EA ZC412 / MM ZC412 / DM ZC412
FLEXIBLE MANUFACTURING
SYSTEMS
BITS Pilani Girish Kant Garg
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Pilani Campus
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Learning Objectives
Facility Layout
Process Layout
Part Families and Machine Groups
Cellular Manufacturing
Analysis of Cellular Manufacturing
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Production Facilities
A manufacturing company attempts to organize its
facilities in the most efficient way to serve the particular
mission of the plant.
The most appropriate type depends on:
Production quantity
Product variety
EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-4, 24/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Basic Layouts
Process layout
group similar activities together according to process or function
they perform
Product layout
arrange activities in line according to sequence of operations for
a particular product or service
Fixed-position layout
are used for projects in which product cannot be moved
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-4, 24/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Production Quantity
Number of units of a given part or product
produced annually by the plant.
Three quantity ranges:
1. Low production – 1 to 100 units
2. Medium production – 100 to 10,000 units
3. High production – 10,000 to millions of
units
EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-4, 24/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Product Variety
Refers to the number of different product or part designs or
types produced in the plant.
Inverse relationship between production quantity and
product variety in factory operations.
Product variety is more complicated than a number.
Hard product variety – products differ greatly.
Few common components in an assembly
Ex: Difference between car and truck.
Soft product variety – small differences between products.
Many common components in an assembly
Difference between car models in same production
line.
EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-4, 24/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Low Production Quantity
Job shop – makes low quantities of specialized and
customized products
Also includes production of components for these products
Products are typically complex (e.g., specialized
machinery, prototypes, space capsules)
Equipment is general purpose
EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-4, 24/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Fixed-Position Layout
EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-4, 24/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Fixed-Position Layout
• Typical of projects
• Bulky, heavy items
• Equipment, workers & materials brought to site
• Highly skilled labor
• Typically low fixed cost
• Often high variable costs
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-4, 24/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Medium Production Quantities
1. Batch production – A batch of a given product is
produced, and then the facility is changed over to
produce another product.
– Changeover takes time – setup time
– Typical layout – process layout
– Hard product variety
2. Cellular manufacturing – A mixture of products is
made without significant changeover time between
products.
– Typical layout – cellular layout
– Soft product variety
EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-4, 24/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Process Layout
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-4, 24/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
High Production
1. Quantity production – Equipment is dedicated to the
manufacture of one product.
– Standard machines tools for high production (e.g., stamping presses, molding
machines)
2. Flow line production – Multiple workstations arranged
in sequence.
– Product requires multiple processing or assembly steps
– Product layout is most common
EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-4, 24/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Product Layout
EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-4, 24/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Comparison of Product and
Process Layout
Product Process
Description Sequential Functional
arrangement of grouping of
activities activities
Continuous, mass Intermittent, job
Type of process
production, mainly shop, batch
assembly production, mainly
fabrication
Product Standardized, Varied, made to
made to stock order
Demand Stable Fluctuating
Volume High Low
Equipment Special purpose General purpose
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-4, 24/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Comparison of Product and
Process Layout
Product Process
Workers Limited skills Varied skills
Inventory Low in-process, high High in-process, low
finished goods finished goods
Storage space Small Large
Material handling Fixed path (conveyor) Variable path (forklift)
Aisles Narrow Wide
Scheduling Part of balancing Dynamic
Layout decision Line balancing Machine location
Goal Equalize work at each Minimize material
station handling cost
Advantage Efficiency Flexibility
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-4, 24/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Designing Process Layout
Goal: minimize material handling costs
Block Diagramming
use when quantitative data is available
minimize nonadjacent loads
Relationship Diagramming
use when quantitative data is not available
based on location preference between areas
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-4, 24/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Block Diagramming
Unit load Steps
• quantity in which • Create From/To chart or load
material is normally summary chart
moved • Calculate composite (two way)
movements
Nonadjacent load
• Develop trial layouts minimizing
• distance farther number of nonadjacent loads
than the next block
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-4, 24/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Example
Barko, Inc. makes bark scalpers, processing equipment that strips the bark
off trees and turns it into nuggets or mulch for gardens. The facility that
makes bark scalpers is a small-job shop that employs 50 workers and is
arranged into five departments:
1) bar stock cutting 2)Sheet metal 3)Machining 4) Painting 5) Assembly
The average number of loads transported between the five departments per month is
given in the accompanying load summary chart. The current layout of the facility is
shown schematically on the 2 × 3 grid. There is quite a bit of flexibility in the facility,
as indicated by six possible locations available for five departments.
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-4, 24/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Example
Forklift used in the facility is flexible allowing horizontal, vertical and
diagonal movement of material.
