On ‘Currently Practiced Formulations of the Assembly Line Balance Problem’

In ‘Currently Practiced Formulations of the Assembly Line Balance Problem’, Gunther, Johnson, and Peterson present a goal-programming approach to the assembly line balancing problem. This problem involves the assignment of the assembly tasks to the work stations along the line. The criteria for assignment varies. Gunther, Johnson, and Peterson have discussed what needs to be considered in modeling these types of problems, providing empirical support for their arguments based on a survey of practicing engineers. In this article, some of the issues raised by Gunther, Johnson and Peterson are discussed and some new ones are raised. In particular, other studies on the topic are pointed out and why it may appear as if the academic world has ignored the ‘real’ problem, an argument in the Gunther, Johnson, and Peterson article is discussed.