scholarly journals A Branch-and-Price Algorithm for Balancing Two-Sided Assembly Lines with Zoning Constraints

2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-18
Author(s):  
Qidong Yin ◽  
Xiaochuan Luo ◽  
Julien Hohenstein
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Manufacturing Industry ◽  
Assembly Line ◽  
Programming Model ◽  
Assembly Line Balancing ◽  
Mixed Integer ◽  
Branch And Price ◽  
Assembly Lines ◽  
Real World Datasets ◽  
Assembly Production

Two-sided assembly lines are widely used in the large-size product manufacturing industry, especially for automotive assembly production. Balancing the assembly line is significant for assembly process planning and assembly production. In this study, we develop a novel and exact method to optimize the two-sided assembly line balancing problem with zoning constraints (TALBz), in which the aim is to minimize the number of mated-stations considering the task restrictions. A mixed-integer programming model is employed to exactly describe the TALBz problem. To strengthen the computational efficiency, we apply Dantzig–Wolfe decomposition to reformulate the TALBz problem. We further propose a branch-and-price (B&P) algorithm that integrates the column generation approach into a branch-and-bound frame. Both the benchmark datasets with zoning constraints and without zoning constraints are tested to evaluate the performance of the B&P algorithm. The numerical results show that our proposed approach can obtain optimal solutions efficiently on most cases. In addition, experiments on the real-world datasets originating from passenger vehicle assembly lines are conducted. The proposed B&P algorithm shows its advantage in tackling practical problems with the task restrictions. This developed methodology therefore provides insight for solving large-scale TALBz problems in practice.

scholarly journals Scheduling Just-in-Time Transport Vehicles to Feed Parts for Mixed Model Assembly Lines

2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yunfang Peng ◽  
Tian Zeng ◽  
Yajuan Han ◽  
Beixin Xia
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Assembly Line ◽  
Mixed Model ◽  
Programming Model ◽  
Primary Objective ◽  
Mixed Integer ◽  
Inventory Level ◽  
Just In Time ◽  
Time Model ◽  
Delivery Strategy

In order to solve the problem of vehicle scheduling to feed parts at automobile assembly line, this study proposes a just-in-time delivery method combined with the mode of material supermarket. A mixed integer linear programming model with the primary objective of using the least number of tow trains is constructed by considering capacity of vehicle and inventory levels of line. On the basis of the minimum number of tow trains, the schedule of each tour is reasonably planned to minimize inventory of assembly line, which is the secondary objective of the part supply problem. Additionally, a heuristic algorithm which can obtain a satisfactory solution in a short time is designed to solve large-scale problems after considering continuity and complexity of modern automobile production. Furthermore, some cases are analyzed and compared with the widely used periodic delivery strategy, and the feasibility of just-in-time model and algorithm is verified. The results reveal that just-in-time delivery strategy has more advantages in reducing inventory level than periodic delivery strategy.

scholarly journals Mixed integer linear programming models for minimizing ergonomic risk dispersion in an assembly line at the Nissan Barcelona factory

2018 ◽  
pp. 72-89 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joaquín Bautista-Valhondo ◽  
Rocío Alfaro-Pozo
Keyword(s):  
Assembly Line ◽  
Mixed Model ◽  
Assembly Line Balancing ◽  
Mixed Integer ◽  
Assembly Lines ◽  
Absolute Deviation ◽  
Mixed Model Assembly Lines ◽  
Average Maximum ◽  
Ergonomic Risk

We present a variant of the approach to the assembly line balancing problems, with the aim of reducing the ergonomic risk for operators of mixed-model assembly lines (MILP-3). Specifically, the MILP-3 model is focused on minimizing the average range between ergonomic risk values of workstations. Using a case study from Nissan’s plant in Barcelona, not only are the differences between levels of ergonomic risk of stations reduced, but we attempt to reduce the average maximum ergonomic risk of the assembly line. The new model is compared with two others, MILP-1 and MILP-2, which minimize the average maximum ergonomic risk and the average absolute deviation of the risks, respectively.

scholarly journals Multi-Manned Assembly Line Balancing: Workforce Synchronization for Big Data Sets through Simulated Annealing

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 2523
Author(s):  
Francesco Pilati ◽  
Emilio Ferrari ◽  
Mauro Gamberi ◽  
Silvia Margelli
Keyword(s):  
Simulated Annealing ◽  
Assembly Line ◽  
Simulated Annealing Algorithm ◽  
Programming Model ◽  
Assembly Line Balancing ◽  
Task Assignment ◽  
Computation Time ◽  
Mixed Integer ◽  
Solution Quality ◽  
Line Design

