Electronic manufacturing cell design using PC-based modeling and simulation tools

The authors describe the design of a high volume circuit board manufacturing cell using a set of PC-based modeling and simulation tools. The approach allowed design, modeling, and evaluation of the cell in a short time frame. The analysis consisted of six different steps. Rough cut analysis narrowed down the range of important decision variables in the operations of the cell. The analysis was performed using MANUPLAN II, a rapid modeling tool based on queuing theory. This tool was also used to perform a sensitivity analysis of the effect of breakdown factors. Simulation of the critical areas of the cell made it possible to fine-tune the buffer sizes and the number of machines. The simulation was performed using SIMAN, different layout alternatives were generated with MAC DRAW, and cost analysis was performed with EXCEL. Multiattribute variate analysis was used to rate qualitative and quantitative factors to compare different alternatives