Flexible and Agile Manufacturing

system
The future of manufacturing lies in being flexible and smart – in being
capable of fast adaption to a wide variety of changing conditions, such as
production volumes, and creating customized and new products with
shorter lifecycles.
• Agile production integrates flexible processes, resources and material
flows – all the physical activities at every production or service step on the
value network.
• The information flows start from the first customer contact to design,
planning, supply and manufacturing between actors of the value network,
to delivery and services.
• Automation, robotics and human technology interaction are the key
aspects towards customer responsiveness, productivity and sustainability.
• There are generally four stages in the
historical development of the manufacturing
methods:
• The stages are :
• Craft-style production
• Mass production
• lean production
• Agile manufacturing
 What Is Flexible Manufacturing System?
• A flexible manufacturing system (FMS) can be defined as a computer-controlled
configuration of semi-independent work stations and a material handling
system designed to efficiently manufacture more than one type of style at low
to medium volumes. The number of machines in this system typically ranges
from 2-20. In an ideal flexible manufacturing system ,there is always a work
piece waiting on the queue to be processed when a machine becomes idle.
• There are three essential physical components of FMS:
 Standard numerically-controlled machine tools;
 A conveyance network to move parts and perhaps tools between machines and
fixturing stations.
 An overall control system that coordinates the machine tools, the part-moving
elements and the work-pieces.
The conveyance system may consist of either carousel, conveyor, or cart, or a
combination of these.
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• In manufacturing system flexibility refers to the capability of producing
different parts without major retooling and it is a measure of how fast the
company converts its process from making an old line of products to
produce a new product.
• Flexibility is the ability to change a production schedule, to change a part,
or to handle multiple parts.
• Flexible manufacturing systems are technologies that combine the
benefits of both computers and numerical control machine tools.
The concept of flexible manufacturing systems grew during the 1960's
when robots, programmable controllers, and computerized numerical
controls brought an environment to the factory floor in the form of
numerically-controlled and direct-numerically-controlled machines. It was
initially defined as a manufacturing system's ability to respond to changes
in customer requirements without penalizing, cost, time effort and
performance to any great degree.
• Browne et al., 1984 defines flexibility in manufacturing system as an
integrated computer-controlled system with automated material handling
devices and CNC machine-tools and which can be used to simultaneously
process a medium-sized volume of a variety of parts.
 There are three abilities that a manufacturing system must retain in
order to be flexible:

• The ability to identify and distinguish among different incoming part or

product styles processed by the system.
• Quick changeover of operating instructions.
• Quick changeover of physical setup.
Goals Of Flexible Manufacturing System

To shorten the throughput time

To decrease in process inventory

To balance the workload of each machines

and make good use of bottleneck operations.

Reducing the resource requirements in

material flow for avoiding deadlock
CLASSIFICATION OF
FLEXIBLE
MANUFACTURING
SYSTEM
FMS
Flexible manufacturing
systems can be broadly
classified into various
types which is given in Based on kind Based on Based on level
the figure aside. of operation number of m/c of flexibility
Based on number of m/c
it is further classified
into:
Processing Assembly Dedicated Random Over
• Single Machine
Cell.
• Flexible
Manufacturing Cell.
• Flexible
Manufacturing
System
PROCESS OPERATION
It performs activities on a given job
either by converting it from one
shape to another until the shape of
final product is achieved or it
enhances the significance of the
product by altering its geometry,
features or appearance of the raw
materials, i.e. basically
constructing a garment from raw
materials by undergoing processes
like pattern making, marker
planning, cutting, stitching, fusing,
finishing and packaging.
ASSEMBLY
OPERATION

