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MODULE 3

PLANT LAYOUT

PLANT LAYOUT

Plant layout refers to the physical arrangement of production facilities. It is the configuration of
departments, work centres and equipment in the conversion process. It is a floor plan of the
physical facilities, which are used in production.

According to Moore “Plant layout is a plan of an optimum arrangement of facilities including

personnel, operating equipment, storage space, material handling equipment and all other
supporting services along with the design of best structure to contain all these facilities”.

OBJECTIVES OF PLANT LAYOUT

The primary goal of the plant layout is to maximise the profit by arrangement of all the plant
facilities to the best advantage of total manufacturing of the product.

The objectives of plant layout are:

1. Streamline the flow of materials through the plant.

2. Facilitate the manufacturing process.
3. Maintain high turnover of in-process inventory.
4. Minimise materials handling and cost.
5. Effective utilisation of men, equipment and space.
6. Make effective utilisation of cubic space.
7. Flexibility of manufacturing operations and arrangements.
8. Provide for employee convenience, safety and comfort.
9. Minimize investment in equipment.
10. Minimize overall production time.
11. Maintain flexibility of arrangement and operation.

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12. Facilitate the organizational structure.

PRINCIPLE OF PLANT LAYOUT

1. Principle of integration: A good layout is one that integrates men, materials, machines and
supporting services and others in order to get the optimum utilisation of resources and maximum
effectiveness.

2. Principle of minimum distance: This principle is concerned with the minimum travel (or
movement) of man and materials. The facilities should be arranged such that, the total distance
travelled by the men and materials should be minimum and as far as possible straight line
movement should be preferred.

3. Principle of cubic space utilisation: The good layout is one that utilise both horizontal and
vertical space. It is not only enough if only the floor space is utilised optimally but the third
dimension, i.e., the height is also to be utilised effectively.

4. Principle of flow: A good layout is one that makes the materials to move in forward direction
towards the completion stage, i.e., there should not be any backtracking.

5. Principle of maximum flexibility: The good layout is one that can be altered without much cost
and time, i.e., future requirements should be taken into account while designing the present
layout.

6. Principle of safety, security and satisfaction: A good layout is one that gives due consideration
to workers safety and satisfaction and safeguards the plant and machinery against fire, theft, etc.

7. Principle of minimum handling: A good layout is one that reduces the material handling to the
minimum.

TYPES OF PLANT LAYOUT

Plant layout refers to the arrangement of machinery, equipment, workstations, storage areas,
and other facilities within a manufacturing or production facility. There are several types of plant

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layouts, each with its own advantages and suitability for different types of manufacturing
processes. Some common types of plant layouts include:

1. Product or Line Layout

2. Process or functional layout
3. Fixed position Layout
4. Combined or Hybrid Layout.

PRODUCT OR LINE LAYOUT

sequence of the product. If the volume of production of one or more products is large, the
facilities can be arranged to achieve efficient flow of materials and lower cost per unit. Special
purpose machines are used which perform the required function quickly and reliably.

The product layout is selected when the volume of production of a product is high such that a
separate production line to manufacture it can be justified. In a strict product layout, machines
are not shared by different products. Therefore, the production volume must be sufficient to
achieve satisfactory utilisation of the equipment. A typical product layout is shown in Figure 3.1

Fig. 3.1 Product layout

Advantages

1. The flow of product will be smooth and logical in flow lines.

2. In-process inventory is less.
3. Throughput time is less.
4. Minimum material handling cost.

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5. Simplified production, planning and control systems are possible.

6. Less space is occupied by work transit and for temporary storage.
7. Reduced material handling cost due to mechanised handling systems and straight flow.
8. Perfect line balancing which eliminates bottlenecks and idle capacity.
9. Manufacturing cycle is short due to uninterrupted flow of materials.
10. Small amount of work-in-process inventory.
11. Unskilled workers can learn and manage the production.

Limitations

1. A breakdown of one machine in a product line may cause stoppages of machines in the
1. downstream of the line.
2. A change in product design may require major alterations in the layout.
3. The line output is decided by the bottleneck machine.
4. Comparatively high investment in equipment is required.
5. Lack of flexibility. A change in product may require the facility modification.

PROCESS LAYOUT

Process layout is recommended for batch production. All machines performing similar type of
operations are grouped at one location in the process layout e.g., all lathes, milling machines,
etc. are grouped in the shop will be clustered in like groups.

Thus, in process layout the arrangement of facilities are grouped together according to their
functions. A typical process layout is shown in Figure. 3.2. The flow paths of material through
the facilities from one functional area to another vary from product to product. Usually the
paths are long and there will be possibility of backtracking.

Process layout is normally used when the production volume is not sufficient to justify a
product layout. Typically, job shops employ process layouts due to the variety of products
manufactured and their low production volumes.

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Figure. 3.2 Process layout

Advantages

1. In process layout machines are better utilized and fewer machines are required.
2. Flexibility of equipment and personnel is possible in process layout.
3. Lower investment on account of comparatively less number of machines and lower cost
of general purpose machines.
4. Higher utilization of production facilities.
5. A high degree of flexibility with regards to work distribution to machineries and workers.
6. The diversity of tasks and variety of job makes the job challenging and interesting.
7. Supervisors will become highly knowledgeable about the functions under their
department.

Limitations

1. Backtracking and long movements may occur in the handling of materials thus, reducing
1. material handling efficiency.
2. Material handling cannot be mechanized which adds to cost.
3. Process time is prolonged which reduce the inventory turnover and increases the in
process inventory.
4. Lowered productivity due to number of set-ups.
5. Throughput (time gap between in and out in the process) time is longer.
6. Space and capital are tied up by work-in-process.

FIXED POSITION LAYOUT

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This is also called the project type of layout. In this type of layout, the material, or major
components remain in a fixed location and tools, machinery, men and other materials are
brought to this location. This type of layout is suitable when one or a few pieces of identical heavy
products are to be manufactured and when the assembly consists of large number of heavy parts,
the cost of transportation of these parts is very high.

Figure. 3.3 Fixed position layout

Advantages

The major advantages of this type of layout are:

1. Helps in job enlargement and upgrades the skills of the operators.

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2. The workers identify themselves with a product in which they take interest and pride in
doing the job.
3. Greater flexibility with this type of layout.
4. Layout capital investment is lower.

COMBINED LAYOUT

A combination of process and product layouts combines the advantages of both types of layouts.
A combination layout is possible where an item is being made in different types and sizes. Here
machinery is arranged in a process layout but the process grouping is then arranged in a sequence
to manufacture various types and sizes of products. It is to be noted that the sequence of
operations remains same with the variety of products and sizes. Figure 3.4 shows a combination
type of layout for manufacturing different sized gears.

Fig. 3.4 Combination layout

Summarizing:

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