FACILITY LAYOUT USING LAYOUT MODULES DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Heng Huang, M.S. ***** The Ohio State University 2003 Dissertation Committee: Approved by Professor Shahrukh A. Irani, Advisor Professor Clark A. Mount-Campbell Advisor Professor Tito Homem-de-Mello Industrial and Systems Engineering Graduate Program ABSTRACT The Functional, Flowline and Cellular Layouts are traditional facility layouts that have been discussed in the literature and implemented in industry. Selection of an appropriate layout for a multi-product facility poses a major challenge since the best decomposition of its material flow network is usually achieved by a hybrid layout that must combine the flow and machine grouping attributes of the three traditional layouts. Unfortunately, the Systematic Layout Planning (SLP) design process does not describe specific methods for product mix segmentation and department planning for design of jobshop layouts. It lacks a systematic method for varying the manufacturing focus of the different planning departments (or activities) into which the jobshop can be decomposed. We enhance the SLP process by integrating Production Flow Analysis (PFA) into SLP. Adoption of algorithms and principles of PFA in the process of SLP can eliminate the two limitations of SLP: (a) incapability of using product routings, instead of the From-To chart, as input data, and (b) incapability of generating layouts that are a hybrid combination of Functional and Cellular layouts. A review of the literature shows that a fundamental requirement for the design of modern facility layouts is the distribution of identical machines at multiple locations in the facility. Our research shows that the material flow network in any facility layout can be decomposed into a network of layout modules, with each module representing a ii portion of the entire facility. A layout module is defined as a group of machines connected by a material flow network that exhibits a flow pattern characteristic of a specific type of layout, such as the Flowline, Cellular or Functional Layout. The concept of layout modules extends current thinking on input data requirements and methods for facility layout, and supports the need for a new generation of facility layouts beyond the three traditional layouts that continue to be studied and implemented in industry. We propose a group technology based heuristic approach as an alternative method for generation of layout modules and design of modular layouts, based on a new similarity measure for comparison of operation sequences. iii Dedicated to Huili Zhang, my dearest wife iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I wish to express my deepest appreciation to Professor Shahrukh A. Irani, my advisor and mentor, for his excellent guidance and counseling which made this dissertation possible, and for his financial support for my graduate study at The Ohio State University. I am grateful to Professor Clark A. Mount-Campbell and Professor Tito Homem- de-Mello for their patience in correcting my scientific errors and their useful comments on my research. I would like to thank the Department of Industrial, Welding and Systems Engineering for providing comfortable learning and research environment. I also wish to thank my family, especially my wife, for their encouragement, enthusiasm and emotional support. This research was supported by a grant from the National Science Foundation. v VITA 1994 ····························· B.S. Instrument and Its Automation, Tianjin University, China 1997 ····························· M.S. Systems Engineering, Tianjin University, China 1997 – present ············· Graduate Research Associate, The Ohio State University Publication 1. Huang, H. and Irani, S.A. (2003). An enhanced systematic layout planning process for high-variety low-volume (HVLV) manufacturing facilities. To appear in The 17th International Conference on Production Research, Blacksburg, VA, August 3-7. 2. Huang, H. and Irani, S.A. (1999). Design of facility layouts using layout modules: A numerical clustering approach. Proceedings of the 8th Industrial Engineering Research Conference, Phoenix, AZ, May 23-26. 3. Irani, S.A. and Huang, H. (2000). Custom design of facility layouts for multi-product facilities using layout modules. IEEE Transactions on Robotics and Automation, 16(3), 259-267. 4. Irani, S.A. and Huang, H. (2000). A new approach for department planning to minimize inter-departmental material handling traffic in a custom manufacturing facility. Proceedings of the 6th International Colloquium on Material Handling Research, York, PA, June 11-14. 5. Irani, S.A. and Huang, H. (2000). A pattern recognition approach for facility compaction and selection of flexible automation. Proceedings of the North American Manufacturing Research Conference, Lexington, KY, May 24-26. 