Operations Management

Dr. TRAN QUYNH LE

Industrial Systems Engineering Department
Mechanical Engineering Faculty
Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology (HCMUT)–
VNUHCM
CHAPTER 6: PROCESS SELECTION AND FACILITY
LAYOUT

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 LEARNING OUTCOME
After completing this chapter, you should be able to:

• Explain the strategic importance of process selection and the influence it has on
the organization and its supply chain.

• Name the two main factors that influence process selection.

• Compare the four basic processing types.

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 LEARNING OUTCOME
After completing this chapter, you should be able to:

• List some reasons for redesign of layouts.

• Describe product layouts and their main advantages and disadvantages.

• Describe process layouts and their main advantages and disadvantages.

• Solve simple line-balancing problems.

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 6.1 INTRODUCTION
Process selection and capacity planning influence system design

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 6.1 INTRODUCTION
• Process selection refers to deciding on the way production of goods or services
will be organized.

• It has major implications for capacity planning, layout of facilities, equipment, and
design of work systems.

• Forecasts, product and service design, and technological considerations all

influence capacity planning and process selection.

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 6.1 INTRODUCTION
• How an organization approaches process selection is determined by the
organization’s process strategy. Key aspects include:

✓ Capital Intensity: The mix of equipment and labor that will be used by the
organization.

✓ Process Flexibility: The degree to which the system can be adjusted to

changes in processing requirements

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 6.2 PROCESS SELECTION
• The two key questions in process selection are:

✓ How much variety will the process need to be able to handle?

✓ How much volume will the process need to be able to handle?
• Process Types:

✓ Job Shop
✓ Batch
✓ Repetitive
✓ Continuous
✓ Project
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6.2 PROCESS SELECTION

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 6.2 PROCESS SELECTION
• Job Shop

✓ Relatively small scale

✓ Low volume of high-variety goods or services

✓ Processing is intermittent
✓ High flexibility of equipment
✓ Manufacturing example: A tool and die shop that is able to produce one-of-a-
kind tools.

✓ Service example: A veterinarian’s office, which is able to process a variety of

animals and a variety of injuries and diseases.

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 6.2 PROCESS SELECTION
• Batch

✓ Moderate volume of moderate variety products or services.

✓ The equipment need not be as flexible as in a job shop, but processing is still
intermittent.

✓ The skill level of workers doesn’t need to be as high as in a job shop because
there is less variety in the jobs being processed.

✓ Manufacturing example: Bakeries, which make bread, cakes, or cookies in

batches

✓ Service example: Movie theaters, which show movies to groups (batches) of

people, and airlines, which carry planeloads (batches) of people from airport
to airport.

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 6.2 PROCESS SELECTION
• Repetitive

✓ Higher volumes of more standardized goods or services

✓ Slight flexibility of equipment

✓ Skill of workers is generally low.
✓ Manufacturing example: Automobiles, television sets, pencils, and
computers.

✓ Service example: Automatic carwash, cafeteria lines and ticket collectors at

sports events and concerts.

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 6.2 PROCESS SELECTION
• Continuous

✓ Very high volume of nondiscrete, highly standardized output is desired

✓ No variety in output
✓ No need for equipment flexibility.
✓ Manufacturing example: Petroleum products, steel, sugar, flour, and salt.
✓ Service example: Air monitoring, supplying electricity to homes and
businesses, and the Internet.

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 6.2 PROCESS SELECTION
• Compare the four basic processing types

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 6.2 PROCESS SELECTION

• Compare the four basic processing types

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 6.2 PROCESS SELECTION
• Process choice affects numerous activities/functions

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 6.2 PROCESS SELECTION
• Project

✓ Nonroutine work
✓ Unique set of objectives
✓ Limited time frame
✓ Equipment flexibility and worker skills can range from low to high.
✓ Example: Consulting, making a motion picture, launching a new product or
service, publishing a book, building a dam, and building a bridge.