Management anticipates that a new plant will soon be
necessary and would like to know if a similar layout is to be used or
if a better layout can be designed. Propose a new layout on a 2 X 3
grid that will minimize the number of nonadjacent loads.
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-4, 24/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Example
Nonadjacent Loads
110+40=150
110
100 200
1 2 3
150 50 50
60
4 5
40
Grid 1
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-4, 24/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Example
Nonadjacent Loads: 0
2 3 200 loads
2 4 150 loads
1 3 110 loads
1 2 100 loads
4 5 60 loads
3 5 50 loads
2 5 50 loads
3 4 40 loads
1 4 0 loads
1 5 0 loads
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-4, 24/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Example
• Block Diagram
• type of schematic layout diagram; includes space requirements
(a) Initial block diagram (b) Final block diagram
1 4
1 2 4 2
3 5 3 5
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-4, 24/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Problem - 1
Avalanche, Inc. is a manufacturer of premium snow skis. The work is a combination
of precision machining and skilled craftsmanship. Before completion, skis are
processed back and forth between six different departments: (1) molding, (2) cutting,
(3) fiberglass weaving, (4) gluing, (5) finishing, and (6) waxing. Avalanche is opening
a new production facility and wants to lay it out as efficiently as possible. The number
of loads of material moved from department to department at existing operations in
other plants is shown below. Arrange the department for Avalanche’s new plant in a 2
3 grid so that nonadjacent loads are minimized.
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-4, 24/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Problem - 2
ABC company has recently changed management, and the new owners want to revise
the current layout. The store performs six main services: (1), (2), (3), (4), (5), and (6).
Each is located in a separate department, as shown here. The load summary chart
gives the current level of interaction between the departments. Calculate the number of
nonadjacent loads for the current layout. Design an alternative layout to minimize the
number of nonadjacent loads.
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-4, 24/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Relationship Diagramming
• Muther’s grid
format for displaying manager
preferences for department
locations
• Schematic diagram that uses
weighted lines to denote
location preference
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Relationship Diagramming
(a) Relationship diagram of original layout
Offices Locker Shipping
room and
receiving
Key: A
E
I
Stockroom Toolroom Production
O
U
X
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Relationship Diagramming
(b) Relationship diagram of revised layout
Stockroom
Offices Shipping
and
receiving
Locker Key: A
Toolroom Production
room E
I
O
U
X
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Process Layout
Assembly
4 6 7 9
5 8
2 10 12
1 3 11
A B C Raw materials
EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Route Matrix
Machines
ts 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
x x x x x
x x
x x x
x x x x x
x x
x x x
x x x
x
EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Reordered route Matrix
Machines
ts 1 2 4 8 10 3 6 9 5 7
x x x x x
x x x x x
x x x
x x x
x x x
x x
x
x x
EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Revised Cellular Layout
Assembly
8 10 9 12
11
4 Cell 1 Cell 2 6 Cell 3
7
2 1 3 5
A C B
Raw materials
EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Overview of Group Technology
• Parts in the medium production quantity range are usually
made in batches
• Disadvantages of batch production:
Downtime for changeovers
High inventory carrying costs
• GT minimizes these disadvantages by recognizing that
although the parts are different, there are groups of parts
that possess similarities
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Group Technology (GT) Defined
A manufacturing philosophy in which similar parts are
identified and grouped together to take advantage of their
similarities in design and production
Similarities among parts permit them to be classified into
part families
In each part family, processing steps are similar
The improvement is typically achieved by organizing the
production facilities into manufacturing cells that specialize
in production of certain part families
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
When to Use GT and
Cellular Manufacturing
1. The plant currently uses traditional batch production and a
process type layout
This results in much material handling effort, high in-process
inventory, and long manufacturing lead times
2. The parts can be grouped into part families
A necessary condition to apply group technology
Each machine cell is designed to produce a given part family, or a
limited collection of part families, so it must be possible to group
parts made in the plant into families
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Problems in Implementing GT
1. Identifying the part families
Reviewing all of the parts made in the plant and grouping them into
part families is a substantial task
2. Rearranging production machines into GT cells
It is time-consuming and costly to physically rearrange the
machines into cells, and the machines are not producing during the
changeover
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Part Families and
Cellular Manufacturing
GT exploits the part similarities by utilizing similar
processes and tooling to produce them
Machines are grouped into cells, each cell specializing in
the production of a part family
Called cellular manufacturing
Cellular manufacturing can be implemented by manual or
automated methods
When automated, the term flexible manufacturing system
is often applied
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Part Family
• A collection of parts that possess similarities in geometric
shape and size, or in the processing steps used in their
manufacture
• Part families are a central feature of group technology
There are always differences among parts in a family
But the similarities are close enough that the parts can be grouped
into the same family
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Part Families
Two parts that are identical in shape and size but quite
different in manufacturing: (a) 1,000,000 units/yr, tolerance
= 0.010 inch, 1015 CR steel, nickel plate; (b) 100/yr,
tolerance = 0.001 inch, 18‑8 stainless steel
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Part Families
• Ten parts are different
in size, shape, and
material, but quite
similar in terms of
manufacturing
• All parts are
machined from
cylindrical stock by
turning; some parts
require drilling and/or
milling
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Ways to Identify Part Families
1. Intuitive grouping (aka visual inspection)
Using best judgment to group parts into appropriate families, based
on the parts or photos of the parts
2. Parts classification and coding
Identifying similarities and differences among parts and relating
them by means of a coding scheme
3. Production flow analysis
Using information contained on route sheets to classify parts
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Intuitive Grouping
• Least sophisticated and least expensive method
• Involves the classification of parts into families by
experienced technical staff in the plant who examine either
the physical parts or their photographs and arrange them
into groups having similar features.
