FMS Developments

UNIT 9 FMS DEVELOPMENTS

Structure
9.1 Introduction
Objectives

9.2 Systems Layouts

9.3 FMS Controller Functions
9.4 Development of the Concept
9.5 Summary
9.6 Answers to SAQs

9.1 INTRODUCTION
Manufacturing systems that were championed during the early part of the twentieth
century relied on hard automation. They are excellent when manufacturing volume are
extremely large and product development and useful life are very large. But with the
modern developments in the late twentieth century with excellent developments in
microele ctronics and computers, the manufacturing requirements have experienced a sea
change in their requirements. As a result, many of the new products seen currently are
characterised by
• very high quality (in terms of their accuracy and surface finish),
• large range of products providing varieties demanded by the consumers,
• smaller volume because of the large variety,
• manufacturing lead time to market is less since a competitor may bring a
better product earlier, and
• need to provide with all the above characteristics at a low cost.
Using the conventional automation methods will not be suitable for such a scenario. It
therefore becomes necessary that the manufacturers will have to strive for flexibility in
manufacturing in such a way that all the above characteristics can be realized. The
philosophies developed in the early 1980s relate to such systems termed as Flexible
Manufacturing Systems or FMS to provide flexibility in manufacturing to cater to such
difficult scenarios.
Objectives
After studying this unit, you should be able to
• understand various types of layouts used in organizing the equipment in an
FMS,
• recognize the need for various types of controls to be used in operating FMS,
and
• develop a FM cell by going through a systematic procedure utilizing all the
available information about the parts that need to be produced in the cell.

9.2 SYSTEM LAYOUTS

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CNC to FMS
Some example possibilities of FMS layouts are shown earlier. The broad categories of
layouts that have been used are (Groover) :

In-line Layout
All the machine tools are kept along a straight line as shown in Figure 9.1. This is
the simplest form and is generally used for smaller number of machines in a
system. The parts move in well defined sequences and the workflow is generally in
both the directions. The part handling at the individual workstations is performed by
the transport vehicle which will have the necessary pallet changer. Often the
machine tools used in such a system are identical, so that the part routing will not
be a problem.

Figure 9.1 : In-line FMS Layout

Loop Layout
In this system, the workstations are arranged in a loop as shown in Figure 9.2.
Parts generally move in a single direction in the loop similar to a conveyor, with the
ability to stop at defined positions for transferring the parts to the workstation. For
the purpose of moving parts from the conveyor to the workstation may have to be
carried by means of a secondary part exchange system such as a pallet changer as
shown in Figure 9.2. An alternative form of the loop could be rectangular.

Figure 9.2 : FMS Loop Layout

Ladder Layout
In this system, the workstations are arranged in a loop with rungs as shown in
Figure 9.3. The rungs help is reducing the congestion and allow for smooth part
flow between machines.
Open Field Layout
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 In this system, there are multiple loops for appropriate arrangement of all the FMS Developments

facilities as shown in Figure 9.4. This type of system is generally suitable for a
large group of parts to be machined. The facilities may consist of a number of
workstations with different varieties. The material handling is provided with AGVs
along the guide path.

Figure 9.3 : FMS Ladder Layout

Figure 9.4 : Open Field FMS Layout

SAQ 1
What are the different types of system layouts used in FMS? Explain their
application.

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CNC to FMS
9.3 FMS CONTROLLER FUNCTIONS

All the elements present in an FMS, such as the CNC machine tools, material handling
units (AGVs), workpieces and tools are to be controlled in real time. This means that the
FMS control software ensures for timely supply of tools, workpieces and part programs to
connected machine tools.
FMS being a part of the overall manufacturing system in the shop, the architecture of the
FMS will have to be planned to become integrated with the overall functioning of the
shop. A typical architecture that could be envisaged is shown in Figure 9.5. In order to
have a proper control of the FMS, the system is generally divided into a task-based
hierarchy. The total facilities required for operating an FMS are located at various levels
as shown in Figure 9.5.

Figure 9.5 : Control Heirarchy in a Shop that includes a FMS

This FMS control system therefore should have modules (Figure 9.6) for the following
functions to be effectively carried out in a distributed control environment :
• Production scheduling to schedule various production operations of the FMS
based on the parts to be entered at the RJE (remote job entry) terminal.
• Transport management to take care of the workpiece and tool movements in
the FMS under the direct control of the FMS supervisor.

