Details a data envelopment analysis (DEA) study of bank branches, where the bank branches are considered as the decision‐making units (DMUs). The Charnes, Cooper and Rhodes (CCR) ratio is used to evaluate the relative efficiency of each branch. The relative efficiency is computed utilizing specific input and output factors. The study has been applied to a set of branches of one of the largest commercial banks in Saudi Arabia in an attempt to evaluate the relative efficiency of these branches in order to improve the quality of services and utilize the available resources more efficiently.

Spreadsheet software is now widely used as a decision‐making tool, owing to the simplicity and ease with which generalists can analyse and obtain fast and precise information. Through spreadsheet programs, a non‐specialist can conduct an exhaustive “what if” search in order to make decisions regarding “what if” questions. Now, with the availability of a random number function in most spreadsheet programs, simulation models can be carried out within the spreadsheet. How the waiting‐line problem can be simulated using a spreadsheet package is demonstrated. The simulation process serves as a decision‐support system to assist decision makers to determine the appropriate service level based on number of servers. Arrival of customers to obtain service is stochastic in nature and therefore can be assigned a probability distribution using historical data. Through the random‐number function, which is available in most spreadsheet programs, random numbers can be generated and used along with the assigned probability distribution to assist in making the service‐level decision.

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In this article, a PC‐based spreadsheet support system (SSS) for controlling inventory and service level for the newsboy problem is developed utilising Lotus 1‐2‐3 spreadsheet capabilities. The technical aspects of the SSS are presented and discussed within the context of a numerical example. The developed SSS permits the decision maker to simulate and analyse the impact of parameter changes on the inventory system using a familiar PC spreadsheet package.

At present, manufacturing firms in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) are considering the adoption of quality control (QC) techniques. Conducts a survey to investigate the awareness of quality and to shed some light on the extent of the practice and content of the QC process in manufacturing firms in KSA.

This article aims to review, analyze, and classify the published research applications of the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) window analysis technique. The number of filtered articles included in the study is 109, retrieved from 79 journals in the web of science (WoS) database during the period 1996–2019. The papers are classified into 15 application areas: energy and environment, transportation, banking, tourism, manufacturing, healthcare, power, agriculture, education, finance, petroleum, sport, communication, water, and miscellaneous. Moreover, we present descriptive statistics related to the growth of publications over time, the journals publishing the articles, keyword terms used, length of articles, and authorship analysis (including institutional and country affiliations). To the best of the authors knowledge, this is the first survey reviewing the literature of the DEA window analysis applications in the 15 areas mentioned in the paper.