Successful implementation of an order release mechanism based on workload control: a case study of a make-to-stock manufacturer

Abstract

This paper deals with improving the lead-time performance of a large crystal manufacturer that uses a state-of-the-art commercial Enterprise Resource Planning system. Since the company encountered some limitations of the standard production planning and control (PPC) system it sought for improvements by implementing an order release mechanism based on workload control (WLC). WLC employs certain rules for releasing orders in order to maintain a certain level of work in process to achieve a certain utilisation of the production system and thus control the flow times in order to meet the required due dates of the orders. We describe the successful implementation of an order release mechanism based on the WLC concept in this make-to-stock company. The paper describes the implemented order release mechanism, the implementation process and its impact on the company's performance. We show that the core function of WLCthe order release mechanismcan be integrated successfully into an existing PPC system. Furthermore, this study highlights the applicability of WLC to a wider range of companies, especially to make-to-stock manufacturers.

Order release planning with predictive lead times: a machine learning approach

“…Thus, we conclude that this rather simple extension highlights the potential of combining the ANN approach with more sophisticated workload control mechanisms (e.g. Yan et al 2016;Thuerer, Stevenson, and Qu 2016;Hutter, Haeussler, and Missbauer 2018).…”

“…Furthermore, one can also integrate our ANN approach into already implemented workload control mechanisms (e.g. Yan et al 2016;Thuerer, Stevenson, and Qu 2016;Hutter, Haeussler, and Missbauer 2018), i.e. to set more realistic planned release dates.…”

Material handling and order release control in high-variety make-to-order shops: an assessment by simulation

“…Given its importance, a broad literature exists on the performance of order release methods, such as Workload Control, both in practice (e.g. Hendry et al 2013;Silva et al 2015;Perona et al 2016;Huang 2017;Sellitto 2018;Hutter et al 2018) and using simulation (e.g. Portioli-Staudacher and Tantardini 2011;Thürer et al 2012Thürer et al , 2014Thürer et al , 2021Fernandes et al 2016Fernandes et al , 2020Gonzalez-R et al 2018;Haeussler and Netzer 2020).…”

Workload control in additive manufacturing shops where post-processing is a constraint: an assessment by simulation

“…Land & Gaalman, 1998;Perona & Portioli, 1998;Sabuncuoglu & Karapinar, 2000;Cigolini, & Portioli-Staudacher, 2002;Portioli-Staudacher & Tantardini, 2012;Fernandes et al, 2011;Thürer et al, 2012Thürer et al, , 2014Fernandes et al, 2016;Gonzalez-R et al, 2018) and in practice (e.g. Wiendahl, 1992;Bechte 1994;Hendry et al, 2013;Silva et al, 2015;Hutter et al, 2018). These studies highlight the potential of Workload Control in complex high-variety shops meaning it has the potential to provide a solution to the planning and control needs of AM shops.…”