Experimental design and computer-based simulation: A case study with the Royal Navy

The Royal Navy's manpower planning system represents a highly complex queue which aims to provide sufficient manpower to meet both operational and structural commitments. This queue is affected by many variables and therefore it is essential to understand the influence of these variables and also the interactions (if any) among the variables. Experimental design (ED) is a potent technique to accomplish the above objective. As real experimentation was impractical and infeasible, a computer-based simulation was developed to model the system which needs to be studied. This paper illustrates how computer simulation and experimental design was applied to identify the key risk variables within the manpower planning system at the UK's Royal Navy.