Mathematical Problems in Engineering 
Volume 2004 (2004), Issue 3, Pages 209-223
doi:10.1155/S1024123X04402014

A dynamic programming algorithm for the buffer allocation problem in homogeneous asymptotically reliable serial production lines

A. C. Diamantidis and C. T. Papadopoulos

 Department of Product and Systems Design Engineering, University of the Aegean, Hermoupolis, Syros 84100, Greece
Received 9 February 2004; Revised 5 April 2004

Abstract

In this study, the buffer allocation problem (BAP) in homogeneous, asymptotically reliable serial production lines is considered. A known aggregation method, given by Lim, Meerkov, and Top (1990), for the performance evaluation (i.e., estimation of throughput) of this type of production lines when the buffer allocation is known, is used as an evaluative method in conjunction with a newly developed dynamic programming (DP) algorithm for the BAP. The proposed algorithm is applied to production lines where the number of machines is varying from four up to a hundred machines. The proposed algorithm is fast because it reduces the volume of computations by rejecting allocations that do not lead to maximization of the line's throughput. Numerical results are also given for large production lines.