Why is layout planning important




















There are mainly two types of problems associated with facility layout i. Determining the physical arrangement of equipment and machinery of production under an available facility is considered a static layout facility problem. Under this approach, the movements of materials among different work centers as well as the product demand are static or fixed or remain unchanged during the planning stage.

Whereas, in the case of a dynamic facility layout problem, the flow of materials among work centers, keep changing during the planning phase. The layout problem includes the arrangement of all the facilities as a single integrated system. So, usually, a team of specialists handles this. In this problem, there is a limiting factor due to the pre-existence of buildings and services. The problem here is moving the manpower, products, and facilities of an existing company to a new plant that already exists with a basic layout.

This demands shifting to improved practices or methods of planning from the existing old practices. This problem occurs while using the improved and new methods, plans, equipment at the existing facility. This problem generally comes when there are changes in production style or introducing new equipment to modern technology. This problem exists due to different reasons such as operating condition changes, sales volume increase, change in the design of some parts, introducing new equipment, adding the new products of a similar type, or inspection changes.

This ultimately calls for adjustments in different aspects such as workplaces, manpower, and placing material. These types of adjustments are considered the most common types of layout problems. Below are a few reasons that represent the requirement and necessity of redesigning an existing layout:. In order to obtain the desired output level, the layout designed to fulfill the purpose of manufacturing; has to focus mainly on the easy and smooth types of operations. Also, a variety of output and expansions need to be considered equally.

Apart from this, different issues related to safety, productivity, and quality are treated with the utmost importance for ensuring the superior quality of the expected output. So, in the layout development process for operations of manufacturing, the below mention factors are considered:. According to Systematic layout planning as mentioned by Muther, R. Detailed layout: Indicates how different machines and workstations will be arranged in different departments. Block layout: This specifies the size and locations of various departments in the plant building.

While designing a new plant layout, two types of approaches or methods are considered. The first approach or method includes identifying the functional areas that are to be located through a closeness rating. In the second approach, the focal point is the total distance traveled, and to minimize it by people or by materials, different departments are organized. As per the systematic layout planning concept of Richard Muther, below are the steps that can be considered to develop new layouts by a manufacturing concern:.

Relationships: This is considered the desired relative degree of closeness between different things. Space: This includes the shape, type, configuration, or quantity of the things that are being laid out. The above three fundamentals are always considered the main elements of any type of layout planning project, irrespective of its size, processes, and products.

According to the Systematic layout planning, the first step of the layout planning process is to collect Input data and activities. This includes collecting data related to the present setup and information on different subdivisions that are involved in the process.

Different variables in this step include:. Services S : Different support services or additional utilities are also planned and integrated such as inspection areas, locker rooms, and others. Timing T : This includes the time period when the products will be produced and the types of machines to be used during this time period. This is considered the most significant step in layout planning. A progressive flow can be obtained around the involved areas by layout planning near to the sequence of material moves.

To determine the material flow, it is required to chart the flow process i. This stage includes identifying relationships among different product lines.

The activity relationship chart is there to tabulate relationships. To make decisions regarding the relationship ranking that each department has with other departments, the conventional ranking method is used.

Once the relationships between different processes are defined, further space requirements are determined that are required for each process. To develop these, process machinery and required equipment are analyzed. There must be a balance between area requirements and available space.

Then the formation of the space relationship diagram thereby takes place by placing the area that is allotted for each activity on the activity relationship diagram. Below is the criterion on which the closeness among different pairs of departments is based:.

For example, the below letter code indicates the degree of closeness among two departments that are considered a pair:. The below diagram shows the closeness ratings through a special chart termed as REL chart. Once a layout is prepared, then there is a need for evaluation of its efficiency to know how effective it is.

No single measure is suitable alone for this and several measures may be considered for evaluation of layouts. The systematic technique includes an organized approach through which the best layout can be selected. Wherein, through optimization techniques, the best solution can be determined. There is a common technique through which product flow can be measured i. The tool is termed as a travel chart or matrix of load-distance.

This helps in new layout design and layout valuation. April Sherali, Hanif D. Fraticelli, and Russell D. July-August Weiss, Howard J. Production and Operations Management. Allyn and Bacon, Top Stories. Top Videos. Ease of future expansion or change—Facilities should be designed so that they can be easily expanded or adjusted to meet changing production needs. Flexible manufacturing systems most often are highly automated facilities having intermediate-volume production of a variety of products.

Their goal is to minimize changeover or setup times for producing the different products while still achieving close to assembly line single-product production rates.

In the case of factory facilities, the editors of How to Run a Small Business state that "ideally, the plan will show the raw materials entering your plant at one end and the finished product emerging at the other. The flow need not be a straight line. Parallel flows, U-shaped patterns, or even a zig-zag that ends up with the finished product back at the shipping and receiving bays can be functional. However, backtracking is to be avoided in whatever pattern is chosen. When parts and materials move against or across the overall flow, personnel and paperwork become confused, parts become lost, and the attainment of coordination becomes complicated.

Output needs—The facility should be laid out in a way that is conducive to helping the business meet its production needs. Space utilization—This aspect of facility design includes everything from making sure that traffic lanes are wide enough to making certain that inventory storage warehouses or rooms utilize as much vertical space as possible. Shipping and receiving—The J.

Lasser Institute counseled small business owners to leave ample room for this aspect of operations. These factors vary from industry to industry but influence facility layout. These factors are as follows:. Principles which drive design of the facility layout need to take into the consideration objective of facility layout, factors influencing facility layout and constraints of facility layout. These principles are as follows:. Two or Three Dimensional Templates: This technique utilizes development of a scaled-down model based on approved drawings.

Sequence Analysis: This technique utilizes computer technology in designing the facility layout by sequencing out all activities and then arranging them in circular or in a straight line.



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