The effects of routing flexibility on a flexible manufacturing system

There are generally eight common types of flexibility in manufacturing, and routing flexibility is one of them. As implementing routing flexibility is an expensive proposition, many system designers have therefore aimed at providing the optimum level of flexibility under certain operating conditions. This paper presents a framework based on a Taguchi experimental design for studying the effects of different levels of routing flexibility on the performance of a flexible manufacturing system. The system performances considered are makespan, lead time, and machine utilization. Other factors that will affect the system performance are also investigated, such as product mix, production volume, and random machine failure.