbers in cluding a decimal to a real SU
361. m number of entities 99 Maximum Wait Time 100 Minimum Batch Size 100 parent entity 99 103 Batched Entity of Batch activity 99 103 Both must be reached Generate schedule field 278 bottlenecks sources of 55 Branch Activity 110 111 Branch Connectors 111 C calendar dates effect on simulation 78 calendar event See events calendar calendar schedule 278 changing entity type 108 Clone Activity 117 117 118 copy time stamps 118 number of copies 118 Comment field 58 60 Commit to Database 323 Confidence Intervals 82 163 Connectors Hide All Names 42 Show All Names 42 Show Local Names 42 connectors Auto Label 112 Branch Activities and 110 changing attributes 112 defined 55 names displaying 112 Properties dialog box 112 converting entities from one type to another 108 Count Limit of entity release 278 Create Menu 42 43 Activities 42 Background Graphic 43 Background Text 43 Processes 42 cycle time definition of 18 Dispose activity and 69 ending 69 reports 168 173 cyclical schedules 279 281 defining 279 281 See also sequence of events types 279 D Database examples 265 interfacing with 260 266 setting up DSN 260 system methods 262 database graphs 329 Database Queries 327 database reports 329 Date field in calendar events 283 Define Menu 43 45 Attributes 45 Distributions 44 Entities 43 Functions 45 Model Description 45 Resource Downtimes 44 Resources 43 523 SIMPROCESS User s Manual See
362. m within SIMPROCESS The Manage Results form launches automatically when launching MS Access from this menu item The Manage Results form is described in detail in Chapter 13 SIMPROCESS Database on page 322 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 49 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus Experiment Menu Define Experiments Run All Experiments Run Selected Experiments Run Specific Experiment Import Database Experiments gt Define Experiments sets up the experiments to run The experiments are stored in the file Experiments xml Defining Experiments is described in detail in Chapter 14 Experiment Manager on page 334 Run All Experiments attempts to run every experiment defined Run Selected Experiments attempts to run experiments for which the Selected field is checked Run Specific Experiment enters an experiment name that SIMPROCESS will attempt to run Running experiments is described in detail in Chapter 14 Experiment Manager on page 334 Import Database Experiments imports experiments from the SIMPROCESS database to Experiments xml Earlier versions of the SIMPROCESS database allowed defining of experiments within the database All experiments selected experiments or a specific experiment can be imported Importing experiments is described in detail in Chapter 14 Experiment Manager on page 334 Tools Menu ExpertFit Optauest Remote gt Repair Cross References Collect Model Metrics Icon Manager Exp
363. manufacturing line a computer board cannot be populated with chips unless both an oper ator and a surface mounting tool are available The loan officer the operator and the surface mounting tools are Resources whose availability affects the activity in these examples SIMPROCESS provides the means for modeling Resources and for measuring the impact on the performance of a business process In addition variable and fixed costs associated with Resources may be used to measure Process costs and activity costs See Chapter 7 Activity Based Costing beginning on page 153 for more details This chapter describes how to e Define Resources e Define groups of Resources for complex Resource requirements e Define the Resource requirements of activities e Use Resource related activities such as Get Resource Free Resource and Replenish Resource SIMPROCESS User s Manual 126 Resources and Simulation Resources and Simulation When an Entity arrives at an activity SIMPROCESS checks to see if any Resources are required to process it If Resources are required SIMPROCESS attempts to obtain them Once an activity gains control of one or more units of a Resource those Resource units are unavailable to any other activity The activity retains control of the Resource units until it finishes Processing the Entity Resource Allocation Policy During simulation many activities may simultaneously contend for units of the same Resour
364. menu are Add and Library Manager Add adds the selected Process or Activity from the workspace to the library It also sets whether the Process or Activity is added to the User Palette or the Create menu Library Manager brings up the SIMPROCESS Library Manager The Library Manager is used to create load save remove edit import and export libraries of templates Using The Library Manager Library Management The Library Manager is the primary tool for managing templates Before creating templates a library should be created When no libraries exist the Library Manager is empty Library Manager x Libraries New creates a new library in which templates can be stored A dialog for entering a name appears SIMPROCESS User s Manual 199 Defining and Editing Templates x OK Library Name Customer Service When OK is selected the new library appears in the library manager This new library is empty at this point but templates can now be stored in it Library Manager x Libraries Customer Service Edit allows the editing of the library name if a library is selected If a template is selected Edit allows the editing of template options which includes the template name Remove deletes the selected item If a library is selected the library and all templates in the library are deleted If a template is selected then only that template is deleted from its library Load brings a libr
365. mma distribution whose shape parameter is a positive integer The sum of k exponential random variables with mean m is an Erlang distribution with mean km and shape k SIMPROCESS User s Manual 433 Appendix D Statistical Distributions Weibull Distribution Plot for Wei 3 0 1 0 1 ac PDF Wei 3 0 1 0 1 CDF Wei 3 0 1 0 1 L 1 4 0 5 1 0 1 5 Probability density function and cumulative density function for a Weibull distribution with shape 3 and scale 1 Syntax Wei shape scale stream The Weibull distribution continuous could be used to model the time required to perform some task It is also sometimes used to model the time to failure of a piece of equipment A Weibull distribution with parameters shape and scale b is an exponential distribution with mean b The Weibull distribution is skewed to the left when shape gt 3 6 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 434 Appendix D Statistical Distributions Lognormal Distribution BRAE PDF Log 2 0 1 0 1 CDF Log 2 0 1 0 1 Plot for Log 2 0 1 0 1 0 8 f 0 7 f 0 6 f 0 57 O47 O37 0 27 O17 0 0 Probability density function and cumulative density function for a lognormal distribution with mean 2 and standard deviation 1 Syntax Log mean standard deviation stream The lognormal distribution could be used to model the time required to perform some task when lar
366. mometer have similar properties Both have a Title a Range with optional sub ranges and a Value Color The differences are in the other color options The Meter has a Needle Color and a Meter Color option The Thermometer has a Mercury Color option Title default title for the Meter or Thermometer e Mercury Color default color for the mercury in the Thermometer Needle Color default color for the needle on the Meter Meter Color default color for the Meter Value Color default color for the current value of the Meter or Thermometer Lower Bound default lower bound for the Meter or Thermometer Upper Bound default upper bound for the Meter or Thermometer e Use Subranges if selected lower bounds upper bounds and colors for three subranges Normal Warning and Critical can be set If subranges are used for the Thermometer the colors selected for the subranges override the Mercury Color setting Lower Normal Bound default lower bound for the Normal sub range Upper Normal Bound default upper bound for the Normal sub range Normal Color default color for the Normal sub range Lower Warning Bound default lower bound for the Warning sub range Upper Warning Bound default upper bound for the Warning sub range e Warning Color default color for the Warning sub range SIMPROCESS User s Manual 385 Defining Dashboards Lower Critical Bound default lower bound for the Critic
367. mplate The Resources dialog is used to define new Resources modify existing Resource definitions copy Resource definitions or delete Resources The Add function creates a new Resource definition The Edit Remove and Copy functions are only active if there are existing Resource definitions These functions operate on the Resource selected in the table Edit modifies an existing Resource definition Remove deletes a Resource definition Copy creates a new Resource based on the definition of an existing one Type specifies the Resource template that will be used to create a new Resource definition Undo restores a Resource that has been removed Add Template saves the Resource definitions for re use Templates are discussed in Adding Resource Templates beginning on page 204 SIMPROCESS has one Resource type pre defined which can be used when defining a new Resource New Resource templates can be created and added to the Type list See Adding Resource Templates beginning on page 204 for more information on Resource Templates When the Add button is chosen a new Resource with the characteristics of the Type selected will be created The pre defined type is a default Resource SIMPROCESS User s Manual 128 Defining Resources e One unit of resource e No downtime defined e No costs defined e No Attributes or Expressions defined See Resource Downtime beginning on page 294 for more information on Re
368. n Cancel to exit without setting resetting any SIMPROCESS User s Manual 218 User Defined Attributes options Global Attribute Definitions Entity Entity Type Resource Activity Model Array Model Add Size Parameter rare applianceveight Copy Remove An existing user Attribute can be copied by selecting the Attribute in the table and then clicking on the Copy button The User Attribute dialog is displayed with the options and Defaults set to the values of the copied Attribute To remove an existing user Attribute select the Attribute from the table and then click on the Remove button The Undo button will restore an Attribute definition that was removed The Local button is on every tab except the Model tab Model Attributes are only global Selecting Local brings up a dialog that displays all model elements of the same type that have local Attributes For example the Local button on the Activity tab shows all Activities that have local Attributes defined Selecting an item on the left displays the local Attributes for that item on the right An item on the left can be edited by double clicking or by selecting the Edit button Note that from this dialog local Attributes cannot be defined for items that do not already have local Attributes Ix View Local Activity Attributes batchvYeight Close Help Edit re Click on Close when finished defining or modifying global Attri
369. n a different Activity the Resource will not be released until the Entity has completed processing in that Activity even though the FreeResource system method is in the Accept Entity Expression The full command is FreeResource Resource Tag TRUE The first parameter must be a String Itis the name of the Resource to be released The second parameter must bea String as well This is the tag of the Resource to be released The third parameter is a Boolean thus only TRUE and FALSE are allowed For consumable Resources this determines whether the Resource should be consumed The third parameter is optional If omitted it defaults to TRUE meaning the Resource should be consumed This parameter has no effect on non consumable Resources The second parameter tag is also optional However if the second parameter is omitted the third parameter must also be omitted The tag defaults to any tag ifthe tag parameter is missing There are two keywords for this system method AnyResource and AnyTag These can be used in the place of the Resource parameter and the tag parameter So possible options are without the last parameter e FreeResource Resourcel myTag e FreeResource Resourcel AnyTag e FreeResource Resourcel1 this operates the same as the previous e FreeResource AnyResource myTag e FreeResource AnyResource AnyTag SIMPROCESS User s Manual 254 Getting and Freeing Resources Using E
370. n acquire a fractional part of the Resource Consumable is used to identify resources that cannot be released and reused later such as paper or oil They must be replenished before demand is greater than supply The Cost function allows cost values to be assigned to Resources and keeps track of the expense involved inusing Resources This function is described in detail in Chapter 7 Activity Based Costing beginning on page 153 Expressions tab provides the means of writing specialized Processing instructions The Attributes tab defines attributes for the Resource Attributes are customized variables Typically expressions include Processing of attributes These topics are discussed in depth in Chapter 10 Customizing a Model with Attributes and Expressions beginning on page 210 The Document function is used the same way it is for Activities to store descriptive text about the Resource The default headings can be customized See document Subdirectory on page 422 The Downtime tab is where the periods when the Resource will not be available in the model are defined Resource downtimes are described in Defining Downtime Schedules of Resources beginning on page 298 Resources Type Resource Name Fractional Consumable Resource Stats Res Act Stats Sales Rep_ _ as Add Template Note that the basic properties of Resources added to the model can be edited directly from the table However cha
371. n be active at any point in time An experiment may be run with Alternative sub process 1 active to measure the overall performance of the model Alternative sub process 2 can then be run and results compared SIMPROCESS defines a single default sub process when a Process is created Renaming the sub process to something more meaningful for the model is accomplished by 1 Selecting it from the Alternative Sub Processes list on the Process dialog 2 Clicking Edit to modify the sub process definition 3 Highlighting the existing name and typing over it For this example call the sub process Main 4 Click on OK SIMPROCESS User s Manual 74 Defining Resources and Processes The new name appears in the Alternative Sub Processes list and becomes the sub process More sub processes may be added to the Process by clicking on Add and naming the new sub process Activate a different sub process by selecting it from the Alternative Sub processes list Sub processes may be deleted with the Remove command button and copied using the Copy button Click on OK when the Process is defined Adding Detail to a Process Once a Process is defined define the Activities and Processes that make up the Process Right click on the Process icon and choose Descend to open the layout of the currently active sub process A blank layout is shown except for two Pads an input Pad on the left and an output Pad on the right If the output Pad is no
372. n checks the syntax of the Expression and if there are no errors closes the Expression editor Expression Script System Attributes Expression Language System Methods Expression Language Data Types L Mathematical Operators Relational Operators L Logical Operators tj E Language Constructs Description Use Expression in File Done J Validate Cancel SIMPROCESS User s Manual 231 Writing Expressions Expressions entered into the Expression editor are saved as a part of the model file This is the preferred method of storing Expressions since copies made of the model file either external to SIMPROCESS or with Save As will automatically have any Expressions that were defined in the original model file all the capabilities of the Expression Search feature page 30 are available and templates defined page 199 will also have any Expressions included in the original item being templated However Expressions can also be stored in external files This can be useful if the same Expression is used multiple places or if there is a need to change an Expression without opening the model The same Expression file can be used with multiple models but this is discouraged since itis bestifthe Expression file is stored in the model s directory Storing an Expression file in the model s directory shows clear linkage between an Expression file and a model An Expression file must be
373. n deselects all values in the custom plot The Set Legends button brings up a dialog in which the text of the legend and the color of the trace line can be set Only the values selected will be in the dialog Double clicking on a single value will bring up the dialog with just the options for that value The color of the value must be set if the text of the legend is set If not the color will be Aquamarine which is the first color in the color list SIMPROCESS User s Manual 193 Custom Plots CE i x Software Sales Call Number In System Sofware sales cat E Aquamarine OK Hardware Sales Call Number In System Hardware Sales ca EP Aquamarine z Cancel Sales Process Number Entities In Process ss Number Entities In Process E Aguamarine Help gt I CI jj x Software Sales Call Number In System fSonware Sales Call Meu OK Hardware Sales Call Number In System Hardware Sales cal m creen Cancel Sales Process Number Entities In Process Sales Process Morane z _ Hep Bisimprocess Real Time Graph File Edit Special BR 4 Sales Calls In System T T T T T T T 11 i Software Sales Call N Hardware Sales Call u 10 4 Sales Process is q b 2 E E 7 o f 8 5 E n 4 t jf t i e 4 S f 0 0 0 5 1 0 tes 2 0 25 3 0 3 5 4 0 Time In Hours The Reset Legends button resets the text and color of the legend to its default SIMPROCESS User s Manual 1
374. n generated thus far in the simula tion e The name of the Activity holding a particular Entity e The type of Entity being generated by a Generate Activity A complete list of System Attributes is given in SIMPROCESS System Attributes and Methods beginning on page 458 The table entries below show the Attributes accessible from Batch Activities Object Name Type Get Description Set Batch MaxBatchSize INTEGER Both Number of Entities to batch Activities MinBatchSize INTEGER Both Number of Entities must be in a batch before it can be released MaxWaitTime REAL Both Time to wait before releasing an undersized batch 1 The MaxBatchSize Attribute is an integer value representing the maximum number of Entities to batch at a Batch Activity The current value of the Attribute can be retrieved and changed 2 The MinBatchSize Attribute is an integer value containing the minimum number of Entities a Batch Activity must hold before it can release a batched Entity 3 The Attribute MaxWaitTime specifies the maximum amount of time to wait before releasing the batched Entities that have met the Activity s MinBatchSize The value is a real number e g 1 0 7 5 etc representing the time unit selected for the maximum wait time The value of this Attribute can be retrieved and changed SIMPROCESS User s Manual 214 User Defined Attributes User Defined Attributes Customizing
375. n menu item is only enabled on Windows systems It will be enabled even if the sProcDB properties file is configured for a non Access database IMPORTANT It is good practice to regularly compact the Access database particularly after deleting records This can be done from the Tools menu of Access by choosing Database Utilities SIMPROCESS User s Manual 325 Database Table Relationships Database Table Relationships Select Relationships from the Tools menu in Access to view all the tables and the relationships between them in the Access database This is helpful in understanding how the queries were constructed Because other database tools may or may not support constraints and relationships in the same way as Access it will be up to the user to create comparable mechanisms there if desired SystemName SystemID PeriodName DesignID StatOwnerName DesignID PrimaryCostElement SecondaryCostElement Replication CostType CostStatType Cost ScenariolD wner T OTypeName OTypelD SIMPROCESS User s Manual 326 Database Queries Database Queries The predefined queries in the SIMPROCESS Access database are designed to offer the same information provided in the Standard Report See Standard Report on page 163 The queries can be used as is or copied and modified The queries are not restricted by system design or scenario So when the Entity Cycle Time query is run al
376. n purposes only Only two replications and the tight constraints cause the Purchasing optimization to run quickly Apart from user intervention the length of the optimization is controlled by two options Maximum Iterations and Automatic Stop At least one of the stopping criteria must be selected Both options can SIMPROCESS User s Manual 362 Optimization Setup be selected If both are selected the criteria that is satisfied first will stop the optimization Maximum Iterations is the maximum number ofiterations OptQuest will attempt before stopping the optimization The value must be an integer greater than zero When Automatic Stop is selected the optimization stops when the value of the objective stops improving Precision determines when two objective values are considered equal The default is 0 0001 OptQuest for SIMPROCESS x Delete OK Select Optimization Settings Purchasing Optimization x Undo Delete Cancel Objective Decision Variables Constraints Process Alternatives Run Options Help Number of Replications per Simulation eo Optimization Stopping Criteria Start M Maximum Iterations ho IZ Automatic Stop o o001 Precision Saving Optimization Settings Selecting OK will close the dialog and add the defined optimization settings to the model The model must be saved for the optimization settings to persist Selecting Start will close the dialog add the defined optimization settings to the model
377. n results depends on the number of simulations iterations and the number of replications per simulation For a set period of time the number of replications per simulation is inversely related to the number of simulations as one increases the other decreases Decreasing the number of replications can help increase the number of simulations SIMPROCESS User s Manual 375 Tips and Suggestions The more simulations OptQuest can run the more sets of values it can evaluate and the more likely OptQuest is to find a solution close to the optimal solution Simulation Accuracy There are two factors that affect simulation accuracy e Number of replications per simulation e Noisiness of the objective Number of replications per simulation For sufficient accuracy the number of replications per simulation must be set to the minimum number necessary to obtain a reliable estimate of the objective function being optimized this minimum number is typically found with empirical testing Objective noisiness Noisiness can also affect the accuracy of OptQuest results Nv Mi Y MA J h i WoW y iA K y VM am S Noisy Objective Smooth Objective The objective on the left has significant amounts of noise caused by the probability distributions used to model the problem s uncertainty For these types of objectives OptQuest might have trouble discerning the minimum or maximum value Noisy functions can be detec
378. n this order MasterEditor typed as shown reference to the main layout window name a string in quotes used to designate the dynamic label in the Name text box of Background Text dialog Make sure letter case is the same in both places ID number the integer in the Id box of the Background Text dialog text color a string in quotes of the color in which the text is to appear A list of color names is found in SIMPROCESS System Attributes and Methods beginning on page 458 As with name letter case must be as shown in the table This overrides the font color selected in the properties dialog value integer real or string value to display type must correspond to what was selected in the Mode combo box of the Background Text dialog For example to display a string showing the name of the Entity leaving a delay Activity as well as areal value showing the amount of time this instance of an Entity spent at the Activity and an integer showing number of Entities currently at that Activity enter the following three commands in the Expression builder of the delay Activity at the Release Entity entry point UpdateDynamicLabel MasterEditor num 0 Orange NumberlIn UpdateDynamicLabel MasterEditor name 0 Aquamarine Entity Name UpdateDynamicLabel MasterEditor lastdelay 0 IndianRed LastDelay For more information on Expression builder terminology and syntax see SIMPROCESS Syste
379. nalysis support features A standard set of Templates such as Activities Processes Resources and Resource Downtimes are provided by the system For example specialized Resources such as Tellers Loan Officers Branch Managers can be defined in the Resource Library for Business Process Modeling in a financial services business A Library could also contain templates that may represent competing models of the Business Processes that are being compared Templates also provide the ability to set default parameters for system provided items Many different Templates can be created and loaded into the system when they are needed Customized Processes Activities can be added to the User Palette bar for easy reuse and or added to the Create pull down menu SIMPROCESS User s Manual 197 Library Concepts Library Concepts The SIMPROCESS Template and Library feature supports the reuse and organization of the various constructs used in building models The development of specialized objects organized into libraries is encouraged Over time the libraries of objects will grow With a large set of libraries of reusable model building blocks new models can be built faster For example a set of Processes Warehouse Manufacture Transport and Resources Trucks People etc relevant to the Distribution domain can be created and saved to a library named Distribution These can then be used to quickly build distribution models Libraries buil
380. name of the database properties file If the database properties file is not in the SPUser directory the PropertiesFileName must include the complete path If the connection is successful the Attribute will contain a reference to the connection Note that the connection is only valid for the model that created the connection If another model needs to use the same database that model must create its own connection CloseDatabase CloseDatabase is used to close a connection to a database This normally occurs at the end of a simulation End Simulation Expression The syntax is CloseDatabase Model ObjectAttribute The only parameter is the Object Attribute that was used in the OpenDatabase system method that created the connection ReadFromDatabase ReadFromDatabase gets information from a database and places the information into a Result Set GetNext and GetResult are used to assign the data from a Result Set to Attributes or local variables in the model The syntax is ReadFromDatabase Model ObjectAttribute ResultSetName SQLQuery Model ObjectAttribute is the Object Attribute that was used in the OpenDatabase system method that created the connection Result SetName is a unique string identifier for the Result Set created by the query SQLQuery is a string and is the query that creates the Result Set Normally the query would start with the SELECT command WriteToDatabase WriteToDatabase is used to modify the tables of
381. ned Attribute Name on Connector with IF or AND conditions e g My Attrl 5 or 4 lt My Attr1 lt 7 Otherwise True or False Otherwise SIMPROCESS User s Manual 113 Entity Control Activities Branch Activity Type Connector Properties Used Display Example Entity Type Type from Entity type combo Request for Quote box Otherwise True or False Otherwise Priority Priority Entity Priority 1 100 1 Otherwise True or False Otherwise Merge Activity A Merge Activity routes Entities from different Connectors into one Connector Merge can be used to TimeStamp all Entities or to reduce the number of to and from Connectors to create a more visually appealing model Also a Merge Activity is useful if groups of Activities will be copied and pasted By using a Merge Activity Connectors are not lost during the copy and paste Merge Properties General Attributes Expressions Event Logs Text Block Documentation Name Merge4 Icon gt Merge Icon Set Default Show Name Use Text Block 7 v No parameters needed Comment Transfer Activity A Transfer Activity routes entities without the use of a connector Entities can be routed within the F Collect Activity Statistics F Collect Activity by Entity Statistics Cancel P 2 Sl Help __Newentiy NewResource Global Attributes Entity Entity Type e Model S
382. nel and the number of units of the resource ProductBPersonnel must be less than or equal to the number of units of ProductCPersonnel Scrolling down on the Constraints tab brings all three expression constraints into view OptQuest for SIMPROCESS p xj Delete OK Select Optimization Settings Purchasing Optimization ha Undo Delete Cancel Objective Decision Variables Constraints Process Alternatives Run Options Help Model NumProdAPersonnel Model NumProdBPersonnel Model NumProdCPersonnel 10 Add Constraint Name Resources 10 Delete Constraint Entity Model NumProdA amp Personnel lt Model NurnProdBPersonnel Resource Activity Name A B Delete Constraint Time Stamp Model NurmProdBPersonnel lt Model NumProdCPersonnel Model Attributes Expression Name B lt C Delete Constraint Start SIMPROCESS User s Manual 361 Optimization Setup Expression constraints can be modified from the Constraints tab by clicking in the text area and changing as necessary However expression constraint validation is not available To use validation the constraint must be deleted and recreated Process Alternatives The Process Alternatives tab displays all processes in the model that have more than one alternative When a process is selected on the left the alternatives for that process are displayed on the right This allows the a
383. ng arrowhead next to the Entity Icon field to get a list of different icons to choose from the currently selected Icon Set SIMPROCESS User s Manual Defining an Entity Priority values range from 1 to 100 When Entities contend for the same Resource the Entity with the highest priority gets precedence Preempt Lower Priority Entities sets whether instances of this type will preempt lower priority Entities If true when an instance of this type reaches an Activity that uses Resources and there are no Resources available and the Entity currently using the Resources is alower priority Entity this higher priority arriving entity instance will cause the lower priority Entity to release the Resources so this Entity can obtain the Resources and Process Entity Attributes Entity Type Attributes Entity Expressions and Entity Type Expressions are used in association with any attributes or expressions defined for this Entity A choice can be made to create a new copy of an attribute or evaluate an expression every time an instance of an Entity is created Alternatively one copy of an attribute can be created or an expression evaluated once for an Entity type and have all instances refer to this value Attributes and expressions are discussed in Chapter 10 Customizing a Model with Attributes and Expressions beginning on page 210 Document opens an editor window into which extensive comments can be entered about the Entity and th
