Equipment Investment Decision Analysis in CellularManufacturing

Abstract

Cellular manufacturing is the organisation of manufacturing equipment based on the requirements of the product or component. Transition to cellular manufacturing generally requires reorganisation of existing equipment. It is likely that the existing equipment alone is not suitable for a cellular layout. During the cell planning and design phase equipment investment analysis is important to identify equipment needs. Transition from job shop production to cellular production is detailed. Cell formation and cell evaluation techniques are provided to assist in equipment procurement decisions. In particular, a structured procedure and analytical tools are given to evaluate fully the cellular system to identify appropriate equipment and methods. A case example is provided to explain the procedure.