Manufacturing Systems

 A manufacturing system can be defined as a combination of people,

machinery and equipment which is constrained by material and
information flow.

 Manufacturing systems
 Discrete part manufacturing –
A finite number of production or assembly operations.

 Continuous process manufacturing –

Product undergoes continuous changes such as chemical
reactions.

1
Types of Manufacturing Systems

2
 Transfer line :
 Efficient for mass production.
 Suitable for manufacturing identical parts.
 They are inflexible and cannot tolerate variations in part
design.
 Any change in part design requires the line to shutdown
and be retooled.

 Special Manufacturing System:

 Suitable to produce a very limited number of different parts and a
medium production rate per part.
 Only limited changes in the system are possible.

 Flexible Manufacturing System:

 A mid volume and mid variety production range is covered.
 Most of the system activities and coordination are done
automatically under computer control.
 Work parts are automatically loaded at central locations on to the
handling system and are routed to the proper machine tools.
3
 Manufacturing cell :
 This is the most flexible CIM system.
 Lowest production rate.
 It contains many stand-alone machine tools and robots.

Stand-alone and NC machines:

Highly flexible.
Production rates are too slow due to tool setting up time and
tool
changes.
Highly programmable and can deal with product changeovers
and
part design changes.
Appropriate for job shop and small batch manufacturing.

Flexibility and automation are desired characteristics of

manufacturing systems.
These systems must be carefully designed to handle the expected
production volume.
4
Manufacturing systems classification :
1. Type of processing or assembly operations performed
2. Number of stations and layout
3. Automation level
4. Flexibility to deal with part or product variety.

5
1. Types of Operations Performed
(i) Processing operations on individual work units
(ii) Assembly operations to combine individual parts into assembled entities.

Additional parameters of the product

Type of material processed
Size and weight of the part or product
Part geometry

For example: Machined parts can be classified according to part geometry

as rotational or non-rotational.

Rotational parts arc cylindrical and require turning and related rotational
operations.

Non rotational (also called prismatic) parts are rectangular or cube-like and
require milling and related machining operations to shape them.

6
 2. Number of Workstations and System layout

 It exerts a strong influence on the performance of the manufacturing

system in terms of production capacity, productivity, cost per
unit, and maintainability.

 Let us denote the number of workstations in the system by the

symbol n.

7
Type I Single station
Consisting of one workstation (n=1), a production machine that can
be manually operated, semi-automated, or fully automated.

Type II Multiple stations with variable routing

It consists of two or more stations (n > 1) that are designed and
arranged to accommodate the processing or assembly of different part
or product styles.

Type III Multiple stations with fixed routing

This system has two or more workstations (n > 1), which are laid out
as a production line.

8
3. Level of Automation
 The workstations (machines) in a manufacturing system can be
manually operated, semi-automated, or automated.

 Manning Level. Time that direct labour must be in attendance at

each station. The manning level, symbolized Ml.

 If Ml = 1 for station i, it means that one worker must be at the

station continuously.

 If one worker tends four automatic machines, then Ml = 0.25.

 An automobile final assembly line, multiple workers perform

assembly tasks on the car, in which case Ml = 2 or 3 or more.

 In general, high values of Ml (Ml >=1) indicate manual operations at the

workstation, while low values (Ml < 1) denote some form of automation.

9
 Level of Automation
The average manning level of a multi-station manufacturing system is a useful
indicator of the direct labor content of the system. Let us define it as follows:

where M = average manning level for the system; Wu = number of

utility workers assigned to the system; wi = number of workers
assigned specifically to station i; for i = 1,2, ... ,11; and w = total
number of workers assigned to the system.

Utility workers perform functions such as:

(1) relieving workers at stations for personal breaks
(2) maintenance and repair of the system
(3) tool changing
(4) loading and unloading work units to and from the system

10
Automation in the Classification Scheme.
There are two possible automation levels for single stations and three possible
levels for multi-station systems.

The two levels for single stations (type I) are:

M = Manned station
A = Fully automated

 The manned station is identified by the fact

that one or more workers must be at the station every cycle.