384. nges made in the table are direct changes to the properties of the Resource and cannot be canceled Also the table can be sorted by a particular column by clicking on the column header Holding the Shift key while clicking on a column header causes the table to sort in the reverse order SIMPROCESS User s Manual 130 Adding Resource Requirements to Activities Adding Resource Requirements to Activities Once the model flow and resources are defined the Resource requirements of each Activity must be added to the model The Resource requirements for an activity are defined by double clicking on the activity s icon to display the Activity Properties dialog box On the dialog box click on the Resources tab x Expressions EventLoas TextBlock Documentation OK General Resources Attributes Requirements Help Add sates Rep x Remove Eit New Resource Help Global Attributes Requires Entity Any One Member Entity Type All Members Resource C Reserve As Available mw C Number of Members No ne 7 I Release Entities In Process at Start of Downtime Comment Add adds an individual Resource requirement for the activity The units required default to 1 0 when a Resource is added Use Edit to modify an existing requirement definition xi Name Service Rep OK Units fi x a Cancel Any existing resources will be listed under the Requirements headin
385. nguage statement ends with a semicolon The exceptions to this are lines that begin with IF ELSIF ELSE WHILE and FOR Comments can be included in Expressions by enclosing them in curly brackets For example This is a comment Do not end a comment line with a semicolon Basic conditional logic has the form SIMPROCESS User s Manual 229 Writing Expressions IFa lt b x i C ELSIF a lt c x d END IF For example IF batchweight gt 2000 MaxBatchSize 100 batchWeight 0 ELSIF batchweight gt 1800 MaxBatchSize 110 END IF Messages can be displayed in the SIMPROCESS Expression Output Dialog with the OUTPUT statement This is useful for tracking the value of Attributes as a simulation proceeds The OUTPUT statement has the form OUTPUT expression For example OUTPUT Just assigned a weight to Entity OUTPUT Current batch weight batchWeight In the second example the value of Attribute bat chWeight is displayed following the text Current batch weight The literal string and Attribute name are separated by a comma so the actual batchWeight value will appear next to the string 25 SIMPROCESS Expression Output Dialog ust assigned a weight to Entity Current batch weight 1523 44 Save lf Clear J Cancel SIMPROCESS User s Manual 230 Writing Expressions Expression Editor Editing any Expression activation event brings up the Ex
386. not important for this example Initializing Entity Attributes First assign a value to the appliance Weight of each Entity generated during a simulation This can be done as soon as the Entity is created Then when the Entity reaches the Batch Activity add its weight to arunning total and compare this total to the maximum allowable weight The points in the simulation where Expressions need to be activated are e Entity initialization e Receipt of the Entity by an Activity Entities are initialized by SIMPROCESS at the Initialize Entity event Entities are received by an Activity at the Accept Entity event Initialize Entity Accept Entity ee 7 gt e FN RECEIVE ORDERS PROCESS ORDERS DISTRIBUTE ORDERS Defining the Expression at Entity Initialization To assign an initial value to an Entity s applianceWeight define an Expression for each type of Entity in the model The Expression is a single assignment statement e g app lianceWeight 1000 0 to be executed when the Entity is first generated the Initialize Entity event 1 From the Define pull down menu select Entities SIMPROCESS User s Manual 243 Example Batching Entities Based on Weight Entities Priority Preempt Entity Stats Clase refrigerator order BlackDot television order BlueDot itoaster order GreenDot a i Add 2 This model contains three Entity types An Expression must be defined for each Entit
387. ns and Buttons Select Branch Type e Probability Entities routed based on a probability specified on each Connector leading from the Branch All probabilities must sum to 1 0 or one of the Connector s should have the Otherwise field set to True Stream is the random number stream to use for the probabilities e Attribute Route Entities that have matching User Defined Attributes and value along the appropriate Connector e Entity Type Route Entities based on type e g send Orders one way and Bills another Set the Entity type on the Connectors emanating from the Branch e Priority Ability to route higher priority items on one path lower on another The priorities are specified on the Connectors Branch Connectors Connectors link Activities and Processes together They are objects in their own right with information such as selection probability user defined attributes etc Connector names can assist in labeling a model e g the Entity type that flows SIMPROCESS will automatically label Connectors emanating from Branch Activities See Connectors and Branch Activities on page 113 for details SIMPROCESS User s Manual 111 Entity Control Activities x Name onts i OK M Show Name Cancel I Auto Label Help Branch Parameters C Otherwise If Entity Flag is E x b Document NE Display Line width hoo o d Line Style Solid Comment The Branch Connector Properties dialog
388. nt Yellow The ability to change colors of Entities is no longer supported For example the following code will now produce an error ChangeColor Entity Brown To change the color of the Activity icon to green if there is no Entity in it in the Activity s Release Entity event add IF NumberIn 0 ChangeColor Self Green END IF Method ShowSystemAttributes and ShowUserAttributes These methods display all the system defined and user defined attributes with their current values of the calling element in the standard output window For example to display the system defined attributes of an Activity when an Entity enters in the Activity s Accept Entity event put ShowSystemAttributes All the system defined attributes and values are listed in the standard output window In addition any SIMPROCESS User s Manual 481 System Method Examples related elements system attributes or user defined attributes will be listed in the output window as well Forexample ifthe ShowUserAttributes method is called from the expression scriptin an Activity event such as Accept Entity the Entity that is within scope will also have its user defined attributes listed The same goes for Resources being assigned Model level user defined attributes are listed no matter what elements are within scope Method SimTime This method returns the current simulation time in hours unless a time unit pa
389. nt time e You can omit seconds when specifying the time SIMPROCESS assumes a zero for the omitted parameter e Do not specify a time in hh mm without a date unless you precede it with a plus sign Although SIMPROCESS will accept this value its interpretation is unpredictable For example acceptable formats are 48 0 48 hours after the start of simulation 48 00 48 hours after previous generation event e SIMPROCESS will accept a 2 digit value for the year It assumes that values over 49 refer to years in the 20th century and values under 50 refer to the 21st century QUANTITY value The number of entities to generate at the entity generation event Enter a number in place of value If QUANTITY is omitted SIMPROCESS uses the default Quantity value in the Generate Activity Properties dialog ENTITY type The type of entity to generate For Type enter an entity type name If the name includes blanks enclose the entire string in quotes If ENTITY is not specified SIMPROCESS uses the default Entity value in the Generate Activity Properties dialog ATTR name value Assigns values to globally defined attributes for entity instances You can assign values to any number of attributes in the VARS argument The value you specify must be consistent with the data type defined for the attribute Note that if you specify an attribute name that has not been defined in your model you can select the Selected in the list option
390. ntity Cycle Time by State are selected either from the Define Global Statistics Collection dialog by choosing Collect Entity Statistics or by choosing Collect Entity Statistics when each Entity is defined If Collect Entity Statistics on the Define Global Statistics Collection dialog is selected then the above statistics other than Real time Plots and Attribute Value will be in the Standard Report for every Entity defined If only statistics for selected Entities are desired then the global Collect Entity Statistics should not be selected and the Collect Entity Statistics on the Entity Definition dialog should be selected for the desired Entities x Entity Tvoe Attributes Entity Type Expressions General Entity Attributes Entity Expressions Gancal Name Sales Call Help Icon BlackDot Document Icon Set Default z z Priority 1 I Preempt Lower Priority Entities IV Collect Entity Statistics Comment SIMPROCESS User s Manual 165 Custom Statistics Total Count Statistics These statistics show the total number of Entities that have been generated during the simulation how many remainin the system at the end of the simulation andhow many have exited the system throughout the simulation Total Count will not be collected unless Collect Entity Statistics either global or individual is selected prior to running the simulation The results are not available until the simulation is complete Real time
391. ntity behavior The Component Pad places incoming Entities into a queue until all Entities to be assembled have arrived An Entity entering the Component Pad not on the component Entity list will immediately leave the Assemble Activity through the No Match Pad The Trigger Pad is only relevant if Hold for Trigger is selected as one of the Activity s options Entities entering the Trigger Pad can trigger the release of the assembled Entities Assembled Entities are only released when an Entity such as a Customer Order arrives The trigger can be released by using the FireTrigger System Method instead of having an Entity enter the trigger Pad The name of the Activity must be unique within the model for the system method to work properly See SIMPROCESS System Methods on page 465 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 96 Entity Related Activities Assemble Properties Event Logs Text Block Docurnentation Resources Attributes Name Assemble14 M Show Name _ Use Text Block r a Icon 4 Assemble aie Icon Set Default xi Rank Method Ranked As First In First Out x Component Entities S g _ Batch Components _ Hold For Trigger Assembled Entity J Duration Value None v Units Hours vi C Collect Activity Statistics a Collect Activity by Entity Statistics Comment Dialog Field Definitions Cancel Help New Resource Global Attri
392. o actual properties of the graph represented by the graph panel can be set The new graph panel that is automatically selected A graph that is selected has a red border around it Multiple graphs can be selected by holding down the Control key when clicking on graph panels Multiple graph panels can also be selected by clicking and dragging a selection rectangle around the desired panels SIMPROCESS Dashboards Dashboard1 5 x File Edit Layout HO rE E D a H Lege xeEe v Moving a Graph To move a graph click on the graph panel and drag while holding down the mouse button Multiple graph panels can be moved simultaneously by selecting multiple graphs before moving The same type grid that is available for creating SIMPROCESS models is available for Dashboards on the Layout menu However due to the size of the graph panels movement can be difficult with the grid turned on SIMPROCESS User s Manual 382 Defining Dashboards Resizing a Graph The default size of a graph panel other than Text Label which is 250 x 100 pixels is 250 x 250 pixels A graph panel can be resized by clicking on the edge of a graph panel and dragging Also a specific size can be set by selecting Edit Resize from the menu or by right mouse clicking on the graph panel and choosing Edit Resize Multiple graph panels can be resized simultaneously by selecting multiple graphs before resizing Aligning and Distributing Graphs
393. o acquire By allowing the second parameter to be a String distributions can be used The third parameter must be a String but it is optional This parameter corresponds to the tag used in the Get Resource Activity The tag defaults toany tag if the third parameter is omitted If multiple GetResource system methods are used at an Activity the Resources are obtained based on the rule set in the Resource usage of that Activity The rules are Any One Member All Members Reserve As Available and Number of Members The default is Any One Member Therefore if multiple GetResource system methods are used only one of the Resources will be acquired if the Resource acquisition rule has not been set to All Members No Resources have to be listed in the Resource usage dialog for the Resource acquisition rule to be set When requesting Resources on the Resources tab of Activity properties a particular Resource can only be added to the Requirements once Thus the selected acquisition rule always applies to different Resources However since a Get Resource system method is equivalent to a Resource listed under Requirements iftwo Get Resource system methods inthe same activity reference the same Resource then each GetResource request is treated in the same manner as if each referenced different Resources For example assume the following statements are in the Accept Entity expression of an Activity SIMPROCESS User s Manual Getting and Freeing Re
394. o shifts The first shift composed of 3 clerks works from 9 to 5 The second shift consisting of 2 clerks works from 2 to 10 1 Ifthe Resource dialog is not already displayed click on the Define menu bar item and then select Resources Select Clerks from the list of resources and then click on Edit Click on Downtime General Downtime Attributes Expressions mmidd hh mm ss msec usec nsec Schedules lt Add Periodic x Edit Help Global Downtimes 2 If necessary set the Start and End dates The Start and End dates are used in conjunction with the Start Date and End Date of a simulation run see Run Settings on page 77 Nor mally Start and End remain empty When empty the downtimes will apply to the whole simulation period For example if the simulation is scheduled to run for the year 2004 and the downtime should apply only to the month of January then a Start of 1 1 2004 and SIMPROCESS User s Manual 302 Resource Downtime an End of 2 1 2004 should be entered Keep in mind that if the simulation run dates are entirely outside of the period defined for the downtime schedule the downtime schedule will not apply to that simulation 3 Define the daily hours during which Shift 1 workers do not work Their weekday work shift is from 9 to 5 so they are unavailable from 5 00 p m to 9 00 a m the following day Schedule Name can be anything For this example it is OffShift F
395. oduced first then how Expressions are implemented is explained SIMPROCESS Expression Language Basics The SIMPROCESS Expression language contains the basic features of any programming language Complex Expressions can be written in this language In the definitions that follow the word expression with a lower case e refers to a mathematical expression Expression with a capital E refers to the SIMPROCESS Expressions feature Types SIMPROCESS supports a limited set of data types The supported types are as follows BOOLEAN A variable that contains the binary values of TRUE or FALSE e REAL A variable that contains a real number e INTEGER A variable that contains an integer number e STRING A variable that contains an array of characters Types are specified in either one of two ways by declaring a variable local to the Expression such as the variables myReal and myString SIMPROCESS User s Manual 226 Writing Expressions myReal REAL myString STRING or by selecting the Attribute type from the Attribute definition dialogs The Attribute definition dialogs support the same types that can be declared locally in the Expression However the data type of Object is not supported in the Expressions ANYOBJ is used instead of Object Operators e Assignment Operator The assignment operator is used to assign a value to an Attribute For example x 15 assignWeight 1000 The colon
396. of all replications SIMPROCESS User s Manual 240 Attribute Value Initialization Attribute Value Initialization User defined Attributes can be initialized at several places ina SIMPROCESS model The following procedure shows how SIMPROCESS sets Attribute values along the simulation timeline When the simulation is started SIMPROCESS will 1 Initialize Attributes to the values that are specified in the Attribute Definition dialog 2 Execute the reset system mechanism if the Reset System option is selected and Do Not Reset Before Each Replication is not selected reset Attribute to the values specified in the Attribute Definition dialog 3 Execute any Start Simulation Expressions Attributes can be set to different values in these Expressions After a replication is complete SIMPROCESS may reset Attribute values for the next replication If the Reset System option is selected in Run Settings SIMPROCESS will continue on the next replication starting from item 2 as listed above Otherwise it will start from item 3 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 24 Example Batching Entities Based on Weight Example Batching Entities Based on Weight This example describes a method of releasing Entities based on weight an Attribute that SIMPROCESS is not inherently aware of The model depicts the product distribution Process of an appliance manufacturer Here is a simplified view of the model gt e Taj RECEIV
397. of replications to increase accuracy e Rerun the optimization One option is to de select certain decision variables and optimize the rest If an optimization has already been run there might be information available about which decision variables have the least effect on the objective function When one or more decision variables is de selected and the optimization is rerun the search focuses on the remaining more important decision variables Initial Values The initial values are the values listed as the Starting Values of the Decision Variables tab Initial values are important because the closer they are to the optimal value the faster OptQuest can find the optimal solution If the initial values are constraint infeasible they are ignored For potentially large models with many decision variables it might be helpful to first run a simplified version of the optimization to find initial values for the full blown model For example expected values could be used for some of the random variables in the model Decision Variable Bounds OptQuest s performancecan be significantly improved by selecting meaningful bounds forthe decision variables Suppose for example that the bounds for three decision variables X Y and Z are 0 lt X lt 100 0 lt Y lt 100 0 lt Z lt 100 And in addition to the bounds there is the following constraint 10 X 12 Y 20 Z lt 200 Although the optimization model is correct the deci
398. of the list but not all members are needed to Process an Entity Enter the value of number in the box Reserve As Available may pose a risk of deadlock Activities A and B are both defined as requiring Resources 1 amp 2 using Reserve As Available logic An Entity arrives at activity A which obtains Resource 1 Resource 2 is not available so A waits for it Now an Entity with higher priority arrives at Activity B Activity B waits for Resources and 2 Then Resource 2 becomes available Although Activity A has been waiting for Resource 2 longer than Activity B has B gets the Resource because the Entity it is processing has a higher priority than Activity A s Entity A deadlock develops since neither activity will release the reserved Resource Make sure this situation cannot develop Release Entities In Process at Start of Downtime sets whether Entities are released when Processing is interrupted by Resource downtime This option is not available on the Resource usage dialog of the Get Resource activity This is because Get Resource activities have no delay for Processing See Defining Downtime Schedules of Resources on page 298 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 132 Explicitly Getting and Freeing Resources Explicitly Getting and Freeing Resources When an Entity arrives at an activity if a Resource is listed in the Resource requirements list for the activity SIMPROCESS attempts to obtain the Resource required to pro
399. og will appear If this occurs recheck the database connection through the ODBC control panel if using the Access database or recheck the values in the sProcDB properties file Normally the Commit To Database dialog will appear A design name and scenario name must be entered The design and scenario comments are optional What constitutes a design will be discussed in the next section x Design ji y Design Comment rts i isSSsSY Cancel Scenario siz Hep Scenario Comment Once the information has been entered click on Commit At this point SIMPROCESS verifies that the design name and scenario name are allowable If so the results are stored in the database When finished the status bar shows Commit Complete SIMPROCESS User s Manual 323 System Design and Scenario System Design and Scenario Three tables in the database control the results placed there System Design and Scenario The System table is the highest level table and contains the model name Therefore the database is designed to hold results from more than one model If a record is deleted from the System table all records related to that model are deleted from the Access database In order for this to be true in another SQL database the appropriate relationships and or constraints must be established when the database is created The Design table holds data from different versions of the same model A model design consists of the following
400. on and division The Value field contains the value to be used with the Operation This can take the form of aconstant a Statistical Distribution a User defined Function or an Evaluate Evl Function User defined Functions can be found on page 257 of this chapter The Evaluate Function is covered on page 235 xi Attribute Model applianceVVeight OK Operation FEF gt H Cancel Value fo O w E v Each time an Entity enters the Assign Activity the Set Attribute commands are performed Important If the Attribute selected for assignment is a local Attribute a run time error will occur if an Entity enters the Activity that does not have the selected Attribute defined SIMPROCESS User s Manual 223 Variable Resource Usage Variable Resource Usage User defined Attributes can be used to request units of Resources Using an Attribute allows the units of Resource required by each Entity to vary For instance in the example from Chapter 5 page 131 an Entity needed one unit of the Service Rep Resource for that Activity x Expressions EventLoas TextBlock Documentation OK General Resources Attributes Cancel Requirements Help Add sates Rep x Remove i Edit New Resource Help Global Attributes Requires Entity Any One Member Entity Type C All Members Resource IC Reserve As Available Model C Number of Members None v I Release Enti
401. on desired or the average or sum of replications Some examples GetEntityStatistic Sales Calls tokentotalborn Max 1 returns the total number of Sales Calls Entities that were generated in replication 1 GetEntityStatistic Sales Calls tokendelay Avg 1 returns the average Sales Calls cycle time across replications GetEntityStatistic Sales Calls tokenholdlevel Max 1 returns the maximum number of Sales Calls Entities that were in a hold condition for replication 1 GetResourceStatistic GetResourceStatistic returns the value of a statistic for a Resource that has Collect Resource Statistics selected either globally or on the Resource properties See Default Performance Measures on page 163 The syntax is GetResourceStatistic Resource Name Statistic Value Type Replication where Resource Name is the name of the Resource and Statistic is the statistic type desired The key words for the statistics available are found in Appendix G See Statistic Types on page 507 Value Type can be Avg StDev Min Max Count or RunLength Replication is the replication desired or the average or sum of replications SIMPROCESS User s Manual 270 Accessing Statistics During Simulation Some examples GetResourceStatistic Sales Rep resrcidle Avg 1 returns the average number of Sales Rep units idle across replications GetResourceStatistic Sales Rep r
402. on expression of the Model Expressions Define Model Expressions odel OrderTime GetEntityStatistic Order tokendelay Avg Replication odel FinishedProduct GetResourceStatistic FinProduct resrcidle Avg Replication odel InventoryPlusOrderTime Model FinishedProduct 5 0 odel OrderTime When combining performance measures the Expression language will be needed to retrieve statistics collected during the simulation See Accessing Statistics During Simulation on page 267 The example above shows values being assigned to three Model Attributes OrderTime FinishedProduct and InventoryPlusOrderTime OrderTime is assigned the average cycle time for the entity Order FinishedProduct is assigned the average number of units idle of the resource FinProduct Invent oryP lusOrderTime isa linear combination of the two and statistics are collected for that attribute Thus the Model Attribute InventoryPlusOrderTime is the value to minimize Note that the System Attribute Replication is used to get the value from the appropriate replication of the simulation Standard or specialized statistics can also be used as constraints in OptQuest Therefore if performance measures need to be used as constraints make sure the appropriate statistics are being collected For example the values being assigned to OrderTime and FinishedProduct are also constraints in the Inventory demonstration model
403. on of 1 returns the aver age of replications and a value of 2 returns the sum of replica tions GetTotalCostStatistic Resource Name STRING REAL Returns the total cost for the Cost Type STRING requested Resource Name If Value Type STRING ane Resource Name is Total then Replication INTEGER the total cost of all Resources is returned Cost Type is either Capacity or Absorption Value Type is either Avg StDev Min or Max for Replication 1 If Replication is 1 or greater the maximum value is returned no matter what is entered for Value Type A Replica tion of 1 returns the average of replications and a value of 2 returns the sum of replications SIMPROCESS User s Manual 472 SIMPROCESS System Methods SIMPROCESS System Methods Method Name Arguments Return Description HALT Message Optional STRING NONE If used with no parameters it ends the current replication and simulation continues with next replication If parameters are used the simulation is stopped with an error condition A dialog appears that contains the con tents of the parameter IncreaseCapacity Resource Name STRING NONE Increases the capacity of a Re Units INTEGER or REAL source by the units specified INTTOSTR number INTEGER STRING Converts an integer number to a string LN X REAL REAL Returns the Natural Log of X LOG10 X REAL REAL Returns
404. on under the Get Resource event OUTPUT In Self Name Activity Entity Name Activity Entity Name produces the name of the Activity and the name of the current Entity in that Activity The above statement gains access to the Entity in the Activity that is assigning the Resource When using the stacked object references pay close attention to what is the current state of the model Consider the following example for an Entity Expression under Initialize Entity event OUTPUT In Self Name Activity Activity Name produces an error SIMPROCESS User s Manual 249 Example Batching Entities Based on Weight The above OUTPUT statement produces an error since there is no Activity object in scope at the time an Entity is initialized An Entity must be accepted into an Activity before the above statement would work This is a good example of being aware of the state of the simulation when referencing objects Other common mistakes are using the Resource object references for example Resource myResource Activity Name from within an Activity Expression before the Get Resource event has occurred or Sibling and Child references without considering the state of the Siblings and Children for example Sibling Delay6 Entity Name may produce an error if there is no Entity current in the Delay6 Activity Object references are very powerful but can be confusing It is recommended that the sim
405. one Process step to the next and at each step some task is performed The Resources such as people machines or information required to complete the tasks are also included in the business model SIMPROCESS generates valuable information about the Activities Entities and Resources in the model This data is used to validate the Process model The generated statistics and reports are used to determine where the Process could be improved SIMPROCESS allows you to evaluate alternatives and different management policies SIMPROCESS helps a team decide which changes to a business Process will provide the most benefits SIMPROCESS User s Manual 16 SIMPROCESS Editions SIMPROCESS Editions SIMPROCESS has three editions e Professional Edition contains all the features and capabilities of SIMPROCESS There are no limits on model size for models built with SIMPROCESS Professional Edition e University Edition also contains all the features and capabilities of SIMPROCESS However model sizes are limited to no more than 50 Processes and Activities e Runtime Edition models are limited to no more than 50 processes and activities 5 entity types and 5 resource types Also none of the advanced features are accessible SIMPROCESS User s Manual 17 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus SIMPROCESS Terminology This manual uses the following words and definitions in its description of SI
