Things have been very hectic around here of late, and I’ve fallen a little behind with my blog updates. In particular, I neglected to mention that I published the 2013 Q3 issue of the Michigan Simulation User Group (MSUG) Newsletter back on September 15.…
In my role as Newsletter Editor for the Michigan Simulation User Group (MSUG), I published our Q2 Newsletter for 2013, on schedule, back on June 15. Unfortunately, I managed to mangle a link to one of the articles and had to issue a corrected version a couple of days later… Whoops!…
No matter what industry you’re in, you’re not going to steal a march on the competition by jumping on the same bandwagons that they’re on. Instead, you need to innovate. Adopting lean production, six-sigma, theory of constraints, etc. will all help you improve your business, but, if your competitors are applying the same techniques to their businesses and processes, then the best you can hope for is parity.…
I’m currently in the third and final year of my second term on the Steering Committee of the Michigan Simulation User Group (MSUG). Each year, the Steering Committee members are given a different role. In the past, I’ve served as secretary, webmaster and program manager. This year, it’s my turn to edit and publish the MSUG quarterly newsletter.…
Today, March 14 (or 3.14, if that helps make more sense), is π day—a celebration of the constant defined by the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter, and promoted as a day for celebrating mathematics. But is π the wrong circle constant?…
A checkbox simulation is a simulation study that is done purely to comply with a company policy that new facility designs must be simulated—but typically without any criteria specifying the quality of that simulation. What follows is a fictitious story—yet one that’s all-to-common in my experience—about the limitations of such simulation studies, and the accompanying race-to-the-bottom by consulting firms competing to perform them. I’m glad to point out that Hindsight is not one of them……
Hindsight’s Mike Allen will be attending, but not exhibiting at, the ProMat 2013 show from January 21-23. If you would like to meet up there, please call him on (313) 451-4001. We hope to see you there!
Hindsight Consulting, Inc. has relocated to Lake Orion, MI from Dearborn, MI.
Please note our new mailing address:
540 N Lapeer Rd #420
Lake Orion, MI 48362-1582…
Simulation Quality Control
How do you know if the results of a simulation analysis are accurate and reliable?
This is an important and fundamental question. If a simulation produces invalid results, yet the client accepts and acts upon them, then they’re heading into a world of pain. Just as bad is the situation in which the results are valid, but are distrusted by the client and so are disregarded. In both cases, the outcomes can be catastrophic.…
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