Ecient workforce scheduling for a serial processing environment: a case study at Minneapolis Star Tribune

This paper reports work done at Star Tribune, a leading metropolitan daily newspaper in Minnesota to improve integration among pressroom, mailroom and distribution operations. This work is subsequent to that already reported in IIE Transactions, which was focused on improving press operations only during the live-runs. An improved size-forecasting model is o€ered which allows preparation of more precise work-force schedules suciently in advance. Several system variabilities have been reduced by identifying homogeneous subclasses, and designing tailored operations for each subclass individually, and eliminating over-design to absorb between-class variabilities. Installation of ̄ow sensors on presses has eliminated unnecessary over-production, and also allowed a better coordination between the press and the distribution operations. Installation of status sensors in equipment has allowed for collection of more reliable statistics on equipment utilizations, downtimes and so forth. They also have improved many aspects of capacity and operational planning. # 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.