Increasing Effectiveness of Manufacturing Facilities by Using Simulation Programs to Evaluate Facility Layout

Due to increasing costs and tougher competition, manufacturing companies need to increase the overall efficiency of their production operations. In the past, great emphasis has been placed on inventory control and production scheduling in order to increase efficiency. Although this has proved to be profitable to many companies, there are still many more opportunities for increasing efficiency that are being overlooked. One of the opportunities that has been overlooked in the past is the facilities layout evaluation process. In the past few years, companies have started to realize that the first step, facility planning, plays an important role in the manufacturing process. A good facility layout affects all phases of operation, and when properly installed; production is increased, costs are reduced, employee morale is raised, and management control is simplified. Research shows that companies are becoming aware of the importance of facility planning, but they are lacking a systematic approach to enhance facility planning. This thesis is about a systematic approach to facilities planning using simulation programs and network analysis techniques in order to enhance the design of manufacturing facilities. It will consist of an evaluation process that will take into consideration the entire manufacturing network, the simulation process used to determine the optimal facility layout, and the verification of results and options available to the company. By using this approach, companies should find that greater efficiency can be achieved, changes can be implemented more easily, and overall production will be enhanced