IME 3300: Simulation Modeling and Analysis

Spring 2009; MWF 10:30–11:20am; Room CEAS C0227

2005-2006 Catalog Description: Use of computer modeling and discrete event simulation methodology
with emphasis on designing and analyzing manufacturing and service systems. Commercial simulation
packages will be used. Prerequisite: IME 206 & IME 262.

Textbook:
1. Simulation using ProModel; 2nd edition; Harrell, Ghosh and Bowden; McGraw Hill; 2004.
2. Notes on Simulation Modeling using ProModel; Houshyar.

Course Coordinator and Instructor:

Dr. Azim Houshyar, Professor, Department of Industrial & Mfg Eng
Office: 219-E Parkview Campus
Phone: 276-3363; E-mail: Houshyar@wmich.edu
Course Webpage: http://homepages@wmich.edu/~houshyar

Office Hours: Wed: 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm

References:
1. System Improvement Using Simulation; Harrell, Bateman, Cogg and Mott; ProModel Corp; 1997
2. ProModel Student Version, User’s Guide, and Reference Guide.
3. Simulation Modeling & Analysis; Law and Kelton; 2nd Edition, 2000.
4. Simulation with Arena, Kelton, Sadowski, and Sadowski, McGraw Hill; 1998
5. Introduction to Simulation Using SIMAN, Pegden, Shannon and Sadowski, 2nd Edition, 1995.

Course Learning Objectives1: By the end of semester the student should be:
1. Apply knowledge of mathematics and engineering to discrete-event simulation problems (a)
2. Numerically analyze and solve all discrete-event simulation problems (b, c)
3. Report and present individual and group results (e, g)

Performance Criteria (Learning Outcomes)2: The student should be able to:

Course Objective 1
a) Provide accurate description to the discrete-event simulation questions.
b) Determine the appropriate solution technique to solve real-world simulation problems.

Course Objective 2
a) Provide accurate description to the random number generation, input modeling, output
analysis, and comparison of alternative system designs questions.
b) Determine the appropriate simulation model to solve any real-world problems.

Course Objective 3
a) Participate in teamwork, class discussion, case studies, and submit written and oral reports to
the class.

1) Letters in parentheses refer to ABET EAC Criterion 3, categories a-k.

Professional Component: This course addresses ABET Criterion 4 (EAC) requirements for professional
component as follows:
a) College-level math, basic science: 0%
b) Engineering topics (engineering science and design): 3 credits or 100%
c) General education: 0%

Relationship to IME Program Educational Objectives/Student Learning Outcomes:

This course provides significant support for the following IME program outcomes:
1. Generate an understanding of concepts in engineering or engineering technology (b, c, d, e)
2. To integrate state-of-the-art knowledge and practice into the curricula (a, c, d)
3. To prepare students to immediately enter professional careers in engineering or engineering
technology (a, b)

Evaluation:
1st exam 20 pts
2nd exam 20
Term-project 35
Portfolio 5
Quiz, Case Studies, Homework and Active Participation 20
Total Score 100 pts

The tests will be graded on a numerical scale. At the end of the term, the grades will be added up for
all the items and then converted to a letter scale.
93 - 100 A 89 - 92 BA
83 - 88 B 79 - 82 CB
73 - 78 C 69 - 72 DC
60 - 68 D Below 60 E

Computer Usage:
Extensive use of computer software is required throughout this course. Students are encouraged to
solve problems on statistical analysis manually, and then reconfirm their results using computer.

