Shift Scheduling in Banking Operations: A Case Application

The timely processing of checks in large banks is critical to reducing float costs which, in many cases, total thousands of dollars per day. One of the steps in check processing is encoding where the dollar amount is imprinted in magnetic ink at the bottom of each check. Unencoded check arrival volumes exhibit substantial hourly and daily variability. This paper describes an encoder scheduling system and the problems of implementation at a large bank. Documented annual savings and other qualitative benefits are also presented.