It is basically the
amalgamation of two or
more sub-assemblies to
make a new component.
Assembly operation is the
subset of process
operation.
From the figure alongside
we can see clockwise that,
side seam, sleeve hem,
button hem and label
attachments are done.
• Single machine cell, consists of
completely automated machines of
same kind which are capable of
performing unattended operations
within a time period lengthier than
one complete machine cycle (cycle
time).
• Flexible Manufacturing cell, entails
2-3 dispensing workstations and a
material handling system. The
material handling system is linked to
a load/unload station.
• Flexible Manufacturing system, has
4 or more processing work stations
connected mechanically by a
common handling system and
automatically by a distributed
computer system. It also includes
non-processing work stations that
support production but do not
directly participate in it e.g. washing
DEDICATED FMS
It is used to produce
a certain variety of
fixed styles with a
certain amount of
process
specialization to
make the operation
more efficient. The
decision tree depicted
below illustrates the
decision-making in
case of dedicated
FMS.
RANDON ORDER FMS
It is able to handle the
substantial variations in part
configurations. A random order
FMS is capable of processing
parts that have a higher degree
of complexity. To accommodate
these complexity and
substantial variations, a random
order FMS is considered to be
more flexible than the
dedicated FMS. Eg: Modular
production system.
 WORK FLOW OF FLEXIBLE MANUFACTURING
SYSTEM
• Work flow in FMS is continuous and it produces minimum wastage. In most FMS
installations incoming raw material work-pieces are fixed onto a pallet at a load
station set apart from the machine tools. The work-pieces and pallets then move
via the material handling system to queues at the production machines where they
are processed. The flow of parts in this system is directed by the control computer
which acts as the traffic coordinator. Depending upon the sequence of operations
involved in the production of a particular style of garment and the time required
for completion of each operation a module could be divided into many work
zones and this work zones are then further classified into a group of sequential
garment operations; thereby providing the operators a flexibility to move from
one operation to another as the garment progresses. Work flow in a flexible
manufacturing system are basically of 3 types:
• 1. Single-piece hand off (Here the team works with one garment piece at a time).
• 2. Kanban (balancing demand & supply).
• 3. Bump-Back Approach (flexible work zones & cross trained operators).
 LINE
DIFFERENT LAYOUT OF
FLEXIBLE
MANUFACTURING
SYSTEM
LOOP

Different layout
of flexible CAROUSEL
manufacturing LAYOUT OF FMS
systems can be
broadly classified LADDER TYPE
into various types
which is given in ROBOT CENTRED
the figure aside. CELL

OPEN FIELD
The LOOP LAYOUT uses conveyor systems that allow unidirectional flow of parts
around the loop. A secondary material handling system is provided at a workstation
which permits the flow of parts without any obstruction. The primary advantage is it
requires lower floor-space.
In LINE LAYOUT, the machines are arranged in a single straight line and the
movement of automated guided vehicle is very swift and efficient. The primary dis-
advantage is that it requires comparatively higher floor-space than loop layout.
In the Carousel layout configuration, parts flow in one direction
around the loop. The load and unload stations are placed at one end of
loop.
Ladder type layout, consists of rungs on which workstations are located for
which the average travel distance and the transfer time between workstations
gets reduced
In robot centred
cell layout, a
handling robot is
used and the
machines are laid
out in a circle. This
type of layout is
also called circular
layout.
Open field layout, is
basically a modified
loop layout, as it
consists of loops and
ladders organized to
achieve the desired
processing requirements.
Here the number of
different machines may
be limited; but the parts
are routed to different
workstations depending
on availability of
machines.
 Lowers lead Can handle rapid
time & WIP market changes SYSTEM
FACTURING
Through-put
MANU-
Reduces labor by time reduces by FLEXIBLE
30 % 40% OF
ADVANTAGES
Low scrap High
gene-ration Flexibility
 High amount of
Automation is
investment in
difficult SYSTEM
training FACTURING
MANU-
Rate of
FLEXIBLE
Undefined
production is factory setup
OF
low-medium ADVANTAGES
DIS-
Reduces m/c
Low equipment utilization by
ROI 30%
Agile Manufacturing
• Business are witnessing unprecedented changes today. New
Products, new processes, new technologies, new markets,
and even new competitors are appearing and disappearing
within short periods of time. Historically, mass production has
evolved into lean production.
• Now lean production is evolving into agile manufacturing.
Until the 1950s companies focused on productivity
improvement and in the 60s and 70s they concentrated on
quality enhancement. In the eighties, while companies
worked hard to achieve flexibility, in the 90s they are
challenged by the need to increase agility.
• Agile manufacturing is a term applied to an organization that
has created the processes, tools, and training to enable it to
respond quickly to customer needs and market changes while
still controlling costs and quality. It's mostly related to lean
manufacturing.
 Four Key Elements For Agile Manufacturing