Academic Honesty Policy:

The Faculty Senate’s Professional Concerns Committee recommends all instructors include
the following paragraph in each syllabus they prepare.
“You are responsible for making yourself aware of and understanding the policies and
procedures in the Undergraduate and Graduate Catalogs that pertain to Academic Honesty.
These policies include cheating, fabrication, falsification and forgery, multiple submission,
plagiarism, complicity and computer misuse. [The policies can be found at
http://catalog.wmich.edu under Academic Policies, Student Rights and Responsibilities.] If
there is reason to believe you have been involved in academic dishonesty, you will be
referred to the Office of Student Conduct. You will be given the opportunity to review the
charge(s). If you believe you are not responsible, you will have the opportunity for a hearing.
You should consult with your instructor if you are uncertain about an issue of academic
honesty prior to the submission of an assignment or test.”
In addition, instructors are encouraged to direct students to http://osc.wmich.edu and
www.wmich.edu/registrar to access the Code of Honor and general academic policies on
such issues as diversity, religious observance, student disabilities, etc.
Attendance Policy:
Attendance is mandatory. The student will receive a score of zero for any assessment item not
submitted because of absence. This includes the quizzes and the exams. Extreme circumstances will
be considered on an individual basis, however, arrangements must be made prior to the due date, and
supporting documentation is necessary.

Portfolio:
Each individual is expected to create a portfolio that contains all the graded assignments, quiz,
tests, and submit it along with a disk containing all the created files.

Quiz/Exam/Cheat Sheet (!)

In some sessions, we may have a 20-30 minutes quiz on the previously covered subject matters. The
same rules of test apply to quizzes as well. The day and time of the tests is listed in the schedule.
During the exam you are allowed to use a calculator. You will have two hours to complete the final.
You are allowed to use one side of an 8x11" paper to write in complex formulas.

Notes:
1. Some notes on the lecturers is available at my web site. The address of the site is:
http://homepages.wmich.edu/~houshyar/. You may need a password to get into the “Teaching
Material” Section of the site. If so, you will get your password in the first day of class.
2. Using your password, you can visit the site to download notes, samples of quiz, exams, etc.
3. The lectures will focus on the main topics, but students are responsible for reading the whole chapter.
4. The style of teaching is based on the notion of Critical Thinking. As such, students are expected to
review the chapter prior to coming to class. In doing so, the class time will be dedicated to answering
questions and solving problems. Rather than an elaborate lecture plan, a brief review of the main
topics will be conducted in class, but you should study them in detail, and ask questions, if necessary.

Requirements for Homework Problems:

1. All homework assignments are due at the beginning of class on the date of submission.
2. Computer programs must be well documented. The program should be submitted with necessary
output. The output format will be discussed in class for each assignment.
3. Each computer assignment must include a process flow chart.
4. A section titled “Analysis of Output & Important Conclusions” should be included with each
completed assignment.
Term-Project: Group Projects using ProModel
Students are teamed-up in-groups of two. Each team is expected to identify a real-world manufacturing/
industrial/financial/service problem to be simulated. The grade is based on the complexity of the problem,
the elegance of the simulation model, and the quality of the presentation.

Each team is free to choose any problem, but they are expected to adhere to this guideline. The simulation
problem should include:
1. A minimum of ten Locations with at least ten Processing Stations
2. A minimum of five Random processing times
3. A minimum of five Resources
4. A minimum of three Attributes
5. A minimum of three locations and resources Downtimes
6. Shift assignments to locations and resources
7. Path network for the material handlers, resources and entity movements
8. Counters that show the number of processed part in each station, throughput, and a
summary of major statistics.
9. Appropriate use of Macros, Subroutines, Table Functions, user Distributions, Arrival
Cycles, ...

Each team should submit five reports during the course of the semester along with a disk-copy of the
simulation model and supporting material. The proposed due dates are selected so that you will not be
overwhelmed with submitting a comprehensive report for the whole project at the end of semester.

The nature of the reports and the corresponding due dates for these reports are as follows:
1. Report 1: Proposal/Problem Definition. Due Jan 21
2. Report 2: Data Collection/Processing Report. Due Feb 16
3. Report 3: Building the Simulation Model. Due March 9
4. Report 4: Validation and verification Report. Due March 30
5. Report 5: Final Report: Project Finding Due April 13
6. Final Powerpoint Presentation by the Team. Due April 17

First Report: Consists of description of the problems, clear statement of how you propose to solve it,
clear statement of the objective/s to be measured for the current system and compared with the
proposed system, the number of entities, the number of locations, the number of resources, the flow
of material, the flow of personnel, flow chart, operational logics, ..., the data that is needed to be
collected (for this report just name them, you will collect them in the next report).

