The Effect of Job Rotation and Single-Piece Flow in Human Based Assembly System
Date
2020-05
Authors
Basavaraj, Priyanka
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Abstract
This research aims in comparing the batch versus single-piece flow systems with
respect to the impact of the operator’s fatigue variation on the throughput and resource
utilization. A predetermined motion study technique, Basic Maynard Operation Sequence
Technique (MOST), is used for establishing the time standards with and without the
influence of fatigue. Simulation experiments are designed to measure throughput, takt time
and operator’s utilization when the system configurations (batching vs. single piece flow) are
subjected to factors such as job rotation frequency and operator’s fatigue index. The fatigue
index is obtained from two different models, such as the Personal Fatigue and Delay (PFD)
and Strain Index (SI). The result of the simulation experiments indicates that single-piece
flow outperforms batch processing in all the scenarios including the models where fatigue is
varied by +/-10%. Based on this result, single-piece flow is further studied to understand the
impact of job rotation on the throughput. The simulation models were designed with various
rotation frequencies, and the analysis shows that frequent job rotations results in higher
throughput. Although the resulting analysis provides an insight to select the appropriate
rotational frequencies in the single-piece flow environment that best fits the needs of the
organizations, research recommends introducing job rotation every time when the operators
returns from break to save the setup time without impacting production.
Description
Keywords
Single-piece flow, Basic MOST, Job-rotation, Simulation
Citation
Basavaraj, P. (2020). <i>The effect of job rotation and single-piece flow in human based assembly system</i> (Unpublished thesis). Texas State University, San Marcos, Texas.