• Modular Product Design: designing products in a modular

fashion that enables them to serve as platforms for fast and
easy variation.
• Information Technology: automating the rapid dissemination
of information throughout the company to enable lightning
fast response to orders.
• Corporate Partners: creating virtual short-term alliances with
other companies that enable improved time-to-market for
selected product segments.
• Knowledge Culture : investing in employee training to achieve
a culture that supports rapid change and ongoing adaptation.
• LEAN VS AGILE MAUFACTURING:
• Lean Manufacturing: It is called as Toyota
production model. Basically, its philosophy is
to avoid any kind of waste.
• Agile Manufacturing: It is a kind of service to
respond sudden changes, divisions and
changing demands in the global market.
 Why we need Agile Manufacturing?
• Global competition is intensifying. Mass markets are
fragmenting into niche market. Cooperation among
companies is becoming necessary, including companies who
are indirect competition with each other. Customers are
expecting: Low volume products, High quality products, Very
short product lifecycle , development times and production
lead time are required.
 Process of Agile manufacturing:
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g/
 Advantages
• Customer Focused Product Design - In today’s market, consumers are looking for
• products that they believe are the best quality. Agile enables manufacturers to build the
• best consumer-based product while also keeping up with a varying demand.
• Connected IT - Through utilization of an integrated system, the system is able to stay
• efficient and on time. This feature requires accurate data and information, which permits
• the system to be able to make quick decisions and keep production flowing.
• Cooperation within Supply Chain - Keeping a steady flow of information throughout
• the entire supply chain will ensure production to reach full potential. This can be done
• through sharing consumer information with various external areas of the supply chain
• such as suppliers. This enables your entire supply chain to be able to align with consumer
• demand.
 Disadvantages
• Limited Resource Planning - Agile manufacturing operations are unclear of the end
• results of their production. This makes it extremely challenging to account for
• resources, cost, time, and various other factors of the production process. Therefore,
• agile is limiting in the amount insight within resource planning.
• Measuring Difficulties - Tracking the progress within agile is challenging, mainly
• because of the same reasons as resource planning. Agile manufacturing is unclear of a
• end result, which makes it nearly impossible to track overall production progress.
• Poor Output - Although incremental delivery may bring products to the market at a
• much quicker pace, it also puts operations at a rather large disadvantage. As the cycles
• vary, teams are unable to deliver output in one complete unit, leaving the output to be
• fragmented.
 Key principles of Agile Manufacturing:
1. Iterate Faster
The idea of delivering smaller pieces of value more frequently is central to
Agile Manufacturing.
Rather than attempting to design a single, perfect product in one go, the
objective is to rapidly produce multiple versions.
Each iteration, with its flaws and strengths, reveals new insights that make it
possible to improve the process.
As the process improves, each new version of the product surpasses the
previous.
Why does this incremental, iterative method result in a superior result?
Because process engineers deal with many variables. Iterations allow
them to test different solutions, and gather data on individual variables.
Without this data, it is difficult to determine which changes are necessary
at a given stage to optimize production.
2. Flexibility
In order not to bend under external forces,
manufacturing companies need to have flexible systems.
Their internal structure needs to be dynamic enough to
rebound quickly from external disruptions. Agile
manufacturers are aware that environmental factors –
economic, political, environmental, social, technological
– require them to constantly stay on their toes. They
make sure that every component of their system can
grow organically and adapt to changes.
3. Bottom-Up
• For decades, goals and directives have passed from the top of the
organization, to the bottom. The top-down approach has its advantages,
such as the quick implementation of decisions taken by upper levels of a
company. However, this comes at a cost. Employees at the bottom can feel
disconnected and disengaged. Low engagement can discourage
accountability and innovation.
• Agile manufacturers favor a bottom-up approach, in which ideas and
directives flow seamlessly between all layers of the company. With this
approach, directors and managers give operators and shop floor workers a
voice. Agile Manufacturing supports the idea that those closest to
manufacturing challenges understand them best. The more operators,
engineers, managers, and business executives collaborate, the more
effective operations will be as a whole. Collaboration across functions and
seniority levels yields higher value products and processes.
4. Augmentation
• Augmentation is best understood in contrast to automation.
Automation consists of automating workers’ tasks – in other words,
of replacing workers by machines. Augmentation, on the other
hand, enhances workers’ capabilities through technology.
• For years, automation was considered the solution to high labor
costs and human error in the factory. Yet automation is also
expensive, difficult to maintain, and inflexible.
• Agile manufacturing argues that humans will perform best if they
have tools that enable them to evolve their work. From computer-
vision assisted quality checks to error-proofing work instructions,
Agile manufacturers use technology to help their people do more
work, better.
• LEAN VS AGILE MAUFACTURING:
• Lean Manufacturing: It is called as Toyota
production model. Basically, its philosophy is
to avoid any kind of waste.
• Agile Manufacturing: It is a kind of service to
respond sudden changes, divisions and
changing demands in the global market.
• The Lean and Agile approaches are both wildly
popular. However, they should not be confused. On
the one hand, Lean Manufacturing is focused on
increasing efficiency by reducing waste. On the
other hand, Agile Manufacturing aims to increase
efficiency via flexible, parallel problem solving.
• While some of the ideas of Lean Manufacturing and
Agile Manufacturing overlap, the fundamental
principles are different.