The First Report should include:

™ One page description of the problem
™ A clear statement of the goal of project
™ A very clear and detailed flow chart of the current process
™ A complete list of the components of the model
™ A list of decision variables (factors)
™ Description of the types of data to be collected
Second Report: Consists of Data Collection and Data processing. In this report, all the data, whether
they are for arrival, operations, logics, or downtimes has to be collected and statistically processed.

The Second Report should include:

™ All the collected data in the original raw form, categorized into
• Operational Data
• Structural Data
• Logical Data
™ A clear explanation of the methodology used to process the raw data
Comprehensive detail of the processed data (fitted distributions), along with the
corresponding charts and graphs.

Third Report: Is the ProModel that you build to represent the current situation. The ProModel
should be as comprehensive as possible and should be running. Don't worry about validation or
verification. That will be done in the next report.

The Third Report should include:

™ A Disk containing the most up-to-date simulation model that reasonably depicts the real-
world problem, and is error-free (can run!!!).

Fourth Report: This report will show the verification and validation efforts that were used to prove
that the ProModel represents the real world problem. You must show that your Model output is
statistically the same as the real-world output. For this purpose, you have to run simulation numerous
times, and find the mean and standard deviation of the objective(s) of interest. Then use statistical
test to compare that with the real-world distribution and show that they are statistically indifferent.
You have to, also, list all tools that you used for verification, and explain each one. For instance, you
used animation to correct the way resource is modeled. In addition, you will to build Proposed
Scenarios for what if analysis.

Fifth Report: This is your final report and shows all your simulation runs, your statistical analysis of
the output, and your recommendations. It has to be submitted to me prior to your final presentation.

Final Powerpoint Presentation: Each team will have 10 minutes to present their cases to the class
and answer questions and concerns. The presentation should include:
1. Define the problem
2. State the goal of the simulation modeling
3. Depicts the flow of material/resources/information through the system
4. List a complete list of decision variables/factors
5. State the procedure used to collect data relevant to the problem
6. Describe the simulation model
7. Description of the experimental design procedure
8. Explain the simulation outputs
9. Discuss the team's interpretation of the output; and
10. List the team's recommendations as to how the problem can be resolved.
 COURSE OUTLINE

Week Number Topic

Week 1: January 5-9 Chapter 1: Introduction to Modeling Simulation
Chapter 2: System Dynamics

Week 2: January 12-16 Chapter 3: Simulation Basics

Lab 1: Introduction to ProModel
Lab 2: ProModel World View, Menu, and Tutorial
Lab 3: Running a ProModel Simulation
Monday January 19 MLK Day

Week 3: Jan 21-23 Chapter 4: Discrete-Event Simulation

Lab 4: Building Your First Model

Week 4: Jan 26-30 Chapter 5: Getting Started

Lab 5: ProModel’s Output Module

Week 5: February 2-6 Chapter 6: Data Collection and Analysis

Lab 6: Fitting Statistical Distribution to Input Data

Week 6: February 9-13 Chapter 7: Model Building

Lab 7: Basic Modeling Concepts

Week 7: February 16-20 Review of the Previous Chapters

Monday February 23 Preparation for the 1st Test

Wednesday February 25 First Test
Friday February 27 Spirit Day

March 2-6 Spring Break

Week 10: March 9-13 Chapter 8: Model Verification and Validation

Lab 8: Model Verification and Validation

Week 11: March 16-20 Chapter 9: Simulation Output Analysis

Lab 9: Output Analysis

Week 12: March 23-27 Chapter 10: Comparing Systems

Lab 10: Comparing Alternative Systems

Week 13: March 30-April 3 Chapter 10: Comparing Systems

Lab 10: Comparing Alternative Systems

Week 14: April 6-10 Semester Project Review

Week 15: April 13-17 Review of the Previous Chapters

Tuesday April 21 Final Exam: 10:15 am-12:15 pm?