 This means that any machine at the station is manually operated or

semi-automatic and that manning is equal to or greater than one
(M >=1).

 However, in some cases, one worker may be able to attend

more than one machine, if the semi-automatic cycle is long relative
to the service required each cycle of the worker (thus, M < I).
11
Fully automated station requires less than full-time attention of a worker
(M < 1). For multi-station systems (types II and III), the levels M and A are
applicable, and a third level is possible:

H = hybrid, in which some stations are manned and others are fully
automated.
Listing the alternatives, we have the following

Type I M Single-station manned cell.

The basic case is one machine and one worker (n = 1,w = l).
The machine is manually operated or semi-automated, and the
worker must be in continuous attendance at the machine.

Type I A Single station automated cell.

Fully automated machine capable of unattended operation (M < 1) for
extended periods of time.
A worker must periodically load and unload the machine or
otherwise service it.

12
Type II M Multi-station manual system with variable routing.
 This has multiple stations that are manually operated or semi-
automated.

 The layout and work transport system allow for various routes to be
followed by the parts or products made by the system.

 Work transport between stations is either manual or mechanized.

Type II A Multi-station automated system with variable routing.

The stations are fully automated (n > 1, wi = 0, M < 1). Work transport is
also fully automated.

Type II H Multi-station hybrid system with variable routing.

It contains both manned and automated stations. Work transport is manual,

automated, or a mixture (hybrid).

13
Type III M Multi-station manual system with fixed routing.
Two or more stations (n > 1), with one or more workers at each station
(wi >= 1). The operations are sequential, thus necessitating a fixed routing,
usually laid out as a production line.

Work transport between stations is either manual or mechanized.

Type III A Multi-station automated system with fixed routing.

This system consists of two or more automated stations (n > 1, wi = 0, M <
1) arranged as a production line or similar configuration.

Work transport is fully automated.

Type III H Multi-station hybrid system with ftxed routing.

This system includes both manned and automated stations(n > 1,wi >= 1 for
some stations, wi= 0 for other stations, M > 0). Work transport is manual,
automated, or a mixture (hybrid).

14
 Level of Automation

(a) single station manned cell. (b) single station automated cell, (c) multi-station
manual system with variable routing, (d) multi-station automated system with variable
routing, (e) multi-station hybrid system with variable routing, (f) multi-station manual
system with serial operations, (g) multi-station automated system with serial
operations, and (h) multi-station hybrid system with serial operations. 15
4. Part or Product Variety
The degree to which it is capable of dealing with variations in the parts.

• Variations in type and/or color of plastic of molded parts in injection

molding.

• Variations in geometry of machined parts.

• Variations in parts and options in an assembled product on a final assembly

line.

Three Types of Manufacturing System According to Their Capacity to Deal

with Product Variety

16
Single model case
All parts or products made by the manufacturing system are identical.

Batch model case

 Different parts or products are made by the system, but they are made
in batches because a changeover in physical setup and/or equipment
programming is required between models.

 Changeover of the manufacturing system is required.

 It is a case of hard product variety. The time needed to accomplish the

changeover requires the system to be operated in a batch mode, in
which a batch of one product style is followed by a batch of another,
and so on.

17
The plot shows production quantity as a function of time, with
interruptions between batches for changeover (setup).

18
Mixed model case
Different parts or products are made by the manufacturing system, but the
system is able to handle these differences without the need for a
changeover in setup and/or program.

This means that the mixture of different styles can be produced

continuously rather than in batches.

The requirement for continuous production of different work unit styles is

that the manufacturing system be designed so that whatever adjustments
need to be made from the part or product style to the next.

These adjustments can be made quickly enough that it is economical to

produce the units in batch sizes of one.

Flexibility in Manufacturing Systems. Flexibility is the term used

for the attribute that allows a mixed model manufacturing system to cope
with a certain level of variation in part or product style without interruptions
in production for changeovers between models.
19
Examples in the Manufacturing Systems Classification Schemes

20
21
22