Abstract
We consider the problem of allocating a single server to a system of queues with Poisson arrivals. Each queue represents a class of jobs and possesses a holding cost rate, general service distribution, and a set-up cost. The objective is to minimize the expected cost due to the waiting of jobs and the switching of the server. A set-up cost is required to effect an instantaneous switch from one queue to another. We partially characterize an optimal policy and provide a simple heuristic scheduling policy. The heuristic's performance is evaluated in the cases of two and three queues by comparison with a numerically obtained optimal policy. Simulation results are provided to demonstrate the effectiveness of our heuristic over a wide range of problem instances with four queues.
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Duenyas, I., Van Oyen, M.P. Stochastic scheduling of parallel queues with set-up costs. Queueing Syst 19, 421–444 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01151932
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01151932