6. Irani, S.A. and Huang, H. (2000). Facility layout using layout modules. Proceedings of the Y2K NSF Design and Manufacturing Research Conference, Vancouver, BC, Canada, January 3-6. 7. Irani, S.A. and Huang, H. (1998). Layout modules: A novel extension of hybrid cellular layouts. Proceedings of the 1998 ASME International Mechanical vi Engineering Congress & Exposition and Winter Annual Meeting of the ASME, Anaheim, CA, November 15-20. 8. Irani, S.A., Huang, H., Zhang, H. and Zhou, J. (2001). Computer methods for implementation of production flow analysis. In Cellular Manufacturing: A Practical Approach, Quarterman Lee (Editor), Institute of Industrial Engineers: Norcross, GA. 9. Irani, S.A., Zhang, H., Zhou, J., Huang, H., Tennati, K.U. and Subramanian, S. (2000). Production flow analysis and simplification toolkit (PFAST). International Journal of Production Research, 38(8), 1855-1874. 10. Irani, S.A., Zhou, J. and Huang, H. (2003). A pattern recognition approach for facility compaction by machining function combination using flexible manufacturing models. To appear in The ASME Journal of Manufacturing Science and Engineering. 11. Irani, S.A., Zhou, J. and Huang, H. (2001). Design of manufacturing facility layouts by unification of matrix, string and graph representations of material flow networks. Proceedings of the 2001 NSF Design, Manufacturing and Industrial Innovation Research Conference (CD-ROM only), Tampa, FL, January 7-10. 12. Irani, S.A., Zhou, J. and Huang, H. (2000). Facility layout using operation sequences: History, limitations and alternatives to the from-to chart. Submitted to IIE Transactions. 13. Irani, S.A., Zhou, J. and Huang, H. (2000). Layout design for custom manufacturing and assembly facilities using a single flow mapping tool. Newsletter of the Facilities Planning and Design Division (FAPAD) of the Institute of Industrial Engineers (IIE), Fall, 1-4. 14. Irani, S.A., Zhou, J. and Huang, H. (2000). Integrated use of operation sequences and from-to charts for analysis of material flow patterns. Proceedings of the 6th International Colloquium on Material Handling Research, York, PA, June 11-14. 15. Irani, S.A., Zhou, J., Huang, H. and Udai, T.K. (2000). Enhancements in facility layout tools using cell formation techniques. Proceedings of the Y2K NSF Design and Manufacturing Research Conference, Vancouver, BC, Canada, January 3-6. Field of Study Industrial and Systems Engineering vii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT........................................................................................................................ii DEDICATION....................................................................................................................iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ..................................................................................................v VITA……….......................................................................................................................vi LIST OF TABLE ................................................................................................................x LIST OF FIGURES ............................................................................................................xii CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION ..............................................................................................................1 CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW: FACILITY LAYOUTS ...........................................................6 2.1. Traditional Types of Facility Layouts.......................................................... 6 2.2. Non-Traditional Types of Facility Layouts.................................................. 8 2.3. Trends in Facility Layouts observed in Industry........................................ 15 CHAPTER 3 SYSTEMATIC LAYOUT PLANNING WITH PRODUCTION FLOW ANALYSIS.........................................................................................................................22 3.1. Department Splitting and Machine Duplication......................................... 22 3.2. History of From-To Chart .......................................................................... 24 3.3. Fundamental Limitations of the From-To Chart ........................................ 27 3.4. Limitations of Some Concepts and Assumptions....................................... 32 3.5. Systematic Layout Planning with Production Flow Analysis.................... 36 viii CHAPTER 4 MERGER COEFFICIENT ─ A NEW STRING MATCHING METHOD FOR COMPARISON OF OPERATION SEQUENCES ............................................................46 4.1. Analysis of Differences between