Papers by Keyword: Cellular Manufacturing

Abstract: Different designs of manufacturing systems are adopted in industry today. A good manufacturing design should be flexible to compensate for uncertainties such as demand fluctuations and machine breakdowns. A new conceptual manufacturing system called Multi-Channel Manufacturing (MCM) is expected to provide flexibility and efficiency under uncertainties. This paper proposes the first approach to address the usefulness of MCM. This research tries to identify the key characteristics of MCM and the manufacturing environments for which MCM should perform well. Through simulation models, different manufacturing scenarios are analyzed and a suitable manufacturing system design for each scenario is identified. The simulation results illustrate that with limited material handling capacity and opportunities for setup time reduction, MCM can outperform other manufacturing formations.

Abstract: In this paper, we propose a neural network-based algorithm for grouping machine and parts in cellular manufacturing. For grouping machines, we develop similarity coefficients which take into account both similarity and dissimilarity between machines. The machine cells are formed by an algorithm which is based on the maximum neural network. Another algorithm is used to find the part families associated with each machine cell. When compared with an existing algorithm, our algorithm shows better performance in terms of grouping efficiency and grouping efficacy.

Abstract: In a Cellular Manufacturing System (CMS), parts based on their similarities are grouped into part families, and are assigned to one or more machine cells to be manufactured. In the design of a CMS, facility layout problem aims to arrange machine cells in the shop floor and facilities in the machine cells in order to have an efficient layout. In this study, a previously developed cellular layout model will be illustrated and validated for a well-known case from the literature. Lingo optimization software version 12.0 and an enumeration method will be used to solve, and validate the model. The results of this study show the validity of the proposed model.

Abstract: Advanced manufacturing concepts such as cellular and flexible manufacturing may require the formation of part families and machine cells. Many algorithms have been proposed for this and cluster identification (CI) is one such approach. The original CI approach is effective only for perfectly separable cases. Followup efforts use a branch and bound framework to make the CI approach work in partially separable cases. Although the branch and bound framework is useful, it may still produce infeasible solutions. In this paper, we adopt an improved branching scheme to deal with the problem. Computational results are also reported.

Abstract: Cellular manufacturing (CM) is a production approach directed towards reducing costs, as well as increasing system's flexibility in today's small-to-medium lot production environment. Many structural and operational issues should be considered for a successful CM design and implementation; such as cell formation (CF), production planning, group layout (GL), resource allocation and scheduling. Most researchers have addressed these issues sequentially or independently, instead of jointly optimizing a combination of these issues. In order to attain better results to ensure that the system will be capable of remaining efficient in unknown future situations, these issues should be addressed simultaneously. In this paper possibility of developing a comprehensive mathematical model which considers these issues is discussed.

Abstract: This paper considers the problem of designing cellular manufacturing systems (CMS) with the presence of alternate process plans, tools and workers. The objective is to minimize the total costs of machine installation, operations, tools and workers with a number of identified practical constraints. A genetic algorithm is designed in order to efficiently solve medium and large sized problems. Preliminary numerical results show the worth of implementing the suggested procedure.

Abstract: Manufacturing companies today are looking for the new manufacturing methods.These companies are designing elaborate manufacturing systems in an attempt to meet market trend as well as diverse customer requirements.Recently these manufacturing systems have most often taken the form of Continuous Flow Manufacturing systems, which is represented by one long transfer line containing all relevant operations,or workstations,required to produce a given product.A transfer line of this type is quite susceptible to individual workstation performance,because a breakdown at any one of the workstation would cause the entire line to stop and production to cease. Due to the inherent advantages of Cellular Manufacturing to meet requirements customer, increase productivity, reduce costs,the Cellular Manufacturing can improve the effectiveness of most production line. This paper discusses the development and implementation of a combined production line that takes some its advantages from Continuous Flow Manufacturing and Cellular Manufacturing.

Abstract: Cell formation is one of the key issues in cellular manufacturing research. A two-stage cell formation method is proposed. With this approach, parts are first clustered into different groups based on similarity factor; then, machines are assigned to these part groups according to the principle of maximum machine utility. Examples show that the proposed method is feasible in grouping parts and machines into cells so that machine utilization and manufacturing systems efficiency are improved.

Abstract: Cell formation, which involves grouping similar parts into part families and the corresponding machines into machine cells, is one of the key research issues for designing cellular manufacturing system. In this paper, a mathematical model which targets at maximizing the machine utilization and similarity of the part groups is built. A heuristic algorithm based on clustering analysis is proposed. An example is employed to illustrate the benefit of the approach and the results suggest that the proposed approach is feasible.

Abstract: Aerospace industry is a value-added and technology integrated industry. Sheet metal parts are important portion of aerostructures. The sheet metal production line combines five different routing types together. This study tries to make a comparison between job shop layout and cellular layout with lean concept. According to precedence diagram of sheet metal fabrication process, the model and measurement indicators can be constructed. The simulation software SIMPROCESS is then used to simulate the real-world cases under dynamic conditions. After the verification and validation process, we analyze the results that collected by simulation and provide the suggestions for the layout of aerospace sheet metal process.