Efficient Queue Management in Supermarkets: A Case Study of Makurdi Town, Nigeria

Abstract

Waiting lines or queues are a common phenomenon in life, especially in the province of organizations that are for profit making. Queues are common in such places as petrol or filling stations, supermarkets stores, clinics, hospitals, motor parks, manufacturing firms, to mention a but a few. An interesting aspect of queuing process resides in the measures of its system’s performance, especially in terms of average service rate, systems, utilization and the costs implied for a given capacity level. This paper examines efficient queue management in Nigeria with Makurdi as case study. The “M/M/I” model is applied owing, inter alia, to its relative simplicity as well as its relevance to the firms under-studied: the City Company, Nobis Ltd, Dobbiac and Eke Ltd; particularly the service unit of each of the firms.  The analysis reveals that on the aggregate, queue management in Makurdi town, the  capital of Benue State is grossly inadequate, inefficient and ineffective for the most part. The paper has consequently made suggestions to help mitigate the prevailing queuing problems in Makurdi town, which will be relevant to many cities in developing countries having similar challenges.

Keywords: Queue Management, Supermarkets, Nigeria