Optimal 3D layout of industrial facilities

Facilities layout is concerned with the spatial arrangement of a set of departments or equipment items. This is an important stage at the design level, which often results in a complex problem due to the high number of decisions involved. A Mixed Integer Linear Programming (MILP) formulation, for the optimal layout of facilities within a two-dimensional (2D) continuous space has been developed (Barbosa-Povoa et al. 2001). In this paper, the proposed model is extended to account for the location of equipment units within a 3D multi-floor continuous space. Different topological characteristics are considered such as equipment items orientation, distance restrictions, equipment connectivity inputs and outputs, rectangular and irregular equipment shapes, space availability and multifloor locations. In operational terms, production or operational sections are modelled as well as safety and operability restrictions. The final model is again described as a MILP where binary variables characterize topological choices and continuous variables describe the distances and locations involved. Finally, the applicability of the proposed formulation is shown through the resolution of a set of representative examples exploring the different model characteristics.