Mastering Complexity with Autonomous Production Processes

For the consolidation and improvement of a companies market position it is necessary to master the increased complexity of production processes with suitable methods. This paper will examine whether and how far autonomous production processes are suitable to master the complexity of production processes. The paper starts with an introduction of the problem definition followed by an explanation of theoretical foundations of complexity in production, autonomy and cyber-physical production systems. In addition, selected already existing methods to master complexity are presented. The second part of the paper starts with an introduction into measuring the degree of autonomy in production processes which is the basis for the following simulation-based analysis. Afterwards, the simulation environment is presented. The third chapter is about the experimental analysis of the presented research question. Therefor, the experimental set up and the implementation are presented. The paper ends with an outlook on further evaluation activities. (C) 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.