406. operties essions General Event Lags Copy Attributes Name Transfarm33 Icon s Transform Icon Set Default Output Entities Quantity Entity Type Duration Value None Units Hours Collect Activity Statistics Text Block V Show Name Fan vom v Collect Activity by Entity Statistics v v Documentation Resources Use Text Block Comment Cancel Help New Entity Entity Entity Type Resource Model New Resource Global Attributes SIMPROCESS User s Manual 108 Entity Control Activities Dialog Field Definitions and Buttons Output Entities e Quantity is the number of new Entities to create This number of each Entity arriving will be generated for every Connector e Entity Type is the type of Entity to be released Select the type from the pull down list e The time specified in the Duration will be applied before the Activity thus it will be reflected in the Cycle Time of the incoming Entities The outgoing Entities will not have accrued any Cycle Time Copy Attributes tab is where attributes of the arriving Entity can be selected to be transferred to the new output Entity Examples of attributes that can be copied include User Defined Attribute values creation time etc Time Stamps and Entity Priority can also be copied Specifying Attributes to Copy Selecting the Copy Attributes tab displays the
407. operties dialog box to specify the branching parameters The corresponding Connector Properties are based on the type of Branch selected in the Branch Activity Properties dialog Entity Type Select the type of the Entities that should flow along this Connector from the combo box Probability Enter the probability a number between 0 and 1 0 that the Entity will flow on this Connector Priority Enter the Entity priority number to branch on Values are from 1 to 100 When Entities are contending for Resources Entities with a higher priority get to use available Resources first The higher the number the higher the Entity s priority Attribute The first line shows the name of the attribute selected in the Branch Properties box Branching can be based on the equality of numbers strings booleans or on ranges of numbers If the selected attribute is a local Entity instance or Entity type attribute a run time error will occur if an Entity enters that does not have the selected attribute defined Otherwise If Otherwise is selected this Connector becomes the default branching Connector This means all Entities pass through this Connector if none of the criteria in any other Connectors are satisfied Branch Activity Type Connector Properties Used Display Example Probability Probability between 0 and 1 0 0 75 Otherwise True or False Otherwise Attribute Branch If Attribute Is value Displays User Defi
408. opping key of the time stamp Value Type can be Avg StDev Min Max Count or RunLength Replication is the replication desired or the average or sum of replications Some examples SIMPROCESS User s Manual 271 Accessing Statistics During Simulation GetTimeStampStatistic start stop Avg 1 returns the average of the time stamp with the start key start and stop key stop across replications GetTimeStampStatistic start stop Count 1 returns the number of observations of the time stamp with the start key start and stop key stop for replication 1 GetTotalCostStatistic Get TotalCostStatisticreturns the total Capacity or Absorption cost ofa Resource The syntax is Get TotalCostStatistic Resource Name Cost Type Value Type Replication where Resource Name is the name of the Resource If the Resource Name is Total the value returned is forall Resources Cost Typeis Capacity or Absorption Value Typecanbe Avg StDev Min or Max for Replication 1 If Replication is 1 or larger the maximum value is returned no matter what is entered for Value Type Some examples GetTotalCostStatistic Sales Rep Absorption Max 1 returns thetotal absorption cost of the Sales Rep Resource for replication 1 GetTotalCostStatistic Total Absorption Max 1 returns the total absorption cost of all Resources for replication 1 GetTotalCostStatistic Total Ca
409. or Schedule Type select Calendar and then select Add Select Daily for Type For Time the starting time of the downtime period enter 77 under HH 1700 hours 5 p m and 0 under MM and SS Milliseconds Microseconds and Nanoseconds may be left blank In the Number of Units Down field enter the number 3 This is the number of clerks on Shift 1 Remember that the resource Units of Clerks is 5 so 3 of the 5 will be unavailable during the period being identified Downtime Duration is 6 0 the number of hours since the Duration Units is set to Hours between the end of one work day and the beginning of the next Unavailability occurs at regularly scheduled times so select Planned Leave Interrupt Activities unselected since the clerks finish their current tasks before going down Click on OK when the definition is complete OffShift is added to the Schedule list Calendar Downtime Schedule x Schedule Name forsi oK Schedule Cancel Type Daily x Help hh mm ss msec usec nsec Time fi 7 00 00 a Number of Units Down B0 o Aoa Downtime Duration feo Duration Units Hours tis YS V Planned I Interrupt Activities Release All Reso Comment SIMPROCESS User s Manual 303 Resource Downtime 4 Define the off shift period for the two Shift 2 workers Add another daily downtime sched ule Change Time to 22 00 Number of Units Down to 2 and name the schedule OffSh
410. or a single entity type Specifying the Active Period of Entity Release The period that the entity release schedule is in effect can be limited by specifying Release Start and End dates To do this click on the Start End tab and specify the Start and End dates If Start and End dates are specified the Generate Activity will not produce Entities outside of that time period The Start and End dates work in conjunction with the Start Date and End Date of a simulation run So keep in mind that if the simulation run dates are entirely outside of the period defined for the Generate release schedule no Entities are generated during that simulation Ifa Generation Start date is not specified SIMPROCESS sets the Start time to correspond to simulation start time Similarly if Generation End date is blank it defaults to the simulation end time So leaving the Generation Start End fields blank ensures that the schedule is in effect for the entire simulation run Defining Schedules for a Generate Activity The Generate schedule identifies the entity generation pattern defined for an Activity When a new schedule item is defined it is added to the Schedule list box Schedule Periodic1 Add gt Periodic Edit Copy Remove Each Schedule identifies an entity generation pattern of a specific type e Periodic A periodic schedule generates a specified quantity of Entities at the end of a specified time period e Calendar Generates En
411. orded are determined by the status of Show Entities Show Counts and Update Dynamic Labels If an item is selected those type of animation events are recorded In the example below only the movement of entities and Activity counts would be recorded Note that the Animation On button is not selected Animation does not need to display during recording Show On Q O T Gee Anaon Off Show Counts On Warning Animation events files can be very large When recording counts and movement of entities animation events for every level of the model must be recorded Recording all that information will create very large files if recording is done for the whole simulation The larger the model is the larger the animation event file will be Recording the movement of entities has the biggest impact Recording only dynamic label events and or Activity count events typically produces much smaller files Animation Playback An animation event file of an animation that has been recorded must be opened for playback This is done using the Open File button on the post simulation animation toolbar Important Make sure the animation event file opened was recorded from the currently active model The file browser will automatically open to the directory of the model If the model has changed since the animation event file was created delete the previous animation event files and record again Play Once a file has been opened the Play and Fast Forward
412. ore SIMPROCESS is started and can remain operational even though SIMPROCESS is closed and reopened e Create the external schedule in a Generate Activity Start the Java RMI Registry e Start SPServer External Schedule Setup Use the External schedule dialog to set the default Entity and Quantity External Schedule for External Input xi Schedule fetemal2 OK Cancel Entity fusedefaut HA Help Quantity jusedetaut A E StartvEnd Comment The Entity and Quantity specified on the dialog can be overridden by the external application Multiple external schedules can be specified in a single generate Activity or in different generate Activities SIMPROCESS User s Manual 287 Defining a More Complex Generate Activity Java RMI Registry The Java RMI Registry must be started before SPServer or the simulation is started This is because Java RMI is the protocol used to communicate between the external application and SPServer and between SPServer and SIMPROCESS The RMI Registry program rmiregistry is located in the Java Runtime Environment JRE included with SIMPROCESS To start the RMI Registry locally select Tools Remote Start RMI Registry Note that once the RMI Registry has been started it will remain active until SIMPROCESS is closed Alternatively a batch file or UNIX shell scriptcan be constructed in the SIMPROCESS directory because the RMI Registry program is required to have in its classpath the locat
413. ors link Activities and Processes together and are the paths used by Entities to flow through the model Pads Pads are small triangular objects attached to Activities and Processes which serve as attachment points for Connectors A single Pad can connect one or possibly more Connectors Entities flow in one direction entering nodes at input Pads and exiting at output Pads Three sizes of Pads are available small medium and large The Pad size can be changed on the Pad properties dialog or by right clicking on the Pad and choosing Pad Size The size of all the Pads on an Activity or selected Activities can be changed by right clicking on a selected Activity and choosing Pad Size Pads also connect one level of a Process hierarchy to another Pads can be queueing areas for Entities waiting for a Resource or condition Putting it Together A SIMPROCESS model shows a business Process as a set of Nodes Processes and Activities connected by Connectors Entities are generated from one or more Generate Activities traverse the model and finally proceed to a Dispose Activity where they are disposed Entities pass through other Activities such as Delays and Branches A model is built by supplying numeric and symbolic attributes to the various Activities and the Entities that are processed at these Activities The Resources needed to process the Entities are also defined SIMPROCESS User s Manual 55 The end result is a dynamic mo
414. ose with errors will be skipped over If Display Error Alerts is checked when SIMPROCESS encounters an error when running the experiment an error dialog will display that will stop the experiment until the error has been acknowledged by the user Turn Off Animation defaults to checked If checked all models in the experiment will run with animation turned off Commit Results To Data base defaults to checked as well When selected the results from each run will be placed in the SIMPROCESS database Multiple experiments can be entered Although not necessary it is recom mended that model design and scenario information be entered before adding another experiment Entering Model Information The next tab is Model Setup This tab is active when an experiment name is entered or selected on the Experiment Setup tab To select a model click the Add Model button This brings up a file chooser dialog The complete path and the name of the model selected is added to the Model combo box All models added are part of the experiment that was selected on the Experiment Setup tab Although multiple models can be entered before entering design and scenario information it is recommended that all the design and scenario information along with parameter and process information if needed be entered before entering the next model If the selected model is moved after being added to an experiment the model and all associated experiment information design scenar
415. osing 60 icons labeling 60 icons showing name under 59 icons types 60 interrupting 301 Join 118 122 125 linking 55 Local Attributes 221 Merge 114 Name field 59 Properties dialog 58 62 removing from model 58 Replenish Resource 137 138 resources needed by defining 59 Show All 41 Show All Names 41 Show Attached 41 Show Local Names 41 Split 118 119 122 Synchronize 104 106 Text Block 61 time required to perform 66 Transfer 114 7 Transform 108 110 Unbatch 100 101 ungrouping 40 using activity attributes in an expression 233 variable resource usage 131 Activity Properties dialog fields 58 62 Activity Based Costing 153 160 Cost Calculations 159 Cost Periods 156 Resource Costs 157 159 adding objects to a model 57 58 animation changing during simulation 81 settings 81 Animation Settings 47 79 Animation Speed 47 79 Show Clock 47 79 Show Counts 47 79 Show Entities 47 79 Update Dynamic Labels 47 79 Assemble Activity 96 98 batch component entities 98 Assemble component entities pad 96 Assign Activity 107 108 222 Entity Priority 108 User Defined Attributes 107 Attribute Value Initialization 241 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 522 Index Attributes 212 Model Parameter 218 Model Paramters 80 System 214 User Defined 215 Automatic saving 26 B Background Color 38 Background Graphics 145 Background Text 141 Batch Activity 98 100 Batched Entity 99 103 Maximum Batch Size 99 maximu
416. ostart the RMI Registry abatch file or UNIX shell script can be constructed because the RMI Registry program is required to have in its classpath the locations of files referenced by server Processes Here are some examples of what should be contained in those files SIMPROCESS User s Manual 180 Real Time Plots Windows batch file set CLASSPATH SPRemote jar rmiregistry UNIX shell script using the Bourne shell or a derivative CLASSPATH SPRemote jar export CLASSPATH rmiregistry UNIX shell script using the C shell or a derivative setenv CLASSPATH SPRemote jar rmiregistry Sample batch files and scripts are located in the SPUser SampleFiles directory SPUser is in the directory where SIMPROCESS was installed The sample batch files and scripts are intended to be used in the SIMPROCESS installation directory Adjust the precise CLASSPATH value as needed based on where the copy of SPRemote jar is located and the current working directory Once the RMI Registry program is started SPPlotServer can then be started When using localhost enter this command from the SIMPROCESS directory on the system where SIMPROCESS is installed jre bin java classpath SPSYSTEM SPRemote jar SPSYSTEM plot jar com caci remote SPPlotServer Alternatively the Plot Serv batch or script file in the SPUser SampleFiles directory can be run Simply copy the appropriate file to the SIMPROCESS installation directory before running
417. other Activity will have a weight Attribute automatically created for it Note that Attributes for different model elements can have the same name For example a global Attribute called appliance Weight could be defined for Resources It can have a completely different meaning and data type Global and local Attributes for the same model element cannot have the same name All attributes global or local are managed using a table similar to Entities and Resources Changes to global attribute definitions from the table cannot be canceled Each table can be sorted by a particular column by clicking the column header Holding the Shift key while clicking the column header causes the sort to be in reverse order Creating a User Defined Attribute Global Attributes can be defined from the SIMPROCESS menu or from the dialog of a model element SIMPROCESS User s Manual 215 User Defined Attributes Local Attributes can only be defined from the dialog of a model element Globally Defining an Attribute from the Menu To globally define an Attribute from the SIMPROCESS menu select Global Attributes from the Define menu The following dialog appears Global Attribute Definitions i Entity Entity Type Resource Activity Model Array Model Name Mode Size Parameter Local The Global Attribute Definitions dialog is used to add anew Attribute orto change copy or delete existing Attributes There are five tabs Entit
418. ound Alternative not changed for run Fri Dec 07 19 03 21 EST 2001 Attribute Model NumProdAPersonnel in Experiment Purchasin g Model Purchasing Design 5 Reps and Scenario Decentralized Under staffed chani ed to value 6 Fri Dec 07 19 03 21 EST 2001 Attribute Model NumProdBPersonnel in Experiment Purchasin g Model Purchasing Design 5 Reps and Scenario Decentralized Under staffed chang ed to value 4 Fri Dec 07 19 03 21 EST 2001 Attribute Model NumProdBPersonnel in Experiment Purchasin g Model Purchasing Design 5 Reps and Scenario Decentralized Under staffed chang ed to value 4 Fri Dec 07 19 03 21 EST 2001 Running Scenario Decentralized Under staffed Fri Dec 07 19 03 36 EST 2001 Committing results to database for Scenario Decentralized Under staffed Clear When the Display Error Alerts field is selected error dialogs will appear that pause the Experiment until the error is acknowledged x Q Scenario Decentralized Under staffed for Design 5 Reps and Model Purchasing is already in the database Anew Scenario name is required Also after the error displays if there are more experiments to be run a dialog appears with the option to stop all experiment runs ElEnperiment Manager umm Q Stop Experiment runs mj If experiments are to be run overnight it is recommended that the Display Error Alerts field not be selected for every expe
419. out Confirm Delete causes a confirmation dialog to appear when you delete a Pad Pad Size specifies the default size of pads Small Medium or Large Connections Show Name displays Connector names on the layout Confirm Delete causes a confirmation dialog to appear when you delete a Connector Line Width specifies the default line width for new Connectors Line Style specifies the default line style for new Connectors Default Connector for Auto Connect specifies the type of connector Bent or Straight to use when Auto Connect Activities on the Processes Activities tab is selected Toolbars The display of the Toolbar and Palette is optional Other Preferences Time Between Auto Saves determines the approximate amount of time between automatic saves of the model The automatic save feature creates a file with the same name as the current model except with an identifier number added along with the extension tmp e g MyModel spm would be saved as MyModel 1 tmp If the current model is new and has not been saved the name of the temporary file will be the model s assigned name Model 1 Model 2 etc with a tmp extension and will be located in the models directory SIMPROCESS User s Manual 26 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus NOTE The automatic save does not affect the ck file The bck file is created or updated when you initiate a save See page 19 for information on the backup file Maximum Number of File
420. pacity Avg 1 returns the average total capacity cost of all Resources across replications Statistic Errors If the statistic requested is not found a run time error will occur This will occur ifa statistic is requested for which no statistics collection was defined In the following example no statistics were collected for the Entity Sales Calls Object Process7 GetEntityStatistic function No statistics collected for Entity Sales Calls Another common error is to request the average of replication statistics when only one replication was SIMPROCESS User s Manual 272 Accessing Statistics During Simulation run or when the first replication is running The average of replication can be requested during the simulation of replication 2 or higher or after all replications have been completed In the following example the average of replications 1 was requested during the simulation of replication 1 x Object Process7 GetEntityStatistic function invalid replication parameter Average or Sum of Replications GoTo not available when running 1 replication or during first replication Requesting the statistic for a replication that is not currently running or has not yet run will not cause an error The value zero will be returned SIMPROCESS User s Manual 273 Summary Summary This chapter described how Attributes are used in SIMPROCESS and introduced Expression processing wi
421. particular Activity type If errors persist contact SIMPROCESS Technical Support at simprocess caci com for assistance TABLE 1 Import Errors and Causes Error Cause Error in schedules for Generate Generate 1 in imported model Feedback Entity field is blank in a Gener ate schedule Error in Activity properties of Activity Inspect in imported model Wafer A Connector or Pad has the same name as the Activity listed 2 2 1 and 2 2 2 only Error in Dummy Connector gt in imported model Wafer A Connector is missing a name 2 2 1 and 2 2 2 only SPDOM selectSingleNode exception javax xml trans form TransformerException misquoted literal expected sin gle quote A name has a single quote Error in Connector Rejects in imported model Wafer Two Connectors have the same name 2 2 1 and 2 2 2 only SIMPROCESS User s Manual 415 Appendix A Importing Version 2 2 1 Models Importing Document Files Versions of SIMPROCESS prior to 3 stored model documentation in files in the model folder These files will not import automatically The document feature has been improved in version 3 No longer is the documentation stored in separate files In 3 it is part of the model file For the documentation to be part of the model the text must be RTF The files in earlier version models are ASCII if NotePad was used to create the text or some other format if another text editor
422. pecified Entities arriving at each Pad are stored in separate queues Each queue releases one Entity to its corresponding output Pad when each queue has at least one Entity A project may require four jobs to be done in parallel with the work kept in step at various tasks within the process All others must be at the same stage of completion before work can proceed on one job Synchronize Activity may be used with four Pads to model the wait time and release of the parallel tasks SIMPROCESS User s Manual 104 Entity Related Activities Synchronize Properties Expressions Event Logs Text Block Documentation General Resources Attributes Cancel Name Synchronize29 Show Name Ol Use Text Block ee e t leon 8 Synchronize 23 New Entity New Resource Global Attributes Icon Set Default v Number of Pads Entity Entity Type Resource Model Rank Method Ranked As First in First Out Duration Value None Units Hours Fi Collect Activity Statistics L Collect Activity by Entity Statistics Comment Dialog Field Definitions Number of Pads is the number of pairs of input and output Pads required by this Activity Rank Method sets the rank method of the queues for each input Pad Each queue will have the same rank method The default is First In First Out The rank methods are e First In First Out e First In Last Out e Earliest Created First e Latest Created First e
423. plest form possible of object reference be used in Expressions and that objects be accessed from the most obvious point of scope i e placing the Expressions behind the appropriate events The use of object reference also applies to the Child Parent and Sibling references Any number of object references can be stacked and return appropriate results unless a Child or Sibling is referenced that does not exist or a Parent is referenced from the top level diagram all of which will return an error and terminate the simulation The following example would work in a Process Expression as long as it was invoked from a Process that is at least three levels deep has a Sibling named Delay6 and a Child named Delay7 OUTPUT In SelfName Sibling Sibling Delay6 Name Child Delay7 Name two parents up Self Parent Parent Name produces the name of the Activity the name of Delay6 the name of Delay7 and the name of the parent s parent of the current Process There are certain cases where it may be necessary to use object references as variables to gain further control over what Attributes can be accessed or to provide some flexibility in an Expression There are basically two ways to use object references in variables define local script variables of type ANYOBSJ or define SIMPROCESS user defined variables of type Object Note that both of these applications allow the variable to be setup as an array just like any
424. plianceWeight would be determined by checking the name of the Entity type e g dishwasher order television order This information is available from the System Attribute Name 2 When an Entity is received at the Batch Activity the Entity s applianceWeight value would be added to the total weight of all orders waiting to be shipped another User Attribute The total weight would then be checked If it exceeds a certain value the Batch Activity would be forced to release a shipment One way to force a shipment to be released is to change the batch size to a value equal to the current number of Entities in the Batch Activity These values are available in System Attributes This chapter describes e Built in System Attributes e User Defined Attributes e How to write an Expression which uses User Defined Attributes and System Attributes SIMPROCESS User s Manual 213 Using Attributes in SIMPROCESS Using Attributes in SIMPROCESS This section contains a closer look at Attributes and how they can be used in SIMPROCESS It starts with a look at the system Attributes built into SIMPROCESS and then goes on to a detailed discussion of User Defined Attributes System Attributes SIMPROCESS provides access to the state of a simulation through a set of built in variables These System Attributes provide information such as e The type of Entity currently in an Activity The number of Entities of a particular type that have bee
425. plit Activity to termination in the Join Activity while the original Entity s cycle is measured from a Generate to a Dispose Activity An Entity named Temp is defined and used on the Split Connectors in the case of Rush Order Processing in order not to skew the cycle time or Entity count statistics for Customer Order Entities Note that using an Entity named Temp for split Entities is adequate if the simulation statistics of these Entities is not important Define a different Entity type for each Split path if the number of each split Entity generated during a simulation is important or any other Entity statistic is important Select the Auto Label option if you want SIMPROCESS to display the Entity name on the Connector The name will be displayed unless Show Name on the Connector is turned off Click on OK when you finish defining the Connector Defining a Join Activity Entities released from a Split Activity are reunited at a Join Activity SIMPROCESS User s Manual 122 Entity Control Activities Do Paperwork a Bs Pt Par Split Delay2 Update Database The Join Activity icon has one input Pad and two output Pads The upper output Pad is named Join Entities that are reunited with their family exit through this Pad The lower Pad is named NoMatch Entities that are not members of the Join family leave through this Pad An Entity that is nota member of the Rush Order family that enters the Join Activity will pass t
426. points should sum to 100 so the area under a probability density function is equal to one Cumulative density functions give the probability of selecting a number at or below that value For example ifthe cumulative density function value at 1 7 was equal to 75 then 75 of the time selecting from that distribution would give a number less than 1 7 The value of a cumulative density function at a point is the area under the corresponding probability density curve to the left of that value Since the total area under the probability density function curve is equal to one amove towards more positive values in a cumulative density function approaches one Knowledge of all these details is not needed to effectively model a situation Knowing which distribution best fits the data is most important The curve fitting capabilities of ExpertFit make it easy to find the correct distribution for data In addition standard distributions can be examined visually for different combinations of input parameters Standard Statistical Indicators There are several statistical indicators that can tell a lot about the distribution of random values Consult anintroductory statistics textbook for detailed discussions of these indicators This section simply gives their meanings and some of their implications More definitions can be found in the Statistical Tools Glossary beginning on page 452 at the end of this manual The mean is the most important cha
427. pression Editor On the right is the text area for typing in the Expression Cut copy and paste can be used in the text area by using the appropriate keyboard equivalents On the left are four tabs Expression Language System Methods System Attributes and User Defined Attributes that list the items that can be included in the Expression The Expression Language tab lists data types operators and constructs of the SIMPROCESS Expression Language along with a description of the selected item The System Methods tab lists the System Methods available for SIMPROCESS along with the Arguments the type the system method Returns and Description of the selected item The System Attributes tab lists the system Attributes defined for each simulation object in SIMPROCESS Included is the Get Set property of the system Attribute the Type of the system Attribute INTEGER REAL etc and a Description of the selected item See SIMPROCESS System Attributes and Methods beginning on page 458 for more information on System Attributes and System Methods The User Defined Attributes tab lists all the global Attributes defined in the model and any local Attributes defined for the Expression owner including the Type of the selected Attribute Double clicking an item on any of the lists causes the item to appear in the Expression text area The Validate button underneath the text area checks the syntax of the Expression without closing the editor The Done butto
428. pressions OK Cancel Name Service Rep Help Units B x w Document I Fractional Usage I Consumable Cost I Collect Resource Statistics I Collect Resource by Activity Statistics Comment Click the Cost button to display the Resource Costs dialog for this Resource It looks like the following Nonconsumable Resource Costs p x Variable Costs Usage Cost per Entity o o 7 i Cost per Unit po gt E Cost per Time Unit f15 0 v Eal Time Unit Hous ss tst ts s SYS r Fixed Costs Per Unit foo x 7 weekly per Currency Dollars M Collect Cost Statistics Cancel Help The box at the top of this dialog shows the Variable Costs and the box below shows the Fixed Costs The check box atthe bottom left hand corner of the dialog Collect Cost Statistics is turned on by default whenever cost information is entered Leave this selected Otherwise cost statistics will not be gathered SIMPROCESS User s Manual 158 How to Use ABC in SIMPROCESS Variable Cost Three types of variable costs can be specified for non consumable Resources e Usage Cost per Entity This cost is applied to each Entity that is Processed by the Resource It is used to represent flat fee charging schemes The same cost is assigned regard less of the amount of the Resource s units that is used or the duration of the Activity Example Often administrative ch
