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UBC Theses and Dissertations

Planning an automated storage and retrieval system at UBC Library Liu, Ying

Abstract

The university of British Columbia (UBC) Library plans to install an Automated Storage and Retrieval System (ASRS) at its Irving K. Barber Learning Centre. The system is intended to store 1.4 million volumes of materials, 0.8 million of which have already been identified. The Centre for Operations Excellence (COE) was asked to assist in the design of the system, to recommend desired staffing levels at the service desks and to assist in the selection of the remaining 0.6 million volumes of materials that should be stored in the system. In the ASRS, materials are stored in bins, and we have used stratified sampling in order to obtain the desired distribution of bin heights in the system. We have then formulated the overall bin configuration problem as an integer programming problem, and have used branch and bound and local search to find an optimal system configuration. Two discrete-event simulation models were constructed, using Arena 6.0, to gain insight into the operation of the system, and to recommend staffing levels at the circulation and reference desks, which ensure acceptable service levels. Finally we have used staffing levels and service level criteria to identify the remaining 0.6 million volumes of that should be stored in the system.

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