Clothing Mixed-model Assembly Line Balancing And Optimization Based On Promodel Simulation System

The global market becomes highly competitive for clothing brands and clothingmanufacturers. The recent years market trend demands for more varieties, small batch and fastdelivery of products. However, many domestic garment manufacturers did not take appropriatecounter measures to changes they faced in the global market. Manufacturers still adhere to thetraditional production system and management methods that have problems such as lowproductivity, poor delivery and other issues. Under the same market conditions, the automotivemanufacturing sector have proposed and implemented a hybrid production lines and leanproduction to enhance productivity and on time delivery. Today, in automotive industry hybridlines have been widely used in high level of automation in the field of manufacturing, regardlessto differences in workers levels of skill in the pipeline. To apply hybrid lines in labor-intensivegarment manufacturing industry need to consider the differences in worker skills and practicalgarment production features. Based on this, the research established hybrid model of clothingmanufacturing line, and the model was simulated.The study conducted in T-shirt manufacturer, and three styles (two POLO shirt and a T-shirts)were selected to establish hybrid manufacturing model. Firstly, using Microsoft Visio2007process flow diagram of the three models have been drawn and its standard working hours havebeen developed using GSD (General Sewing Data). Secondly, collection production data has beencarried out in the selected lines. Processing time of single pieces while using stable productionsystem has been collected, and then processing hours of single pieces were compared with thestandard.. Again, U-type models has been established to produce three styles at a time, and basedon the principle of the merger process, the assembly line balancing optimized to obtain theoptimum number of workstations; using ant colony algorithm route has been optimized foroptimum material transfer path between each workstation. Finally, using ProModel simulationsoftware pipelining production model were established, and the effects of product failure rates anddifferences in the different skill levels of staff in the production pipeline have been analyzed. It was found that product failure rates and differences in skill level workers mix of clothingproduction lines were major factors that affect production. With the increase of product failurerates, work in progress in the production lines increased. However, in developed hybridproduction line work in progress was significantly reduced; because the repair product duringreprocessing, the time needed to process more than before, leading to the continuous reduction inthe backlog of products and production. Using operators who has equivalent level of skill eachworkstation can solve problem of blocking of WIP in every station, so that the average workingtime for each workstation increased10.9per cent of the pipeline, production increased by16%; Incomparison with assembly line, U-type hybrid product line model simulation linear optimizedproduction increased production by11.9%.The project can be used as a reference for small and medium garment manufacturers how toarrange the production aspects, distribution staff in the lines, and can help the manufacturers toimprove their responsiveness to rapid the market’s demand, and enhance the competitiveness ofChina’s garment manufacturing industry.