429. ptimizations have been created for the model Select Optimization Settings will be empty The first step in defining an optimization is to give it a name Enter a name in Select Optimization Settings If there are already other optimization settings defined entering a new name creates a new Setting To switch between settings simply select the desired setting from Select Optimization Settings Select Optimization Settings Purchasing Optimization z Once a name has been entered continue defining the optimization There are five tabs on the dialog Objective Decision Variables Constraints Process Alternatives and Run Options The tabs can be edited in any order Objective The Objective tab sets whether to Minimize or Maximize and the value to optimize The buttons on the right are used to select the value to optimize Entity Resource Activity Time Stamp or Model Attribute values can be optimized For the Purchasing demonstration model the objective is to minimize the capacity cost of all the resources So Minimize was selected then the Resource button was selected to SIMPROCESS User s Manual 354 Optimization Setup choose the appropriate value to minimize Buyers Absorption Cost Contracts Administrators ProductAPersonnel ProductBPersonnel ProductCPersonnel On the left are all the resources defined in the model plus an additional item named All Resources When an item is selected on the left the possible valu
430. quick way of searching by name for items within the model The Model Search dialog has three areas Search Items Search Criteria and Search Results SIMPROCESS User s Manual 28 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus Model Searrh OOOO Search ae a items r Search Criteria Search Results F Process or Activity Equals F Entity Type Assets C Starts With E OAE P ooanus M Global Attribute C Ends With Prat Enty Type Attribute F Background Text g 2 Activity Attribute ctor C Contains i 2a Resource Attribute kas Model Attribute I Ignore Case T Background Text Find L Connector Search Items has eight check boxes Process or Activity Entity Type Resource Resource Downtime Global Attribute Background Text Connector or Any default The other items become available for selection when Any is deselected Model Search searches the names of the selected Search Items based on the options set in Search Criteria Enter the string to search for in the text field of Search Criteria then select how to compare the string entered with the names of the selected Search Items The options are Equals Starts With Ends With or Contains Select Ignore Case to perform a case insensitive search Once the Search Criteria has been set click the Find button to perform the search Search Results displays the items found The type of each item found Process or Activity Entity Type Resource Global Attribute
431. r Activities Adding a Comment Use the Comment field to add a brief comment describing the purpose of this Activity This field is optional Printing Process Documentation or Model Documentation will include comment in the document The comment will appear on the status bar when an Activity is selected Documenting the Activity The Document button opens an editor in which descriptive information may be added about the Activity The editor opens with a preformatted template which is changeable See document Subdirectory on page 422 Print Document text using the SIMPROCESS Print facility Labeling with Text Blocks The Text Block tab adds up to three lines of text to the inside of the icon on the layout Text Block labels facilitate understanding of the Activity or Process in relation to the model Add descriptive labels to an icon by performing the following tasks SIMPROCESS User s Manual 60 Using the Palette Bar to Create Activities 1 Click on Text Block tab x General Resources Attributes Expressions Event Logs Text Block Documentation Cancel Line 1 Text Help Help Line2Tet tsti S Line 3 Text O O New Entity Font Attributes 7 New Resource FontName Serif xl Global Attributes Size hooo n Entity Color Black xl Entity Tyne T Bold Resource I Italic Model V Show Text Comment 2 Fill in one to three lines of text Set the desired font attribut
432. r distribution name Select a distribution for modification Name MtyEriang OK fen6 0 1 d l Cancel Help x SIMPROCESS User s Manual 87 User Defined Distributions 3 Using the distribution text box either change the parameters of the distribution within the parentheses or select the details button three dots This button opens a dialog containing the parameter descriptions e g Erlang parameters Distribution Details xj OK Mean 5 0 Cancel Hel Shape fi E Stream fi View 4 To see the PDF Probability Distribution Function and CDF Cumulative Distribution Func tion plotted choose the View button from the dialog shown in Step 3 The PDF is labeled on the left y axis the CDF on the right y axis 5 The graph can be saved to a file To continue select Close from the graph s File pull down menu 6 Once the data is entered choose OK and the defined User Distribution is added to the list box This User Defined Distribution can now be used anywhere in the model where a statistical dis tribution is specified 7 To copy an existing User Distribution select the distribution choose the Copy button and you can enter another Name for the distribution 8 To remove an existing User Distribution select the distribution and choose the Remove button 9 Choose the Close button to finish with User Distributions Tabular Distributions Tabular Distributions creates a statistical distri
433. racteristic of a data sample Always try to get a good value for the mean from actual data if possible if the scenario represents a time to complete some task or the number of arrivals in a certain time period The mode is the most likely value in a set of data Consider the following list of numbers SIMPROCESS User s Manual 316 An Introduction to Data Analysis and Modeling 2 3 3 3 9 10 The mode for this set of data is 3 since it occurs most frequently The mean for this set of data is 5 If a distribution is symmetric about the mean and singly peaked then the mode and the mean will be equal In this case the distribution contains a couple of large values which shift the mean away from the mode As discussed later the mode is an important parameter for specifying a triangular distribution The standard deviation is a simple measure of the spread in the data It is calculated by finding the mean summing the squares of all the differences between the mean and the data points taking the square root of this value and then dividing by the square root of the number of data points Loosely it is the average difference from the mean Why are the square and square root are taken Because the result would be zero if just the differences were summed The standard deviation is a measure of how much spread there is in the data If the standard deviation is large there is a wide variation in the data If itis small the data a
434. rameter is provided The return value is REAL type For example Entity StartTime SimTime StartTime is a REAL global Entity instance attribute of type REAL The allowable time units are provided as a string parameter and are case sensitive The allowable time units are Years Months Weeks Days Hours Minutes Seconds Milliseconds Microsec onds Nanoseconds An example using the time units is as follows Mytimeunit STRING Mytimeunit Weeks OUTPUT My time unit in weeks SimTime Mytimeunit OUTPUT My time unit in months SimTime Months Method OUTPUT and STATUS To display a message in the standard output window OUTPUT Number of orders currently held in Gatel0 is Num berIn realnum REAL OUTPUT The String value of realnum REALTOSTR realnum SIMPROCESS User s Manual 482 System Method Examples Or to display it in the status bar STATUS Number of orders currently held in Gatel0 is Num berIn where the expressions above are placed on the Activity Gate10 Method UpdateDashboardLabel To use this method you need to assign a Dashboard to your model which contains a TextLabel To assign Dashboards refer to Assigning Dashboards beginning on page 390 Five arguments are required for this method The first is Dashboard Name This is the name used when you assigned the Dashboard to your model You may also use the n
435. rces Attributes Name Gate25 Show Name Use Text Block Icon my Gate s ay Icon Set Fi Batch Entities Batched Entity Rank Method v Ranked As First In First Out Threshold Release On Threshold Quantity Trigger Release Release All Quantity Duration Value None Units Hours C Collect Activity Statistics C Collect Activity by Entity Statistics Comment Dialog Field Definitions Batch Entities will batch the Entities before leaving the Activity Cancel Help Global Attributes Entity Entity Type Resource Model New Entity New Resource Batched Entity is the type of Entity that will serve as the container or parent Entity An Entity of this type is created and all other Entities become children of the parent Rank Method sets the rank method of the queue for the Entities waiting at the Gate The default is First In First Out The rank methods are e First In First Out e First In Last Out Earliest Created First e Latest Created First e Highest Priority Value First SIMPROCESS User s Manual 103 Entity Related Activities Lowest Priority Value First e Highest Attribute Value First e Lowest Attribute Value First The Attribute field will be active if Highest Attribute Value First or Lowest Attribute Value First is selected Select the desired attribute from the list If the selected attribut
436. re called decision variables in OptQuest Constraints Relationships among decision variables and output variables For example a constraint might ensure that the total amount of money allocated among various investments cannot exceed a specified amount or the processing time of a system cannot be greater than a certain value There can be bounds upper and lower on the decision variables and performance measure constraints statistics Using OptQuest An Overview Follow these steps to use OptQuest SIMPROCESS User s Manual 350 Overview of OptQuest for SIMPROCESS Create a simulation model or open a simulation model Prepare the model for optimization This includes creating and assigning model parameters establishing a performance measure to optimize making sure the model is complete verifying and validating the model and making sure the model runs with no errors Set up the optimization or select previous optimization settings Tools OptQuest menu The following steps apply to creating a new optimization Previously defined optimization settings can be modified or deleted a Define the objective b Select the decision variables c Define constraints d Set process alternatives e Select optimization options Run the optimization When Start is selected the model is saved and the OptQuest interface appears From this interface the user can monitor the optimization stop the optimization and create r
437. re tightly clustered around the mean The standard deviation is a necessary piece of information for many standard distributions The variance is the standard deviation squared Most of the parameters for continuous distributions can be classified on the basis of their physical or geometric interpretation as being one of three basic types location scale or shape parameters The following discussion is taken from the book Simulation Modeling and Analysis Third Edition by Law and Kelton 2000 A location parameter specifies an abscissa x axis location point of a distribution s range of values usually is the midpoint e g the mean of a normal distribution or lower endpoint e g location for a Pearson type V distribution of the distribution s range As changes the associated distribution merely shifts left or right without otherwise changing Also if the distribution of the random variable X has a location parameter of 0 then the distribution of the random variable Y X l has a location parameter of l A scale parameter b determines the scale or unit of measurement of the values in the range of the distribution The standard deviation is a scale parameter for the normal distribution A change in b compresses or expands the associated distribution without altering its basic form Also if the random variable X has a scale parameter of 1 the distribution of the random variable Y bX has a scale parameter of b A shape p
438. reated The original Entity and its children can be identified by theircommon family name Family Name is used ata Join Activity to identify the Entities to be joined Family names must be unique within a model Identifying Split Entities Split Entities are Attributes of the Connector a Split Entity is defined for each Connector linking a Split Activity to a connecting Activity A single Connector is drawn from the Original output Pad to an adjoining Activity s input Pad Then the Split output Pad is connected to the other adjoining Activities SIMPROCESS User s Manual 120 Entity Control Activities As anexample the figure below shows the distribution of rush order processing into three simultaneous Activities paper work retrieval of an item from inventory and updating of the inventory database Do Paperwork Customer Order Update Database The Original Pad of the Split Activity is connected to the input Pad of the Update Database Activity so the original customer order Entity flows through Update Database Double clicking on one of the Connectors emanating from the Split Pad opens the Split Connector properties xl Name conii sts OK M Show Name Cancel Auto Label Help M Split Entities Entity Type Temp Quantity fo o O SF Aa New Entity Copy Attributes Document Display Line Width fi 00 gt Comment SIMPROCESS User s Manual 121
439. recision INTEGER Option string If a precision is specified al the number is rounded to the specified precision Trailing ze roes are added if the decimal part of the number is less than the specified precision RemoteCall Server URL STRING BOOL Executes a method of a remote Server Name STRING EAN application Assumes a Java RMI Method Name STRING Method Parameters as re quired by remote method IN TEGER REAL STRING server has been registered with the objects and methods being called Errors in the calls will re sult in an aborted simulation BOOLEAN Note To use this call you must have purchased the External Ap plication Interface plug in license from CACI REPLACE Stringl STRING STRING Returns a string that is in String position1 position2 INTE with part of String from position GER 1 to position 2 replaced with String2 STRING String2 Resource ResourceName STRING OBJECT Returns the reference to the spec ified Resource ROUND number REAL INTE Rounds the argument and returns GER the closest integer value SIMPROCESS User s Manual 476 SIMPROCESS System Methods SIMPROCESS System Methods Method Name Arguments Return Description ShowSystemAt None NONE Display all the System Defined tributes Attributes of the calling element and any related elements that are within scope i e if this function is called on the Activity expres sion then the syste
440. res and contents of these directories and subdirectories Here is the basic directory structure SIMPROCESS installation directory SPSYSTEM xfit Windows SPUser document plots SampleFiles models Demos UninstallerData jre ext dashboardserver SIMPROCESS User s Manual 420 APPENDIX C SIMPROCESS File Structure Installation Directory GetTimeZone class READ ONLY java2rei dll READ ONLY library Windows only Java clas s file required by SIMPROCESS Rose Automation Capability Java interface libOptQuest so READ ONLY OptQuest for SIMPROCESS library Linux OptQuest dll READ ONLY OptQuest for SIMPROCESS library Windows SPSYSTEM Directory InstallSettings win xml READ ONLY defaults for some installation set tings Windows only InstallSettings 1lnx xml READ ONLY defaults for some installation set tings Linux only jh jar READ ONLY SIMPROCESS executable jar file plot jar READ ONLY SIMPROCESS executable jar file simprocess jar READ ONLY SIMPROCESS executable jar file SPHelp jar READ ONLY SIMPROCESS executable jar file SPRemote jar READ ONLY SIMPROCESS executable jar file xalan jar READ ONLY SIMPROCESS executable jar file xercesImpl jar READ ONLY SIMPROCESS executable jar file xmlParserAPIs jar READ ONLY SIMPROCESS executable jar file opt jar READ ONLY SIMPROCESS executable jar file
441. ression Activation Events sessseeesosescocesseessecesocesooessoeessee 236 Attribute Value Initialization sesooesoossessoesosssessossocssessossoo 241 Example Batching Entities Based on Weight cessees 242 Getting and Freeing Resources Using Expressions 253 Changing Resource Capacity With Expression6 0000 256 User Defined Functions cccccscscsssssssscscescsssesscsssseseeeees 257 Dynamic Labels iss sdscsdecstasvatusastecevisdadadis aivelesadscsdudastadevindsteoeens 258 Interfacing With A Database sesssocesooesoocessecssocesocesoocssoeessee 260 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 5 Table of Contents Accessing Statistics During Simulation scccssccssssceseees 267 SUMAT Y ossessi seisovckasivsivn co sssanycecsevsvedcesauwesesenesveckeveusssvonesvons 274 CHAPTER 11 More Advanced Model Building ccccsscccssssscccsssscccsesscceeees 275 Defining a More Complex Generate Activity ccsccssssees 276 Resource Downtime cccccccsssssssssccccccccccccesesscccsccsccssesescccees 294 Event LOSS scisisiiveccssecacicesiietacetinastectatesncheiicateuavecsetetiiecctutiaereeised 309 Part C Advanced SIMPROCESS ToolsS seeossssoosssessssssssssscesssssosssscesssssosssse 313 CHAPTER 12 Advanced Data ANdlySis ssccccssssccsssrssccsssnscsssssccessssnccesesssceees 314 An Introduction to Data Analysis and Modeling 0 316 Why
442. results of the current model to a tab delimited file The data from all reports selected for the current model will be written to this file The file can be opened with a text editor or spreadsheet Activity List outputs the Process and Activity hierarchy to an ASCII file UML Activity Model outputs the model to a UML compatible file This feature is disabled in the SIMPROCESS Runtime version See UML Interfaces on page 512 Publish Model to HTML outputs the model to HTML format to be made accessible via a standard web browser Select a destination directory and a new directory will be created with the same name as the model with any spaces replaced by underscores All layouts will be exported to JPEG image files with web pages built around them Lists of the model s Activities Processes Resources Entities and each type of Global Attribute will be provided including links to the properties of each The Standard Report data will be included along with any plots that are available via the Display Real Time Plots menu item if the model had been executed Print Print Layout prints a picture of the current model layout including background icons but the layout color will not be printed Print Model prints a picture of each screen of the model The first page is a table of contents Process Documentation prints the descriptions of selected Processes The following is a sample Process documentation printout Mod
443. rey 41 MediumForestGreen 9 Grey 42 MediumSpringGreen 10 DarkRed 43 PaleGreen 11 DarkGreen 44 SeaGreen 12 DarkBlue 45 YellowGreen 13 DarkYellow 46 DarkSlateGrey 14 DarkCyan 47 DimGrey 15 DarkMagenta 48 Khaki 16 Aquamarine 49 Maroon 17 MediumAquamarine 50 Orange 18 CadetBlue 51 Orchid 19 CornflowerBlue 52 DarkOrchid 20 DarkSlateBlue 53 Pink 21 LightBlue 54 Plum 22 LightSteelBlue 55 IndianRed 23 MediumBlue 56 OrangeRed 24 MediumSlateBlue 57 VioletRed 25 MidnightBlue 58 Sienna 26 NavyBlue 59 Tan 27 SkyBlue 60 Turquoise 28 SlateBlue 61 DarkTurquoise 29 SteelBlue 62 Violet 30 Coral 63 Wheat 31 Firebrick 64 GreenYellow 32 Brown SIMPROCESS User s Manual 498 APPENDIX G External Event Files The Generate activity offers a File schedule This appendix describes the format for the event file associated with the File schedule SIMPROCESS User s Manual 498 Appendix H External Events File General Rules for Event Files External event files define entity generation events If event files are referred to in a Generate activity SIMPROCESS reads the file at the beginning of a simulation run and schedules the generation of Entities as defined in the file Each record line in anevent file must adhere to certain syntax rules which are defined in the following section Records must also adhere to these general rules Each record in the file defines one generation event There is no way to cont
444. ri Dec 07 18 43 27 EST 2001 Scenario Decentralized Under staffed completed successful ly Fri Dec 07 18 43 27 EST 2001 Current Scenario Decentralized Regular staff Fri Dec 07 18 43 27 EST 2001 Alternative for Process Purchasing updated to Decentraliz ed Product based for Scenario Decentralized Regular staff Fri Dec 07 18 43 27 EST 2001 Attribute Model NumProdAPersonnel in Experiment Purchasin g Model Purchasing Design 5 Reps and Scenario Decentralized Regular staff chang It is important to examine the Experiment Manager trace since it will give the complete status of the experiments The above example shows the experiment alert dialog status see below model design and scenario Also it shows the Process Alternatives that were active and the values of the Model Parameters for the scenario Experiment Errors As explained in the instructions for defining experiments when the Display Error Alerts field is not selected interactive error messages are suppressed However error messages will appear in the Experiment Manager trace The Experiment Manager trace shows which experiments completed successfully and which encountered errors Especially important are the messages that show errors with the Process Alternatives and Model Parameters E Experiment Manager Status Messages x Fri Dec 07 18 57 41 EST 2001 Current Experiment Purchasing a Fri Dec 07 18 57 41 EST 2001 Alert dialogs ina
445. riment that is to be run That way SIMPROCESS will run every combination of Experiment Model Design and Scenario that it can Otherwise if an error occurs processing stops until the error is acknowledged Interacting With Experiments A model run by the Experiment Manager can be interacted with in the same manner as a model that was user initiated This means the animation can be turned on or off the animation settings can be SIMPROCESS User s Manual 346 Experiment Operation changed the model can be navigated etc Experiments can be stopped early by stopping a model run An experiment cannot be stopped while loading experiment information loading a model or committing results to the database If the Display Error Alerts field is selected there will be an option to stop completely Otherwise every run must be stopped to stop all experiment model design and scenario combinations Generating Standard Reports From Experiments If selected the Experiment Manager automatically commits the run results to the database If an ASCII version of the Standard Report is needed go to Define Global Statistics Collection on the Report menu Select Generate Standard Report after run This will create a file in the model s directory that will contain the report for every replication the sum of the replications and the average of the replications Statistics Collection I Collect Activity Statistics Clear Individual
446. rmance is critical The following is a list of relevant factors that directly affect search performance Each factor is explained in sections after the list e Number of decision variables e Initial values e Decision variable bounds e Complexity of the objective e Constraints Feasibility e Number of replications and simulations e Simulation accuracy e Simulation speed Number of Decision Variables The number of decision variables greatly affects OptQuest s performance OptQuest has no physical limit on the number of decision variables that can be used in any given problem However the performance might deteriorate if more than 100 decision variables are used Also as the number of decision variables increases more simulations are needed to find high quality solutions General guidelines for the minimum number of simulations required for a given number of decision variables in a problem are Decision Variables Minimum number of simulations Less than 10 100 Between 10 and 20 500 Between 20 and 50 2 000 Between 50 and 100 5 000 For very large numbers of decision variables try this procedure Decrease the number of replication per simulation at least initially Run the optimization to get an approximate solution e Set the suggested values to the approximate solution Further restrict the bounds on the decision variables SIMPROCESS User s Manual 372 Tips and Suggestions Increase the number
447. rn Expert Capacity Units Idle Units Busy Units Down Units Planned Down Units Unplanned Down Units Reserved Help Select All Deselect All Add Values Control click to select or deselect multiple values Activity displays a hierarchical tree of the model Once a Process or Activity has been selected the values available for plotting for that item appear The values that can be plotted for Processes are Number Entities In Process and Entity Cycle Time The values that can be plotted for Activities are Number Entities In Activity Number Entities Waiting Number Entities On Hold Number Entities Processing Number Entities Accepted Number Entities Released Number Entities Balked Entity Cycle Time Entity Wait Time Entity Processing Time and Entity On Hold Time SIMPROCESS User s Manual 186 Custom Plots x Customer Service Number Entities In Activity OK amp TopProcess0 Number Entities Waiting Bi Atti Number Entities On Hold He B Process ak at Process2 Number Entities Processing Select All Number Entities Accepted P Deselectall Number Entities Released Number Entities Balked Add Values E Process3 ain Entity Cycle Time Control click to select or Entity Wait Time deselect multiple values A Ship Product A Split A Accounting A Prepare Shipment Enti P in ntity Processing Time Entity On Hold Time Process A Activity es Uses Resources
448. rns arandom number between 0 and 1 inclusive RtoD x Converts radians to degrees SIN x Returns the sine of x where x is an angle in radians SINH x Returns the hyperbolic sine of x where x is an angle in radians SQRT x Returns the square root of x TAN x Returns the tangent of x where x is an angle in radians TANH x Returns the hyperbolic tangent of x an angle in radians The optimization setup for the Purchasing model is highly constrained This is because of the three SIMPROCESS User s Manual 360 Optimization Setup expression constraints The first constraint is named Resources 10 This constraint requires that the sum of the decision variables model parameters must equal 10 Since these decision variables set the number of units of each resource type the name Resources 10 was assigned The dialog has a Validate button This button allows validation of the syntax of the expression constraint before selecting OK Constraint Expression x Name Resources 10 OK Model NumProd Personnel 5 MINOF Cancel Model NumProdBPersonnel g Hel Model NumProdCPersonnel ner LN LoG10 CEIL FLOOR FMop RAND There are two other expression constraints in the Purchasing model A lt B and B lt C These constraints state thatthe numberof units ofthe resource ProductA Personnel mustbe less than or equal to the number of units of the resource ProductB Person
449. rns the arcsine of x in the range n 2 to n 2 radians x is between 1 and 1 ATAN x Returns the arctangent of x in the range of p 2 to p 2 radians If x is 0 atan returns 0 ATAN2 x y Returns the arctangent of y x in the range pi to pi radians If both parame ters of ATAN2 are 0 the function returns 0 CEIL x Returns the smallest whole number greater than or equal to x COS x Returns the cosine of x where x is an angle in radians COSH x Returns the hyperbolic cosine of x where x is an angle in radians DtoR x Converts degrees to radians Mathematical constant e approximately equal to 2 718 EXP x Returns e raised to the x power FLOOR x Returns the largest whole number less than or equal to x FMOD x y Returns the remainder of x y LN x Returns the base e logarithm of x SIMPROCESS User s Manual 359 Optimization Setup Expression Constraint Functions Function Description LOG10 x Returns the base 10 logarithm of x MAXOF x y Returns the larger of two numbers Note Unlike the SIMPROCESS MAXOPF only two parameters are allowed MINOF x y Returns the smaller of two numbers Note Unlike the SIMPROCESS MINOF only two parameters are allowed PI Mathematical constant pi approximately equal to 3 14159 POWER x y Returns x raised to the y power RAND Retu
450. rom a previously OpenFile call must be SIMPROCESS User s Manual 486 System Method Examples open for output Following the stream argument is a list of variables whose values are going to be written to a file WriteToFile Output Stream List of variables The output values will be written to the file consecutively Any kind of format or spacing has to be output explicitly by the user There are two special characters that can be used in formatting outputs will write a tab to the file while will advance to a new line For these to work correctly they must be written individually and be surrounded by For example Following the prior example of ReadFromFile an expression has WriteToFile Model MyOutStream StrVal IntVal WriteToFile Model MyOutStream RealVal BoolVal Write to the file as This is a test for ReadFromFile 123 67 89 TRUE CloseFile closes the file the IOStream pointed to CloseFile lOStream For example CloseFile Model MyOutStream CloseFile Model MyinStream Close the files myoutput dat andmyinput dat respectively Typically you will place CloseFile in the End Trial Expression especially if you put OpenFile in the Start Trial Expression Method READ READ prompts the user for a single variable input The variable must be a locally defined variable i e a system attribute or a user defined attribute such as a Model Activit
451. rt Real Time Trace Plot causes the creation of trace plot of the data and Real Time Histogram Plot causes the creation of a histogram of the data Attributes Attribute plots are selected on the attribute definition dialog All attribute types except Entity Instance attributes can have plots Trace or histogram or both can be selected Plots will be created for each item defined in the model if the attribute is a global Entity global Resource or global Activity attribute For instance if there are ten Activities Processes in a model and a global Activity attribute is defined with plots then 10 sets of plots will be created since each Activity will have the attribute Except for Model attributes itis best to use local attributes when selecting plots for an attribute Also ifan attribute is an array attribute plots will be created for each member of the array SIMPROCESS User s Manual 177 Real Time Plots xi Name Totatime OK Mode Rea tst t Cs s sYdS Cancel Value booo Help Array Dimension boo Set Plot Properties J Model Parameter I Do Not Reset Before Each Replication Comment Statistics Types Report Requests Observation Based IV Real Time Histogram Plot C Time Weighted IV Real Time Trace Plot IV Standard Report Setting Plot Properties Each item that can have plots has a Set Plot Properties button This button sets the plot title sets the X axis legend sets the Y axis l
