Line Balancing in Production Management

Module 6: Line Balancing

• The objective of line balancing is to minimize the imbalance between machines or personnel while meeting the required output.
• Strategies for balancing the production line load:
  • Start with the precedence relationships
  • Determine the cycle time
  • Calculate the theoretical minimum number of workstations
  • Balance the line by assigning specific tasks to workstations
• Line-balancing heuristics: used to find the solution by gathering tasks, sequencing, and assembly times for making the electrostatic wing component.
• Measuring the efficiency of line balancing: to evaluate the effectiveness of the line balancing strategy.

Module 7: Factors in Choosing Facility Location

• Factors to consider in facility location:
  • Proximity to customers and suppliers
  • Business climate
  • Total costs
  • Infrastructure
  • Quality of labor
  • Suppliers
  • Other facilities
  • Free trade zones
  • Political risk
  • Government barriers
  • Trading blocs
  • Environmental regulation
  • Host community
  • Competitive advantage

Module 8: Locational Break-Even Analysis

• Locational break-even analysis: a method of cost-volume analysis used for industrial locations.
• Three steps in the method:
  1. Determine fixed and variable costs for each location.
  2. Plot the cost for each location.
  3. Select the location with the lowest total cost for the expected production volume.
• Formula: Total Cost = Fixed Cost + (Variable Cost x Volume)
• Example: John Kros, owner of Carolina Ignitions Manufacturing, needs to expand capacity and is considering three locations – Akron, Bowling Green, and Chicago – for a new plant.

Module 9: Factor Rating Method

• Criteria used to evaluate sourcing locations:
  • The factor-rating method is used to evaluate outsourcing.
  • It instills objectivity into the process of identifying hard-to-evaluate costs.
• Steps in developing a factor-rating method:
  1. Develop a list of relevant factors called key success factors (KSF).
  2. Assign a weight to each factor reflecting its relative importance.
  3. Develop a scale for each factor.
  4. Management to score each factor.
  5. Multiply the score to its weight and get the total.
  6. Make a recommendation.

Module 10: Centroid Method

• The centroid method is a technique for locating single facilities that considers the existing facilities, the distance between them, and the volumes of goods to be shipped.
• Formula: Cx = ∑ dixVi / ∑Vi, Cy = ∑diyVi / ∑Vi
• Example: Hi-octane Refinery Company needs to locate an intermediate holding facility between its refining plant in Long Beach and its major distributors.
• The centroid method finds the location of the distribution center that minimizes distribution costs.
• It considers the location of markets, the volume of goods shipped to those markets, and the shipping cost (or distance).