Often management is the art of making strategic and tactical decisions with a total lack of objective information. How often do we wish for a crystal ball that would let us see how decisions today will play out in the future? Unfortunately it is not yet possible to predict the future, but it is possible to generate objective criteria to help make today's decisions. While simulation has been around for decades, recent advances have made it much more accessible and useful in our daily world. The software is now less expensive and easier to learn and use. And the flexibility and accuracy have dramatically improved. But most important, modern tools allow you to solve problems much faster than ever before - making those solutions timelier and less costly, and letting you reap the benefits quickly. We invite you to learn about simulation and its potential to improve your business. Then perhaps use this book as a companion to the free software download to start building models on your first day. After completing this introduction, you can continue your learning by taking advantage of the free video training available on the Simio web site or via the Support ribbon on the downloaded software.
C. Dennis Pegden, PhD. is a member and Chief Executive Officer of Simio LLC. Dennis Pegden was the founder and CEO of Systems Modeling Corporation, later purchased by Rockwell Automation. He has held faculty positions at the University of Alabama in Huntsville and The Pennsylvania State University. He led in the development of the SLAM, SIMAN, Arena, and Simio simulation tools. He has co-authored three simulation textbooks and has published papers in a number of fields including mathematical programming, queuing, computer arithmetic, scheduling, and simulation. Dennis is widely considered as a "Titan" of simulation and has been responsible for many simulation and scheduling innovations over the past 30 years.
David T. Sturrock is Member and Vice-President of Products for Simio LLC. He is responsible for development, support, and services for Simio LLC simulation and scheduling products. In that role he not only manages new product development, but also teaches frequent commercial courses and manages a variety of consulting projects. He also teaches simulation classes as a Field Faculty member at the University of Pittsburgh. With over 30 years of experience, he has applied simulation techniques in the areas of manufacturing, transportation systems, scheduling, high-speed processing, plant layout, business processes, call centers, capacity analysis, process design, health care, plant commissioning, and real-time control. He received his bachelor's degree in industrial engineering from The Pennsylvania State University with concentrations in manufacturing and automation. He is an ardent promoter of simulation, having had speaking engagements in over 40 countries across six continents. He co-authored the Simulation with Arena textbook as well as the Simio Simulation: Modeling, Analysis, Applications textbook.