• Least accurate out of three methods.
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Parts Classification and Coding
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Parts Classification and Coding
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Parts Classification and Coding
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Production Flow Analysis (PFA)
• Method for identifying part families and associated machine
groupings based on production route sheets rather than
part design data
• Workparts with identical or similar route sheets are
classified into part families
• Advantages of using route sheet data
Parts with different geometries may nevertheless require the same
or similar processing
Parts with nearly the same geometries may nevertheless require
different processing
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Steps in Production Flow
Analysis
1. Data collection – operation sequence and machine routing
for each part
2. Sortation of process routings – parts with same sequences
and routings are arranged into “packs”
3. Cluster analysis – purpose is to collect packs with similar
routings into groups
Each machine group = a machine cell
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Process Layout
Assembly
4 6 7 9
5 8
2 10 12
1 3 11
A B C Raw materials
EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Route Matrix
Machines
ts 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
x x x x x
x x
x x x
x x x x x
x x
x x x
x x x
x
EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Reordered route Matrix
Machines
ts 1 2 4 8 10 3 6 9 5 7
x x x x x
x x x x x
x x x
x x x
x x x
x x
x
x x
EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Revised Cellular Layout
Assembly
8 10 9 12
11
4 Cell 1 Cell 2 6 Cell 3
7
2 1 3 5
A C B
Raw materials
EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Rank Order Clustering
• How machines in an plant should be grouped into machine
cells.
• It starts with the intial part machine incidence matrix.
• Algorithm has the following steps
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Rank Order Clustering
• In each row of the matrix, read the series of 1s and 0s
(blank) from left to right as a binary number. Rank the rows
in order of decreasing value.
• Number from top to bottom
• Reorder the rows in part machine incidence matrix by
listing them in the decreasing rank order.
• In each column of the matix, read the series of 1s and 0s
from top to bottom as a binary number. Rank the columns
in order of decreasing value.
• Number from left to right
• Reorder the columns in part machine incidence matrix by
listing them in the decreasing rank order, starting with left
column 52
EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Problem-1
Apply the rank order clustering technique to the part machine incidence
matrix in the following table to identify logical part families and machine
groups. Parts are identified by letters and machines are identified
numerically.
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Problem-2
Apply the rank order clustering technique to the part machine incidence
matrix in the following table to identify logical part families and machine
groups. Parts are identified by letters and machines are identified
numerically.
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Problem-3
Jetaway, a small manufacturer of replacement parts for the aircraft industry,
had always maintained a simple layout—all like machines were located
together. That way the firm could be as flexible as possible in producing
small amounts of the variety of parts its customers required. No one
questioned the production arrangement until Chris Munnelly started to work
for the company. Chris was actually hired to upgrade Jetaway’s computer
system. In the process of creating a database of part routings, Chris began
to see similarities in the parts produced. A part routing matrix for nine of the
most popular parts is shown below, along with a schematic of the factory
layout.
Chris, who was already tired of being a programmer, decided to
reorder the matrix and see what he could find. If he could identify distinct
part families, he could reorganize the placement of machines into the cells
he had been reading about in his business magazines. Maybe then someone
would notice his management potential. Help Chris gain status in
Jetaway by creating a cellular layout for the company. Show your results in a
schematic diagram. Be sure to include the reordered routing matrix.
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Problem-3
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EA ZC412 / MM ZC412/DM ZC412, FMS, Lecture-5, 31/8/24 BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Thanks
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BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
