<![CDATA[Determining operator quantity and dispatch priority in a large-scale CNC cell involves related decisions that are rarely evaluated together. This study developed an Agent-Based Model in NetLogo 7.0.3 to examine eight selected scenarios drawn from twelve theoretically possible combinations of operator count (6, 8, and 10), spatial allocation mode (zone-based and global), and dispatch rule (nearest-neighbor [NN] and longest-wait-first [LWF]) in a 28-machine, four-zone CNC cell. Each scenario was executed for 30 independent replications of one 7-hour shift, yielding 240 observations. Among the evaluated scenarios, zone-based staffing combined with NN dispatch produced the strongest overall performance. With ten operators (S3), mean throughput reached 4,380.6 units (SD = 7.6), with 80.3% machine utilization and 64.8% operator utilization. At eight operators, replacing NN with LWF within the zone-based structure reduced throughput by 30.6 units (0.71%), indicating a statistically detectable but practically modest difference. This pattern is consistent with a possible geometry-driven navigation-conflict mechanism within the linear seven-machine zones, although the mechanism was not directly quantified. In matched eight-operator comparisons, global staffing underperformed zone-based staffing under both dispatch rules. The lowest-performing scenario, involving six operators under global LWF dispatch (S7), produced 28.4% lower throughput than the zone-NN baseline and reached 98.0% operator utilization, indicating overload rather than efficiency. Selected pairwise comparisons were statistically significant (p < 0.001), but no formal statistical interaction term was tested. Overall, the observed pattern suggests that dispatch-rule effectiveness may depend on spatial allocation structure. For the modeled linear CNC-cell layout, zone-based staffing with NN dispatch represents the most robust practical default.]]>
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