Incorporation of part complexity into system scalability for flexible/reconfigurable systems

Use of scalable systems is one of the most sought-after solutions to the prompt and economic development of varying products. These systems allow manufacturing of the products at a fixed throughput and can be upgraded for a larger throughput with negligible loss in lead time by having the capability to produce a wide range of complex products. When existing production requirements are changed, number of stages as well as machines per stage need to be changed accordingly. Conventional techniques generally focus on the increase/decrease of machines per stage while keeping number of stages unchanged. Also, certain parameters of product complexity directly influence the stage requirements. These factors, when encompassed in a production setup, will not only improve lead time but also reduce potential complications associated with complex parts. In this article, a mathematical model that encompasses the product complexity in the system scalability with variable number of stages is proposed. A case study is presented to show the capabilities of the proposed model. Comparison of our model with the existing ones for complexity computation show that for a set of products with increasing level of complexity, our model provides a set of incrementally higher values where other models become stagnant or sometimes even show decay in values. Also, the system and machine level changes required for each product based on stage time, number of features, and other associated attributes, are generated. The model can not only be used as a complexity modeling tool for a range of products for managers and designers but also provide details on the stage/machine level requirements for changing products.