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 FMS Developments

Figure 9.6 : Schematic of Software Modules and their Linkage to the Physical Facilities in FMS

• Tool management to arrange the availability of the right tool in the right
condition at the right time in the right place. This provides the necessary tool
offsets required by the various programmes.
• Simulation is a powerful tool, which can be used for the design purpose as
well as for knowing the condition of the present status of the production
operations within FMS.
• Production control co-ordinating various production operations of the FMS
modules by direct communications with their controllers (CNC, AGV, etc.).
• Machine diagnostics to obtain any malfunctions of the FMS modules.
• Managing part programs, data files of tools and workpieces and their storage
positions.
• Maintenance planning based on the feedback on the health of the FMS
components to properly plan the maintenance schedules.
Some of the operations shown above are time critical and hence need to be done on real
time basis, while many functions are not time critical and hence can be done when the
processing time is available. For this purpose, a distributed control is generally preferred
with the real time control done with a slave computer dedicated for the application.

Figure 9.7 : Part and Pallet Flow in FMS

The typical operating procedure of an FMS is as follows :

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CNC to FMS
(i) In the beginning of the day’s job orders will be entered, either directly or
downloaded from the pla nt computer.
(ii) The system checks that the route sheet and process plans for all the jobs to
be done are available; else action has to be taken to initiate to obtain this
information. In the mean time those jobs are to be removed from the hob list.
They can reenter when the process plans are available.
(iii) Check for the availability of the machine tools, raw material and cutting
tools. It is necessary to ensure that the required tools and workpieces in a
form suitable for immediate use be made available before the start of the
day. For this purpose, it is possible to have a look ahead capability in the
software to make a trial schedule run a little earlier to provide instructions to
the tool crib and work preparation areas.
(iv) Once having all the equipment in place, schedule the parts based on the
priorities assigned. Make a simulation run of the schedule to see that
everything is in order. Based on the prepared or feasible schedule create the
job list sequence and create the various tasks in chronological order to be
executed by the FMS controller.
(v) Send tool orders to the tool crib and fixture and blank orders to the work
preparation areas.
(vi) Start executing the created sequence of tasks as shown in Figure 9.7.
(vii) It is possible to enter any new orders, which may change the created task
chronological order. Also some priorities for the jobs may be changed in
between, which needs rescheduling of the remaining tasks and provision may
need to be provided in the software for this function as well.
(viii) The current status of jobs can be seen on the FMS terminal from where
manual intervention by the supervisor can be initiated when necessary. In
addition a number of reports on the various elements of FMS can always be
made available. This will help in the initiation and implementation of optimal
decisions by the supervisor when necessary.

9.4 DEVELOPMENT OF THE CONCEPT

Having understood the various concepts involved in the Flexible Manufacturing Systems
and Cells, let us look at a few of the details and procedures that should be used in
developing a cell for any given product spectrum. It is understood that the various
products that have been grouped into a family to be manufactured in the cell has already
been completed. The various steps involved in the process are :
• Step 1 : Gather and record data
• Step 2 : Develop process flow within the cell
• Step 3 : Identify equipment required and compare it to what is available
• Step 4 : Select/assign equipment
• Step 5 : Build a relationship diagram and an initial cell layout
• Step 6 : Recapture data in the planned cell structure
We will try to explain briefly some of these aspects with the aim of helping in the design
of flexible manufacturing cells.
Step 1 : Gather and Record Data
This will be the first step and the most important one. In this step, all the technical
data required for designing the cell need to be captured. As much detail as possible

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 about the technical details of the processing operations need to be collected. The FMS Developments

following is a typical technical descriptions that need to be collected.

• Product mix and volume that is expected to be manufactured in the cell
• The technical characteristics of the parts that form the family or group may
include
− Size and shape
− Material
− Lot size or volume
− Process steps or unique processes
• Routing and process sheets for all the parts which should include
− Equipment, tooling and gages
− Likely upgrades or process changes
• List of equipment available for the cell
− Capacity constraints, if any
− Common equipment needed for other cells
• Planning guideline
− Product life cycle
− Future volume predictions
− Management constraints
− Key design changes or new product information
• Operation guidelines
− Annual working days
− Contractual or other constraints
− Floor area
− Special utilities
− Material flow and service relationships with other facilities
• Cost and staffing baseline data
Step 2 : Develop Process Flow within the Cell
Next step should be the development of process flow diagrams for all the
components to be manufactured in the cell. Typical process flow diagram is shown
in Figure 9.8. This provides the information related to the actual flow of the
products through the equipment in the cell. This will help in calculating the total
workload in the cell. While developing the process flow it is important to consider
any of the possible variations that may occur in the volumes or capacity. Variations
generally occur in three areas :
• Variation in capacity due to vacations and holidays
• Product life cycles and introduction of new products
• Seasonality in the market