452. rt Simulation or Start Trial expression the file will be opened each replication Type the following statement in one of the expressions Model MyOutStream OpenFile Output myoutput dat The next example opens a file myinput dat for input and keeps the return value in the model attribute MyInSt ream Model MyInStream OpenFile input myinput dat ReadFromF ile reads the specified numbers of values from a file that is open for input The first argument is the input stream from a previous OpenFile call the file must be open for input From the previous example the model attribute Model MyInSt ream would be the input stream Following the stream argument is a list of variables whose values are going to be read in from the file ReadFromFile Input Stream List of variables In the input file values should be separated by one or more white spaces i e space tab or new line characters There is also a pre defined special delimiter P in SIMPROCESS You can use to separate values This delimiter is very useful to separate values strings that contain any white space You can surround the whole string with a pair of I s and ReadFromFile will read in whatever is in between as one value The input file can contain comments Any characters that follow double forward slashes will be ignored The type of value to be read in is dependent on the specified variable type A mismatc
453. rt UML Model from the Tools menu in Rational Rose In some cases due to slight differences in the aspect ratio of the graphics in SIMPROCESS and the Rational Rose tools minor visual clean up of the imported Activity Diagram may be required The following is a simple SIMPROCESS model that is exported to UML iss SIMPROCESS Professional Edition File Edit Layout View Create Define Simulate Report Experiment Tools Window Help De XmexqnwFeoe ghee vm O aT J j a Generatel Dispose Save of umtest complete The above SIMPROCESS model would look like the following in Rational Rose SIMPROCESS User s Manual 514 Appendix I Exporting to UML Rational Rose untitled Activity Diagram Logical iew umltest ba D L 2 6 O BRAaRA Be r SIMPROCESS User s Manual 515 Appendix I Exporting to UML Rose Use Cases SIMPROCESS provides the capability for the user to connect nodes activities on the SIMPROCESS model directly to a Rose Use Case Diagram This allows for a seamless flow from business process modeling and simulation analysis in SIMPROCESS to systems models in Rose Exported HTML views of the SIMPROCESS models page 20 are directly linked to Rational Rose exported HTML models This gives stakeholders a seamless wide area review of the business process models with Rose Use Case models SIMPROCESS models typically include both manual process steps activit
454. rt p x Optimization Results Close Help Display Report ee In Text Editor Set Text Editor Application s NTAccessories wordpad exe Browse Ic Spread Sheet The report lists the name of the model the start date time and end date time of the optimization the optimization settings and the best values for the objective decision variables and constraints Create HTML Report This option creates the same report as View Report However since it is an HTML file the objective graph is included as well Print Graph This option sends the objective graph to the selected printer Apply Best Values to Model Apply Best Values to Model assigns the best values from the decision variables to the model parameters in the model Thus when the model is reopened in SIMPROCESS and run is selected the run values for the model parameters reflect the best values from the optimization Also if OptQuest is selected again the starting values for the decision variables are the best values from the optimization SIMPROCESS User s Manual 370 Tips and Suggestions Tips and Suggestions Search Methodology There are many factors that influence the performance of OptQuest For example consider two optimization methods A and B applied to a problem with the objective of maximizing expected returns When evaluating the performance of each method consider which method satisfies the following criteria e Finds
455. runs This database includes predefined queries graphs forms and reports each of which can be modified to tailor the database for output analysis The procedures for connecting the database to SIMPROCESS using ODBC are explained in the Getting Started Manual An Access 97 database is available upon request SIMPROCESS can use other non Access SQL databases by making appropriate entries in the sProcDB properties file provided by the installer This file is installed on both Windows and non Windows systems and is pre configured for use with the Access database described above Additional information is included in this chapter to aid in using anon Access SQL database patterned after the Access database SimProcDB mdb to hold simulation results Note that the discussion in this chapter is only concerned with storing simulation results in SimProcDB mdb or in a user created SQL database patterned after SimProcDB mdb There are expression statements that allow SIMPROCESS to read from or write to any SQL database See Interfacing With A Database on page 260 for more information SIMPROCESS User s Manual 322 Committing Results to the Database Committing Results to the Database To commit simulation results to the database select Commit to Database from the Report menu The menu item will not be enabled until a simulation run is complete either terminating normally or user terminated If the database is not found an error dial
456. rvice Calls Cycle Times Trace ner Service Calls Cycle Times Histogram Select All Deselect All Control click to select or deselect multiple reports HO a The plots that are selected will display when OK is pressed Once a plotis displayed it can be minimized or closed Any plot closed can be viewed again by using Display Real Time Plots from the Report menu or the tool bar All plots remain available for display until the model is closed The plots are recreated if the model is run again Displaying Plots Remotely The ability to display real time plots on a remote server is a plug in capability that can be licensed separately from CACI The Display Plot on Remote Server option must be selected and the Remote Server URL must be entered Before the model with the remote plots starts simulation the Java RMI Registry must be started and SPPlotServer must be started on the server where the remote plots are to appear This requires the use of the SPRemote jar and plot jar files which are found in the SP SYSTEM directory where SIMPROCESS was installed copy these to another system as required To use the same system enter rmi localhost for the Remote Server URL field To display the plots on a different system change localhost to an appropriate value that will resolve to the Internet Protocol IP address of the system where the RMI Registry and SPPlotServer are located Alternatively just use the actual IP number T
457. s as Queries E Forms Reports rl Pages Macros Modules Ea Favorites Entity Absorption Costs Across Replications Entity Absorption Costs By Period Entity Capacity Costs Across Periods Entity Capacity Costs Across Replications Entity Capacity Costs By Period Entity Count Across Replications Entity Cycle Time Entity Cycle Time Across Replications Average Entity Cycle Time Across Replications Peak Entity Cycle Time By State Entity Cycle Time By State Across Replications Average ae lol x Entity Cycle Time By State Across Re Entity Level Entity Level Across Replications Ave Entity Level Across Replications Pez Entity Level By State Entity Level By State Across Replicati Entity Level By State Across Replicati Resource Absorption Costs Across Pe Resource Absorption Costs Across Re Resource Absorption Costs By Period Resource Capacity Resource Capacity Costs Across Perit Resource Capacity Costs Across Rep o When using a non Access SQL database the predefined queries graphs and reports described in this chapter may serve as a basis for developing SQL statements for retrieving and analyzing database contents Those using SIMPROCESS on non Windows systems where the SimProcDB mdb file is not installed may obtain a copy for reference at the SIMPROCESS web site or contact SIMPROCESS Technical Support for assistance SIMPROCESS User s Manual 330 Launch Database Appli
458. s for the specified entity type at this activity tokenlevel Time weighted Number of entities at this activity tokenwaitlevel Time weighted Number of entities wait ing for available resource at this activity tokenholdlevel Time weighted Number of entities wait ing for condition to be reached at this activity tokenprocesslevel Time weighted Number of entities in process i e at duration at this activity bytoken level Time weighted Number of entities of the specified type at this activity SIMPROCESS User s Manual 510 Appendix G Simulation Results File Type of Labels Statistics Descriptions bytokenwait level Time weighted Number of entities of the specified type waiting for available resource at this activity bytokenhold level Time weighted Number of entities of specified type waiting for condition to be reached at this activity bytokenprocess level Time weighted Number of entities of the specified type in process i e at duration at this activity UDV delay Observation Statistic of the specified based attribute UDV level Time weighted Statistic of the specified attribute Time Stamps tokendelay Observation Time elapsed between based Time Stamps SIMPROCESS User s Manual Sil APPENDIX UML Interfaces SIMPROCESS and Universal Modeling Language UML tools complement each other by bridging the gap from business analys
459. s Usage dialog as specified in Adding Resource Requirements to Activities on page 131 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 133 Explicitly Getting and Freeing Resources GetResource Properties Event Logs Text Block Documentation General Resources Attributes Cancel Name GetResourcel Show Name _ Use Text Block Help Icon GetResource 4 New Entity icon Set Default New Resource Global Attributes Entity any tag EntityType Resource Model FI Collect Activity Statistics g Collect Activity by Entity Statistics Comment The Access Create Customer Profile Process is shown with a Get Resource activity added Access Create Customer Profile Create Customer Profile Assign a Clerk to Handle the Order fel Resource Identify New Customer Customer gt gt Dela Branch New Customer Access Customer Profile Process Get Resource obtains Resources that would otherwise have been obtained in the ensuing activities Do not define the same Resource requirement in those activities as well SIMPROCESS User s Manual 134 Explicitly Getting and Freeing Resources Free Resource Activity The Free Resource activity is used to release Resources obtained at a Get Resource activity FreeResource Properties General Attributes Expressions Event Logs Text Block Documentation Name FreeResource4
460. s because the color is set in the Thermometer properties The procedure for setting legends is the same as for Custom Plots See Setting Legends beginning on page 193 for detailed instructions on setting legends The images below show the properties of the Line Graph with the legend setting below that SIMPROCESS User s Manual 393 Assigning Dashboards Large Truck Cycle Time Name LineGraph1 Small Truck Cycle Time Saal Help Title Truck Transit Time Remove X Axis Label Simulation Time Remove All Select Plot Values Y Axis Label Transit Time in Hours Entity Resource Activity IV Use Date Axis for X Axis Time Stamp Background Model Attributes Legends Set Legends Background Color White z Reset Legends Select All M Use Layout Background Color Large Truck Cycle Time Large Truck Transit Time E Blue OK Small Truck Cycle Time Small Truck Transit Time L Green x Cancel Help SIMPROCESS User s Manual 394 Displaying Dashboards Displaying Dashboards Dashboards are displayed by a Dashboard Server A directory named dashboardserveris located inthe SIMPROCESS directory A copy of the contents of this directory must be located on each system that is to run a Dashboard Server Within the dashboardserver directory is a directory named dashboards A copy of the Dashboard files spd files assigned to the model must be placed in the dashboards dire
461. s may be shipped on a predetermined schedule or when the total number of pending orders reaches a certain number The SIMPROCESS Batch Activity readily handles these scenarios with the Quantity to Batch and Release Threshold options But suppose the dispatching of a shipment depends on the total weight of the appliances that have been accumulated How is this situation modeled SIMPROCESS User s Manual 210 Add weight of current order item to total weight of all orders received s total weight over the max allowed Yes Release Shipment v Customizing reports is another area where flexibility might be needed SIMPROCESS provides several reports that track the flow of Entities through a model The values for how many Entities of a particular type each customer order for example are processed during simulation or the average amount of time an Entity takes to make its way through the simulation are available in the Standard Report But suppose the percentage of orders that are shipped by a promised delivery date service level is needed to measure success in attaining service goals Two advanced SIMPROCESS features Attributes and Expressions provide the ability to handle these and many other situations SIMPROCESS User s Manual 211 Introduction to Attributes and Expressions Introduction to Attributes and Expressions Attributes Attributes are user defined and
462. s on Recent File List defaults to 4 Sets the number of files on the File menu The allowable values are 0 through 9 Adobe Acrobat Reader sets the location of Acrobat Reader for the documentation Maximum Number of Edit Log Entries sets the limit of entries in the model s edit log The default is unlimited 0 entry Activity Browser Activity Browser is a feature for navigating among the Activities A dialog lists all the Activities and Processes contained in the model Any name preceded by a signifies a hierarchical Process or a Process Alternative Double clicking on the Process or Process Alternative name will expand the tree diagram displaying Activities and Processes underneath Double clicking on the Activity name will bring up the properties of the Activity Each item has an icon that identifies the item as an Activity or a Process and an icon that indicates whether the item has Expressions or Resources Select an Activity and either Edit the Properties of that Activity or Go To the layer in the model layout where that Activity resides Expand All expands the complete model hierarchy and Collapse All restores the hierarchy to the top level x E CallCenter Close HE TopProcess0 Help Go To Expand All Collapse All se r Edit a Emanda Colapse ai Process iti Has Expressions Find ActivityiProcess I Named F Ignore Case I OfType f Assemble I With Icon Allocicon Icon
463. s on the setting of the Both must be reached and Generation End fields Both mustbe reached if marked specifies that both the Count Limitand Release End date must be attained in order to terminate entity generation for this schedule If the Both must be reached field is not marked then reaching either Generation End or Count Limit terminates the schedule Adding a Calendar Schedule To add a schedule that generates Entities based on the calendar select Calendar under Schedule Type on the Generate Activity Properties dialog and then click on Add x Schedule Calendar2 on Cancel Entity use default i a Help Quantity fuse default 7 Eal Calendar Te km a ren mmidd hh mm ss msec usec nsec Date and Time E A Comment The following types of entity generation schedules can be specified in the Calendar Schedule dialog Yearly Entities are generated once every year on a particular date Monthly Entities are generated on a specific day in each month e g 1st of the month Weekly A certain time of day on the specified day of the week e g Monday Tuesday e Daily Every day generated at the specified time e Hourly Every hour generated at the specified time Date A specific date and time This event will occur only once at the specified date and time The Calendar Schedule dialog changes in appearance depending on the Type of schedule selected SIMPROCESS User s Manual 278 Defining a
464. s or overnights because it occurs randomly Random downtime is handled by specifying a frequency distribution instead of a fixed interval of time Frequency distributions will be introduced here to complete the example Defining a Random Downtime Illness is unplanned Employees are going to get sick but when it will happen who it will happen to or how long they will be out is unknown However reasonable estimates can be made based on past experience To define the Downtime schedule for sick days 1 Add a Periodic Schedule Type A Periodic schedule is used to describe events that occur at varying intervals of time Time between Downtimes describes the interval period Assume that in a typical month one of the five employees comprising the Clerks group will be out sick for a period of time Moreover assume that while a month is typical the time between bouts of illness can be as little as three days or as much as a year To reflect this specify a triangular distribution Click on the arrow next to the Time Between Downtimes field to display a list of statistical distributions Scroll through the list to the default definition for Triangular distributions It reads Tri 0 0 5 0 10 0 There are three parameters in this definition Minimum value most frequent value Mode and Maximum value Values are in the Time Unit selected Select Tri from the list Click on the box to the right of the arrowhead next to the Time Be
465. s the same model that is a new model is not loaded then the active alternative for a process will be the same as the previous scenario unless a different alternative is specified in the Experiment Manager Undo Delete Button The Undo Delete button is active whenever an experiment model design or scenario has been deleted The button remains active until used or until the scope of the deleted item has been lost An experiment can be restored any time before another delete occurs A model can be restored as long as the experiment to which it belongs remains the selected experiment A design can be restored as long as the experiment and model to which it belongs remain selected Finally a scenario can be restored as long as the experiment model and design to which it belongs remain selected SIMPROCESS User s Manual 34 Running Experiments Running Experiments Once the experiments have been defined run the experiments This section discusses starting experiments the operation of experiments how to interact with experiments and how to generate standard reports from experiments Starting Experiments There are three options for running experiments e Run All Experiments e Run Selected Experiments e Run Specific Experiment Run All Experiments The menu item Run All Experiments causes SIMPROCESS to attempt to run every experiment defined This option ignores the Selected field Run Selected Experiments
466. s two parameters class name and method name Other parameters after the first two are considered to be parameters for the method being called SIMPROCESS User s Manual 496 System Method Examples Some examples STRING MyString MyString ExternalCall MyClass getString This example returns a string value The getString method has no parameters REAL number number ExternalCall MyClass getSquare 100 0 This example returns a REAL double value The getSquareRoot method has one parameter double BOOLEAN boolval boolval ExternalCall com acme stuff MyClass returnNothing This example shows a class that is within a package The class name must include the package if the class file is within a package structure in the ext directory Note that jar files are not supported The class files must be in a directory structure Also the method does not return a value return type is void so the function must be assigned to a BOOLEAN variable If multiple expressions have ExternalCall methods that reference the same class each expression will create its own instance of the class However if the class is static all expressions will share the same instance There is a sample class in the SampleFiles directory called ExternalHello java that can beused totry out the ExternalCall system method Simply copy the file to the ext directory and compile javac Extern
467. s until an Entity enters the Trigger Pad Assembled Entity shows the Entity type to be released after all component Entities have entered the Activity A combo box provides a list of defined Entity types Duration shows where the delay time of the Activity is specified The time specified in the Duration will be applied after the Activity and will be reflected in the Cycle Time of the Assembled Entity Duration Value Exp 10 0 Units Hex 5 0 10 0 0 5 Hyp 1 0 0 95 0 0 Collect Actint o 10 TM Collect ActL09 2 0 0 5 e Value The amount of time required to perform this Activity Use the combo box to select a statistical distribution or enter a constant value directly in this field Units Determines if the Duration entered is measured as nanoseconds microseconds milliseconds seconds minutes hours days weeks months or years Batch Activity The Batch Activity combines several Entities into one Entity while retaining the identity of the original Entities The resultant Entity travels throughout the process as a single Entity It can be disassembled into its constituent Entities using an Unbatch Activity at some later time SIMPROCESS User s Manual 98 Entity Related Activities The Batch Activity is useful when combining several Entities e g merchandise ordered by various customers into a parent Entity for transportation After the transportation Activities the parent Entity can be broken
468. s will apply if Graph Name X axis Label or Y axis Label are left blank The properties default to hide the plot and to not display the plot on a remote server The plot properties dialog will display Simulation Time Units and Value Time Units based on the plot type and the value being plotted Traces of cycle times will offer both options All other traces will only offer the Simulation Time Units option Histograms of cycle times will offer the Value Time Units option All other histograms will not have either option When plots are deselected any properties set are lost The properties must be reset if the plotis selected again Also on the Define Real Time Plots dialogs for Entities Resources and Activities there is a Delete Properties button This button will remove the plot properties from selected plots without deselecting the plots Displaying Real Time Plots Plots that are hidden are displayed during or after a simulation by choosing Display Real Time Plots on the Report menu or clicking the button on the tool bar These only become active at the beginning of a simulation run A dialog appears that lists all plots hidden or not defined in the model All the plots are listed in the same dialog regardless of type Entity Resource etc SIMPROCESS User s Manual 179 Real Time Plots Display Real Time Plots xj Begin Processing To End Processing Trace OK Begin Processing To End Processing Histog E Se
469. ses three Entities the original and two children or clones Each Entity goes to a different Activity where a different task is performed on the order Defining a Split Activity When you add a Split Activity to the SIMPROCESS layout it has one input Pad and two output Pads attached mae Pones Ih a P Original Split The upper output Pad is named Clones the lower Pad is named Original if you double click on the Pads you will see their names in the Pad Detail dialog SIMPROCESS User s Manual 119 Entity Control Activities Use the Original Pad to route the original Entity to the next Activity in its path Use the Clones Pad to route each of the split Entities to their next Activities An unlimited number of split Entities of different Entity types can be released at a Split Activity but all Entities emerge from the same Pad Split Properties Exnressions s_ Event Logs Text Block Documentation General Resources Attributes Cancel Name Splitt4 Show Name Use Text Block Hep leon TE spit New Entity Icon Set Default Global Attributes Entity Undefined Entity Type Family Name Resource peste moei Value None Units Hours C Collect Activity Statistics Collect Activity by Entity Statistics Comment Dialog Field Definitions The unique attribute of the Split Activity is Family Name This names the family of Entities being c
470. sign SIMPROCESS User s Manual 324 System Design and Scenario A scenario is used to track various runs of the same system model and design For example one run might have a certain resource level at 3 while another run has the same resource level at 4 Differentiating those runs in the database is done through the scenario name The scenario comment fieldis a good place to document the important settings for that scenario Again if a scenario is deleted all records associated with that scenario will be deleted from the Access database As before in order for this to be true in another SQL database appropriate relationships and or constraints must be established when the database is created In the Access database the Manage Results form should be used to delete results for a Model System Design or Scenario DO NOT modify the tables directly Using the Manage Results form ensures the tables do not become corrupted This form can be run from the Forms tab in Access Also when using Launch Database Application from the Report menu the Manage Results form launches automatically If the form is blank then there are no run results in the database 3 Manage Results Puchasng gt Run 5 replications for each scenario 5 1 1 1996 l Centratized Centralized functional purchasing department Decentralized Fully st Decentralized product based purchasing departm Tokai The Launch Database Applicatio
471. sion variables bounds are not meaningful A better set of bounds for these decision variables would be 0 lt X lt 20 0 lt Y lt 16 667 0 lt Z lt 10 These bounds take into consideration the values of the coefficients and the constraint limit to determine the maximum value for each decision variable The new tighter bounds result in a more efficient search for the optimal values of the decision variables However this efficiency comes at the expense of missing the optimal solution if it lies outside the specified bounds SIMPROCESS User s Manual 373 Tips and Suggestions Complexity of the Objective A complex objective has a highly nonlinear surface with many local minimum and maximum points OptQuest is designed to find global solutions for all types of objectives especially complex objectives However for more complex objectives generally it is required to run more simulations to find high quality global solutions Since only one value can be optimized complex objectives must be defined within the model expressions See Customizing a Model with Attributes and Expressions on page 210 Constraints Constraints can be used to restrict the values of decision variables model parameters by defining relationships among the decision variables constraints can also restrict the value of output variables performance measures Ifaconstraintis defined using only decision variables OptQuestcan eliminat
472. sional or 3 Dimensional SIMPROCESS User s Manual 386 Defining Dashboards x Cancel Title Title Help Background I Use Layout Background Color Background Color White X Dimension Type e 2 Dimensional 3 Dimensional Text Label Properties Text Label properties include Label and Font Attributes which include Font Name Size Color Bold and Italic Label default text that is displayed Font Name default font for label e Size default font size for label Color default font color for label Bold default selection for bold Italic default selection for italic x O Cancel Label Text Label Help Background I Use Layout Background Color Background Color White bd Font Attributes Font Name Serif Size fi 0 y Color L Black x T Bold I Italic SIMPROCESS User s Manual 387 Defining Dashboards Dashboard Menus File Menu New places a new Dashboard in the work area displayed in the window If the current Dashboard has been changed SIMPROCESS will prompt to save its contents to a file before clearing it in favor of a new Dashboard in the work area Open prompts for the selection of a Dashboard file having the extension spd which will be read and displayed in the work area Ifthe current Dashboard has been changed SIMPROCESS will prompt to save its contents to a file before clearin
473. source Downtime Click on Add to define a new Resource x General Downtime Attributes Expressions OK Cancel Name Sales Rep Help Units fa x ae m Document I Fractional Usage M Consumable Cost I Collect Resource Statistics I Collect Resource by Activity Statistics Comment On the Resource dialog Name is any unique name identifying the Resource Define the sales clerk staff and name the Resource Sales Rep NOTE ce 99 Special characters such as single quotes or should not be used in the Name of a Resource This adversely impacts statistics and cost data collection Units identifies the initial capacity of the Resource If the Resource is not consumable capacity is constant throughout the simulation If the Resource is consumable capacity will vary over the length of the simulation This fluctuation in capacity will be reflected in the capacity Statistics in the Standard Report Number of Units of a Resource can also be specified with a single line Expression or a User defined Attribute See Variable Resource Usage beginning on page 224 for more information SIMPROCESS User s Manual 129 Defining Resources Fractional Usage indicates whether or not fractional units of the Resource can be allocated If this box is checked a non integer value for Units e g 2 5 10 2 may be defined It also means that an activity ca
