Performance Comparison of Cellular Manufacturing Configurations in Different Demand Profiles

Cellular manufacturing systems (CMSs) are an effective response in the economic environment characterized by high variability of market. The aim of this chapter is to compare different configurations of cellular models through the main performance. These configurations are fractal CMS (defined FCMS) and cellular systems with remainder cells (defined RCMS), compared to classical CMS used as a benchmark. FCMSs consist of a cellular system characterized by identical cells each capable of producing all types of parts. RCMSs consist of a classical CMS with an additional cell (remainder cell) that in specific conditions is able to perform all the technological operations. A simulation environment based on Rockwell ARENA® has been developed to compare different configurations assuming a constant mix of demand and different congestion levels. The simulation results show that RCMSs can be a competitive alternative to traditional cells developing opportune methodologies to control the loading of the cells. DOI: 10.4018/978-1-4666-1945-6.ch030