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The purpose of this paper is to present a scheduling model, scheduling algorithms, and formal model and analysis techniques for concurrency transaction in grid database environment.

Classical transaction models and scheduling algorithms developed for homogeneous distributed architecture will not work in the grid architecture and should be revisited for this new and evolving architecture. The conventional model is improved by three‐level transaction scheduling model and the scheduling algorithms for concurrency transaction is improved by considering transmission time of a transaction, user's priority, and the number of database sites accessed by the transaction as a priority of the transaction. Aiming at the problems of analysis and modeling of the transaction scheduling in grid database, colored dynamic time Petri nets (CDTPN) model are proposed. Then the reachability of the transaction scheduling model is analyzed.

The three‐level transaction scheduling model not only supports the autonomy of grid but also lightens the pressure of communication. Compared with classical transaction scheduling algorithms, the algorithms not only support the correctness of the data but also improve the effectiveness of the system. The CDTPN model is convenient for modeling and analyzing dynamic performance of grid transaction. Some important results such as abort‐ratio and turnover‐time are gotten by analyzing reachability of CDTPN.

The three‐level transaction scheduling model and improved scheduling algorithms with more complex priority are presented in the paper. The paper gives a CDTPN model for modeling transaction scheduling in grid database. In CDTPN model, the time interval of a transition is a function of tokens in input places of the transition.

Wide implementation of computer‐based operations management systems now faces a new information problem. In many manufacturing companies the management system consists of several disconnected subsystems. Each subsystem uses its own database, which is physically situated in a PC of a specific manager. Each subsystem represents one or several managerial problems, which are being solved regularly at given intervals of time. The multiple data transfers between the databases are performed manually, and this reduces the efficiency of the system and the possibilities for its development. Implementation of file servers only place databases under one roof but does not automatically provide transfer of data. To unite the system effectively in a network environment, a scheduling model has been developed, which uses an information model of the operations management process and a system clock as a basis for its functioning.

A survey of project scheduling problems since 1973 limited to work done specifically in the project scheduling area (although several techniques developed for assembly line balancing and job‐shop scheduling can be applicable to project scheduling): the survey includes the work done on fundamental problems such as the resource‐constrained project scheduling problem (RCPSP); time/cost trade‐off problem (TCTP); and payment scheduling problem (PSP). Also discusses some recent research that integrates RCPSP with either TCTP or PSP, and PSP with TCTP. In spite of their practical relevance, very little work has been done on these combined problems to date. The future of the project scheduling literature appears to be developing in the direction of combining the fundamental problems and developing efficient exact and heuristic methods for the resulting problems.

Historically, scheduling of production activities has been one of the most important management problems. Scheduling involves the planning and the co‐ordination of the various activities to achieve the optimum utilisation of resources over a given time period. Production scheduling differs with the typology of the production systems. Various production systems that are encountered in practice are: continuous production, mass production, batch production, job shop production and projects. In this article, we attempt only to discuss the project scheduling problems.

This paper examines the benefit of incorporating a group of employees that exhibit dynamic service rates into scheduling tours in a service operation. The service operation that is examined includes a fully productive core (full‐time) workforce along with a contingent (full‐ and part‐time) workforce that experiences the learning effect. Two methods that account for the learning effect are analyzed along with two methods that do not consider learning effects. The schedules generated by each method are tested in a simulation of the service environment. The results of a full‐factorial experiment indicate that methods that account for learning effects will yield superior solutions over a variety of operating conditions when compared to alternative methods that do not consider learning effects. The performance improvement of schedules generated with the most precise learning curve method was substantially and significantly better than the other methods. The conditions in which the learning curve methods provide the most benefit are explored.

The paper proposes that improvements in the productivity of process technology can be achieved by analyzing and instituting changes in the rules and methods through which work is organized. The implementation of information‐based process technology in a bank’s check processing system provides the context for the study. A simulation approach is used to assess the benefits of introducing alternative workflow scheduling rules after implementation of the new technology. Results from a hypothetical setting, using data from an actual check processing center, demonstrate the cost advantages of introducing a priority‐based scheduling rule. The implications and problems associated with practical implementation are discussed.

A comprehensive review of the literature for the problem of lot‐size scheduling (serial and assembly) considering the uncapacitated problem and complicated capacitated assembly manufacturing structure. Analyses the different solution techniques and findings for each product set.

The findings of this study have lightened the focal research areas in maintenance planning and scheduling. These also served as effective guidelines for future studies in this area. This research, therefore, contributes in fulfilling the gap by carrying out an SLR of contemporary research studies in the area of models for maintenance planning and scheduling. At present, SLR rooted in BA has not been carried focusing on a survey over models for maintenance planning and scheduling. SLR uses advanced scientific methodologies from BA tools to unveil thematic structures.

We have systematically reviewed over 1,021 peer-reviewed journal articles. Advanced contemporary tools from Bibliometric Analysis (BA) are used to perform a Systematic Literature Review (SLR). First, exploratory analysis is presented, highlighting the influential authors, sources and region amongst other key indices. Second, the large bibliographical data is visualized using co-citation network analyses, and research clusters (themes) are identified. The co-citation network is extended into a dynamic co-citation network and unveils the evolution of the research clusters. Last, cluster-based content analysis and historiographical analysis is carried out to predict the prospect of future research studies.

BA tools first outlined an exploratory analysis that noted influential authors, production countries, top-cited papers and frequent keywords. Later, the bibliometric data of over 1,021 documents is visualized using co-citation network analyses. Later, a dynamic co-citation analysis identified the evolution of research clusters over time. A historiographical direct citation analysis also unveils potential research directions. We have clearly observed that there are two main streams of maintenance planning and scheduling applications. The first has focused on joint maintenance and operations on machines. The second focused on integrated production and maintenance models in an echelon setting for unrealizable production facilities.

There are many literature review-based research studies that have contributed to maintenance scheduling research surveys. However, most studies have adopted traditional approaches, which often fall short in handling large bibliometric data and therefore suffer from selection biases from the authors. As a result, in this area, the existing reviews could be non-comprehensive. This study bridges the research gap by conducting an SLR of maintenance models, which to the best of our knowledge, has not been carried out before this study.

With the increasing emphasis on improving service sector staff scheduling, many organisations have turned to employing part‐time staff in greater numbers. Operating managers need to schedule this staff in an efficient manner to cover the highly variable demand that is commonly present. This study demonstrates a number of important factors that influence how well staff schedules can be matched against variable demand. Four heuristic staff scheduling procedures are examined that provide optimal, or near optimal, staff schedules under different operating conditions. It is shown that variability in demand controls the number of excess staff hours scheduled, and that the smaller the number of daily shift hours and/or the number of days worked per week, the lower will be the level of excess staff hours scheduled.

The CAN (Controller Area Network) standard, ISO 11898, is now ubiquitous in industrial automation environments. CAN is used with defined application layers for implementing sensor/actuator level distributed control applications. Protocols such as Honeywell's SDS, ODVA's DeviceNet (Allen Bradley) and CANopen are well‐known device level networks which are based on the CAN protocol. A new time‐triggered protocol for CAN, referred to as TTCAN, is under development where the real‐time scheduling of the network traffic can be formally verified. This paper introduces the new TTCAN protocol and suggests that TTCAN has the potential to provide new solutions in industrial automation applications. TTCAN has the potential to replace some conventional pneumatic, hydraulic and other mechanical safety‐critical control systems with a reliable electronic network. The emergence of 42‐volt technology from the automotive world will further complement the TTCAN technology to provide some unique industrial automation solutions.