474. source expressions for the Activities interrupted and the resource going down are not executed when the resource is released and re obtained due to downtime When Release Entities In Process at Start of Downtime is selected the entity is released thus any other resources obtained at the Activity are released When an entity s processing is interrupted due to resource downtime the entity instance expression Interrupt Processing for that entity is executed When the entity re obtains the resources so processing can continue the entity s Resume Processing entity instance expression is executed If the Release Entities In Process at Start of Downtime has been selected at the Activity then the Resume Processing entity instance expression will not be executed since the entity leaves the Activity If Interrupt Activities is not selected the selected units of the resource will not go down until the resource has been released The Interrupt Activities option is not available for Usage downtime This is because the downtime is based on usage Therefore the check for the start of downtime does not occur until the resource is released SIMPROCESS User s Manual 300 Resource Downtime Release All Resources is only enabled if Interrupt Activities has been selected This option only applies if more than one resource is in use by an entity when a resource interrupts the processing of Activities at downtime If Release All Resources is selected
475. sources Using Expressions GetResource Resourcel 1 GetResource Resourcel 1 If the acquisition rule is Any One Member then only one unit of Resource will be acquired since each statement is considered a Member If All Members is selected then two units of Resource will be acquired Note that if Resource only has one unit defined then the above statements will generate a runtime error if All Members or Reserve As Available which requires all members are selected FreeResource FreeResource can be used in any Activity that can release Resources Thus the Merge Get Resource Generate Replenish Resource and Dispose are excluded Just like GetResource FreeResource must be used in the Accept Entity Expression of the Activity and FreeResource may not be used in an Entity Entity Type or Resource Expression Both of these methods must go in the Accept Entity Expression because these methods set up the requests for the events to occur while the Entity is processing in the Activity Therefore order within the Accept Entity Expression does not matter A FreeResource system method for a particular Resource can come before the GetResource since this is occurring when the Entity is being accepted into the Activity However since these system methods operate like the Activities of the same name the FreeResource for a particular Resource can be in a different Activity from the GetResource for that Resource If the FreeResource is i
476. splaying Plots Remotely on page 180 has examples on starting the RMI registry Once you have started the RMI registry and the SPServerDemoServer program you can run the demonstration model RemoteCall spm to demonstrate this capability Chapter 5 of the SIMPROCESS Getting Started Manual has instructions on running this example When you start the simulation the server program will put up a plot window and plot the values SimTime and Number Accepted in this example on the plot window The window will appear as follows on the server lox BRAE My Plot aaa r r T r r 600 y 550 u 500 p 450 e 400 r 350 E 300 n t 250 200 i 150 s 100 50 0 i 1 L 1 f L L L 1 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 Simulation Time in Hours SIMPROCESS User s Manual 495 System Method Examples If the server is not running your simulation will be stopped and you will receive a message dialog stating that the server connection could not be made similar to the following x Q Object Generate1 Error trying to invoke a remote method call URLName rmi localhost Object name serverdemo Method name clearData System Exception message java rmi ConnectException Connection refused to host localhost nested exception is Gava net ConnectException Connection refused connect If your parameters don t match in number and type RMI Exceptions will occur and a message dialog will be presented with the error You will noti
477. sssssscesssssccssssssscssssees 441 Negative Binomial Distribution sscccssssssccssscssccsssesees 442 Inverse Gaussian Distribution sccsssssccsssssssscsssssecsessees 443 Inverted Weibull is ccccssssccscsncssscssevssecseeesssosstecsestvevessosseesseseeusseses 444 Johnson SB Distribution ssccssssssscssssssccsssssrccssssssecceees 445 Johnson SU Distribution sscccssssssscsssssssccsssssscccssssscsseees 446 Log Logistic Distribution ccsccssssccssssccsssccssssssssssccsssees 447 Log Laplace Distribution cccscccccssssscccssssscccsssssscssssssees 448 Pearson Type V Distribution ccccsssscccssssscccsssessccsssesees 449 Pearson Type VI Distribution cccccsscccsssssccsscssscceseeees 450 Random Walk Distribution sscccccssssssssssssssccssssessesssces 451 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 8 Table of Contents APPENDIX E Statistical Tools GIOSSATY sssccccsessssccssnsecesssnaccessnnccsssssccessesces 452 APPENDIX F SIMPROCESS System Attributes and Methods 00006 458 System A thriDUtes 2 saves escsssvecesescoysconassusecsveenevevevevevoonsveenstennsssns 459 SIMPROCESS System Methods ccssccssssccssssccssssccsseseees 465 System Method Examples cssccssssscssssccssssccssssccssssccsssseees 480 SIMPROCESS Color Tablle cscccssssssssssssssssssesssssssssssessseoes 497 APPENDIX G External Ev
478. st Forward or Rewind during playback causes all counts and dynamic labels on the current level to immediately update to their values at that time Stop Stop ends the playback Pause When selected the playback pauses Press again to resume the playback Animation Controls The animation buttons on the main toolbar control what is visible during a simulation animation and they control what is visible during animation playback Just like during simulation animation disabling Show Entities will stop the display of the movement of entities Show Counts and Update Dynamic Labels work similarly Remember the Animation On setting has no effect on animation playback Also these animation settings have no effect if those particular animation events were not recorded SIMPROCESS User s Manual 152 CHAPTER 7 Activity Based Costing The purpose of this introduction to Activity Based Costing ABC is to summarize its basic principles and describe the benefits of the integration provided with SIMPROCESS A list of ABC references is provided in the back of the chapter for further reading The goal of ABC is to mimic the causal relationships among Resources Activities and Entities in assigning overhead costs The fundamental belief behind this costing approach is that cost is caused and causes of cost can be managed The closer you can come to relating the costs to their causes the more helpful your accounting information will be in
479. stic is one of the statistics types for Resources listed in the Labels column of the table in Appendix G See Statistic Types on page 507 Value Type is either Avg StDev Min Max Count or Run Length A Replication of 1 returns the average of replica tions and a value of 2 returns the sum of replications GetResourceByAc Resource Name STRING REAL Returns the value of the tivityStatistic ActivityName STRING Value Type STRING Replication INTEGER requested Resource Name and Activity Name statistic Value Type is either Avg StDev Min Max Count or Run Length A Replication of 1 returns the average of replica tions and a value of 2 returns the sum of replications SIMPROCESS User s Manual 471 SIMPROCESS System Methods SIMPROCESS System Methods Method Name Arguments Return Description GetResult Result Set Name STRING INTE Returns a value from a Result Database Field STRING GER Set Type of value returned is REAL dependent on the type of values BOOL in the requested field of the EAN Result S STRING esult Set GetTimeStampStatis Start Key STRING REAL Returns the value of the Time tic StopKey STRING Stamp with Start Key and Stop Value Typ e STRING Key Value Type is either Avg Replication INTEGER StDev Min Max Count or RunLength A Replicati
480. stribution defining the time interval between events e Calendar Entity generation events scheduled at intervals based on the calendar i e weekly monthly etc e Single Event A one time entity generation event e No Event A period where no Entities are generated e Cyclical A cycle within a cycle that is a more detailed breakdown within a schedule e g the various periods within a single day breakfast meeting coffee break lunch within a workweek described day by day SIMPROCESS User s Manual 279 Defining a More Complex Generate Activity x Schedule Cyclical2 OK Cancel Sequence of Events Help Add gt Periodic Y Edit Dew StarvEnd Move I Upwards Remove Repeat Sequence o bd ae Infinite Comment O Cycles are added to and modified from the Cyclical Schedule dialog The Sequence of Events dialog lists the cycle events defined for this cyclical schedule The events are listed in the order in which SIMPROCESS will execute them When a cycle is added SIMPROCESS places it at the end of the list The pattern can be rearranged using the Move command For example here is a list of cycles defined out of sequence xi Schedule Cyclical2 OK Cancel Sequence of Events Help January Edit February Copy StarEnd March Move M Upwards Remove Repeat Sequence 0 A Bs I Infinite Comment To move the April cycle to the end of the list highlight April and click
481. sts for this period as follows 1 Calculate the variable costs for each Resource based on the number of Entities Processed and the processing times as described 2 For each of the two Resources calculate the portion of fixed cost represented by idle time Then calculate both the fully absorbed and capacity based fixed costs In this case the fully absorbed costs should be twice the capacity costs since the Resource was 50 idle during the period 3 Add the variable costs to the fully absorbed costs and the capacity based costs creating two period costs for each Resource 4 Divide the period costs for the Resource based on the usage by activities In this case the period costs will be split evenly between the two activities These steps are completed for all Resources in the model that are set to calculate costs Each Activity accumulates its period costs from all of the Resources that it actually made use of during the period Next SIMPROCESS will calculate the Entity costs based on these Activity costs After all Resource costs are distributed to the activities the Activity costs are then distributed to each type of Entity Processed by the Activity based on the total number of Entities Processed These calculations proceed as follows 1 The Activity determines the total number of Entities Processed for the period and the portion of this total represented by each type 2 The Activity costs are apportioned to the Entities based
482. t Cycle Time by State Statistics These statistics present the simulation generated cycle time statistics for the selected Process Activity and are calculated based on the Entity counts for the selected Processes Activities Cycle Time statistics present the simulation generated cycle time statistics for Entity types that processed at the selected Activities or Processes The cycle time calculations are based on the number of Entities that were processed at the end of the simulation These statistics show the breakdown of the Cycle Time by state The three states that an Entity may be in are waiting for Resource holding for condition and in Process Cycle Time will not be broken down by state for Processes Cycle Time will not be collected unless Collect Activity Statistics either global or individual is selected prior to running the simulation The results are not available until the simulation is complete Real time Plots Real time Plots display statistics while the simulation is running This may slow the simulation but shows arunning view of the Entity count throughout the simulation The selected charts are generated for each Process Activity selected The observation points are connected in trace charts to improve their visibility and are not meant to suggest continuity The charts are updated as an Entity leaves the Process Activity Plots may be customized and hidden See Real Time Plots on page 176 Cycle Times Trace and Cycl
483. t any Graphs your model does not use from receiving an initialization message at simulation time which could change their appearance at the SIMPROCESS User s Manual 392 Assigning Dashboards Dashboard Server For a Text Label make sure the Label value is empty and do not select any plot values For all other Graphs do not select any plot values Adding values to Graphs is discussed below xi OK Cancel Label TruekStatus ss ss S Help Background Name TextLabel6 Remove J Use Layout Background Color Remove All Background Calor White v Select Plot Values Entity m Font Attributes Resource Font Name faria Activity sz 6 wi Time stamp Color Blue z Model Attributes M Bold Italic Adding Values to a Graph Values are added to a graph using the buttons under the Select Plot Values heading Entity Resource Activity Time Stamp and Model Attribute The procedure for adding values is the same as for Custom Plots See Adding Values To Custom Plot beginning on page 185 for detailed instructions on adding values The Line Graph Bar Graph and Pie Chart can plot multiple values The Meter Thermometer and Text Label can only plot one value The Line Graph Bar Graph and Pie Chart also allow the text and color of the legend to be set The Thermometer allows the text of the legend to be set but not the color This i
484. t can be effective concurrently The first gating policy is SIMPROCESS User s Manual 101 Entity Related Activities called Trigger Release An Entity is disposed of when it arrives at a Trigger Pad and it triggers the release of the numberof Entities as specified in the Trigger Release Quantity field A Trigger Padcansynchronize the flow of Entities between different Activities The Gate Activity can be used as a buffer or queue to hold material from one section of the model until a condition is met in another part of the model A Trigger Entity is sent to the Trigger Pad of the Gate Activity when that condition is met An example of this would be if customer orders are printed out and sent on to the shipping department on an hourly basis This could be reflected in the model by a Gate Activity which is triggered when it receives an Entity that is generated hourly by a Generate Activity The second gating policy is called Threshold Release It allows the release of some number of Entities once a threshold number of Entities have arrived This policy is useful for example in cases where a truck must wait until it is full before it departs Gating policies can be effective concurrently so this Activity can implement a truck leaving when it is full or on the hour even if it is not full SIMPROCESS User s Manual 102 Entity Related Activities Gate Properties Event Logs Text Block Documentation General Resou
485. t can be saved and loaded during the modeling session as they are needed The import and export features enable the sharing of templates with colleagues and increases the building blocks available for model construction In addition to providing a repository for storing categories of modeling constructs the Library Management facilities can be used to customize defaults for model elements that are built into SIMPROCESS statistical distributions Activity parameters etc Processes and Activities that are used frequently can be kept on the User Palette bar for quick access Processes and Activities that are used less frequently can be accessed through the Create pull down menu In summary Templates e Are repositories for model building constructs created by the user e Allow customizing of model elements through parameter settings e Facilitate reuse of Processes Activities Resources and Resource Downtimes e Allow placement of Processes and Activities on the User Palette bar and the Create pull down menu e Allow the grouping of Processes and Activities in user defined templates e Facilitate importing and exporting of customized model elements for use in other models or by colleagues SIMPROCESS User s Manual 198 Defining and Editing Templates Defining and Editing Templates The Define Templates pull down menu provides access to various options for manipulating templates The two functions available under this pull down
486. t the Generate Entities option that indicates which of the entity types referenced in the event file are to be generated Defined in the model tells SIMPROCESS to generate Entities for every event record that specifies an entity type already defined in the model Selected in the list tells SIMPROCESS to generate Entities only for the types highlighted in the entity type list SIMPROCESS User s Manual 285 Defining a More Complex Generate Activity GreenDotAdd Type A NewEntity Add Type Attributi RedDot Add Type Attributes SenviceCall Add Tyne e Ifthe event file refers to an entity type that is not defined in the model it flags the type name For example GreenDot Add Type e Selecting this type will cause SIMPROCESS to add the entity type to the model e Ifthe entity in the event file refers to entity instance attributes that have not been defined in the model this is flagged as well For example NewEntity Add Type Attributes e Note that attributes are tied to Entities Entity instance attributes cannot be added without adding the entity type To select the entity types to be used e Highlight the listed type name To highlight several types press and hold the Ctrl key while clicking on each item e To deselect a type click on it again while pressing the Ctrl key Saving Events The option Save events in model determines whether the event file is needed for simulation The
487. t totalEntities throws RemoteException myplot putTicks simtime totalEntities return true public boolean clearData throws RemoteException myplot clearData return true private String name 49 SIMPROCESS User s Manual System Method Examples SPPlotDemo myplot SPServerDemoServer java defines the server binding to the RMI registry This is necessary for Java client code such as the RemoteCall in SIMPROCESS to do a lookup and find the server by aname that was binded to the actual server class that is running on the remote server The Java code is as follows package com caci demo import java rmi import java rmi server import ptolemy plot import ptolemy plot plotml public class SPServerDemoServer public static void main String args try System out printin Constructing Server implementations SPServerDemoImpl dl new SPServerDemoImp 1 System out printlin Binding server implementations to registry Naming rebind serverdemo d1 System out printlin Waiting for invocations from clients SIMPROCESS User s Manual 492 System Method Examples catch Exception e System out printin Error e SPPlotDemo java defines the plotting class that is instantiated in the SPServerDemolmpl java class The Java code is as follows package com caci demo import ptolemy plot import java awt GridB
488. t visible scroll to the right lolx File Edi Layout View Create Desne Simulate Report Experiment Tools Help Window De S XmaxnwFre se wv HN Omar Fj LL eK aN gt l l fre o Inside Process1 at ae Input Pad Output Pad gt Ly These Pads connect any Processes and Activities at this level of the sub process to the Activities and Processes at the next higher level Once the input and output Pad are connected by Connectors SIMPROCESS User s Manual 75 Defining Resources and Processes Entities flow from level to level Activities and Processes may be added within the sub process to detail the tasks being performed NOTE Make sure the Input and Output Pads are connected on all sub processes If this is not done Entities will have no path to follow across the Process Entities entering the Process will never emerge again SIMPROCESS User s Manual 76 Simulation Setup Simulation Setup Two steps are needed before running a simulation e Set the runtime parameters for the simulation This could include start and end dates ornumber of times to repeat the simulation e Set animation parameters Run Settings Select Simulate from the SIMPROCESS menu and then click on Run Settings to set run time options Run Settings Run Settings Cost Periods Debug Traces ka Simulation Period Cancel mimiddivyy hh mm ss msec Start 01 01 2004 00 00 00 ooo 000 En
489. t will be applied after the Activity It will be reflected in the Cycle Time of the Batched Entity Rank Method sets the rank method of the queue for the Entities to be batched The default is First In First Out The rank methods are e First In First Out e First In Last Out e Earliest Created First e Latest Created First e Highest Priority Value First d Lowest Priority Value First e Highest Attribute Value First e Lowest Attribute Value First The Attribute field will be active if Highest Attribute Value First or Lowest Attribute Value First is selected Select the desired attribute from the list If the selected attribute is a local Entity instance or Entity type attribute a run time error will occur if an Entity enters that does not have the selected attribute defined Unbatch Activity An Unbatch Activity separates a batch Entity into its constituents children and then destroys Disposes the parent Entity Many levels of batching are possible i e batches can be composed of batches The Unbatch Activity defaults to only disaggregate one levelofbatch ata time Unbatch Nested Batches must be selected to disaggregate all levels SIMPROCESS User s Manual 100 Entity Related Activities Unbatch Properties Event Logs Text Block Documentation General Resources Attributes Cancel Name Unbatch22 M Show Name Use Text Block Help icon fea Unbatch aje r New Entity icon Set Default p n Ne
490. tResult GetResult gets a value from the table Result Set once the row has been set When a Result Set is first created by aReadFromDatabase the row pointer in a Result Set is pointing to before the first row Thus GetNext must be called before GetResult The syntax is BooleanVar GetNext ResultSetName BooleanVar is any Attribute or local variable defined to be a BOOLEAN TRUE is returned if the next row exists FALSE if not at the end Result SetName is the user selected name given to a Result Set by a ReadFromDatabase Note that GetNext only moves forward through the rows Going backwards is not possible The only way to go back to the beginning of a Result Set is to execute again the ReadFromDatabase that created the Result Set GetResult GetResult assigns a value from a Result Set to an Attribute or local variable in the model The value comes from the current row of the Result Set The current row is set by GetNext The syntax is Variable GetResult ResultSetName Field Variable can be an Attribute or a local variable Result SetName is the user selected name given to a Result Set by aReadFromDatabase Field is the field from the database column of the Result Set that has the desired value The type of the value returned INTEGER REAL BOOLEAN or STRING to Variable must match with the type of the Variable Note that only INTEGER REAL BOOLEAN and STRING values can be placed in a Result Set SIMPROCE
491. te decision variables and constraints Inventory Model This model was developed for the purpose of finding optimal values The model is described in Chapter 5 of the SIMPROCESS Getting Started Manual Briefly the Inventory model demonstrates an Inventory Pull and Manufacturing system The process is characterized by the Reorder Points and Reorder Quantities defined for each resource in the supply chain There are four steps in the supply chain Warehouse Assembly Component Vendor and Component2 Vendor and the Raw Material Vendors Inventory is pulled only when it is needed there is insufficient stock to fill the order or the Reorder Point has been reached There are 10 Model Attributes in the model that have been designated as model parameters Comp1ReOrderPt Component Vendor 1 Comp resource Reorder Point Comp1ReOrderQty Component Vendor 1 Comp resource Reorder Quantity Comp2ReOrderPt Component Vendor 2 Comp2 resource Reorder Point Comp2ReOrderQty Component Vendor 2 Comp2 resource Reorder Quantity FinProdReOrderPt Finished Product FinProduct resource Reorder Point FinProdReOrderQty Finished Product FinProduct resource Reorder Quantity Raw1ReOrderPt Raw Material Vendor 1 Raw resource Reorder Point Raw1ReOrderQty Raw Material Vendor 1 Raw1 resource Reorder Quantity Raw2ReOrderPt Raw Material Vendor 2 Raw2 resource Reorder Point Raw2ReOrderQty Raw Material Vendor 2 Raw2 resource Reorder Quantity Th
492. ted by watching for best solutions that seem to bounce around from one set of values to completely different sets of values To help solve this problem increase the number of replications per simulation On the right the objective appears smooth due to the relative certainty in the model assumptions In these cases OptQuest should quickly converge to the best solution Simulation Speed Some suggestions for increasing speed include Reduce the size of the model or the time horizon of the simulation e Increase the system s RAM memory Reduce the number of uncertain elements in the simulation e Close other applications SIMPROCESS User s Manual 376 OptQuest Demonstration Models OptQuest Demonstration Models Two of the demonstration models that come with SIMPROCESS have been set up for optimization the Purchasing model Purchasing spm and the Inventory model Inventory spm Purchasing Model This model was used throughout this chapter to describe how to set up and run an OptQuest optimization Thus an extended description will not be given here The model is described in Chapter 5 of the SIMPROCESS Getting Started Manual The optimization set up for this model should not be considered a true optimization scenario The constraints are very tight and the number of replications per simulation is only two This was done so the example would run within a minute or two The value of this model is in learning how to crea
493. ted from specific Processes Activities 1 Using an Activities Process Properties dialog press the Event Logs tab The Event Logs tab lists the currently defined Time Stamps and Recorder objects either On Entry or On Exit 2 Using the Type combo box select Recorder and choose the Add button The Recorder Properties dialog appears as shown below xi File Name ecordertt i i All Entities Cancel i Saies Select A Help On Entry C On Exit 3 Choose to record arrival times On Entry or departing times On Exit of the Entities in this Process Activity SIMPROCESS User s Manual 311 Event Logs 4 Select the Entities to record If the All Entities check box above the list box is selected all Entities in the list box will be recorded 5 Choose OK to leave the dialog when finished entering data confirming the current selections The Cancel button rejects the current dialog selections 6 The Event Logs tab shows the defined Recorders either On Entry or On Exit along with current Time Stamps SIMPROCESS User s Manual 312 Part C Advanced SIMPROCESS Tools The chapters in this section describe the advanced tools and the database included with SIMPRO CESS Professional SIMPROCESS User s Manual 313 CHAPTER 12 Advanced Data Analysis SIMPROCESS comes with a data analysis tool that extends the ability to conduct statistical data analysis ExpertFit The ExpertFit tool
494. tered across the top of the layout when Horizontal is selected and the label will be centered along the left of the layout when Vertical is selected Note that the labels cannot be resized or moved Changes can only be made from the Text Block tab of the Process properties dialog Defaults for Horizontal or Vertical and the Font Attributes can be set on the Text Label tab of the Preferences dialog Edit Preferences Getting Help The Help button displays information about the purpose of the Activity and the fields and buttons on the General tab of the dialog The other tabs have Help buttons that are specific to that tab SIMPROCESS User s Manual 62 Generate Activity Generate Activity Generate Activities create Entities for a model during a SIMPROCESS simulation Generally the first Activity defined in the model is a Generate SIMPROCESS generates Entities at the rate defined in the Generate Activity Entities can be generated at a constant number and rate such as a specified interval of time or according to a statistical distribution The schedule of generation can be as simple as one constant rate or as complex as dozens of different rates depending on the hour of the day day of the week season of the year etc A Generate Activity can generate one or more types of Entities Defining a Basic Generate Activity Generate Properties mmmexbressions Event Logs Text Block Documentation StarvEnd Attributes N
495. termine bottlenecks or wasted effort Devise revisions to the Process to correct performance problems Select Process designs that give the best results Provide cost justification Establish performance targets for the new Process implementation Many types of tools and techniques are available for Process Modeling Frequently a simple diagram or flowchart can expose the obvious redundancies unnecessary work and inefficiencies in a given Process Tools which provide simple diagramming of a Process are called static modeling tools However to expose less obvious bottlenecks and costs intrinsic to the Process requires information about the resources employed in the Process measurements of the Processing capacity of the resources and some measure of the expected workflow through the Process Many Process modeling tools today do not allow a quantified analysis of the Process under study Some of those do not take into account the SIMPROCESS User s Manual 13 e Time varying nature of many Processes e Non linear interactions among elements of a Process e Random behavior of most real Processes e Unexpected events in the business environment The bottom line is that most Processes are not well characterized by deterministic mathematical models A dynamic business Process modeling tool which can simulate the behavior of the Process as it responds to the events occurring in the business environment is required to analyze time varyin
496. th a step by step example The following was discussed Attributes are variables of model elements whose value can change during a simulation run System Attributes are those built in to SIMPROCESS User Defined Attributes are cus tom defined by users Object Attributes identify the model element whose Attribute is being referenced Globally defined user Attributes are created for every model element of the same class Activities Resources etc Locally defined Attributes apply only to a single type of a model element Expressions are user written procedures which are invoked by SIMPROCESS at various events during a simulation run An introduction to the basics of this language begins on page 226 Object Attributes are used in Expressions to qualify Attribute references Numerous System Methods are available to add functions to Expressions SIMPROCESS User s Manual 274 CHAPTER 11 More Advanced Model Building This chapter discusses the advanced schedules of the Generate activity and Resource downtime Most real world scenarios do not operate at the same schedule 24 hours per day 365 days per year Thus the ability to vary entity generation and the availability of resources is critical SIMPROCESS User s Manual 275 Defining a More Complex Generate Activity Defining a More Complex Generate Activity A Generate Activity generates different types of Entities oritcan vary the schedule of entity generation f
