| Article ID: | iaor2002145 |
| Country: | United States |
| Volume: | 13 |
| Issue: | 2 |
| Start Page Number: | 163 |
| End Page Number: | 176 |
| Publication Date: | Apr 2001 |
| Journal: | International Journal of Flexible Manufacturing Systems |
| Authors: | Paul Ray J., Eldabi Tillal |
| Keywords: | simulation: applications |
This paper presents an investigation of simulation packages regarding their ability to model business processes related to manufacturing systems. Three simulation packages are investigated: VS7, SIMAN/CINEMA IV, and SIMFACTORY II.5. These packages are evaluated with regard to their capability of modeling problems related to the manufacturing systems design (MSD) framework, which involves different levels of detail: the conceptual modeling level and detailed design level. The investigation is based on a case study related to manufacturing systems. The main objective of this investigation is to examine the manufacturing simulation packages and their ability to offer variable detail modeling. Research findings suggest that no simulation environment offers sufficiently flexible facilities for the variable detailed modeling of manufacturing systems design. The paper proposes a method for systems entity classification to increase the levels of detail in an effective manner without duplication of data collection and model building efforts.