Impact of routing flexibility on the performance of an FMS – a simulation study

Impact of routing flexibility on the performance of an FMS – a simulation study

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Article ID: iaor19982169
Country: United States
Volume: 9
Issue: 3
Start Page Number: 273
End Page Number: 298
Publication Date: Jul 1997
Journal: International Journal of Flexible Manufacturing Systems
Authors: ,
Keywords: simulation: applications
Abstract:

The evolving manufacturing environment is characterized by a drive toward increasing flexibility. One possible manifestation of flexibility within an FMS is in the form of routing flexibility. Providing this typically is an expensive proposition, and system designers therefore aim to provide only the required levels commensurate with a given set of operating conditions. This paper presents a framework based on a Taguchi experimental design for studying the nature of the impact of varying levels of routing flexibility on the performance of an FMS. Simulation results indicate that increases in routing flexibility on the performance of an FMS. Simulation results indicate that increases in routing flexibility, when made available at the cost of an associated penalty on operation processing time, is not always beneficial. There is an optimal flexibility level, beyond which system performance deteriorates, as judged by the makespan measure of performance. It is suggested that the proposed methodology can be used in practice for not only setting priorities on specific design and control factors but also for highlighting likely factor level combinations that could yield near-optimal shop performance.

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