Centralized DEA models with the possibility of downsizing

While traditional data envelopment analysis (DEA) models assess the relative efficiency of similar, independent decision making units (DMUs) centralized DEA models aim at reallocating inputs and outputs among the units setting new input and output targets for each one. This system point of view is appropriate when the DMUs belong to a common organization that allocates their inputs and appropriates their outputs. This intraorganizational perspective opens up the possibility that greater technical efficiency for the organization as a whole might be achieved by closing down some of the existing DMUs. In this paper, we present three centralized DEA models that take advantage of this possibility. Although these models involve some binary variables, we present efficient solution approaches based on Linear Programming. We also present some numerical results of the proposed models for a small problem from the literature.