Application of lean techniques and queuing theory in food services

In food services, such as cafeterias, when the servers' capacity is less than the customers' demand, coming with a poorly layout, the generation of large queues with long waiting times, spring out. This scenario is even worsened when the demand's variability appears, creating problems such as the loss of customer, revenue's decrease, and a poorly service quality. Therefore, it is important to look for solutions to revert such problems. Lean principles jointly with queuing theory might be a good approach to address them, by the application of different tools and methodologies that contribute not only to minimize or even eliminate queues but also reduce the waiting times in lines. The study presented herein includes a proposal of a methodology that merges both, Lean and queuing theory, applied to a Mexican university cafeteria, which during rush time it blows up. The methodology includes three phases: the current process analysis, the arrival analysis, and the improvement analysis. By applying different tools and using simulation scenarios in each phase, an improvement in the development of the activities in the cafeteria is reached, and several strategies are designed to enhance the behavior of the system.