Simulation of bottleneck operations using concurrent engineering

When parts cease to move in a work center, the size of the queue begins to grow. This kind of queuing is dreaded by every one in the plant. The concept of concurrent engineering is introduced to reduce the number of queues and their sizes by improving the production throughput. Concurrent engineering is one of the best tools to reduce the lead time and to improve process efficiency. To reduce the process set-up time, the operation type and process capacity must be considered.; Most companies are implementing concurrent engineering concept to stay abreast or ahead of the whirl wind changes in today's competitive market. When the demand exceeds the capacity of the certain process, bottleneck is formed. Even temporary bottlenecks can create major problems if they persist for long periods. To maintain output volume and to meet the due dates, bottlenecks should be avoided in the process. In this study, the concurrent engineering team concept is used to solve bottlenecks assuming the product type, the production process, the production time table, and the production volume required are known in advance. With the help of this study and a work procedure called 'One-Touch' the set-up time is reduced for the given process.; This study also considered a production process which was simulated using SIMFACTORY/SIMPROCESS to resolve the bottleneck. The approach utilizes the concurrent engineering concept applied to simulation. The results from the simulation run show the changes occurred when the set-up time was reduced for the machine or operation. Using the concurrent engineering approach a significant reduction in setup time and improved throughput is experienced through out the process.