Simio Student Simulation Competition

Simio invites you to participate in the biannual simulation contest. 

Eligibility

This is open to both graduate and undergraduate student teams.
Teams are comprised of one to four students. If any team members are graduates, the team size is limited to 2 students. Only students currently enrolled at a college/university are eligible.

Rewards

 In addition to the fame and glory ("bragging rights" and exposing your work to potential employers) there will be cash prizes totaling $3250, twice a year. Because of the success of the competition, Simio have added a fourth place position!

The Problem

Below is a summary of the December 2020 problem (August through December 2020) that focuses on common issues that can arise in the service industry:

The Simio BBQ Smoke Pit is an up-and-coming local restaurant. It features a variety of BBQ smoked meats and classic sides. This makeshift cookout is nestled in an older, renovated building in a bustling downtown block. Due to size constraints, this is a carry-out only establishment. However, as Simio BBQ Smoke Pit continues to grow in popularity, customers are facing longer wait times due to product outages and a constrained labor force. To keep up with demand, the restaurant needs help determining what new policies to enact to resolve their service bottlenecks.

Due to the long smoking time required for the BBQ meats and lengthy cook time for some sides, the restaurant is struggling to keep a reasonable level of cooked food available. Having too little inventory will affect customer satisfaction. If food shortages occur too often, wait times could increase, causing customers to leave and losing potential business for the restaurant. On the other hand, creating excess inventory could accrue extra costs. The meat is expensive and excess uneaten food must be disposed of at the end of day.

The challenge is to balance staffing and food production to maximize profits and customer satisfaction. The restaurant is looking to investigate customer arrivals and ordering patterns, resource requirements, and food production rates. Simio BBQ Smoke Pit desires the best strategy to replenish each of the different food items on their menu. This replenishment strategy not only affects when and how much food to cook, but also how to allocate the cooked portions between the meal assembly stations and the holding cabinets. Additionally, Simio BBQ would also like to know if the potential improvement of changing staffing levels or adding equipment would be worth the investment.

Contest Period

The contest is held twice yearly: Once in February – early May with judging in late May and once in September – early December with judging in late December.

STUDENT TEAM REGISTRATION

Students: If your instructor is assigning this as a required class project, ask your instructor how you register. If you are doing this as an ad-hoc project or optional assignment, register for the contest, visit here. Consult the Contest Rules and Guidelines for additional important information and helpful success tips.

INSTRUCTOR CLASS REGISTRATION

Instructors: Registration is now open for the December 2019 competition. To register, visit here. Consult the Contest Rules and Guidelines for additional important information and helpful success tips.

Teams are given approximately ten calendar weeks (less at the discretion of instructors) to develop a Simio solution for a case study which is provided by Simio. This case study will be a realistic problem drawn from actual user projects.

Prizes
Cash prizes will include: First Place - $1500, Second Place - $1000, Third Place - $500, and Fourth Place - $250. Honorable mentions and other non-cash awards may also be presented.