Arena

Using Arena as a student user

Pros:

User-friendly environment and individual control on the output.

Cons:

NA

Great software, but really expensive.

Comments: I've used Arena during my Masters programme to implement a contractor logistics support dynamics, and evaluate the actual performance against what the simulation would point out as possible to achieve.

Pros:

I think the ease of use and the incredible power of Arena are the main aspects I could highlight as positive features of the software. I've used mainly the student version and it is amazing what can be done and the infinite modelling variety that can be achieved with it. For a little while I had access to the full version during a workshop I participated in the Rockwell representative company in Brazil and I was amazed by the possibilities it offers.

Cons:

The main problem is the cost in my opinion, even for big companies it is a significant sum. I think this could be compromised considering the intended use for the software, especially by the public sector, which may only require a small portion of the capabilities provided by Arena.

Could Use Better Trainings

Comments: While it offered a great back end for well versed users and administrators, the roll-out and start up process for a new user was too laborious for the needs of our organization.

Pros:

The backend of the software was very customizable and we were continually able to pull out of it the information we were looking for. While it did take some time to get used too, the customization of reports is what really sets the software aside from its competitors.

Cons:

It was a constant struggle to train the average user on the software. The user interface is rather complex and often times our users took so long to get up to speed on the software, that it became non-beneficial for us to continue to use the product.

Highly useful process modeler and simulator

Comments: Perfect for both students learning Monte Carlo discrete-event simulation or for those in industry practicing the technique on behalf of their business.

Pros:

Arena provides everything needed to simulate a process in any domain. It is very intuitive for systems engineers or those with a sophisticated level of business process modeling experience but could even be learned by those without formal training, with some patience. The possibilities are limitless.

Cons:

Animation is not the software's strong point and was improved upon in the subsequent product, Simio. Perfectionists will have a nightmare of a time making their lines from one block to another straight--fix one, and you've inevitably caused a staggered line somewhere else. The automatic tools for organizing the UI sometimes miss the mark and caused many crossed lines. Fortunately all of these are UI level complaints--the process modeling engine is great!

Good software for simulation

Pros:

User-friendly and great program to learn how to build simulation program. It helps you to detect problems and bottlenecks in the processes. The report of simulation is very useful with good insight to help you with decision making.

Cons:

Some error messages are not directly point to the real root cause. Users need to search for it and figure out by themselves which quite frustrated. No online resources available of how to fix errors. The software only compatible on Windows. The latest updated version look more creative and nice but still has many bugs. The program lagged many times while using and suddenly shut down. Hope the next version will be more stable.