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6.5 FACILITIES LAYOUT
• Layout refers to the configuration of departments, work
centers, and equipment, with particular emphasis on
movement of work (customers or materials) through
the system.

• Layout decisions are important for three basic reasons:

✓ require substantial investments of money and

effort;

✓ involve long-term commitments, which makes

mistakes difficult to overcome; and

✓ have a significant impact on the cost and

efficiency of operations.

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 AIC- 5’

• What are the objectives of layout design?

• When is it necessary to re-arrange the layout?

• What input information is included in the layout design?

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 6.5 FACILITIES LAYOUT
• The basic objective of layout design:

✓ To facilitate attainment of product/service quality.

✓ To use workers and space efficiently.
✓ To avoid bottlenecks.
✓ To minimize material handling costs.
✓ To eliminate unnecessary movements of workers or materials.
✓ To minimize production time or customer service time.
✓ To design for safety.
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 6.5 FACILITIES LAYOUT
• The most common reasons for redesign of layouts include:

✓ Inefficient operations (e.G., High cost, bottlenecks),

✓ Accidents or safety hazards,
✓ Changes in the design of products or services,
✓ Introduction of new products or services
✓ Changes in the volume of output or mix of outputs, changes in methods or
equipment, changes in environmental

✓ Or other legal requirements, and morale problems (e.G., Lack of face-to-

face contact).

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6.5 FACILITIES LAYOUT

Products
information

Production
Layout
process
information design

Resources
information

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 6.5 FACILITIES LAYOUT
• The three basic types of layout are product, process, and fixed-position.

✓ Product layouts are most conducive to repetitive processing

✓ Process layouts are used for intermittent processing
✓ Fixed-position layouts are used when projects require layouts

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Repetitive and Continuous Processing: Product Layouts

• Product layout: Layout that uses standardized processing operations to achieve

smooth, rapid, high-volume flow.

A flow line for production

Cafeteria line

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Repetitive and Continuous Processing: Product Layouts

Labor

Work flow

Raw materials

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Repetitive and Continuous Processing: Product Layouts

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Repetitive and Continuous Processing: Product Layouts

Advantages Disadvantages

• High rate of output • Morale problems and to repetitive

• Low unit cost due to high volume stress injuries.
• Labor specialization • Lack of maintaining equipment or
• Low material-handling cost per unit quality of output.
• A high utilization of labor and • Inflexible for output or design
equipment • Highly susceptible to shutdowns
• The establishment of routing and • A high utilization of labor and
scheduling in the initial design of the equipment
system • Preventive maintenance, the capacity
• Fairly routine accounting, purchasing, for quick repairs, and spare-parts
and inventory control inventories are necessary expenses
• Incentive plans tied to individual output
are impractical

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Repetitive and Continuous Processing: Product Layouts
• U-Shaped Layouts

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Intermittent Processing: Process Layouts
• Process layouts are designed to process items or provide services that involve a
variety of processing requirements.

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Intermittent Processing: Process Layouts

Work station/
machine

Labor

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Intermittent Processing: Process Layouts

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Intermittent Processing: Process Layouts

Advantages Disadvantages

• Handle a variety of processing • In-process inventory costs can be high

requirements • Routing and scheduling pose continual
• Not vulnerable to equipment failures challenges
• General-purpose equipment is less costly • Equipment utilization rates are low
and is easier and less costly to maintain • Material handling is slow and inefficient,
• Possible to use individual incentive and more costly per unit
systems • Job complexities reduce the span of
supervision and result higher supervisory
costs
• Special attention necessary for each
product or customer and low volumes
result in higher unit costs
• Accounting, inventory control, and
purchasing are much more involved

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Fixed-Position Layouts
• In fixed-position layouts, the item being worked on remains stationary, and
workers, materials, and equipment are moved about as needed.

