Discrete Event Simulation in Automotive Final Process System

The Final Process System is an important part of the entire quality assurance system in the automobile manufacturing process. Operators and machines perform a series of crucial testing procedures before shipping a vehicle. Many complex factors impact the system throughput. The important ones are first time success rate, repair and service routing logic, process layout, operator staffing, capacity of testing equipment and random equipment breakdown. Discrete Event Simulation is a tool of choice in analyzing these issues in order to develop an effective and efficient process to ensure the system throughput. Using a case study from the automotive industries, this paper discusses the methodology of modeling and studying the Final Process System. The concepts and methods presented here are also applicable to other discrete manufacturing processes.