It is difficult to calculate the amount of inventory of intermediate products in a material processing factory which has complex multiple processes. If the amount is too great, inventory assets accumulate. On the other hand, if it is too small, tardiness in due-date is caused and the lead time from accepting order to shipping is extended because demand variation and equipment failure cannot be absorbed. In this report we explain a simulation model is explained and results are shown for comparing complementary amount of intermediate products by computing the flow from allocat-ing intermediate products to orders to shipping.
This paper first describes a two-step method for adjusting equipment load in a materials processing plant having batch annealing furnaces. The first step takes a loading approach, in which delivery date is followed without accounting for the equipment capacity. The second step takes a leveling approach, in which the process time zone and process machines are altered to maximize the production volume and to minimize the work-in-process. The leveling priorities are determined based on the work-in-process and delivery dates of products. This method enables planning for production while minimizing production lead time. This paper second describes a distributed scheduling method. The proposed approach limits the processing time based on result of adjusting equipment load for creating a feasible scheduling. This paper includes the results of a computer experiment conducted to validate the proposed method.
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