Overview of the Operations Research Modeling Approach:implementation

implementation

After a system is developed for applying the model, the last phase of an OR study is to implement this system as prescribed by management. This phase is a critical one because it is here, and only here, that the benefits of the study are reaped. Therefore, it is important for the OR team to participate in launching this phase, both to make sure that model solutions are accurately translated to an operating procedure and to rectify any flaws in the solutions that are then uncovered.

The success of the implementation phase depends a great deal upon the support of both top management and operating management. The OR team is much more likely to gain this support if it has kept management well informed and encouraged management’s active guidance throughout the course of the study. Good communications help to ensure that the study accomplishes what management wanted, and also give management a greater sense of ownership of the study, which encourages their support for implementation.

The implementation phase involves several steps. First, the OR team gives operating management a careful explanation of the new system to be adopted and how it relates to operating realities. Next, these two parties share the responsibility for developing the pro- cedures required to put this system into operation. Operating management then sees that a detailed indoctrination is given to the personnel involved, and the new course of action is initiated. If successful, the new system may be used for years to come. With this in mind, the OR team monitors the initial experience with the course of action taken and seeks to identify any modifications that should be made in the future.

Throughout the entire period during which the new system is being used, it is impor- tant to continue to obtain feedback on how well the system is working and whether the assumptions of the model continue to be satisfied. When significant deviations from the original assumptions occur, the model should be revisited to determine if any modifica- tions should be made in the system. The postoptimality analysis done earlier (as described in Sec. 2.3) can be helpful in guiding this review process.

Upon culmination of a study, it is appropriate for the OR team to document its methodology clearly and accurately enough so that the work is reproducible. Replicability should be part of the professional ethical code of the operations researcher. This condition is especially crucial when controversial public policy issues are being studied.

Example. This example illustrates how a successful implementation phase might need to involve thousands of employees before undertaking the new procedures. Samsung Electronics Corp. initiated a major OR study in March 1996 to develop new methodologies and scheduling applications that would streamline the entire semiconductor manufacturing process and reduce work-in-progress inventories. The study continued for over five years, culminating in June 2001, largely because of the extensive effort required for the implementation phase. The OR team needed to gain the support of numerous managers, manufacturing staff, and engineering staff by training them in the principles and logic of the new manufacturing procedures. Ultimately, more than 3,000 people attended training sessions. The new procedures then were phased in gradually to build confidence. However, this patient implementation process paid huge dividends. The new procedures transformed the company from being the least efficient manufacturer in the semiconductor industry to becoming the most efficient. This resulted in increased revenues of over $1 billion by the time the implementation of the OR study was completed. (Selected Reference A12 describes this study in detail. Also see Selected References A4, A5, and A7 for other examples where an elaborate implementation strategy was a key to the success of an award-winning OR study.)