The encyclopedia · Strategy & Leadership · Operational decision · 2003–2005
Nanzan University applied OR to buses, timetables, and exam staffing
Facing fiercer competition, Nanzan Gakuen used low-cost OR spreadsheet models for busing, scheduling, and exam staffing, saving over US$2 million in two years.
Nanzan Gakuen
the move
Japanese universities faced rising competition, and the administrators of the Nanzan school complex concluded that OR/MS was the one tool that could help the complex change fast enough to survive.
The OR team solved three intertwined problems: school-bus routing, school time schedules, and the assignment of supervisors for entrance examinations. All were handled with low-cost spreadsheet models rather than a custom system.
The initiatives improved the complex's finances by more than US$2 million between 2003 and 2004. The success also drew students into OR as a major and helped the complex keep its prestigious regional reputation.
why it works
- Bus, timetable, and exam-staffing problems are classic OR problems in disguise
- Spreadsheet models kept the cost of the fix tiny
- Savings were measured and reported in the Interfaces paper
- Success persuaded administrators and students that OR worked
what transfers
Non-industrial organizations hide the same scheduling and routing costs as factories; low-cost OR models can pay for themselves within a year when the problem is well scoped.
what came after
The project won a 2005 Franz Edelman Award finalist prize at the INFORMS conference in Palm Springs, where the Nanzan presentation drew applause that its faculty compared with GM's winning entry. Nanzan University's department page still records the award.
references
- An OR/MS Approach to Managing Nanzan Gakuen (Nanzan Educational Complex)
- フランツ・エデルマン・ファイナリスト賞受賞 (Franz Edelman Finalist Award)
- Innovation Prize Finalists Announced in "Science of Better"
spotted an error? The archive wants to know.