Mixed model assembly lines (MMAL) are a type of production line where a variety of product models similar in product characteristics are assembled. The effective design of these lines requires that schedule for assembling the different products is determined. In this paper we tried to fit the sequencing problem with the main characteristics of make to order (MTO) environment. The problem solved...

The Alternative Subgraphs Assembly Line Balancing Problem (ASALBP) considers assembly alternatives that determine task processing times and/or precedence relations among the tasks. Capacho and Pastor [3] formalized this problem and developed a mathematical programming model (MILP) in which the assembly alternatives are determined by combining all available processing alternatives of each existi...

The time and space assembly line balancing problem (TSALBP) is a realistic multiobjective version of assembly line balancing industrial problems involving the joint optimization of conflicting criteria such as the cycle time, the number of stations, and the area of these stations. However, the existing problem formulation does not consider the industrial scenario where the demand of a set of mi...

Background: Work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) may involve all parts of the body, and have been a worldwide problem. Employed women are two to five times more likely to report such problems, and assembly lines suspected to induce more WMSDs because of high rate of repetitive motions. Methods: The aim of this study to determine the prevalence of WMSDs in women workers of an automobi...

This paper presents the scientific concerns and some results of the LiMITE – on the Assembly Line: Innovation, Work and Employment – project. Even considering the vast number of experimented industry production technologies, the classic assembly line has proved to be a structuring element within the frame of mass production, whereas known the difficulty to find practical alternative solutions. ...

A shortest-route formulation of the mixed-model assembly line balancing problem is presented. Common tasks across models are assumed to exist and these tasks are performed in the same stations. The formulation is based on an algorithm which solves the single-model version of the problem. The mixed-model system is transformed into a singlemodel system with a combined precedence diagram. The mode...

An interesting empirical result in the assembly line literature states that slightly unbalanced assembly lines (in the format of a bowl with central stations less loaded than the external ones) present higher throughputs than perfectly balanced ones. This effect is known as the bowl phenomenon. In this study, we analyze the presence of this phenomenon in assembly lines with integer task times. ...

Balancing assembly lines, a family of optimization problems commonly known as Assembly Line Balancing Problem, is notoriously NP-Hard. They comprise a set of problems of enormous practical interest to manufacturing industry due to the relevant frequency of this type of production paradigm. For this reason, many researchers on Computational Intelligence and Industrial Engineering have been conce...