497. the 948 by 711 size The setting used for the remainder of the current SIMPROCESS session unless changed again via this dialog will be the one specified here Apply to Current Model enables the following four options e Current Layout Only applies the entered values only to the active layout The specified size of the current layout will be stored with the model when the model is saved e All Layouts in Current Model stores the entered values with all layouts in the active model so that they become permanent if the model is saved e Clear Current Layout Setting removes a previously specified layout size for the current layout so that the layout is subsequently redrawn when necessary using the current session layout size e Clear All Layout Settings removes stored layout sizes for all layouts of the current model The layouts will subsequently display using the current session layout size The current session setting is only changed if no checkboxes are selected or if the Default Setting checkbox is selected Each time a layout is displayed if a layout size is specified in the model that size will be used if none is found the current session setting will be used instead Swimlanes allows you to add swimlanes to the current layout The swimlanes dialog has two tabs Horizontal and Vertical On the left side of each tab is the list of swimlanes The right side has a miniature view of the current layout Note that more than one lane m
498. the Standard Report The Standard Report check box on the Attribute Properties dialog must be selected for each attribute that needs to collect statistics The report will display either Time weighted or Observation based statistics depending on the option chosen Statistics can be kept for all types of attributes except Entity Instance Attributes Lastly if the value of an attribute does not change during the simulation run its statistics will all be zeroes in the Standard Report See User Defined Attributes beginning on page 215 for more information on Attributes SIMPROCESS User s Manual 164 Custom Statistics Custom Statistics SIMPROCESS provides the ability to add custom statistics to the Standard Report for analyzing the performance of business Processes Such performance measures as cycle time Activity costs and Resource utilization can be calculated by SIMPROCESS This chapter describes the types of statistics available and how to define display print and export them Entity Statistics Entity statistics provide detailed information about the numbers of Entities existing in the model during a simulation and the amount of simulation time cycle time that Entities require to pass through the model SIMPROCESS provides five types of Entity statistical reports e Total Count e Real time Plots e Entity Count by State e Entity Cycle Time by State e Attribute Value Total Count Entity Count by State and E
499. the base 10 Log of X MAXOF list of numbers REAL INTE REAL or Returns the maximum number in GER INTE the given list Return type is the all the numbers in list must GER same as the input list be of the same type MINOF list of numbers REAL INTE REAL or Returns the minimum number in GER INTE the given list Return type is the all the numbers in list must GER same as the input list be of the same type OpenDatabase Database DSN STRING or OBJECT Creates a connection to the data Properties File STRING base specified by the DSN The UserName Optional DSN for the database is specified STRING in the ODBC control panel The Password Optional STRING UserName and Password are op tional However if UserName is used Password must also be used When not using Windows the Properties File is the name of the file that specifies the URL and protocol to use SIMPROCESS User s Manual 473 SIMPROCESS System Methods SIMPROCESS System Methods Method Name Arguments Return Description OpenFile Mode STRING OBJECT Open the specified file and return File Name STRING the file stream object Mode can be input or output The File Name String can contain physical path names if the user wants to explicitly tell SIMPROCESS where the file resides If path sep arators e g or x in Windows are used the program assumes the user is providing a complete and valid physical fil
500. the best and current Objective Value Iteration Feasible Objective Value Best Value 2 Yes 34447 3184 Current Value 3 No 29478 7953 The decision variables table lists the decision variables Parameters included in the optimization The Lower Bound Best Value Current Value and Upper Bound are displayed Parameter mer Bouna Best Value irava erena Model NumProdAPersonnel Model NumProdBPersonnel s Model NumProdCPersonnel 1 7 i T The performance measure constraints table lists the performance measures identified as constraints for the optimization The Lower Bound Best Value Current Value and Upper Bound are displayed Constraint Lower Bound BestYalue Currentvalue upper Bound TotalWWait Value infinity 7 5497 7 5497 30 0 The expression constraint table lists the expression constraints defined for the optimization The name not the expression itself is displayed in the Expression Constraint column The other columns are Best LF Current LF Best UF and Current UF LF stands for Lower Feasibility and UF stands for Upper Feasibility Feasibility is a measure of how well the constraint was satisfied A negative number indicates infeasibility A value of infinity means the constraint was unbounded on the lower side and a value of infinity means the constraint was unbounded on the upper side For instance the Best LF Current LF Best UF and Current UF of the first expression constraint are 0 0 T
501. the default value of the model parameter assigned at the time the attribute was defined The last column of the SIMPROCESS User s Manual 355 Optimization Setup table Include determines which decision variables OptQuest will modify during the optimization The remaining columns Lower Bound Upper Bound and Step Size apply only to model parameters whose Mode is Integer or Real If the model parameter is not one of those modes N A will be entered in appropriate cell Also if the Mode is Real N A will be entered in the Step Size column of that row If Lower Boundis left blank negative infinity is assumed Likewise if Upper Bound is left blank infinity is assumed The Reset and Reset All buttons work as on the Model Parameters dialog These buttons only apply to the Starting Value column OptQuest for SIMPROCESS x Delete OK Select Optimization Settings Purchasing Optimization Undo Delete Cancel Objective Decision Variables Constraints Process Alternatives Run Options Help Starting Value Upper Bound Step Size Include NumProdAPersonnel 7 1 10 1 Start NumProdBPersonnel 5 1 10 j1 NumProdCPersonnel 5 1 10 j1 v Description Number of Product A Personnel Default i Mode Jinte jer Reset All Reset Constraints The Constraints tab is where constraints are defined Constraints are not required for an optimization but are usually used in an optimization T
502. the layout it can be moved its properties edited and it can be grouped with other objects on the layout If a dynamic label is placed on the layout in addition to its font attributes appropriate information needs to be entered in the Dynamic Label Properties group Each dynamic label must have a unique combination of Name and Id number Usually Id number will be 0 unless two dynamic labels have the same name Thename typed into the Name text box willnot appear on the layout It will only be used to reference the label Also choose the type of value with which the dynamic label will be updated The choice between String Integer and Realis made in the Mode combo box If the value of the dynamic label is Real also specify Width and Precision in the corresponding value boxes Width is the total number of digits that will be shown for the displayed value including the decimal point while Precision specifies the number of digits after the decimal point that will be displayed If the Width is greater than the value being displayed it will be padded with spaces on the left side If the Mode is Integer then only the Width field needs to be set The Value field can be left empty If so the dynamic label can only be updated by using the SIMPROCESS Expression Language page 258 Likewise ifthe Mode is String the dynamic label can only be updated through the SIMPROCESS Expression Language If the Value field is not empty the dynamic label will upd
503. this Activity Free Resource Group I amp II Gate Group I II amp HI ActivatedByTrig Get BOOLEAN Checks if the expression is activated ger by an Entity entering from the Trig ger Pad AutoRelCount Both INTEGER Number of Entities for threshold release AutoRelease Both BOOLEAN Whether threshold release is on LastRelCount Get INTEGER Number of Entities released in the previous threshold trigger release TrigNextRel Both INTEGER Value of the trigger release quantity at Count the next trigger TrigFutureRel Set INTEGER Change the trigger release quantity Count for all future triggered release hence forth Generate Group I NumberGener Get INTEGER Number of Entities generated at this ated Activity Get Resource Group I amp II Join Group I II amp HI Merge Group I amp II Process Group I amp II Child name Get OBJECT For hierarchical processes ONLY It STRING returns the reference to the child Activity or process with the specified name SIMPROCESS User s Manual 463 System Attributes SIMPROCESS System Attributes Model Elements Attribute Name Get Attribute Description Set Type Replenish Group I amp II Resource Split Group I II amp MI Synchronize Group I II amp MI Transform Group I II amp UI NumOutEntities Both INTEGER Number of output Entities OutEntityType Both OBJECT Reference of output Entity Type Unbatch Group I II
504. though it is not necessary add a Static Label to the dynamic label definition If this is not done there willbe no place holder for the dynamic label on the layout after the dialog is closed This label can still be found by dragging a rubber band box in the selection mode around the area where it was placed A very small selection box may appear at the location of the label SIMPROCESS User s Manual 143 Background Text The label s properties can then be edited by choosing Edit Properties off the menu Also adding a static label to the side of the dynamic label makes it simpler to find the dynamic label location and provides a description of the value being updated The static label is not replaced when dynamic value is updated since they are two separate labels SIMPROCESS User s Manual 144 Background Graphics Background Graphics Select the Background Graphic icon from the palette and move it to the layout to add a background graphic The Select background dialog will open Choose the background and select OK to close the dialog Once the graphic is on the layout it can be resized by selecting Edit Resize Note that background graphics cannot be resized using the resize handles The properties of the Background Graphic has two options on the properties dialog Locked and On Top The Locked option locks the Background Graphic to its current position on the layout preventing inadvertent moving of the Background Grap
505. ties In Process at Start of Downtime Comment Thus every Entity will get one and only one unit of the Resource However there may be instances where the amount of Resources needed would be different for each Entity This is true many times when using consumable Resources such as fuel Any type of Attribute may be used to set these levels Entity Entity Type Resource Activity or Model When Attributes are used they must be provided in the Evl distribution function such as Evl Model myattribute The Evl function gives added flexibility since mathematical functions can be used with the Attributes Evl Model myattribute Entity myEntityattribute SQRT Activity myActivityattribute is an example In addition to Attributes any statistical distribution may be used Use Edit to modify the existing requirement definition and then enter the Attribute that will have the unit information The Attribute must be a real or integer type Attribute x Name Fuel OK Units Evi Entity FuelUsed za Cancel SIMPROCESS User s Manual 224 Variable Resource Usage Delay Properties x Expressions EventLoas Text Block Documentation OK General Resources Attributes Cruel Requirements Help Fuel Evi Entity FuelUsed lt Add z Remove New Entity _NewResource_ Help Global Attributes Requires Entity Any One Member Entity Type Ic All Members Resource Model
506. timestamps Chapter 11 wraps up the advanced features of SIMPROCESS with descriptions of the complex features of the Generate activity and Downtime Schedules for Resources Part C describes the integrated statistical tools included with SIMPROCESS Professional Chapter 12 of this manual provides an introduction to data analysis and ExpertFit Chapter 13 covers using the SIMPROCESS Database while Chapter 14 discusses using the Experiment Manager How to perform optimization using OptQuest is discussed in Chapter 15 Chapter 16 discusses SIMPROCESS Dashboards ExpertFit for SIMPROCESS User s Guide ExpertFit determines automatically and accurately which probability distribution bestrepresents a data set This guide describes how to use ExpertFit in association with SIMPROCESS It includes an appendix that gives descriptive information on each distribution in SIMPROCESS SIMPROCESS User s Manual Il Part A SIMPROCESS Functions and Features The chapters in Part A describe the basic functions and features of SIMPROCESS SIMPROCESS User s Manual 12 CHAPTER 1 Process Modeling and Analysis with SIMPROCESS The goal of Process Modeling is to create a simplified but useful model of a business enterprise The enterprise can be a small work group or development team a particular division arelated set of departments or even an entire company The model allows an analyst to study the Processes in a business in order to De
507. ting Started model Assemble demo model demonstration model Batch Unbatch demo model demonstration model demonstration dashboard Cashier spm demonstration model CnfgMgmt spm demonstration model Credit spm demonstration model Customer Service spm demonstration model Emergency Room spm demonstration model Remote Plot spm demonstration model HelpDesk spm Human Resources spm H20 spm Inventory spm Justice System spm demonstration model demonstration model Get Resource demo model demonstration model demonstration model SIMPROCESS User s Manual 423 APPENDIX C SIMPROCESS File Structure demonstration model demonstration model demonstration model demonstration model External schedule model RemoteCall demo model Resource downtime model Split Join demo model Supply chain demo model Getting Started model Network spm NewAccount spm Preempt spm Purchasing spm Remote spm RemoteCall spm Sample Downtime spm SplitJoin spm Supply spm To Be spm UninstallerData Directory The installation program will create this folder with all resources needed to fully uninstall SIM PROCESS This folder should remain unchanged to ensure that a proper uninstall is possible jre Directory This directory contains the Java Runtime Environment referenced by the SIMPROCESS program ext Directory When calling an extern
508. tire Downtime Schedule Defining a Usage Downtime Sometimes a resource should be unavailable after use As an example consider the scenario where the resource is arental car When the rental car is released after use the resource must be unavailable for some time to represent the time required to clean maintain and refuel the car A Unit Based Usage downtime schedule can model this scenario To define the Downtime schedule for rental car usage 1 Add a Usage Schedule Type Select Unit Based for Usage Type Usage Before Downtime sets the number of units that must be used before downtime occurs The arrow next to the Usage Before Downtimes field displays a list of statistical dis tributions No change is needed since the default of 1 0 is correct This means every unit of the rental car resource will go down for a period of time when released Set Number of Units Down to 1 0 Select the Normal distribution Nor for Downtime Duration The Downtime Duration repre sents the time required to prepare the rental car for another use Enter 1 5 for the Mean and 0 5 for the Std Dev 6 Leave the Duration Units at the default value Hours SIMPROCESS User s Manual 307 Resource Downtime x Schedule Name Renta CarPrep OK Schedule Cancel Usage Type junitBased Help Usage Before Downtime ho Z Number of Units Down ficooo i A Downtime Duration Nor 1 5 0 5 1 al hos H Duration Units Hours M Planned
509. tistics which show various summaries of the state information for a Resource e Utilization by State Statistics e Utilization by Activity Statistics e Real time Plots e Attribute Value Statistics Utilization by State is selected either from the Define Global Statistics Collection dialog by choosing Collect Resource Statistics or by choosing Collect Resource Statistics when each Resource is defined The Utilization by State statistics will be in the Standard Report for every Resource defined if Collect SIMPROCESS User s Manual 169 Custom Statistics Resource Statistics on the Define Global Statistics Collection dialog is selected The global Collect Resource Statistics should not be selected and the Collect Resource Statistics on the Resource Definition dialog should be selected if only statistics for selected Resources are desired Similarly Utilization by Activity is selected either from the Define Global Statistics Collection dialog by choosing Collect Resource by Activity Statistics or by choosing Collect Resource by Activity Statistics when each Resource is defined xl General Downtime Attributes Expressions OK Cancel Name Sales Rep Help Units fs x ae fied Document I Fractional Usage M Consumable Cost V Collect Resource Statistics V Collect Resource by Activity Statistics Comment Utilization by State Statistics These statistics present summaries of the simulation gener
510. tities according to a calendar schedule weekly monthly etc e Cyclical A detailed sequence of when Entities are generated e File A schedule defined in an external file e External Generates Entities based on inputs from an external source External schedules are a plug in capability that can be licensed separately from CACI SIMPROCESS User s Manual 276 Defining a More Complex Generate Activity Schedules are processed in parallel If there are two schedules that overlap in time SIMPROCESS processes both simultaneously Click on Add to define a new schedule or Edit to change the definition of the item highlighted in the schedules list box When adding a new schedule first identify the type of entity generation pattern by selecting from the Schedule Type combo box Copy duplicates the definition of the item highlighted in the Schedule list box Use this when two or more similar schedules are needed Remove deletes the highlighted schedule Adding a Periodic Schedule The periodic schedule defines aconstant or statistical distribution of entity generation events per period x Schedule Periodic oK Cancel Entity fuse default ail Ee Help Quantity fusedefaut a Interval 1 0 x E TimeUnit Hors Hl V Generate at start of first interval Comment StarvEnd The Periodic Schedule dialog contains the following items Schedule Assign a meaningful name to the entity generation schedule The de
511. tity Simulation Time Units Hours z Resource Hide Plot at Simulation Start Time Stamp Activity Display Plot on Remote Server Model Attributes Remote Server URL Legends Set Legends Select All Comment Esmprocess Real Time aran E File Edit Special BRAE Software Sales Call Number In System N itt Hardware Sales Call Number In System u 10 Sales Process Number Entities In Process m pa E r if o f 6 5 E n 4 t i ta i e 1 ao Time In Hours SIMPROCESS User s Manual 189 Custom Plots Removing Values From Custom Plot Removing values from a custom plot is accomplished from the Custom Plot Properties dialog There are two buttons for removing values Remove and Remove All The Remove All button clears the plot of all values The Remove button clears the values that have been selected More than one value can be selected by holding down the Control key when selecting Setting and Removing Plot Group Custom plots can be assigned to groups Groups are based on Activities and Processes A plot can be assigned to any group but can only belong to one group Plot groups only apply to custom plots or Activity Process plots from Define Real Time Plots Activities on the Report menu See Real Time Plots on page 176 Setting Plot Group Plot groups allow custom plots to be associated with a particular Process or Activity and they limit the number of plots in the Display Rea
512. too it requires only a single statement in each Expression But it is redundant in that Expressions must be defined for each type of Entity Defining an Expression for each Entity would be tedious and time consuming if there are many different types of Entities There are other options A weight does nothave to be assigned to the Entities as soon as they are created All that is required is the weight be assigned before the Entity reaches the Batch Activity where appliances are distributed DISTRIBUTE ORDERS In this model all Entities are generated by a single Generate Activity So an Expression can be defined in the Generate Activity that activates whenever an Entity is released Release Entity event This is the most efficient way to proceed One Expression handles the initialization of any Entity s applianceWeight 1 Double click on the Generate RECEIVE ORDERS Activity 2 Inthe Generate Activity Properties dialog click on the Expressions tab Five simulation events are listed The first Start Simulation will occur before any Entities are generated Start Trial will occur before any Entities are generated if there is no warmup period otherwise some Entities could be generated if Entity generation was scheduled during the warmup period Release Entity serves the purpose so highlight it and click on Edit 3 Enter the following lines in the Expression dialog IF Entity Name refrigerator order Entity applianceWeight 5000 0
513. ttings Animation Settings Verify Model Run F4 Change Model Parameters F5 Pause Resume F6 Animation On FS Stop F9 Run Settings Run Settings Run Settings Cost Periods Debug Traces Simulation Period miniddiyyy hh mm ss usec mA o 0170172004 foo 00 00 01 01 2005 oo 00 00 000 ooo a a _ Warmup Every Replication Number of Replications _ Reset Random Number Streams Warmup Length V Verify Model on Run Simulation Time Unit Hours RMI Host localhost RMI Port Reset System Warmup Time Unit Hours Ten Run Settings tab is used to set the run options for the simulation See Run Settings on page 90 Cost Periods tab defines cost periods for Activity based costing calculations See Setting Up Cost Periods on page 156 Debug Traces tab defines trace files of entity actions for debugging purposes See Debug Traces on page 92 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 46 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus Animation Settings x Animation OK M Show Clock Cancel M Show Counts Help Show Entities M Update Dynamic Labels Animation Speed 1 100 20 0 Show Clock turns the simulation time clock on or off while the simulation is running Show Counts If Show Counts is turned on each Activity or Process will display anumber above its icon e Generate Activities show the number of Entities gener
514. ttribute that sets the maximum number of Entities that can be held in the batch With the Activity about to be emptied of Entities the batchWeight Attribute is reset to zero The OUTPUT statement in the Expression is there as an example of displaying information in the message dialog It is not needed by the model OUTPUT statements can be interspersed in Expressions in order to trace events during a simulation Displaying the value of batchWeight for instance verifies that the batch is really released when the weight exceeds 5000 0 5 Close the editor There is one more thing this model needs The maximum batch size must be reset again after the Entities are released Entities should not be released when the DISTRIBUTE ORDER batch reaches a certain number Only accumulating 5000 pounds of weight should trigger release As it stands now MaxBat chSi ze is set to the size of the previous batch accumulated at the Activity SIMPROCESS User s Manual 246 Example Batching Entities Based on Weight This was done to force a release of Entities when bat chWeight reached 5000 pounds The number of Entities could reach the current MaxBatchSize again before accumulating 5000 pounds of weight To prevent that reset this Attribute to a number that can not possibly be reached before accumulating 5000 pounds of weight 1 Inthe Expressions tab select Release Entity This is the event where the Entities are released from the batch Activity
515. tus By 1 Re evaluate after 2 poor scans Ready to Classify After 1 Scan Grat re Slow Scan Decision after 2 scans k Scan Again Second Scan OK gt i Path Px gt a Failed Scan Counter Store Card in File Also Pads may be arranged differently Pads will be on the correct side of an Activity or Process but they may be in a different order Notice that the Pads on the right side of the Process Pending Queue are swapped The first image is from the 2 2 2 model and the second is from the imported model Pads on other Activities like the Clone Split Assemble and Gate may be swapped as well O a Pending Queue Send Queue In To Pending Q Pending Queue Specially Drawn Connectors Connectors are drawn by clicking on the output Pad of one Activity and then clicking on the input Pad of another Activity These Connectors will default to a bent Connector Special paths for SIMPROCESS User s Manual 409 Appendix A Importing Version 2 2 1 Models Connectors are created by clicking on the layout Every click point creates a right angle In the 2 2 2 example below this is how the feedback loop is created blue Connector EJ SIMPROCESS Professional Feedback loj x File Edit Layout View Create Define Simulate Report Experiment Tools Help Diela a Aae aloe pe Generatel o gt Disposed 7 Notice that in the imported model the feedback Connector from Branc
516. tween Downtimes field This displays a dialog for defining the parameters of the distribution SIMPROCESS User s Manual 305 Resource Downtime x OK Min 0 0 Cancel Hel Mode 5 0 P Max foo view Stream H The following assumptions have been made Typically there is a clerk out sick every 28 days This is the most likely estimate The minimum period between illnesses is 3 days The maximum period between illnesses is 1 year 365 days Distribution Details xj OK Min g Cancel Hel Mode fee p Max jes View Stream fi Click on OK 3 Set Time Unit to Days 4 Set Units Down to The Units number of clerks of this resource is 5 The frequency of downtime applies to one clerk at a time not all five 5 Downtime Duration is another variable random event SIMPROCESS User s Manual 306 Resource Downtime For this model assume that a clerk is unavailable for at least 24 hours one sick day and no more than 10 days at atime with most absences lasting two days Following the procedure described in step 2 define a triangular distribution with these parameters Downtime Duration ri 1 0 2 0 10 0 1 6 Select Days for Duration Unit 7 Set the Schedule Name to SickTime 8 The downtime is not planned so leave the Planned check box blank 9 Leave Interrupt Activities unselected 10 Click on OK to add the definition to the Schedule list Click on OK to accept the en
517. ty is Send and Local Transfer Properties General Text Block Documentation Name Transfer Show Name d Use Text Block Cancel Help Icon gt gt Transfer Icon Set Default New Entity Transfer Type New Resource Send Receive Global Attributes Connection Type Connection Type Entity Local Entity Type Comment Dialog Field and Button Definitions Transfer Type sets the Transfer Activity as Send or Receive Both Send and Receive have a Connection Type Local or Remote The Connection Type options enable based on the selection of Send or Receive Connection Type sets the Transfer Activity as Local or Remote The Local option has a Connection button associated with it and the Remote option has a Protocol button associated with it The Connection button is active when Local is selected and the Protocol button is active when Remote is selected The Connection button for the Send option operates differently from the Connection button for the SIMPROCESS User s Manual 115 Entity Control Activities Receive option Clicking the Connection button associated with Send Local brings up a modified version of the Activity Browser dialog See Activity Browser on page 27 for more information on using the Activity Browser This version includes a Cancel button aA Select Receiving Transfer A Justice System Close E TopProcess0 Altt cancer Police Dept Help City
518. ucts beginning on page 126 for an explanation of the remaining options and commands and for more details on defining Resources including pre defined Resource types Processes ASIMPROCESS Process defines Processes hierarchically In this example we will define a Process that indicates how customer orders are handled Select the Process button from the Palette bar and click on the layout Display a dialog for defining the Process Do this by either SIMPROCESS User s Manual 73 Defining Resources and Processes e Clicking on the Process icon to select it and then pressing Alt Enter e Selecting the Process icon and then selecting Edit from the menu bar followed by Properties Process Properties A ttributes Expressions Event Logs Text Block Documentation Name Process10 Show Name Use Text Block Cancel mr 1 Help Icon Defaulticon v Icon Set Default v New Entity New Resource Alternative Sub Processes dd Entity Copy Entity Type Resource 2 E D P a fag wo Remove Collect Activity Statistics Collect Activity by Entity Statistics Comment Alternative Sub Processes A Process may consist of a set of Alternative sub processes Each sub process can represent an alternative implementation of the Process This allows the creation of many variations of a Process and keeps them organized in one place Only one sub process ca
519. ul false will be returned Error messages from SPServerFactory or one of the server instances will be in the file server login the SIMPROCESS directory Ifthe error occurred within SIMPROCESS the error messages will be in simprocess log or simprocess err inthe SPSYSTEM directory Generate Activity Summary The Generate Activity generates the Entities that are processed in a SIMPROCESS simulation The number of Entities generated at each generation event and the frequency of entity generation events may be expressed as either constant numbers or statistical distributions Schedules of discrete entity generation events can be defined Schedules are classified as e Periodic A constant or statistical distribution of generation events per time unit e Calendar Weekly monthly etc events e Cyclical A detailed sequence of generation events e File A schedule defined in an external file e External A schedule that receives generation signals from an external application Cyclical schedules are further broken down into cycles each of which describes a different entity generation event Cycle events are processed sequentially This differs from other Generate schedules which are processed in parallel SIMPROCESS User s Manual 293 Resource Downtime Resource Downtime Resource Downtime determines when a resource is unavailable Resource Downtime can be defined locally or globally A Resource can have multiple global
