Re-balancing problem for assembly lines: new mathematical model and exact solution method
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to develop a new mathematical model and an exact solution method for an assembly line rebalancing problem. When an existing assembly line has to be adapted to a new production context, the line balancing, resources allocation and component management solutions have to be revised. The objective is to minimize the number of modifications to be done in the initial line in order to reduce the time and investment needed to meet new production requirements. The proposed model is evaluated via a computational experiment. The obtained results the efficacy of the proposed method.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper develops a new mathematical model and an exact solution method for an assembly line rebalancing problem with the objective to minimize the number of modifications to be done in the initial line to reduce the time and investments needed to meet new production requirements.
Findings
The computational experiments show the efficacy of the proposed method.
Originality/value
These reconfiguration costs were analysed for different part-feeding policies that can be adopted in an assembly line.
Keywords
Citation
Makssoud, F., Battaïa , O., Dolgui, A., Mpofu, K. and Olabanji, O. (2015), "Re-balancing problem for assembly lines: new mathematical model and exact solution method", Assembly Automation, Vol. 35 No. 1, pp. 16-21. https://doi.org/10.1108/AA-07-2014-061
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2015, Emerald Group Publishing Limited