Abstract
This research investigates the operational planning problem for electronics assembly. The objective is to develop an analytical tool that is capable of performing the operational planning of Printed Circuit Board (PCB) assembly for a defined batch of PCBs such that the total make span is minimized. The assembly system under consideration consists of multiple non-identical placement machines. The operational planning problem is decomposed into three sub- problems. The three sub-problems are Group Formation problem, Cell Formation problem, and Assembly Scheduling problem. Heuristic procedures are developed for the first and third sub-problems, whereas the second sub-problem is modeled as an integer programming problem and is solved optimally. Several test problems are generated randomly and solved using the proposed solution methodology. The results show that the setup time represents a small portion of the total make span (15% on average). The proposed solution methodology is compared to the expected current practices in the industry, and the results show a significant improvement in the total makespan (20% reduction on average).
Awwad, Ghassan Samir (1987). Applying group technology in the operational planning of electronics assembly (multiple machine case). Master's thesis, Texas A&M University. Available electronically from
https : / /hdl .handle .net /1969 .1 /ETD -TAMU -1987 -THESIS -A99.