The assembly of large and complex products such as cars, trucks, and white goods typically involves a huge amount of production resources such as workers, pieces of equipment, and layout areas. In this context, multi-manned workstations commonly characterize these assembly lines. The simultaneous operators’ activity in the same assembly station suggests considering compatibility/incompatibility between the different mounting positions, equipment sharing, and worker cooperation. The management of all these aspects significantly increases the balancing problem complexity due to the determination of the start/end times of each task. This paper proposes a new mixed-integer programming model to simultaneously optimize the line efficiency, the line length, and the workload smoothness. A customized procedure based on a simulated annealing algorithm is developed to effectively solve this problem. The aforementioned procedure is applied to the balancing of the real assembly line of European sports car manufacturers distinguished by 665 tasks and numerous synchronization constraints. The experimental results present remarkable performances obtained by the proposed procedure both in terms of solution quality and computation time. The proposed approach is the practical reference for efficient multi-manned assembly line design, task assignment, equipment allocation, and mounting position management in the considered industrial fields.

scholarly journals Bucket Brigades to Increase Productivity in a Luxury Assembly Line

10.5772/56837 ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. 28 ◽  
Author(s):  
Filippo De Carlo ◽  
Orlando Borgia ◽  
Mario Tucci
Keyword(s):  
Assembly Line ◽  
Assembly Line Balancing ◽  
Assembly Lines ◽  
Manual Assembly ◽  
Increase Productivity ◽  
Assembly Line Balancing Problem ◽  
High Level ◽  
Simple Assembly ◽  
A Company ◽  
Bucket Brigades

One of the most challenging issues in manual assembly lines is to achieve the best balance of workloads. There are many analytic approaches to solve this problem, but they are often neglected, since they are time-consuming and require high level engineering skills. Fashion bags packaging lines must comply with a number of different products with low production volumes, while the organization of the line is often under the mere responsibility of the foreman, who balances workloads in an empirical way. The aim of this work is to evaluate the effectiveness of the arrangement of bucket brigades (BBs) for an assembly line of luxury handbags. To do this, it was decided to perform a testing activity in a company producing fashion handbags in order to compare the self-made design with the BBs and with a simple assembly line balancing problem algorithm. The originality of this research lies in the fact that there are no studies in the literature on BBs applied to the packaging of highly variable small batches. The results were excellent, showing the advantages of BBs in terms of flexibility, the reduction of work in the process and the ability to handle small anomalies.

scholarly journals Study on Importance of Employee Performance Assesment and Lost Productive Time Rate Determination in Garment Assembly Lines

2017 ◽  
Vol 25 (0) ◽  
pp. 119-126 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mahmut Kayar ◽  
Öykü Ceren Bulur
Keyword(s):  
Performance Assessment ◽  
Assembly Line ◽  
Employee Performance ◽  
Assembly Line Balancing ◽  
Line Balancing ◽  
Assembly Lines ◽  
Standard Time ◽  
Productive Time ◽  
Production Target

This study primarily includes theoretical information on the performance and lost productive time of a firm. Furthermore t-shirt sewing operations of a garment firm were analysed and time measurement for each operation was carried out by the time keeping method. By considering the measurements obtained, different performance estimations, the firm’s lost productive time rates, and the standard time was calculated within 5 different scenarios. According to each sewing standard time obtained, the assembly line balancing practice was carried out using the Hoffman method. Later on results of the assembly line balancing were compared, and the importance of employee performance assessment and its lost productive time rates for firms were discussed. The aim of the study was to emphasize the value of impeccable determination of the employee performance assessment and lost productive time rates. Consequently garment firms will be more cautious in calculating the standard time and will be able to reach their production target within the accurate measurement they obtain.

scholarly journals Multidepot Heterogeneous Vehicle Routing Problem for a Variety of Hazardous Materials with Risk Analysis

2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Bochen Wang ◽  
Qiyuan Qian ◽  
Zheyi Tan ◽  
Peng Zhang ◽  
Aizhi Wu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Risk Analysis ◽  
Vehicle Routing ◽  
Vehicle Routing Problem ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Programming Model ◽  
Hazardous Materials ◽  
Mixed Integer ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Routing Problem ◽  
Heterogeneous Vehicle Routing Problem

This study investigates a multidepot heterogeneous vehicle routing problem for a variety of hazardous materials with risk analysis, which is a practical problem in the actual industrial field. The objective of the problem is to design a series of routes that minimize the total cost composed of transportation cost, risk cost, and overtime work cost. Comprehensive consideration of factors such as transportation costs, multiple depots, heterogeneous vehicles, risks, and multiple accident scenarios is involved in our study. The problem is defined as a mixed integer programming model. A bidirectional tuning heuristic algorithm and particle swarm optimization algorithm are developed to solve the problem of different scales of instances. Computational results are competitive such that our algorithm can obtain effective results in small-scale instances and show great efficiency in large-scale instances with 70 customers, 30 vehicles, and 3 types of hazardous materials.

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