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CNC to FMS

Figure 9.8 : Process Flow for a Component

Any of these variations can easily affect the capacity planning done based on the
annual averages. These therefore will have to be taken into account during the
capacity planning.
The current flow diagrams should capture all the steps involved in the current flow
pattern. That may include the details such as movement to buffers and wash areas.
It is important at this stage to note any of the non-value added operations involved.
With this information it will be possible to examine the possibility of the reduction in
the non-value added operations. The designers should critically examine the current
process flows to see any possibility of reducing the costs and operations. The
possibilities are :
• Reducing or eliminating non-value added operations
• Eliminating the operations
• Combining the operations
• Streamlining by standardizing the operations or materials
• Reducing the operations that are done on a very small number of parts in the
cell
Any possible improvements to the process flow by altering the sequence or changing
some other operation could be examined in this stage. Some examples are :
• Cleaning and deburring operations can often be eliminated by changing the
machining techniques
• Simplification of raw material can often be achieved by adding unique
characteristics at the beginning of assembly line.
• Careful selection of cutting fluids can result in the elimination of washing
with the cutting fluid doing the flushing operation.
All the improvements that have been made will then be captured and shown as the
current process flow diagrams as shown in Figure 9.9.

Figure 9.9 : Improved Process Flow for the Same Component Shown in Figure 9.8

Step 3 : Identify Equipment Required and Compare it to What is Available

Once the improved process flow and the required volumes are established, it will be
possible to generate the total capacity required. A sample process volume
calculations are shown in Table 9.1. At this stage, it may be important to consider
the setup reduction as a means of getting the maximum benefit from the cellular
operation. In these calculations, the utilization of all the resources, viz machine tools
and the operators will be shown based on the average annual volumes taking into
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 account the variability as explained earlier. This will, therefore, show the resources FMS Developments

that are over- or under-utilized in the new environment. It may, therefore, be

possible at this stage to explore the possibility of adding new equipment to relieve
any of the possible bottlenecks or those contributing to the increase in the
throughput time in the cell. For example, the wash station could be one such
example if it either a centralized facility or shared by a number of cells.
Table 9.1 : Process Volume Chart
Process Volume Chart
Part Volume Wash Mill Center Turn Broach Grind
number
12345 550 000 1 100 000 550 000 550 000 550 000
23456 235 000 235 000 235 000 235 000 235 000 235 000
34567 178 000 356 000 178 000 178 000 178 000
45678 43 000 43 000 43 000 43 000
56789 3 000 3 000 3 000 3 000 3 000 3 000
TOTAL 1 009 000 1 737 000 966 000 788 000 1 009 000 278 000 181 000

Machine number BT-1234 BT-5678 BT-9123 BT-4567 BT-8912 BT-3456

Operation time
Std. Min. per piece 0.34 0.62 0.28 2.73 0.68 2.03
Std. Hrs. per day 39.72 39.93 14.71 183.64 12.60 24.50
Setup time
Setups per week 0 8 7 8 2 2
Minutes per setup 0 20.5 10.0 37.7 60.0 48.5
Setup hrs. per day 0 0.55 0.23 1.01 0.40 0.32
Total hrs. per day 39.72 40.47 14.94 184.64 13.00 24.82
Operators per 2 1 1 1 1 1
machine
Machines required 0.8 1.7 0.6 7.7 0.5 1.0
Operators required 1.7 1.7 0.6 7.7 0.5 1.0

It may be good idea of keeping process volume chart in a spread sheet such as
Excel to carryout the what if analysis to balance the machine work load as well as
the operator work loads.
Step 4 : Select/Assign Equipment
In this stage, select the equipment from the master list of the machines from the
plant. If there is any conflict or non-availability of the promised equipment, it may
become necessary to go through a revision process to see how it could be
accommodated. Some of the techniques that could be tried are :
• Eliminate the contested operation through material or process change.
• Bring two or more cells closer, so that they can easily share the equipment.
• Recombine the product mix so that all the parts that require the contested
resource could flow through the same cell.
• Redesign the process so that the contested operation is done in the beginning
so that it will not drastically affect the scheduling of the cell.
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CNC to FMS
• Redesign the parts to take advantage of the common characteristics of the
equipment in the cell.
Step 5 : Build a Relationship Diagram and an Initial Cell Layout
Having finalized the operations, machines and the operators required, they can be
loaded into a conceptual flow diagram from which the physical cell layout could be
developed. The methods used could be different depending upon the individual
preferences. Most of the processes involved are simple mathematics with common
sense. An example method is shown in Table 9.2 and Figures 9.10 and 9.11.
Table 9.2 shows all the process flow for the finalized parts and volumes. This
shows all possible routes.
Table 9.2 : Process Flow Table

