Article ID: | iaor20031833 |
Country: | United States |
Volume: | 47 |
Issue: | 3 |
Start Page Number: | 480 |
End Page Number: | 491 |
Publication Date: | Mar 2001 |
Journal: | Management Science |
Authors: | Drexl Andreas, Kimms Alf |
Keywords: | programming: integer |
This paper deals with two most important problems, from both practical and theoretical standpoints, arising in sequencing mixed-model assembly lines. Such lines have become core components of modern repetitive manufacturing, and just-in-time (JIT) manufacturing in particular. One problem is to keep the usage rate of all parts fed into the final assembly as constant as possible (the ‘level-scheduling problem’), while the other is to keep the line's workstation loads as constant as possible (the ‘car-sequencing problem’). In this paper the combined problem is formulated as a single-integer programming model. The LP-relaxation of this model is solved by column-generation techniques. The results of an experimental evaluation show that the lower bounds are tight.