Analytical performance evaluation of small flow lines with shared buffer

The paper presents an approximate analytical method, based on decomposition techniques, that assesses the physical performance of small flow lines with both dedicated and shared buffer. The aim of the analytical method is to capture the interdependent behaviour of the machines in the line due to the shared buffers. The method deals with discrete and deterministic processing time, limited buffer capacity, and both time to repair (TTR) and time between failure (TBF) follow a geometric distribution. The accuracy of the analytical solutions is assessed with respect to results provided by simulation.