• Fixed-position layouts are widely used in farming, firefighting, road building,

home building, remodeling and repair, and drilling for oil. In each case,
compelling reasons bring workers, materials, and equipment to the “product’s”
location instead of the other way around.

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Combination Layouts
• Supermarket layouts are essentially process layouts, yet we find that most use
fixed-path material-handling devices such as roller-type conveyors in the
stockroom and belt-type conveyors at the cash registers.

• Hospitals also use the basic process arrangement, although frequently patient
care involves more of a fixed-position approach, in which nurses, doctors,
medicines, and special equipment are brought to the patient.

• Faulty parts made in a product layout may require off-line reworking, which
involves customized processing. Moreover, conveyors are frequently observed
in both farming and construction activities.

• Cellular manufacturing - Group technology

• Flexible manufacturing systems

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Cellular Layouts
• Cellular production Layout in which workstations are grouped into a cell that can
process items that have similar processing requirements.

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Cellular Layouts
• A comparison of functional (process) layouts and cellular layouts

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6.6 DESIGNING PRODUCT LAYOUTS:LINE BALANCING
• Line Balancing is the process of assigning tasks to workstations in such a way
that the workstations have approximately equal time requirements.

• (Desired) Cycle time is the maximum time allowed at each workstation to

complete its set of tasks on a unit.

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6.6 DESIGNING PRODUCT LAYOUTS:LINE BALANCING

𝑂𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑝𝑒𝑟 𝑑𝑎𝑦

𝑂𝑢𝑡𝑝𝑢𝑡 𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑒 =
𝐷𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝐶𝑦𝑐𝑙𝑒 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒

• Assume that the line will operate for eight hours per day (480 minutes). With a
(𝐷𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑑) cycle time of 1.0 minute, output would be
𝑂𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑝𝑒𝑟 𝑑𝑎𝑦 480
𝑂𝑢𝑡𝑝𝑢𝑡 𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑒 = = = 480 𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑠 𝑝𝑒𝑟 𝑑𝑎𝑦
(𝐷𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑑)𝐶𝑦𝑐𝑙𝑒 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 1

• With a (𝐷𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑑) cycle time of 2.5 minutes, the output would be

𝑂𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑝𝑒𝑟 𝑑𝑎𝑦 480
𝑂𝑢𝑡𝑝𝑢𝑡 𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑒 = = = 192 𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑠 𝑝𝑒𝑟 𝑑𝑎𝑦
𝐷𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝐶𝑦𝑐𝑙𝑒 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 2.5

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6.6 DESIGNING PRODUCT LAYOUTS:LINE BALANCING

𝑂𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑝𝑒𝑟 𝑑𝑎𝑦

(𝐷𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑑)𝐶𝑦𝑐𝑙𝑒 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 =
𝐷𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝑜𝑢𝑡𝑝𝑢𝑡 𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑒

• For example, suppose that the desired output rate is 480 units, the necessary
cycle time is
𝑂𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑝𝑒𝑟 𝑑𝑎𝑦 480
(𝐷𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑑) 𝐶𝑦𝑐𝑙𝑒 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 = = = 1 𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑢𝑡𝑒 𝑝𝑒𝑟 𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑡
𝐷𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝑜𝑢𝑡𝑝𝑢𝑡 𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑒 480

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6.6 DESIGNING PRODUCT LAYOUTS:LINE BALANCING
σ𝑡 σ𝑡
𝑁𝑚𝑖𝑛 = 𝑁𝑚𝑖𝑛 =
𝐷𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝐶𝑦𝑐𝑙𝑒 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑇𝑎𝑘𝑡 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒
where

• 𝑁𝑚𝑖𝑛 = Theoretical minimum number of stations

• σ 𝑡 = Sum of task times

Suppose the desired rate of output is the maximum of 480 units per day. (This will require a
desired cycle time of 1.0 minute.) The minimum number of stations required to achieve this goal
is:

