Design for Line Flexibility

Abstract

Capacity planning for a manufacturing line is often difficult because of changes in production demands. If the line is set up at a fixed capacity during the entire product lifetime, it is likely to have either insufficient capacity or overinvestment situations. On the other hand, any change made in capacity by adding or deleting work stations may cause line disruption and waste space. This paper presents a simple method to resolve such problems, using a direct-access material-handling system. Such a system allows construction of a flexible line that can be dynamically expanded or contracted.