Using queueing models to estimate system capacity
提出利用排队模型中的到达率、服务率与排队时间关系，通过客观测量到达率和排队时间来估计系统真实服务率，避免传统方法的缺陷，适用于多种行业。
The true capacity of a production or service system is often difficult to estimate with sufficient accuracy. The two main methodological approaches to capacity measurement described in the literature – measurements based on engineering and physical factors and measurement based on time studies – are both characterised by conceptual as well as practical shortcomings. This paper provides analyses on how capacity measurement can be approached using queueing models, thereby eliminating some major drawbacks of other approaches. The core idea is to use the theoretical relation among arrival rate, service rate and queueing time; because the arrival rate and queueing time can both be measured objectively in an empirical sense, these measures can be used to estimate the true service rate of the system. The suggested method is completely insensitive to the proportional relationship between design and effective capacity, and it cannot cause any behavioural problems during measurement since it does not require direct observation of the system itself. Particularly appealing is the potential for practical application to many contexts in many industries. The validity of the approach is discussed.