σ𝑡 2.5
𝑁𝑚𝑖𝑛 = = = 2.5 𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 => 3 stations
𝑇𝑎𝑘𝑡 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 1

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Line Balancing Procedure
1. Determine the desired cycle time and the minimum number of workstations.
2. Make assignments to workstations in order, beginning with Station 1. Tasks are assigned to
workstations moving from left to right through the precedence diagram.
3. Before each assignment, use the following criteria to determine which tasks are eligible to be
assigned to a workstation:
a. All preceding tasks in the sequence have been assigned.
b. The task time does not exceed the time remaining at the workstation.
If no tasks are eligible, move on to the next workstation.
4. After each task assignment, determine the time remaining at the current workstation by subtracting
the sum of times for tasks already assigned to it from the cycle time.
5. Break ties that occur using one of these rules:
a. Assign the task with the longest task time.
b. Assign the task with the greatest number of followers.
If there is still a tie, choose one task arbitrarily.
6. Continue until all tasks have been assigned to workstations.
7. Compute appropriate measures (e.g., percent idle time, efficiency) for the set of assignments.
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Line Balancing Procedure
Example
Arrange the tasks shown in figure into three workstations. Use a desired cycle time
of 1.0 minute. Assign tasks in order of the most number of followers.

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Line Balancing

𝐼𝑑𝑙𝑒 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑝𝑒𝑟 𝑐𝑦𝑐𝑙𝑒

𝑃𝑒𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑔𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑑𝑙𝑒 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 = × 100
𝑁𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑢𝑎𝑙 × 𝐴𝑐𝑡𝑢𝑎𝑙 𝐶𝑦𝑐𝑙𝑒 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒

𝑇𝑎𝑘𝑡 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒

𝐸𝑓𝑓𝑖𝑐𝑖𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑦 = 100% − 𝑃𝑒𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑖𝑑𝑙𝑒 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒

𝑁𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑢𝑎𝑙 × 𝐴𝑐𝑡𝑢𝑎𝑙 𝑐𝑦𝑐𝑙𝑒 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 − 𝐼𝑑𝑙𝑒 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒

𝐸𝑓𝑓𝑖𝑐𝑖𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑦 = × 100
𝑁𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑢𝑎𝑙 × 𝐴𝑐𝑡𝑢𝑎𝑙 𝐶𝑦𝑐𝑙𝑒 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒

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Line Balancing Procedure
Example
Using the information contained in the table shown, do each of the
following:
1. Draw a precedence diagram.
2. Assuming an eight-hour workday, compute the cycle time needed
to obtain an output of 400 units per day.
3. Determine the minimum number of workstations required.
4. Assign tasks to workstations using this rule: Assign tasks
according to greatest number of following tasks. In case of a tie, use
the tiebreaker of assigning the task with the longest processing time
first.
5. Compute the resulting percent idle time and efficiency of the
system.

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Line Balancing Procedure
Example
1. Drawing a precedence diagram is a relatively straightforward task. Begin with activities with no
predecessors. We see from the list that tasks a and c do not have predecessors. We build from here.

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Line Balancing Procedure
Example

4. Beginning with station 1, make assignments following this procedure: Determine from the
precedence diagram which tasks are eligible for assignment. Then determine which of the
eligible tasks will fit the time remaining for the station. Use the tiebreaker if necessary.
Once a task has been assigned, remove it from consideration. When a station cannot take
any more assignments, go on to the next station. Continue until all tasks have been assigned

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Line Balancing Procedure
Example
4 .

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Line Balancing Procedure
Example
4. These assignments are shown in the following diagram. Note: One should not expect that heuristic
approaches will always produce optimal solutions; they merely provide a practical way to deal with
complex problems that may not lend themselves to optimizing techniques. Moreover, different heuristics
often yield different answers. Note, though, that when the Nmin number of stations is used, the
efficiency cannot be improved.

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Line Balancing Procedure
Example
5.

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