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This paper reports on the second component of a three phase study undertaken for the Canada Post Corporation (CPC) to evaluate and select a commercial simulation package to be used for operational and long-term planning. The formal evaluation process consisted of a hierarchical screening procedure to identify qualified candidates and the development of a comprehensive benchmark model to test each candidate. Of the 172 simulation packages listed in the Directory of Simulation, only three satisfied each of the CPC's highest priority requirements. Data, mail flows, and processing logic associated with operations at the Hamilton, Ontario plant were used to establish the benchmarks and validate the models. This project represents the first time full-scale models have been constructed in parallel to evaluate graphics-based simulation software. Although several economies of scale were realized, the differences in the three packages meant significant duplication. Nevertheless, the CPC felt that the parallel approach would return benefits in the long run and that it was necessary to arrive at a considered decision. A major aim of this paper is to highlight the methodology used in the analysis and to present the lessons learned from the project.

Parallel discrete event simulation (PDES) refers to a simulation platform initiated by Chandy and Misra [1979]. The basic idea of PDES is that a simulation model is decomposed into submodels which are then run on different processes concurrently. The objective of this paper is to provide a comprehensive overview of PDES' use for manufacturing systems. First, the PDES platform and basic analytical methods associated with this platform are briefly introduced, the difficulty of PDES compared with conventional simulation method is discussed. A survey of PDES' use in manufacturing systems is then provided, which covers: (1) a summary of different PDES models for different kinds of manufacturing systems, and (2) a comparison of PDES characteristics in the context of decomposition method and synchronization scheme. Based on the survey, it is concluded that using PDES for manufacturing systems has not been successful and its success depends on both the availability of efficient model decomposition method and the improvement of suitable hardware architecture. Key Words: Parallel Descrete Event Simulation, Flexible Manufacturing System