PERFORMABILITY OF AUTOMATED MANUFACTURING SYSTEMS WITH CENTRALIZED MATERIAL HANDLING

We present a framework for performance evaluation of manufacturing sys tems subject to failure and repair. In particular, we determine the me an and variance of accumulated production over a specified time frame and show the usefulness of these results in system design and in evalu ating operational policies for manufacturing systems. We extend this a nalysis for lead time as well. A detailed performability study is carr ied out for the generic model of a manufacturing system with centraliz ed material handling. Several numerical results are presented, and the relevance of performability analysis in resolving system design issue s is highlighted. Specific problems addressed include computing the di stribution of total production over a shift period, determining the sh ift length necessary to deliver a given production target with a desir ed probability, and obtaining the distribution of Manufacturing Lead T ime, all in the face of potential subsystem failures.