520. usiness operations in a SIMPROCESS model SIMPROCESS models can be arranged in a hierarchy with Processes encompassing other Processes and Activities Processes A set of Processes can represent the operation of a business at a very high level This level represents only an outline of the business Process Activities represent the details of business operations For example in a mail order SIMPROCESS User s Manual 53 fulfillment operation when a customer order is received processing steps might include 1 Identifying the customer 2 Creating or accessing a customer profile 3 Verifying the customer profile against information contained in the customer s order Each of these steps can be modeled as an Activity Collectively they comprise a single Process that might be called Access Create Customer Profile The Process construct allows a business Process to be broken down into successively more detailed layers A Process can be and usually is composed of other Processes and Activities Activities cannot be decomposed Activities SIMPROCESS contains a suite of Activities each reflecting a different type of action Actions can be physical or logical Entities Entities are objects that circulate through the model They represent things e g parts deliveries people and information orders service requests etc that flow from Activity to Activity The customer order is an Entity in the order fulfillm
521. using Distribute Distribute Pads Pads added to a Hierarchical Process can be spaced evenly by selecting Distribute Pads Although intended for the Hierarchical Process this menu item can be used for any Activity or Process Group combines multiple objects into a group All normal editing operations that can be done on an individual object can be done on the group This can be useful when the model is divided into logical sections A section can be grouped and then moved with respect to the other sections A group can be cut from the layout or copied and pasted to create an identical group Use Ungroup to edit individual components of a group Ungroup breaks up a group into the original components that went into making the group Bring To Front brings an object to the front of the layout so it can be edited Send To Back sends an object that is at the front of the model layout to the back Snap To Grid Once turned on objects can only be placed on the layout at grid intersections Grid Lines places a grid on the model layout as a convenience in aligning objects The grid has no significance to the model Grid Spacing changes the spacing of the grid Three levels are offered Fine Medium and Coarse Grid Color changes the color of the grid to the color selected on the color button SIMPROCESS User s Manual 40 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus View Menu Descend Ascend GoTo Top Activities Resources Activity
522. ust be added for anything to appear on the miniature view or on the actual layout Both horizontal and vertical swimlanes can be on the same layout The example below shows a modified version of the demonstration model Human Resources spm SIMPROCESS User s Manual 33 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus Swimlane Properties x i vertical Add jee Edit 2 a See Remoy eer Undo a ET on TEL Border Properties Lane vyidths Click the Add button to add a swimlane This brings up a dialog which contains the name of the swimlane whether the name should be displayed Show Name whether the name should be displayed horizontally or vertically Name Orientation horizontal swimlanes only and the Font Attributes for the name aner Properties x Name JLanet _ x V Show Name Cancel Name Orientation Help C Horizontal Vertical r Font Attributes Font Name fSerif x Size f2 wf Color Moak M Bold I Italic Edit the properties to set the appropriate name and display characteristics SIMPROCESS User s Manual 34 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus xi Name Jas is Process for Staffing OK iV Show Name Cancel Name Orientation Help Horizontal Vertical r Font Attributes FontName Sansserf xl Size fo x Bold I Italic Adding a second swimlane causes a swimlane border to appear in the miniature view Adding a third
523. ut This combines Copy and Paste into one command This is useful when you want to quickly copy something on the layout and paste it somewhere else Clear Clear deletes a selected object without copying it to the clipboard Select All Select All selects all objects on the model layout Resize Resize lets you resize a layout object You can resize the horizontal and vertical directions separately if you wish to resize the icon in a non proportional way The values represent pixels The Default Size button sets the Icon Width and Icon Height to the default size of the icon Choose the Show Handles button if you would like to drag to resize the object Multiple objects can be resized at the same time by having multiple items selected when choosing Resize Important Note An object cannot be resized smaller than 10 x 10 pixels Thus if numbers are entered that are smaller the object will be resized to 10 x 10 Also Background Text objects cannot be resized using Resize The font properties must be changed to resize Background Text SIMPROCESS User s Manual 22 SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus Icon Width Bz OK Icon Height 32 Cancel Default Size Show Handles The following image shows three processes after Show Handles was selected El simprocess Professional Edition Fie Edit Layout View Create Define Simulate Repon Experiment Tools Window Help Ose amp janx Ttt Aer Ev 9 OT J Model 1 Switch Activ
524. utions of interest A change in a generally alters a distribution s properties e g skewness more fundamentally than a change in location or scale Some SIMPROCESS User s Manual 425 Appendix D Statistical Distributions distributions e g exponential and normal do not have a shape parameter while others e g beta and Pearson type VI may have two The last parameter of each distribution is the stream number This is the random number stream that will be used to general random values from the distribution Possible values for stream are 1 2 215 with being the default SIMPROCESS User s Manual 426 Appendix D Statistical Distributions Uniform Distribution 0 9 0 8 0 7 0 6 0 5 0 4 Plot for Uni 3 0 7 0 1 T T T T T PDF Uni 3 0 7 0 1 m CDF Uni 3 0 7 0 1 Probability density function and cumulative density function for a uniform distribution with minimum 3 and maximum 7 Syntax Uni minimum maximum stream The uniform distribution continuous is equally likely to take on any real number in the finite interval minimum maximum The real numbers produced by arandom number generator appear to have a uniform distribution on the interval 0 1 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 427 Appendix D Statistical Distributions Normal Distribution BRAR PDF Nor 10 0 1 0 1 CDF Nor 10 0 1 0 1 Plot for Nor 10 0 1 0 1
525. val MINOF valuel value2 valuel DrawRealSample Uni REALTOSTR minval REAL TOSTR maxval Beep MasterEditor fContinue Confirm MasterEditor The value is REAL TOSTR valuel END WHILE Method ChangeColor This method changes the color of a non bitmap icon Currently Activity icon Rectanglelcon and Process icon DefaultIcon can change color The SIMPROCESS Color Table beginning on page 497 contains the 64 colors available in SIMPROCESS The name of an Activity or Process can be specified or Self Parent or Activity can be used to designate the Activity or Process Note SIMPROCESS User s Manual 480 System Method Examples that in earlier versions of SIMPROCESS pre 4 1 Self Parent and Activity did not require quotes Earlier version models using those keywords must be modified to include quotes for use with SIMPROCESS 4 1 or later versions Ifan Activity or Process name is used SIMPROCESS will attempt to change the color of every Activity or Process that matches the input name The following changes the color of the Activity Delay4 to Red ChangeColor Delay4 Red The following changes the color of the current Activity or Process to Blue ChangeColor Self Blue The following changes the color of the parent Process of the current Activity or Process to Yellow ChangeColor Pare
526. values of this property will be documented with available Java JDBC drivers It is important to note however that SIMPROCESS will as sume that any value beginning with jdbc odbc is the Access database The example in this file shows using a MySQL database named simprocess on the local system e jdbc username This property is disabled in the example If the database configuration re quires a user name remove the to enable the property and give it an appropriate value e jdbc password This property is disabled in the example If the database configuration re quires a user password remove the to enable the property and give it an appropriate value The simprocessdb sq l file is an example of Data Definition Language DDL for creating a database in MySQL that is suitable for use with SIMPROCESS The file contains necessary DDL statements to drop andcreate a database named simprocess and then to create each of the tables needed for storing simulation results some of which require insertion of static data While the Access database contains some tables and or columns with spaces in their names this DDL uses underscore characters instead When the value of the jdbc ur1 property does not begin with jdbc odbc SIMPROCESS will use these names to allow support for the widest range of SQL databases Other features such as foreign keys referential integrity cascading deletes etc are not supported by all databases a fact which shoul
527. ve distribution function of the probability distribution being tested SIMPROCESS User s Manual 454 Appendix E Statistical Tools Glossary Kurtosis Characterizes the relative peakedness or flatness of a distribution relative to the normal distribution A data set with positive kurtosis has a sharper peak than a normal distribution while a data set with negative kurtosis has a flatter peak than the normal distribution Maximum Likelihood Estimate A Statistical technique for estimating the parameters of a hypothesized distribution of a data set Mean Average value of a data set MLE Acronym for maximum likelihood estimate Mode The mode of a probability distribution is the value of X where it takes on its maximum value If the distribution is multiply peaked there may not be a unique mode Model Element A named object in the simulation model that has one or more simulation input variables that can be designated as factors for an experiment The model elements include Activities Resources and Entity types Pdf Probability density function Performance Measure An output statistic that quantifies some behavior of the model SIMPROCESS User s Manual 455 Appendix E Statistical Tools Glossary Percentiles Ina data set ranked by value of the data points a percentile refers to the data point at the relative position by rank of the data point in the data set For example ina data set of a
528. ves Number of Entities Resources and Plots Number of each type of Expression Number of each type of Attribute Icon Manager is used to import export and manage image files A single image file can be imported for use as an icon or multiple files such as a directory of image files can be imported See Importing Graphics Image Files on page 146 Window Menu Displays a list of open models Allows you to change which model is active SIMPROCESS User s Manual 5I SIMPROCESS Terminology and Menus Help Menu SIMPROCESS Help Fi SIMPROCESS Books Online gt System Information About SIMPROCESS SIMPROCESS Help displays a list of main help topics SIMPROCESS Books Online opens the SIMPROCESS Getting Started Manual the SIMPROCESS User s Manual and the ExpertFit for SIMPROCESS User s Guide This is the complete documentation set for SIMPROCESS System Information displays a dialog that lists the relevant system information It also includes a Run GC button This button calls Java garbage collection and updates the Java memory information About SIMPROCESS displays information about SIMPROCESS including the version the copyright and technical support information SIMPROCESS User s Manual 52 CHAPTER 2 SIMPROCESS Basics A SIMPROCESS model contains the following components e Processes e Activities e Entities e Resources e Connectors e Pads Processes and Activities represent b
529. vities show the number of Entities generated e Dispose Activities show how many Entities have been disposed e All other Activities and Processes show how many entities are in that Process or Activity Show Entities turns the display of Entities on or off during the animation Showing Entities assists with visualizing the workflow Update Dynamic Labels turns the display of dynamic labels on or off during the animation Animation Speed Changes the Animation Speed during the simulation The fastest value is 100 and the default is 20 A smaller value is better while debugging the model SIMPROCESS User s Manual 79 Running a Simulation Running a Simulation Start the simulation running either by clicking the blue runner icon on the tool bar or selecting Simulate from the SIMPROCESS menu bar followed by Run Before starting the simulation SIMPROCESS does two things 1 Prompts for saving the latest changes to the model 2 Checks the model for errors SIMPROCESS issues informational messages and aborts the simulation if errors are found Choose Verify Model from the Simulate menu before running to check the model for errors before running a simulation Running a Simulation with Model Parameters If the model has User defined Attributes which were selected as Model Parameters when the simulation run is started SIMPROCESS will prompt for initial values for those Model Parameters The Model Parameters are displayed in a t
530. vity placed in the library These elements include Resources Resource Downtimes Entity Types global Entity Attributes global Entity Type Attributes global Resource Attributes global SIMPROCESS User s Manual 201 Defining and Editing Templates Activity Attributes named distributions tabular distributions and Functions Note that code stored in a file for an Expression in a Process or Activity template or code stored in a file for a Function referenced is not included in the template The file references are included in the template but the template does not carry the files or their content with it The figure below shows a template named Process Calls in the Customer Service library Library Manager xj Libraries ay Customer Service E Process Calls Ha Process Calls EHE Resources O Resource Downtimes FH EntityTypes Edit E GlobalEntity Attributes 0 GlobalEntityTypeAttributes E GlobalResourceAttributes E GlobalProcessAttributes Load E GlobalModelAttributes E NamedDistributionList E TabularDistributionList Save E Functions th Help New i Remove Unload Import Export Hk The elements with a can be expanded to see the items included A partially expanded view is shown below SIMPROCESS User s Manual 202 Defining and Editing Templates Library Manager i xj Libraries HEJ Customer Service Process Calls HE Process
531. w Resource Global Attributes C Retain Batched Entity ae Entity C Unbatch Nested Batches 5 Entity Type Resource Duration a Model Value None n Units Hours Collect Activity Statistics Collect Activity by Entity Statistics Comment The time specified in the Duration will be applied before the Activity when the Delay time is set for an Unbatch Activity It will be reflected in the Cycle Time of the Batched Entity The Unbatch Activity defaults to disposing the Batched Entity that enters the Activity Retain Batched Entity must be selected for the Batched Entity to not be disposed The Batched Entity will continue through the simulation with no child Entities Gate Activity The Gate Activity accumulates Entities until some number of Entities have been received or until a signalis received from another Activity to release Entities It then sends adesignated number of Entities out into the model Entities can be but do not have to be batched in a Gate Activity A Gate Activity has two Pads that determine Entity behavior the Hold Pad and the Trigger Pad The Hold Pad located on the lower left of the Gate icon is a queue for incoming Entities Entities that arrive at that Pad are stored here The Trigger Pad located on the upper left of the Gate icon disposes of incoming Entities and causes any Entities stored on the Hold Pad to be released A Gate Activity has two gating policies tha
532. wed to the right rather than being symmetric SIMPROCESS User s Manual 428 Appendix D Statistical Distributions Triangular Distribution Plot for Tri 2 0 6 0 8 0 1 4 PDF Tri 2 0 6 0 8 0 1 CDF Tri 2 0 6 0 8 0 1 oaf oer 1 0 7 f 1 0 67 1 0 567 1 Probability density function and cumulative density function for a triangular distribution with minimum 2 mode 6 and maximum 8 Syntax Tri minimum mode maximum stream The triangular distribution continuous is typically used as a rough model for the time required to perform some task when no real world data are available A triangular distribution takes on values in the finite interval minimum maximum with values near the mode being most likely to occur Subjective estimates of the three parameters are obtained from subject matter experts The mean of a triangular distribution is only equal to the mode when the distribution is symmetric SIMPROCESS User s Manual 429 Appendix D Statistical Distributions Exponential Distribution BRAE PDF Exp 1 0 1 CDF Exp 1 0 1 Plot for Exp 1 0 1 T T T 0 9 0 8 07 0 6 0 5 0 4 0 3 0 2 0 1 0 0 1 L 1 L L 0 1 2 3 4 Probability density function and cumulative density function for an exponential distribution with mean 1 Syntax Exp mean stream The exponential distribution continuous is commonly used to model
533. wo types of constraints can be defined The first type is a constraint on a performance measure of the model The Entity Resource Activity Time Stamp and Model Attributes buttons work as on the Objective tab These buttons allow performance measures to be selected for constraint Unlike the Objective though whichcan only be one performance measure more than one performance measure constraints can be added to the optimization Also on performance measure constraints there is an Upper Bound and or a Lower Bound Note If there are no bounds for a performance measure do not include it as a constraint In the Purchasing model there is a Model Attribute named TotalWait This attribute represents the total amount of time all entity types Product A Product B and Product C wait for resources The code below is from the End Simulation expression of the Model Expressions Define Model Expressions aWait bWait cWait REAL aWait GetEntityStatistic Product A tokenwaitdelay Avg Replication bWait GetEntityStatistic Product B tokenwaitdelay Avg Replication SIMPROCESS User s Manual 356 Optimization Setup cWait GetEntityStatistic Product C tokenwaitdelay Avg Replication Model TotalWait aWait bWait cWait The local variables aWait bWait and cWait contain the average wait time for Product A Product B and Product C respectively The Model Attribute Tot alWait contains the
534. ws RemoteException public boolean generateEntity String modelName String generate String schedule double time int quantity throws RemoteExeption public boolean stopSimulation String modelName throws RemoteException get SimTime returns a double representing the current simulation time The time unit of this number is the simulation time unit specified in the Run Settings Its single parameter mode1Name is the name of the simulation model the same as its filename without the spm extension generateEntity returns a boolean indicating success or failure Its parameters are as follows e modelName is the name of the simulation model the same as its filename without the spm extension e generate is the name of the Generate Activity SIMPROCESS User s Manual 290 Defining a More Complex Generate Activity e schedule is the name of the External schedule within the Generate Activity e entity is the name of the Entity to create e time is the simulation time at which the generation event should occur e quantity is the number of Entities to generate for this generation event The parameters ent ity and quant it ycandefaultto the Entity and Quantity specified on the external schedule dialog A value of null or for ent ity will cause the default to be used A value of 0 for quant it y causes the default quantity to be used The t ime parameter can default to the current simulation time by passing a
535. xpressions e FreeResource AnyResource this operates the same as the previous These are the same combinations that are available in the Free Resource Activity The following example shows getting and freeing a Resource at a typical Delay Activity GetResource Sales Rep 1 FreeResource Sales Rep Combining Get and Free Expressions With Activities These system methods can be used with the Get Resource and Free Resource Activities Any Resource obtained with the GetResource system method can be released by a Free Resource Activity However itis importantto note that tags used ina Get Resource system method will not be available in a Free Resource Activity if those tags have not been used in a Get Resource Activity Likewise any Resource obtained with a Get Resource Activity can be released with a FreeResource system method SIMPROCESS User s Manual 255 Changing Resource Capacity With Expressions Changing Resource Capacity With Expressions IncreaseCapacityandDecreaseCapacity are system methods that will change the capacity of a Resource during a simulation run SIMPROCESS System Methods on page 465 summarizes the methods The methods apply to all Resources whether consumable or not Thus IncreaseCapacity could be used to replenish a consumable Resource however the replenish to capacity option is not available Just as with consumable Resources the statistics for a Resource will reflect increases or
536. y Entity Type Resource Activity and Model Each tab represents model elements for which global Attributes can be defined Note that the Entity tab defines Attributes for each Entity instance created by the simulation The originating Entity Type for the Entity instance is not considered So every Entity instance created by the simulation will have an instance of each Attribute listed on the Entity tab Attributes defined from the Entity Type tab are assigned to each Entity Type That is for all Attributes listed on the Entity Type tab there is one of each Attribute created for each Entity Type that all Entity instances originating from that type can reference Each tab shows the names of all Attributes of that type previously defined If no Attributes have been defined the list in each tab will be empty and the Edit Copy and Remove buttons will be inactive The Undo button activates when an Attribute is removed Select the Entity tab and click on Add to create anew Attribute SIMPROCESS User s Manual 216 User Defined Attributes x Name fapplianceweight OK Mode Rea Cancel Value booo Help Array Dimension booo Set Plot Properties Model Parameter Comment Statistics Types gt gt Report Requests Observation Based M RealTime Histogram Plat C Tir jeighted D Real Tir ice Plot In the Attribute Properties dialog Name can be anything except as noted below as long as the nam
537. y Resource or Entity attribute cannot be referenced directly Example SIMPROCESS User s Manual 487 System Method Examples MyInteger INTEGER MyREAL REAL READ MyInteger READ MyREAL The above example will provide an input prompt requesting the user to input an integer value for MyInteger and the next read statement will prompt the user to input a REAL value for MyREAL Type checking is done on the values entered so the user should make sure the values are compatible i e don t enter hello dolly when prompted to enter an integer If the value is not compatible an error exception is thrown and the simulation stops The prompts for the above example would look as follows SIMPROCESS Expression Input Dialog 4 Enter INTEGER value for variable Mylnteger ea INTEGER noo cance x Enter REAL value for variable MyReal eee cance Method HALT HALT terminates the current replication or simulation When used with no parameters the current replication is ended and the next replication begins This is similar to using the Maximum Entity Count on the Dispose Activity HALT with parameters terminates the simulation in an error condition The value of the parameters are displayed in an error dialog This statementis useful for debugging and stopping simulations at certain conditions in the model when developing a complex model You may prefer the use of OUTPUT and ALERT statements to notify
538. y Start by selecting the first Entity on the list and then press Edit 3 Every refrigerator order Entity that is generated needs to be initialized so select the Entity Expressions tab Entity Type Attributes Entity Tvoe Exoressions General Entity Attributes Entity Expressions Help Accept Entity Interrupt Processing Edit Resume Processing Release Entity Remove Unido Dispose of Entity 4 Six simulation events are listed on the Entity Expressions tab These are the points during the simulation at which SIMPROCESS checks for Expressions which apply to Entity instances The event needed is Initialize Entity which is the point at which an Entity is first generated initialized Highlight Initialize Entity and click on Edit 5 SIMPROCESS invokes the Expression editor and opens an Expression script dialog Add just one line to the text dialog applianceWeight 1000 0 This assigns a value of 1000 0 to applianceWeight SIMPROCESS User s Manual 244 Example Batching Entities Based on Weight 6 Close the editor 7 Follow the same procedure for each of the Entities in the model but assign them different weights Assign a weight of 100 0 to television order and 10 0 to toaster order 8 Click OK when finished Defining the Expression When an Entity Is Released The method described above works fine to initialize the applianceWeight Attribute of Entities It s fairly simple
539. y Entity See Chapter 7 Activity Based Costing beginning on page 153 for more detail on Activity Based Costing On the Report menu Define Global Statistics Collection brings up a dialog that sets global statistics options As stated above Collect Entity Statistics and Collect Resource Statistics are selected The results of the selection options are described in the following sections The Output Time Units field sets the units for cycle time statistics in the Standard Report Generate Standard Report after run causes the Standard Report to be generated automatically after a simulation run This is most useful when using the Experiment Manager page 334 or optimization page 349 Note that Standard Reports generated automatically are not accessible from within SIMPROCESS The file which is located in the model s directory must be opened separately Statistics Collection J Clear Individual Activity Statistics Requests Collect Entity Statistics Clear Individual Entity Statistics Requests Collect Resource Statistics Clear Individual Resource Statistics Requests I Collect Resource by Activity Statistics Clear Individual Resource by Activity Statistics Requests I Collect Activity by Entity Statistics Clear Individual Activity by Entity Statistics Requests Output Time Units Hours 7 l Generate Standard Report after run OK Cancel Help x Attributes are handled differently for
540. y Entity Type Resource Activity Model Array Model Size Parameter lapplianceweight i Name Value Defining a Local Attribute for a Model Element A local Attribute is defined for a single model element Entity Resource or Activity Local Attributes are defined from the properties dialog of the model element Note that Entity instance and Entity Type local Attributes are both defined from the Entity properties dialog Entity Attributes and Entity Type Attributes tabs The Resource and Activity properties dialog each have an Attributes tab Attributes defined locally exist only for the model element in which they were defined Local Attributes are managed in the same manner as the Global Attributes by using the Add Edit Copy and Remove buttons The Attributes tab for Resource properties is shown below Resource Properties General Downtime Attributes Expressions Name Mode Value m Add Comment SIMPROCESS User s Manual 221 Assign Activity Assign Activity The Assign Activity can be used to assign values to globally defined Attributes and local Entity instance and Entity Type Attributes The Assign can also change the priority of an Entity Changing an Attribute Value with the Assign Activity The Set Attribute list box of the Assign Activity is used to change the value of any global Attribute except globally defined Resource Attributes and local Entity instan
541. y With Expressions on page 256 SIMPROCESS User s Manual 138 Preempting Lower Priority Entities Preempting Lower Priority Entities A higher priority Entity may preempt a lower priority Entity when the Resources are not available Selecting Preempt Lower Priority Entities on the Entity definition dialog will potentially cause all Entity instances of this type to interrupt Activities processing lower priority Entities x Entitv Type Attributes Entity Type Expressions Lo General Entity Attributes Entity Expressions Cancel Name Rush Order Help Icon BlackDot x Document Icon Set Default x Priority fi IV Preempt Lower Priority Entities I Collect Entity Statistics Comment In this example if a Rush Order Entity enters an activity that requires Resources and no Resources are available SIMPROCESS will check the Entities being processed If there is a lower priority Entity Processing the Processing will stop and the Resources will be released When the Processing is stopped if the Interrupt Processing Entity instance expression has statements it is executed The Rush Order Entity obtains the Resources and starts Processing The Entity that was interrupted goes back to the wait for Resource queue It will be placed in the queue ahead of all other Entities with the same or lower priority When the interrupted Entity obtains Resources again it will Process with the time that was remaining when it
542. zing values 241 locally defining 221 User Defined Distributions Procedures 87 Two methods of creation 87 User Defined Functions 257 Vv Verify Model command 80 View function 65 View Menu 41 42 Activities Hide 41 Activity Names 41 Ascend 41 Connector Names 42 Descend 41 Go To Top 41 Pad Names 42 Refresh 42 Resources 41 View 1 to 1 42 Zoom In 42 Zoom Out 42 viewing higher levels 81 viewing lower levels 80 W Window Menu 52 531 SIMPROCESS User s Manual

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