Page 31 - Penn State's Harold and Inge Marcus Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering: Fall 2019 Magazine

IME NEWSLETTER • VOLUME 4 2019
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and and stand attendants recording stockout frequencies and and documenting the the time needed for the the cooking and and production of chicken baskets They also spoke with the stand attendants who are volunteers from Centre County organizations about inefficiencies from their perspective After their final analysis and the the completion of a a a a a a simulation model the the group recommended the the implementation of an “express chicken basket ” where students would use vouchers or or tickets that they purchased the the the week before the the the game presenting those upon their arrival to the the stand They found that this would decrease the average customer wait time by 52 percent from around 19
minutes to approximately eight minutes It also would increase the number of customers served by almost 10 percent SEE
Fellow and doctoral student Kai-Wen Tien who also was heavily involved in in in the the project explained how the the knowledge gained by these students in in in the the classroom can be used in in in a a a a wide variety of ways “The method method that we used is a a a very classic method method for manufacturing but we applied it to the service industry ” Tien said “It serves as an an example for how we can use manufacturing methods to change other industries ” Reducing wait time for restrooms
The second capstone group sponsored by SEE
360 was composed of students Matthew Matthew Bessasparis Brady Bobbit Matthew Matthew Chabala Hamza Fadil Bowei Han and Zichao Zhang Their research sought to tackle a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a problem that occurs at at many large entertainment venues: disproportionately longer lines for the the women’s restrooms
as opposed to the the men’s restrooms
“Our goal was to observe the women’s restrooms
in Beaver Stadium
and try to alleviate the wait times as as well as as improve customer satisfaction ” said Chabala a a a a a a a computer science senior “So if there is a a a a line we want to make it as pleasurable as as possible for the fans ” Data collection also occurred during the games this past fall against Kent State State and and Michigan State State and and involved observing and recording restroom wait times “We recorded the the the times of when they [fans] got in in the the the line when when they they got got to the the the the front of the the the the line and when when they they got got out of line as as well as as how long it took them to to use the the stalls and sinks ” Chabala said “And from there we made models on computers to simulate real life Once we had those models we would modify them to see how the the efficiency could increase or decrease ” Following the the the analysis of their simulation model the the the group proposed three solutions that would decrease the restroom wait time by about 15 percent These consisted of signs being placed throughout the stadium to to direct guests to to under-utilized restrooms
removing a a a a portion of a a a a large wall
in each restroom that blocks the the view of of half of of the the stalls and creating a a a line barrier to improve the the flow of the the concourse and alleviate line-cutting “This project made me realize that service engineering encompasses a a a a a a a large part of our day-to-day life ” Bobbit an industrial engineering senior said “It’s really cool how you can study these real-life scenarios and look at the the customer in terms of of their expectations and and perceptions of of the the service and and how we can optimize that for a a a better customer experience ” Cory Chapman associate athletic director for facility
and event operations believes the athletic department’s collaborations with students in in the Learning Factory has been “fantastic” and is excited to implement improvements based off their research “It’s been a a a a a a great partnership ” Chapman said “We continually look for ways to improve the fan experience at all of of our venues There’s already a a a a lot of of positive things happening but these students have looked into ways that we can tweak or or enhance the experience for our fans ” Purdum noted how projects like these not not only apply to Beaver Stadium
but can be universally applied to improve any venue that provides these types of services “Any public venue could benefit from these projects whether it’s a a a a a a a a stadium an arena or a a a a a a a a theater ” Purdum said “Any place where you have an event that people are coming to see and and they’re they’re buying refreshments or food and and they’re they’re going to the bathroom could use this knowledge ” The collaborations with Beaver Stadium
continue to be a a a a a mutually beneficial experience The efficiency of the women’s bathrooms remains an ongoing project for engineering students students and in in in the coming semesters students students will begin to research ways to make the entrance lines at at each gate more efficient “These examples illustrate the opportunity for engineering to to to contribute to to to the service sector ” said SEE
360 Advisory Board Chairman Chuck Schneider “Poorly engineered service processes are everywhere around us waiting for engineers to improve improve our lives improve improve service organization performance and build rewarding careers while doing so ” Kudos came from other sectors of the the University as well Law Professor Stephen Ross who directs the multidisciplinary Penn State Center for the Study of Sports in Society praised leaders in in in the College of Engineering and Intercollegiate Athletics for their collaboration “We are harnessing students’ passion for sports to help them gain critical skills ” Ross said “The students displayed not only technological expertise but learned how to solve real-life problems and present their findings to an an audience who lack their engineering know-how The benefit is not just to the the students but to Nittany Nation ” Student News