Application of CORELAP to Redesign the Shop Floor at a Material Handling Equipment Manufacturing Industry

Abstract

Facilities are decisive as they are the most important and valuable assets of an industry. Facilities Planning and Design (FPD) is the tool used in increasing the efficiency of the system and in achieving the needs of the company. For an industry, planning the location of all machines, working areas, offices and any other utilities for smooth and efficient production is very crucial. In addition to the increasing trend towards globalization, the facilities of an organization have to be designed to operate for a fluctuating market. A systematic arrangement of facilities will have a great effect on the productivity and the costs incurred in production. Hence, an effective arrangement of facilities can reduce the total operating expenses of the industry. The chief objective of this paper is to re-design the existing shop floor layout of a material handling equipment manufacturing industry to accommodate seven new machines in its machine shop and to reduce material handling and transportation of workers by designing an optimal layout. This paper analysis helps in designing a layout using the Computerized Relationship Layout Planning (CORELAP) algorithm as FPD tool. An optimal layout is proposed by analyzing the present layout and after thorough identification of the challenges faced in the layout, three alternative layouts are constructed, and the best layout is identified.