Process Flow Table

Part No. Volume Op. 10 Op. 20 Op. 30 Op. 40 Op. 50
12345 550 000 Wash Mill Center Turn Wash
23456 235 000 Mill Center Broach Turn Wash
34567 178 000 Wash Mill Turn Wash Grind
45678 43 000 Turn Broach Wash
56789 3 000 Mill Center Turn Grind Wash

In Figure 9.11, each resource is analysed for the total number of operations it will
have to undergo with respect to other resources. These will show the relative
proximity requirements for all the resources. Using Table 9.2 and Figure 9.10, it will
be possible to construct a diagram showing how these requirements could be met in
a physical layout. Such a diagram is shown in Figure 9.11. Please note that Figure
9.11 is not the actual layout of the cell, but only an intuitive way to show the
relative flow of material between the resources to establish their correct positions
in the final layout.

Figure 9.10 : Operational Flow Chart for all Operations. Figures under the Arrows
Represent the Production Volumes in Thousands

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 FMS Developments

Figure 9.11 : Modelling Flow Relationships Among Operations.

Production Volumes Shown in Tho usands

Step 6 : Recapture Data in the Planned Cell Structure

This is a stage in which the cell layout could be finalized in actual space. At this
point, it is important to consider the objectives of the design. There are many ways
in which the cell layout could be finalized depending upon the final flexibility
envisaged. For example, a maximum speed cell design will have the machines in
fixed sequence that are very close to each other. Alternatively, a maximum flexible
operation could be to have an open layout allowing for a wider variety of potential
flow paths. Tighter layout is faster and is generally suitable for a single product cell.
For a multiple products, an open layout is preferred.
Figure 9.12 shows a conceptual cell developed from the earlier proximity analysis.
Here, the total product mix is divided into a homogeneous flow of high volume by
combining all the products. From this, the flow intensity is captured and shown in
block format in Figure 9.13. Finally, the refined cell layout developed is shown in
Figure 9.14 with all the required spaces that are shown at the required positions.

Figure 9.12 : Conceptual Cell Developed using the Proximity Relationship

and Equipment Data, Flow Volume Shown in Thousands

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CNC to FMS

Figure 9.13 : Machine Block Layout Showing the Part Flow Relationship

Figure 9.14 : Completed Cell with All the Spaces Required

SAQ 2
(a) What are the various functions performed by FMS control system?
(b) What are the steps involved in developing a cell layout? Briefly explain the
functions.

9.5 SUMMARY
The appropriate arrangement of the facilities within the FMS needs to be planned by
taking care of all the factors into consideration as described in the previous unit. There
are a number of system layouts that are practiced in developing FMS. Control of the
various elements in the FMS needs to be carefully planned noting the necessary interlocks
between the systems to avoid any conflicts. To develop an appropriate layout of the
system, it is necessary to collect all the information about the parts to be manufactured in
the system. Then collate all that information in a systematic manner such that a smooth
flow of material can be ensured through the system.

9.6 ANSWERS TO SAQs

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Please refer preceding text for Answers to SAQs. FMS Developments

FURTHER READING
P. N. Rao (2004), CAD/CAM Principles and Applications, 2nd Edition, Tata McGraw Hill
Publishing Company, New Delhi.
McMohan Chris and Jimmie Brown (1998), CAD/CAM Principles, Practice and
Manufacturing Management, 2nd Edition, Prentice Hall, New Jersey.
Amirouche Farid (2004), Principles of Computer-Aided Design and Manufacturing,
2nd Edition, Prentice Hall, New Jersey.
Zeid Ibrahim (2005), Mastering CAD/CAM, McGraw Hill, New York.
James V. Valentino and Joseph Goldenberg (2003), Introduction to Computer Numerical
Control (CNC). 3rd Edition.
Tien-Chien Chang, Richard A. Wysk and Hsu-Pin Wang (1998), Computer-Aided
Manufacturing, 2nd Edition, Prentice Hall.
Frank Nanfara, Tony Uccello and Derek Murphy (2001), The CNC Workshop
Version 2.0, 2nd Edition, Prentice Hall.
Jon Stenerson and Kelly Curran (2001), Computer Numerical Control : Operation and
Programming, 2nd Edition, Prentice Hall.
Robert Quesada (2005), Computer Numerical Control : Machining and Turning Centres,
Prentice Hall.
Warren S. Seames (2002), Computer Numerical Control : Concepts and Programming, 4th
Edition, Delmar.

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